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Presented by JUUL Labs
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GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS.
FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: LAWMAKERS WANT SUPPORT FOR TRANSGENDER TROOPS — Sen. Eric Lesser, Sen. Julian Cyr and Rep. Mindy Domb sent a letter to Gov. Charlie Baker asking him to voice his support for transgender troops serving in the Massachusetts National Guard, despite President Donald Trump's ban on transgender troops serving in the military.
The trio of lawmakers wrote a letter urging the governor to join the existing six states that have issued formal support of transgender troops serving in the National Guard. Those states are California, New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon, Washington and Colorado. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy has also spoken out against Trump's policy.
"We strongly believe that the federal announcement affords us with an opportunity to recommit to our transgender individuals who serve in the National Guard of Massachusetts," the letter says. "We ask that you oppose President Trump's discriminatory ban and publicly support transgender individuals in the National Guard of Massachusetts."
And Baker did just that yesterday, breaking with the Republican president's transgender ban, which went into effect in April.
"I think anybody who wants to serve their country and put themselves in harm's way should be commended and given the opportunity to serve," Baker told reporters yesterday. "We've talked to folks in the Attorney General's office about the order that was issued by the White House and we're gonna see what options are available to us, but I admire anybody who wants to put on the uniform and serve."
The letter was co-signed by the Legislature's LGBTQ Caucus, and 65 lawmakers have signed onto the document. It was written with the GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders, a Massachusetts group that is challenging the transgender military ban in court. Lesser called Baker's comments "great news" yesterday afternoon.
"The legislators who signed onto this would love to see a formal response from him in writing affirming just that, and making clear that the National Guard's policy will be to include transgender members moving forward," Lesser said yesterday.
SOMERVILLE MAYOR TAKING BARSTOOL TO COURT — A fiery argument between Somerville Mayor Joseph Curtatone and Barstool Sports was turned up a notch yesterday when Curtatone announced he's taking the digital media company and its employee Kirk Minihane to court.
Curtatone filed a civil lawsuit against Barstool Sports and Minihane yesterday, alleging the company violated state law when it published audio of an interview between the mayor and Minihane.
"I filed a suit because this conduct is so offensive that it reaches the boundary of professional and journalistic ethics," Curtatone told me yesterday. "My interview was gained under false pretenses."
Curtatone has been critical of a marketing partnership between Barstool Sports and the Bruins over the last several weeks, and threats made by Barstool fans online against a Boston Herald journalist who wrote about that partnership. Curtatone has traded jabs online with Dave Portnoy, the founder of the popular male-focused sports media company that is often criticized for its treatment of women and minorities.
Kirk Minihane, best known as the former host of WEEI's "Kirk and Callahan," was hired by Barstool Sports several weeks ago. Minihane called Curtatone pretending to be Boston Globe columnist Kevin Cullen, and conducted a 20-minute interview, which he later posted on the Barstool website. Cullen declined to comment on the Barstool bait-and-switch yesterday.
Although Minihane asked for Curtatone's permission to record the interview, the mayor alleges that Minihane violated the state's wiretapping laws because he was pretending to be someone else when he asked for that permission.
And neither Curtatone nor Portnoy are mincing words over the dust-up.
"Joe Curtatone is a certified moron and embarrassment to Somerville. Kirk's interview with him just reinforced what a bumbling idiot he is. It's a shame an elected official feels the need to sue his detractors rather than willingly speak with them and defend his slander and lies in public," Portnoy said in a statement to POLITICO.
"It is what it is, if that's their defense," Curtatone said in response to Portnoy's statement. "When someone breaks the law they should answer for it, and this action was sort of disturbing. I felt the need to fight and stand up against it." Curtatone said he's not suing the company for personal gain, and that he would donate any damages awarded to a women's center in the city.
Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Get in touch: smurray@politico.com.
TODAY — Gov. Charlie Baker testifies before the Joint Committee on Revenue. Baker attends the MEMA 2019 All-Hazards Emergency Management Conference, and a MetroWest Chamber of Commerce luncheon. Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito and Rep. David Muradian visit Omni Control Technology. Polito, Senate President Karen Spilka, House Speaker Robert DeLeo and Rep. Liz Malia attend the Massachusetts Unsung Heroines of 2019 Celebration. U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton is interviewed by Business Insider.
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Attend the #WellbeingCity Forum in Montréal: Cities are currently home to more than half the global population, a figure that will soar to 70% within the next thirty years. The NewCities' Wellbeing Cities Forum, held in Montreal on June 19-20, brings together senior leaders and urban experts to explore and collaborate on city-led action to improve urban wellbeing. Guest speakers include Professor Saskia Sassen, Daniel Libeskind, and mayors from around the world. Tickets are available via NewCities here.
