 |
|
|
GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. TGIF!
WARREN SENDING BIG NAMES TO NEW HAMPSHIRE — The Democratic presidential candidates may not be in New Hampshire, but the campaign trail in the first primary state is nevertheless awash in their family members, politicians, celebrities and other bold-face names.
On Tuesday, more than 20 surrogates for Amy Klobuchar flooded the state. On Thursday, Sen. Bernie Sanders unleashed his secret weapons: Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield — who founded the Vermont-based Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream — for a series of ice cream socials across the state.
And a number of prominent Warren supporters are making the trip to New Hampshire this weekend. Today, actor and activist Ashley Judd will hold meet and greet events in Dartmouth, Lebanon and Nashua.
Warren is capitalizing on her home state's proximity to New Hampshire to blanket the state with Massachusetts-based surrogates. The senator's husband Bruce Mann will hold events all weekend. Rep. Jim McGovern will campaign on Saturday in Peterborough. On Sunday, Rep. Joe Kennedy III, Boston Marathon Bombing survivors Jessica Kensky and Patrick Downes, who both lost legs during the 2013 tragedy will hold events on her behalf across the state. The pair, who were depicted in the film "Patriots Day," worked with Warren on a bill to help survivors of terror attacks receive medical care.
FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: ENVIRONMENTAL GROUP BACKING MARKEY — Sen. Ed Markey will announce an endorsement from the Natural Resources Defense Council today. The environmental advocacy group is supporting Markey's reelection as the Malden lawmaker faces a primary challenge from Rep. Joe Kennedy III.
This is Markey's third endorsement from a progressive group this week. The NRDC cheered Markey's efforts on the Green New Deal, calling his understanding of complex legislation "irreplaceable." Markey announced endorsements from Peace Action, an anti-war group, and the Planned Parenthood Action fund earlier this week.
BUTTIGIEG AND BIDEN IN BOSTON — Pete Buttigieg and Joe Biden will both hold fundraisers in Boston later today. It's one of their final chances to raise money here before the presidential primary kicks into high gear.
Buttigieg will raise money at a fundraiser hosted by Bryan Rafanelli, the event planner and well-known Democratic donor. Rafanelli has held a number of fundraisers for the former South Bend, Ind. mayor this cycle. Biden's fundraiser will be hosted by former ambassador and congressional candidate Rufus Gifford, along with Mark Schuster and his wife Audrey.
Biden and Buttigieg are at an advantage right now. Both are able to raise money for their campaigns and hit the trail in Iowa and New Hampshire while many of their competitors -- Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Amy Klobuchar and Michael Bennet are stuck in Washington, D.C. for President Donald Trump's impeachment trial.
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, Rep. Richard Neal and Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno attend a ribbon cutting at Union Station in Springfield. Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito speaks at the Massachusetts Municipal Association annual meeting. Boston Mayor Marty Walsh is in Washington, D.C. for the United States Conference of Mayors winter meeting.
|
 | DATELINE BEACON HILL |
|
- "Governor Baker Says His "Word Choice was Terrible" Regarding Rep. Pressley's Comments on Race," by Phillip Martin, WGBH News: "Governor Charlie Baker sought on WGBH's Boston Public Radio Thursday to clarify comments he made at Monday's Martin Luther King breakfast that many construed as disrespectful to Rep. Ayanna Pressley. During that event, the governor and congresswoman were on stage together taking part in a panel discussion on civil rights before a sold-out audience of 1500 people. Immediately following Pressley's well received remarks on the importance of black identity, Governor Baker responded, "The only thing I can add to that rant..." Many in the audience groaned, and the reaction was a lot more pronounced on Twitter."
- "Package Of State House Climate Bills Would Apply Carbon Pricing To All Emissions," by Katie Lannan, State House News Service: "The Massachusetts Senate next week plans to take up a far-reaching package of climate bills whose major components include an electric MBTA bus fleet by 2040, carbon-pricing mechanisms for transportation, homes and commercial buildings, and a series of five-year greenhouse gas emissions reduction requirements that ramp up to net-zero emissions in 2050. The three bills, teed up for debate on Thursday, Jan. 30, with amendments due by Monday, amount to what Senate President Karen Spilka called a "comprehensive plan for the state" to respond to an international issue: global climate change ."
