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GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS and GO UMASS.
- Will you or someone you know be running the Boston Marathon this year? Cheer them (or yourself!) on with a shout-out in the Monday Playbook: Let me know at smurray@politico.com by midnight Sunday.
MAY I TAKE YOUR ORDER — How far is too far? The Boston Globe removed from its website a column with the headline "Keep Kirstjen Nielsen unemployed and eating Grubhub over her kitchen sink" yesterday, after controversy broke out because the writer suggested a former Trump official should be made uncomfortable in public — namely, by conjuring an image of a restaurant server urinating in someone's food.
Freelance journalist Luke O'Neil wrote a weekly opinion column for the Globe. This week, he focused on former Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen, and how he thinks the public should treat her after her role in the Trump administration. O'Neil initially wrote he regrets "not pissing in Bill Kristol's salmon" when he was a server a decade ago, and that Nielsen should be made to feel uncomfortable in public due in part to her role in the family separation crisis at the Southern border. O'Neil told me that was a "purposefully catchy lede" and that he doesn't actually want to pee in anyone's food.
The Globe changed some of the language in O'Neil's column, and added a note saying the piece "did not meet Globe standards" in its original form and that the paper "regrets the previous tone." As the column spread online, including a national story on Fox News, the Globe ultimately pulled the piece off its website. O'Neil said he quit his $350 a week gig writing a Sunday column.
The flap over O'Neil's column revisited a conversation about civility, restaurants, and whether Trump officials involved in controversial policies should be shamed or ostracized in public, which bubbled up over the summer. To refresh your memory: Protesters confronted Nielsen at a restaurant during the height of the family separation issue, another group of protesters called White House adviser Stephen Miller a fascist at another restaurant, and a Virginia restaurant asked White House spokesperson Sarah Huckabee Sanders to leave because of her role in the Trump administration.
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 attends a reception commemorating the 104th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide at the State House. Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito attends the Hampden County Sheriff Department's Women in Criminal Justice Committee annual conference. Rep. Seth Moulton holds a town hall in North Andover. Boston Mayor Marty Walsh discusses Boston Marathon public safety at a press conference and attends a Henry L. Higginson Inclusion School project-based learning exhibition. Rep. Joe Kennedy IIIspeaks at Newton South High School for civics education day.
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 | DATELINE BEACON HILL |
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- "The Interview: State Representative Russell Holmes," by Colman M. Herman, Boston Magazine: "Sure, a lot of people don't like their boss, but state Representative Russell Holmes has made an art out of antagonizing his with particular vigor, calling fellow Democrat Robert DeLeo, the speaker of the House, a "dictator," trying to organize a takeover to unseat him, and getting stripped of an important vice chairmanship when his efforts proved unsuccessful. Even so, the representative for the Sixth District, which includes sections of Dorchester, Mattapan, Hyde Park, Jamaica Plain, and Roslindale, has no intention of letting up. On a recent afternoon, Holmes sat down with me in his small office on the second floor of the State House to talk about the state of Beacon Hill. As usual, he pulled no punches when it came to his boss."
- "BAKER FILES $1.1B BORROWING BILL FOR CYBERSECURITY, PUBLIC SAFETY," by Matt Murphy, State House News Service: "Gov. Charlie Baker proposed $1.1 billion in new spending on information technology, public safety equipment and cybersecurity Wednesday as part of a multi-year capital investment that the administration said would help Massachusetts defend against cyber attacks, build a new fire training center and enable police to buy new cruisers. The borrowing bill would authorize $600 million in spending on information technology infrastructure that the administration said would "help fortify the Commonwealth's defenses and against cyber attacks" and improve residents' ability to interact digitally with government, including with for health care, housing and other services."
- "Coughlin changes hats at hearing on drug pricing," by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Magazine: "AT A PACKED STATE HOUSE hearing Thursday on legislation to rein in the cost of pharmaceuticals, MassBIO CEO Robert Coughlin and two of his national colleagues were pitching the same argument they've been using for a long time - that any form of price control would jeopardize a thriving local industry and hinder the development of breakthrough drugs. Coughlin and his colleagues didn't seem to be making much headway in a room filled with lawmakers, patients, and advocacy groups anxious about the soaring cost of drugs, including basic drugs like insulin."
