News: POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook: Baker's not changing his tune

Monday, November 8, 2021

POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook: Baker's not changing his tune

Nov 08, 2021

THIRD TIME'S A CHARM — Gov. Charlie Baker says he's a "Bill Weld Republican." It's gotten him elected to the corner office twice, even if hasn't worked out so well for Weld as of late.

Weld got steamrolled by then-President Donald Trump in the state's 2020 Republican presidential primary. Trump topped the ticket with a whopping 88 percent. Weld, a former Massachusetts governor, garnered just 9 percent and won just one town.

The 2022 Republican gubernatorial primary could be a rematch by ideological proxy if Baker runs for a third term against Trump-backed former state Rep. Geoff Diehl.

Except Baker's no longshot — he would bring the power of incumbency and fundraising prowess to next year's race. And even if surveys show some Republicans have turned against him, Baker's appeal goes far beyond his own party. He polls better with independents who can pull Republican ballots in the primary and who, at 57 percent of the state's registered voters, make up a far larger pool of potential supporters than Republicans, who account for less than 10 percent.

Despite his appeal to independents, Baker seems to have no intention of becoming one. He touted his brand of Weld Republicanism — an interesting choice given that Weld, his former boss, has in recent years been a Republican, a Libertarian, threatened to leave the GOP and endorsed a Democrat for president — when asked on WCVB's "On the Record" Sunday if he'd ever run as an independent.

Hosts Ed Harding and Janet Wu tried their hand — as everyone else has recently — at getting Baker to say whether he's running for a third term. Baker tried to play it off as just "folks in the media" wanting to know his plans. But there's precedent for the increasing pressure — media or otherwise — on the governor to make up his mind. Baker confirmed he would run for a second term on Nov. 28, 2017, a little less than a year out from the 2018 election. We're now approaching that date in this cycle.

Speaking of deadlines, state Attorney General Maura Healey, the big name looming over the Democratic field, is talking to potential staff and making calls to electeds and activists, per a source familiar with her planning. Healey said over the weekend she continues to "seriously consider running for governor." The source said she hasn't made a final decision yet.

'Tis the season for an end-of-year fundraising push, a likely consideration for both Baker and Healey. A little extra money never hurts, even for two pols with strong donor networks.

Diehl and three Democratic hopefuls, state Sen. Sonia Chang-Díaz, former state Sen. Ben Downing and Harvard professor Danielle Allen, aren't waiting around for Baker and Healey.

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: Chang-Díaz has hired Katie Prisco-Buxbaum as a general consultant. Prisco-Buxbaum managed Boston City Councilor Andrea Campbell's mayoral bid and Jesse Mermell's 2020 4th District congressional campaign.

GOOD MONDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Baker's been ramping up his fundraisers, but Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito out-rased him for the first time since June. Here are the October receipts for the current and possible governor hopefuls, per the state Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

— Republicans: Baker: $65,208; Polito: $77,708; Diehl: $48,996.

— Democrats: Chang-Díaz: $44,601; Downing: $23,881; Allen: $67,601; Healey: $42,636.

TODAY — Baker and Polito attend the U.S. Marine Corps birthday luncheon at noon at the BCEC. Baker, Polito and House and Senate leaders hold their weekly meeting at 2 p.m. at the State House. Polito joins federal Veterans' Affairs Sec. Denis McDonough, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Rep. Jim McGovern and state and local officials for a Worcester VA outpatient clinic ribbon-cutting ceremony at 11 a.m. at UMass Chan Medical School in Worcester. State Auditor Suzanne Bump joins state Rep. Smitty Pignatelli on his radio show "Let's Talk Monday with Smitty" at 9 a.m. Healey visits River to Recovery in Fall River at 9:15 a.m. and tours a cranberry bog in Plymouth at 11 a.m. State Sen. Eric Lesser and state Rep. Antonio Cabral continue their gateway Cities Legislative Caucus tour with stops in Springfield, Holyoke and Chicopee beginning at 10 a.m. Boston Mayor-elect Michelle Wu attends several briefings at City Hall; a press availability follows an 11 a.m. on the schools. Boston Acting Mayor Kim Janey joins GBH's "Boston Public Radio" at noon.

Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Get in touch: lkashinsky@politico.com.

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DATELINE BEACON HILL

– "Lawmakers load up relief bill with pet projects," by Christian M. Wade, CNHI/Eagle-Tribune: "Hundreds of non-pandemic related earmarks were also added to the House bill, including $200,000 to improve bicycle safety in Andover, $100,000 for a turf field in North Reading, $150,000 to fix elevators at Melrose high school and $1.3 million for an Italian immigrant memorial in Boston's North End."

MAPMAKER, MAPMAKER

– "Fall River leaders including mayor, state reps back proposed congressional maps," by Ted Nesi, WPRI: "A group of prominent political, civic and business leaders in Fall River on Friday came out in support of proposed congressional maps that unify the city in the 4th Congressional District but split it off from New Bedford."

– SENATE SWERVE: Haverhill state Rep. Andy Vargas won't continue running for state Senate and will instead seek reelection to his House seat after "several changes" over the past few months — redistricting and a son on the way among them — prompted him to change course.

Vargas, who launched his bid to succeed state Sen. Diana DiZoglio in August, would no longer be in the Senate district he was aiming to represent. He'd instead be in a new Lawrence-centric district that includes Methuen and a slice of Haverhill. Vargas, who's on the redistricting committee, tried to stop mapmakers from dividing his city. But after Gov. Charlie Baker signed the map into law last week, Vargas told the Eagle-Tribune's Mike LaBella that he'd like to see former Lawrence state Rep. Juana Matias, the current COO of MassINC, run for the new Senate seat.

VAX-ACHUSETTS

– "Coronavirus cases by occupation: Students and unemployed with highest rates," by Alexi Cohan, Boston Herald: "Of the 41,000 cases tracked by occupation, students account for the largest share — about 21% from July 1, 2020, to Nov. 3, 2021. Unemployed people account for 12% of the cases and children make up 10% of the infections. People who are retired make up 10% of the cases, followed by office workers at 3%."

– "Berkshire students aren't opting in to pooled testing. Is that a problem? Maybe," by Meg Britton-Mehlisch, Berkshire Eagle: "Only 43 of the school's 348 students have agreed to be tested, barely more than 1 in every 10 kids. That low participation rate means the pooled-testing program, long touted by the state, still can't quite serve as the testing safety net that school, district and state officials had hoped for."

FROM THE HUB

– "ACLU Sues City To Stop 'Fundamentally Unlawful' Tent-Clearing And Arrests At Mass. and Cass," by Tori Bedford, GBH News: "The ACLU of Massachusetts has filed a class-action lawsuit seeking to bar the city of Boston from arresting unhoused people and removing their tents from encampments around Mass. Ave and Melnea Cass Blvd. without first identifying viable alternative housing options for the people living there."

– "Anti-maskers clash with counterprotesters on Boston Common as rally turns violent," by Erin Tiernan, Boston Herald: "Counterprotesters pushed through barricades and clashed with anti-maskers on Boston Common in a showdown that left two arrested and others rubbing pepper spray out of their eyes. ... [Super Happy Fun America] which is behind the controversial straight-pride parade — was conducting a 'pro-freedom' protest on Sunday afternoon to speak out against mask, vaccine and other coronavirus-related mandates … Counterprotesters organized by Solidarity Against Hate/Boston turned up in force outnumbering Super Happy Fun America ralliers by the hundreds."

THE RACE FOR CITY HALL

– "Before Michelle Wu's historic victory, she spent years community building," by Emma Platoff and Milton J. Valencia, Boston Globe: "Eschewing paid political consultants, [Mayor-elect Michelle Wu] bet on novel digital strategies and non-English media, and leaned hard on the coalitions she had spent years building in every neighborhood — and the fund-raising that came along with them. That delivered her a lopsided triumph, and secured her place in Boston history."

