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GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Happy Monday!
MARKEY'S NUMBERS — Sen. Ed Markey has one of the highest Senate approval ratings in the country. But as he faces what's likely to be the toughest race of his career, almost a quarter of Massachusetts voters still don't have an opinion on him.
Markey has a 51 percent approval rating, and only 25 percent of voters disapprove of him, according to a quarterly poll released by Morning Consult. That puts Markey among the top 10 highest-rated senators.
Still, 24 percent of voters surveyed said they have no opinion on the Malden Democrat, which is fairly high compared to other senators, and it comes as Markey faces Rep. Joe Kennedy III and attorney Shannon Liss-Riordan in a tough Democratic primary battle. Before Kennedy officially entered the race, a Boston Globe/Suffolk University poll conducted over Labor Day weekend found him beating Markey by 14 percentage points in a head-to-head match-up.
Markey's numbers haven't moved much since Morning Consult's last quarterly survey, which was released in July. Markey had a 53 percent approval rating, 23 percent of voters surveyed disapproved of him, and 24 percent had no opinion at that time.
Far fewer voters declined to take a stance in the same poll when it came to Sen. Elizabeth Warren. Warren is a more polarizing figure than Markey — her approval rating was close to his at 49 percent this quarter, but her disapproval rating is nearly twice as high as Markey's at 41 percent. Only 10 percent of those surveyed said they have no opinion of Warren.
Morning Consult surveyed 10,731 registered voters throughout the third quarter of the year, which began July 1 and ended Sept. 30. During that time, Markey gained Rep. Joe Kennedy III as a primary opponent, increased his campaign schedule and digital ad presence, upped his overall campaign spending by $280,000 over the previous quarter, and released a trove of endorsements from lawmakers and environmental groups. His numbers didn't budge.
So what will move the needle? I asked Markey at press conference on Saturday afternoon, where he announced an endorsement from the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA.
"People in the state who right now aren't casting their ballots one year before this Senate election are going to know everything about me," Markey told me. "And that's going to just reduce and reduce and reduce the number of people who are in a position to make a decision about the Senate race."
"And I believe that something like this, the press conference that I'm having with the flight attendants, is something that's going to help, again, inform those voters who haven't decided yet to move into my camp," Markey continued. "And it's going to happen on issue, after issue, after issue. And by the time we reach Primary Day next September, I'm fully confident that the voters of our state will know what I've done on their behalf."
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, Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito and Rep. Joe Kennedy III attend a STEM Week kickoff celebration at the Museum of Science. Baker, Polito, state Senate President Karen Spilka and state House Speaker Robert DeLeo hold a leadership meeting.
Kennedy and Suffolk County Sheriff Steve Tompkins tour Roca and make an announcement in Chelsea. Kennedy speaks at Dearborn Academy in Newton. New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker holds a happy hour for his presidential campaign at Game On! In Boston. Boston Mayor Marty Walsh visits Boston Latin Academy for STEM week. Walsh speaks at a groundbreaking event for the Elizabeth Stone House.
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POLITICO's ENERGY PODCAST sponsored by Chevron: A new, daily five-minute update on the latest in energy and environmental politics and policy ― must-know stories and candid insights from POLITICO's 10-person energy team and journalists across our newsroom. Ways to listen: Via your email ― click the link in the POLITICO Morning Energy newsletter, or subscribe for free ― click here and follow the link for your podcast player.
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 | DATELINE BEACON HILL |
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- "Baker Bill Requires Targeted Health Care Investments," by Colin A. Young, State House News Service: "Health care providers and insurers would be required to boost their spending on addiction services, behavioral health, primary care and geriatric services by 30 percent over the next three years under a sweeping health care bill that Gov. Charlie Baker filed Friday afternoon. The governor's bill, which also seeks to help "distressed" community hospitals and community health centers, marks the first volley in what is likely to be a months-long effort on Beacon Hill to overhaul the state's health care laws after last session's attempts collapsed at the end of formal legislative business ."
- "Sen. Collins, Rep. Biele file bill to expand Boston Convention & Exhibition Center," by Katie Trojano, Dorchester Reporter: "State Senator Nick Collins and Rep. David Biele filed legislation to advance an expansion of the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center (BCEC) in South Boston. The expansion is intended to consolidate the city's major convention business in one dynamic location to ensure that Boston continues to be a major global event destination. The language also includes a marketing program that incentivizes participation of women, minorities, veterans, LGBT persons, and individuals with disabilities in all phases of the development."
