Blue Mass Group

An article on the front of Boston.com right now says:

Patrick has a big lead in new poll

Healey trails by 25 points

September 30, 2006

Democrat Deval L. Patrick holds a commanding lead over Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey in the race for governor, even though a majority of voters oppose his positions on immigration, income taxes, and crime, a new Boston Globe/CBS4 poll indicates.

Fifty-five percent of voters surveyed supported Patrick, while Healey, the Republican nominee, was backed by 30 percent….

But the story goes on to provide details, and the poll data is available from a link on the Globe site.

The details are a bit messy.  But the bottom line is pretty straightforward: Sean Healey’s stock options in Affiliated Managers Group (AMG) are his property, not his and Kerry’s joint property.  Therefore, if Sean cashed in his stock options with the intention of using that money to finance Kerry’s campaign, any amount from the stock options exceeding $500 was an illegal campaign contribution.

Onward, gentle reader…

OK, folks, we’re about to wrap up pledge week. Give it up to Deval and Tim. Right now — and I mean, this minute — is the time to do it, since midnight is the end of the quarter. (We’re $724 short of our totally made-up goal — why? Why? *weeping and beating breast* Can we miraculously pull this out tonight?) Anyway, I’ve really dug up some talent this time: Former US Attorney General John Ashcroft, performing his renowned orginal composition: “Let the Eagle Soar”. Wow, you can totally hear the justice in his voice, too. John and Deval have so much in common. But only Deval’s running for office this year — give to Deval.

Let’s make a list of all the public safety cuts under Kerry Muffy Healey, the original SOFT ON CRIME – less cops candidate Public Safety Staffing in Arlington FY2003 (2002-03) 45 officers, 10 sergeants, 58 firefighters –Romney-Healey elected November, 2002– –20% local aid cut– FY2004 (2003-04) 41 officers,  9 sergeants, 49 firefighters FY2005 (2004-05) 41 officers,  9 sergeants, 49 firefighters FY2006 (2005-06) 42 officers,  9 sergeants, 49 firefighters FY2007 (2006-07) 42 officers,  9 sergeants, 50 firefighters Now it’s time to add your town!

Today’s Globe’s banner headline: “Massport refuses to relent on sick pay.”  The story calls it a “stinging setback for Governor Mitt Romney.” Background: Massport has the most generous sick leave policy in Massachusetts, and possibly anywhere on the planet.  (Surprise!)  Employees accrue sick days at the rate of 15 a year.  Apparently, they never expire.  And here’s the kicker: you get to cash out 100% of your unused sick days when you retire, or 50% when you decide that you’ve had enough of meaningless hackery resign to pursue other opportunities. Result: retiring Massport employees have walked away with payouts of as much as $200,000 all because of accumulated sick days.  And prominent resigning employees have also done well – former executive director Craig Coy walked away with $28,000 after four years on the job, and former executive director Ginny Buckingham, who was pretty much forced out by Jane Swift after 9/11, carried nearly $6,000 off to her new gig at the Herald. Bad policy?  Horrible, even by state standards — most other retiring state employees can only cash out 20% of their sick days, and state employees who resign from agencies other than Massport get nothing.  Of course, in the [...]

I’ve only got a couple of minutes before heading out for the morning, but I can’t let this pass without a quick note. As I noted yesterday, and as the Globe describes today, Kerry Healey’s latest ad features her at a signing ceremony with a variety of Democrats, including DA Dan Conley and Senator Steve “Big Dig” Baddour.  The announcer proclaims how well Healey works with the Democrats in the legislature. Today, in light of Deval Patrick’s meeting with Sal & Trav, Healey is claiming that Patrick “went into this race saying he had no debts to the political establishment on Beacon Hill. As of yesterday that statement doesn’t hold.” Um, excuse me?  This, from the person whose newest TV ad proclaims the value of working with the legislature?  This, from the person whose only hope of ever accomplishing anything on Beacon Hill is to have effective working relationships with the legislative leadership? This, furthermore, from someone who has no clue what happened in those discussions?  I very much doubt that Deval Patrick walked into that meeting hat in hand, begging for the assistance of the mighty Sal & Trav.  He has no need to do that, after all, having [...]

Where’s the Massachusetts press?

You need to read the Oroville (California) Mercury Register to find the news about the Reading First scandal in Massachusetts.

Yesterday, the Rappaport Institute at the Kennedy School released a set of policy briefs titled Hard Choices for the Next Governor.  It provides specific thoughts and recommendations on ten key issues any new governor will have to contend with: economic development housing energy transportation infrastructure medical care and public health education corrections crime managing state government activity-based budgeting unfunded retirement benefits Each essay is accessibly written by an expert in the field with on-the-ground knowledge of the issues here in Massachusetts.  A quick and worthwhile read.

A post by kristen brought up an interesting issue about a recent ruling by a State Superior Court, the state’s lowest court, permitting a homosexual couple who reside in Rhode Island to marry.

Discussion was asking: Can Rhode Island be added as a party in the case by intervention? Is the license legal in Rhode Island? and could this license make gay marraige legal in Rhode Island?

I’ll try to address these on the flip.

The sages are right on that one — whatever honeymoon Deval Patrick had with the mainstream media seems to have ended, though query whether you can really call it a “honeymoon” if you didn’t get a little lovin’ first (the Globe, for instance, spent months patiently trying to explain why Patrick couldn’t win the primary, after all).  In any event, in the eyes of the “liberal” media, Deval Patrick has committed a cardinal sin of being a candidate: he dissed a reporter that other reporters like by not answering his question.  And he is being roundly trashed for it.  Keller.  McGrory.  Adam Reilly‘s getting into the act too, though on a different topic (Patrick’s meeting with Sal & Trav). To refresh everyone’s recollection (as if you needed it), the AP’s Glen Johnson wanted Patrick to explain what he would have done in 2003, had he been in office, to close the budget gap (which, by the way, was emphatically not $3 billion).  Patrick didn’t answer the question, saying that he wanted to talk about now rather than 2003.  Was that a good answer?  No — it’s a fair question that Patrick should have expected to be asked, having criticized Romney/Healey’s [...]