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GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. TGIF!
THE SENATE DEBATE DEBACLE — Since Rep. Joe Kennedy III entered the race for Sen. Ed Markey's seat, the pair have disagreed on when they should start debating.
But a plan for a first debate finally appears to be coming together, whether Kennedy agrees to it or not. The first debate in the primary race between Markey, Kennedy and Shannon Liss Riordan looks like it will be hosted by Stonehill College on Nov. 10, according to a tweet from Markey's campaign. It's just not clear whether the candidate leading the race will be there.
Markey's reelection campaign has been calling for an early climate debate since the day Kennedy announced he was running for Senate. Markey is one of the sponsors of the Green New Deal, and often expresses frustration that the presidential race hasn't held a standalone climate change debate. Liss-Riordan has agreed to appear at the climate debate next month.
Kennedy's campaign has also agreed to hold a climate debate, along about half a dozen other debates, but is calling for the debates to begin after the new year.
"We've agreed to that debate. We look forward to having that debate," Kennedy told me earlier this week, during an unrelated event in Chelsea. "I think it makes far more sense to do that debate after we've gone through an impeachment crisis, and in all likelihood, an impeachment inquiry that I think we're going to be in the middle of."
It's still early in this contest — voters won't head to the polls until September, and a Senate primary between two Democrats may not be front-of-mind for political watchers fixated on the presidential primary. So until it gets closer to that date, Senate candidates might just continue debating when to have a debate.
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 Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito attend a Project Lead the Way STEM design challenge showcase in Roxbury. Baker and Boston Mayor Marty Walsh speak at an Aging2.0 Revolutionize event in the Seaport. Walsh visits the East Boston Shipyard, gets a flu shot at City Hall and is a guest on WGBH's "Boston Public Radio." Sen. Ed Markey and Rep. Lori Trahan hold a community forum on a final investigation into the Merrimack Valley gas explosions.
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Bay State Wind delivers: on our promises, on our timelines and on our commitments. With the combined expertise of Ørsted and Eversource, we will deliver on our promise to bring clean, reliable offshore wind to Massachusetts. More at baystatewind.com
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POLITICO's ENERGY PODCAST sponsored by Chevron: A new, daily five-minute update on the latest in energy and environmental politics and policy - must-know stories and candid insights from POLITICO's 10-person energy team and journalists across our newsroom. Ways to listen: Via your email - click the link in the POLITICO Morning Energy newsletter, or subscribe for free - click here and follow the link for your podcast player.
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 | DATELINE BEACON HILL |
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- "Gov. Charlie Baker stands by embattled state police head amid scandal," by Erin Tiernan, Boston Herald: "Gov. Charlie Baker continues to stand behind state police Col. Kerry Gilpin even as her embattled department faces scandal after scandal and as the colonel herself refuses to address the public. Thursday's charges against yet another trooper accused of misconduct adds to the growing list of embarrassments that continue to plague the state's top law enforcement agency."
- "About That Bill To Ban The 'B Word': You And Anyone Else Can File Legislation In Mass." by Steve Brown, WBUR: "The Massachusetts House this week approved a bill to pump an extra $1.5 billion — that's billion with a "b" — into public education over the next seven years. But that's not the "b" word that got a lot of media attention — here and even around the world — this week. No, it was House bill 3719 that generated the most buzz (yes, another "b" word)."
- "Senate Approves $780 Million Closeout Budget," by Chris Lisinski, State House News Service: "The Senate passed a policy-laced $780 million spending bill Thursday, setting up a backroom scramble to resolve differences with the House's version in time to meet a key deadline. The Senate voted 39-0 to approve a bill closing the books on the fiscal year that ended in June by sprinkling new spending throughout state government. The bill also sets the state's next primary election for Sept. 1, 2020 and allows farmers to cultivate hemp on land with agricultural preservation restrictions."
- "Massachusetts Gaming Commission wants briefing on Mashpee Wampanoag tribal casino status," by Colin A. Young | State House News Service: "Gaming regulators want to know the exact status of federal litigation around the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe's quest to secure land in trust before making a decision about moving ahead with the state's third casino license, though Gaming Commission members appeared in no rush Thursday to begin accepting applications for a southeastern Massachusetts casino."