– "Wu's campaign manager also broke the mold," by Stephanie Ebbert, Boston Globe: "Born in Japan and raised in Atlanta, Mary Lou Akai-Ferguson is the platinum-and-pink-haired daughter of a Japanese translator and an Irish-American international journalist. Recruited to play soccer for Wellesley College, she graduated with a degree in economics just five years ago. Wu's campaign was the first she managed and, in a move uncharacteristic for Boston, the candidate resisted hiring a big-name political consultant to lead the show."

– "Kim Janey reflects on short, but historic time as Boston's mayor," by Rupa Shenoy and Walter Wuthmann, WBUR: "The city has been run by white men for the past 200 years. Janey's eight months as acting mayor broke that long legacy and allowed for a new perspective in City Hall. ... Janey said she sometimes met resistance to her agenda."

– "One year, three mayors: A look at the historic transitions 2021 brought to Boston City Hall," by Danny McDonald, Boston Globe: "Rumors of widespread City Hall discord and low morale have persisted for months. But this week, current City Hall employees, as well officials who have recently left city government, described mixed emotions: Workers are relieved that the election is finally over and that they know who the new boss will be, but, with more change on the horizon, there is also trepidation."

– COVID BOUT: District 6 Councilor-elect Kendra Hicks has tested positive for Covid-19 despite being fully vaccinated, according to her weekend Twitter thread . Hicks said the exposure happened at home — a family member who visited tested positive — and not on the campaign trail. Her close contacts have all tested negative, as has her son. Hicks, who has mild symptoms per her campaign manager, urged folks to get tested if they don't feel well.

TODAY'S SPECIAL (ELECTION)

– FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: Boston City Councilor Lydia Edwards has been endorsed by state Reps. Aaron Michlewitz and Adrian Madaro in her state Senate bid. Madaro, who represents East Boston alongside Edwards and who considered running for the seat himself, said she "understands the unique challenges" facing the neighborhood and other nearby waterfront communities.

PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES

– BAKER PUMPS THE BRAKES: "There is no such thing as a free T," Gov. Charlie Baker said on WCVB's "On the Record" when asked about Boston Mayor-elect Michelle Wu's push for a fare-free MBTA.

"Somebody's going to have to come up with a lot of money from somebody," Baker said. "I do think if the city of Boston's willing to pay to give free T to the residents of the city of Boston, that's certainly worth a conversation, I suppose. But I don't see a reason why you would expect people who live on the Cape, on the North Shore, in central or western Mass., who will never be anywhere near the T except on very rare occasions, why they should pay to give everybody in Boston a free ride."

Baker's comments drew some online backlash from Democrats. "Greater Boston's just the economic engine that drives the whole state. Why make it efficient?" outgoing Somerville Mayor Joe Curtatone tweeted. Former state Sen. Ben Downing, who's running for governor, called it "another example" of Baker's "unwillingness to tackle big problems like Boston congestion."

DAY IN COURT

– "'A walking target': Former court officer sues the Massachusetts trial court over claims of racism," by Douglas Hook, MassLive: "Over the course of a decade, the racist and sexist slurs [former New Bedford District Court Officer Tracey L. Tavares] said she's endured [culminated] in an alleged plan by a colleague to have her attacked at her New Bedford home, Tavares said. She would ultimately lose her job and the colleague that allegedly planned the attack on her would be reinstated. … She is now in the process of suing the Massachusetts Trial Court for the second time."

DATELINE D.C.

– "Ayanna Pressley and other members of 'The Squad' buck Democratic leaders and vote against bipartisan infrastructure bill," by Jim Puzzanghera, Boston Globe: "Representative Ayanna Pressley of Boston was among six House Democrats — all members of 'The Squad' of progressive lawmakers of color — who voted against the bipartisan $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill that the House approved late Friday night, saying party leaders reneged on a promise to pass it in tandem with sweeping social spending and climate change legislation."

MARIJUANA IN MASSACHUSETTS

– "Five years later, legal marijuana remains unfinished business in Massachusetts," by Dan Adams, Boston Globe: "Two areas in particular have drawn the loudest calls for reform: the blurry limits on how much power municipalities have over new marijuana businesses, and the struggles of Black and brown entrepreneurs to win licenses promised them in the law."

