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GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS.
BETTING ON BETO — Just over the border, several dozen Draft Beto 2020 organizers held signs and handed out literature at a road race in Manchester, N.H. on Saturday. Though Sen. Elizabeth Warren could have a home field advantage in early voting New Hampshire if she runs for president, some Massachusetts-based political types are already throwing support behind Texas Congressman Beto O'Rourke, who is generating plenty of early 2020 buzz. The PAC is headed by three Boston political strategists: Lauren Pardi, Will Herberich and Adam Webster.
Neither Warren nor O'Rourke have announced whether they will run, though they both landed coveted meetings this year with former President Barack Obama. O'Rourke says he hasn't traveled to early voting states like New Hampshire and Iowa because he doesn't want to stoke speculation. But that hasn't stopped his supporters from heading north — or trying to build a national base.
Earlier this month, Draft Beto 2020 held a call with people from more than 40 states, and released an organizing guide with tips for hosting house meetings and filming videos to drum up support.
"Our goal is to show Beto that there is grassroots support for him across the country if he decides to run. We don't have a moment to waste," the guide reads. O'Rourke leads Warren 15.6 percent to 6.4 percent among potential 2020 contenders, according to a MoveOn straw poll released last week.
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, Secretary of Health and Human Services Marylou Sudders and Governor's Council co-chair Eileen Connors make an "In Good Company Optimal Aging Challenge" winners announcement. Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito rings the Salvation Army bell at Park Plaza Castle.
Rep. Joe Kennedy III, Rep. Rodney Davis, Rep. Markwayne Mullin and Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester speak at the Kennedy Institute. Sen. Ed Markey speaks to the press. Rep. Seth Moulton is a guest on WBUR and WGBH. Outgoing lawmakers say their goodbyes in the Senate.
Framingham Police Chief Steven Trask and Woburn Police Chief Robert Rufo are sworn in. The Cannabis Control Commissionmeets. Former House Speaker Sal DiMasi and his wife Debbie DiMasi are guests on WBUR.
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 | DATELINE BEACON HILL |
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- "Early voting proposed for Mass. presidential primary," by James Pindell, Boston Globe: "Secretary of State William Galvin says he will ask the Legislature to expand early voting to include the 2020 presidential primary so Massachusetts voters can cast ballots as soon as five days before the March 3, 2020, contest. If the Legislature approves, voters may have a larger role in the early presidential primary calendar, something that could help US Senator Elizabeth Warren, who has said she would take a 'hard look' at a White House run."
- "Mass. releases its vision for beating the traffic," by Adam Vaccaro, Boston Globe: "No more gas-powered cars. Frequent commuter rail trains, running all day. Maybe even hefty fees on drivers who insist on driving into downtown Boston and adding to the already fearsome traffic. This could be the futuristic vision of getting around Massachusetts in just a few decades, as recommended Friday by a commission assembled by Governor Charlie Baker to tackle some of the most vexing transportation challenges, including ever-growing congestion, pollution, and decrepit infrastructure."
- "The Appointment Of A New MBTA GM Signals A Shift In Philosophy," by Mike Deehan, WGBH News: "The dismissal of MBTA General Manager Luis Ramirez was a course correction to keep Gov. Charlie Baker's transit reform efforts on track. It also signals a change of thinking within the Baker Administration, which used to talk as if only someone from the private sector could preside over the job of fixing the T. Now it would appear that a subtle shift in thinking has occurred ."
- "INCOME TAX CUT JAN. 1 WORTH $175 MIL TO MASS. WORKERS," by Michael P. Norton, State House News Service:"While there's growing talk of a possible recession, Massachusetts workers are about to receive a $175 million income tax break and there's now a possibility that the 5 percent income tax rate that voters approved in 2000 will actually happen in 2020. As the weekend got underway Friday, the Baker administration quietly announced that all of the necessary economic triggers had been hit and the income tax will fall from 5.1 percent to 5.05 percent on Jan. 1, 2019."
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| FROM THE HUB |
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- "The federal government is about to legalize hemp: What does it mean for Massachusetts?" by Shira Schoenberg, Springfield Republican: "The federal government is on the verge of legalizing hemp, potentially unlocking a multibillion-dollar industry that could help Massachusetts farmers. 'This industry is going to blow up,' predicted Kristen Nichols, editor of Hemp Industry Daily, a Denver-based trade publication. 'There are some of the biggest brands in the world that have expressed interest in joining the CBD boom.'"
