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GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS.
WARREN COMING BACK TO N.H. — Sen. Elizabeth Warren will be back in New Hampshire at the end of this week, following her swing to New York and then Texas for the South by Southwest festival. She'll attend a house party in Salem and hold an organizing event in Exeter on Friday, her campaign announced over the weekend.
Warren has been to a number of New Hampshire communities,including Manchester, Concord, Dover, Nashua, Plymouth, Laconia and Claremont, since wading into the 2020 contest. And this time, she's coming to the Granite State fresh off releasing a proposal to break up tech giants like Amazon and Google.
We're less than a year away from the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire's first in the nation primary. Sen. Bernie Sanders made his first trip of the 2020 cycle to New Hampshire over the weekend, where he drew crowds in Concord and Keene. There's pressure on every presidential candidate to perform well in the New Hampshire primary, but Sanders' 60 percent sweep in the 2016 Democratic contest makes for some big expectations this time around.
As it stands, former Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders are neck-in-neck for support among Democrats likely to participate in the Iowa caucus, with 27 and 25 percent, according to a poll released over the weekend. But Warren is holding onto the second tier of support in Iowa.
The Massachusetts senator is polling at 9 percent among likely Democratic caucus-goers, according to the Des Moines Register/CNN/Mediacom of Iowa poll. Additionally, almost 90 percent of those surveyed said they support a new tax on people who hold more than $50 million in assets, according to the poll. That's in line with the wealth tax proposal Warren released several weeks ago.
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, House Speaker Robert DeLeo and Attorney General Maura Healey speak on a gun violence panel hosted by WBUR. The MBTA Fiscal & Management Control Board meets with proposed fare hikes on the agenda. Boston Mayor Marty Walsh speaks at a POLITICO forum on infrastructure at the National League of Cities' Congressional City Conference in Washington. The House and Senate committees on Ways and Means hold a hearing in Needham.
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 | DATELINE BEACON HILL |
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— "Tracing connections in the State House," by Chris Oates, CommonWealth Magazine: "Beacon Hill can be an opaque place. With 40 senators and 160 representatives, it is often difficult for those without extensive ties or experience 'in the building' to know the true networks of influence in the State House. Luckily, in the first month of each legislative session, the elected officials themselves pull back the curtain a bit, maybe without even knowing it."
— "As UMass makes a big bet on online education, rivals offer words of caution," by Deirdre Fernandes, Boston Globe: "Five years ago, with much fanfare, the University of Florida introduced a bold online degree venture, aiming to reach tens of thousands of adult learners in the state and beyond. Officials imagined 24,000 students and $77 million in revenue by 2023. But it didn't take long for Florida officials to dramatically scale back their ambitions, as the online school found it difficult to recruit students and win over faculty. These days, they're aiming for a modest 8,400 students and $29 million in revenue, which includes a $5 million subsidy from the state."
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| FROM THE HUB |
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— "Sex trafficking is in plain sight in Massachusetts communities," by Stephanie Ebbert, Boston Globe: "The high-profile charge against New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft in February for allegedly soliciting prostitution at a massage parlor in Florida has brought new attention to an issue activists have tried to shine a light on for years. Now, they hope the public will see these spas and massage parlors with fresh eyes."
— "Pushback continues on proposed MBTA fare hike," by Sean Philip Cotter and Taylor Pettaway, Boston Herald: "Riders, politicians and advocates are pushing against a proposed fare hike on the T as the oversight board keeping watch on the beleaguered agency prepares to vote on the increase as soon as Monday. 'I don't agree with it,' said Katherine Polihovsky of Franklin, one of many who sounded off to the Herald Sunday as they rode the nation's oldest — and notoriously unreliable and dirty — mass transit system. 'They should decrease it or at least stay the same, but with an increase it would lead to more problems because a good amount of people won't be able to afford it.' The MBTA is proposing to raise fares by an average of 6.3 percent, a move the agency says will raise $32 million."
— "Plans to add housing rile Readville," by Tim Logan, Boston Globe: "The building boom that has transformed Boston over the last few years has reached nearly every corner of the city. But not Readville. The enclave of single-family homes and old warehouses at the southern end of Hyde Park feels more like a slice of suburbia. Tucked between Milton and Dedham, it's as far as you can get from downtown and still be in Boston. But Readville is just a 20 minute ride from South Station on the commuter rail line that splits the neighborhood in two. And its old warehouses could be prime development sites in a city that is starved for housing."
— "Most doctors don't screen for dementia, but that may change in Massachusetts," by Felice J. Freyer, Boston Globe: "Nine out of 10 older people get their blood pressure checked when they visit their primary care doctors, and 73 percent are screened for hearing or vision loss. But what about problems with memory or thinking? Only 16 percent are asked about that. Those are among the findings in a pair of surveys conducted by the Alzheimer's Association and released last week. The results show that although Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia are common afflictions of old age, when it comes to detecting early symptoms, many doctors just don't want to go there."
