POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook: BAKER’s Planned Parenthood boost — HEALTH CONNECTOR enrollment up — Another HERALD bidder
02/09/2018 07:22 AM EDT
By Lauren Dezenski (ldezenski@politico.com; @LaurenDezenski) with Brent D. Griffiths (bgriffiths@politico.com; @BrentGriffiths)
GOOD MORNING MASSACHUSETTS. Welcome to Friday. The federal government is no longer shut down. Among the Massachusetts delegation, Stephen Lynch, Bill Keating, and Niki Tsongas all voted to end the shutdown.
BAKER'S PLANNED PARENTHOOD BOOST - Gov. Charlie Baker got a hit of good news from an unlikely ally yesterday. Planned Parenthood Massachusetts lauded the Baker administration for locking down $1.6 million in the state's supplemental budget that allocated for family planning services for low-income and uninsured residents in case the Trump administration doesn't extend federal grants to do just that.
The move isn't a surprise - Baker, last spring, promised to maintain funding for Planned Parenthood even if the Trump administration made cuts.
What is surprising is the state-based chapter of Planned Parenthood's effusive praise for the pro-choice Republican governor, given the organization's relationship with the national Republican party and the Trump administration itself: "The Baker Administration's commitment to step in with state funds if federal inaction creates gaps in care is a direct acknowledgement of the important role Title X plays in keeping people healthy and saving taxpayer money. ... With the Trump Administration laser-focused on using its power to control women's bodies and lives, Massachusetts is setting an example for the rest of the country and fighting back against any attempt to infringe on basic rights."
While Planned Parenthood's praise isn't pitched as a specific endorsement of Baker himself (who faces no serious primary challenge headed into re-election this November), it's still a boost that will likely re-emerge as Democrats seek to question Baker's chops on progressive social issues and ongoing efforts to tie him to Trump and the national Republican party.
Meanwhile, on the left, the abortion issue was enough for Quincy Mayor Tom Koch to leave the Democratic Party. Koch says he unenrolled from the party he joined at age 18 after DNC Chair Tom Perez said last spring that there is no room in the Democratic party for those who are "pro-life." The move isn't expected to shake up the landscape significantly for conservative-leaning Koch, who is also a Baker supporter.
Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Get in touch: ldezenski@politico.com.
TODAY - Gov. Charlie Baker holds a cabinet meeting - The Cannabis Control Commission wraps up its week of public meetings around the state to vet its proposed regulations with a stop on Martha's Vineyard - Middlesex DA Marian Ryan holds a meeting of the Lowell Opioid Task Force
DATELINE BEACON HILL -
- "Stan Rosenberg dodges questions about scandal," by Matt Stout, Boston Herald: "A day after his fellow Democrats moved to bar him from returning as Senate president this year, state Sen. Stanley Rosenberg returned to the State House but didn't answer questions about whether he'd seek the post in 2019 during an awkward interaction with reporters. Rosenberg, who is the focus of an ongoing Ethics Commission investigation, then stepped away and jokingly chided reporters who further pressed him on whether he'd seek the presidency next year."
- "Activists fight back as Walsh, Baker urge slower rollout of pot businesses," by Dan Adams, Boston Globe: "Massachusetts cannabis regulators are facing mounting political pressure to delay the scheduled July debut of certain recreational pot businesses, as Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh and Governor Charlie Baker on Thursday called for a slower, two-phase rollout of the voter-approved marijuana industry. But activists and a top state Cannabis Control Commission official are fighting back, saying a variety of businesses must be allowed to participate in the coming cannabis rush."
- "Transportation commission won't look at revenues, financing," by Bruce Mohl, Commonwealth Magazine: "Gov. Charlie Baker's new commission on the future of transportation will try to envision how people will be moving around the region 10 to 20 years from now, but it won't be looking at how to pay for the infrastructure needed to accomplish that. Steven Kadish, the chairman of the commission, said the group will not look at specific transportation projects and it will not look at revenues."
-"Attracting Amazon could require special bill, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker says," by Andy Metzger, State House News Service: "Amazon doesn't quite fit into the state's current set of job-boosting programs, according to Gov. Charlie Baker, who raised the idea Thursday of legislation tailored to suit the tech giant's needs. Baker and House Speaker Robert DeLeo are interested this year in passing an economic development bill, an idea that probably has appeal to lawmakers who are seeking re-election in the fall."
