Carmen Ortiz has never held an elected office. Her time in politics was appointed.

She was gunning for political office (governor of Massachusetts).

She gunned herself.

Unfortunately, taking Aaron Swartz, and others, with her.

She's not tough on crime. She's just pro copyright racketeering for big publishers.

Don't judge the entire country by what happens in Massachusetts.

I think that statement would indeed apply to a majority of politicians in the US, on both sides.

Ortiz was a U.S. attorney, not a Massachusetts state attorney.

Thankfully enough other states contribute to whatever negative impression someone might get of the entire country.

We don’t seem to have a clue in the world what we really want.

What kind of crime? Do U.S. voters like politicians who can show they are tough on people download ebooks? I never heard of that.

The kind of voters he’s talking about won’t make that distinction

I don’t think so. When people say tough on crime , it always means certain kind of crimes. Definitely not downloading ebooks or music, etc.

Actually I would say yes, it means that type of crime as well for certain people. When US politicians say they are "tough on crime" they mean "You are scared and you are angry about it, so I will hurt those people who make you scared and you will respect me for it. You won't feel less scared or angry, but you shall feel vindicated for feeling this way."

Tell someone that they are not getting a payrise this year because some punk downloaded an ebook and now the company is on the brink of bankruptcy (whether or not it is true). "Tough on crime" is a reference to who the politician is willing to hurt - it has nothing to do with criminal activity itself.