 Thursday, October 29, 2015 |
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By George Donnelly (@geodonnelly) with Keith Regan
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Today: The Gaming Commission weighs in on fantasy sports
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission was asked to take a look at fantasy sports, and commission chair Stephen Crosby was only too happy to oblige. The commission meets today on the matter, along with other items on the agenda, including an MGM design review, at 10:30am at the Hynes Convention Center, room 312.
It will be interesting to see if this variety of gambling is deemed to be gambling
by the gambling regulators. Crosby said this on "Greater Boston" the other night: "The question is -- are the same factors at play that make us regulate casinos in this business? Are there similarities? I don't know. We haven't thought about it yet. But it's worth thinking it through intellectually, not just assuming that we're going to go out and regulate a new industry." However, regulation of some kind, especially consumer protection, already seems to be the consensus on Beacon Hill. Question for Crosby and Co.: Why wouldn't fantasy sports be deemed just as addictive as slot machines?
As the Globe notes today, federalism lives as it relates to the fantasy sports world. Fifty states and potentially 50 different approaches to fantasy sports, all of which could put a heavy toll on the fantasy sports industry.
Meanwhile, DraftKings CEO Jason Robins took the stage last evening at the annual MassChallenge celebration and expressed how much he loves Massachusetts.http://bit.ly/1NaskJO
Also today: Baker at Greentown
- Senate President Stanley Rosenberg hits the radio airwaves on WGBH's Boston Public Radio, 1:00pm.
- Gov. Baker and Lt. Gov. Polito tour Greentown Labs in Somerville, 2:30pm.
- Mayor Walsh attends the groundbreaking of Emerson College's new student housing facility, which will house 380 students, 120 Boylston St., Boston, 3:00pm.
House Speaker Robert DeLeo receives the 2015 Outstanding Legislator Award at the Associated Subcontractors of Massachusetts Gala. (CLOSED PRESS), Museum of Science, 1 Science Park, Boston, 6:00pm.
DeLeo's real cause for outrage
Yesterday, the Globe published what seemed to be a straight-forward story that contrasted Speaker Bob DeLeo's statements (made in 2010) with testimony that later surfaced in the trial of John O'Brien, the former commissioner of the state Probation Department. In his testimony, DeLeo described himself as basically unaware of the Probation Department's patronage system.
Yesterday, DeLeo attacked the Globe story as a "complete distortion," which is strange given it mostly derived from statements provided under oath, both by DeLeo and at the O'Brien trial. Some of those statements, DeLeo said, were taken out of context.
A high-profile attack of a high-profile story demands a response, so the Globe rehashed the original story today as the paper stood its ground. DeLeo's 2010 testimony certainly is news given that a grand jury reportedly is hearing evidence in the Probation scandal and O'Brien has been grilled by prosecutors about his interactions with legislators.
That the Globe got its hands on the DeLeo's 2010 statements, however, is just as interesting as the testimony the Speaker provided. The leak puts DeLeo, who already was tarnished with the term "unindicted co-conspirator" by federal prosecutors during O'Brien's trial in the summer of 2014, back on the defensive.
If DeLeo has a cause for outrage, it's that someone is using the media to put him on the hot seat after prosecutors lacked the evidence to do so last year. The Globe, however, is only doing its job. DeLeo yesterday on the leak: "I ask that those violations of these Court Orders be investigated by the proper authorities." In David Scharfenberg's follow-up story today, it's not clear who those proper authorities would be. http://bit.ly/1S9Rubu
Debate review: Rubio's night
The consensus is Marco Rubio had a very good night at the debate last night and Jeb Bush already faltering campaign is in deep trouble. The Globe's James Pindell captures the contrast with this great line: "On Wednesday night, Rubio didn't just school Bush in the art of the debate. It was like Rubio was playing a new video game, and Dad walked in the room confused at how the controls worked." More of Pindell's analysis is here: http://bit.ly/1OZNKen
Preparing Jeb Bush's political obituary
The grave is already being dug for Jeb Bush's presidential campaign. No one has done it better than Renee Graham in her Globe op-ed. Here's the lede: "We're nearing the end of Jeb Bush's putrefying presidential ambitions." http://bit.ly/1RCsXLc
Dean endorses Baker's hydro plan
Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean was at the State House yesterday giving a thumbs up to Gov. Baker's plan to import hydropower from Canada. "Dean, who described himself as a 'huge fan' of Hydro-Quebec, said hydropower became 'enormously helpful' to Vermont as a source of baseload power when the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant went offline in 2014," the State House News Service's Matt Murphy reports. http://bit.ly/1RfQoKs (paywall)
Report slams DCF on Baby Bella case
The Department of Children and Families badly mishandled an investigation into the home life of Baby Bella Bond, relying on outdated, "faulty information" and closing the case without involving higher-level mangers, the state's Office of the Child Advocate says, according to the Globe. The report cites mistakes by front-line workers -- including copying-and-pasting of information from old reports -- as well as systemic breakdowns that led to DCF closing the case. The Globe says no DCF workers will lose their jobs as a result, however. http://bit.ly/1kVeq3c
Springfield's welcome wagon for MGM might be full of pitchforks
With top executives from MGM expected to arrive in Springfield today to meet with city officials about the changes they are proposing to their downtown casino project, MassLive reports that MGM has closed its downtown community relations office. MGM says the closure is temporary, and that a new office will open after the first of the year on MGM-controlled property, but coming on the heels of the downsizing of the overall project, the move is seen by some in the city as another PR misstep in how the casino giant is dealing with the city. http://bit.ly/1P7mh8T
UMass faces cuts
New UMass President Marty Meehan plans to meet with the heads of the system's campuses next week to plan ways to cut budgets after the legislature failed to deliver funds to cover collectively bargained raises, MassLive reports. Meehan says the budget at the Amherst campus alone will have to be cut by $5 million since the supplemental budget passed Wednesday failed to include some $10.9 million the system was seeking to cover previously negotiated raises. http://bit.ly/1MVWsUR
Mashpee taps firm to investigate superintendent's home visit
The Mashpee School Committee has hired a private investigation firm to look into the controversial home visit conducted by Superintendent Brian Hyde, the Cape Cod Times reports. Hyde is already facing a Nov. 4 hearing before a clerk magistrate on possible criminal charges, but the committee wants its own investigation and will pay Canton-based Data Quest Ltd. between $75 and $125 an hour to do the work. http://bit.ly/1PSoFC4
Healey: Legislature could ban daily fantasy
Attorney General Maura Healey says her office will make recommendations on how the state should approach daily and weekly fantasy sports operations and one of the options on the table would be an outright ban. Speaking on WGBH radio, Healey reiterated her call for some type of oversight. "Clearly this is an industry that cries out for a regulatory legal framework," she said. http://bit.ly/1PSkKFh
Quincy mayoral candidates raise $10K a day
Already pushing against record spending levels, the Quincy mayoral race continues to draw new money at a breakneck pace, with the two candidates raising $10,000 a day combined over the last two weeks, according to the Patriot Ledger. Incumbent Thomas Koch is leading the last-minute fundraising push, bringing in $111,785 through Wednesday, with challenger William Phelan raising $23,276 during the same two-week period. http://bit.ly/1MVYOms
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