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GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. TGIF.
FAMILIAR FACES IN FACEBOOK SCANDAL — Facebook axed its relationship with Definers Public Affairs on Thursday after a bombshell New York Times report that the firm spread misinformation on Facebook's behalf in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal. And because there really always is a Massachusetts connection, one of the brains behind the Definers operation worked in the Romney administration on Beacon Hill.
Definers Senior Vice President Colin Reed worked for former governor and Utah Senator-elect Mitt Romney in 2006 and 2007 and managed U.S. Ambassador Scott Brown's 2014 Senate campaign in New Hampshire. Most recently, he was executive director of the America Rising PAC during the 2016 election and he touts himself as a vocal critic of Sen. Elizabeth Warren. The founder of Definers also has Romney ties, although they're presidential. Matt Rhoades was the manager of Romney's presidential campaign against President Barack Obama in 2012.
Facebook is under fire for using Definers to share opposition research and spread negative stories about critics, linking them to conservative punching bag George Soros, the Times reports. The practice is pretty common in Washington, but it's a bad look for Facebook, which is already facing sharp criticism for its business practices. Definers defended the research as "entirely factual," according to a POLITICO report.
IS LYNCH ON THE 'NO' LIST? — Count Rep. Stephen Lynch as a maybe. The South Boston congressman's office isn't saying whether he'll support Nancy Pelosi for Speaker. As lawmakers work behind the scenes to either secure Pelosi's top spot or topple her, it appears Lynch's name might be on a letter opposing Pelosi, according to a Huffington Post report published Thursday.
Lynch isn't what you'd call a Pelosi ally. In 2015, Lynch said Pelosi should consider resigning as minority leader because she wouldn't lead the party to a majority in 2016. He turned out to be right, and the following year, Lynch, Rep. Seth Moulton and Rep. Mike Capuano voted against her bid for minority leader. And years before, Pelosi had an uncomfortable exchange with Lynch in 2010, when she was rallying support for the health care bill. According to a Boston Globe report at the time, Lynch told Pelosi: "Look, lady, I know a lot about this bill, and I am not for it.''
Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Get in touch: smurray@politico.com.
TODAY - Gov. Charlie Baker attends a Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation forum on the economic impact of the opioid crisis. Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito, Secretary of Transportation Stephanie Pollackand Keolis Commuter Services General Manager and CEO David Scorey join lawmakers for a briefing on the Worcester Commuter Rail Line. Visiting hours for the late former state Sen. Fred Berry are from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Peabody City Hall.
The Massachusetts branch of the Salvation Army launches this year's Red Kettle Campaign with a concert at Quincy Market. #MeToo movement founder Tarana Burke, Representative-elect Nika Elugardo, Suffolk County District Attorney-elect Rachael Rollins and Boston Mayor Marty Walsh are among speakers at the New England Women's Policy Conference.
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 | DATELINE BEACON HILL |
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- "Second-term Charlie Baker will be like first-term Charlie Baker, says Charlie Baker," by Joshua Miller and Matt Stout, Boston Globe: "Massachusetts residents will be very familiar with the new operating system running state government come January. Governor Charlie Baker version 2.0 will look a whole lot like Governor Charlie Baker version 1.0, he pledged Thursday, nine days after winning a resounding reelection victory."
- "BAKER SAYS HEALTH CARE APPROACH DEPENDS ON TALKS WITH LAWMAKERS," by Colin A. Young, State House News Service: "Proposals around health care reform could be coming from Gov. Charlie Baker in the first weeks of the next two-year legislative session, though the governor said Thursday that he wants a sense of the 'rhythm' of the session before deciding just how his administration settles on a possible course of action."
- "MASS. RETAILERS SEE HOLIDAY SALES RISING 3.8 PERCENT TO $18 BILLION," by Katie Lannan, State House News Service:"Massachusetts retailers are optimistic about sales growth this holiday season, but sounding a cautionary note on expected profits as stores face increased operating costs. The Retailers Association of Massachusetts on Thursday predicted a 3.8 percent gain in retail sales over the 2017 holiday period, a projected increase that falls below the National Retail Federation's expected 4.3 percent to 4.8 percent bump across the country."
- "State's rainy day account rebounds," by Christian M. Wade, The Salem News: "The state is stashing away hundreds of millions of dollars in its reserves, which observers say bodes well for its fiscal health. In the past year, the reserve account grew to more than $2 billion, or nearly to pre-recession levels, according to the Comptroller's Office. That includes more than $701 million added in the financial year that ended June 30."
- "DCR hiring a debt collection agency," by Colman M. Herman, CommonWealth Magazine: "THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION and Recreation - the largest landowner in the state — is in the process of hiring a debt-collection company to go after tenants who owe the agency thousands of dollars in delinquent rent. As of the end of September, DCR was owed $422,000 in back rent by a total of 30 public and private sector entities, according to data obtained from the agency."
CHARLIE BAKER FAIL!
- "Group hits Charlie Baker on higher ed gender gap," by Mary Markos, Boston Herald: "Gov. Charlie Baker said there is little he can do about the racial and gender disparity of top-level positions in his education leadership team, according to Eos Foundation President Andrea Silbert, and has ignored a petition asking him to promise to focus on the issue."
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| FROM THE HUB |
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- "Patriot Ledger to leave Crown Colony office park after three decades," by Jon Chesto, Boston Globe: "Braintree is shaping up to be a media mecca. First, the Boston Herald decided to relocate there. Now, this: The Patriot Ledger has announced plans to move from Quincy's Crown Colony office park, its home for three decades, to the Adams Place office complex that straddles the Braintree-Quincy line in December."
