The three Democratic gubernatorial hopefuls who emerged from this weekend’s state convention came together Monday evening in a sharp clash over campaign finance. The sparks flying between Attorney General Martha Coakley, the clear Democratic frontrunner, and Treasurer Steve Grossman, seem to indicate the state is in for a long, bitterly fought primary contest. Still, the […]
CommonWealth Staff
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Dem state convention produces few winners
The Democratic State Convention in Worcester this weekend proved Will Rogers’s point when he said, “I am not a member of any organized political party. I am a Democrat.” Most everyone walked out of the DCU Center with a smile on their face but about the only one who could say he was truly happy […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Politics, The Download
Criminalizing politics
US District Court Judge William Young keeps telling the jurors in the trial of former Probation commissioner John O’Brien and two of his top aides that the case is not about patronage. “Patronage is not a crime,” says Young, who in the early 1970s served as legal counsel to Gov. Francis Sargent. Outside the courtroom, […]
Posted inThe Download
Hollywood East moves a little west
It wasn’t that long ago that area newspapers and other media outlets were filled with stories about the burgeoning movie industry and plans to open sprawling production facilities and sound stages at nearly every planned development project. It comes to mind as Boston magazine runs a look at New England Studios in Devens, the only […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Prosecution struggles in Probation Department case
Former Probation Department commissioner John O’Brien is on trial at a South Boston federal courthouse for allegedly running his department like a criminal enterprise. Federal prosecutors claim that O’Brien oversaw a rigged hiring system that traded jobs for influence in the state legislature. Fred Wyshak, the lead prosecutor in the O’Brien case, has said O’Brien […]
Posted inEconomy, The Download
The Lottery’s reverse Robin Hood ways
Raise your hand if the Boston Globe‘s story on Lottery spending inequity was news to you. Not a lot of arms in the air. The Globe rolls out the numbers on an evergreen story: the state Lotteryworks as a Robin Hood in reverse, with residents of poorer communities disproportionately contributing to the local aid fund […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Running unopposed in the Bay State and beyond
What’s the point of having an election if only one person wants to run? That’s just what will happen in five congressional “races” come November: US Reps. Michael Capuano, Richard Neal, Stephen Lynch, James McGovern, and Joseph Kennedy are all running unopposed. Certainly, the prospect of spending millions to dislodge a comfortable incumbent or […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Outsiders running from behind this time in governor’s race
Political insiders have been striking out in Massachusetts governor’s races for decades. In the years since Foster Furcolo parlayed a job as state treasurer into a stint in the corner office, back in the 1950s, statewide officeholders are a collective 0-for-17 in gubernatorial contests. Gubernatorial politics in Massachusetts has been stacked in favor of political […]
Posted inThe Download
What’s doing with Deval?
Everyone on Beacon Hill is wondering what’s going on with Gov. Deval Patrick. Is he bored with state politics? Is he headed back to the private sector? Is he laying plans for some future political run? Patrick himself has been fairly clear about his plans to get a job and stay out of national politics […]
Posted inThe Download
Racism trending
It was all too painfully familiar, making it that much more easy to believe. P.K. Subban, a black player on the hated Montreal Canadiens team playing in a near-lily white league, was the target of racist tweets after scoring the winning goal in Game 1 of the playoff series against the Boston Bruins earlier this […]