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GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS.
SCOOP: BUTTIGIEG IS COMING BACK TO BOSTON — Pete Buttigieg is coming back to Boston.
The South Bend, Ind. mayor will hold a fundraiser on Dec. 3 in downtown Boston, his campaign confirmed to me last night. The fundraiser comes just two months before the Iowa caucuses, meaning candidates will be in the home stretch before the Democratic contest officially begins. Buttigieg has surged to first place in Iowa, according to a series of recent polls.
By coming to Boston, Buttigieg is stepping on the home turf of fellow leading candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren, and the newest entry into the Democratic presidential field: former Gov. Deval Patrick. But Buttigieg has had a strong Massachusetts backing for months — he has has raised well over a million dollars from donors here since his first visit in the spring. Bryan Rafanelli, a top Democratic donor, even flew a Buttigieg campaign flag at his Provincetown home over the summer.
Buttigieg has been to Boston a number of times over the course of his campaign. He did a jam-packed event at Northeastern University just as he started to gain popularity, and has held a number of grassroots fundraisers here and on Cape Cod.
Looking at the calendar, the fundraiser is likely to be one of Buttigieg's final New England events of the year. Rafanelli will host the event, according to a source close to the campaign. The reception is planned for 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m., though it's not yet clear where the event will be held.
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 is in Florida for a Republican Governors Association conference. Acting Gov. Karyn Polito holds events in Provincetown, Truro, Harwich Port and Brewster. Boston Mayor Marty Walsh attends the City To City conference. The House meets in formal session.
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 | DATELINE BEACON HILL |
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- "Epic traffic paralyzes the region as gridlock grips the halls of power," Boston Globe Spotlight Team: "Gazing optimistically into the future, Mayor John B. Hynes declared on June 25, 1959, that the opening of the Southeast Expressway ushered in "a better Boston." A freeway that could handle 50,000 cars a day, he said, met "one of the modern challenges of our times." How quaint that sounds today. Hynes may have been right in the moment, but he couldn't see the hellscape that was coming. Even with added lanes, that same highway gagged last year on a daily average of 200,000 cars. And more keep coming by the day, afflicting Boston with some of the nation's worst congestion."
- "House and Senate Settle On Traffic Stop Race Data, Move Cell Phone Ban To A Vote," by Mike Deehan, WGBH News: "Using a cell phone in anything other than "hands-free mode" while driving could soon become illegal in Massachusetts after lawmakers reached a compromise over how to study racial discrimination in traffic stops. The compromise means both chambers will take final votes this week on a bill to ban cell phones and other electronic devices from being used by drivers. "It's become a matter of death and destruction," said Sen. Mark Montigny, who has been working with survivors and families who've lost loved ones in crashes to ban electronic devices from drivers' hands for almost 15 years ."
- Reporting requirement on DCF foster care reforms stripped from children's wellness bill," by Shira Schoenberg, Springfield Republican: "A provision requiring the Department of Children and Families to report on how it is reforming the foster care system was stripped out of a bill on children's wellness, which is expected to come up for a final vote in the Legislature this week. The Joint Committee on Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities is instead developing a bill focused exclusively on DCF. When the House passed the children's wellness bill, lawmakers included a provision requiring DCF to report on its efforts to reform the foster care system."
- "National Grid pushes to clear cut 'hazard' trees," by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: "The state's largest utility is embroiled in a dispute over plans to clear-cut trees near power distribution lines. National Grid, which serves about 1.3 million electric customers in Massachusetts, asked the state Department of Public Utilities for permission to expand a program for clearing "hazard" trees by allowing it to remove ash trees infected with the emerald ash borer and oak trees infested with gypsy moths within striking distance of its transmission systems. The company, which made the request last year as part of a rate hike that went into effect Nov. 1, wanted to pass along the $74 million cost to its consumers."
- "Retailers: Flavor Ban Hands Market To 'Criminals and Gangs,'" by Colin A. Young, State House News Service: "As the Senate prepares to pass legislation Wednesday banning flavored tobacco products and taxing vaping products, convenience store owners are making a last-ditch effort to get senators to delay the vote. In a pair of letters sent to all senators Friday and Monday, the New England Convenience Store & Energy Marketers Association asked that the Senate hold off on voting on the bill (S 2407) "until the Legislature has appropriately evaluated the consequences of such an extreme action on the people of the Commonwealth."
- "State officials defend temporary roadway in Charles River," by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Magazine: "TO REBUILD AND REORIENT an elevated section of the Massachusetts Turnpike near Boston University, the state Department of Transportation is currently planning to build a temporary Soldiers Field Road bypass out over the Charles River about 50 feet offshore, which would require filling in parts of the river where the bypass connects to land. The proposed bypass would break off from the existing section of Soldiers Field Road about 330 feet west of the BU Bridge, rise on fill to a temporary bridge several feet off the water, and then return to the shore further west down the river."