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| DAY IN COURT |
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— "Mass. State Police Trooper Heath McAuliffe pleads guilty in overtime scandal, admits to falsifying citations to make it appear he worked patrols," by Scott J. Croteau, Springfield Republican:"A 40-year-old Massachusetts State Police trooper pleaded guilty in federal court to stealing overtime money by skipping specialized patrol shifts and writing or falsifying tickets to make it appear he was working. Heath McAuliffe of Hopkinton, who was suspended in the overtime investigation, pleaded guilty to one count of embezzlement from an agency receiving federal funds in a Boston federal court Friday, according to court records."
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| WARREN REPORT |
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— "Warren attacks Big Tech in New York neighborhood Amazon abandoned," by Emilie Ruscoe, POLITICO: "Sen. Elizabeth Warren visited the neighborhood of New York's ill-fated Amazon development Friday to decry the failure of the federal government to rein in Big Tech and anchor the themes of her 2020 presidential campaign on the local fight against the e-commerce behemoth. The liberal senator from Massachusetts addressed a crowd of hundreds, many of whom delighted in Amazon's decision to abandon its plans to build a second headquarters in Long Island City, Queens. While the company's hasty exit from the deal continues to divide New York Democrats, at The Arc concert space in Queens Friday night the move was celebrated as a victory of grassroots opposition over corporate power."
— "Warren defends proposal to break up tech giants," by Aubree Eliza Weaver, POLITICO: "Just a month after announcing her 2020 presidential bid, Sen. Elizabeth Warren rolled out a proposal that further sets her apart as the race's go-to policy nerd — a plan meant to break up some of the country's biggest tech companies. `The giant tech companies right now are eating up little, tiny business startups — and competing unfairly,' the Massachusetts Democrat told CBS News' `Face the Nation' on Sunday morning. And while Silicon Valley has been a huge source of financial support for Democrats in recent elections, Warren said `nobody's been beating down the door' after she made her proposal."
— "Democrats Push to Make Washington, D.C., the Fifty-first State," by Osita Nwanevu, The New Yorker: "In the coming days, the House will vote on, and likely pass, H.R. 51, a bill that would make Washington, D.C., the fifty-first state. The bill, which has two hundred co-sponsors, was introduced by Eleanor Holmes Norton, a Democrat who for nearly thirty years has served as the non-voting representative for D.C.'s single at-large district. During her time in Congress, Holmes Norton has introduced more than a dozen statehood bills; this will be the first since 1993 to receive a vote. But because Washington, D.C., is not a state, Holmes Norton cannot vote on her own bill, or on final passage of other legislation on the House floor. In the Senate, a companion piece of legislation, introduced by Senator Tom Carper, a Democrat from Delaware, has twenty-eight co-sponsors, including all of that chamber's candidates for President: Cory Booker, Kirsten Gillibrand, Kamala Harris, Amy Klobuchar, Bernie Sanders, and Elizabeth Warren."
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| DATELINE D.C. |
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— "When will he demand Trump's tax returns? Congressman Richard Neal walks political tightrope in powerful new job," by Liz Goodwin, Boston Globe: "For the first two months of his young chairmanship, Neal has presided over hearing after hearing focused on infrastructure, preexisting medical conditions, and trade negotiations with China — all issues falling under the committee's broad mandate to levy taxes and oversee international trade. But the one thing Neal hasn't done — much to the annoyance and even outrage of many liberals — is request the president's tax returns. He has said that he will do it but also that he needs more time to build a legal case, given that the White House has said it would fight the request in court ."
— "Bay State delegates back immigrant voting rights provision," by Alexi Cohan, Boston Herald: "Massachusetts delegates in the House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly against a measure that would prohibit non-citizens from voting in elections. The motion to recommit, filed by Texas Republican Rep. Dan Crenshaw in response to the Democrat-led `For the People Act' states that non-citizen voting `erodes democracy.' Crenshaw, during his speech before House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Friday, cited cities like San Francisco, which allow non-citizen immigrants to vote in local elections."
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| THE TSONGAS ARENA |
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— "Where are they now? Once primary opponents, Third District hopefuls are landing new gigs," by Matt Stout, Boston Globe:"Scattered to the political winds six months ago, many of the Third Congressional District's onetime hopefuls are still making news. Juana B. Matias, a former Lawrence state representative who finished fourth in the 10-Democrat field, was officially announced Thursday as the chief operating officer of MassINC, just months after joining its board. Matias will help with strategy and planning, and serve as a spokeswoman for the think tank's research."
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| ON THE STUMP |
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— MEANWHILE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE: "Back in New Hampshire, Sanders hopes for a reprise of 2016," by Annie Linskey, The Washington Post: " Sen. Bernie Sanders swept through New Hampshire on Sunday, making his first stops as a 2020 presidential candidate in the state that established him as a force in Democratic politics in 2016 — and could play an outsize role in his ambitions next year. `This is where the political revolution took off,' Sanders said to a crowd of several hundred who braved a snowstorm to see him in Concord. `Thank you.' Sanders hopes to recapture that spirit, and those votes, in his second presidential bid. He won the New Hampshire primary by a whopping 22 percentage points last time, and his path to the Democratic nomination in 2020 would be blunted if he is unable to post a second strong showing."
