Massachusetts state income taxes are due today, after a four-day extension for the celebration of Emancipation Day in Washington D.C. (Friday, April 15) and Patriots' Day in Massachusetts (Monday, April 18).
| Today's News |
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| The backstage battle for delegates |
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At this point, anything less than overwhelming victories in New York’s primary elections today would be disappointing for Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton. But assuming Trump and Clinton handily win in New York, what next? There are more primaries and delegates to pick up. Yet, the real battle being waged, at least on the Republican side, is taking place behind the election curtains.
The New York Times has a great story about how veterans of the contested 1976 GOP convention – which pitted Gerald Ford against Ronald Reagan – are being drafted back into service. From the report by the NYT’s Jeremy Peters: “Political campaigns are often viewed as a young person’s game, especially in an era in which digitally savvy, data-fixated strategists track the behavior of millions of voters nationwide and target them with increasing sophistication and precision. But this year, as Republicans face the prospect of a contested convention, the party is turning to its oldest hands, who learned how to fight over delegates using walkie-talkies, loose-leaf notebooks and quick-footed young pages.”
Meanwhile, the Globe’s Jim O’Sullivan reports that Trump may have won big in the Massachusetts GOP primary in March, but Ted Cruz may end up picking up a plurality of state GOP delegates after the first convention vote. In true Frank Underwood fashion, Cruz, who came in a pathetic fourth place in Massachusetts, is hustling and knows what it takes to win. Trump? He’s too busy throwing juvenile fits on stage while the action is backstage. |
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| Would four-year city council terms really protect incumbents? |
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OK, they may have strong ties to certain members of the Boston City Council. But James Sutherland and James Chisholm argue that a proposal to extend council terms from two years to four years is not an incumbent-protection scam as portrayed by critics and the media. In fact, four-year terms could lead to increased competition and more broad-based representation and interest in races, they argue. Their points are well made. But count us among the non-convinced. Does anyone really believe council members are doing this to make themselves more politically vulnerable?
CommonWealth
| The MBTA fining other agencies for poor service? |
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State officials are eyeing a new contract with Amtrak that would include provisions allowing the MBTA to fine the federally subsidized passenger train service for poor maintenance of its equipment that leads to delays in T commuter service, the Globe’s Nicole Dungca reports. The state’s move comes after problems with an Amtrak-owned signal system near South Station delayed or canceled dozens of MBTA commuter trains on Sunday. Somewhere in the brain, the phrase “pot calling the kettle black” rattles around.
Boston Globe |
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| Report: Baker’s local focus could clear 2018 field |
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Boosting local funding and supporting measures to streamline municipal government has helped Gov. Charlie Baker build a strong base of support among city and town leaders of all political stripes and it could serve to keep potential challengers on the sidelines come 2018, according to a report from Salem News Statehouse reporter Christian Wade.
Salem News
| Pulitzers: Big congrats to Farah Stockman and Jessica Rinaldi of the Globe |
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Only weeks after departing the Boston Globe for the NYT, Farah Stockman yesterday was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for her opinion pieces about Boston after busing, all of them written while she was at the Globe. Meanwhile, Globe photographer Jessica Rinaldi won a Pulitzer for her stunning feature photos of the life of a child in poverty. Their columns and photos can be viewed at the Pulitzer’s main web page. Congratulations to both Stockman and Rinaldi.
Pulitzer.org |
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| Greater Boston’s incredible construction boom, by the numbers |
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During and immediately after the recent recession, the construction industry was one of the hardest hit sectors within the US economy. The building trades fared no better in Massachusetts. But today? The state’s construction industry employed more than 150,000 people in March, up 12 percent over last year and making it the third fastest-growing construction market in the nation, reports the Boston Business Journal’s Catherine Carlock. Rhode Island is also doing especially well. Very impressive and very welcome numbers.
BBJ |
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| Despite his book’s flaws, Dan Lyons’ ‘Disrupted’ does raise important issues |
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BostInno’s Dylan Martin knows that Dan Lyons’ much-hyped book ‘Disrupted,’ which chronicles his year working at the absurdly uber-hip HubSpot in Cambridge, is more than a little unfair and flawed. But he says Lyons succeeded in making his points. “One of Lyons’ big goals for the book is to use his time working at HubSpot—first as a ‘marketing fellow’ and then eventually, as his tenure continued to make twists and turns, a podcast producer—to illustrate what he sees as bigger problems in the tech industry: ageism, an obsession with hiring young workers to save on labor costs, IPOs that disproportionately benefit executives and investors while leaving little for employees and a focus on hyper-growth over profitability."
BostInno
| Teachers Union hits pay study |
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The Boston Teachers Union is seeking to throw cold water on a new report showing that Hub teachers are paid well above their counterparts nationwide, Jack Encarnacao of the Herald reports. In its $100,000 study, Education Resource Strategies said Boston teachers receive an average of about $88,000 in salary and $18,000 in benefits, well above the cities it used for comparison, which includes places such as Buffalo, New Haven and Syracuse. BTU President Richard Stutman “likened the study to a push poll, a biased survey that spreads negative propaganda about
the opposition,” the Herald reports.
Boston Herald |
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| You’ve got a challenger |
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Many legislators statewide will be learning in the coming weeks if they’ll face a challenge in this fall’s elections. On Monday, Rep. Nicholas Boldyga found out he’s among those who will be campaigning for real. According to MassLive’s Conor Berry, Agawam City Councilor Richard M. Theroux, a Democrat, announced his plans to challenge Republican Boldyga for the 3rd Hampden District seat he holds.
MassLive
| Beekeepers buzzing over pesticide plan |
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Bay State beekeepers continue to be abuzz over the state’s draft plan to protect honey bees and other pollinators, Gary Tucci reports in The Enterprise. Many beekeepers believe the plan, on which the state is collecting public input until the end of the month, does not go far enough to limit pesticide use.
The Enterprise |
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| Worcester’s latest claim to fame: Home to the last major horseshoe manufacturer in U.S. |
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Worcester may be home to UMass Medical School, Clark University, Holy Cross College and other institutions. But did you know that it’s also home to the last major horseshoe manufacturer in the country? Indeed it is, reports MassLive’s Michael D. Kane. The company: St. Pierre Manufacturing.
MassLive
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