POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook: DEMS meet again — Globe investigating McGRORY text exchange — NEW POLITICS’ local endorsements


DEMS meet again — Globe investigating McGRORY text exchange — NEW POLITICS’ local endorsements


05/24/2018 07:18 AM EDT
By Lauren Dezenski (ldezenski@politico.com; @LaurenDezenski) with Brent D. Griffiths (bgriffiths@politico.com; @BrentGriffiths)
GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS.

DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY BATTLE ESCALATION — In a gubernatorial primary long categorized as cordial, Democrat Bob Massietook a new turn earlier this week at the First Essex and Middlesex Delegate Dinner on Tuesday night as he sought to show daylight between his campaign and Jay Gonzalez.
That specifically came from Massie highlighting longtime support for single payer health care and women's rights, and "that he was not a government insider who just wants to go back to the Patrick days," according to First Essex and Middlesex Coalition's Kathy Pasquina, who is supportive of Massie. Another Democrat who was in the room, Maryanne Rutter, who backs Gonzalez, described the tone as uncharacteristically negative — something the Massie campaign pushes back on.
"Bob is asked at many forums what the differences are between him and Jay, and last night he addressed it upfront," Cabell Eames of the Massie campaign told me last night. "While Bob shares many of the same ideas as Jay, he feels that his vision for Massachusetts is more far reaching than the one Jay is offering. ... Bob feels it is important to emphasize these differences because he is repeatedly hearing that people see very little daylight between Jay and himself."


Look for this to be a continuing narrative, likely emerging again tonight as the two candidates meet again in a televised forum on NECN's The Take, moderated by host Sue O'Connell and political reporter Alison King.
Meanwhile, Gov. Charlie Baker may be avoiding the pre-August campaign trail like the plague, but he has secured his first post-GOP convention endorsement, this time from the Massachusetts Fraternal Order of Police. As its executive board notes in its endorsement, "This administration has been supportive of Law Enforcement from the time they took office and it has not gone unnoticed." The group also backed Baker in 2014.
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, LG Karyn Polito, and Secretary of the Department of Veterans' Services Francisco Ureña will participate in the Massachusetts Military Heroes Fund Memorial Day Ceremony on the Boston Common this morning — Senatebudget debate enters its third day — The North East Clean Energy Council hosts its seventh annual Massachusetts Clean Energy Day at the State House
DATELINE BEACON HILL —


- "Mass. House passes bill to strip guns from people seen as a danger," by Joshua Miller, Boston Globe: "Invoking the memories of school shooting victims, the Massachusetts House of Representatives passed a bill Wednesday that would give judges the power to strip weapons from individuals flagged as a danger to themselves or others. The legislation, approved 139 to 14, would allow family members, roommates, current and former romantic partners, and police officials to petition a court to take away a gun owner's weapons for a year."


- "Legalization of sports betting in Massachusetts won't happen in 2018, House Speaker Robert DeLeo says," by Shira Schoenberg, MassLive.com: "Massachusetts House Speaker Robert DeLeo, D-Winthrop, said Wednesday that he does not anticipate taking up sports betting before the current legislative session ends in July. 'There are so many questions that have to be answered, and I think that right now for us to be able to expect to do this within the last two months of session...I think it would be very difficult,'DeLeo told reporters at the Statehouse."
- "Rep. Joseph Wagner expected to lead Massachusetts' review of sports betting," by Shira Schoenberg, MassLive.com: "If Massachusetts legalizes sports betting, expect State Rep. Joseph Wagner, D-Chicopee, to be quarterbacking the effort. Wagner is the House chairman of the Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies."
- "Mass. gaming board chair says states should oversee sports bets," by Andy Rosen, Boston Globe: "The top gambling regulator in Massachusetts on Wednesday joined colleagues from several other states in rebuking the nation's professional sports leagues over the future of sports betting, in particular rejecting requests that the teams share in the spoils of legalized wagering on their games. In a policy statement, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission's chairman, Stephen P. Crosby, and his counterparts in three other jurisdictions said the expansion of sports betting is best handled by individual states."
ON THE STUMP —
FIRST IN PLAYBOOK - New Politics endorses Amaad Rivera for State Senate in the Hampden Senate district and Dr. Jon Santiago for State Rep. in the 9th Suffolk district, from New Politics : "New Politics today endorsed Amaad Rivera in his campaign for state senate in Massachusetts' Hampden Senate District and Dr. Jon Santiago in his campaign for state representative in Massachusetts' Ninth Suffolk District. Rivera is an AmeriCorps, alumnus, former Springfield City Councilor, and staff member for U.S. Senator Ed Markey. Dr. Santiago is a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer, captain in the U.S. Army Reserve, and emergency room doctor at Boston Medical Center. Rivera and Dr. Santiago are part of New Politics' first round of national endorsements at the state legislative level in 2018."
- "Robert Massie's communications director departs, citing 'finance' issues," by Frank Phillips, Boston Globe: "Gubernatorial candidate Robert Massie's communications director, Mara Dolan, has quit the campaign after six weeks — a sign of financial trouble for the Democrat before the state party's endorsement convention next month. Dolan said her decision to leave the Massie campaign was based on 'finance.'"