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 | ALL ABOARD |
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- "Mayor asks MBTA to postpone fare hike in wake of Red Line derailment; T board says it's too late," by Matt Stout, Martin Finucane and Lauren Fox, Boston Globe: "Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh called Monday for the MBTA to postpone its planned July 1 rate hike until service is back to normal on the Red Line, which has been suffering delays since a derailment last week. "There should be no fare increase until the Red Line is fixed. ... The MBTA must act with urgency and it's unfair to ask riders to pay more until the Red Line is fully operational," Walsh tweeted. But officials at an MBTA board meeting later threw cold water on the idea."
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| DATELINE BEACON HILL |
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- "Clash Over Abortion Expansion, Parental Consent, Puts Pressure On Beacon Hill Moderates," by Mike Deehan, WGBH News: "Both sides of the abortion debate argued their cases during four hours of State House testimony Monday on a bill that would expand abortion access after 24 weeks of pregnancy. But the politics of the bill, and what an eventual law may look like, aren't as cut and dry. If passed, the ROE Act would codify a collection of current medical practices related to abortion in case the 1973 Roe vs. Wade ruling is overturned by the Supreme Court and do away with the state requirement that a minor's parents or a judge consent to an abortion. The bill would also expand access to abortions after 24 weeks of pregnancy by allowing the procedure when a fetus has been diagnosed with a birth defect or anomoly that will prove lethal outside the womb."
- "Gov. Charlie Baker 'concerned' about ROE Act's expansion of abortion access," by Shira Schoenberg, Springfield Republican:"Gov. Charlie Baker, a Republican, on Monday continued to express concerns about a controversial bill that would expand access to abortion, but he avoided the harsh rhetoric of his party's leaders. The Legislature's Judiciary Committee held a hearing Monday on the ROE Act. Among other changes, the bill would remove a requirement that a minor get parental consent or a judge's approval before getting an abortion. It would allow abortion after 24 weeks in the case of a fatal birth defect, expanding current law that only allows abortion after 24 weeks to protect the health or life of the mother."
- "SJC says state agencies should be more open to records requests that are in the public interest," by John R. Ellement, Boston Globe: "The state's high court Monday instructed state agencies to broaden their understanding of the "public interest" when deciding requests under the state's public record law, a ruling that increases the grounds the public can invoke when fighting to get information released to them. The unanimous ruling by the Supreme Judicial Court grew out of a lawsuit filed by the Boston Globe against the Department of Public Health for electronic copies of 4.6 million birth certificates issued between 1953 and 2011 and 2.2 million marriage licenses issued between 1983 and 2013."
- "JANUS, DANGEROUSNESS BILLS ON LEGISLATIVE RADAR," by Katie Lannan, State House News Service: "Expect votes this summer on a dangerousness bill in the House and a bill dealing with union representation of non-members in the Senate, legislative leaders said Monday. House Speaker Robert DeLeo and Senate President Karen Spilka sketched out pieces of their near-term agendas after meeting privately with Gov. Charlie Baker. The House meets in a formal session Wednesday, when representatives will likely pass a bill prohibiting the performance of appraisal management services by someone who has not registered with the board of real estate appraisers (H 1114) and a bill that would allow hemp to be grown on land with an agricultural preservation restriction (H 3535)."
- "SENATE IN RECEIPT OF INFO IN BRADY CASE," by Colin A. Young, State House News Service: "The Senate president's office now has the information about Sen. Michael Brady's drunken driving plea that it's been waiting for and the Senate could decide "soon" whether to open its own investigation. Brady, a Brockton Democrat, struck a plea deal about two weeks ago to avoid a trial and resolve 14-month-old drunk driving charges. Brady admitted that the state had sufficient evidence to convict him, agreeing to forfeit his license for 45 days and enroll in an alcohol education program. If he completes the program and stays out of trouble for a year, the remaining charge of operating under the influence will be dismissed, and he will have avoided a conviction."
