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Presented by JUUL Labs
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GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS.
THE ROE ACT HAS ITS DAY — Get ready for a showdown over abortion rights on Beacon Hill today. A bill that would expand abortion access in Massachusetts is up for a hearing, and proponents of the legislation say the timing is crucial as abortion access comes under siege in several states across the country.
The ROE Act will be heard by the Judiciary Committee today . The proposed law would legalize abortion after 24 weeks in the case of fatal fetal anomalies, among other things. The bill was filed by Senate President Emerita Harriet Chandler in the Senate and Speaker Pro Tempore Patricia Haddad and Rep. Jay Livingstone in the House.
"We're concerned about what is happening at the federal level and we're concerned about efforts to erode Roe v. Wade," Chandler told me last week. "Our bill protects a young woman's right to choose abortion, and it allows women who have faced medical crises later in pregnancy to receive appropriate medical care."
Provisions in the bill include eliminating the judicial bypass process for teenagers, and bolstering safety-net coverage regardless of a person's income or legal status. The bill would end some reporting requirements that supporters say "jeopardize physician safety and patient privacy." It would also remove old laws and language, like a provision that establishes "fetal personhood" and a 24-hour waiting period for abortions, which is not enforced.
Attorney General Maura Healey and U.S. Rep. Lori Trahan plan to testify in support of the ROE Act, and groups which support the bill include the ACLU of Massachusetts, the Planned Parenthood Advocacy Fund of Massachusetts and NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts. It's not likely this bill will gain support from GOP Gov. Charlie Baker, who has said he does "not support late term abortions," though he supports the state's existing abortion laws.
"This is just a critical time for women. We have fought hard to get to this point, we shouldn't be regressing in 2019," Chandler said. "It is very important we safeguard those rights for women."
A number of anti-abortion groups plan to rally outside the State House to oppose the ROE Act, including Massachusetts Citizens for Life, the Massachusetts Family Institute and the Renew Massachusetts Coalition.
And the ROE Act has become a marquee issue for MassGOP chair Jim Lyons, who was an outspoken opponent of abortion during his time as a state representative. Under his leadership, the state Republican party has run a series of social media ads targeting state lawmakers who support the ROE Act, referring to it as a so-called "infanticide" bill.
"The idea of this being an infanticide bill is just sheer garbage," Chandler said. "It's an effort to basically encourage fear among people who might need this bill, and it really does put fear in people's hearts."
NEED TO IMPEACH IN NEAL TERRITORY — Need to Impeach, billionaire Tom Steyer's campaign, is ratcheting up the pressure on Rep. Richard Neal once again. Steyer paid for a new billboard in Neal's district demanding the congressman get President Donald Trump's taxes.
The billboard is part of Steyer's campaign to pressure key House members into beginning an impeachment inquiry into Trump. Steyer's latest blitz focuses on around a dozen House members, including Neal and presidential candidate Rep. Eric Swalwell of California. Neal is chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, and requested Trump's tax returns several months ago. The president's administration has refused to comply with that request.
The new billboard in Neal's district reads: "REP. NEAL, GET TRUMP'S TAXES NOW." The billboard features a black-and-white photo of Neal and includes a phone number to call. Steyer has spent more than $250,000 in Neal's district over the past several months, including television and digital ads, paid staff, billboards and a town hall.
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 speaks at the American Association of Airport Executives conference. Baker meets with Senate President Karen Spilka and House Speaker Robert DeLeo. Rep. Seth Moulton campaigns in Merrimack, N.H. Rep. Joe Kennedy III visits Norfolk Advocates for Children in Foxborough and Column Health in Attleboro. Rep. Stephen Lynch attends a listening session on the proposed compressor station in Weymouth. Rep. Katherine Clark tours the South Cove Community Health Center in Malden.
FIRST THINGS FIRST
- "As Red Line repairs continue, plan for another longer commute Monday," by John Hilliard, Boston Globe: "Riders on the MBTA's Red Line should plan an extra 20 minutes for Monday morning's commute, as crews continue repairs following a derailment Tuesday outside the JFK/UMass station that disrupted service and forced Braintree riders to switch trains for days after the accident. Late Saturday night, the MBTA announced that while direct Braintree service had resumed, trains will continue to operate at reduced speeds as crews make repairs to the Red Line's electronic signaling equipment, which was damaged in the derailment. Steve Poftak, the MBTA's general manager, said in a statement Sunday that although direct service to Braintree has resumed, much work remains to be done."
