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GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. If the impeachment vote wasn't enough for you, the Democratic debate is tonight! I hope you'll tune into the debate hosted by my wonderful POLITICO colleagues with PBS at 8 p.m.
TOP #MAPOLI IMPEACHMENT MOMENTS — Before we shift our focus to how — and when — President Donald Trump's impeachment trial will play out in the Senate and have an impact on the 2020 Democratic primary, here are a few Massachusetts quotes from the House floor that struck me yesterday.
REP. KATHERINE CLARK: "If we want a democracy, we must stand for the rule of law. A vote to impeach is a vote to remain a government that is of, for and by the people." Video.
REP. RICHARD NEAL: "His actions are so far beyond the pale that they have left us with no remaining recourse except impeachment, and so we shall impeach." Video.
REP. JIM MCGOVERN: "This is a democracy-defining moment. History will judge us by whether we keep intact that fragile republic handed down to us by our forebears more than 200 years ago. Or whether we allow it to be changed forever." Video.
REP. AYANNA PRESSLEY: "What we are doing here today is not only patriotic, it is uniquely American. America is a story of ordinary people confronting abuses of power with the steadfast pursuit of justice. Throughout our history the oppressed have been relegated to the margins by the powerful. And each time we have fought back." Video.
REP. JOE KENNEDY III: "I don't yet know how they will tell the story of this era. But I want to tell you the story of this day. Let the record show that — today — justice won. That we did our job. That we kept our word. That we stood our sacred ground." Video.
FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: AUCHINCLOSS LOCKS UP NEWTON ENDORSEMENTS — Candidate for Congress and Newton City Councilor Jake Auchincloss is announcing endorsements from 13 city officials and nearly two dozen community members today.
Auchincloss received nods from 10 of his fellow city councilors and three members of the school committee. The endorsements include City Council President-elect Susan Albright and Vice President-elect Rick Lipof, and school committee chair Ruth Goldman and vice chair Steve Siegel. Auchincloss was elected to the council in 2015, and a total 24 members serve on the body.
"I trust that Jake will lead from the front on climate change and transportation, the related crises facing our planet and our state," Albright said in a statement to POLITICO.
The push for city council endorsements in the city is competitive — Auchincloss' fellow Newton City Councilor Becky Grossman is also in the race to replace Rep. Joe Kennedy III. Additional Newton City Councilors endorsing Auchincloss are Alison Leary, Maria Greenberg, Andrea Kelley, Deb Crossley, Andreae Downs, John Rice and Alicia Bowman. School Committee vice chair-elect Bridget Ray-Canada also endorsed him.
Community members endorsing Auchincloss include Rob Gifford, former co-chair of Move Newton Forward and Chris Steele, former chair of the Newton Economic Development Commission.
EXCLUSIVE: HARRIS AIDE JOINS MERMELL CAMPAIGN — Jesse Mermell, former president of the Alliance for Business Leadership and a Democrat running replace Rep. Joe Kennedy III, has hired a new campaign manager with some national clout.
Katie Prisco-Buxbaum will serve as campaign manager on Mermell's congressional bid, she announced today. Prisco-Buxbaum previously served as Southwest finance director on California Sen. Kamala Harris' presidential campaign, where she covered six states and raised $5.5 million. Prisco-Buxbaum also worked on California Gov. Gavin Newsom's 2018 campaign for governor.
But before she went to the West Coast , Prisco-Buxbaum was a well-known operative in Massachusetts. She ran Boston City Council President Andrea Campbell's campaign in 2015, worked on Martha Coakley's 2014 gubernatorial bid and has also worked for the state Democratic Party. It's a good get for Mermell, who is running against five other Democrats for the open House seat.
"Katie is a progressive fighter, which means she'll fit right in on this campaign," Mermell said in a statement to POLITICO. "We're incredibly lucky to have someone of Katie's caliber — her values, her experience, and her Massachusetts political roots - at the helm."
