News: Super PAC action ramps up

Wednesday, August 17, 2022

Super PAC action ramps up

Aug 17, 2022

ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER AD — Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll's rivals for lieutenant governor have spent weeks fretting over a super PAC with Republican ties that was expected to wade into the race on her behalf. Now it has.

The "Leadership for Mass" IEPAC is going up with its first television ad in support of Driscoll. The 30-second spot with an eponymous title cites the mayor's executive experience and championing of offshore wind as evidence she'll "keep delivering" for Bay Staters.

Those behind the PAC declined to say how much they spent on the ad beyond calling it a "significant" buy. We'll find out the exact dollar amount soon enough, because they'll have to file a spending report with state campaign finance regulators within seven business days.

But the ad itself confirms the existence of Republican-linked donors, which state Rep. Tami Gouveia and state Sen. Eric Lesser have been alluding to in recent interviews and debates.

Among the top contributors listed at the end of the ad are two donors who've given generously to both Republicans and Democrats at the state and federal levels for years: real estate investment company co-founder Christopher Collins, as first reported by the Boston Globe, and Granite Telecommunications' Robert T. Hale Jr., who's donated large sums to Republicans' U.S. House and Senate campaign committees but also funded Democrats including Sen. Ed Markey and Rep. Stephen Lynch.

Leadership for Mass IEPAC ad for Kim Driscoll

The "Leadership for Mass" IEPAC is out with its first television ad in support of Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll for lieutenant governor. | Screenshot from "Leadership for Mass" IEPAC ad.

Collins has, as Lesser and Gouveia note, donated to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in the past. But he also gave Attorney General Maura Healey the max donation, $1,000, for her gubernatorial bid in February. And Hale gave $1,000 to Lesser in April, complicating the state lawmaker's potential arguments against the super PAC and its donors.

Lesser and Gouveia have tried to get Driscoll to disavow the super PAC before, even though she's prohibited from coordinating with it. And they already failed at getting MassDems leadership to call on Driscoll, the party's endorsed candidate for lieutenant governor, to denounce the outside spending, because state party staff and leadership can't get involved in primaries.

Driscoll remains a target because she continues to lead Democratic primary polls of the race, even as those surveys show the majority of likely voters are undecided. And while she trails Lesser in the money race, the super PAC could help offset his $1 million war chest.

GOOD WEDNESDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Tips? Scoops? More ads? There are still a few statewide candidates who haven't gone up! Email me: lkashinsky@politico.com.

TODAY — Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito chairs a Governor's Council meeting at noon. U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins is on WBUR's "Radio Boston" at 11 a.m. GOP candidates Chris Doughty and Kate Campanale hold a press conference at 11:30 a.m. in front of 1 Ashburton Place. Healey and AG hopeful Andrea Campbell campaign together in Springfield, including at Hampden County Sheriff Nick Cocchi's annual cookout. Former Vice President Mike Pence is in New Hampshire for The New England Council's "Politics & Eggs" at 8 a.m.

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YAHD SIGNS AND BUMPAH STICKAHS

— ALSO UP ON THE AIRWAVES: Fair Share for Massachusetts is launching its first television ad in support of the so-called millionaires tax on the ballot this fall. It's part of a $10 million ad campaign, first reported by Playbook, that will extend into November.

The 30-second spot calls the Fair Share Amendment, which would add a 4 percent surtax on annual income above $1 million, a "win-win" for Massachusetts that promotes a "tax system that's fairer." Should it pass, the ad cites a 2015 estimate that $2 billion in annual revenue would flow to education and transportation projects. A new MassINC poll , sponsored by the Responsible Development Coalition, showed 57 percent support for the ballot question, including leaners, and 37 percent opposition.

— FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: Former Rep. Joe Kennedy III is endorsing ACLU of Massachusetts alum Rahsaan Hall for Plymouth district attorney, citing his "campaign for justice, transparency and real reform" based on his "decades of experience in the courtroom." Hall, a progressive, is challenging incumbent Republican DA Timothy Cruz.

— Attorney General Maura Healey has endorsed state Rep. Tommy Vitolo for reelection in the 15th Norfolk District.

— Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll will roll out endorsements from state Reps. Jon Santiago, Jay Livingstone and David Biele, along with other Boston politicians, at a 10 a.m. press conference at Vejigantes Restaurant in Boston.

DATELINE BEACON HILL

— "Mariano tapping brakes on economic development bill," by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Magazine: "House Speaker Ron Mariano raised concerns on Tuesday about whether the state can afford a $3 billion tax cap giveback and the $3.5 billion in spending contained in the economic development bill, which stalled at the end of the legislative session. Gov. Charlie Baker and Senate President Karen Spilka say the state can afford both, but Mariano is not so sure."