- "Baker Defends State's Use Of Minority Contractors, Says It Has Improved During His Tenure," by Paul Singer, WGBH News: "Gov. Charlie Baker said Thursday he believes he has expanded the state's contracting with minority and women-owned business during his tenure, despite a WGBH News series showing the value of state contracts to minorities has dropped over the past two decades. "I'm pretty sure we are doing better than we were doing when we took office," Baker said during his monthly appearance on WGBH News' Boston Public Radio. State and local officials have come under pressure from lawmakers and activists to boost minority contracting in the wake of reports published last week by WGBH News' New England Center for Investigative Reporting."
|
| WHAT CITY HALL IS READING |
|
- "Walsh preps ZBA reform as Boston ex-zoning official to be sentenced for bribes," by Sean Philip Cotter, Boston Herald: "As a longtime Boston zoning official prepares to head into court for his Friday sentencing, Mayor Martin Walsh is readying Zoning Board of Appeal reforms aimed at restoring public trust in the ZBA following its series of scandals. A Walsh spokeswoman said the mayor is "prepared to make several, immediate changes to bring integrity to the board, improve their functions and efficiencies, and create a more understandable and transparent process." That will include new "strict" standards around conflicts of interest, as well as requiring financial and ethical disclosures by board members and certain applicants."
|
| FROM THE HUB |
|
- "City Councilor Julia Mejia turned a 'disturbing' voicemail upside down," by Steve Annear, Boston Globe: "Boston City Councilor Julia Mejia has a message for the man who left her a vitriolic voicemail telling the newly-elected official to "go back to where you came from." "I'm not going anywhere," Mejia said. On Wednesday, Mejia shared her response to the unidentified person in a five-minute video she posted to YouTube, using the the hate-filled phone call as a backdrop for her family's immigration story while also highlighting images from rallies for equal rights. She decided to make the call public to shed light on the types of comments and behavior that have become "all too familiar to myself and those in the immigrant community," she said in a tweet."
- "City Council starts year with activist agenda," by Yawu Miller, Bay State Banner: "The first Boston City Council meeting of the year followed a scripted format, with at-large Councilor Michelle Wu formally nominating District 7 Councilor Kim Janey for president of the 13-member body. Janey had secured the votes for the presidency weeks in advance, so her election by 12 votes (District 3 Councilor Frank Baker voted "present") came as no surprise to anyone. In the body's second meeting on Jan. 15, the councilors rolled up their sleeves and got to work, providing a preview of the year to come. Hearing orders and ordinance proposals came fast and furious, with several challenging the power of Mayor Martin Walsh."
|
| PRIMARY SOURCES |
|
- "Joe Kennedy III Is an Insider, Not an Insurgent," by Maia Hibbett, The Nation: "At the Harvard Kennedy School's John F. Kennedy Jr. Forum, Representative Joe Kennedy III (D-MA) made the case for his Senate campaign. "I'll put my environmental record in Congress up against anybody's," said Kennedy, who is leading a primary challenge against the Green New Deal's co-author Ed Markey (D-MA). At the event, an audience member asked Kennedy about his fossil-fuel industry stock holdings—estimated by Sludge at about $1.75 million—prompting the candidate to maintain: "Those assets are family assets that have been held for an awfully long time, well before I was born—I exercise no control over them whatsoever." But Kennedy's assertion at the October 2019 event hinges on a technicality, distracting from the details of his 2018 financial disclosure."
|
| ALL ABOARD |
|
WHY?