THE WARREN REPORT -
- Sen. Elizabeth Warren is headed to Franklin on Saturday to host her third town hall of 2018. She's set to take audience questions and her work "standing up for working families of Massachusetts against powerful corporate interests." Doors open at 12:30 p.m. and the event begins at 1:30 p.m. at the Franklin High School Auditorium.
- "Elizabeth Warren: Equifax hid hackers' theft of passport numbers," by Kevin Dugan, New York Post: "Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) on Wednesday said cyber thieves who hacked Equifax's database in 2017 'accessed' an unknown number of passport numbers - a theft the credit-reporting agency has kept hidden. But the embattled company shot right back at the lawmaker, saying it didn't disclose the theft because it never happened."
EXCERPT:
Warren, who ripped into former Equifax Chief Executive Richard Smith at a Senate hearing last fall, sought to keep the heat on the company with her report.
It claimed the cyberattack was worse than first thought — and that the company’s response to it has been poor.
This week, Reuters reported that the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau was easing off its probe of the Equifax hack.
“Equifax hid this breach from the public for weeks, then gave consumers confusing information about whether their data had been stolen, then told Congress one thing and is saying something totally different today,” Lacey Rose, a Warren spokeswoman, said in a statement.
“Equifax needs to get its story straight — with the Senate Banking Committee and with the American people,” Rose added.
ON THE STUMP -
- CHALLENGER ALERT: "Arlington mom announces run against Rep. Sean Garballey," from the Medford Transcript: "Arlington resident Lori Lennon has announced her candidacy for State Representative for the 23rd Middlesex District, representing parts of Arlington and Medford. ... The seat is currently held by Rep. Sean Garballey, who has held the seat for almost 10 years."
- "GOP consultant's websites get trolled," by Frank Phillips, Boston Globe: "[Republican campaign consultant Holly Robichaud] is senior campaign consultant to state Representative Geoff Diehl, who is running for the GOP nomination to oppose US Senator Elizabeth Warren. But an online prankster has finagled her website so that visitors to TuesdayAssociates.com automatically redirects to the website of one of Diel's primary opponents, businessman John Kingston."
TSONGAS ARENA -
- NEW THIS MORNING: "Dan Koh announces comprehensive, forward-looking jobs plan for Third District," from the Koh campaign: "Underscoring that the 'Democratic Party needs to be the party of jobs again,' congressional candidate Dan Koh today announced a comprehensive, substantive plan to create jobs and raise wages in the Third District. Koh's detailed policy proposal focuses on expanding employment in the innovation economy, bridging the skills gap, fighting for a living wage for every worker, and creating jobs by investing in infrastructure."
- "Two more join 3rd District race, bringing field to 14 Democrats," by Chris Lisinski, Lowell Sun: "The field of Democrats in the 3rd Congressional District race had briefly shrunk back down to a dozen, but following two new announcements, it has hit a new high of 14 candidates. Leonard Golder, a Stow attorney, and Jeff Ballinger, an Andover organizer and labor advocate, both said in recent days they will run to succeed U.S. Rep. Niki Tsongas."
MOULTON MATTERS -
- "Moulton aims to build network of military veterans running for House seats," by Astead W. Herndon, Boston Globe: "Representative Seth Moulton is working to build a network of nearly 20 fellow military veterans to run for House seats in 2018, seeking to bring fresh voices to Congress while pumping up his own standing among representatives. But Moulton also has raised eyebrows for the way he is characterizing his efforts ... he [said was 'literally recruiting a new generation of leaders for the party,' which caused some Democrats involved with the party's recruitment efforts to grumble privately that Moulton was exaggerating his role."
- "U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton working to stop illegal immigrant's deportation," by Antonio Planas, Boston Herald: "U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton is working with lawyers of a Brazilian national to prevent his deportation after he was detained by immigration agents while seeking a green card with his American wife. Fabiano de Oliveira, 33, a Beverly resident who is an illegal immigrant, was taken into custody Jan. 9 by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents at Lawrence's Citizenship and Immigration Services office, where he had gone with his American wife to establish legal residency."
- "Congressman Seth Moulton was a TV celebrity in Iraq," Late Night with Seth Meyers:Moulton makes a late night TV appearance on Wednesday.
WOOD WAR - Herald: "CARTEL CONNECTION" - Globe: "MassMutual is bringing 1,100 jobs to the Seaport," "Stocks sink on fears of interest rate hikes," "GAMES ON," "No simple answers to mental illness," "An Australian solution for too-tall trucks," "Raging flu makes estranged bedfellows."
