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GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Happy Monday!
NEW POLICE POLICIES GAIN STEAM — After a week of protests in cities and towns across Massachusetts in response to the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, what comes next?
On the state level, elected officials of color already laid out a 10-point plan to address racial justice and law enforcement last week, and Gov. Charlie Baker plans to announce law enforcement transparency measures he supports in the coming days. In Washington, Rep. Ayanna Pressley and Sen. Elizabeth Warren are advocating for new policies to hold police officers accountable. Sen. Ed Markey called for shifting some funding away from law enforcement in a tweet yesterday.
"We are following the blueprint: organize, mobilize, legislate," Pressley said on Sunday in a tweet.
In Boston, Mayor Marty Walsh says the city may reallocate “some” of the police budget, but he wants to take a close look at where to redirect the money. His comments come as a majority of the Minneapolis City Council said it supports disbanding the city’s existing police force amid outrage over Floyd’s death, and as some Boston city councilors call for making changes to Boston’s police budget.
“If we’re making cuts, reallocating money into parts of our budget, what are those programs and are they gonna make a difference?” Walsh said during an appearance on WCVB’s “ On the Record” on Sunday. “Demanding we change the police budget, that’s not how we get to the answer. We’re gonna look at the police budget, certainly, and reallocate some of it.”
Some change is already happening inside state agencies and institutions in response to large-scale protests. UMass Boston announced it will no longer allow the Massachusetts State Police to use its campus as a staging location for protests after students voiced their concerns. And on Friday, the MBTA vowed to stop transporting police officers to and from protests.
FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: KENNEDY’S NEW SOUTH COAST ENDORSEMENTS — Rep. Joe Kennedy III is rolling out a list of more than 30 endorsers from Fall River, New Bedford and Freetown this morning. The endorsements come ahead of a Democratic primary debate in Providence, R.I. tonight between Kennedy and Sen. Ed Markey. Freetown and Fall River are part of the congressional district Kennedy represents now.
The Kennedy backers announced today include state Sen. Mark Montigny, former state Sen. Joan Menard, former state Rep. David Sullivan, former Fall River mayors Will Flanagan and Carlton Viveiros, and former New Bedford Mayor Scott Lang. Kennedy also won endorsements from current and former local elected officials, including city councilors and school committee members, from Fall River, New Bedford and Freetown. Markey announced endorsements from several Taunton elected officials over the weekend.
Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Get in touch: smurray@politico.com.
TODAY — Boston Mayor Marty Walsh and Rep. Ayanna Pressley speak at a virtual graduation ceremony for Boston Arts Academy. Sen. Ed Markey and Rep. Joe Kennedy III go head-to-head at a Democratic primary debate. Activists hold a “Silent Vigil for Black Lives” in Boston.
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TODAY AT 9 a.m. EDT – "INSIDE THE RECOVERY" PART II: PLAYBOOK INTERVIEW WITH LEE SAUNDERS, HEAD OF AFSCME: Join POLITICO Playbook co-authors Anna Palmer and Jake Sherman for a virtual interview with Lee Saunders, President, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees focused on how the union is navigating worker safety concerns around the coronavirus, what they believe is needed in a new relief package, and the importance of politics during a health, economic, and societal crisis. REGISTER HERE
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 | THE LATEST NUMBERS |
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– “Massachusetts health officials announce 27 new coronavirus deaths on Sunday and 304 new COVID-19 cases as Phase 2 of reopening begins Monday,” by Douglas Hook, MassLive.com: “Massachusetts health officials announced Sunday that another 27 people have died from coronavirus, bringing the number of fatalities statewide to 7,316. Officials confirmed another 304 cases, including probable cases, of the virus on Sunday, bringing the total number of cases to at least 103,436.”
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| DATELINE BEACON HILL |
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– “Massachusetts to enter Phase 2 of reopening plan on Monday, June 8,” by Michelle Williams, MassLive.com: “Gov. Charlie Baker announced Saturday that Massachusetts will enter Phase 2 of the state reopening plan on Monday. ‘The start of Phase 2 is a bright spot for our commonwealth,’ Baker said Saturday. ‘We know the closures have been difficult.’ Baker said the state is ready for the second phase of the reopening plan with significantly expanded access to testing and a downward trend in the number of hospitalized patients with COVID-19.”
– “Phase two re-openings too fast?” by Danny Jin, The Berkshire Eagle: “With the next stage of reopening set to begin Monday, public health advocates say Massachusetts should do more to ensure the well-being of its most vulnerable communities. While Gov. Charlie Baker cited an overall downward trend in key indicators during his Saturday announcement on phase two, some say an overall downward trend may not account for disproportionate impacts they believe are experienced by some groups, such as workers and racial minorities.”
– “Businesses like new PPP rules,” by Sarah Betancourt, CommonWealth Magazine: “President Trump on Friday signed into law a measure that business owners in Massachusetts say will make it a lot easier for them to take advantage of federal aid to keep their companies afloat. The new law changes the terms of the original Paycheck Protection Program, allowing more money to be spent on rent, utilities, and other business expenses and providing more flexibility on rehiring workers and paying back the original loan.”