- "MBTA adding more features to new Red, Orange Line trains," by Adam Vaccaro, Boston Globe: "The agency now wants to upgrade the digital displays coming on the 404 new cars, increasing the size of the screens to 24 inches and doubling the number of displays in the cars. Each New Red Line car will have eight screens, Orange Line cars six screens. They will convey passenger information such as maps of the line that show the train's current location and information about bus and other rail connections at various stops."
|
| WARREN REPORT |
|
- "Warren pledges to reverse travel ban on day one," by Stephanie Ebbert, Boston Globe: "Senator Elizabeth Warren on Thursday denounced immigration officials for denying Iranian students entry at Logan Airport and removing one student against a judge's orders this week. She said their actions were the direct result of President Trump's policies, which she would reverse immediately, if elected president. "On the first day of my administration, I will lift the Muslim ban, and I believe that sends a message all across the country," Warren said during a video conference with The Boston Globe editorial board."
- "Warren becomes fastest first-time presidential candidate to hit 3 million donations," by Alexi McCammond, Axios: "Elizabeth Warren reached 3 million donations faster than any other first-time presidential candidate, per a person familiar with the campaign's fundraising. She reached this milestone about one week before Sen. Bernie Sanders did the same in 2016. While donations come from all over the country, the last-minute surge before the Iowa caucuses suggests growing momentum for Warren before the first nominating contests of 2020 ."
|
| THE PRESSLEY PARTY |
|
- "'I don't have the luxury of being cynical': Pressley reflects on a year gone by, and the challenges ahead," by Katie Trojano, Dorchester Reporter: "Pressley on the year past: "There are a lot of things that I worked on that were not on my to-do list, because once you're there, you have to be nimble and responsive to what's happening in real time." In 2018, Ayanna Pressley was elected to Congress as the representative from the 7th Congressional district —which includes large parts of Dorchester and Mattapan. Last week, after hosting a town hall in Roxbury that focused on participation in the 2020 Census, the congresswoman sat down with the Reporter's Katie Trojano."
|
| FROM THE DELEGATION |
|
- "Lawmakers seek answers on deported Iranian student," by Sarah Betancourt, CommonWealth Magazine: "SEVERAL MEMBERS of the Massachusetts congressional delegation wrote letters to federal immigration officials on Thursday seeking answers on why Iranian student Mohammad Shahab Dehghani Hossein Abadi was deported as he returned to Boston this week to study at Northeastern University. US Reps. Joe Kennedy III and Ayanna Pressley along with Sens. Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren asked acting Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Mark Morgan about other instances where people with valid student visas had been deported from Boston's Logan Airport as well as similar cases at other US airports."
|
| TRUMPACHUSETTS |
|
- "'The evidence is pretty compelling,' says US Rep. Richard Neal on impeachment; senior Democrat says voters will have final say," by Jim Kinney, Springfield Republican: "As House Democrats continued Thursday making their case in the impeachment trial of Republican President Donald Trump, U.S. Rep. Richard Neal acknowledged that it will be voters who render the final verdict. "Most of us could have predicted the outcome a month ago," said Neal, D-Springfield, acknowledging that the Republican-controlled Senate is unlikely to remove Trump from office."
|
| IT'S NOT EASY BEING GREEN |
|
- "Do Massachusetts residents support the TCI? Depends how you ask the question." by Nikolas DeCosta-Klipa, Boston.com: "Do Massachusetts residents support Gov. Charlie Baker's Transportation and Climate Initiative? Well, it depends how you frame the question. A new poll released this week by the Fiscal Alliance Foundation, a Boston-based conservative nonprofit whose sister group is actively rallying opposition to the TCI, illustrated how Bay Staters' opinions can differ when asked about the tradeoffs of the multi-state plan to curb greenhouse gas emissions."
|
| MARIJUANA IN MASSACHUSETTS |
|
- "Licensing burdens undermine vision of diverse industry, entrepreneurs tell cannabis panel," by Naomi Martin, Boston Globe: "Massachusetts leaders said they wanted locals, minorities, and small businesses in the legal marijuana industry — but more than a year after cannabis stores started opening, frustrations at an overwhelmingly corporate reality that has taken hold boiled over here Thursday at a state commission meeting. In a packed room that frequently erupted in applause, a parade of small-scale entrepreneurs told the Cannabis Control Commission that the licensing process was stacked against them and heavily favored large wealthy companies. The commission scheduled the forum, which drew at least 70 registered speakers, in response to an applicant interrupting two previous commission meetings to assert unfairness in licensing."