THE LOCAL ANGLE -
- "MassMutual to add 1,500 jobs in Springfield, build new Boston campus in $300M investment in Massachusetts," by Jim Kinney, MassLive.com: "MassMutual announced plans Thursday for a major expansion in Massachusetts including a $300 million investment and 2,000 jobs to the Commonwealth over the next four years. Those 2,000 jobs include 1,500 at corporate headquarters in Springfield and 500 at a new Boston campus on Fan Pier, which the company plans to build."
- "Despite higher prices, more people enroll in Health Connector," by Shira Schoenberg, MassLive.com: "Despite higher prices, more people enrolled in Massachusetts Health Connector insurance plans this year than last year. The Health Connector is the marketplace where individuals and small businesses can buy subsidized or unsubsidized coverage."
- "Massachusetts lost more than 20% of its solar jobs last year," by Jon Chesto, Boston Globe: "Massachusetts remains ranked No. 2 in the country for solar jobs, but its heft is slipping significantly. The state lost 21 percent of its jobs in the solar industry last year, with the number dropping to 11,530 at the end of the year, according to a report from the Solar Foundation."
- "Suffolk DA: Fentanyl kingpin tied to Sinaloa cartel busted in Boston," by Jennifer Miller, Boston Herald: "A fentanyl kingpin with direct links to Mexico's vicious Sinaloa drug cartel was busted by Boston police and DEA agents before dawn [Thursday morning], authorities said. 'Operation High Hopes has taken down one of the Boston area's top traffickers of fentanyl, heroin, cocaine, and opiate painkillers,' Suffolk District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said, referring to a six-month multiagency investigation that resulted in multiple arrests [on Thursday]."
- "Flu activity in Mass. reaches 2nd highest level in a decade," by Matt Rocheleau, Boston Globe: "Flu activity in Massachusetts has spiked yet again, reaching the second-highest level the state has seen in at least the past decade. Since 2007, the earliest year of available state data, Massachusetts has seen higher rates of reports of flu-like illnesses during only one other stretch - the height of the 2009 swine flu pandemic."
- "Commuters, rejoice: Longfellow Bridge will reopen in May," by Steve Annear, Boston Globe: "Pedestrians, MBTA riders, cyclists, and drivers, rejoice: The Longfellow Bridge, which spans the Charles River and carries commuters of all kinds between Cambridge and Boston, will finally reopen in May. Governor Charlie Baker made the announcement about the bridge completely reopening during a Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce breakfast Thursday morning."
MEDIA MATTERS - "Digital First becomes third bidder for Boston Herald," by Brian Dowling, Boston Herald: "Lawyers for the Herald confirmed the bid made by MediaNews Group, the corporate name for Digital First, was sent to the paper this morning and said they are reviewing the documents to determine whether the bid qualifies the company for Tuesday's bankruptcy auction. Newspaper giant GateHouse Media was the first to bid in December at $5 million, followed by a $5.75 million bid by Revolution Media Group, a Los Angeles private equity company."
FOR YOUR WEEKEND LISTENING PLEASURE -
- "Should political donors have to disclose their identity?," by Alison Bruzek, WBUR: "...Is there ever a situation where this transparency does not work in the best interest of democracy? Paul Craney from the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance joins us to walk us through why he feels not all disclosures are good."
- "Podcast: How Chris Dempsey And No Boston Olympics Saved Taxpayers Over $1 Billion," by Mike Ozanian, Forbes: "On this SportsMoney podcast, [Chris] Dempsey gets into the true economics any city must consider before bidding for the games and his experiences with No Boston Olympics."
- AND THE HORSE RACE PODCAST - Episode 16: Storming the Gates: Steve Koczela is back in the bunker just in time for caucus season! We've got answers to all the caucus questions you're afraid to ask with special guest Gus Bickford, Chairman of the Massachusetts Democratic Party. We also check in on the first forum for the MA-3, the legal challenge to the proposed "Fair Share" ballot question and the latest development around the senate presidency. Subscribe and listen on iTunes and Sound Cloud
HAPPY BIRTHDAY - to Chairman and CEO of Rasky Partners Larry Rasky, Babson MBA candidateElisabeth Gorra, MuckRock founder Michael Morisy, and Gail Huff, broadcast journalist and wife of former Sen. and current U.S. Ambassador to New Zealand Scott Brown.
HAPPY BIRTHWEEKEND - to former Cambridge City Councilor Leland Cheung, who celebrates on Sunday.
DID THE HOME TEAM WIN? Yes! The Celtics beat the Wizards 110-104, in OT.
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