With a hurricane bearing down on New Orleans, Bill Weld offers up some advice to Mitt Romney today, one former Massachusetts governor to another. Weld wants to see Romney leave the Republican National Convention in Tampa, jet up to a soon-to-be hurricane-damaged Gulf coast, and “go and survey the damage and pay his respects.” Weld’s suggestion certainly beats the alternative. New York magazine notes that “taking the stage on Thursday with Louisiana underwater is hardly the coronation [Romney has] been waiting for.”
Last week, speculation swirled that Tropical Storm Isaac would plow into Tampa and rain all over Romney’s convention. That scenario hasn’t panned out, but there’s a more sinister alternative in play — a hurricane blowing into New Orleans on the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, while GOP delegates drink with lobbyists and frequent establishments of ill repute.
The New York Times editorial page uses the coincidental timing to knock around the Republicans on two counts. It resurrects the failures of the Republican-led federal response to Katrina, which effectively ended the assertive Bush presidency. And it notes, in a rather gleeful tone, that the GOP’s small government advocacy has included, in recent years, dramatic attempts to slash federal disaster aid. Those attempts were led by Rep. Eric Cantor, and his budget chief, Rep. Paul Ryan. As Romney’s vice presidential nominee, Ryan is about to take a starring role just as a storm pounds the Gulf.
“That is not something you will hear Paul Ryan talk about this week at the convention, nor any of the other lawmakers who make simplistic promises about the power of slashing government spending,” the Times argues today. “But the budgets assembled by Mr. Ryan and warmly embraced by Mitt Romney severely cut spending for emergency preparedness, exactly the kind of money needed in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and scores of other states for this and future storms.”
The Associated Press picks up on the theme today, highlighting Ryan’s repeated attempts to cut disaster funding from the federal budget. These sorts of stories are likely to multiply in the coming days — unless Romney can change the optics and do something drastic, like take Bill Weld up on his offer.
–PAUL MCMORROW
BEACON HILL
Jass Stewart, a Brockton city councilor who is running for state representative, is advocating legalizing drugs as a way to reduce other associated crimes but he is opposed to the state ballot question that would legalize medicinal marijuana.
MUNICIPAL MATTERS
The city of Fall River foreclosed on the property of a chrome-plating company that hasn’t paid taxes since 1991. Federal environmental officials are seeking penalties from the Nu-Chrome owners to clean up the site the feds say is likely contaminated.
Quincy officials are pondering whether to retain the pay-per-inch snow removal model they started in some wards last year to save money or return to the traditional contract model.
Paul McMorrow, in his Globe column, says Cambridge should back off its anti-development initiative around Central Square.
Lowell City Councilor Kevin Broderick is resigning to spend more time with his family, the Sun reports.
Westminster cancels its Town Meeting.
ELECTION 2012
A cab driver ferrying Democrat Elizabeth Warren on Martha’s Vineyard is caught on video roughing up a Republican tracker, the Associated Press reports (via Telegram & Gazette). The Herald has both the Martha’s Vineyard video and another showing a Democratic tracker being roughed up at a Scott Brown event. Warren keeps on raising more money than Brown, the Globe reports. The Globe’s Joanna Weiss says Brown, as a dissenting Republican moderate, should be speaking up more. Brown insists his reluctance to attend the convention is 100 percent related to the weather that the rest of the state delegation is braving.
A women’s group supporting US Rep. John Tierney tries to stir up opposition to Republican Richard Tisei on the abortion issue, the Item reports. Tierney and Tisei agree to debate, the Globe reports.
A new Gallup poll shows nearly 60 percent of Americans think President Obama will win reelection even if they are voting for Mitt Romney. The New York Times spotlights Romney’s shifting views on government’s relationship with business: He was all for it when he governed Massachusetts, but now, not so much. The Republican, in an editorial, wants details about Mitt Romney’s budget plan. Former Massachusetts Gov. William Weld is firmly in Romney’s camp, the Globe reports.
Does it matter whether the small-government GOP is gathering in a pair of Tampa buildings financed by a big government? Margery Eagan tears into the New York cardinal who will deliver the RNC’s closing prayer, calling Timothy Dolan “pro-pedophile [and] anti-poor.”
Tom Smith, the Republican candidate for the US Senate in Pennsylvania, trips up over rape, consensual sex, and out-of-wedlock pregnancy.
One unusual item in reporters’ RNC swag bags: an old hardcover version of No Apology, the version in which Romney still argued in favor of nationalizing his Massachusetts health care reform model.
The three Democratic candidates for the Middle Berkshire Registrar of Deeds race discuss their positions.
A Texas official predicts riots, civil war, and a UN occupation if President Obama is reelected.
GAMBLING
Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno flip-flops on his casino selection process, now saying he will encourage more than one operator to seek licenses from the state’s Gambling Commission, the Globe reports. Springfield city leaders and residents opine on how a casino will transform the community.
BUSINESS/ECONOMY
A Lawrence homeless person’s mattress catches on fire, burning a Verizon fiber optic cable and leaving thousands of residences and businesses without phone, Internet, or TV service, the Eagle-Tribune reports.
EDUCATION
High school students are stocking up on iPads and ebooks, CommonWealth reports.
State officials say they will play a fact-finding role in trying to end the contract stalemate over Boston teachers, the Globe reports.
The quasi-public agency overseeing the development of the former South Weymouth Naval Air Base has agreed to foot the cost to transport children living in the development to Weymouth public schools but no deal has been reached over how much the agency will pay to educate the students.
Fairhaven parents and school officials are awaiting air quality test results on an elementary school where initial tests found mold spores.
HEALTH CARE
Some school officials are praising the changes in federal guidelines mandating healthier food selections in school lunches but say the six cents per student in additional subsidies is insufficient to cover costs.
The threat of EEE has forced several South Shore towns to cancel night games for some school sports.
TRANSPORTATION
The TSA is set to fire six Logan Airport staffers, the Globe reports.
ENERGY/ENVIRONMENT
Pennsylvania proposes new rules regulating gas development to protect water supplies, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. NPR (via WBUR) examines how methane gas made its way into local well water from a fracking operation in Pennsylvania.
MEDIA
Keller@Large is not upset about the cancellation of the first day of the Republican convention because he thinks the conventions are a waste of money anyway. Dan Kennedy draws on his own experience from 12 years ago to offer suggestions on how some enterprising reporters can find stories outside the scripts.
Lowell Sun columnist Peter Lucas analyzes the Newsweek cover story trashing President Obama.
National Review launches a preemptive strike against PolitiFact, which most observers on both sides say is a pretty reliable fact checker.
Wall Street Journal reporters will start doing microvideo updates, the Nieman Journalism Lab reports.