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Presented by JUUL Labs
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GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS.
WALSH'S BIG MEETING — I sat down with Boston Mayor Marty Walsh ahead of his trip to the U.S. Conference of Mayors annual meeting in Hawaii later this week. We talked about what he'll focus on at the conference, his take on 2020 and his own political future, as other big city mayors use the job as a launchpad for higher office. Walsh is one of the USCM's trustees and serves on a substance abuse task force. The annual meeting was held in Boston last year. This interview was edited for length and clarity.
So you're going to Hawaii, but it's not for a vacation.
I'm going to the U.S. Conference of Mayors. I find the conference a very useful conference because it's a bipartisan group of mayors. We don't get caught up in the whole Democrats and Republicans battle of Washington, D.C. We talk about issues. When Trump came down in the beginning of his term, he did an executive order on immigrants, he said that climate change is not true. We stood up together as a group, basically supporting immigrants, saying climate change is real. We focus on the issues that make America better again. That's what I like about the group.
What's your big focus going to be while you're there this year?
Climate resiliency is a big one. It's going to be a main talking point. Housing, transportation and climate resilience. There will be some conversations around immigration as well. It runs the gambit, there's really not one focus, but it really is infrastructure, It's a way for us to shake the national government a little bit to get some money down to cities and towns.
Are you feeling more or less optimistic about securing federal funding for infrastructure after your trip to Washington, D.C. with Gov. Charlie Baker?
Probably less hopeful. Not because of the trip. The trip was good, the intention of the trip when we went down there, there had been a meeting at the White House the week before. There was a 50/50 chance something would get done, assuming they could figure out a way to pay for it. I don't feel real optimistic about it today. I think we'll make another pitch at it, a lot of the mayors across America.
Will you talk about the MBTA when you're at the conference? You've broken with Baker recently over how to handle funding for the T.
I didn't break with him. I think I was very clear on the T, we need an investment now. It's about making the investment in the system. You really need money from all different sources. We have limited amounts of funding, meaning we can't do it all with the budget for the city of Boston, unless you took the whole $3 billion budget and just put it toward transportation. The state can't do it alone, because we're trying to get education money up there, and money for housing and money for infrastructure, so we really do need support from the federal government.
A number of big city mayors have used this job as a launchpad to run for national office. Do you have any interest in doing that?
No, I don't think about that right now. That's been brought up a lot, and in the end that's a lot of speculation people like to throw on you. When I got elected as a state rep, people said you're going to be the mayor one day, you're gonna be the governor one day. I don't know what's next.
Well, they were right about that one.
They were right, the mayor was right. There's still a lot. Right now it's way too early to think that way. I still have two-and-a-half years left of my term here as mayor, there's still a lot of work that needs to be done. I really haven't given much thought to what the next move is, if there's another move. Meaning, do I go for reelection, do I think about something else? I really haven't thought about that. My main focus right now is really on being the best person I can be to represent Boston on all the issues that are important. I'm not really focused on it today. I learned very early on in my career if you start wanting to jump to the next step it takes you off the job.
Do you think you'll endorse a candidate for president after the debates?
I'm actually looking forward to the debates because there are other people running. Congressman Tim Ryan was here the other day, he was in Boston so he stopped by. We talked about the race, we talked about the need for stability in the White House.
When you get on a stage like that American people get a chance to take an inside look at who you are and what you're about. It'll be interesting to see what kind of chord is hit over two nights. We'll get a feel, somebody not expecting to catch fire might suddenly catch fire. Mayor Pete [Buttigieg], people like what he's talking about, and that's why he's catching fire. He's also hitting "Face the Nation" and all the TV shows that you need to hit. I think when you're on a debate stage with a broader audience, I think people will tune in. I don't know when my decision will come. It'll come at some point.
What's your take on Joe Biden's comments about working with segregationists in the Senate, despite disagreeing with them?
I read every article, and there's so many different articles and spin and takes on what people are saying. I have not talked to Joe about it, I've not talked to Elizabeth Warren about certain things, I have not talked to Kamala Harris about certain things. Everyday there are 20 articles about the main candidates and they are all over the place.
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 and Rep. Stephen Lynch attend a ceremony for The Watson apartments in Quincy. Baker meets with Senate President Karen Spilka and House Speaker Robert DeLeo. Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito attends an event in Clinton. Attorney General Maura Healey is a guest on "Boston Public Radio." State Sen. Jason Lewis, state Rep. Alice Peish and Secretary of Education James Peyser speak at an education funding forum hosted by the Kennedy Institute.