PROGRAMMING NOTE: It's almost that time! POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook will not publish from Monday, Dec. 23 to Friday, Jan. 3. I'll be back in your inbox on Monday, Jan. 6. In the meantime, send wishlists, resolutions and news tips to smurray@politico.com.
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 rings the Salvation Army bell on Washington Street in Boston. Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito and state Sen. Hariette Chandler celebrate the expansion of Massachusetts Biomedical Initiatives in Worcester. Former Gov. Deval Patrick leads a policy roundtable in Manchester, N.H. The state Senate Committee on Global Warming and Climate Change holds an oversight hearing on updates to the Transportation Climate Initiative. Boston Mayor Marty Walsh signs the Boston Trust Act amendments into law at the East Boston Branch of the Boston Public Library.
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 | DATELINE BEACON HILL |
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- "Will Massachusetts be the next state to allow college athletes to profit off their name, image, likeness?" by Esteban Bustillos, WGBH News: "Historically, the NCAA has banned student-athletes from receiving any form of financial compensation outside of scholarships and, more recently, small stipends. Amateurism has been a bedrock of its philosophy. But now, lawmakers in states like Massachusetts are challenging those strict standards. Last month, Rep. Carlos Gonzalez, a Springfield Democrat, introduced the Massachusetts Collegiate Athletic Participation Compensation Act. Like the Fair Pay to Play Act, it would allow athletes the right to profit off their name, image and likeness with endorsement deals, sponsorships and other opportunities ."
- "New England states mull regional gas fees after NH rejection," by Mary Markos, Boston Herald: "A regional anti-climate change compact backed by Gov. Charlie Baker — predicted to jack up gas prices by up to 17 cents in just the first year — is still being reviewed by officials in other states after New Hampshire quickly rejected it. The remaining 10 Atlantic Seaboard states and the District of Columbia that have been involved in negations around the Transportation Climate Initiative are reviewing a draft memorandum of understanding that was released Tuesday. The multi-state compact is intended to reduce carbon emissions and raise money for transportation projects by driving up gas prices."
- "Tax credit changes snub offshore wind power," by Colin A. Young, State House News Service: "Climate advocates and industry groups were critical of the U.S. House this week after a long-term extension of a tax credit designed to assist offshore wind energy developers did not come to pass as part of spending bills, but some wind watchers said offshore projects might still be able to claim some federal benefits. The U.S. House adopted a series of tax law updates and tax credit extensions earlier this week, but an expansive package of clean energy tax credits -- including new incentives specific to offshore wind -- that have been proposed in the House was not included in the final language, angering advocates."
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POLITICO TECH AT CES - We are bringing a special edition of the POLITICO Tech newsletter to CES 2020 . Written by Nancy Scola and Cristiano Lima, the newsletter will take you inside the largest and most influential technology event on the planet, featuring every major and emerging industry in the technology ecosystem gathered together in one place. The newsletter runs from Jan. 6 - 10 and will focus on the public policy related aspects of the gathering. Sign up today to receive exclusive coverage of the Summit.
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| FROM THE HUB |
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- "How Harvard Made Pete Buttigieg the Moderate That Progressives Love to Hate," by Michael Kruse, POLITICO Magazine: "He wasn't expected to win. It was a surprise to some that he even had run. But on the evening of December 5, 2002, in a sweaty, crowded classroom adjacent to the main lecture space at Harvard's school of government named after John F. Kennedy, Peter Buttigieg, 20 years old, stood before 50 or so of his peers as one of two people seeking to be the president of the Student Advisory Council at the university's esteemed Institute of Politics."
- "UMass Boston faculty remains wary of UMass Amherst's Mount Ida campus," by Gintautas Dumcius, Boston Business Journal: "The purchase of a defunct Newton college with plans to redeploy it as an outpost run by the University of Massachusetts Amherst is continuing to roil faculty at UMass Boston. Officials at UMass arranged the $75 million purchase of Mount Ida College in 2018, as the small liberal arts college was collapsing under financial struggles. The campus reopened in September 2018 under UMass Amherst's banner, with officials aiming to connect the Amherst campus's students with Boston-area employers."
