| | | | |  | | By Kelly Garrity | | Presented by |  | | | MASS. E(X)ODUS — Some in the Massachusetts political sphere have decided Twitter is for the birds. A handful of Massachusetts politicians were among the 1 million new users who popped up on X alternative Bluesky after Donald Trump won reelection. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, who regularly posted on Twitter before scaling back after billionaire tech CEO and vocal Trump ally Elon Musk bought and rebranded the platform, has jumped back into action on the app. She’s posting more like she did in the earlier days of Twitter – sharing family moments and writing about city issues. Wu has seen a “swell of people” moving over to Bluesky, where it’s easier to “regulate for more productive conversations,” she said during an interview on GBH’s “Boston Public Radio” earlier this week. Others have appeared on the app as well: Sen. Ed Markey recently revived his account and Minority Whip Katherine Clark joined yesterday (per an announcement on X), as did Rep. Ayanna Pressley. It’s not the first time an X alternative has gained steam. Other apps like Threads and Mastodon have grown popular since Musk’s takeover, but X has mostly maintained its status as the place to catch breaking news or reactions. That’s in part because the alternative apps are “at the moment, not as rich and as networked as Twitter is,” Betsi Grabe, the director of the Division of Emerging Media Studies at Boston University, told Playbook. “And so you're going to be less connected, and you're going to see less — you're going to have less of a finger on the pulse of what's happening in society.” Leaving for friendlier platforms also risks digging partisans divides deeper. “We're retreating even further into different corners and expanding the already high levels of polarization in society, in media use,” Grabe said. For now, there’s still lots of action on X. Take the House’s decision to vote on internal rules change allowing the state auditor to select an audit firm to conduct a review of the chamber’s finances. State Auditor Diana DiZoglio almost immediately took to X to describe the move as “slapping voters in the face,” claiming it would effectively circumvent her effort to audit the Legislature. GOOD FRIDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS . Tips? Scoops? Switching social platforms? Email me: kgarrity@politico.com TODAY — Gov. Maura Healey speaks at the Massachusetts Association of Health Plans annual conference at 10:15 a.m. in Boston. Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll speaks at the Senior Connection 50 Years Strong celebration at 6 p.m. in Worcester, where she, state Auditor Diana DiZoglio and Attorney General Andrea Campbell are honored. DiZoglio also attends the New England Choice Awards at 8 p.m. in Burlington. THIS WEEKEND — Boston Mayor Michelle Wu is on WCVB’s “On the Record” at 11 a.m. Sunday. Campaign strategist Chris Keohan and Boston's Chief of Economic Opportunity and Inclusion Segun Idowu are on NBC10 Boston’s “At Issue” at 11:30 a.m. Sunday.
| | | | A message from Johnson & Johnson: We’re restoring the true meaning of healthcare—Innovating more precise, less invasive surgery and improving recovery. See how we’re connecting the best of Health&Care for every patient and provider. Learn more. | | | |  | FROM THE DELEGATION | | MORE MOULTON FALLOUT — More than 30 LGBTQ+ leaders and advocates from across the country, including several from Massachusetts, are sending out a statement this morning condemning Rep. Seth Moulton and others in the Democratic party for spreading “harmful misinformation about our community, particularly transgender youth.” “The baseless suggestion that support for transgender rights contributed to recent election losses is not only inaccurate but also fails to recognize the reality: Americans overwhelmingly support the rights of transgender people,” the statement says. The advocates and electeds are calling on Moulton and New York Rep. Tom Suozzi to apologize and “engage in a genuine dialogue” with LGBTQ+ organizations. Read the statement.