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| FROM THE HUB |
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- "Boston on a world stage, whatever size, matters," by Kevin Cullen, Boston Globe: "For the third time as mayor, Marty Walsh will travel to Ireland, focusing his time in Northern Ireland. He'll leave on Thanksgiving and return five days later. He'll show support for initiatives that have sprung from Belfast and Boston becoming sister cities, including the Cinemagic program that last year saw 15 kids from Northern Ireland produce a short film about life inside the Boston Public Schools. He'll also drop the puck to open the Friendship Four hockey tournament that brings college hockey to Belfast every year. This year, it's Northeastern, UNH, Colgate, and Princeton. So Walsh, a BC guy, will cheer for the NU Huskies."
- "Majority of young voters want Trump impeached, removed from office, poll finds," by Joey Garrison, USA TODAY: "By a nearly 2-to-1 margin, more young voters support than oppose the impeachment of President Donald Trump and his removal from office, according to a new national poll released Monday by the Institute of Politics at the Harvard Kennedy School. The poll, which isolated voters ages 18 to 29, found 52 percent of all eligible youth voters and 58 percent of likely youth voters in the 2020 presidential general election believe Trump should be impeached and removed from office."
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| ALL ABOARD |
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- "As New York Cracks Down On Fare Evasion, Another City Weighs Free Transit," by Alexander C. Kaufman, HuffPost: "As New York City's Metropolitan Transit Authority moves to hire $250 million worth of new transit cops to stop a supposed $200 million worth of fare evasion, this Massachusetts city's newly elected socialist councilman has an entirely different proposal: Make transit free. Jivan Sobrinho-Wheeler, a think-tanker and Democratic Socialists of America activist, wants to provide free monthly transit passes to Cambridge's nearly 114,000 residents. The plan would cost nearly $60 million per year — but, he hopes, would encourage more people to ditch their cars for public transit, reducing traffic and pedestrian deaths and making a dent in the city's climate-changing emissions."
- "MBTA investigating derailment of new Orange Line train in Medford rail yard," by Steph Solis, MassLive.com: "The MBTA is looking into why a new Orange Line train came off the tracks Monday while it moved through the Wellington rail yard in Medford. The train was taken out of service around noon, as previously scheduled, after carrying passengers along the Orange Line Monday morning, spokesman Joe Pesaturo said. The six-car train was moving over a track switch in the Wellington rail yard when the last car came off the rails. Pesaturo said the train was traveling at a slow rate of speed. No passengers were in the train as it was already out of service."
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| THE OPINION PAGES |
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- "What You Need to Know About Deval Patrick," by David Bernstein, The New York Times: "People have been speculating about Deval Patrick's real motives for as long as he has been in politics. I certainly have: When I first met him in 2005, I was convinced that his long-shot campaign for Massachusetts governor was really just a profile-raising exercise for a later Senate campaign. Over years of covering him since, I have seen, and taken part in, speculation that Mr. Patrick wanted to be attorney general, Supreme Court justice, vice president, ambassador and president. I have studied his proposals, tracked his travel and gossiped with his associates in efforts to divine the secret strategies at work."
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| WARREN REPORT |
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- "Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders rip report defending private equity, saying it uses 'sham research,'" by Lauren Hirsch, CNBC: "Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Sen. Bernie Sanders and seven other lawmakers on Monday ripped a report defending the private equity industry, calling the research underpinning it a "sham." The lawmakers sent a letter to Ernst & Young, accusing the accounting firm of helping the American Investment Council put together a report to defend the private equity industry that the politicians say skewed the facts. "There are a myriad of other ways that corporate interests can wield their influence."
- "Elizabeth Warren's health care evolution has won her friends on the left, but foes in Massachusetts," by Liz Goodwin and Lev Facher, STAT and Boston Globe: "The 21st Century Cures Act seemed tailor-made for Massachusetts. It promised Boston's vast ecosystem of drug and medical device manufacturers faster approvals. Harvard and MIT researchers excitedly eyed over $5 billion in new biomedical research funding. Elizabeth Warren, the state's senior senator, helped write the bill. When Congress brought the legislation to a final vote in December 2016, however, a once-enthusiastic Warren wanted nothing to do with it."
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| DATELINE D.C. |
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- "Congratulations, You're a Congresswoman. Now What?" by Susan Dominus, The New York Times: "Shortly after Spanberger and Pressley were elected to Congress, the Washington Post columnist E.J. Dionne Jr. singled them out as possible future stars of the party. Spanberger, who is 40, had demonstrated with her win that a certain kind of Democrat — pragmatic, strong on national security and focused on issues like health care — could appeal to both Democrats and moderate Republicans tired of incivility and partisanship."