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A message from JUUL Labs:
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 | DATELINE BEACON HILL |
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- "5 Issues To Watch On Beacon Hill," by Mike Deehan, WGBH News: "Beacon Hill lawmakers this week will attempt to avoid the legislative log jam that gummed up the works last year when the House and Senate failed to pass a compromise budget bill before the July 1 deadline. Leadership hopes that budget writers will deliver the spending bill on time so that energy can shift to several priorities this fall. After the budget is resolved, Beacon Hill may have the capacity to handle on big issue in July. August is typically a sleepy month. That means the period from Labor Day to Thanksgiving could be the busiest of the year."
- "Mass GOP downplays rift rumors after competing fundraisers," by Mary Markos, Boston Herald: "Two Republican fundraisers booked for the same night raised questions among some members who saw it as indicative of a divide within the party, while others chalked it up to happenstance. A MassGOP fundraiser hosted by Chairman Jim Lyons in Andover on Thursday night coincided with Minority Leader Rep. Brad Jones' annual event in Lynnfield to raise money for his campaign committee. Instead of seizing what many Massachusetts Republicans agree is an opportunity with the "far left" pushing a progressive agenda, they continue to operate like a "hen house," political consultant Chip Jones said, with this as their latest squabble."
- "Lawmakers seek review of state flag," by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: "The imagery on Massachusetts' state flag features a coat of arms designed nearly 240 years ago. While modified through the years, it still features a Native American clutching a bow and arrow, with an arm above him holding a broadsword. Below is a motto, "Ense petit placidam sub libertate quietem," which translates roughly from Latin to, "By the sword we seek peace, but peace under liberty." The logo is used virtually everywhere in state government from Statehouse offices to state police cruisers to the governor's letterhead. Native American tribes say it is a symbol of the brutal suppression of the region's original inhabitants — the Wampanoag, Massachusett and Nipmuc — by colonial governments that, like Confederate monuments in the South, should be removed."
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| FROM THE HUB |
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- "Encore Boston Harbor casino opens its doors," by Joshua Miller and Mark Arsenault, Boston Globe: "Greater Boston entered the casino era on Sunday with bursts of fireworks and a crush of patrons trading hundred-dollar bills for chips at the roulette wheel, eyeing their cards at the Texas hold 'em poker table, and pushing cash into whirring, glowing slot machines. Encore Boston Harbor, the $2.6 billion hotel and casino on the Mystic River, is now open 24 hours a day, every day of the year. Sunday's grand opening marked a new chapter for a region founded, in part, by John Winthrop, who warned in 1630 against being seduced by "our pleasures and proffitts" — a place once known for banning objectionable novels and plays and where less than 40 years ago most stores could not open on Sundays."
- "At Boston high schools, 1,900 courses — but no process for evaluating their rigor," by James Vaznis, Boston Globe: "Boston's approximately three dozen public high schools offer more than 1,900 courses, but the school system lacks a routine process for evaluating their rigor, resulting in courses with the same titles having wildly different syllabi, content, and quality, according to an internal School Department review. That holds true even for classes that the school system has identified as aligning with a set of courses prescribed by the state that aim to ensure college readiness. Consequently, the uneven quality creates confusion over whether transcripts and grade point averages accurately reflect what students should know, the review found."
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| ON THE STUMP |
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- "Progressive West Roxbury/Roslindale Endorses Julia Mejia for Boston City Council At-Large," from the Mejia campaign:"Progressive West Roxbury/Roslindale, a chapter of Progressive Massachusetts, today announced their endorsement of Julia Mejia for Boston City Council At-Large. In last year's election, the group endorsed and volunteered their support to a roster of candidates who have already begun to shift the landscape of local politics and policies in the city of Boston, including the historical election of District Attorney Rachael Rollins."
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POLITICO's The Agenda: The New Moon Race issue, presented by Leidos, has landed. America is heading back to the moon, but so is everyone else. This special report brings together POLITICO's growing space expertise with pivotal industry players, including NASA chief Jim Bridenstine, to explore the stakes of the new moon race. Read the full issue now.
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| WARREN REPORT |
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- "For a young Elizabeth Warren, 'a firecracker questioner,' debate was a ticket to another life," by Jess Bidgood and Liz Goodwin, Boston Globe: "Fifty years later, now a presidential candidate instead of a lanky teenager in a homemade wool jumper, Warren is hoping to deliver another command performance in Miami Wednesday night, when she will squeeze on stage with nine other candidates for the first Democratic debate. Warren has been rising in the polls, and the debate is a chance for her to lock in her status as a top contender for the party's nomination. The televised smackdowns that shape politics today are dramatically different from the formal academic debate that Warren excelled at as a teenager. They are barely debates at all. But the skills she honed back then — particularly her ability to quickly and surgically deflate her opponents' arguments — could serve her well on a crowded stage where every candidate will only get a few minutes to speak."
