POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook: The DEMS’ upset convention — More STATIE overtime issues — NAT GUARD resources sent to border
The DEMS’ upset convention — More STATIE overtime issues — NAT GUARD resources sent to border
06/04/2018 07:09 AM EDT
—By Lauren Dezenski (ldezenski@politico.com; @LaurenDezenski) with Brent D. Griffiths (bgriffiths@politico.com; @BrentGriffiths)
A HISTORIC DEM-VENTION — This weekend's Democratic convention delivered an upset in the surprisingly engaging contest for secretary of state — Boston City Councilor Josh Zakim pulled off a 10-point victory over six-term Secretary of State Bill Galvin. Zakim earned 54.8 percent to Galvin's 45.2 percent.
Zakim is the first Democrat to win his party's endorsement over an incumbent since Gov. Ed King lost to upstart Michael Dukakis in 1982 (a year before Zakim was born). Of course, the party's endorsement is not the be-all end-all in Massachusetts primary politics — the endorsed candidate is never guaranteed to win, but it's a critical boost for Zakim.
Zakim also carried 70 percent of Boston, home to both he and Galvin. Hours before the convention kicked off on Friday, I reportedMayor Marty Walsh was directing the Boston delegation to back Zakim; on Saturday, they largely followed through. Walsh, and other high-profile support coming from Rep. Seth Moulton have delivered a big assist to Zakim in the heated inter-party primary, giving fuel to the progressive as he takes on establishment veteran Galvin. It was a noteworthy nod coming from Walsh, who frequently finds himself aligning with the establishment candidates (like Rep. Michael Capuano in MA-7 over Boston City Councilor Ayanna Pressley).
- Not spotted at the convention: Galvin swag. Galvin may have a significant financial lead over Zakim (more than 2.6 million to Zakim's $500,000), but none of those resources were visible at the convention itself. Galvin's ground game appears to be rusty — There was no sign of signs, shirts, buttons, or anything visible for supporters from the secretary of state's team. Galvin's got just shy of 100 days to fire up his campaign mechanism before primary day.
- Spotted at the convention: Stan Rosenberg swag. Stephen Driscoll of the South Shore, who has worked with Rosenberg in the Democratic State Committee over the years, had 200 black "Stan" buttons printed ahead of the convention. As he handed them out to delegates, he told me it was meant to be a one-day show of support for the former Senate president (whom Driscoll said had no clue about the buttons). Driscoll and others took photos of themselves in the pins and planned to send them to Rosenberg after the convention. While nearly all of the buttons had been handed out by 11 a.m. on Saturday, some Democrats in the hall bristled. As one delegate said to me: "Where are the buttons of support for victims? It's a bad look for a DSC member to pick sides against victims."
Other convention toplines:
- Jay Gonzalez delivered a speech riffing on his height and his electoral posture against Gov. Charlie Baker, calling himself "the little guy" (Gonzalez is 5'3" to Baker's 6'6"). Gonzalez had the largest margin of victory of the day, besting Bob Massie with 70 percent of the vote.
- The LG's race was closer than expected as comedian Jimmy Tingle delivered a surprisingly engaging speech peppered with stand-up jokes, much to the delight of many in the convention hall. Tingle captured 41 percent of the vote to Quentin Palfrey's 59 percent.
Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Get in touch: ldezenski@politico.com.
TODAY - Sen. Elizabeth Warren participates in a roundtable discussion with CEOs, entrepreneurs, investors, and business leaders at the Alliance for Business Leadership's "Progressive Power Hour" in Boston — State Senate President Harriette Chandler is in Washington, D.C. to speak at the National Medicaid-Medicare-CHIP Oral Health Symposium — Rep. Richard Neal addresses the New England Council.
DEMVENTION RECAP —
NO HEAVY LIFTING CHARLIE!
- "Healey blasts Baker for avoiding 'tough fights,'" by Michael P. Norton, State House News Service: "While many Democrats hoped she would challenge Gov. Charlie Baker, Attorney General Maura Healey is going for four more years in her current job. On Friday night, her party mates rallied around her bid to stay put at One Ashburton Place, but also responded with zeal as she took a few jabs at Baker. Roads and bridges in Massachusetts are 'falling apart,' Healey said. People are stuck 'for hours' trying to get to work by car or commuter rail, she said, and too often the quality of education is dictated by the wealth of a student's family."