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| FROM THE HUB |
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- "MIT halts work of group at under-scrutiny Media Lab," by Deirdre Fernandes, Boston Globe: "MIT has halted most of the work being done by a prominent but controversial group in its beleaguered Media Lab over concerns that researchers may have skirted recent restrictions that the university placed on them. Maria Zuber, MIT's vice president of research, late last week shut down all the off-site work being done by the Open Agriculture Initiative. Zuber, who oversees MIT's broad scientific efforts, has allowed researchers with the agricultural program to do limited design and document work on the main campus, according to university officials."
- "Brookline e-scooter pilot proving very popular, Lime says," by Tom Acitelli, Curbed Boston: "Electric battery-powered scooters have replaced at least 50,000 automobile trips in Brookline since a pilot program started in that town in early April, according to a recent survey by the California-based micromobility company. The survey, which drew 173 respondents, also found that 47.5 percent of Lime e-scooter riders used the vehicles to get to or from public transit within the previous month, and that just over 30 percent used an e-scooter rather than a private or hired car. Nearly all of the respondents want Brookline to make the e-scooter share permanent."
- "Boston development moguls fighting over failed Back Bay condo project," by Tim Logan, Boston Globe: "Two of the biggest names in Boston's development industry are heading to court over scuttled plans for a condominium tower in the Back Bay. Construction magnate John Fish is suing Weiner Ventures — a father-son team that built the Mandarin Oriental hotel — over Fish and Weiner's joint venture to build a 484-foot-tall skyscraper at the corner of Boylston and Dalton streets, which was scrapped just weeks before the project was to break ground."
- "Mass Officials, BU Faculty Unveil New App Designed To Stop Labor Traffickers," by Colby Lucas, WGBH News: "State lawmakers eight years ago passed legislation making labor trafficking a state crime. But since then few have been charged of crimes related to trafficking and nobody has been convicted, according to the state Attorney General's office. On Thursday, a group of Boston University faculty and students and state officials unveiled a web-based application they hope will help law enforcement see the signs of problems and help victims find the right resources."
- Massachusetts State Police Trooper Andrew Patterson suspended after allegedly exposing himself during concert at Gillette Stadium," by Aviva Luttrell, MassLive.com: "A Massachusetts State Police trooper has been suspended after allegedly exposing himself while off duty at a Luke Bryan concert over the summer. State police spokesman David Procopio said Trooper Andrew Patterson was suspended following the June 21 incident at Gillette Stadium. The agency will hold an internal hearing Friday to reassess his duty status and an internal investigation will continue as his criminal case proceeds."
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| PRIMARY SOURCES |
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- "Neal's cautious impeachment approach draws a backlash, and a primary challenge," by Laura Krantz, Boston Globe: "For years, Richard Neal avoided the spotlight. During his three decades in Congress he has favored the inside game, quietly moving up the Democratic ranks until ascending this year to one of the more coveted positions in the House. As chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, Neal has had a central role in the probes of President Trump and the efforts of top House Democrats to pursue an impeachment inquiry. But that new prominence has come with a potential downside: a spotlight on his cautious, methodical approach, which has triggered unrest among liberal activists back home."
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| ALL ABOARD |
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- "Raimondo calls faster train service top priority. Is Baker aboard?" by Edward Fitzpatrick, Boston Globe: "During a joint appearance Thursday, Rhode Island Governor Gina M. Raimondo displayed far more urgency than Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker about plans to improve rail service between Providence and Boston. Raimondo, Baker and Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont met for lunch at Rhode Island College, marking the second of three planned summits between what Lamont called the 'three amigos.'"
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| ON THE STUMP |
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- "Garrison: Vote just for me, not any of the others," by Katie Trojano, Dorchester Reporter: "Althea Garrison is not on Twitter or Facebook. In an increasingly left-leaning city, she describes herself and her base of voters as "moderate to conservative." And, alone among sitting city council members, she is openly campaigning for the defeat of her at-large colleagues. "Replace all three of those councillors that have been there for years. Get rid of all of them," she said at a Roxbury forum early this month where she also asked for a "bullet vote," meaning just vote for her and leave the other candidates' ballots blank."