- "Has Boston Given Up On God?" by Erick Trickey, Boston Magazine: "All throughout the city, faith is dying out. It's a notion that once seemed unthinkable. Not so long ago, religious institutions permeated city life, forming communal centers for the pious and the profane alike; they simply were the community. Increasingly, though, religion's power is giving way to the church of scientific inquiry."
- "My Dad's Friendship With Charles Barkley," by Shirley Wang, WBUR: "When Charles Barkley's mother, Charcey Glenn, passed away in June 2015, Barkley's hometown of Leeds, Alabama, came to the funeral to pay respects. But there was also an unexpected guest. Barkley's friends couldn't quite place him. He wasn't a basketball player, he wasn't a sports figure, and he wasn't from Barkley's hometown. Here's what I can tell you about him: He wore striped, red polo shirts tucked into khaki shorts and got really excited about two-for-one deals. He was a commuter. He worked as a cat litter scientist in Muscatine, Iowa. In short, he was everyone's suburban dad. More specifically, he was my dad."
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| THE OPINION PAGES |
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- "A year after a groundbreaking series on race in Boston, has anything gotten better?" by Adrian Walker, Boston Globe: "One day of the series explored at length the way that power is concentrated in the hands of a nearly all-white old guard, which we found to be true both of the political world and the equally insular business community. This, of course, is the area that has seen tangible change that even the biggest optimists wouldn't have predicted a year ago."
- "New Congress will bring a green wave on climate change," by Sen. Ed Markey, Boston Globe: "We cannot afford to allow the Trump administration to waste any more time. We need bold, revolutionary action on climate. And we need it now. Fortunately, the blue wave in the last election was also a green wave. We now have more members of Congress who want serious action on climate than ever before. In the next two years, we will have the opportunity to move America toward more forward-thinking energy policy and combat global warming."
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| DAY IN COURT |
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- "Private citizens can file criminal charges in Massachusetts 'secret' courts," by Nicole Dungca and Jenn Abelson, Boston Globe: "Massachusetts is one of the small number of states that allow private citizens — without the backing of police or prosecutors — to ask court officials to issue criminal complaints. These allegations are vetted, and sometimes settled, in a secretive system that has no parallel in any other state."
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| WARREN REPORT |
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- "Elizabeth Warren tackles race issues on road to potential presidential run," by Jess Bidgood, Boston Globe: "As she presses on toward an increasingly likely bid for the presidency, Warren is taking on the issue of race directly, highlighting ties to black leaders and emphasizing her work on legislation that would probably appeal to black Democrats — a demographic crucial to her efforts to make inroads beyond her base of Massachusetts voters and white progressives around the country."
- "Elizabeth Warren: Judge's Ruling Against Obamacare 'Very Dangerous,'" CBS Boston: "Sen. Elizabeth Warren slammed a judge's 'very dangerous' ruling against the Affordable Care Act on Sunday. 'This is a very dangerous ruling on health care,' Warren told reporters at the 'Christmas In The City' event for underprivileged children in Boston. 'It's more evidence that the Trump Administration is doing everything they can to try to undermine health care coverage for people all across this country.'"
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| THE CLARK CAUCUS |
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- "Katherine Clark's blue blazer and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's shoes are getting featured in an art exhibit," by Nik DeCosta-Clipa, Boston Magazine: "Rep. Nancy Pelosi's coat isn't the only piece of clothing in Congress garnering attention. The blue blazer worn by Rep. Katherine Clark during the House floor sit-in to protest the lack of legislative action to address gun violence is among a number of items being included in a new Cornell University art exhibit highlighting how women 'strategically use fashion for empowerment and collective upliftment.'"
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| MARIJUANA IN MASSACHUSETTS |
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- "State closes Mashpee pot facility over pesticides," by Doug Fraser, Cape Cod Times: "Cars pulled up to the gate of the Triple M medical marijuana dispensary Saturday morning only to find it locked. There would be no Tardis 9, Granddaddy Purple or White Rhino sold this weekend, possibly longer, as the state Department of Public Health shuttered company dispensaries in Mashpee and Plymouth as of last Thursday."
- "Mellow rollout for retail pot," by Kelsey Bode and Dustin Luca, The Salem News: "The lines outside Alternative Therapies Group were calm and orderly Saturday and Sunday as people waited to make their first legal recreational marijuana purchases in Salem. Customers needed an appointment to enter Alternative Therapies Group's 50 Grove St. facility, and as they waited in line, people chatted and perused the menu of available 'adult-use' products for sale. With names like 'captain's cake,' 'blissful wizard,' and 'amnesia haze,' patrons had a range of flower strains and cartridges to choose from."
