Back in the serene days of fall 2019 some in the Massachusetts political class were discussing whether Governor Charlie Baker should remain a Republican, go Independent, or even start a new party. The coronavirus crisis has exposed an even knottier conundrum for Baker. That has to do with the state’s need for federal aid. In…
Politics is the Treatment not the Disease
“Politics ought to be the part-time profession of every citizen who would protect the rights and privileges of free people and who would preserve what is good and fruitful in our national heritage.” President Dwight Eisenhower We are living through a real time, real world, global collective action problem. If you think the way…
‘The beauty of the 501(c)(4)’: Why We Should Care About Dark Money
“I think the play here is to set up an independent expenditure committee for your re-election, specifically with a goal of raising two million or something. . . . the beauty of the IE, it’s a 501(c)(4) corporate donations are allowed and they’re unlimited. . . . I can put in a million or two…
Coronavirus Could Spell Disaster for President Trump in November
With more than 600 cases in the United States alone, the media has begun to speculate about the potential impact of the coronavirus outbreak (COVID-19) on the 2020 presidential election. President Trump recently called his response “terrific,” adding that his management of the crisis will “help, not hurt” him in November. History, however, suggests otherwise….
From the Archives: “Warren Won’t Endorse Sanders”
I wrote the following on February 22, 2016 and I expect the reasoning to hold up as Warren makes a very similar calculation in the wake of ending her presidential bid: Speculation about when or if Senator Elizabeth Warren would endorse one of the candidates battling for her party’s nomination has been hot and heavy. …
The Waltons Are Winning the Debate Over the Boston Public Schools
Here’s a small exercise I thought of in light of today’s James Vaznis story in the Boston Globe concerning what to do about the Boston public schools. I tried to rank the responses of those interviewed from left (status quo, send more money) to right (state takeover). Out there on the right fringe is the…
Globe Mentions MassFiscal’s Hidden Money. But Why Talk to Them At All?
Today Matt Stout of the Boston Globe continued the healthy habit, when reporting on the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance, of stating that it hides its donors. (See Baker’s Push to Curb Emissions Draws a Familiar Foe: His Own Party). But since no one can say with any accuracy whose interests MassFiscal represents, why include it in…
Power Outage: Right Wing Attacks on Black and Latinx Political Power in Massachusetts
Yesterday’s post on the Boston Globe’s suggestion of a future state takeover of the Boston Public Schools discussed Domingo Morel’s Takeover: Race, Education, and American Democracy. Morel’s research shows that state takeovers of school districts usually (not always) bring about the political dis-empowerment of communities of color. Unfortunately we’ve seen several attempts to restrict representation…
Joe Kennedy’s Case is Thin but Probably Sufficient
Last night Senator Markey and Congressman Kennedy faced off in their first televised debate. Three highlights that made this morning’s papers were Kennedy’s criticisms of Markey’s Iraq War vote, his “present” committee vote as a new member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in 2013 on a resolution to authorize the Obama Administration to use…
The Racial Politics of the Globe’s Proposal for a State Takeover of the Boston Public Schools
On Friday the Boston Globe editorialized in favor of a possible state takeover of the Boston Public Schools, pointing out city-state political obstacles. It isn’t city-state politics at issue though. It’s racial politics. In Takeover: Race, Education, and American Democracy (New York: Oxford University Press, 2018), Domingo Morel finds that state takeovers of public school…