HOW COME MASS FISCAL ALLIANCE HAS A RICHMOND VIRGINIA POSTAL PERMIT IF THEY'RE A TAX FREE MASSACHUSETTS ORGANIZATION...SUPPOSEDLY DEDICATED TO 'EDUCATING VOTERS? 

- "Mass Fiscal Alliance unleashing new round of mailers targeting Dems," by Andy Metzger, State House News Service: "With the next state election several months away, the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance is targeting 25 Democrats with mailers chiding them for votes on their own pay raises and other issues. The group sent nearly 800,000 pieces of mail featuring generic elderly constituents Edna and Lester, who appear nonplussed by the lawmakers' actions. One mailer targeting Sen. Paul Feeney claims the Foxborough Democrat 'voted against Governor Baker's budget priorities thirty times.'"

THE TSONGAS ARENA —
FIRST IN PLAYBOOK - Lunenburg, Berlin DTC Chairs Endorse Rufus Gifford for Congress, from the Gifford campaign: Sharon Jordan, Chair of the Lunenburg Democratic Town Committee, and Lisa Wysocki, Chair of the Berlin Democratic Town Committee, have endorsed Rufus Gifford. Jordan said, "I have met or spoken with almost every candidate in this crowded race, and Rufus has impressed me most with his bold policy agenda and his commitment to the value of good government." Wysocki said, "He has experience at the top levels of government that no other candidate has, and will be able to hit the ground running on day one. Yet he is still a lifelong learner and a good listener, constantly soaking up new information and using it to create new ideas."
- National Progressive Veterans Endorse Chandler for Congress in MA-3, from the Alexandra Chandler campaign: "Alexandra Chandler is proud to announce that she has been endorsed by Common Defense, a grassroots organization of veterans and military families representing 150,000 members."
THE WARREN REPORT —
- "Warren, Sanders have different focus for the same 2018 goals," by James Pindell, Boston Globe: "For Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, the next few months are bound to look similar. Both are wildly popular New England senators who face reelection in their home states this fall. And both are expected to cruise to victory. But the biggest similarity may be that all this is happening against the backdrop of a much larger election prospect — the 2020 presidential race — with both focused on nurturing their national profiles and fund-raising efforts in order to best position themselves. "
WOOD WAR — Herald"PERFECT 10" — Globe"Thousands of Boston students fall behind," "NFL players on field must stand for anthem," "IT'S A BIRD..." "Nurse wins $28m suit against Brigham," "Two huge wind projects picked for off Vineyard," "ONE TO GO," "Globe editor investigated over alleged text exchange."
THE LOCAL ANGLE —
- "Globe investigating allegation top editor sent inappropriate text," by Mark Arsenault, Boston Globe: "'When we first learned about the social media discussion . . . we began investigating to gather as much relevant information as we could,' said the memo, from Linda Henry, Globe managing director, and Vinay Mehra, Globe president. Henry and Mehra said they have tried 'to ascertain the timing and context of the text in question,' but 'at this time it is still unclear when these exchanges took place.'"
- "Globe Executives Address Sexual-Harassment Accusation Against Editor Brian McGrory," by Dan Kennedy, WGBH News:"Two top Boston Globe executives, managing director Linda Pizzuti Henry and president Vinay Mehra, sent this out to the staff earlier [Wednesday] afternoon. As you'll see, the message concerns a charge by Hilary Sargent, a former top editor at Boston.com, that she was sexually harassed by editor Brian McGrory in a text message, which she posted on Twitter this past Monday."
- "Massachusetts Gains Foothold in Offshore Wind Power, Long Ignored in U.S.," by Stanley Reed and Ivan Penn, The New York Times: "On Wednesday, that effort took a major step forward as the State of Massachusetts, after holding an auction, selected a group made up of a Danish investment firm and a Spanish utility to erect giant turbines on the ocean bottom, beginning about 15 miles off Martha's Vineyard. This initial project will generate 800 megawatts of electricity, roughly enough to power a half a million homes."
- "Boston Mayor Marty Walsh: I won't let UMass Boston go the way of Mount Ida College," by Gintautas Dumcius, MassLive.com: "UMass Boston, a campus clashing with the head of the university system amid fallout from a failed search for a new chancellor, won't be closing like Mount Ida College, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh vowed Wednesday. A 20-year veteran of city politics, Walsh has seen chancellors come and go from the Boston Harbor campus. 'I think, moving forward, it needs some stability,' the mayor said."
- "Necco sold to Ohio-based Spangler Candy Company for $18.8M," by Jordan Graham, Boston Herald: "Necco, the iconic yet troubled Revere confectioner, sold for nearly $19 million, to Spangler Candy Company, a longtime family enterprise and the makers of Dum Dum lollipops. During the bidding, a lawyer for Spangler implied the company planned to seek a sale of some of Necco's assets, but [Kirk Vashaw, chief executive of the company and a fourth-generation Spangler] declined to comment on the company's plans. "

