Seems Lt. Gov. Candidate and Worcester Mayor Tim Murray picked up an endorsement on his bus tour today. Congressman McGovern and Murray traveled from Springfield to Worcester to Boston to Fall River today and picked up a “surprise” endorsement from Mayor Lambert of Fall River. Last week he picked up the endorsement of Mayor Barrett of Northampton…seems Murray has some ‘Mo.
Jarrett Barrios and the Law
Jan 18, ’06
7:05 PM
Regarding the posts about Barrios and the law: let’s defumigate the room a bit here from the disinformational cloud. An asylum case is an administrative law hearing. It is not a criminal case. Not even close. Nice try.
1. I also attended one of the nation’s top few law schools. That does not make me qualified to be District Attorney.
2. The other D.A.’s mentioned all had extensive experience as counsel to state agencies first.
Mitterdämmerung tonight (State of the Commonwealth)
Jan 18, ’06
5:45 PM
Yes, I’ll be “liveblogging” the State of the Commonwealth speech … on a pad of paper. I’ll have thoughts afterward. (I don’t have a laptop — anyone know where to get one dirt-cheap? Suggestions for brand? etc.)
UPDATE: Here it is…
What did I think of the speech? Well… it was… fine. I guess. He’s an OK speaker, stumbles over some lines, including his laugh lines, but seems like he means what he says. That’s not as easy as it seems.
But really, as my title implies, this speech was really not about the future of Massachusetts as it was about the past three years — and the future of Mitt Romney. That’s fine; as I’ve said, I wouldn’t begrudge him any real accomplishments on behalf of the citizens of Massachusetts just because he’s running for President.
It was refreshing to hear his graciousness to DiMasi and Travaglini, and to hear him talking up Massachusetts. Where has this Mitt Romney been? If he’s afraid that this kind of thing wouldn’t play to the Republican activists, that really doesn’t speak well of them, does it?
A LOT more beneath the fold… (click “There’s more”)
Mis-step by Patrick
Jan 18, ’06
2:12 PM
Gubernatorial candidate Deval Patrick made a mis-step in Monday’s candidate forum by rejecting for the present the 2000 vote to roll back the state income tax to five percent. He has allowed Reilly to seize this issue. Bad idea. First, candidates who promise to lower taxes generally beat those who refuse to make the same promises. Second, candidates who ignore popular preferences (the roll back was approved 56.4 percent to 38.6 percent in 2000) do so at their peril. Patrick also fumbled the issue of local meals taxes, where according to the Globe he said he would support local increases. “[H]is rival for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly, flatly ruled out any such increase,” the newspaper reported. The voice of experience.
Left in Lowell Debates Immigrant Education
Jan 18, ’06
1:02 PM
A vigorous debate at Left in Lowell worth reading for those interested in the recently-defeated H 1230 bid to extend in-state tuition rates at public colleges to undocumented immigrants. The measure was defeated 96 to 57 prompting laments from the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition and cheers from both national HumanEventsOnline and local HubPolitics observers. Useful advance coverage from TownOnline here. Personally, I think U.S. immigration policy should be relaxed to allow more immigration since it promotes economic growth and respects one of our country’s highest ideals: a land of opportunity. This, however, is a federal rather than a state issue. Immigration reformers should concentrate their efforts on Washington, not Boston. In Massachusetts, the legislature should focus first on improving funding for higher education for legal residents, and then consider proposals to expand elgibility for other groups.
Hartford Courant Blasts Willard
Jan 18, ’06
12:15 PM
The Hartford Courant editorializes today: “When Mitt Romney was elected governor of Massachusetts in 2002, he was widely regarded as an environmentalist. Not anymore.
Willard was similarly slammed last week by the Daily Astorian across the country in Washington state, which wrote, “Citing World-Is-Flat science, Gov. Mitt Romney leaves greenhouse gas coalition.”
The Courant continued: “His subsequent refusal to oppose drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is relevant only insofar as it affects his potential (long-shot) Republican candidacy for president. More to the point is Mr. Romney’s refusal to join his counterparts from seven Northeast states in supporting a regional accord to reduce the emissions that scientists have linked to global warming.”