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| TRUMPACHUSETTS |
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— "Trump supporters asked to leave Chelsea hotel," by Danny McDonald and Sophia Eppolito, Boston Globe: "A group of President Trump supporters was asked to leave a gathering at a Chelsea hotel Thursday night, and the group's leader thinks their ouster was politically motivated, something the establishment denies. Dianna Ploss, the 55-year-old founder and president of MA 4 Trump, said when her group gathered at the Holiday Inn on Broadway in Chelsea, it was meant to 'bring people together and build our team.'"
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| MOULTON MATTERS |
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— "Ready, Seth, Go," by David S. Bernstein, WGBH News: "Seth Moulton is audacious, you have to give him that. In his first political campaign, barely four years ago, he took on and defeated an incumbent Democratic congressman. Then he became the public face of resistance to his party's House leadership, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Now, barring a surprise change of heart, it appears that sometime this Spring the 40-year-old Marine from Marblehead with three Harvard degrees will declare himself a candidate for President of the United States."
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| ABOVE THE FOLD |
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— Herald: "5 WAYS TO FIX THE T...FAST!"— Globe: "Trump, taxes, tensions," "Jet plunges to ground, killing 157 in Ethiopia," "WEARING O' THE GREEN, TURNING O' THE BLUE."
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| DATELINE MERRIMACK VALLEY |
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| FROM THE 413 |
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— "Crafting a message: The powerhouse PR and lobbying firm behind Hampshire's media strategy," by Dusty Christensen, Daily Hampshire Gazette: "When Hampshire College announced on Jan. 15 that it was struggling financially and seeking a partner institution, its leaders acknowledged that all eyes would be on the school as it seeks a solution to a problem plaguing many small colleges across the country. It was an accurate prediction. Since that announcement, local, state and national publications have covered Hampshire's transition: The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The Nation and The Chronicle of Higher Education, to name some. The media scrutiny has been handled by a communications and public relations operation that is at the heart of much of the criticism — and some praise — the college has received in recent weeks."
Meet US Rep Richard Edmund Neal, (Democratic U.S. Representative from Massachusetts 1st Congressional District)
He took $3,200,177 from Pharma and health Insurance corporations since 1989.
In fact, health insurance companies are his #1 donors.
He does not work for you - he works for them.
— "Though progressives stir, Neal's hold firm on Democratic center," by Larry Parnass, Berkshire Eagle: "U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal fended off his last Democratic primary challenger and faced no opponent in November. But voters can turn against incumbents. They did that last year by picking Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts' 7th Congressional District and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York's 14th Congressional District over two long-serving representatives. `None of us are immune to a primary or general election,' Neal said, when asked if he felt safe from a challenge, particularly after ascending to the chairmanship of the House Ways and Means Committee after 30 years in Congress. Neal's name recognition, personal determination and ability to raise money — 24 times more than his last challenger — are probably enough to keep him in office as long as he likes, observers say."
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| THE LOCAL ANGLE |
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— "Stop & Shop unions vote to authorize strike," by Cesareo Contreras, Patriot Ledger: "Continuing their fight for a fair new contract, members of three more local Stop & Shop unions voted Sunday to authorize a strike against the Quincy-based company including a group at Ambrosia's Wedding & Events. More than 1,000 members of Local Union 328, the largest Stop & Shop union group, met two weeks after the first store union voted to authorize the strike. Richard Wright, a meat cutter at Stop and Shop and a member of the Local 328 executive board, said workers want to be fairly compensated."
— "'What's next for me? Life,'" by Aaron Curtis, Lowell Sun:"Sullivan's freedom was taken away when he was convicted in the beating death of 54-year-old Wilfred McGrath inside an East Cambridge apartment on March 7, 1986. Sullivan was 25 when he was handed a life sentence for first-degree murder. `It was the most horrible feeling you've ever had in your life,' Sullivan said. `It was sickening.' Years later, advanced DNA testing led to questions of Sullivan's guilt, and a Middlesex Superior Court judge granted him a new trial ."
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| MEDIA MATTERS |
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— "John Henry says the Globe is profitable. Linda Henry's not so sure," by Greg Ryan and Don Seiffert, Boston Business Journal:"Boston Globe owner John Henry this week defended a claim he'd made three months ago that his newspaper company is now profitable, saying it's a change from prior years and driven largely by aggressive cost-cutting as the company's overall revenues continue to decline. In an email to the Business Journal this week, Henry confirmed the comment he'd made in December to media blogger and Northeastern University professor Dan Kennedy, in which Henry first said that the company was profitable in 2018 and likely would be in 2019 as well. That statement was met with skepticism by some, who have speculated that the claim may have more to do with a change in accounting methods than the Globe's overall financial picture."
HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY — to Thomas McGill, who celebrated yesterday.
DID THE HOME TEAM WIN? No! The Penguins beat the Bruins 4-2.
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