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A message from JUUL Labs:
Youth vaping is a problem. We're taking action. No youth or non-nicotine user should ever try JUUL products. We've taken a series of actions to greatly reduce youth use of tobacco products, including our own. Learn more about our youth prevention efforts: JUUL.com/youth-prevention
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 | DATELINE BEACON HILL |
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- "REPORT SIZES UP SCHOOL AID FUNDING INCREASES," by Katie Lannan, State House News Service: "The degree of funding boosts for low-income students is a key difference between one pending school finance proposal that would lead to $460 million in additional district funding by fiscal 2026 and another Beacon Hill plan that would result in $1.4 billion, according to a new analysis. According to the report, from the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center, if lawmakers do not make any policy changes to the state's education funding formula, school districts would receive an additional $988.2 million in school aid by fiscal 2026, compared to this year."
- "A Swift return," by Michael Jonas, CommonWealth Magazine:"IT'S BEEN A long time since Jane Swift left the public stage, retreating home to Western Massachusetts after a rocky 21-month tenure as governor. Just how much time has passed? Earlier this month the twin daughters she delivered a month after being handed the gubernatorial reins — making history and national headlines as the first governor to give birth while in office — graduated from high school. It's no coincidence, Swift says, that her decision to accept a position running an education tech nonprofit in Boston and jump back in the public policy mix in Massachusetts coincided with that milestone."
- "Lawmakers express discomfort over teen abortions without parental consent," by Stephanie Ebbert, Boston Globe: "Even before it faces its first hearing on Beacon Hill Monday, an ambitious legislative effort to expand abortion access in Massachusetts has run into opposition from lawmakers who consider it to be an overreach. Most concerning to legislators is the proposed elimination of an age restriction that requires anyone under 18 to have a parent's consent or a judge's order to get an abortion. The notion that a girl as young as 12 could get an abortion without telling her parents is proving to be a tough proposition, even in liberal Massachusetts, where most lawmakers consider themselves supporters of abortion rights."
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| WHAT CITY HALL IS READING |
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- "In a city moving loudly to the left, Walsh often stays in the middle," by Milton J. Valencia, Boston Globe: "At the national level, top-tier Democratic candidates for president have espoused some of the most liberal campaign platforms in decades. And in Boston, officials have pushed for unprecedented progressive initiatives — from charging fees for car usage to massive tax hikes on high-end real estate deals. And what of Martin J. Walsh, the second-term mayor? He's listening, he said. Things don't happen overnight. But he wants to collaborate."
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Attend the #WellbeingCity Forum in Montréal: Cities are currently home to more than half the global population, a figure that will soar to 70% within the next thirty years. The NewCities' Wellbeing Cities Forum, held in Montreal on June 19-20, brings together senior leaders and urban experts to explore and collaborate on city-led action to improve urban wellbeing. Guest speakers include Professor Saskia Sassen, Daniel Libeskind, and mayors from around the world. Tickets are available via NewCities here.
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| FROM THE HUB |
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- "What will the MFA's woes mean for Juneteenth?" by Adrian Walker, Boston Globe: "For seven years, the "Juneteenth" celebration at the Museum of Fine Arts has been the friendliest of takeovers, a night when one of the city's most elegant spaces becomes home to a joyous celebration of African-American liberation. This year's event, scheduled for Wednesday night, now looms as a litmus test, for both the museum and the city. A month after a group of students from the Helen Y. Davis Leadership Academy in Dorchester were subjected to racist comments and close monitoring on a field trip to the museum, the MFA feels like a somewhat awkward space for a multicultural celebration. Multiple investigations of that disturbing incident are being conducted, including one by Attorney General Maura Healey and another, commissioned by the MFA, by former attorney general Scott Harshbarger."
- "Will it work? Glitzy casino opening on industrial waterfront," by Philip Marcelo, Associated Press: "A $28 million statue of Popeye by the artist Jeff Koons. Luxury, "European-style" water shuttles. Five-star hotel rooms starting at about $650 a night. After months of turmoil and uncertainty, Wynn Resorts' flamboyant Encore Boston Harbor casino opens June 23 just over the city line in Everett, Massachusetts. The $2.6 billion gambling, hotel and entertainment complex brings Las Vegas opulence to the unlikeliest of places: a largely industrial waterfront home to a subway train repair yard, a water and sewer agency facility and a power plant. Massachusetts leaders hope the resort and its curved, bronze-toned hotel tower — echoing the company's distinctive properties in Vegas and Macau — transforms the city's reputation as an industrial afterthought."
- "'This Is At The Point Of Urgency,' Walsh Says Of The MBTA," by Zoe Matthews, WGBH News: "Boston Mayor Marty Walsh said the MBTA and the city's transportation infrastructure has reached a state of urgency, after derailments and delays wreaked havoc on commutes this week. "This is at the point of urgency, on so many different levels, that we really need to start seeing some action," he said Friday, during his monthly 'Ask The Mayor' segment on Boston Public Radio. The mayor said during the interview that 100,000 more people are working in Boston than five years ago, and 50,000 more people are living in the city. "We need to get as much money into the MBTA and infrastructure as possible," said Walsh."
