They haven’t spent a penny yet, but pro-gambling forces seem to be pulling away in the battle over a ballot initiative that will decide the fate of casinos in Massachusetts. […]
Polls indicate casino repeal is in trouble
Posted inPolitics
Probation lawyers say jury asked too many questions
Lawyers for the three Probation officials convicted of racketeering and mail fraud filed motions on Tuesday seeking their clients’ acquittal, in part claiming the federal trial judge’s decision to allow […]
Posted inPolitics
Patrick endorses Tolman in AG primary
Gov. Deval Patrick waded into the tightest race on the Democratic primary ballot on Thursday by endorsing a political insider instead of a fresh-face newcomer whose run for office is […]
Posted inHealth Care, Politics, State House News Service
Health spending slows; Patrick sees ‘mixed story’
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE While consumers saw their health insurance premiums and benefit levels stabilize in 2013, overall state spending on health care in Massachusetts climbed to over $50 billion […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service
Grossman and Berwick target Coakley at debate
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE Democrat Martha Coakley, with just one full week of campaigning left before the primary election, is attempting to do what she could not in her 2010 […]
Posted inPolitics, The Back Story
Brennan settlement not black and white
As Martha Coakley runs for governor, every decision she makes as attorney general seems to become campaign fodder for her opponents. Her defense of the Department of Children and Families, […]
Posted inPolitics
Temp CFO earns $262,000 for 10 months
A temporary replacement for the chief financial officer at the Massachusetts Development Finance Agency ended up making nearly $262,000 — $34,000 more than the full-time president and CEO – because […]
Posted inPolitics
Dems gearing up for ground game
A hard sprint still stands between the three Democrats who would be governor, and September’s gubernatorial primary. But all summer, as Martha Coakley, Steve Grossman, and Don Berwick have crisscrossed […]
Posted inGambling, Opinion
2 casino firms make gains with regulators
The two companies vying for a Greater Boston casino license are both making progress in winning state environmental and transportation approvals for their projects, but some potentially serious transportation issues […]
Posted inPolitics, The Back Story
MA political fundraising plummets
The outside super PAC money now pouring into the Massachusetts governor’s race is only half of a rapidly changing equation behind how state elections are financed. The recent rise in […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
Iowa publisher hired to run Worcester paper
Halifax Media Group is hiring a native of Leominster, who is currently the publisher of an Iowa newspaper, to run the Worcester Telegram & Gazette. James Normandin is scheduled to […]
Posted inEducation, Opinion
End the summer slide, close the achievement gap
As summer draws to a close, teachers are returning to work to get ready for the new school year. One significant issue they will have to face, particularly those working […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Politics, Transportation
Boston’s data doldrums
The Globe reports today that nobody in Boston City Hall or in the state’s transportation bureaucracy knows whether Boston streets are models of safety or hotbeds of carnage because Boston […]
Posted inPolitics
Summer 2014 Editor’s note
there’s nothing in this issue about the federal trial of former Probation commissioner John O’Brien and two of his top aides, but that’s only because we’ve been reporting on the […]
Posted inTransportation
Rivera urges Pavegate prosecution of Lantigua
Lawrence Mayor Daniel Rivera on Thursday tried to drive a stake through the heart of the man he narrowly edged out in last year’s election by calling for William Lantigua […]
Posted inGambling, The Back Story
Tallying up the casino handouts
Casino handouts to local communities are becoming a hot issue in the competition between Mohegan Sun and Wynn Resorts for the Greater Boston casino license. Mohegan Sun is promising to […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
When cops kill, silence can be deadly
If the fatal shooting in Missouri last weekend of 18-year-old Michael Brown was simply about a police officer’s use of deadly force, it would be like most of the estimated 400 […]
Posted inEducation
SAT: Still Applicable Today?
A. E. B. C. A. D…….. It’s 8:00 a.m. on a Saturday. You’re sitting in a classroom with 30 other kids, filling in bubble after bubble with your No. 2 […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service
DeLeo’s extended term dalliance
Federal prosecutors never went directly after House Speaker Robert DeLeo in the recently concluded Probation Department trial that snared three key department officials. But by labeling him an unindicted co-conspirator, […]
Posted inEconomy
For casino proponents, it all adds up to jobs
Penn National just broke ground on its Plainville slots parlor, the Plainridge Park Casino, a few months ago. It won’t open until next spring. But the racetrack casino will begin […]
Posted inGambling, The Download
Should New York’s casino worries be ours, too?
A Northeast Democratic governor determined to boost state revenue and job growth goes all-in on a push for four new gambling facilities. Nearby states are eating his state’s lunch when […]
Posted inPolitics
Needham’s anti-smoking legacy grows
Needham in 2005 raised the smoking age to 21, establishing a public policy on teen smoking that appears to be gaining momentum in Massachusetts and across the nation. Salem became […]
Posted inThe Download
Losing Olympic bid could mean gold
In addition to the polarizing debate over whether or not Boston can and should host the 2024 Summer Olympics, there’s more than a few people on both sides wondering what actually prompted the bid. There’s […]
Posted inHealth Care, The Back Story
Steward balks at state record request
Steward Health Care is refusing to turn over to state officials its audited financial statements, setting off a behind-the-scenes tug of war that could lead to fines being assessed on […]