- "Say hello to Nubian Square," by Andy Metzger, CommonWealth Magazine: "THERE'S NO BRONZE traitor astride a horse. No statue whatsoever. In fact, it can be a little tricky to suss out who exactly Dudley Square is named after. But this era's moral reckoning with villains from the past will soon shove aside the timeworn geographic honorific memorializing Thomas Dudley, a colonial functionary who was in charge when the Massachusetts Bay Colony officially sanctioned slavery. Instead, when the Public Improvement Commission votes Thursday, it will almost certainly opt to change the name of Dudley Square to Nubian Square. Boston Mayor Marty Walsh is confident that will happen, he said in an interview last week."
- "Foiled lobster truck heist in Charlestown 'was a very Boston experience for everyone involved'" by Spencer Buell, Boston Magazine: "It was business as usual for the overnight crew at Buy New England Lobsters, a local wholesale dealer with a warehouse along the Mystic River in Charlestown, this week. At least, until it wasn't. A team of workers had been loading crates of the precious crustaceans into the back of a box truck at around 12:38 a.m. Tuesday morning for a large shipment bound for Europe. About $10,000 worth of fresh Boston lobster had been schlepped into the vehicle when—as if in a scene cooked up by particularly lazy scriptwriter—a thief emerged from nowhere and jumped into the driver's seat and sped off with the loot."
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| DAY IN COURT |
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- "Federal judge denies attempt by Department of Justice to delay new rules in Boston immigration court," by Steph Solis, MassLive.com: "Federal Judge Patti B. Saris denied the Department of Justice's efforts to delay the implementation of new rules that place the burden of proof on the government, not the detained defendant, during bond hearings in Boston immigration court Wednesday. A Nov. 27 federal court order issued by Saris shifting the burden of proof to the government took effect on Friday, but attorneys representing the Department of Justice filed a request to push back the implementation of the new bond hearing rules even though the rules were already in effect."
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IT'S DEBATE NIGHT: Seven candidates have qualified for the final Democratic Presidential debate TONIGHT, hosted by PBS Newshour and POLITICO, in Los Angeles. Check out POLTICO's debate hub featuring election forecasts, a breakdown of the candidates' policy positions, and everything you need to know as you watch.
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| WARREN REPORT |
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- "Hundreds of Obama alumni endorse Elizabeth Warren," by Daniella Diaz and MJ Lee, CNN: "Hundreds of veterans of Barack Obama's campaigns and administration have signed on to endorse Sen. Elizabeth Warren for president, as multiple Democratic presidential candidates compete to claim the popular former president's political coalition and legacy. With the Iowa caucuses less than two months away, more than 200 Obama alumni joined a signature-gathering effort led by a pair of former senior Obama aides, Sara El-Amine and Jon Carson. Among other roles, El-Amine was national director of Obama's 2012 re-election campaign, while Carson was a national field director for Obama's 2008 campaign prior to joining the administration. Both served as executive directors of Organizing for America, the Obama grassroots organizing network."
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| TRUMPACHUSETTS |
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- "Orrall Named to White House Advisory Commission," by Colin A. Young, State House News Service: "Republican National Committee member Keiko Orrall, a former state representative from Lakeville, has been appointed by President Donald Trump to serve on a White House advisory commission. Orrall, the first Asian-American woman to run for a constitutional office in Massachusetts, is being appointed to the President's Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, the White House announced Wednesday."
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| TWEET OF THE DAY |
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An impeachment-themed #ThrowbackThursday from POLITICO congressional reporter and former Massachusetts State House scribe Kyle Cheney. President Bill Clinton was impeached on this day in 1998.
