News: Clark plays coy about becoming speaker

Monday, March 28, 2022

Clark plays coy about becoming speaker

Mar 28, 2022

'WE WILL SEE' — At first blush, we didn't learn much from Assistant House Speaker Katherine Clark's latest appearance on WCVB's "On the Record."

Clark said she's "grateful" to have President Joe Biden in the White House, for several reasons . She again extolled the benefits of the American Rescue Plan Act. She said the United States should consider taking in more than 100,000 Ukrainian refugees; but instead of pushing Biden to raise the cap, Clark praised the president for acting "in stark contrast to the former president and his view on refugees."

It wasn't until the end of the interview when we saw it: the corners of Clark's lips lifting, almost imperceptibly, when host Janet Wu asked if she'd try for either House speaker or minority leader if and when Nancy Pelosi steps aside.

"You know, I have a great job right now," Clark began over Wu's protestations, going on to praise how Pelosi is navigating the Democrats' thin majority in the House. "I am learning from her," Clark said. "And we will see."

Clark has, of course, been floated as a potential successor to Pelosi. Even if she doesn't get the top job in a post-Pelosi world, the fourth-ranking House Democrat could still move up the leadership ranks in her caucus.

So don't expect to see Clark out there making waves. While other members of the delegation loudly push the president to do more on climate change or cancel student loan debt or engage in cyber warfare against Russia, Clark is often Biden's cheerleader. And she's been masterful in recent interviews at redirecting questions about Democrats' precarious position in the midterms and steering conversations back to her legislative priorities, like child care, rather than discussing her own political ambitions.

GOOD MONDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. State Sen. Sonia Chang-Díaz isn't giving up trying to get Maura Healey to debate three times before the Democrats head to their party's convention.

Now she's turning Healey's own words against her.

Back in April 2014, then-political-newcomer Maura Healey challenged her rival for state attorney general, Warren Tolman, to at least five debates before their September Democratic primary. She suggested they face off once a month.

Chang-Díaz's campaign is seizing on that to compel Healey, now the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination for governor, to debate before June.

"The attorney general's move to dodge committing to three debates before the convention is bad for the voters of our state — and inconsistent with her past positions," Joshua Wolfsun, Chang-Díaz's campaign manager, said in a statement shared first with Playbook. "We urge the attorney general to show the same commitment she showed in her first race."

TODAY — Gov. Charlie Baker and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito attend a New Balance manufacturing facility opening in Methuen at 10:30 a.m. and meet with legislative leaders at the State House at 2 p.m. Sen. Ed Markey joins Boston College leadership to highlight $6.2 million in earth and environmental sciences funding at 10:30 a.m. Clark keynotes AIM's Women's History Month event at 11 a.m. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu joins a League of Conservation Voters clean energy and climate justice event with Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg at 1:45 p.m. and is on WBUR's "Radio Boston" at 3 p.m.

Tips? Scoops? Email me: lkashinsky@politico.com.

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RUSSIA-UKRAINE

— FROM THE FRONT LINES: Rep. Lori Trahan traveled to Eastern Europe last week as part of a bipartisan trip led by Rep. Stephen Lynch. Here are some of her insights from the Ukrainian border, edited for length:

What sticks with you the most from your trip?

Seeing those images that we've all watched on TV, but in person.Fathers bringing their families to the border and turning around and going back to fight — there's nothing more heartbreaking than watching that separation happen. … It's also the best of humanity. You see people whose arms are reaching out, who are greeting [refugees] with love and support, food and supplies and welcoming folks into their homes.

Is President Joe Biden's pledge to welcome 100,000 refugees enough?

While there are Ukrainians who have family in Canada and the United States, we did hear both directly from people who were crossing the border and people who have been working on the front lines with refugees in Poland and Romania and Moldova that [the refugees] don't want to go far. … The first moment they have, they want to go back home. … When those numbers prove to exceed that 100,000, I do think the U.S. will increase its capacity. It just isn't clear to us yet that we're going to have an influx of folks at this stage.