– "Boston pot warehouse proposal slammed by religious, civic leaders," by Marie Szaniszlo, Boston Herald: "A group of religious and civic leaders plans to voice their opposition next week to a proposed pot warehouse and courier service in Grove Hall, a neighborhood made up predominantly of people of color."

FROM THE 413

– "Monterey voters approve investigator to probe slew of complaints and election recall to oust officials," by Heather Bellow, Berkshire Eagle: "They agreed, 60-35, to pay $10,000 for an independent investigator to start a probe about what now appears, by The Eagle's count, to be at least 13 complaints by town officials against each other, staff and a couple of residents."

– "For new mayors in Holyoke, Westfield and Northampton, work begins before inauguration," by Patrick Johnson, Springfield Republican: "... Joshua Garcia of Holyoke, Michael McCabe of Westfield and Gina-Louise Sciarra of Northampton, each said they are using the time between the election and inauguration to ramp up for the difficult job of chief administrator for their respective cities."

THE LOCAL ANGLE

– "Who wants to be a police officer?" by Dugan Arnett, Boston Globe: "For Fitchburg State University's Police Academy Class of 2021, September's graduation ceremony represented the culmination of a years-long journey. … while their reasons for entering policing varied, their underlying motivation seemed the same: They wanted to do the job the right way. Back then, however, there'd been 93 of them. Today, there were 15."

– "Framingham Mayor-elect Charlie Sisitsky hospitalized with infection days after winning race," by WCVB: "The committee for Framingham Mayor-elect Charlie Sisitsky said in a statement that Sisitsky was admitted to a hospital Friday night after experiencing complications from a routine medical procedure, which resulted in an infection. According to the statement, Sisitsky is in stable condition and he will be making a full recovery."

– "Danvers fights efforts to expose high school hockey team's alleged misconduct," by Bob Hohler and Brandon Chase, Boston Globe: "In June 2020, a varsity boys hockey player reported to school officials and police that two teammates physically restrained him the previous season while another repeatedly struck him in the face with a plastic sex toy because he refused to shout a racial slur in one of the all-white team's regular locker room rituals. … Town officials have compiled two investigative reports and commissioned a third on the matter, but school officials and police have yet to inform the community about the alleged violent racist and homophobic locker room behavior or details of the virulent group text messages. "

– "Somerville Mayor-elect Katjana Ballantyne talks about her priorities before taking office," by Jamie Bologna and Tiziana Dearing, WBUR: "Katjana Ballantyne, Somerville's mayor-elect, is the second woman ever elected to lead the city. She joined WBUR's Radio Boston to talk about her life experiences as an immigrant, a businesswoman and a politician."

– "Keller @ Large: Outgoing Somerville Mayor Joe Curtatone Reflects On 9 Terms In Office," by Jon Keller, WBZ: "The outgoing mayor said he has 'loved every moment' of his time in office. … Keller asked Curtatone about the challenging decisions he faced in the heart of the COVID pandemic. Curtatone said the pandemic has 'been about politics. It should have been about people.'"

– "Hospitals help mental health patients – by sending them away," by Shira Schoenberg, CommonWealth Magazine: "Long waits for emergency psychiatric care at hospitals have become the norm in Massachusetts. But instead of forcing [a] young girl to wait until a treatment bed opened up, the hospital called Youth Villages, a nonprofit that provides home- and community-based mental health services."

– IN MEMORIAM: "Remembering Aaron Feuerstein," by Will Broaddus, Eagle-Tribune: "The fire that destroyed Malden Mills in Lawrence on Dec. 11, 1995 only brought the best out of Aaron Feuerstein, the man who owned the company. Feuerstein, who died Thursday at 95, kept thousands of workers on the payroll for three months and continued to pay their health insurance, in spite of his own losses."

ENGAGED — David Beavers, a PhD candidate at Harvard and a POLITICO alum, and Ashley Inman, vice consul at the U.S. Embassy in Zagreb, got engaged Thursday in Boston. Pic.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY – to Tom Connors. Happy belated to Bloomberg's Angelica LaVito, Stephen Greenblatt, Kate Murphy and Barbara Liskov.

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