| | | DATELINE BEACON HILL | | | — “Am I better off than I was four years ago?’ Mass. leaders contend with dissatisfied electorate,” by Emma Platoff and Samantha J. Gross, The Boston Globe: “As Democrats across the country work to understand last week’s bruising election results, exit polls and dozens of voter interviews have sent a clear message: It’s the economy. Voters ticked rightward all over the country, citing cost of living issues and the nation’s overburdened immigration system as reasons to change leadership in Washington and beyond. Those challenges are particularly acute in Massachusetts, one of the most expensive states in the country, and a place that has come under new strain as tens of thousands of newly arrived migrants settled here in recent years.” — “Mass. House Democrats to allow State Auditor’s Office to select firm to review finances,” by Chris Van Buskirk, Boston Herald: “Massachusetts House Democrats voted Thursday to grant the State Auditor’s Office the sole authority to select an independent firm to conduct a review of the chamber’s finances, a decision taken in response to a successful audit law championed by Auditor Diana DiZoglio. Representatives backed an internal rules change only one week after residents voted overwhelmingly to approve a ballot question that granted DiZoglio’s office more authority to investigate the Legislature and as she reignites her efforts to probe the House and Senate.” — “Democratic governors say they’re forming a resistance group against Trump. Maura Healey is not among them,” by Matt Stout, The Boston Globe: “Democratic governors are organizing against a second Trump administration, saying this week they’re pulling together a coalition of like-minded state executives they say will help battle the ‘dangers of authoritarianism.’ One governor not joining the resistance group: Maura Healey.” — “Legislation clearing way for soccer stadium in Everett lands on Gov. Maura Healey’s desk,” by Chris Van Buskirk, Boston Herald: “Massachusetts Democrats shuttled a major jobs package that clears the way for a soccer stadium in Everett and a clean energy bill that attempts to speed up siting and permitting processes to Gov. Maura Healey’s desk Thursday during rare post-Election Day sessions.” BUT BUT BUT — Lobbying is underway to get Healey to strike a section of the bill. StubHub is urging the governor to drop a small section of the bill (Section 248, subsections B and C) related to ticket transfers that it says creates a loophole that benefits Ticketmaster. “StubHub urges Governor Healey to exercise her authority and remove the anti-consumer and anti-competitive ticketing policy provisions included in the Massachusetts’ economic development bill,” StubHub’s Head of North America Government Relations Kevin Callahan said in a statement.
| | | | The lame duck session could reshape major policies before year's end. Get Inside Congress delivered daily to follow the final sprint of dealmaking on defense funding, AI regulation and disaster aid. Subscribe now. | | | | | | | WHAT'S ON CAMPBELL'S DOCKET | | — “Report: Black women in low-income Mass. ZIP codes face more hospital debt,” by Hadley Barndollar, MassLive: “Sample data from eleven Massachusetts hospitals shows Black women who live in lower-income ZIP codes are more likely to have debt from hospital bills, a new report from the Office of Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell found. The recent findings track with established national data.”
| | DAY IN COURT | | — “SJC rules high-end sex ring hearings should be public,” by Todd Wallack, WBUR: “The Massachusetts high court ruled Thursday that preliminary hearings should be held in public for more than two dozen accused customers of a high-end sex ring, rejecting a request by some of the defendants to keep the initial proceedings secret. The Supreme Judicial Court, however, also rejected a request from WBUR and other news outlets to make underlying documents in the case public before the hearings are held.”
| | DATELINE D.C. | | — “Biden withdraws Marty Walsh nomination to USPS governing board,” by Tonya Alanez, The Boston Globe: “The White House on Thursday announced that former Boston mayor Martin J. Walsh’s nomination to the governing board of the United States Postal Service was being withdrawn from the Senate’s consideration, a statement said. The statement did not give a reason for the withdrawal. It comes as the transition begins from President Joe Biden’s administration to President-Elect Donald Trump.”
| | | | A message from Johnson & Johnson:   | | | | | TRUMPACHUSETTS | | — “How Mass. transportation projects may fare under Trump,” by Andrea Perdomo-Hernandez, WBUR: “The state of Massachusetts is counting on more than a billion dollars in federal funding for critical transportation projects in the coming years. But that money could be in question under the second Trump administration. Through competitive grants offered under President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the state has been awarded $1.18 billion for such projects as replacing the aging Cape Cod bridges, renovating the MBTA’s North Station drawbridge and overhauling the Mass Pike in Allston. Former Massachusetts Secretary of Transportation Jim Aloisi told WBUR that funding could be in ‘jeopardy.’”