Biden in Poland said Russian President Vladimir Putin "cannot remain in power." What was your reaction to that escalation in rhetoric?

President Biden has remained consistent in his criticisms of Vladimir Putin that he's a war criminal and he's a thug. What he said [in Poland] was on par with that. Barring a drastic change of events such as an attack on a NATO ally, the U.S. is not intervening in this conflict militarily and we're not going to engage in a regime change in Russia.

DATELINE BEACON HILL

— "SHNS Survey: Most Senators Support Sports Betting," by Sam Doran, State House News Service (paywall): "At least 60 percent of state senators support legalizing sports wagering in Massachusetts, a move favored by the House and Gov. Charlie Baker, according to a News Service survey of the Senate conducted this week. A House-approved sports betting bill remains lodged in the Senate Ways and Means Committee, where it's sat since last summer. In the survey, not a single senator said they are outright opposed to legalization."

— "'It's nothing new': A Mass. politician's battle with pandemic-fueled online hate," by Pranshu Verma, Boston Globe: "In some ways, [state Sen. Becca] Rausch's experiences have been normalized in these pandemic times. Online trolls, shrouded in anonymity and fueled by the divisive nature of COVID politics, have levied streams of hate against people they dislike, often translating into aggressive in-person encounters. But Rausch's story — one of a female, Jewish politician who supports vaccines and mask mandates — also reinforces an ugly truth: that members of minority groups in leadership positions are increasingly targets for online hate campaigns that run deep with antisemitism and racism."

— "With free school lunches slated to phase out after June, advocates push state to continue funding," by Jenna Russell, Boston Globe: "[F]ederally funded free lunches for all, like school mask mandates, are now slated to go away after Congress failed to take action earlier this month to authorize an extension. Now advocates for children say it is time for the state to take over and pass legislation that would keep school lunches free for all indefinitely, at an estimated cost of $100 million per year."

VAX-ACHUSETTS

— "Cuts to COVID-19 testing, treatment, and vaccination worry health care leaders," by Kay Lazar, Boston Globe: "[Dr. Adam] Gaffney fears the new cuts will mean that many lower-income patients here and around the country who fall seriously ill with COVID may face huge bills they cannot afford. Or worse, they may just forgo care."

WU TRAIN

— "For Wu's critics, a powerful tool: misinformation," by Emma Platoff, Boston Globe: "Over the past few months, a false rumor questioning [Boston Mayor Michelle Wu's] stability has spread through online comment sections and right-wing whisper networks to reach local airwaves and even some in the city's halls of power. The spurious narrative underscores a broader, worrying trend of malicious and personal misinformation, which can color perception of public figures even when it is not fully believed. It's a timeworn political weapon whose potential for damage has multiplied with social media. The false claim about Wu, in particular, echoes familiar, long-discredited biases against women in government, who some try to paint as too weak, too emotional, or too unstable to lead."

— "Analysis: Michelle Wu chooses to court controversy early in term," by Sean Philip Cotter, Boston Herald: "Now it's the North End. But last month it was the employee vaccine mandate, and before that the plans to put homeless in a hotel in the middle of Mass and Cass. Politicians regularly face damned-if-you-do-damned-if-you-don't quandaries, ones where people are going to be frustrated no matter what. But several of Wu's most harshly critiqued steps are not those — they're fights the mayor chose to start, and ones that simply wouldn't have happened otherwise."

FROM THE HUB

— "Michelle Wu sticks by North End outdoor dining fee; restaurateurs vow lawsuit," by Sean Philip Cotter, Boston Herald: "Mayor Michelle Wu doubled down on her plans to charge North End restaurateurs a $7,500 fee for outdoor dining as the furor around the decision continues and restaurant owners say she should get ready to be served — in a lawsuit in the coming weeks. 'If a critical mass of restaurant owners also believe this program is unworkable as proposed, then I am prepared to rescind North End outdoor dining before the start of this season,' Wu told restaurateurs in a Friday evening letter that cited higher 311 calls and a high density of restaurants in the neighborhood."

