The Massachusetts Democratic Party celebrated the demise of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ by putting Scott Brown on the defensive before what should have been a marquee moment for the Massachusetts National Guard solider.

Wednesday night Brown joined Maine Sen. Susan Collins to accept the Log Cabin Republicans’ “Spirit of Lincoln Award” for their votes to end the directive that prohibited gay servicemen and women from openly serving in the armed forces. The Clinton era policy ended Tuesday and The MetroWest Daily News says the achievement is “worthy of celebration.”

The organization described the pair as “repeal champions.”  Brown “has been a tremendous advocate for the people of Massachusetts and a solid ally for Log Cabin Republicans, representing the power and potential of an inclusive GOP,” the group said in a press release. Calling Brown a “pro-equality Republican,” the organization also endorsed him for re-election.

If you are the Massachusetts Democratic Party chairman, the notion of “the power and potential of an inclusive GOP” on gay rights is a target that is too good to ignore. John Walsh took aim at  Brown’s commitment to gay rights and criticized his opposition to marriage equality, a federal lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender employment non-discrimination bill, and funding for a state gay and lesbian youth commission.

The senator also is the only member of the Massachusetts congressional delegation who declined to participate in the “It Gets Better” LGBT youth anti-bullying video campaign.

The Brown campaign quickly put out a statement that explained his Don’t Ask Don’t Tell vote, but said nothing about his opposition to the other gay rights issues.

With same-sex marriage a done deal in the Bay State, Brown doesn’t face much pressure on marriage equality. But that obviously isn’t going to stop the state Democrats from trying to get some wedge issue-style traction on other gay rights questions.

After the dinner, Brown made a break for the exit when a Politico reporter pressed him for comment on the inconsistencies. “I’m here talking about Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and I don’t really respond to what the Democrats say. Never do,” he said.  Former Senate minority leader and lieutenant governor candidate Richard Tisei, the gay Republican who introduced Brown at the dinner, got the unenviable task of assuring the reporter that Brown is not “discriminatory.”

                                                                                                                                                                –GABRIELLE GURLEY

BEACON HILL

Republican Keiko Orrall of Lakeville won the special election yesterday for the House seat vacated by former state Rep. Stephen Canessa. Orrall is the fourth Republican from the South Coast region to win election in the past year to former Democratic House seats.

Four of the state’s Republican sheriffs testified on behalf of a bill that would levy a $5 a day “custodial fee” on inmates, similar to a Bristol County fee ruled illegal by the Supreme Judicial Court.

NECN’s Peter Howe reports on the Beacon Hill fight over paperless ticketing, which has come to overshadow the more basic issue of whether ticket holders should be able to resell their tickets at whatever price they want. Current law technically limits resale prices, although no one enforces it. Greater Boston looks at what the proposed ticket-scalping law means for consumers.

Sen. Jamie Eldridge, the Acton Democrat, files two bills that would facilitate public records requests.

Scot Lehigh digests the latest additions to Beacon Hill’s culture of corruption. Howie Carr sees a pattern in the recent politicians to be targeted by Attorney General Martha Coakley’s office: “They’re out of office and they can’t fight back.”

MUNICIPAL MATTERS

Lawrence Mayor William Lantigua wasn’t on the ballot yesterday, but he made his presence felt in city council and school committee races. The Eagle-Tribune reports that the results suggest he still has sizable political sway.

Local businessman Al DiNuccio came in first, followed by Stephen Zanni, in the preliminary election for mayor in Methuen, the Eagle-Tribune reports.

East Bridgewater residents told selectmen they need to conduct public business more openly after the battling board voted 2-1 to discuss six of nine agenda items in executive session.

Berkshire County residents get more than $1 million in federal aid after Tropical Storm Irene.

CommonWealth contributor Colman Herman goes looking for answers into the way Boston’s city clerk handles City Hall wedding fees, and runs into a brick wall.

NATIONAL POLITICS/WASHINGTON

The Daily Beast’s Daniel Stone does the math on Obama’s tax-the-rich proposal. Meanwhile, Washington, DC, seems poised to raise the income tax rate of residents earning more than $350,000 a year, the Washington Post reports.