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| FROM THE HUB |
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- "'Ghost guns' made from kits are untraceable — and legal," by Gal Tziperman Lotan, Boston Globe: "The Boston drug control officers spotted their target on a Wednesday morning earlier this month, heading toward Blue Hill Avenue in a gray Honda Accord. They pulled the 26-year-old over and, armed with a search warrant, took him back to his apartment in Dorchester. Once inside, they asked the man if he had any weapons. Shoulders slumped, he looked to the floor. In the bottom of a china cabinet, behind some plates, the officers found a semiautomatic handgun that had been bought in pieces and assembled into a working weapon. On the other side of the cabinet, they found a magazine with seven 9mm bullets ."
- "Boston's most unusual council race is between a Democrat and a Republican," by Milton J. Valencia, Boston Globe: "One of the candidates is a housing and social justice advocate, a Harvard College graduate with a PhD in political thought and intellectual history from one of England's most prestigious universities. The other is chief executive of a political action coalition to support women in government, a lawyer, single mom of three girls, and the former chairwoman of the Massachusetts Republican Party. The surprise matchup between 30-year-old Kenzie Bok and 48-year-old Jennifer Nassour in the Boston City Council district that stretches from Beacon Hill to Mission Hill may be the most unusual local contest next month."
- "Racially charged question prompts MCAS retake," by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: " Scores of high school students can retake a portion of last year's MCAS exam after state education officials voided a controversial question that some deemed racially insensitive. Students taking the English language arts exam as 10th graders last year were asked to write an essay from the perspective of a white woman hiding an escaped slave. The question was based on a 17-paragraph passage from the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel "The Underground Railroad," by Colson Whitehead."
- "Harvard Square's Out Of Town News Gets a Second Chance as a Community Space," by Cristina Quinn, WGBH News: "Harvard Square's Out of Town News will get a new tenant this winter. The local nonprofit CultureHouse announced Friday that it reached an agreement with the city of Cambridge to move in after the kiosk closes up shop, which is anticipated at the end of the month. CultureHouse will turn the famed kiosk into a public gathering pop-up space ahead of the Harvard Square plaza's redevelopment project, slated to begin in late spring or early summer 2020."
- "A Burst Of Red At Boston City Hall For First-Ever National Period Day," by Kaya Williams, WGBH News: "Carrying signs like "Periods are not a luxury," some dressed in scarlet and crimson, a group of activists gathered on Saturday afternoon in front of Boston City Hall to push for accessibility to menstrual products. Boston's gathering was one of 50 rallies scheduled across the United States this weekend for what is being touted as the first-ever National Period Day, meant to tackle the often taboo topic of menstruation and to advocate for better access to period products for low-income women."
- "Two weeks in, Marty Walsh's 'Methadone Mile' plan yet to show dividends," by Stefan Geller, Boston Herald: "Two weeks after Mayor Martin Walsh announced his plan to address issues of widespread homelessness and drug abuse along Massachusetts Avenue in the South End — also known as "Methadone Mile" — business owners and local residents are unsure the plan actually works. "There's not much of a difference," said Sal Teixeira, a South End resident who also works along Mass. Ave."
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| PRIMARY SOURCES |
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- "Candidates for Joe Kennedy's House seat make cases to voters in Brookline," by John Hilliard, Boston Globe: "The six Democrats running to succeed US Representative Joseph Kennedy III appeared together for the first time Sunday, making the case for their campaigns while sharing the goal of helping defeat President Trump next year. The six candidates — Jesse Mermell, Ihssane Leckey, Alan Khazei, and Dave Cavell, all of Brookline, along with Newton city councilors Becky Walker Grossman and Jake Auchincloss — appeared during a Brookline Democratic Town Committee event at the home of State Treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg."
- "Senate candidates differ somewhat on filibuster," by Sarah Betancourt, CommonWealth Magazine: "THE THREE DEMOCRATIC contenders for US Senate may not differ significantly on most major issues, but on the practical question of how to accomplish their legislative goals there is some daylight between them. Rep. Joe Kennedy III and labor attorney Shannon Liss-Riordan favor doing away with the requirement that 60 votes are needed to end a filibuster, while Sen. Ed Markey has traditionally supported retaining the existing system. When pressed, Markey acknowledged the difficulty the current filibuster rules have caused and said eliminating the filibuster should be among a number of items on the table if the Democrats take control of the Senate and the White House."