- "BAKER NOT RUSHING LEGISLATURE ON SPORTS BETTING," by Colin A. Young, State House News Service: "Gov. Charlie Baker, who had hoped his bill to legalize, tax and regulate sports wagering would be taken up by the Legislature before the end of July, said Thursday he is OK with House Speaker Robert DeLeo indicating that his branch could take its time on the issue. House leaders did not include any sports betting revenue in their $42.7 billion Ways and Means Committee fiscal year 2020 budget released Wednesday, and chairman Aaron Michlewitz said they would examine Baker's proposal and others to legalize sports betting "later in the session," which runs through 2020."
- "Dempsey spreads around campaign leftovers," by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: "Brian Dempsey left office nearly two years ago with about $500,000 left over in his campaign account, and the lawmaker-turned-lobbyist is still spreading campaign cash around Beacon Hill. Dempsey, a Haverhill Democrat and once prominent member of the party's leadership in the House of Representatives, left the Legislature in 2017 for a lobbying job. He has since given $30,000 to the Massachusetts Democratic State Committee, a political action committee that helps elect Democrats, according to disclosures filed with the state Office of Campaign and Political Finance."
- "'Schools all across Massachusetts are suffering': Teachers, workers call for lawmakers to pass 'millionaires tax,'" by Steph Solis, MassLive.com: "Hoyt was one of several workers and advocates who testified Thursday before the Revenue Committee backing a "millionaires tax" to fill funding gaps in education and transportation. Supporters and opponents spent hours making their case about the proposal, which would increase the income tax by 4 percent for households that make more than $1 million a year. The proposal is identical to the citizens' petition that was expected to go on the November ballot but was struck down by the Supreme Judicial Court in June over a procedural issue."
- "Report highlights homeslessness, bullying LGBTQ youths," by Annika Hom, Boston Globe: "The number of Massachusetts high school students who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or are questioning their gender identify or sexuality is at more than 15 percent, according to new state report. The data come from the Massachusetts Commission on LGBTQ Youth, an independent state agency, in its annual report and recommendations on improving the lives of those young people. It is aimed not only at lawmakers and government agencies, but also at schools and families."
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| FROM THE HUB |
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- "Rachael Rollins making amends with Maura Healey, public safety czar," by Mary Markos, Boston Herald: " Suffolk District Attorney Rachael Rollins appears to have made amends after a contentious couple of days surrounding her progressive policies, including her no-prosecute list. Rollins had a "positive and productive meeting" with Public Safety and Security Secretary Thomas A. Turco III and their top staffers Thursday, according to spokesman Jake Wark. "They identified issues of mutual concern and ideas for possible collaboration as two public safety professionals deeply committed to the residents of Suffolk County and the Commonwealth," Wark said in a statement."
- "How Katie Bouman accidentally became the face of the black hole project," by Sarah Mervosh, New York Times: "As the first-ever picture of a black hole was unveiled this week, another image began making its way around the internet: a photo of a young scientist, clasping her hands over her face and reacting with glee to an image of an orange ring of light, circling a deep, dark abyss. It was a photo too good not to share. The scientist, Katie Bouman, a postdoctoral fellow who contributed to the project, became an instant hero for women and girls in STEM, a welcome symbol in a world hungry for representation."
- "WILL BOSTON SET A NEW REGIONAL PRECEDENT AND FINALLY PAY RECYCLING WORKERS A LIVING WAGE?," by Cole Rosengren, DigBoston: "For the first time in the city's history, Boston's living wage ordinance might finally get applied to low-paid workers sorting the city's recycling—but only sometimes. Boston is currently negotiating a new five-year contract with Casella Waste Systems, a publicly traded regional agglomerate that runs a major facility in Charlestown. The agreement could cost $6.16 million per year, a steep jump from past prices that has given officials a case of sticker shock, especially since Casella was the only company that submitted a bid."