A task force study intended to quiet criticism over the Department of Homeland Security’s Secure Communities program instead took the agency to task in a draft report for its lack of transparency, “missteps” in implementing the program, and shifting from its stated goal of going after the “worst of the worst” criminal offenders among illegal immigrants.

The latest wedge putting the federal government on the road to shutting down: FEMA.

It turns out that the hollowing out of the middle class might not just be an American phenomenon.

ELECTION 2012

Elizabeth Warren pulls even with US Sen. Scott Brown in the latest poll, NECN reports. The Huffington Post offers a good analysis of the recent polls and Warren’s numbers. Keller@Large says the new poll showing Elizabeth Warren slightly ahead of Sen. Scott Brown is a warning sign for Brown who’s starting to be weighed down by the baggage of his national party’s conservative image in left-of-center Massachusetts.  In what looks a lot like a throw-everything-against the wall move, the state GOP says Harvard should not allow Warren to collect a salary and return to teaching law students while running for the Senate.

The Globe’s Michael Levenson looks at Rick Perry’s early years in politics as a Democrat with pretty conservative bearings.

New York magazine looks at Barack Obama’s Jewish problem, arguing that, absent hot rhetoric from Benjamin Netanyahu, the president probably shouldn’t even have a Jewish problem.

It turns out that Wall Street regulations are red meat for GOP presidential hopefuls. Who would have guessed?

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

One of the nation’s largest retail developers has reached an agreement to purchase, build, and manage about 60 percent of the long-awaited redevelopment of downtown Quincy.

Harvard unveils — yet again — its Allston redevelopment plans.

Businesses should not ignore the benefits of hiring older workers, says The Berkshire Eagle.

Federal Reserve Battle 2011! While Republican Congressional leaders urge the central bank not to commit treason, the Wall Street Journal editorial board thinks US Rep. Barney Frank is lashing out at hawkish regional Fed presidents.

Housing forecast: Pretty terrible, for the foreseeable future.

EDUCATION

Nearly half of the states worst-performing 35 schools showed substantial gains in MCAS scores, leading state officials to express cautious optimism that turnaround strategies put in place following passage of a new education reform law are having an impact. A dozen of the chronically underperforming schools, however, showed dips in their scores.

Mirroring statewide results, many schools in the South Coast region showed gains in MCAS scores but only one district — Old Rochester Regional — met the federal progress standard across the board for math and English in all grades.

The controversial Gloucester Community Arts Charter School fares poorly in MCAS, the Gloucester Times reports. But the Lowell Community Charter, which was threatened with closure last year, saw its scores climb sharply, the Lowell Sun reports.

The ROTC is back at Harvard after a 40 year absence.

HEALTH CARE

Paul Levy is crowdsourcing his decision on whether to have a prostate cancer screening test. The man is an open book.

The Globe reports that the second patient in four years has died at UMass Memorial Medical Center as a result of “alarm fatigue” — medical personnel ignoring a warning alarm because of the cacophony of beeps and buzzers that pervade hospitals today.

ENERGY/ENVIRONMENT

At a hearing before a federal panel in New Bedford yesterday, representatives of the fishing industry and environmental groups expressed concerns about the proposed opening of a 350-square mile stretch of ocean from southwest of Martha’s Vineyard to Block Island Sound for wind farm development.

Evergreen Solar executives dutifully testified before a Massachusetts legislative committee month ago, but Reuters reports that Solyndra executives will invoke their Fifth Amendment rights at a congressional hearing on Friday.

The Springfield Republican says that Massachusetts must do more to protect native bird species.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE

The Patrick administration is pushing for an end to mandatory minimum sentences for non-violent drug offenders, while the state’s district attorneys call for the sentencing structure to remain in place.

Looking for that mysterious and suddenly-wealthy Icelandic Whitey Bulger tipster? Don’t bother looking in Iceland.

MEDIA

The Wall Street Journal is experimenting with a new Facebook app that lets users curate their own news streams, the Nieman Journalism Lab reports.

The Atlantic looks at what the escalating arms race between Bloomberg and Reuters means for journalism.