- "Sen. Ed Markey endorsed by state Auditor Suzanne Bump, State Sen. Jo Comerford and Northampton Mayor David Narkewicz," by Benjamin Kail, MassLive.com: "Massachusetts Auditor Suzanne Bump, Democratic State Sen. Jo Comerford of Northampton and Northampton Mayor David Narkewicz have endorsed incumbent Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey. The trio of endorsements, announced Sunday afternoon outside Northampton City Hall, come as Markey faces primary challengers U.S. Rep. Joe Kennedy and labor attorney Shannon Liss-Riordan."
- "Rep. Neal far outraising challenger Morse," by Dusty Christensen, Daily Hampshire Gazette: "New filings show that in the contested U.S. House race in the 1st Congressional District, longtime incumbent Richard Neal has raised almost three times as much money as his Democratic challenger, Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse. Quarterly Federal Election Commission filings show Neal raised $619,082 from July 1 through Sept. 30. Of that total, 63 percent came from political action committees, or PACs. Morse, who raised $216,955, has criticized Neal for taking corporate PAC money and received all of his own contributions from individual donors."
- MEANWHILE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE: "Republican Bill Weld to New Hampshire Democrats: Vote for me in primary," by Rick Sobey, Boston Herald: "Republican presidential candidate Bill Weld is beefing up his New Hampshire campaign and urging Democrats there to re-register as "Undeclared" by Friday — so Granite State Dems can vote for him in the nation's first primary against President Trump. The former Massachusetts governor, after shaking hands Saturday at the Pumpkin Festival in Laconia, N.H., told the Herald his campaign is doing "everything we can to expand the electorate" for the Feb. 11 New Hampshire primary. "The more the merrier," Weld said."
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| THE OPINION PAGES |
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- "The case for 'Environmental Justice Corridor' train service," by state Sen. Brendan Crighton and Reps. Daniel Cahill, Peter Capano, Lori Ehrlich and Donald Wong: "FOR THOSE OF us who have long fought for transformative policies to bring the Massachusetts transportation system into the 21st century, the recent CommonWealth opinion piece by former transportation secretary Jim Aloisi and former Senate president Stan Rosenberg was music to our ears. As the elected officials who make up Lynn's legislative delegation, we couldn't agree more that we can no longer afford piecemeal, incremental approaches to our transportation woes. We need to act big and we need to act now."
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| THE VAPING SALES BAN |
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- "Medical pot users sign onto vaping ban lawsuit," by Christian M. Wade, The Salem News: "Medical marijuana patients want to join a lawsuit against Gov. Charlie Baker's vaping ban, arguing the restrictions are keeping them from their medicine. On Friday, lawyers for four medical marijuana patients, including veteran pot advocate Will Luzier, asked a Suffolk Superior Court judge to join a case filed by the Vapor Technology Association on behalf of several retailers."
- "Health Commissioner Defends Broad Vaping Ban As Court Weighs Challenges," by Paul Singer, WGBH News: "Massachusetts Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel took the stand in state court Friday to defend the state's emergency ban on vaping products, saying it is still uncertain what products are making people sick. Vaping companies have challenged the ban in Suffolk Superior Court, saying the overwhelming majority of lung illnesses have been caused by an oil connected to THC-based products — the active ingredient in marijuana — and not nicotine-based products. Judge Douglas Wilkins said he will rule Monday morning on their request for an injunction to lift the ban."
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| WARREN REPORT |
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- "'It's not like she hates lobbyists': Warren's Senate record doesn't match her campaign rhetoric," by Theodoric Meyer, POLITICO: "Elizabeth Warren has proposed outlawing foreign governments from hiring lobbyists if elected. She's pledged to tax "excessive lobbying" at rates as high as 75 percent. And in a speech in New York last month, she described lobbying as an "industry whose sole purpose is to undermine democracy and tilt every decision in favor of those who can pay." Even in a Democratic presidential field in which most candidates have sworn off contributions from lobbyists, Warren's hostility to K Street stands out. But while Warren's campaign rhetoric has made the influence industry nervous, many lobbyists who've worked with the Massachusetts senator's office say she's far from antagonistic when it comes to doing business with K Street."
