MASSACHUSETTS RESIDENTS overwhelmingly view the coronavirus outbreak as a serious and worsening threat, with many bracing for an extended disruption of their daily lives, according to the first poll to examine […]
Michael Jonas
Michael Jonas works with Laura in overseeing CommonWealth Beacon coverage and editing the work of reporters. His own reporting has a particular focus on politics, education, and criminal justice reform.
Posted inPolitics
The vote goes on
WHEN JOE BIDEN OFFERED REMARKS on his primary victory sweep last night via a shaky video live stream from his Delaware home that had Globe columnist Scot Lehigh wondering if it […]
Posted inHealth Care
In virus battle, health providers charge into harm’s way
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER announced emergency orders on Tuesday that will loosen some licensing requirements for health care providers, moves that could increase the supply of physicians, nurses, and other frontline […]
Posted inHealth Care
Virus notes: Boston construction grinds to halt
IN THE LATEST chapter in the near-total shutdown of the region, Mayor Marty Walsh announced that all construction projects in Boston would be halted as part of the all-out effort to […]
Posted inEducation
State to assert new oversight of Boston schools
STATE AND CITY leaders have agreed to an unusual plan for oversight of the long-struggling Boston public schools, one that keeps the district in local hands but will set firm […]
Posted inUncategorized
Why it’s crucial to ‘flatten the curve’ of coronavirus
THE NUMBER OF cases of coronavirus in Massachusetts hit 92 yesterday. And in a state of almost 7 million residents that’s cause to declare a state of emergency? Some may […]
Posted inUncategorized
What about riding the T?
HOW SERIOUS ARE local concerns about spread of the coronavirus? Boston’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade, an annual rite that draws hundreds of thousands of people to South Boston, has been […]
Posted inTransportation
In Newton, a super Tuesday for pro-growth side
ALL POLITICS IS LOCAL, and for some residents in Newton that meant yesterday’s Super Tuesday vote in the presidential primary took a backseat to a question of what would happen in […]
Posted inPolitics
Political notes: It’s now a Biden-Sanders nomination battle
THE DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL contest turned into a two-man race as former vice president Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders divided the spoils of Super Tuesday balloting across 14 states, setting […]
Posted inTransportation
Baker pans tax, fee increases in House transportation bill
ONE DAY AFTER House leaders unveiled a $600 million transportation revenue bill, Gov. Charlie Baker poured cold water on the tax increases and fees the bill calls for to fund […]
Posted inEconomy
Taco showdown will show Boston’s true colors
There’s enough out there today about the Democrats’ ongoing circular firing squad, the Globe’s flip-flop on Elizabeth Warren, and the coronavirus that might be coming for us all. Let’s turn […]
Posted inUncategorized
New center aims to shed light — through data — on state policy
THE WAYS OF BEACON HILL can be mysterious to those on the outside, with the public often left in the dark on all the factors that shaped a particular bill […]
Posted inGambling
Nangle arrest casts shadow on casino buy-in
WHEN MASSACHUSETTS ROLLED the dice in in 2011 and decided to join the casino bandwagon, it was certain that stories would eventually surface of lives ruined by the lure of legalized […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
One year in, Rollins takes stock
REFLECTING ON HER first year in office, Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins says one of the things she’s been most surprised at is how surprised some are about her […]
Posted inBallot Questions
New Tufts center to offer independent analysis of legislation, ballot questions
AFTER YEARS OF inaction on Beacon Hill on proposals to create an agency to bring the sort of independent assessment of state legislation that the Congressional Budget Office provides at […]
Posted inPolitics
Scrambling expectations in NH
THE NEW HAMPSHIRE primary always plays out on two levels: The horse race to grab bragging rights by finishing first and the expectations game that judges whether candidates overperformed or took […]
Posted inEducation
Voc-tech schools facing scrutiny over admissions policies
AFTER YEARS OF complaints from city officials and urban school superintendents that vocational-technical schools are turning away some of the students who might benefit most from their hands-on learning programs, […]
Posted inEducation
Organization slams Boston use of its test for exam school admission
THE COMPANY RESPONSIBLE for the test used to determine admission to Boston’s three exam schools says it will no longer make the test available to the district because it was […]
Posted inPolitics
Globe punts on NH endorsement
THE VOTE-COUNTING isn’t the only thing broken about the Iowa caucuses, says the Boston Globe editorial page. Of much more concern, the paper says in an editorial today, is the […]
Posted inTransportation
An accident waiting to happen
IT WAS A SIGHT to behold, and not in any good way. While making my way up the stairs from the Red Line platform at the MBTA’s Downtown Crossing Station […]
Posted inEducation
Is Massachusetts failing its brightest kids?
FOR MORE THAN two decades, efforts to improve US public schools have set forth an ambitious goal. Leave No Child Behind. The Every Student Succeeds Act. The Student Opportunity Act. […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Rollins shows her mettle
FOR YEARS, showdowns in the criminal justice system often followed a predictable storyline: A judge used his or her discretion to lean toward the side of compassion for a defendant […]
Posted inUncategorized
Deportation battle exposes fuzzy border line
GRANTED IT SITS right on the edge of Boston Harbor on the country’s eastern shore. But it has never seemed particularly in question that East Boston is part of the […]
Posted inEducation
Kid-free Boston
THERE WAS A TIME when couples from the suburbs might hire a babysitter or drop their children at the grandparents in order to splurge on a weekend in Boston. Now, […]