— "Ed Flynn heads an increasingly diverse and progressive council," by Danny McDonald, Boston Globe: "White, middle-aged, and Irish Catholic, born and raised in South Boston, his father a former mayor of the city no less — you'd have a hard time crafting a figure more emblematic of Boston's old power structure than City Council President Ed Flynn. And yet today's Boston has embraced a new power structure, as reflected in both the election of an unabashedly progressive mayor, Michelle Wu, and a historically diverse council that continues to tack to the left."

— "Boston police department sees biggest overtime drop in a decade," by Ivy Scott and Ryan Huddle, Boston Globe: "While still $23 million beyond the city's overtime budget, it represents a notable decrease from recent years, dipping below $75 million for the first time since 2017."

— "Family 'absolutely devastated' by loss after fatal garage collapse," by Matthew Medsger, Boston Herald: "The brother of the man killed when a portion of the Government Center Garage collapsed while he was working on it said Peter Monsini was a single dad who knew what he was doing in the demolition trade."

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ON THE STUMP

— FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: UNITE HERE Local 26, which represents about 12,000 hospitality workers in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, has endorsed NAACP Boston Branch President Tanisha Sullivan for secretary of state, per her campaign.

— GETTING IN: Joel McAuliffe, outgoing deputy chief of staff to state Sen. Eric Lesser, is running for the 8th Hampden seat being vacated by retiring state Rep. Joseph Wagner.

— "AG candidates differ on issues in progressive forum," by Amy Sokolow, Boston Herald: "Voters casting ballots in the Democratic primary for attorney general will have some choices to make as the three candidates for the open seat differ dramatically on some of the states most pressing issues, including charter schools and supervised drug injection sites. … [Andrea Campbell] was also the only candidate who did not support single-payer health care or social consumption sites, which allow drug users to take drugs in a supervised and sterile environment."

PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES

— "MBTA ridership rebounding, particularly on commuter rail," by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Magazine: "Commuter rail ridership a year ago was just 11.6 percent of pre-COVID levels. Passenger levels rose a bit in the last half of 2021 but they really began to pick up during the first three months of this year. Ridership on commuter rail hit 31 percent of pre-COVID levels in January, rose to 39 percent in February, and reached 49 percent in March."

DAY IN COURT

— "Mass. drug courts settle with US Attorney's Office over interfering with treatment," by Mark Herz, GBH News: "The Massachusetts Trial Court has agreed to stop ordering and pressuring its drug court defendants to take a specific medication for opioid use disorder, and will instead leave medical decisions to licensed prescribers and treatment programs. Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins' office received a complaint that the drug courts were violating the Americans with Disabilities Act by discriminating against people with opioid use disorder, a recognized disability under federal law."

PARTY POLITICS

— "Charlie Baker and the Rise of One-Party Rule," by Kara Voght, The Atlantic: "Single-party rule at the state level is close to a modern high: All but 12 states are under unified control of a single party, meaning that either Democrats or Republicans control both the governor's mansion and the legislature. [Gov. Charlie] Baker's departure practically guarantees that Massachusetts will join those ranks."

DATELINE D.C.

— "Biden to propose new tax on the uber rich," by Brian Faler, POLITICO: "President Joe Biden intends to propose a new type of wealth tax as part of his upcoming budget request, a plan that's sure to revive the debate in Washington over taxing the richest-of-the rich. … The administration says that would hit the top 0.01 percent of households, generating $360 billion over the next decade, with half of that coming from billionaires. … But rank-and-file Democrats have already rejected similar wealth tax proposals by Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.)."

