POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook: THE POCAHONTAS problem — Introducing: The KENNEDY Compound — ‘This can happen anywhere’
Remember how far Koch brothers' Sock Puppet Scooter Brown got attacking Elizabeth Warren?
Scott Brown made history when he was defeated by 2 WOMEN!
When Republican losers can't address issues, they dredge up old nonsense.
02/15/2018 07:17 AM EDT
By Lauren Dezenski (ldezenski@politico.com; @LaurenDezenski) with Brent D. Griffiths (bgriffiths@politico.com; @BrentGriffiths)
GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS.
THE POCAHONTAS PROBLEM - Sen. Elizabeth Warren took the unexpected step of attempting to set the record straight on questions around her Native American heritage yesterday.
"You won't find my family members on any rolls, and I'm not enrolled in a tribe," Warren said yesterday. "And I want to make something clear. I respect that distinction. I understand that tribal membership is determined by tribes - and only by tribes. I never used my family tree to get a break or get ahead. I never used it to advance my career." Warren also said her mother's family was "part Native American."
Questions surrounding the issue have dogged her on the campaign trail - fodder for political opponents who say Warren misrepresented her past to get ahead and note the so-far-undisclosed paper trail that would prove it (while the professor who recruited Warren to Harvard has maintained her Native American heritage never played a role).
After yesterday's speech, there's sense among some Republicans (especially for alums of the 2012 Scott Brown campaign) that while Warren's intent was to close the door on the issue, the speech didn't go far enough. They say that would be truly addressed by releasing the federal documents where Warren is identified as a Native American while at Harvard. As one put it to me yesterday, there was never a question of whether she has a sliver of Native American heritage - the issue has been proof over whether she misrepresented being a minority in order to gain an edge in academia.
Now, two of the Republicans vying to challenge her in November are among those saying that an eye on the presidency fueled her motivation to attempt to set the record straight.
As State Rep. Geoff Diehl put it: "Why now?" questioned Diehl. "This is another media stunt by Warren to gain national exposure for her presidential run. It doesn't excuse her for wrongfully claiming a minority appointment. Her words today of caring don't seem to match her actions of the past."
John Kingston also questioned her timing: "Elizabeth Warren's speech today distracts from an issue she has never addressed: did she claim to be a member of a Native American tribe in order to obtain preferential consideration for employment at Harvard University, as well as in all her academic positions prior to that? She has never answered that question beyond a reasonable doubt, and she didn't answer it today. People have a right to know, and if Elizabeth Warren wants to be President of the United States, the call for full transparency will only grow louder."
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 attends a ribbon cutting in Lexington - Leaders from the successful ballot question to legalize recreational marijuana in Massachusetts Yes on 4 hold a press conference on the State House's steps - House Speaker Robert DeLeo heads to Holyoke where he joins Greentown Labs CEO Emily Reichert, manufacturing fellow Adam Rodrigues, Rep. Joseph Wagner, and Rick Sullivan of the Western Massachusetts Economic Development Council for a tour of United Plastics.
DATELINE BEACON HILL -
- "Massachusetts Senate still lacks majority leader as senators return to legislative business, pass 2 bills," by Shira Schoenberg, MassLive.com: "The Massachusetts Senate has not yet chosen a new majority leader, a week after former majority leader Harriette Chandler, D-Worcester, became Senate president. Senate Democrats met in a caucus Wednesday, where an aide to Chandler originally said they would choose a new majority leader. However, the senators did not make any announcement about leadership."
- "Deaths by opioid overdose fell 8.3 percent last year in Massachusetts," by Felice J. Freyer, Boston Globe: "For the first time since the opioid crisis gripped the state five years ago, Massachusetts health officials on Wednesday brought forth some unequivocal good news: The number of overdose deaths fell by 8.3 percent in 2017, compared with the previous year. The state's efforts to widely distribute the overdose-reversing drug naloxone (commonly known by the brand name Narcan) has likely played a role in shrinking last year's death rate."
BE MINE, VALENTINE - "Gas pipeline opponents urge Baker to 'break up' with industry,' by Statehouse News Service: "Clean energy advocates on Wednesday delivered a Valentine's Day message to Gov. Charlie Baker, handing one of his aides a bouquet of roses and a stack of red construction-paper hearts with the handwritten message, 'Break up with gas pipelines.' The demonstration came two days after a Senate committee endorsed an omnibus clean energy bill that would ban new natural gas infrastructure, set new targets for emission reductions and use the market to curb fossil fuel use."
