That giant sucking sound we all have been hearing since the summer is the sound of health care reform inhaling all the oxygen from America's body politic (or so said yesterday's the Globe front page).   That lifelong cause of Teddy; … [Read more...]

I'm a liberal and would support the creation of a public health plan as part of a broader reform of the health care system.  But, I don't see the public option as an end in itself and believe that its inclusion in a health care bill is … [Read more...]

Every time I think our great nation has crossed a certain threshold of political maturity, these malign malcontents of so-called middle America, remind me how far we have yet to go.  So last year, when John McCain won the Republican … [Read more...]

A lot of ink was spilled covering the back-and-forth sniping between the Governor and legislators over the past few months.  In the end, despite the heated rhetoric, the Governor's gambit in playing off the sales tax against the … [Read more...]

One of the most difficult choices for any Bay State Governor, whether Republican or Democrat, comes in determining when to throw elbows or back pats in dealing with the legislature.   And its been interesting watching Governor Patrick … [Read more...]

But, what our legislative leaders seem to be overlooking as they try to teach the Guv a lesson is how important that DC office is, particularly now, with the State in the ditch.  Federal funds are flowing like never before to fight the … [Read more...]

Legislative leaders haven't been making a lot of friends on BMG of late. Admittedly, I've been part of the firing squad as well.  But often forgotten in handicapping the inter-branch warfare is how much, when moved, legislative leaders … [Read more...]

The budget catastrophe Michael Widmer of Mass Taxpayers has cited (in the post here from Charley) was of course facilitated by our inability to address the structural deficit our state has carried for much of the last decade.  Widmer … [Read more...]