IT'S NOT EASY BEING GREEN

— CLIMATE TRACKER: One year after Gov. Charlie Baker signed the Next-Generation Roadmap for Massachusetts Climate Policy, the Environmental League of Massachusetts is out with a new online tool to track the state's progress in implementing the sweeping climate bill. A few things have been checked off the list, but others remain ongoing or incomplete, like the governor appointing an environmental justice advisory council.

FROM THE 413

— "While the world was focused on COVID, Berkshire County families buried loved ones due to addiction," by Francesca Paris, Berkshire Eagle: "Opioid overdose deaths soared in Berkshire County during the first year of the pandemic: 56 people died in 2020, up from 39 the year before. ... The state has not said how many people died due to opioid-related overdoses last year in Berkshire County, but The Eagle analyzed death certificates from North Adams and Pittsfield and found that overdoses appear to have remained at high levels. In 2020, there were 35 fatal overdoses among residents of those two cities alone. In 2021, there were 43."

THE LOCAL ANGLE

— "As some states seek to limit reproductive freedoms, BU opens 'Plan B' vending machine," by Dugan Arnett, Boston Globe: "The so-called 'Plan B vending machine' is among the first of its kind in the United States, offering students a generic version of what is known as the 'morning after' pill for $7.25, significantly less than some over-the-counter options and with privacy not afforded by a trip to the pharmacy."

— "'We have to be proactive': Municipal leaders attending summit to combat rising antisemitism, commemorate Holocaust in Massachusetts," by Alison Kuznitz, MassLive: "On Monday, the Lappin Foundation — rooted in a mission of 'enhancing Jewish identity across generations' — will convene more than 160 municipal leaders from across Massachusetts for a virtual summit with the hope of expanding the use of [the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition of antisemitism] and curbing hateful attacks."

— "Worcester License Commission upset over Legislature's slow pace in extending outdoor dining," by Kim Ring, Worcester Telegram & Gazette: "The city License Commission said it is frustrated with the snail-like pace of the state Legislature, which has thus far failed to vote to extend temporary outdoor dining they believe helped keep restaurants in business during the pandemic. … 'This is so disrespectful to the businesses,' [Commissioner Barbara] Haller said of the delay."

MEDIA MATTERS

— "Scientists object to inclusion in Globe's Philip Morris ads," by Colman M. Herman, CommonWealth Magazine: "The Boston Globe is facing a growing chorus of criticism from public health advocates and media critics for working with Philip Morris to create and publish stories featuring interviews with prominent scientists, many of whom say they were never told the true purpose of the interviews — for inclusion in Philip Morris ads."

— THERE'S ALWAYS A MASSACHUSETTS CONNECTION: "CODA," the deaf family drama set and filmed in Gloucester, won best picture at the Oscars last night. There was another — albeit brief — Massachusetts moment after Will Smith slapped Chris Rock for cracking a joke about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith's, appearance. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, who, like Pinkett Smith, has alopecia, appears to have tweeted and then deleted: "#Alopecia nation stand up! Thank you #WillSmith. Shout out to all the husbands who defend their wives living with alopecia in the face of daily ignorance & insults." The tweet was quickly taken down, but not before Insider reporter Grace Panetta snapped a screenshot and posted it. Pressley's team did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

MEANWHILE IN RHODE ISLAND

— "RI congressional candidate Michael Neary arrested in Ohio," by Ted Nesi, Eli Sherman, Kim Kalunian, Steph Machado, WPRI: "Michael Neary — a political unknown in Rhode Island who previously worked for Ohio Gov. John Kasich — was arrested in the township of Elizabeth, Ohio, at about 2:30 a.m. on Wednesday. He was charged with menacing by stalking, possession of marijuana and marijuana drug paraphernalia."

TRANSITIONS — Kenneth Craig, formerly a CBS correspondent, has been promoted to VP at Boston-based PR firm Greenough.

CONGRATS — to Robyn Casper and Karim Addetia, who got married Saturday. The couple, who met during their senior year at American University, celebrated with family and friends at the Lenox Hotel in Boston.

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