Just wanted to share the press release that just went out. -Joyce
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Joyce Linehan, joyce@ashmontmedia.com
REP. MARTIN J. WALSH ANNOUNCES MAYORAL BID
MAY 4 CAMPAIGN KICK-OFF WILL LAUNCH CITY-WIDE GRASSROOTS EFFORT
(Dorchester, Mass. — April 10, 2013 ) Rep. Martin J. Walsh formally announced today that he is running for Mayor of Boston. “I love this city – its people, its institutions, its traditions and its innovations – and want to do all I can to see it continue to thrive. Boston is a diverse and welcoming center of creativity, where people are valued and possibilities are realized. The future of Boston depends on the education of our children, the strengthening of our working families, the protection of our vulnerable, and the growth of our businesses. I am running for Mayor because I have the skills, record and passion to do the job. I want to move our schools forward, create good jobs for local residents, and create an environment where families can prosper and businesses can grow.”
Walsh opened up a campaign account this week and has over $200,000 in the bank. In the few days since he opened this account, Walsh has captured commitments for an additional $400,000 towards his campaign.
Walsh, a lifelong resident of Dorchester, has represented the 13th Suffolk District in Dorchester since 1997. In the Massachusetts House, he has been a steadfast voice for civil rights, working families, youth, seniors, and addiction and recovery services. He is the son of Irish immigrants, and attended St. Margaret’s in Dorchester and Newman Prep. He graduated from Boston College in 2009, working his way through college at night while serving the the state legislature.
He currently holds a leadership position in the House as the Chairman of the Committee on Ethics, and he is the Co-chair of the Massachusetts Democratic Party Labor Caucus. He serves as a Board Member for local organizations such as the Dorchester Boys and Girls Club, The Gavin Foundation, the University of Massachusetts Labor Caucus, Friends for Children, Project D.E.E.P., and the Neighborhood House Charter School. In the past, Rep. Walsh has been President of the Columbia Savin Hill Civic Association, Dorchester Allied Neighborhood Association, and the Savin Hill Baseball League. Walsh has also been the Business Manager of the Boston Building Trades, a position which he is resigning effective Friday, April 12, 2013 to pursue the mayoral bid. He is a member of the Laborers Local 223.
Walsh will kick off his campaign on Saturday, May 4 at 10 am with a rally at a Dorchester location to be announced. Said Walsh, “We plan to gather hundreds of supporters, neighbors and friends, and begin a grassroots neighbor-to-neighbor campaign that will take us to all corners of the city. I will be a Mayor for all of Boston, and I look forward to meeting with voters and taking that message out there.”
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Once you’re in, you’re in.
You run everything
Your perks are unlimited
I can see why everyone is throwing their hat in the ring.
the guy’s seriously looking at taking a run at this. Dave Bernstein mentioned it in his blog.
David you old fart you. Get with the times. Don’t you know what the kids are up to?
Guess you’re not as hip, cool, groovy, cat’s meow, as I am.
P.S. message for Mike-Cote, Walsh is a ginger. They are vile vile people.
Who doesn’t love a ginger? Seriously?
Thanks, but Gingers are still cool, particularly self-deprecating gingers.
I meant WICKED Funny. D’OH!
the nuns would have taught you to spell correctly.
Too bad you’re an atheist.
I went to Catholic Kindergarten, Catholic Grammar School, Catholic High School and a year and a half at Boston College (Catholic College). Which is probably why I care when I find misspellings in my own writings.
P.S. I became an atheist while at Boston College.
He says he wants to be Mayor of “all of Boston”, yet he doesn’t believe that “all of Boston” has a right to vote on whether to an allow a casino in Boston.
Sorry Marty, that doesn’t fly with me. A casino is not going to affect just the neighborhood its in — it will affect “all of Boston”.
To be fair, our current mayor (who I did vote for) holds the same position, but I am simply not going to vote for any mayoral candidate who does not believe that I don’t have a right to vote on this important issue and I suspect that others who are skeptical that a casino will not cause more harm than good feel the same way.
I like to go out to bars until 1am and be boisterous. Good times. I wouldn’t want all of Boston voting on whether or not to allow one on my block.
The casino will clearly have a greater impact on those who live right in its shadows. How to balance their greater concerns with the entire city’s concerns?
Casinos are special. This isn’t just someone asking for a liquor permit, which BTW isn’t up to the citizens of Boston in any case. And we all know we aren’t talking about building a small slot parlor. If something gets built in Boston it is going to be BIG.
To be clear, I have no problem with people in the neighborhood where a casino is proposed to be able to veto it. I do have a problem with those outside of the immediate neighborhood not having the right to vote on whether to allow the casino. It is not like it is just going to be people in the neighborhood who are going to pay the costs for higher crime, higher prevalance of gambling problems, more traffic, and the increased likelihood of public corruption.
Also remember that the people who argue for restricting the vote to the immediate neighborhood are those who are heavily in favor of casinos, so they clearly do not believe that the city is going to vote to impose a casino on a neighborhood that does not want it.
I’m personally very opposed to casinos and especially a casino in the Boston area. Casinos in isolated areas (like the CT casinos) simply have less associated problems (especially traffic, crime and blight).
That said, I do disagree with your premise that the Eastie won’t see *more* problems than the rest of the City of Boston. Increased traffic, lower housing values and more street crime all would be worse in Eastie than in any other neighborhood. Local restaurants and other business would be more affected than those in, say, Roslindale. My sense is that most residents of Boston couldn’t give you directions to Suffolk Downs nor really understand the impact on Eastie of a big, new casino.
So, as I see it, this issue definitly cuts both ways. As a Boston taxpayer, I’m quite concerned about the impact on the police budget and the very really increased likelihood of public corruption. BUT, I haven’t been to Eastie (outside of Logan airport) in many years. I’ve only been to Suffolk Downs once. I do think that Eastie residents have a better sense of what the true impact will be (both positive and negative) and have a bigger stake in the decision than the rest of the Boston residents.
When did I even imply that the East Boston would not see more problems than the rest of the City. I said no such thing. In fact, I fully believe it will be a mixed bag for Eastie. It will bring short term construction jobs, and a lot of new low-paying jobs for casino workers. Casinos tend to be pretty encapsulated because they don’t want their customers to leave until they have extracted as much money as they can, so it probably won’t bring much more business to local restaurants and other businesses. It will bring a lot more traffic and more crime.
My concern is that the extra costs on the City aren’t simply going to be deducted from whatever property tax benefits we get but will take away from other parts of the city. I am concerned that 20 years from now when the gambling markets are fully saturated and casinos are getting run down and depressed, that the tax payers are going to be asked to prop them up to preserve jobs. Casinos do not create any value whatsoever. They cannot help us grow our local economy in any meaningful way. Boston is not going to be a major casino destination, especially if its casino is not in a downtown location.
Anyway, however the issue “cuts”. I am not going to support anyone for Mayor who doesn’t think that I should have a vote on whether to allow a casino.