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| DATELINE D.C. |
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- "North American trade deal won't include measure to rescue underfunded pension plans," by Robert Weisman, Boston Globe: "A plan to shore up struggling pension plans key to the retirement of tens of thousands of Teamsters and other workers in Massachusetts lost its best chance of congressional approval this year when its Democratic backers left it out of a landmark trade agreement. Representative Richard Neal, the Massachusetts Democrat who chairs the Ways and Means Committee, sponsored the Butch Lewis Act, which would recapitalize multi-employer pension plans covering over a million workers nationwide. The bill was overwhelmingly approved by the House in July but has been bottled up in the Senate."
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| IT'S NOT EASY BEING GREEN |
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- "Demand for Gas Questioned in Kennedy Appeal to Block Compressor," by Chris Lisinski, State House News Service: "U.S. Rep. Joseph Kennedy III is still waiting for a reply from federal regulators a week after imploring them to halt work on a natural gas project in Weymouth, making the Democrat the latest elected official to raise concerns over potentially declining interest from utility companies. Kennedy asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission last week to issue a stop work order, which would require energy giant Enbridge to halt construction that began this month of its compressor station near the Fore River. The commission has not yet responded to his letter, and is declining public comment until that point."
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| ABOVE THE FOLD |
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| EYE ON 2020 |
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- MEANWHILE IN RHODE ISLAND: "Raimondo aims to be player in presidential race," by Edward Fitzpatrick and Dan McGowan, Boston Globe: "Fresh off a stint as chair of the Democratic Governors Association, Rhode Island Governor Gina M. Raimondo said Wednesday she is discussing plans with party leaders to set up a Democratic presidential field operation to try to stem President Trump's advantage in battleground states. And as Rhode Island prepares for a new legislative session in an election year, Raimondo said she may tap her $679,000 campaign account to influence Rhode Island legislative races and to push for issues such as gun control."
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| FROM THE 413 |
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- "Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno refuses to approve Mount Carmel Society Club's licenses amid Latin Kings federal probe," by Stephanie Barry, Springfield Republican: "Mayor Domenic Sarno has announced that he plans to withhold his signature for the Mount Carmel Society Club's entertainment license after the new year. The announcement comes on the heels of revelations contained in a 190-page racketeering indictment out of U.S. District Court in Boston linked to the arrests of more than 60 alleged leaders and associates of the Latin Kings. Included in the FBI narrative were references to recorded meetings of Latin Kings leaders and other gang members holding summits at the club."
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| THE LOCAL ANGLE |
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- "Amid divergent views, most agree impeachment would change little," by Joe DiFazio, The Patriot Ledger: "Marc Grimaldi sat at the bar at the Presidential Pub in Quincy Center, where two televisions were tuned to the impeachment proceedings on Wednesday, and wondered about the pointlessness of it. "I don't think it's going anywhere," he said, "and I'm not sure the Democrats know what they're doing." Even as they argued passionately for their view of the proceedings, many acknowledged that the hours of arguments on Capitol Hill would do little to change minds, on the South Shore or in the chambers of the U.S. Senate, where Republicans are widely expected to acquit the president."
- "What would an MCI-Framingham closure mean for Framingham?" by Jeannette Hinkle, MetroWest Daily News: "State corrections officials are exploring closing MCI-Framingham, Massachusetts' only women's prison, and moving its inmates elsewhere by 2024. The state recently requested bids to renovate two other prison sites, the South Middlesex Correctional Center in Framingham and the Bay State Correctional Center in Norfolk, in preparation for the potential transfer of women from MCI-Framingham. MassLive reported this week that state officials said the cost of renovating MCI-Framingham, a poorly maintained prison that first opened 142 years ago, would be prohibitive."
HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to former 1st District congressional candidate Tahirah Amatul Wadud, and Abby Charpentier.
DID THE HOME TEAM WIN? Yes! The Celtics beat the Mavericks 109-103.
FOR YOUR COMMUTE: FORESIGHT 2020 — It's the final Horse Race podcast of the decade! On this week's episode, hosts Steve Koczela and Stephanie Murray break down the top stories of 2019 and look ahead to what's in store for 2020. Alan Khazei, a Democrat running to replace Rep. Joe Kennedy III, talks about why he's in the race and his vision for the country. 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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