|
| ABOVE THE FOLD |
|
— Herald: "FATAL TURN," — Globe: "What you need to know about coronavirus," "Democrats take aim at Trump's defense," "In Iowa, a small voice has big clout." |
| EYE ON 2020 |
|
- "Obama fundraising chief backs Biden," by Maggie Severns, POLITICO: "Rufus Gifford, one of the Democratic Party's best-connected fundraisers, is throwing his support behind Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential race, just before Biden and his rivals dive into an expensive stretch of early primaries and caucuses. There are few Democratic donors or operatives with fundraising networks as vast as Gifford's, and his connections could help Biden compete with fellow frontrunners who have tapped online small-dollar donors to outraise the former vice president so far."
- "Michael Bloomberg announces Mass. campaign team, led by Will Keyser," by James Pindell, Boston Globe: "In Massachusetts, former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg's Democratic presidential campaign is going from zero to nearly 60 staffers in just a matter of weeks as the billionaire attempts to make a statement at the ballot box immediately after the first four states vote. Citing his very late entry in the presidential race, Bloomberg is skipping the first contests in Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina and hoping to make a big splash on Super Tuesday, March 3, when Massachusetts, California, Texas and 11 others states vote."
|
| FROM THE 413 |
|
- "Whistleblower Kempthorne counters DA Harrington's claim on records release," by Heather Bellow, The Berkshire Eagle: "When Jeanne Kempthorne released public documents about a politically fraught investigation, she said she acted in defiance of Berkshire District Attorney Andrea Harrington, who initially had instructed her not to respond. Kempthorne, the DA's public records officer and general counsel, resigned last week from the District Attorney's Office over Harrington's continued resistance to releasing the public documents. Kempthorne pushed back this week against Harrington who, in a WAMC radio interview, laid claim instead to having authorized the release of the documents."
|
| THE LOCAL ANGLE |
|
- "State Rep. Nangle reports $8,700 legal fee," by Elizabeth Dobbins, The Lowell Sun: "State Rep. David Nangle paid $8,700 to a Boston-based law firm, according to a campaign finance report filed by his office on Tuesday. The firm, Donnelly, Conroy & Gelhaar, LLP, specializes in "white collar criminal and government investigation defense, SEC enforcement defense, and complex business litigation," according to its website. When asked about the filing, Nangle responded with an email statement: "It is advisable in this day and age of government accountability to obtain professional assistance from accountants, attorneys and consultants on a host of government related issues. These professionals are helpful in navigating the complex issues and reporting requirements of a state legislator."
TRANSITIONS - Paul Yorkis, treasurer for the Massachusetts Democratic Party, announced he's not running for reelection at a state committee meeting in Worcester on Thursday night. Democrats will vote on his successor in April.
WELCOME TO THE WORLD - Nicole Caravella, senior communications adviser for Kennedy for MA and former press secretary to Boston Mayor Marty Walsh, and Sean Malone, director of federal affairs at the New England Council and a former Kennedy staffer, welcomed John Timothy Malone early Wednesday morning at 6lbs 13oz. Pic .
HAPPY BIRTHDAY - to DJ Napolitano, principal at Dewey Square Group, and Andrew Friendly.
HAPPY BIRTHWEEKEND - to Saturday birthday-ers state Rep. John Velis , the Berkshire Eagle's Heather Bellow, Laura Simolaris, Boston Globe columnist Adrian Walker and Boston.com's Hayden Bird.
FOR YOUR COMMUTE: IF I HAD A BILLION DOLLARS — On this week's Horse Race podcast, hosts Steve Koczela and Jennifer Smith talk with State House News reporter Katie Lannan about Gov. Charlie Baker's budget proposal. NARAL Pro-Choice's Rebecca Hart Holder talks about the ROE Act on the anniversary of Roe v. Wade. 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.
|
|
|
|
Follow us on Twitter
|
|
Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family
|
FOLLOW US
|
|
| |