— "An extension request for a group studying a new state seal and motto is stuck in legislative limbo as a December deadline approaches," by Chris Van Buskirk, MassLive: "A wide-ranging economic development bill that's been floating in legislative limbo for weeks on Beacon Hill includes millions for local projects, tax relief provisions, and one-time tax rebates. But also buried in the thousands of lines of text is an extension and funding request for a commission tasked with recommending a new Massachusetts seal and motto. The group's mandate is set to expire on Dec. 31, a timeline that offers only four more months to solidify their ideas."

— "Merrimack Valley mayors pressure Legislature to resume session," by Christopher Roberson, Eagle-Tribune: "Six mayors have joined the fight to get Beacon Hill lawmakers to go back into session for the purpose of voting on pending legislation for economic development and tax relief. … The push to return to the State House is spearheaded by state Sen. Diana DiZoglio."

VAX-ACHUSETTS

— "New federal recommendations for at-home Covid testing come from a study at UMass Chan Medical School," by Jill Kaufman, New England Public Media: "A study from researchers at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School in Worcester is the basis for new guidelines from the FDA regarding the use of at-home COVID-19 tests. For people without symptoms but concerned they may have the virus, the study results show antigen tests are more likely to detect COVID-19 within the first week of infection with three tests at 48-hour intervals."

FROM THE HUB

— "Boston seeks to join state pilot banning gas hookups in new construction," by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Magazine: "Boston Mayor Michelle Wu said on Tuesday that she wants the city to join a state pilot program allowing 10 municipalities to ban fossil fuel infrastructure in most new construction, but she's a bit late to the party. Boston's participation fits with Wu's broader climate change vision and would bolster the 10-community experiment administered by the state Department of Energy Resources. But there is no guarantee Boston will be included, and the mayor's decision is stirring opposition in the city and some confusion on Beacon Hill."

— "Boston school leaders check off first tasks under state-supervised improvement plan," by Jenna Russell and Christopher Huffaker, Boston Globe: "The report submitted by the district on Monday to the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education outlined a series of projects still in progress but also included a few concrete innovations already up and running — most notably, a new system for addressing the complaints of families."

— "Sales are down, and prices are leveling off: More signs of a downshift in Boston-area housing market," by Andrew Brinker, Boston Globe: "Just 1,380 single-family homes were sold in July, an 18.6 percent decline from the 1,696 sold in July 2021, according to a new report from the Greater Boston Association of Realtors. That represents the lowest number of single-family home sales in any July since 2011. Similarly, condominium sales dropped about 25 percent, from 1,452 units sold in July 2021 to 1,089 last month. … Single-family home and condominium prices are up from this time last year, at $841,500 and $680,000, respectively. But both those figures are down from June."

PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES

— BEACON HILL ROADBLOCK: Sen. Ed Markey, Rep. Ayanna Pressley, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, Somerville Mayor Katjana Ballantyne, state Sen. Pat Jehlen and state Rep. Christine Barber are among the elected officials and transit advocates calling on the MBTA to suspend fares systemwide during the looming Orange Line shutdown and partial Green Line closure.

But Gov. Charlie Baker was cool to that idea on Tuesday. And House Speaker Ron Mariano responded to a reporter's question on it by saying he'd "love to see" the federal delegation members "put some federal money up so that they could make it free."

According to Pressley, they already have. "Congress has already delivered the funding to make this possible," she said in a statement to Playbook. A Pressley spokesperson pointed both to the $2.3 billion in federal Covid-19 aid that remains unspent in Massachusetts and to the $537 million the state received from the FTA in fiscal 2022 as funding sources.

— "Boston, state officials urge MBTA to reconsider plans to exclude Chinatown, Tufts from Orange Line plan," by Gayla Cawley and Sean Philip Cotter, Boston Herald: "City and state politicians are urging the MBTA to reconsider its plans to exclude both Chinatown and Tufts Medical Center stations from the shuttle bus route replacing Orange Line service during a 30-day shutdown that begins on Friday. … In the letter, signed by Mayor Michelle Wu, City Council President Ed Flynn, state Sens. Nick Collins and Lydia Edwards and state Rep. Aaron Michlewitz, the pols say at least one of the two Chinatown stops should be included in the T's alternate transit plan for the Orange Line shutdown, which was released last Friday."

CAMPAIGN MODE

— "Healey plans overhaul of MBTA management," by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Magazine: "Maura Healey, the lone Democratic candidate vying for governor, released a transportation plan on Tuesday that would overhaul top management at the MBTA, set aggressive electrification goals, and establish low-income fares 'with a pathway to fare free buses.' … Many of the initiatives she is supporting would come with hefty price tags. Healey's plan does not get into specifics on how much money would be needed and how it would be raised. In an interview, she said federal funds and the tax on income over $1 million, if it passes in November, would be available."

— More from The Sun Chronicle's David Linton: "Attorney General Maura Healey, the presumed Democratic nominee for governor, visited the dilapidated and closed South Attleboro commuter rail station Tuesday, hours after launching a plan to overhaul the MBTA. … Speaking with reporters after the brief tour, Healey left no doubt that she was supporting the project and said it was an 'outrage' that the station was allowed to deteriorate so badly."