- "Mass. Democrats want more forceful opposition to Trump," by Stephanie Ebbert, Boston Globe: "Massachusetts Democrats, furious with federal leadership and frustrated with their Republican governor's unwillingness to challenge it more forcefully, rallied the troops at their nominating convention on Saturday to fight the Trump administration's policies from the Bay State. A year after a frenetic convention built around their bafflement that Donald Trump had been elected president, Democratic delegates came to a convention that they said felt slightly less energetic but more purposeful."
- "Elizabeth Warren to Massachusetts Democrats: 'I'm just getting started,'" by Shannon Young, MassLive.com: "U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, pledged Friday to 'persist' in her efforts to fight for working class Americans and to challenge President Donald Trump and Republicans, as she opened the Massachusetts Democratic Party's 2018 convention. Warren, an oft-rumored 2020 presidential contender, thanked Massachusetts Democrats attending the Worcester gathering for helping her raise her voice by electing her the first female senator in the state's history six years ago."
- "Setti Warren: 'No regrets' about dropping out of governor's race," by Matt Murphy, State House News Service: "Former Newton Mayor Setti Warren, who dropped out of the governor's race in April citing campaign finance struggles, attended the state Democratic Party Convention in Worcester on Saturday as a delegate, abstaining on his ballot in the races for governor and lieutenant governor and casting a vote for secretary of state challenger Josh Zakim. Warren said both men that he once considered rivals for the Democratic nomination for governor did "great," and said he had "no regrets" about dropping out of the race when he made the calculation that he wouldn't have the financial resources to compete with a well-funded Gov. Charlie Baker."
THROWBACK - "Battlin' Bill Galvin," by Michael Jonas, CommonWealth Magazine (circa 2000): "And they say there's always been something of a populist streak underneath his dark reputation and less than gregarious public manner. But to his detractors — and he's acquired his share over a 25-year career in public life — all of Galvin's crusading is nothing more than the latest move by a crafty pol who's always on the make, keeping his own political fortunes foremost in mind."
DATELINE BEACON HILL —
- "Federal grand jury targets Massachusetts State Police alleged overtime abuse," by Andrea Estes and Shelley Murphy, Boston Globe: "A federal grand jury is investigating the alleged theft of overtime pay and other misconduct involving members of the Massachusetts State Police, according to multiple people with knowledge of the criminal probe. Prosecutors are examining whether members of Troop E — the unit that until recently patrolled the Massachusetts Turnpike — committed fraud by collecting pay for overtime shifts they did not work, and whether supervisors were aware of or participated in the practice, the people said."
- "Massachusetts State Police say there's even more alleged overtime abuse," by Gintautas Dumcius, MassLive.com: "The scandal involving alleged overtime abuse keeps growing. An audit of overtime shifts worked by members of the Massachusetts State Police's former Troop E showed additional potential instances of abuse, the law enforcement agency said Friday."
- "Massachusetts was a policy trailblazer. Not anymore," by Evan Horowitz, Boston Globe: "Massachusetts used to be a hub of innovative public policies, but the state that gave America its first public school and first minimum wage seems to have lost its experimental nerve, along with its status as one of the great crucibles of transformative lawmaking. How damning is this as a charge against Massachusetts politics? Maybe not at all. Strategically, there's nothing wrong with letting other states take the lead, as we wait to see which experiments succeed and which fail."
- "As Donoghue, other women move on, Senate feels loss," by Samantha J. Gross, Boston University Statehouse Program: "In a year when more women are running for Congress than ever before, the Massachusetts Senate -- whose membership is less than one-quarter female -- is feeling a loss. Their departures tell a narrative of a commonwealth that ranks 26th in the nation in terms of electing women, according to the Center for American Woman and Politics, a nationally recognized source about women in U.S. politics."
- "Gun-rights demonstrators clash with counterprotesters at State House rally," by Laura Crimaldi, Boston Globe: "A group of gun-rights activists clashed Saturday with counterprotesters who chanted and used noisemakers to try to drown out speakers from the other side during an approximately 90-minute face-off outside the State House. Officers arrested three people for disorderly conduct, a Boston police spokesman said, but the event was otherwise peaceful."