- "Northeastern University student finds questionnaires with fascist references in library," by Amanda Kaufman, Boston Globe: "Northeastern University officials will meet Monday with a student after he reported finding paper questionnaires inside a campus library book that included references to Hitler, had a link to an alt-right blog, and asked readers to indicate their areas of interest in fascist topics. "We are aware and the head of our library system is in contact with the student who found the materials," Renata Nyul, a university spokeswoman, said in an e-mail. "They should be meeting on Monday and I may have more information then." Matt Bowser, 28, who is pursuing a doctorate in history, said he was researching fascist movements of the 1930s for his dissertation at the university's Snell Library when he discovered 10 questionnaires inside Robert Paxton's 'The Anatomy of Fascism.''"
- "Massachusetts untested rape kits: See how many of 387 kits are from your community," by Melissa Hanson, MassLive.com:"There are hundreds of untested rape kits in Massachusetts, many of which are decades old. The state Executive Office of Public Safety and Security, or EOPSS, started its first legally mandated inventory of untested rape kits and identified 387 untested rape kits, MassLive learned through a public records request. That data does not include Bristol County, which has received a $2 million federal Sexual Assault Kit Initiative grant to identify and test previously untested rape kits collected in that county. EOPSS asked more than 400 reporting agencies, including municipal law enforcement, sheriff's offices, university law enforcement and hospital security, how many untested rape kits were in their possession."
- "Women's co-working space The Wing comes to Boston," by Katie Johnston, Boston Globe: "Annemarie Dooling tried joining a traditional co-working space but found it difficult to concentrate. There were Nerf gunfights and impromptu taco parties. And so much beer. It was basically a "playground for people who think they're working," she said. A "bro" paradise. "I've been mansplained to about topics I'm an expert in," said Dooling, a product manager at The Wall Street Journal who commutes from Philadelphia to New York, where she joined The Wing, a women's co-working and community space. Women in Boston will soon have the same option with the opening of its eighth location Monday, in the Back Bay."
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| WARREN REPORT |
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- "Trump campaign zeroes in on a new threat: Elizabeth Warren," by Alex Isenstadt, POLITICO: "President Donald Trump's reelection machine is setting its sights on a new target, one it had left for dead just a few months ago: Elizabeth Warren. With the Massachusetts senator rising in polls and driving a populist message that threatens to cut into the president's blue-collar base, the Trump campaign is training its firepower on Warren with an eye toward blunting her momentum. Trump aides and their allies at the Republican National Committee, who initially believed their money and manpower were better focused elsewhere, are digging up opposition research, deploying camera-wielding trackers, and preparing to brand Warren as a liberal extremist. The reassessment of Warren, confirmed in conversations with more than a half-dozen Trump advisers, reflects the volatility of the massive Democratic primary and how the reelection campaign is reacting to it."
- "Democratic Candidates Promise to Close Wealth Gap Between Blacks and Whites," by Astead W. Herndon, New York Times:"Four top Democratic presidential candidates promised black voters Saturday that, if elected, their administrations would help close the wealth gap between black and white Americans, continuing the growing trend of Democratic candidates and officials talking more explicitly about racial inequalities. The candidates, former Representative Beto O'Rourke of Texas, Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey, Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Ind., each asked a packed house of South Carolina Democrats to buy into a vision of how to lift up black communities, particularly regarding "work, wages and wealth," the principal theme of the event.
- "Elizabeth Warren downplays her rise in polls: 'It's way too early,'" by Sahil Kapur, Bloomberg: "Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren shrugged off surveys showing her gaining support nationally and in some key early primary states, to place second behind front-runner Joe Biden. ''It's way too early to talk about polls. What are we, eight months away from the first caucuses and primary elections?'' the Massachusetts Democrat told reporters Saturday in Charleston, S.C. A national Economist/YouGov poll released on Wednesday showed Warren in second place among the large Democratic field with 16 percent, behind Biden's 26 percent and ahead of Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders's 12 percent ."
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| DATELINE D.C. |
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- "Ayanna Pressley: Bill would ease access to birth control pills," by Associated Press: "U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley is working with other Democratic members of Congress to push legislation aimed at making it easier and less expensive to obtain birth control pills. The legislation would require insurance companies to cover any oral contraception approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The pills would be available over-the counter without the need for a prescription. Supporters say the bill would expand access to affordable birth control while maintaining the FDA's authority to determine the safety of drugs."
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| IT'S NOT EASY BEING GREEN |
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- "Farley-Bouvier, Hinds to address energy, environment at town hall-style meeting," by Dick LIndsay, Berkshire Eagle: "Large solar arrays, state park staffing and climate change. Those are among the topics likely to surface Monday night, during a town hall-style meeting with state Rep. Tricia Farley-Bouvier and state Sen. Adam Hinds, who will answer questions and address concerns regarding energy and the environment. The event, sponsored by the Environmental League of Massachusetts, will run from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Berkshire Athenaeum. The lobbying group has organized similar events across the state to stimulate dialogue between legislators and their constituents, according to its legislative director, Casey Bowers."