- "Steve Wynn will be banned from all Wynn Resorts properties, company tells Massachusetts regulators," by Steph Solis, MassLive.com: Wynn Resorts proposed banning founder Steve Wynn from any of its properties as part of its efforts to convince commissioners the company deserved to keep the Eastern Massachusetts casino license. The company asked the Massachusetts Gaming Commission in a legal brief this week to consider a number of additional remedial measures as commissioners decide on the fate of the casino license, including banning Wynn from resorts wholly-owned by Wynn Resorts, barring executives who have a key gaming license from having any contact with him and reporting any "inadvertent contact" to Massachusetts regulators within 10 days."
- "31,000 Stop & Shop Workers Strike Across New England," by Kaitlyn Locke, WGBH News: "Thirty-one thousand Stop & Shop workers across New England went on strike Thursday afternoon after what they called a failure to move forward in contract negotiations with the grocery store's parent company, Ahold Delhaize. "They are a very profitable company, they made billions last year in sales and profits, and they're trying to destroy the health benefits and pensions of our hardworking members," said Jeff Bollen, the president of the union that represents Stop & Shop workers, in a statement."
- "'I was in such a panic': Pregnant Cambridge woman attacked by group of wild turkeys," by Steve Annear, Boston Globe:"Kenda Carlson feels a little ridiculous walking everywhere while clutching a large golf umbrella — especially when there's no rain in sight and more sunny spring days on the horizon. But after the 35-year-old was aggressively attacked by a group of wild turkeys in Cambridge recently, she knows it could be her best defense against the feathered animals."
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| WARREN REPORT |
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- "Elizabeth Warren: The Republican Years," by Alex Thompson, POLITICO: ""Fight." It's the signature word of Senator Elizabeth Warren's short but consequential political career. It's in the title of both of the books she has published as a senator: A Fighting Chance and This Fight Is Our Fight. In her speech declaring her presidential candidacy in February, Warren told the crowd, "This is the fight of our lives" and, "I've been in this fight for a long time." Her 2020 campaign asks voters to "Join the Fight." Kate McKinnon-as-Warren on "Saturday Night Live" explained, "That's the only f-word I know." But Warren used to be on the other side of the fight she is now waging. For many years before she entered politics, the woman now at the forefront of the progressive wing of the Democratic Party was a Republican."
- "Warren Pushes New Corporate Tax on Profits Above $100 Million," by Sahil Kapur and Laura Davison, Bloomberg:"Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren rolled out a proposal on Thursday to levy a 7 percent tax on corporate profits above $100 million, which if enacted would raise an estimated $1 trillion from the country's wealthiest businesses. There would be "no loopholes or exemptions" for the so-called Real Corporate Profits Tax, Warren said. It would be paid on top of what corporations owe under U.S. tax law and apply to profits earned domestically and abroad, preventing companies from shifting profits offshore to avoid the tax."
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| DAY IN COURT |
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- MEANWHILE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE: "Eversource fights to keep Northern Pass alive," by Jon Chesto, Boston Globe: "To many critics, the fate of Eversource's Northern Pass power line through New Hampshire was sealed when it lost a pivotal deal to deliver electricity to Massachusetts. Eversource, it turns out, isn't ready to pull the plug. The company is waging war against its opponents in a bid to overturn the 2018 permit denial that doomed those valuable Massachusetts contracts. The venue: New Hampshire's Supreme Court. The utility just submitted its last brief to the court on Wednesday, responding to concerns raised by several environmental groups. Oral arguments are scheduled for May 15."
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| TRUMPACHUSETTS |
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- "Smith, Mount Holyoke colleges suspend Police Chief Daniel Hect; president denies Twitter played role," Jim Russell, Springfield Republican: "Daniel Hect, police chief for both Smith College and Mount Holyoke College, was placed on administrative leave Wednesday, according to a statements by the presidents of both schools that referred to questions of trust. Smith's student newspaper, The Sophian, earlier published a story that says Mount Holyoke students found that Hect, using his Twitter account, had liked tweets that were "almost exclusively in response to President Trump's tweets and included anti-immigrant, pro-gun rights and racist sentiments." Hect's Twitter account has since been deleted, The Sophian reported.