THE TSONGAS ARENA —
- "GOP's Green wants to bridge the gap with White House," by Peter Lucas, Lowell Sun: "He won't write a book, accept a pension, or become a lobbyist. What he will do, if elected, is become the state's much-needed pipeline to President Donald Trump. The 'he' is successful businessman Rick Green, 47, a Republican, who is running for Congress in the 3rd Congressional District, a revamped district that has not elected a Republican in 46 years."
DATELINE DC —
- "McGovern miffed limits set on his remarks by SBA," by Richie Davis, Greenfield Recorder: "An attempt to set parameters on remarks by U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern at a Rural Small Business Lending Roundtable, where he was a designated 'special guest' of the U.S. Small Business Administration, led to his skipping the speaking engagement Friday. McGovern, emphasizing that he gets along well with regional and state SBA and USDA officials, said, 'This really bothers me, getting a letter like that' and he was leaving 'as a matter of principle' and planned to attend events later in the day at Greenfield Center School and GCC."
- "Rep. Neal Decries Efforts To Discredit Special Counsel Mueller," by Josh Landes, WAMC: "Western Massachusetts Congressman Richard Neal says that there's a public relations campaign being waged against Special Counsel Robert Mueller. Neal, a Democrat from the first House district, tells WAMC he believes Mueller's work must remain separate from partisan attacks."
THE KENNEDY COMPOUND —
- "RFK's family works to preserve his legacy," by Kathi Scrizzi Driscoll, Cape Cod Times: "Kerry Kennedy will spend the 50th anniversary of her father's assassination honoring young activists she believes are trying to make this country better The Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights organization usually holds its awards ceremony on the Nov. 20 birthday of its namesake .... but the awards date was switched to June 5 this year because of the milestone anniversary."
WOOD WAR — Herald: "PARDON ME!" "A CUT ABOVE" — Globe: "Community hospitals seek shift in pay system," "A patient, a therapist, an alleged betrayal," "For grand, storied stage, the curtain rises once more," "Trailblazing Mass. loses some of its fire."
THE LOCAL ANGLE —
- "Boston will be the hub of the biotech universe starting Monday," by Jonathan Saltzman, Boston Globe: "When more than 16,000 people from 74 countries descend on Boston for the annual Biotechnology Innovation Organization convention that starts Monday, they will find a Massachusetts biotech scene that's more robust than the one in 2012 when the city last hosted the event. And, yes, the state relishes its renown as the life sciences hub of the universe."
- "'The Police Aren't Just Getting You In Trouble. They Actually Care.'" by Erick Trickey, POLITICO Magazine: "How a bunch of tiny police departments in eastern Massachusetts are fighting the opioid epidemic by offering treatment, not jail."
- "Massachusetts hoping to be nation's offshore wind power hub," by Steve Leblanc, The Associated Press: "The announcement that Massachusetts will work with Rhode Island to bring up to 1,200 megawatts of offshore wind energy to the region marks a milestone in the state's efforts to develop renewable energy. It's been a long journey marked by fits and starts — most notably the abandoned effort to create the nation's first wind farm off Cape Cod."
EXCERPT:
The Baker administration downplayed the cooperation with the Trump administration's border security efforts, noting that the request for resources and personnel was relatively small and that Massachusetts has assisted with border operations for both Democrat and Republican presidents.
ICYMI - "Massachusetts National Guard sending chopper, 2 soldiers to Mexican border to support President Trump's border crossing crackdown," by Matt Murphy, State House News Service: "The Massachusetts National Guard will be sending a helicopter and a two-person flight crew to the southwestern border later this month to support President Donald Trump's mission to curb illegal border crossings and drug trafficking by leaning on states for support, according to officials. The crew is expected to deploy by the end of the month ..."
MAZEL! - Baker-Polito campaign manager Brian Wynne and girlfriend Olivia Whalen were engaged on Friday on Nauset beach on Cape Cod.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY - to Lance Lambros of state Sen. Vinny deMacedo's office.
DID THE HOME TEAM WIN? Yes! - The Red Sox blasted the Astros 9-3.
FRESH OUT OF THE GATE - THE HORSE RACE PODCAST: Just before the Democrats' nominating convention, chair of the Massachusetts Democratic Party Gus Bickford joins us for a chat about what to expect from candidates and delegates. Then the Springfield Republican's Shira Schoenberg discusses the developments in the race for Stan Rosenberg's former Senate seat. Plus, Steve and Lauren discuss the reality behind the Safe Communities Act that passed the Senate's budget process. Subscribe and listen on iTunes and Sound Cloud
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