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| EYE ON 2020 |
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- "Weld takes GOP bid to oust Trump to NH. Voters are confused." by Hunter Woodall, Associated Press: "Bill Weld jokes about not kissing the back of a child's head because he doesn't want to be accused, like Joe Biden, of making people uncomfortable. He tells voters they wouldn't know how obese Americans truly are until they go to county fairs, where "those overalls are working overtime." And he believes his opponent's policies are trending in the direction of Adolf Hitler. For now, Weld is the most prominent Republican in revolt, mounting a primary challenge to President Donald Trump. But in places like New Hampshire, where there's a healthy contingent of Republicans uneasy with Trump, Weld is still a hard sell. As he's toured the state in recent months, the 73-year-old's eccentricities have left Republicans and independents who are cold on the president scratching their head."
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A message from JUUL Labs:
We're combating the problem of underage vaping by:
Advocating for raising the legal age to purchase our products to 21+ nationwide.
Stopping the sale of non-tobacco and non-menthol based flavored JUULpods to traditional retail stores.
Enhancing our online age verification process.
Strengthening our retail compliance program with over 2,000 secret shopper visits per month.
Shutting down our Facebook and Instagram accounts and working to remove inappropriate social media content generated by others on those platforms.
And investing in new technologies to further prevent youth use.
JUUL.com/youth-prevention |
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| MOULTON MATTERS |
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- "Seth Moulton won't be on the debate stage at the end of June, but he's heading to Miami anyway." by Lisa Kashinsky, Boston Herald: "The Salem congressman was among just four of the 24 Democratic presidential candidates who didn't make the cut for the first Democratic National Committee debates on June 26 and 27. Moulton won't be in the room where it happens, but his team said he'll travel to the Sunshine State those two days regardless, with details to come on events and media availability. Moulton failed to cross either of the two DNC thresholds for the debates: attaining 1% in three qualifying polls or reaching 65,000 individual donors, including 200 apiece in 20 states."
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| ABOVE THE FOLD |
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— Herald: "HITTING THE SPOTS," — Globe: "Education spending proposals $1b apart," "Working the angles from a quiet middle." |
| FROM THE 413 |
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- "Hampshire County Sheriff's Office expands incarcerated fathers counseling program," by Sophia Eppolito, Boston Globe:"Tyler Stanton woke up Sunday morning to his 3-year-old son Walker handing him a Father's Day gift. "He made me a picture to hang on the wall with his handprints," Stanton, 31, of Warren, Mass., said later that day. "It's awesome. My son is awesome." Spending Father's Day with his son was especially significant for Stanton, who was released from the Hampshire County jail on parole this past fall. Stanton is one of 73 men who have graduated from Hampshire's "Nurturing Fathers" program, a 13-week course that provides guidance and counseling to fathers during their incarceration."
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| THE LOCAL ANGLE |
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- "In P'town interview, former FBI official warns of dangers to rule of law," by Geoff Spillane, Cape Cod Times: " In his book "The Threat: How the FBI Protects America in the Age of Terror and Trump," Andrew McCabe describes a tense meeting with President Trump in the Oval Office when McCabe was named acting director of the FBI in 2017, after the firing of James Comey. It was a decidedly more relaxed McCabe, in shorts and a casual shirt and in town during the weekend to speak at the Provincetown International Film Festival, who sat for a brief interview on the porch of the Land's End Inn on Saturday.
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| MEDIA MATTERS |
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TRANSITIONS - Auditor Suzanne Bump was named president of the National State Auditors Association for fiscal 2020.
SPOTTED: At the opening of the joint campaign office of Boston City Councilors Michelle Wu, Kim Janey and candidate Alejandra St. Guillen in Roxbury... Boston City Councilor Lydia Edwards, state Rep. Nika Elugardo, state Rep. Russell Holmes, State Rep. Jon Santiago, Brian Lang and Segun Idowu.
WEEKEND WEDDING - Lily Zarrella and Ted Rainaud were married on the beach in Nantucket on Saturday. Zarrella is a deputy chief of staff in Gov. Charlie Baker's office and Rainaud is a principal at Berkshire Partners. NYT.
HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY - to Jason Palitsch, government and public affairs specialist for Veterans Inc. and a Shrewsbury School Committee member, who turned 3-0 (h/t Joe Tutino); and Tom Fleming, who both celebrated Sunday.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY - to Aaron Saunders, senior vice president at Benchmark Strategies.
DID THE HOME TEAM WIN? Yes! The Red Sox beat the Orioles 8-6.
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