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| EYE ON 2020 |
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- "Buttigieg campaign getting a Massachusetts boost from Grossman," by Matt Stout, Boston Globe: "When Pete Buttigieg gathers supporters this weekend in Indiana, the ascending 2020 contender will count among them a name very familiar to Massachusetts voters. Steve Grossman, the former Democratic National Committee chairman and state treasurer, is endorsing the 37-year-old South Bend mayor for president, giving Buttigieg a well-connected ally in the donor-rich state."
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| MOULTON MATTERS |
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- "Trump Gives 2020 Democrats a National-Security 'Opportunity,' Says Rep. Moulton," by Katie Bo Williams, Defense One: "Seth Moulton isn't running for president — yet. But the Massachusetts congressman is joining a growing chorus of Democrats who believe that his party should try to beat President Trump in 2020 on national security. "I recognize that the polling doesn't have national security as a top issue right now, but it's not just the right thing to do for the country with this reckless commander in chief — it's also a political opportunity for Democrats," Moulton said in an interview in his Capitol Hill office."
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| ABOVE THE FOLD |
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— Herald: "WIKI GEEK," — Globe: "Assange faces US charge after arrest," "STOP & SHOP WORKERS WALK OFF THE JOB." |
| FROM THE 413 |
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- "Thirteen Springfield police officers arraigned in connection with alleged Nathan Bill's beating and cover-up," by Dan Glaun, Springfield Republican: "Thirteen current and former Springfield police officers were arraigned in Hampden Superior Court Thursday on allegations that they either participated in or helped cover up the alleged 2015 off-duty police beating of four men outside Nathan Bill's Bar and Restaurant. They were charged in indictments brought by a statewide grand jury, following an investigation by the Office of Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey."
- "Seder with the Obamas," by Sen. Eric Lesser, Hampshire Life:"On the first night of Passover in 2008, I found myself in the middle of Pennsylvania with no way to get home. I was a traveling aide to then-Senator Barack Obama, in charge of keeping track of the luggage and other logistics for Obama, his staff and a pack of traveling reporters as he criss-crossed the United States running for President. Along with Arun Chaudhary, the campaign's videographer, and Herbie Ziskend, an advance staffer, we decided to host an impromptu Seder in the basement of our hotel in Harrisburg."
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| THE LOCAL ANGLE |
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- "In Newton, sparks fly over proposed Needham Street development," by John Hilliard, Boston Globe: "A proposed mixed-use development on Needham Street that could bring hundreds of new housing units divided residents during an hours-long public hearing Tuesday, as project supporters sparred with those concerned about the project's size and traffic impact on the area. Northland Investment Corp.'s proposed project would be built on about 22 acres at the corner of Needham and Oak streets in Newton Upper Falls, an area already snarled by heavy traffic. Northland has reduced the scope of its project, and proposed a shuttle service and traffic improvement measures as part of its proposal."
- "Columbia Gas crews return to Merrimack Valley," by Milton J. Valencia, Boston Globe: "Columbia Gas of Massachusetts executives announced plans Thursday to return to the Merrimack Valley to replace hundreds of heating appliances in homes affected by the Sept. 13 natural gas disasters, resuming work that was postponed for the winter. Mark Kempic, Columbia's chief operating officer, said officials hope to replace appliances at a rate of 50 homes per week, with the goal of completing some 900 properties by late August."
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| MEDIA MATTERS |
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- "Herald puts up paywall, trims payroll more," by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Magazine: "THE BOSTON HERALD is putting up a paywall and continuing to reduce its payroll. Two long-time employees recently filed posts on Facebook indicating they will be laid off in June along with a number of coworkers. The Facebook posts said their jobs are being outsourced to Michigan. At least one editorial employee is also being let go. Kevin Corrado, the publisher of the Herald, and Joe Sciacca, its editor, did not respond to emails seeking information."
- "We're expanding our R.I. coverage. Tell us what you want to see," Boston Globe. Link.
TRANSITIONS - Lydia D. Conley was named president and CEO of The Association for Behavioral Healthcare.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY - to Romneycare and former Marty Walsh staffer Dan Manning.
DID THE HOME TEAM WIN? Yes and no! The Red Sox beat the Blue Jays 7-6. The Maple Leafs beat the Bruins 4-1.
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