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| DAY IN COURT |
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- "Top Mass Judges Ask ICE To Stop Deporting Criminal Defendants Awaiting Trial," by Mike Deehan, WGBH News: "The state's top judges are asking federal immigration officials to stop deporting immigrants awaiting trial in Massachusetts for crimes as serious as assault to murder and child rape. In a letter to the acting field director of the Massachusetts Immigration and Customs Enforcement office, Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice Ralph Gants and Trial Court Chief Justice Paula Carey wrote that at least 13 defendants indicted for felonies including drug trafficking, child rape and assault, and murder will not face justice in Massachusetts because federal authorities removed them from the country without alerting the courts or prosecutors."
- "Vape Sales Ban in Limbo After Appeals Court Ruling," by Matt Murphy, State House News Service: "Gov. Charlie Baker's ban on the retail sale of vaping products in Massachusetts is hanging in limbo Thursday after an Appeals Court judge denied the administration's request to stay a lower court order that Baker amend his ban and reissue it by Monday. The decision by Appeals Court Judge Kenneth Desmond late Wednesday means Baker will likely have to comply with Superior Court Judge Douglas Wilkins' order that he pursue an emergency regulation, or allow sales of vaping products to resume next week."
- "Healey sues ExxonMobil, alleges climate change deception," by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Magazine: "ATTORNEY GENERAL MAURA HEALEY sued ExxonMobil Corp. on Thursday, accusing the company of misleading Massachusetts investors and consumers by withholding information linking its fossil fuel products to climate change. The 205-page lawsuit, filed in Suffolk Superior Court, says Exxon scientists predicted 37 years ago, with "astonishing accuracy," that atmospheric carbon dioxide levels would reach 415 parts per million by 2019. That level, "the highest level in human history," was reached on May 11, according to the lawsuit."
- "Court gives medical pot users a vaping alternative," by Christian M. Wade, The Salem News: "A judge has partially lifted the state's ban on THC vaping products by allowing medical marijuana patients to vape crushed pot flower. On Thursday, Suffolk County Superior Court Judge Douglas Wilkins ruled that medical marijuana patients should have access to alternatives to vaping THC oils and other additives that have been associated with a nationwide outbreak of vaping-related lung illness that has sickened hundreds and killed 33 people."
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| WARREN REPORT |
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| FROM THE DELEGATION |
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- "Ayanna Pressley on making the MBTA free, congestion pricing, and shifting the paradigm of transportation policy," by Nik DeCosta-Klipa, Boston.com: "The need to reinvest in the country's transportation infrastructure has been a simmering issue for years on Capitol Hill. Advocates say federal funding for highways and public transit has lagged for decades, leading to an increasingly obsolete and inefficient network. However, according to Rep. Ayanna Pressley, the solution isn't just about increasing spending, but where that money is spent."
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| THE CLARK CAUCUS |
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- "Vital Federal Program To Help Parents In College Is 'A Drop In The Bucket,'" by Elissa Nadworny, NPR: "Between studying for her weekly anatomy and physiology exam, and writing an English paper, Kate Hough somehow finds time for coloring, dress-up parties and putting together four different Halloween costumes (a princess, a cowgirl and two clowns). Hough is working toward her nursing degree at Mount Wachusett Community College, in central Massachusetts, while raising four kids — two toddlers and two in elementary school."
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| IT'S NOT EASY BEING GREEN |
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- "Massachusetts Maritime Academy launches nation's first offshore wind crew training facility," by Benjamin Kail, MassLive.com: "The Massachusetts Maritime Academy launched the first offshore wind crew training facility in the nation at its Buzzards Bay campus Thursday, setting the stage for education and job certifications for thousands of residents and cadets as the renewable energy industry picks up steam in Massachusetts and along the East Coast."
