House Speaker Robert DeLeo really, really wants to show he’s not tone deaf. Really. After laying low in the wake of the devastating Ware report on patronage in the Probation Department, and then claiming the report, which named him frequently, had exonerated him, only to be told by its author that it did no such thing, the speaker has been in active damage control mode for several weeks now.
So he’s not just coming around to the existence of patronage in probation, but he’s declared he’s going to be the guy who puts a stop to it. Thus, the sacking of his top deputy, patronage king Thomas Petrolati, and his calls to put probation under civil service. The playbook seems to go something like this: If you can’t dodge the scandal, take ownership of it from everybody else.
The offensive continues today, with the speaker telling the Herald the civil service bill will be the first piece of legislation he files – and he’s so confident he’ll be able to clean up the patronage pit, he’ll even put some money on the line.
Of course, there’s one patronage pledge DeLeo has yet to make. It’s one few in the State House have been willing to address. If the whole probation scandal erupted because Beacon Hill politicians recommended less-than or wholly un-qualified candidates for probation gigs, why not just stop trying to get constituents jobs, and focus on enacting legislation and passing budgets?
DeLeo’s most damaging moment of the probation scandal came in his first public comments. He said there was nothing wrong about recommending his godson for a job at probation, and argued that making job recommendations is a routine part of being an elected official, like cutting ribbons and getting potholes filled.
If anything, the focus on civil service seems to be a defensive one – it seems to say that hacked-up job-seekers will always be clogging up the system, so the state needs a formal process for weeding them out. But that’s only the case so long as there’s a steady stream of undesirables that need to be cast aside.
–PAUL MCMORROW
beacon hill
Doug Rubin, architect of Gov. Deval Patrick’s two statewide victories, says the weakness of the Massachusetts Republican party is hurting the state.
House Speaker Robert DeLeo can’t resist tweaking Patrick over Evergreen Solar’s Devens shutdown.
EDUCATION
A Springfield Republican editorial heralds anti-bullying initiatives around the state, but more bullying issues at South Hadley High School emerge as a friend of Phoebe Prince reports taunts from students and teachers.
Arbella Insurance is donating $2 million to Boston College Law School for its loan forgiveness program in honor of former attorney general and BC law grad Frank Bellotti.
The Globe has this account of a new report that is critical of teacher pay policies that give big annual raises in the first few years of a teacher’s career and that include pay bumps for graduate degrees, which are not strongly linked to teacher quality. The report, done for the Boston Municipal Research Bureau by the Boston Foundation, comes as Boston school officials and Boston Teachers Union leaders enter contract negotiations. The Boston Foundation is leading an effort to push for the sorts of contract changes the study suggests would make sense.
The First Baptist Church of Salem plans to teach parents how to help their children with homework, the Salem News reports.
Methuen schools step up residency enforcement, requiring 45 children to leave unless they can prove they are residents of the city, according to a story in the Eagle-Tribune.
The National Council on Teacher Quality is beginning a comprehensive study to rate the quality of the nation’s 1,400 schools of education. The quality of programs that train the country’s teachers is a huge issue that has received little attention. Via eduwonk.com.
HEALTH
On his Not Running a Hospital blog, Paul Levy examines Harvard Pilgrim’s attempts to control costs through limited choice plans while continuing to steer clear of a system of capitated or global payment plans in the short term.
REGIONALIZATION
More cities and towns are eyeing regionalizing 911 service as budgets continue to tighten and state money becoming available to study and implement the process.
MUNICIPAL AFFAIRS
A North Adams Transcript editorial suggests that North Adams should think long and hard before increasing its mayoral terms from two years to three or four.
FISHING
The byzantine commercial fishing quotas put in place by the National Marine Fisheries Service mean no more herring can be landed until the new fishing year begins in May and only a portion of haddock will be caught despite an abundance. The reason is because those fish swim in the same areas as others deemed endangered by the NMFS.
US Rep. Barney Frank suggests he might not be working for President Obama in the next presidential election if the government refuses to back down on fishing restrictions, the Gloucester Times reports.
BUSINESS/ECONOMY
The Globe tells the story of the behind-the-scenes dealings at the Boston office of Oppenheimer that the Wall Street firm badly wanted to keep from public view.
UNIONS
The outgoing president of the state firefighters’ union, Bob McCarthy, finds a sympathetic ear in Kevin Cullen, who lets him expound over a cup of coffee on the woes of firefighters and public sector unionized workers in general.
New England
Fail: Maine Gov. Paul LePage forgets that if you can’t say anything nice you shouldn’t say anything at all, especially when it comes to the NAACP and Martin Luther King birthday observances.
WASHINGTON
Scott Brown reminds Bostonians that he owns a truck and a barn jacket. And while the Globe Magazine couldn’t manage to get a call back from Brown for its Bostonian of the Year cover story, the Attleboro Sun Chronicle has no such troubles.
Peter Lucas, writing in the Lowell Sun, says Gov. Deval Patrick’s decision not to run again Scott Brown could be reversed if President Obama tells him he needs him in the US Senate.
Sarah Palin does not plan to sit down or shut up, but the fair warning is appreciated nonetheless.
President Obama has ordered a government-wide review of federal regulations that could be stifling economic growth. Gov. Patrick announced a similar review during his inaugural address.
Dick Cheney says Barack Obama will be a one-term president because of stuff like the health care bill. But opposition to health care reform is declining, and the president’s overall poll numbers are rising.
IMMIGRATION
The American Conservative says the only viable political agenda for the right is a platform of “trade goods, not people” to point out the widespread impact immigration has on the economy in every facet.
BUDGET CRISES
What other municipalities can learn from the bankruptcy of Vallejo, California.
A USA Today editorial argues that governors like New Jersey’s Chris Christie deserve to be heard on the public employee pension crisis. Massachusetts has the 4th largest unfunded pension obligation in the country after California, Illinois, and New Jersey.
I’ll be back … duh
Former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger looks for work in Hollywood after revealing that being the chief executive of the Golden State instead of a cinematic superstar set him back a cool $200 million.
MEDIA
Daniel Lyons, on Newsweek’s website, takes note of News Corp.’s decision to create a publication that will only be available via an iPad app costing $1 a week.
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