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| EYE ON 2020 |
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- "The next threat to the New Hampshire primary? California," by James Pindell, Boston Globe: "For four decades, the road to the White House began with candidates working the grill at the Polk County Steak Fry in Des Moines, then offering coffee and handshakes at the Red Arrow Diner in Manchester. But in 2020, the first presidential primary ballots could technically be cast in California hours before Iowans head to their caucuses, due to new early voting laws in the nation's most populous state."
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| ABOVE THE FOLD |
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— Herald: "PURSUIT CRASH, GUNFIRE," "GOING TO POT," — Globe: "In 'secret courts,' abused can flip charge," "Russian meddling labeled pervasive," "RED CARPET TREATMENT." |
| THE LOWELL CONNECTOR |
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- "UMass launches S.E. Asian digital archive in Lowell," by Aaron Curtis, The Lowell Sun: "Despite the Southeast Asian community's history in Greater Lowell dating back decades, it's a vivid history that some say lacks attention. The hope is to change that with the creation of a new digital archive -- launched at UMass Lowell on Dec. 4 -- that documents the history, culture and experiences of people of Southeast Asian origin living throughout the area."
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| FROM THE 413 |
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- "Parting ways: Together, Kulik and Scibak close long chapter of public service," by Patrick Lovett, Daily Hampshire Gazette: "For years, they sat next to each other, attended the same events, and when it came time to retire, they did that together, too. After announcing they were not running for office on consecutive days, state Reps. Stephen Kulik, D-Worthington, and John Scibak, D-South Hadley, held their retirement parties one night apart. The two are close friends — and more importantly, the last in a string of veteran western Massachusetts representatives to leave office, taking a legacy of regional advocacy and a combined 41 years of experience with them on their way out."
- "Longmeadow Daze: Town's Top Dem Announces Exit...Her Way," by Matt Szafranski, Western Mass Politics & Insight: "An icon of the Democratic party in Longmeadow—and statewide—has announced her exit. Candy Glazer, the chair of the Longmeadow Democratic Town Committee (LDTC) has announced she will relinquish the chair on January 1. Friends had sensed the move was coming. Some members learned last year. Glazer wanted the handover to occur with the committee at peak strength and when Longmeadow itself and the region are in line for considerable influence."
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| THE LOCAL ANGLE |
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- "After suicides in Acton and Boxborough, a communion of sorrow," by Mark Arsenault, Boston Globe: " Six young people from two small towns lost to suicide in 30 months. A cumulative grief that seems without answers, a weary desperation to make it stop, and the inescapable fear it may happen again. ... Loss by suicide is like no other, and the succession of deaths has left a void at the heart of the two towns, as if they were struck by a meteor. The aftershocks of numbing sadness, pulsing outward in every direction, have spared almost no one."
- "Restaurant renaissance in Quincy Center," by Erin Tiernan, Patriot-Ledger: "Over the past five years, roughly $400 million in public and private investments has begun to transform Quincy Center into an enclave of high-end apartment buildings and new restaurants that are putting the City of Presidents back on the map for those in search of good food and drink. At least 17 new restaurants have opened throughout the city in recent years, according to city licensing records. About half are immigrant-owned businesses such as Pho Pasteur, and all but four are in Quincy Square."
- "Grand bargain no bargain for some small businesses," by Ethan Forman, The Salem News: "For small Bay State business owners like John Webb, the owner of an Ipswich-based transportation company called Webb Transportation Services, the bill for the 'grand bargain' is about to come due. That's because, starting July 1, the state will begin taking a small slice of employees' paychecks and a contribution from employers for new paid family and medical leave programs. Most of those programs, however, won't actually begin until 2021."
REMEMBERING AMY ANTHONY - per her obit: "Halfway through her tenure as Massachusetts secretary of communities and development, Amy Anthony toured a part of Lowell that had fallen on tough times — a neighborhood she was revitalizing in 1986 through the construction of 38 units of affordable housing. The building site was one of dozens that dotted the state during the eight years she oversaw development of an unprecedented 25,000 units, while persuading more than 90 communities to build affordable housing for the first time."
TRANSITIONS - Tyler Ballew joins the corporate/business law department and renewable energy practice group at Sherin and Lodgen LLP.
HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY - to the Boston Globe's Liz Goodwin,who celebrated Sunday.
DID THE HOME TEAM WIN? Don't want to talk about it.
NEW: POLITICO is now accepting applications for its 2019 session of PJI, a 10-day intensive in journalism training with opportunities to publish on the POLITICO site. More than a dozen students are selected each year for this all expense-paid program, which is offered in partnership with American University and the Maynard Institute. At the conclusion of the program, two students are invited back for a full-time paid internship in the POLITICO newsroom. Apply online now!
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