NEW SECTION ALERT: THE KENNEDY COMPOUND -
- "Rep. Kennedy Would Agree To Funding Wall In Exchange For DACA," by Tori Bedford, WGBH News: 'If that is the primary need from our conservative colleagues here in the White House, yes, I could see a way where there is funding for border security measures, and potentially including the construction of a physical barrier,' [Kennedy said.] Democrats were hesitant to acquiesce to Trump's longtime campaign promise of a wall along the border with Mexico, but as of January, Democratic leaders have changed their tune."
- "Joe Kennedy III'S 2020 Trap," by T.A. Frank, Vanity Fair: "Kennedy's point in his "choose both" rhetoric was that struggling Americans should reject Trumpian divide-and-rule gambits and come together as one to help one another. One lesson of 2016, however, was that such papering no longer works."
- "U.S. Rep. Joe Kennedy makes good on Eagles-Patriots wager," by Justin Heinze, Patch.com: "U.S. Rep. Joe Kennedy III (D-MA 4) had a friendly wager with Montgomery County's U.S. Rep. Brendan Boyle. If the Eagles lost, Boyle would send Kennedy a treat from Philadelphia; and if the Patriots lost, Kennedy would send Boyle something from Boston. So Kennedy stopped by Boyle's office to hand deliver him a Boston Cream Pie on Tuesday."
MOULTON MATTERS -
- "Seth Moulton says Trump should 'get off his ass' on gun control after Florida school shooting," by Jaclyn Reiss, Boston Globe: "After the harrowing incident, Trump tweeted: 'No child, teacher or anyone else should ever feel unsafe in an American school.' Moulton, a Massachusetts Democrat, then quote-tweeted the president, saying he agreed with Trump's sentiment, adding: 'I invite him to get off his ass and join me in trying to do something about it.'"
ON THE STUMP -
- "WBUR Poll: In Boston Congressional Race, Capuano Up By 12 Points," by Simon Rios, WBUR: "At this early point in race, the WBUR poll shows the veteran congressman has the edge: 35 percent of likely Democratic voters say they support Pressley, while 47 percent favor Capuano. ... The WBUR poll shows voters favor Capuano's experience in Congress. Nearly half say they prefer someone with experience in how Congress works. ... And the lack of name recognition appears to be an early challenge for Pressley. One-third of the voters surveyed said they had never heard of her."
- "Battenfeld: Beth Lindstrom disses Senate competition," by Joe Battenfeld, Boston Herald:"In the first real clash of the Republican Senate race, former party chief Beth Lindstrom took jabs at her GOP opponents, labeling businessman John Kingston a 'white, rich male' and Rep. Geoff Diehl a 'career politician' who can't defeat Democrat Elizabeth Warren. 'It's no surprise that a candidate who's failed to gain any traction for the GOP nomination would take petty pot shots at the only Republican who has clearly demonstrated he has the record, resources and message required to defeat Sen. Warren in November,' Kingston spokesman Jon Conradi said."
- "Bob Massie Makes His Case," WGBH News' "The Scrum": "In this episode of the Scrum, Massie deconstructs what he calls the Charlie Baker "Jedi mind trick," describes the radically different approach he'd bring to the Corner Office, and explains why he thinks he's a better choice than his Democratic rivals, Jay Gonzalez and Setti Warren. Boston Globe reporter Meghan Irons joins Peter Kadzis and Adam Reilly for the conversation."
- "Border wall discussion highlights differences between Capuano and Pressley," by Andy Metzger, State House News Service: "Though Congressman Michael Capuano and primary challenger Boston City Councilor Ayanna Pressley lean to the left, they disagree about funding President Trump's proposed southern border wall. Neither Capuano nor Pressley support the proposed wall on the southern border that President Donald Trump has championed, but Capuano indicated he would be more open to the idea if it meant achieving some of his immigration policy priorities. Pressley, who planned to officially launch her campaign against the Somerville democrat at an event in Cambridge on Tuesday night, said she wouldn't support any funding for the wall."