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A message from JUUL Labs:
Youth vaping is a problem. We're taking action. No youth or non-nicotine user should ever try JUUL products. We've taken a series of actions to greatly reduce youth use of tobacco products, including our own. Learn more about our youth prevention efforts: JUUL.com/youth-prevention
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| EYE ON 2020 |
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- "Sanders Will Still Be A Contender Come January; Plus, The Odds On Everyone Else," by David S. Bernstein, WGBH News:"In a crowded Presidential nominating field lacking a strong frontrunner, many—if not most—early primary and caucus voters don't really decide on their vote until they perceive a final group of what might be called "Serious Conversation" choices. That is, five to eight candidates who seem to be real, viable options, based on polling, media coverage, high-profile endorsements, and local or advertising presence. Others may have dropped out, or be sticking it out with all hope gone; but by January 2020 just a half-dozen or so will stand out as the real options for voters in Iowa, New Hampshire, and beyond."
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| FROM THE HUB |
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- "Why have these buildings sat empty for years and even decades?" by Tim Logan, Boston Globe: "All over town, buildings sit empty, somehow unused despite a fierce shortage of housing and a long-running development boom that has transformed long-quiet patches of the city into hot property. They're downtown, and in torrid corners of Cambridge, tucked among brownstones on Commonwealth Avenue and holding down prime spots in neighborhoods across the city. Some are better kept than others. Some have more prestigious addresses. But each is a puzzle unto its own."
- "Stop & Shop president Mark McGowan is stepping down," by Nik DeCosta-Klipa, Boston.com: "After nearly three decades with the company, Stop & Shop President Mark McGowan is moving on. Ahold Delhaize, the Quincy-based grocery chain's Dutch parent company, announced Monday afternoon that McGowan has decided to leave the organization. Stop and Shop spokeswoman Jen Brogan said that McGowan is not retiring, but "felt it was time to pursue new opportunities." At the request of the company, he will stay with Stop & Shop through the end of the year to 'ensure a seamless transition.'"
- "Designing a neighborhood from scratch: The stakes are high at Suffolk Downs," by Tim Logan, Boston Globe: "Not much is going on at Suffolk Downs these days. There's one more weekend of racing at the 84-year-old horse track, and a trickle of gamblers still bet on out-of-town races. Otherwise, the place has cleared out — from its vast parking lots to the grandstands to the grass oval. But if things go as planned, the 161-acre site, where East Boston meets Revere, would be a whole new neighborhood, a grid of housing and office space with roughly the population of the Back Bay."
- "Walsh announces program to provide free menstrual products in Boston schools, but some say it doesn't go far enough," by Ysabelle Kempe, Boston Globe: "Mayor Martin J. Walsh has taken a stance in the fight for accessible menstrual products, rolling out a pilot program providing free tampons and pads to all 77 Boston Public Schools serving students in grades 6 through 12. While touted as a step forward by Walsh and Interim Boston Public School Superintendent Laura Perille, some have already criticized the attempt as inadequate. The $100,000 investment is part of Walsh's budget for fiscal year 2020, resubmitted Monday to the Boston City Council. The program goes into effect this fall."
- "Harvard rescinds admission to Parkland survivor Kyle Kashuv," by Emily Sweeney, Boston Globe: "A survivor of the Parkland shooting announced Monday that Harvard College rescinded his admission due to racist comments that he made nearly two years ago. Kyle Kashuv took to Twitter Monday morning and announced the news in a series of tweets, in which he stated that "Harvard's faculty has included slave owners, segregationists, bigots and antisemites." Kashuv, who became known as a gun rights activist after surviving the shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., on Feb. 14, 2018, issued an apology in May after screenshots of racist slurs that he allegedly wrote when he was 16 surfaced. But apparently his apology and explanation of what transpired was not enough to save his seat at Harvard."
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| ON THE STUMP |
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- "Shannon Liss-Riordan receives first labor endorsements from six unions in her bid for U.S. Senate," from the Liss-Riordan campaign: "Shannon Liss-Riordan, Democrat running for the U.S. Senate, received the first labor endorsements of the 2020 campaign for U.S. Senate in Massachusetts. The endorsements come from members of the IBEW System Council T-6 which include IBEW Local 2222, IBEW Local 2321, IBEW Local 2322, IBEW Local 2323, IBEW Local 2324, and IBEW Local 2325."
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| DAY IN COURT |
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- "Man who allegedly paid suspects in David Ortiz shooting is identified in court documents," by Maria Cramer, Aimee Ortiz, Travis Andersen and Jeremy C. Fox, Boston Globe: "Prosecutors in the Dominican Republic have identified the man who allegedly arranged to pay the people charged in the shooting of David Ortiz, the retired Red Sox legend who survived the attack in his native Santo Domingo earlier this month. New court documents said Alberto Miguel Rodríguez Mota planned to provide the money — $7,800, according to authorities. Mota, who is not in custody, is charged with attempted murder."