| | IT'S NOT EASY BEING GREEN | | — “Demand for EV rebates spikes amid uncertainty over incentives,” by Christian M. Wade, The Eagle-Tribune: “Demand for a taxpayer-funded program that pays consumers to buy electric and fuel cell vehicles is skyrocketing amid uncertainty about the future of state and federal incentives aimed at reducing tailpipe pollution. The MOR-EV program, which provides point-of-sale rebates for new and used e-vehicles, SUVs and trucks, distributed 9,265 rebates in 2023, valued at more than $33.6 million, according to data from the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, which oversees the program.”
| | TRANSITION TIME | | — “Trump to select Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead HHS,” by By Meridith McGraw and Chelsea Cirruzzo, POLITICO: “President-elect Donald Trump will nominate former presidential candidate and anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. The pick, which will roil many public health experts, comes after Trump promised to let Kennedy “go wild” with health and food policy in his administration after Kennedy dropped his own presidential bid to endorse the now-president-elect.” — “Why Matt Gaetz Might Actually Become Attorney General,” by Calder McHugh and Mia McCarthy, POLITICO.
| | | | Policy change is coming—be the pro who saw it first. Access POLITICO Pro’s Issue Analysis series on what the transition means for agriculture, defense, health care, tech, and more. Strengthen your strategy. | | | | | | | THE LOCAL ANGLE | | — “Marblehead schools to allow football playoffs as North Shore teacher strikes continue,” by Grace Zokovitch, Boston Herald. — “Haitian community leaders in Mass. worry about degrading situation in their home country,” by Sarah Betancourt, GBH News. — “'Doing what I can to survive:' Brockton's homeless react to encampment ban,” by Christopher Butler, The Brockton Enterprise. — “Report says Gateway Cities need to double housing production to meet rising demand,” by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Beacon: “Gateway cities could play a major role in addressing the state’s acute housing shortage, but Massachusetts needs to commit resources and support other strategies to address the unique challenges the communities face in boosting production, according to a new report. The study, carried out by the MassINC Policy Center, said the state’s 26 Gateway Cities need to collectively build 83,000 new housing units over the next decade – double their pace of production over the last 10 years – in order to bring supply and demand into balance and stabilize prices.” — “Worcester's Hospital for Behavioral Medicine under state investigation,” by Henry Schwan, Telegram & Gazette: “The state is investigating a 120-bed facility that provide mental health services and is a joint venture with UMass Memorial Health. The Massachusetts Department of Public Health confirmed an investigation is underway of the Hospital for Behavioral Medicine at 100 Century Drive. The agency did not provide details because the probe is ongoing.”
| | MEANWHILE IN RHODE ISLAND | | — “Gina Raimondo is considering another run for governor of Rhode Island,” by Ian Donnis, The Public’s Radio: “Former Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo — a Democrat who is facing the end of her tenure as U.S. Commerce secretary due to Donald Trump’s victory last week — is considering making another run for governor, The Public’s Radio has learned from multiple sources. ... according to a source familiar with her thinking, Raimondo, 53, has examined the constitutionality of making a third run for governor and is considering it with the idea that an elective position could help propel her back into national politics.”
| | HEARD ‘ROUND THE BUBBLAH | | PARTY TIME — MassDems Chair Steve Kerrigan was reelected to the role during a Democratic State Committee meeting last night. Kerrigan, who took on the job in 2023, was the only nominee. HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to MassLive alum Melissa Hanson, Gail Gitcho, Alexandra Lippman and Micah Rosen. HAPPY BIRTHWEEKEND — to Nora Bent, executive director of the Massachusetts Caucus of Women Legislators, Brad Wyatt, Stephanie Harris, Jonathan Ng, Josh Gee and Minda Conroe, managing director for J Strategies Inc., who celebrate Saturday; and to Sunday birthday-ers Ann Murphy, partner at Seven Letter; Aidan Golub, Alexandra Goodwin, Sophia Wang and Laurie Norton Moffatt.
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