THE IDEA THAT SOUTHIE RULES may be popular these days in the world of cable TV reality shows. But in the political realm, where the small, insular neighborhood has long […]
Southie rules no more
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service, The Back Story
News you have to ask for
LT. GOV. TIM MURRAY took another pounding last week for what was essentially old news. On September 19, the state Office of Campaign and Political Finance sent a letter to […]
Posted inEconomy, State House News Service
Many Mass. residents have little saved up
Low- and middle- income families in Massachusetts are in rough shape when it comes to managing their money and saving for a rainy day, according to a new annual survey […]
Posted inPolitics
Mr. Cowan goes to Washington
Three years ago, Gov. Deval Patrick filled a US Senate vacancy by deferring to the empty seat’s longtime occupant: He tapped Paul Kirk, a longtime Kennedy family friend, to cast […]
Posted inHealth Care
Coakley takes pulse of Steward’s first year
Attorney General Martha Coakley said Steward Health Care complied with its regulatory commitments during its first year of operation while failing to turn a profit. She stressed that one year […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Secretary of State John Kerry soldiers on
As John Kerry embarks on his “Thank you, Massachusetts” tour, his move out of the shadow of Ted Kennedy is complete. While Kennedy’s heart was solidly in Massachusetts, the Vietnam […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
It’s the stupid views, stupid
Losing on five of six of anything will sting, whether it’s losing on a handful of scratch tickets or a weeklong homestand at Fenway. The pain increases dramatically when the […]
Posted inEconomy, Opinion, Politics
Don’t bottle up liquor licenses
There is a renaissance happening in Boston. Take a look at the activity in the Seaport District — restaurants, cultural events, start-ups and new visitors. Roslindale Square has become a […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
The state of the city’s mayor
The Globe previews tomorrow’s State of the City speech by Boston’s five-term mayor, Tom Menino. The front-page story continues the media’s month’s-long obsession over every small sign of physical recovery […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
New England needs to expand gas pipelines
NEW ENGLAND’S STRONG and increasing reliance on natural gas is well documented, with almost half of electricity currently generated by natural gas, up from just 15 percent in 2000, according […]
Posted inEconomy, Opinion
Patrick’s new spending needs ‘place’ component
FOR WELL OVER A DECADE now, squeezing growth out of the Massachusetts economy has felt a bit like getting that last ounce of toothpaste from the tube. Gov. Deval Patrick […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
Everything wants to be free; it just isn’t
Legal services want to be free. College degrees want to be free. Food wants to be free. Information wants to be free. Out of all those items that want to […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Patrick and Obama sing same tune: Unchain my heart
As Janis Joplin wailed, “Freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose.” One look at the unchained president and his similarly unshackled good pal, the Massachusetts governor, and you’d […]
Posted inEnvironment, The Back Story
Fracking unbelievable
The operator of the regional power grid says wholesale electricity prices fell by 23 percent last year to their lowest level in nine years. The underlying reason for the price […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service
Murray faces probe on campaign finances
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE STATE REGULATORS FOUND evidence that Lt. Gov. Tim Murray and his campaign committee did not comply with campaign finance laws and referred the matter last September […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Can the Mass GOP get their act together?
The Massachusetts Republican brand suffered more catastrophic damage, if that was possible, when Scott Brown and Richard Tisei, the party’s two leading lights, went down for the count in November. […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
GOP rules challenge House lawmaking process
NEW LEGISLATIVE SESSIONS on Beacon Hill normally begin the same way: House members vote through a rules package that gives legislative leadership broad powers to control the flow of bills […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics
Patrick moves to cap state’s film tax credit
Gov. Deval Patrick says he wants to rein in the cost of the state’s film tax credit, capping the annual outlay to $40 million a year. Officials say the governor’s […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics
Taxes key to governor’s $35b budget
GOV. DEVAL PATRICK UNVEILED a nearly $35 billion budget proposal for the coming fiscal year that relies on $1.2 billion in new tax revenues, including $400 million borrowed against future […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Gubernatorial free-for-all fully underway
Inertia consumes the bulk of Massachusetts’s political power structure. Democrats dominate the Legislature, which is one of the country’s least competitive. The party doesn’t have to sweat to stuff pols […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Economy, Politics, The Download
Ortiz’s discretionary call
Six months later the Globe selected Ortiz as its Bostonian of the Year. The newspaper’s magazine said Ortiz, Boston’s first female and first Hispanic US attorney, “has sent an unambiguous […]
Posted inEducation
Reville reflects
WITH HIS PROPOSAL TO PUMP as much as $1 billion a year more into school programs, Gov. Deval Patrick says he wants to make good on the promise of providing […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service
LG Murray says he won’t run for governor
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICELT. GOV. TIMOTHY MURRAY, after spending the last 15 years in local and statewide public office, will not run for governor in 2014, citing the time commitment […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service
Menino, Warren back gun liability insurance
SENATOR ELIZABETH WARREN AND BOSTON MAYOR THOMAS MENINO say they support Beacon Hill legislation that would require gun owners to buy liability insurance for their weapons. Rep. David Linksy, […]