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| MARIJUANA IN MASSACHUSETTS |
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- "Walsh, Janey cut deal on marijuana licensing in Boston," by Dan Adams, Boston Globe: "The Boston City Council is poised to vote Wednesday on a historic ordinance authored by Boston City Councilor Kim Janey to completely overhaul the city's process of picking prospective marijuana operators. And depending on whom you ask, it's either a huge disappointment or a big win for equity in the fast-growing industry. Janey's proposal, at its core, is intended to wrest unilateral control of the selection process from Mayor Martin J. Walsh, whose administration has implemented a system that some applicants call slow, opaque, and subject to political influence."
- "Proposal in Brookline would force town pot shops to be appointment-only until 2022," by Felicia Gans, Boston Globe: "Brookline Town Meeting members are expected to vote on a proposal this week that would require all adult-use marijuana stores to operate with appointments for at least two years, taking away the only walk-up-friendly pot shop in metro Boston. The proposal follows complaints from some residents that customers of New England Treatment Access in Brookline Village have been causing traffic congestion on local roads, leaving trash on the ground, and consuming outside."
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| ABOVE THE FOLD |
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| FROM THE 413 |
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- "For state Rep. Mark, patience will be reward for removal of broadband, cell service 'obstacles,'" by Carolyn Komatsoulis, The Berkshire Eagle: "At home, Paul Mark doesn't start his day by scrolling through Twitter. The former lineman for a phone company turned state representative doesn't even get phone service until about a 30-minute trek away from his house. In large parts of Western Massachusetts, people go without broadband and reliable cell service, although Massachusetts is on the cusp of fixing the issue. Mark lives in Peru, which was awarded a grant for Charter Communications to wire the town for high-speed internet, which, he said, should solve the issue for his town in the next six months."
- "Mayor's spokeswoman Marian Sullivan tried to FaceTime MGM Springfield president at 3 a.m. while detained for vandalizing casino restaurant, cars," by Stephanie Barry, Springfield Republican: "Mayor Domenic Sarno's communications director tried to call the MGM casino's president via the FaceTime app at 3 a.m. while being detained by police after allegedly vandalizing a restaurant, including plucking lemons off a tree and hurling them through the kitchen and dining room. Marian K. Sullivan, 27, of Springfield, pleaded not guilty to malicious destruction of property in Springfield District Court Monday morning, one day after Sarno issued a media advisory announcing that he placed Sullivan on paid administrative leave following her arrest."
- "Mazzeo alleges unauthorized access to ballots in recount filings," by Amanda Drane, The Berkshire Eagle: "Unauthorized persons had access" to an area of City Hall where ballots were stored, according to the text of Melissa Mazzeo's request for a mayoral recount following the Nov. 5 election. Her petition also cites the high number of absentee ballots requested during this year's election cycle, raising questions "about the accuracy of the record." But Mayor Linda Tyer, who won the election by 529 votes, said there was nothing to such claims."
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| THE LOCAL ANGLE |
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- "Ex-Attleboro mayor, current Mansfield town manager Kevin Dumas charged with driving drunk on Cape," by Stephen Peterson, The Sun Chronicle: "Town Manager Kevin J. Dumas was arrested early Saturday morning on Cape Cod and charged with drunken driving and other offenses. Dumas, 43, of Attleboro, was arrested shortly before 6 a.m. Saturday and charged with operating under the influence of liquor, operating to endanger and negligent operation, according to Provincetown police. No other information was available Monday night from Provincetown police and Dumas didn't return an email and phone call from The Sun Chronicle seeking comment. Select board members also could not be reached."
REMEMBERING STATE SEN. SUSAN FARGO ... from the State House News Service: "Susan Fargo, a Lincoln Democrat who served eight terms in the Massachusetts Senate, died last week after a period of declining health. She was 77. ... During her time on Beacon Hill -- from 1997 until 2012 -- Fargo was a champion of the state's workplace smoking ban law, a supporter of expanded buffer zones around abortion clinics and a staunch opponent of casino gambling legislation." Link.
MAZEL! to Sydney Rachael Levin-Epstein , who was crowned Miss Western Massachusetts on Sunday. The title is part of a preliminary competition to compete at Miss Massachusetts, which is part of the Miss America Organization. Levin-Epstein is a special projects manager and finance associate for Sen. Ed Markey's reelection campaign, and is a Rep. Richard Neal and state Sen. Eric Lesser alum. Pic. Another pic.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY - to Matt Viser, WaPo national political reporter, who is 4-0, Ethos CEO Valerie Frias, and Matt Barron of MLB Research Associates.
DID THE HOME TEAM WIN? Yes! The Celtics beat the Suns 99-85.
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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