THE TSONGAS ARENA -
FIRST IN PLAYBOOK - L'Italien Earns Endorsement of Andover, Lawrence Firefighters, from the Barbara L'Italien campaign: "Firefighter unions in Lawrence and Andover announced today their support for Barbara L'Italien in her race for congress. ... Andover Firefighters Local 1658, representing 67 full-time professional fire personnel, conveyed enthusiasm for L'Italien's leadership on a state budget amendment in 2017 to protect the pensions of retirees, including firefighters and other municipal public employees, as well as her recent leadership fighting proposed changes to retiree health benefits that were later rolled back, a major victory."
WOOD WAR - Herald: "JUST IN SHOCK" - Globe: "Warren defends heritage claims," "TERROR, AGAIN, IN SCHOOL," "Opioid deaths in Mass. fall by 8.3 percent," "WBUR fires Ashbrook after inquiry into bullying," "'Black Panther' blasts through mold."
THE LOCAL ANGLE -
- "Fla. mayor, a Boston native: 'Something like this can happen anywhere,'" by Danny McDonald, Boston Globe: "Wednesday found Parkland, Fla., Mayor Christine Hunschofsky, a Boston native, trying to make sense of a senseless horror. A mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School left at least 17 dead and her suburban community of about 30,000 in South Florida reeling."
- "Pot panel hears competing views in last public hearing," by Ethan Forman, Salem News:"Commissioners Jennifer Flanagan and Britte McBride trekked to the math and science building at North Shore Community College and heard various views about how the regulations should be put in place. The commission plans to deliberate in public, then issue final regulations by March 15."
- "Suspended head of health care workers union reportedly engaged in lewd behavior," by Priyanka Dayal McCluskey, Boston Globe: "As a top executive at an organization that fights for workers' rights, Tyrék D. Lee Sr. allegedly made unwanted advances to women in the office and sometimes engaged in lewd behavior in front of colleagues, according to several people with knowledge of his behavior. Lee was suspended from his job at the state's largest health care workers union in December amid allegations of inappropriate conduct, the Globe previously reported. Union officials launched an investigation, and Lee remains on unpaid leave."
- "The White House called out a Boston bridge - but used the wrong picture," by Adam Vaccaro, Boston Globe: "As part of its campaign to boost infrastructure spending, the White House posted a criticism of lengthy government permitting that singled out the long-delayed reconstruction of the Anderson Memorial Bridge near Harvard University. Except the Trump administration posted a picture of the wrong bridge to illustrate its point."
- "WEEI to hold day-long sensitivity training," by Joe Dwinell, Boston Herald: "WEEI, under fire following a host's offensive impersonation of a stereotypical Asian-American accent, announced today it is holding 'mandatory' sensitivity training. That all-day session is set for Friday, the station said, with all live programming suspended from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m."
- "Mayor Walsh calls on Herald ownership to protect workers' pensions," by Brian Dowling, Boston Herald: "Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh today urged the ownership of the Herald to strike a deal to save workers' pensions imperiled by the bankruptcy sale of the newspaper to Digital First Media for $11.9 million. The Chapter 11 process allowed the Herald to shed its tens of millions of dollars in pension and severance liabilities, leaving longtime workers with pennies on the dollar, but giving the new owner a fresh start to bring the company's financials back into the black."
- "Tom Ashbrook Dismissed from WBUR," by BU Today staff, BU Today: "Tom Ashbrook, the host of WBUR's call-in radio program On Point, with more than two million listeners through more than 290 National Public Radio stations, will not be returning to WBUR. Boston University, which operates WBUR, reached this decision after an independent review verified claims that he had created an abusive work environment."
HAPPY BIRTHDAY - to Lowell Sen. Eileen Donoghue, Law360 reporter, and ESPN and WEEI Radio sportscaster Chris Villani, Shaynah Barnes of Rep. Stephen Lynch's office, and Robert Swan, a Ted Kennedy alum.
DID THE HOME TEAM WIN? No! The Celtics lost to the Clippers 119-129.
NEW THIS MORNING - A NEW HORSE RACE PODCAST EPISODE: This week it's all about challenges: special guest Lawrence Friedman, professor of law at the New England Law Boston explains the details of the supreme judicial court case regarding the so-called millionaire's tax, Steve breaks down his latest WBUR poll on the primary race between Mike Capuano and challenger Ayanna Pressley, and Setti Warren shares delegates with his fellow gubernatorial challengers in Newton. Subscribe and listen on iTunes and Sound Cloud
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