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| MOULTON MATTERS |
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- "Who is Democratic presidential candidate Seth Moulton?" by Elizabeth Koh, Miami Herald: "He won't be on the Democratic debate stage Wednesday or Thursday night, but U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton of Massachusetts is still campaigning for president. The Harvard-educated Marine is among roughly two dozen major candidates seeking to challenge President Donald Trump in 2020, though the sophomore congressman, who announced he was running in April, has yet to see his fledgling campaign gain traction in a crowded field."
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| ABOVE THE FOLD |
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— Herald: "BRATTON SCHOOLS ROLLINS" — Globe: "For nursing home, scarce staff, profits, "Casino opens to throngs ready to celebrate a new era." |
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Stopping the sale of non-tobacco and non-menthol based flavored JUULpods to traditional retail stores.
Enhancing our online age verification process.
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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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| THE LOCAL ANGLE |
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- "Suburban schools in Worcester County tackle racism, gender diversity in 'sea of white,'" by Susan Spencer, Telegram & Gazette: "How do you talk about race in a town that's overwhelmingly white? How do we deal with diversity when there is a small or unrecognized minority group? At many suburban high schools in Worcester County, more than 80% of the students are white, according to state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education profiles. That's far more than the 59% average statewide or the 29.6% average in Worcester schools. African American students make up less than 5% of the school population, half the state average, and representation of Hispanic students is also only a fraction of the statewide average of 20.8% at most area suburban schools."
- "Activists use art to draw attention to Weymouth compressor controversy," by Joe DiFazio, Patriot Ledger: "Out of controversy comes creativity. It couldn't have been a more picture perfect day Sunday for organizers of Painting in the Park, an event at King's Park in Weymouth held by activists opposed to a proposed natural gas compressor station along the Fore River. Organizers said they wanted to promote the beauty of the park they fear would be destroyed by putting a compressor station next to it. Margaret Bellafiore, an art teacher from Weymouth who is also on the board of Fore River Residents Against the Compressor Station (FRRACS), said the event was art activism."
- "Losing money and struggling to find workers, a nursing home operator feels the squeeze," by Robert Weisman, Boston Globe: "When five Skyline nursing homes shut their doors last month, Frank Romano came to the rescue. He accepted more than three dozen old and frail residents at a pair of nursing homes he owns here and in neighboring New Bedford. Now he's scrambling to find nurses to care for them, along with more kitchen, laundry, and maintenance workers. As he looks for help, he's struggling to operate the properties profitably in a Massachusetts long-term care sector that's been losing money for years."
- "Mayor to talk State of City," by Dustin Luca, The Salem News:"When the mayor gives her State of the City address Monday, she'll discuss a zoning change that could provide a surge of rental housing across the city. City planners recently drafted a new set of proposed rules governing "accessory dwelling units", otherwise known as in-law apartments, in all residentially zoned parts of the city. These rules would remove many restrictions on the apartments, essentially allowing them to be rented out like any other apartment."
TRANSITIONS - Meghan O'Sullivan, a professor at Harvard's Kennedy School and a Bush alum, will be North American chair for the Trilateral Commission.
SPOTTED: Outside the Provincetown home of prominent Democratic donor Bryan Rafanelli and partner Mark Walsh ... a "PETE-TOWN" flag. Presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg will hold a series of fundraisers on Cape Cod with Rafanelli over the Fourth of July holiday. Pic.
WEEKEND WEDDING - Juanita Tolliver and Chris Leist tied the knot last night at a ceremony officiated by 90 West's Harry Shipps. The couple are Coakley alums - Tolliver is director of campaigns at the Center for American Progress Action Fund and Leist is senior manager of digital advertising at Mothership Strategies. The wedding was attended by Sarah Groh, chief of staff to Rep. Ayanna Pressley; Kristina Bigdeli, a Pressley and Coakley alum; Yes on 3 Executive Director Kasey Suffradini; Beata Coloyan, Pressley's political director; and Missayr Boker, deputy political director to Sen. Kamala Harris' presidential campaign. Pic, pic and another pic.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY - to Peter Cutrumbes, aide to state Rep. Tom Golden (h/t Kevin Roberts); former MassGOP chair Kirsten Hughes, Roger Fisk, principal at New Day Strategy, turns 52; Thomas Doane Perry III, Jonathan Yuan, an MPP candidate at Harvard Kennedy School; Ed Palleschi, undersecretary for the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation and John Alvarez, government affairs manager at New Balance and a Baker administration alum. (h/t Ed Cash)
MAZEL! to Katharine Lusk, who was promoted to codirector of Boston University's Initiative on Cities. Link.
ALSO MAZEL! to the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, which celebrates 50 years.
DID THE HOME TEAM WIN? No! The Blue Jays beat the Red Sox 6-1.
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