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| ABOVE THE FOLD |
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— Herald: "GRIND AND PUNISHMENT," — Globe: "Tax bill comes due for elite colleges," "A MOTHER WONDERS CAN A VOTE STOP THE GUNS?" |
| EYE ON 2020 |
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- "Which Neighborhoods Support Which Presidential Candidates," by Sofia Rivera, Boston Magazine: "As Neil Diamond once said: Money talks. And though it might not sing, dance, nor walk, it can indicate which political candidate an individual supports. Four months before Super Tuesday rolls around and we all make our choices in the presidential primaries via pens and ballots, a new report from RentHop has offered some insight into the voting minds of Bay Staters—by peeking into their wallets."
- "Weld: I'd vote for Biden 'in a heartbeat' against Trump," by Hunter Woodall, Associated Press: "One of President Donald Trump's Republican challengers says he'd vote for Joe Biden "in a heartbeat" against Trump in the 2020 general election. Former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld says, "Could I vote for a Democrat? Hell yes. If it's Trump against Joe Biden, I'm with Biden in a heartbeat." Weld's comments came during an appearance at the CITIZEN by CNN conference."
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| THE LOCAL ANGLE |
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- "Dedham Public Schools Teachers Going On Strike After Nearly 2 Years Of Negotiations," by Anna Kusmer, WGBH News: "Dedham Public Schools teachers, school nurses and councilors have gone on strike after 21 months of contract negotiations. In response to the Dedham Education Association's vote to strike Thursday afternoon, Dedham Public Schools Superintendent Michael Welch issued a statement canceling classes in all seven of the district's schools on Friday Oct. 25."
- "Councilors say they weren't told about chief's crash," by Bill Kirk, Eagle-Tribune: "Some city councilors are crying foul because they weren't told about police Chief Roy Vasque's accident in which he totaled his city-issued 2018 Chevy Tahoe on the night of Sept. 28 in Reading. City Council President Kendrys Vasquez said he was surprised to read about the crash in Thursday's edition of The Eagle-Tribune. Neither Mayor Dan Rivera nor Vasque told city councilors about the crash, which happened, according to the accident report, when a dog or a coyote ran in front of his SUV."
SPOTTED: at the Kennedy Institute's annual dinner last night ... James Brett, Eileen and Jack Connors Jr., former Sen. Mo Cowan, Stephanie Cutter, former Sen. Christopher Dodd, Anne Finucane, Linda Henry, Patricia Jacobs, Karen Kaplan, James J. Karam, former Rep. Joe Kennedy II, Rep. Joe Kennedy III, Matthew Kennedy, state Sen. Edward Kennedy, former Rep. Patrick Kennedy, Victoria Reggie Kennedy, Greenberg Traurig, Ed Schlossberg, Treasurer Deb Goldberg, Anne Klibanski, Elizabeth Nabel, Katherine Newman, Fred Seigel, Larry Merlo, Faith and Tom Weiner.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY - to Lawrence state Rep. Marcos Devers; WGBH's Adam Reilly; Erica Mattison, assistant director of sustainability communications at Boston University; and Russell Pandres, project manager at Coalition for a Better Acre in Lowell.
HAPPY BIRTHWEEKEND - to the Roxbury Latin School, founded 375 years ago on Saturday.
FOR YOUR COMMUTE: Pollin', Pollin', Pollin' on the River - On this week's Horse Race podcast, hosts Jenn Smith and Steve Koczela talk about a recent Boston City Council debate, and dissect the numbers in a new WBUR poll conducted by MassINC. Later, Colin Young of the State House News Service breaks down Gov. Charlie Baker's new health care proposal. Subscribe and listen on iTunes and Sound Cloud.
Want to make an impact? POLITICO Massachusetts has a variety of solutions available for partners looking to reach and activate the most influential people in the Bay State. Have a petition you want signed? A cause you're promoting? Seeking to increase brand awareness among this key audience? Share your message with our influential readers to foster engagement and drive action. Contact Jesse Shapiro to find out how: jshapiro@politico.com.
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With the most in-the-field research, most advanced permits and most experienced team, Bay State Wind knows how to deliver quality projects on-time and on-budget. We know how to bring jobs and benefits to our local communities. But most importantly, we know Massachusetts. Backed by Ørsted and Eversource, we're building Massachusetts' clean energy future, one turbine at a time. More at baystatewind.com |
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