— "In lieutenant governor's race, little daylight separates Democrats on policy," by Matt Stout, Boston Globe: "Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll, state Representative Tami Gouveia and state Senator Eric Lesser argued [ in the debate ] that their lived experiences as, respectively, a longtime municipal leader, social worker and single mother, and Western Massachusetts-raised former White House official make them best equipped for a seat with few responsibilities and little constitutional power. … All three said they support scaling back fares on public transit, and raising taxes on the state's wealthiest through a constitutional amendment on November's ballot. They each gave the MBTA poor grades, and Governor Charlie Baker, the popular second-term Republican who is not seeking reelection, relatively kinder ones: Driscoll gave a B, Lesser a B-minus, and Gouveia a C."

— "Quentin Palfrey platform is wish-list of progressive policies," by Shira Schoenberg, CommonWealth Magazine: "Former Suffolk District Attorney Rachael Rollins, now the US attorney for Massachusetts, made headlines for her pledge not to prosecute certain non-violent offenses. Now, Quentin Palfrey, a Democrat running for attorney general, is making a similar vow statewide. Palfrey, in a new policy platform on criminal justice reform that was shared first with CommonWealth, is pledging he will '[make] innovative use of prosecutorial discretion to decrease prosecution of nonviolent charges that primarily relate to poverty, mental health issues, substance use and social issues that are more appropriately addressed outside of the criminal legal system.'"

— "MassGOP leader accuses Democratic House candidate of failing to disclose hit-and-run arrest," by Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald: "A Democratic candidate seeking a state representative seat in Middlesex County responded Tuesday to a MassGOP statement that accused her of fleeing the scene of a car crash in 2003, admitting she made a 'mistake.' MassGOP Chairman Jim Lyons' office issued a press release on Monday, stating that Teresa English, who is challenging Republican state Rep. Marc Lombardo of Billerica, sideswiped another vehicle in Virginia 'before bolting the scene.' The release included a redacted police report, which notes that Teresa Nicole Pruett, licensed in Georgia, was served a warrant at her then-Virginia home a week after the crash occurred in January 2003 and was released on $3,000 bail. She had been charged with leaving the scene of a crash, the report said. English, a Georgia native who used to teach at Lawrence High School, acknowledged the police report shared by Lyons' office is accurate but said there is more to the story."

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FROM THE DELEGATION

— PAYING TRIBUTE: Sens. Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Ayanna Pressley are introducing a resolution today honoring Boston Celtics legend Bill Russell, who died last month. Warren called him a "legend on and off the court."

FROM THE 413

— "Ward 5 candidates Lavar Click-Bruce and Edward Collins Jr. win special election," by Patrick Johnson and Jonah Snowden, Springfield Republican: "Mayoral aide Lavar Click-Bruce and retired labor organizer Edward William Collins Jr. emerged as the top vote-getters in a field of seven candidates in Tuesday's preliminary election, and will now square off in the Sept. 13 final election that will determine who will represent Ward 5 seat on the Springfield City Council."

— "In first Berkshire DA debate, Harrington and Shugrue put their records head-to-head," by Meg Britton-Mehlisch, Berkshire Eagle: "In the first debate of the Democratic primary race for Berkshire District Attorney, local defense attorney Timothy Shugrue told voters to look to his 36 years of courtroom experience to find an attorney with a deep understanding of both sides of the law, strong relationships with law enforcement and an ethos focused on 'competence, confidence and compassion.' Incumbent Berkshire District Attorney Andrea Harrington conceded that her challenger has 'more experience in the courtroom than I do,' but said her election to the office nearly four years ago was a message from a community looking for a systemic reimagining of the county's justice system."

— "Holyoke Soldiers' Home, tainted by COVID deaths, to be replaced in part with federal funds," by Stephanie Barry, Springfield Republican: "The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has offered the state the first major infusion of funding to begin construction of a new Soldiers' Home in Holyoke. The federal agency's State Home Construction Grant program has offered the state $130 million in conditional funding, according to the state Department of Veterans' Services. The figure is half of what the state applied for in April, with a proposal for state taxpayers to pick up the additional $140 million to build a state-of-the-art facility on Cherry Street."

MEANWHILE IN RHODE ISLAND

— "12 News/RWU Poll: McKee, Gorbea still in close race for RI governor," by Ted Nesi and Tim White, WPRI: "Incumbent Gov. Dan McKee and Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea are still locked in a close Democratic primary race, as a substantial bloc of voters remain undecided with one month to go, an exclusive 12 News/Roger Williams University poll released Tuesday shows."

HEARD 'ROUND THE BUBBLAH

TRANSITIONS — Former Democratic gubernatorial nominee Jay Gonzalez has been elected as Reproductive Equity Now's C4 board chair. Gonzalez will advise the organization on political and advocacy decisions and help create its long-term strategy and goals, including growing into the greater New England region.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to Ari Meyerowitz and Lisa Murray.

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