- "Warren says she'll release 'plan' to pay for Medicare for All," by Alex Thompson, POLITICO: "Days after 2020 rivals accused her of not being candid on how she would pay for Medicare-for-All, Sen. Elizabeth Warren told a crowd at a town hall that she would be rolling out a plan "over the next few weeks" detailing how she would pay for the plan. "Right now the cost estimates for Medicare for All vary by trillions and trillions of dollars and the different revenue stream for how to fund it, there are a lot of," the Massachusetts Democrat told a crowd in Indianola, Iowa, on Sunday at a town hall."
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| DATELINE D.C. |
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- "This Sure Looks Like Mitt Romney's Secret Twitter Account," by Ashley Feinberg, Slate: "Earlier today, the Atlantic's McKay Coppins published a lengthy profile on Mitt Romney, apparently part of Romney's effort to set himself up as the noble Republican foil to an out-of-control president. These sorts of pieces, which are more about narrative setting than anything else, typically don't contain a lot of new information, but this had one notable exception. About midway through, the usually guarded senator revealed that, just like fellow lone-voice-of reason-haver James Comey, he was the owner of a secret Twitter account."
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| IT'S NOT EASY BEING GREEN |
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- "Smith College will divest from fossil fuels within 15 years," by Jacquelyn Voghel, Daily Hampshire Gazette: "The Smith College board of trustees voted Friday to divest 100 percent of its fossil fuel investments within 15 years. The vote comes following years of student demands for divestment. After the board's announcement, more than 100 members of the Smith community and other advocacy organizations gathered in front of Pierce Hall for a rally to recognize the milestone and call for continued action from the college."
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| ABOVE THE FOLD |
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— Herald: "PRIDE'S PUCK," "NOTEL!" — Globe: "For college, a $75m testament of faith," "Mulvaney retreating from quote on Ukraine." |
| THE LOCAL ANGLE |
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- "As debate over gun control wears on, more and more South Shore residents are getting licensed," by Joe DiFazio, The Patriot Ledger: "In 20 communities south of Boston, the number of licenses issued from 2013 to 2018 was almost 50 percent higher than the number issued in the six years prior. In 2009, 10 people were issued gun licenses in Hull, a town with a population of a little more than 10,000. By 2017, the number of licenses issued in the town had shot up to 109. Hull isn't alone. Across two presidential administrations representing both parties, endless gun control debates and countless mass shootings, more and more people on the South Shore have sought gun licenses."
MAZEL! to Elizabeth Warren field organizer Cassidy Ballard, who was honored as a rising star by the Greater Lowell Area Democrats on Sunday morning.
ALSO MAZEL! to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum , which celebrated its 40th anniversary over the weekend. The JFK Library opened on Oct. 20, 1979. Link.
WEEKEND WEDDING - Griffin Doherty, director of federal affairs for the New England Council, and Megan Campbell , associate for workplace strategy at Unispace, got married at Saint Patrick's Catholic Church in Kilkenny, Ireland on Oct. 12. Doherty previously worked for the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy and former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY - to POLITICO's Kyle Cheney, who celebrated Saturday.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY - to the Dorchester Reporter's Daniel Sheehan, Erik Bruun, Sam Hiersteiner and Megan Murray.
FOR YOUR RADAR: FROM THE MASS. DEPT. OF PUBLIC HEALTH - "With the arrival of flu season comes a recommendation from the Department of Public Health to prevent the spread of flu by getting vaccinated." Link.
FOR YOUR COMMUTE: WU TRAIN PLAN - On this week's Horse Race podcast, Steve Koczela and I break down the latest Democratic presidential debate. We speak with Boston City Councilor Michelle Wu about her proposal to scrap the BPDA, and Steve talks about Gov. Charlie Baker's ban on vaping sales with Allyson Perron of the American Heart Association. Subscribe and listen on iTunes and Sound Cloud.
Want to make an impact? POLITICO Massachusetts has a variety of solutions available for partners looking to reach and activate the most influential people in the Bay State. Have a petition you want signed? A cause you're promoting? Seeking to increase brand awareness among this key audience? Share your message with our influential readers to foster engagement and drive action. Contact Jesse Shapiro to find out how: jshapiro@politico.com.
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