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| WARREN REPORT |
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- "Elizabeth Warren Is Completely Serious," by Emily Bazelon, New York Times Magazine: "The first time I met Elizabeth Warren, she had just come home from a walk with her husband and her dog at Fresh Pond, the reservoir near her house in Cambridge, Mass. It was a sunny day in February, a couple of weeks after Warren announced her candidacy for president, and she was wearing a navy North Face jacket and black sneakers with, as usual, rimless glasses and small gold earrings. Her hair had drifted a bit out of place."
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| TRUMPACHUSETTS |
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- "Impeachment question splits politicians," by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: "Sen. Elizabeth Warren is making the case for impeaching Republican President Donald Trump, even as she seeks the Democratic nomination to challenge his re-election next year. Warren, the first of a crowded field of Democratic presidential candidates to call for Trump's impeachment, doubled down on her position Wednesday following an ABC News interview in which Trump said he would listen to an offer for information about a political opponent from a foreign government."
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| MARIJUANA IN MASSACHUSETTS |
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- "'I've never experienced anything like this': Haverhill marijuana entrepreneur accuses neighbors of extortion," by Dan Adams, Boston Globe: "A Haverhill marijuana entrepreneur is suing two local businessmen, saying their efforts to block her proposed downtown cannabis shop amount to extortion. Caroline Pineau, a longtime Haverhill resident who has operated a yoga studio in the city for more than eight years, signed a contract with local officials earlier this year to open a recreational marijuana store dubbed Stem at 124 Washington St., along the Merrimack River. But Stavros Dimakis, the owner of a deli across the street, along with Lloyd Jennings and Brad Brooks, the owners of a building and restaurant adjacent to Pineau's proposed site, sued Pineau and the city in May."
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| MOULTON MATTERS |
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- "Moulton says he'll still stand out, despite not being invited to debate," by Adam Sexton, WMUR: "A Democratic presidential candidate who didn't qualify for the big debates next week campaigned Monday in New Hampshire and said he still plans to stand out. U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., is one of three presidential candidates who didn't meet the Democratic National Committee criteria to make the debate stage, but he said there's a lot of time on the campaign trail to show what no one can measure: leadership."
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| ABOVE THE FOLD |
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— Herald: "TRASH TALK," "TRUMP VS. EVERYBODY," — Globe :"Iran threatens to break nuclear deal limit," "Walsh, T in dustup over fare increases." |
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A message from JUUL Labs:
We're combating the problem of underage vaping by: Advocating for raising the legal age to purchase our products to 21+ nationwide. Stopping the sale of non-tobacco and non-menthol based flavored JUULpods to traditional retail stores. Enhancing our online age verification process. Strengthening our retail compliance program with over 2,000 secret shopper visits per month. Shutting down our Facebook and Instagram accounts and working to remove inappropriate social media content generated by others on those platforms. And investing in new technologies to further prevent youth use. JUUL.com/youth-prevention |
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| FROM THE 413 |
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- "MGM Springfield reports May revenue; still trailing pre-opening predictions," by Jim Kinney, Springfield Republican: "MGM Springfield reported gross gambling revenue in May of $22.285 million, a 2.14 % increase from the $21.8 million in gross gambling revenue the casino reported in April. The modest increase comes as the downtown Springfield casino launched new entertainment offerings designed to boost business. The $21.8 million in gross gambling revenue in April had been a 15% decrease from March when the casino reported $25.7 million in gross gaming revenue. But March 2019 was a month with five weekends."
- "Springfield City Council approves $450,000 for police brutality settlement," by Peter Goonan, Springfield Republican: "The City Council on Monday approved spending $450,000 to resolve a police brutality case in which a jury previously ruled the city was "deliberately indifferent to the civil rights of its citizens." The payment to Lee Hutchins Sr. follows a successful lawsuit in U.S. District Court in which he accused police of using excessive force during a domestic disturbance. The Boston jury awarded $250,000 to Hutchins in February, and he filed a subsequent claim for more than $200,000 in attorneys' fees and trial-related costs."
MAZEL! to ABC "'World News Tonight" anchor David Muir, who was honored with the 2019 Governors' Award, an Emmy, from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences New England chapter on Saturday in Boston.
TRANSITIONS - Erin D. Bradley was named executive director of the Massachusetts Women's Political Caucus.
HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY - to Here & Now digital producer Jack Mitchell, who celebrated Sunday. (h/t Serena McMahon).
DID THE HOME TEAM WIN? Yes! The Red Sox beat the Twins 2-0.
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