- "Police chiefs' organization backs BPD in Seaport fight," by Matt Stout, Boston Globe: "A statewide organization that counts both the Boston and State Police departments as members is backing BPD in the agencies' long-standing turf war to patrol the Seaport District, arguing that the state department's claim to sole jurisdiction is an outdated model of policing. In a letter to Governor Charlie Baker's public safety secretary, the Massachusetts Major City Chiefs argues that Boston police should be given shared authority in the rapidly changing area because it is 'in the best, most suitable position to provide the optimum level of policing services.'"

- "Makeup call: Salemme witnesses to testify in disguise," by Laurel J. Sweet, Boston Globe: "Another Boston mob melodrama is going Hollywood - this time, to mask the true identities of two witness-security inspectors the U.S. Marshals Service fears will be endangered if seen testifying in the murder trial of Francis 'Cadillac Frank' Salemme and Paul Weadick. U.S. District Court Judge Allison D. Burroughs has ordered the federal law-enforcement agency to hire a big-screen quality makeup artist to alter the appearances of the two government witnesses referred to at a hearing today as Bachelors No. 1 and No. 2."

- "Turbine will not spin again in Falmouth," by Christine Legere, Cape Cod Times: "One of two town-owned wind turbines is reaching the end of its long and contentious career. Wind 1, erected at the wastewater treatment plant in 2010 and measuring 400 feet from base to blade tip, will not spin again in Falmouth — although it may someday churn out energy elsewhere."

- "Thoroughbred racing might return to Great Barrington Fairgrounds," by Tony Dobrowolski, and Heather Bellow, The Berkshire Eagle: "The roar of racing thoroughbreds, which faded into local history decades ago, might once again thunder from the Great Barrington Fairgrounds. The company that operates Suffolk Downs in East Boston has reached an agreement that could bring thoroughbred horse racing back to the racetrack as early as 2019."
MAZEL! - to Kerry Akashian, named to the Eastern Regional Commission on the Status of Women by the Massachusetts Commission of the Status of Women.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to Massachusetts Teachers Association government relations specialist Kate Donaghey and Boston Globe scribe Evan Allen.
DID THE HOME TEAM WIN? Yes! The Celtics beat the Cavaliers 96-83 and the Red Sox rallied to beat the Rays 4-1.
FRESH OUT OF THE GATE - THE LATEST HORSE RACE PODCAST EPISODE: There are two candidates left in the Democratic primary for governor, and both are eyeing the lane to the left. State House News Service's Matt Murphy has the highlights on Jay Gonzalez, while CommonWealth Magazine's Michael Jonas digs into the multi-faceted Bob Massie. We then head to the Berkshires with WAMC Radio's Josh Landes to check out a surprisingly dramatic DA race in Berkshire County. Subscribe and listen on iTunes andSound Cloud
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