- "Boston mayor leads huddle on racial equity with counterparts around nation, world," by Brooks Sutherland, Boston Herald:"Mayor Martin J. Walsh yesterday hosted a conference on racial equity with officials from eight cities — just one day after residents from Roxbury showed up en masse and voiced outrage over the tense issue of gentrification happening in their community."
- "It took 145 years, but The Harvard Crimson finally voted a black woman to lead it," by Jeneé Osterheldt, Boston Globe: "She was trying to focus on reading 'Chokehold: Policing Black Men' Sunday night. Rihanna's voice sang from the speakers, 'All this work, no vacation.' But no song or book could keep Kristine E. Guillaume from checking her phone for a call that could make Harvard history. At 7:40 p.m., the phone rang, and she got the news: Guillaume had been voted the next president of the Harvard Crimson, leader of the student paper's 146th Guard, and the first black woman to head the organization."
- "Payroll records of former Massachusetts State Police union president Dana Pullman related to federal investigation," by Dan Glaun, MassLive.com: "The payroll records of former Massachusetts State Police union president Dana Pullman have been drawn into a federal investigation, amid a wide-ranging inquiry into the union's spending, nonprofit foundation and political contributions."
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| DAY IN COURT |
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- "Dartmouth students sue over alleged sexual assault by professors," by Deirdre Fernandes, Boston Globe: " To the broad scientific community, Dartmouth College's psychology and brain sciences department was a powerhouse, equipped with the latest technology and celebrated professors producing headline-grabbing research. But it was also a '21st-century Animal House' where three former neuroscience professors groped female students in plain sight, hosted drinking and hot-tub parties with students, openly debated who had the 'hottest lab,' and sexually assaulted graduate students, according to a lawsuit filed against Dartmouth College on Thursday."
- "BPD gives gang intel to ICE. A lawsuit wants to know how much," by Maria Cramer, Boston Globe: "Mayor Martin J. Walsh has touted Boston as a sanctuary city for unauthorized immigrants. But a lawsuit filed Thursday accuses Boston police of labeling Central American teenagers and young men as gang members or gang associates, often with little cause, and entering that information into a database that can be accessed by federal immigration authorities."
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| DATELINE MERRIMACK VALLEY |
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- "Columbia Gas engineer's failures at root of gas explosions, NTSB says," by Milton J. Valencia, Boston Globe: "Federal investigators Thursday singled out a Columbia Gas engineer with "limited knowledge" for errors in drafting work plans for a Lawrence construction site, setting in motion a chain of events that led to the Sept. 13 natural gas explosions that killed one man and left thousands without heat and hot water. In the most detailed accounting to date of the catastrophe, the National Transportation Safety Board identified a series of missteps by the utility at the planning stages for a gas main replacement project in South Lawrence."
- "As Merrimack Valley Appliances Are Replaced, Some Residents Want More Energy Efficiency," by Craig LeMoult, WGBH News: "Getting gas service restored is just part of it. Thousands of boilers, hot water heaters and appliances were damaged, and the gas company is now replacing those. But that can be a complicated process. There are so many details and conflicting, confusing conversations behind replacing every appliance. And it's even harder for people wanting to upgrade to more energy efficient equipment."
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| WARREN REPORT |
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- "Elizabeth Warren seeks answers on consulting firms' work for Saudi government," by Shannon Young, Springfield Republican:"U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts called on three American consulting firms Thursday to detail services they have provided for Saudi Arabia's government, arguing that such transparency is needed in wake of the high-profile death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi."
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| FROM THE 413 |
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- "State Sen. Eric Lesser pledges to keep East-West rail a top issue in wake of 2018 election," by Shannon Young, Springfield Republican: "With a proposal to connect Boston and Western Massachusetts via rail gaining widespread support and attention from candidates ahead of the 2018 election, state Sen. Eric Lesser committed Wednesday to ensuring the issue remains at the forefront of lawmakers' agendas in the coming months and years."
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| ABOVE THE FOLD |
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— Herald: "DON'T DRIVE 'BAKED,'" "BEST BETTS" — Globe: "In this tiny town, it's the highest season," "Engineer's failure blamed in explosions." |
| THE LOCAL ANGLE |
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- "A small suburb west of Worcester prepares for a pot pilgrimage," by Michael Levenson, Boston Globe: "As this small wooded suburb of Worcester gets ready to host one of the first two recreational pot shops east of the Mississippi River, local officials and residents are preparing for an unusual pilgrimage the likes of which Leicester has never seen. The closest event Police Chief James J. Hurley can compare it to is Black Friday at the local Walmart, which draws 1,700 bargain hunters every year. But at least Walmart, unlike Cultivate, the local marijuana shop, has a massive parking lot, he said."
- "Let's eat the Brookline turkeys," by Dante Ramos, Boston Globe: "The wild turkeys roaming the streets and lawns of Brookline are nasty, even menacing. But Thanksgiving is at hand. These turkeys are the ultimate locally sourced protein. So why aren't people eating them?"
TRANSITIONS - Annie Linskey joins the Washington Post as a national politics reporter Dec. 10. Linskey comes to the Post from the Boston Globe's Washington bureau, where she served as deputy bureau chief.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY - to former state Rep. John Fernandes; Josh Gee, director of digital customer experience for New York City Transit and former business analyst and project manager for the City of Boston; conservative activist Brad Wyatt; and Valentino Capobianco, Winthrop School Committee chairman and communications director for Sen. Paul Feeney.
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