– “Shoppers left in the dark about coronavirus clusters,” by Christian M. Wade, The Salem News: “When a Danvers grocery store temporarily shut down after some employees tested positive for COVID-19, many shoppers learned about the closure from the store's website and Facebook page. Town officials didn't disclose the outbreak at McKinnon's Market, which came after a busy Memorial Day weekend, for several days. Even then, they released few details.”
– “Baker sees big benefit from Guard presence,” by Bruce Mohl CommonWealth Magazine: “Massachusetts National Guard soldiers, weapons strapped around their chests, have been a very visible presence in downtown Boston since they were called in by the governor after the violence that broke out Sunday night. Vehicles with National Guard soldiers have been stationed every block or two in the Downtown Crossing area on most evenings, and Gov. Charlie Baker credits their presence there and elsewhere around the state for a marked downturn in violence.”
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| FROM THE HUB |
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– “Meet the woman who drew tens of thousands of protesters to Franklin Park,” by Zoe Greenberg and Stephanie Ebbert, Boston Globe: “Monica Cannon-Grant began her day on Thursday as she begins most days: grocery shopping for 1,700 people. Wearing a black T-shirt printed with the words ‘I can’t breathe,’ she lifted barrels of mayonnaise and enormous tins of tuna into her Restaurant Depot cart. ‘Today is the first memorial for George Floyd,’ she said quietly as she rolled the cart down the aisle. She has not had much time to grieve lately, or even to rest .”
– “Putting On Masks And Praying For Sun: How Mass. Restaurants Are Reopening,” by Callum Borchers, WBUR: “Frank DePasquale is a restaurateur. But on a recent morning, he and and some employees were shoveling mulch in 80 degree weather instead of wielding spatulas in the heat of the kitchen. Starting Monday, Massachusetts restaurants can serve sit-down meals again, after being limited to takeout since mid-March due to the coronavirus pandemic.”
– “Protesters call for ‘justice now;’ Walsh says he’ll ‘reallocate some’ of police budget,” by Lisa Kashinsky, Boston Herald: “Hope Coleman’s voice still quavers when she talks about the day her son was shot to death by police. She recounted the heartbreaking loss with purpose Sunday to thousands of protesters who gathered on City Hall Plaza to denounce police brutality and call for defunding the force just hours after the mayor said he’d reallocate ‘some’ of the police budget.”
– “Councilors look to defund police programs, force reforms,” by Milton J. Valencia, Boston Globe: “Amid a growing national movement to redirect police department funding to public health and violence prevention efforts, several Boston city councilors on Friday vowed to use the upcoming municipal budget process to force changes in the Boston Police Department. Councilors this week began to take an uncharacteristically skeptical look at police spending, in the wake of massive protests of police brutality and racism in and around Boston.”
– “Wu seeks reports on ‘militarized’ weapons, tactics used by Boston Police,” by Sean Philip Cotter, Boston Herald: “City Councilor Michelle Wu has filed an order requiring Mayor Martin Walsh to hand over data on how many ‘military-style’ weapons and vehicles the Boston Police Department has — and how the force used them to handle the protests over the past week. ‘We should be moving toward demilitarized law enforcement,’ Wu told the Herald.”
– “Despite COVID Risks, Experts And Officials Support Public Demonstrations,” by Adam Reilly, WGBH News: “On June 1, after hours of peaceful protest turned into rioting and looting in Boston, Mayor Marty Walsh met the press. He praised what he called the ‘vast majority’ of demonstrators, condemned the violent few, and then admitted there is real risk that protesting now will spread COVID-19.”
– “UMass Boston no longer allows Massachusetts State Police to use campus as staging area for protests, events,” by Scott J. Croteau, MassLive.com: “Following criticism from students, UMass Boston will no longer allow Massachusetts State Police to use the campus as a staging area for protests and other events. In a message to the UMass Boston community, Interim Chancellor Katherine Newman and UMass Boston Police Chief Donald Baynard said the university’s campus was tapped for access to parking spaces following a ‘long-running practice among the commonwealth’s public safety agencies of providing mutual support.’”
– “Boston Board Up has been meeting the demands of businesses trying to protect storefronts,” by Steve Annear, Boston Globe: “Ask Boston Board Up owner Lou Falzarano what business has been like since last Sunday’s peaceful protests gave way to a violent and chaotic scene in downtown Boston that night, and he’ll tell you… Wait a minute, he has a phone call. Anyway, sorry. He’ll tell you that ... hang on, hang on. He’s getting another call.”
– “Former Northeastern deputy AD was walking to Whole Foods. Then the police officers surrounded him. One drew his gun,” by Hanna Krueger, Boston Globe: “Tim Duncan admits, with some embarrassment, that his house on Eddy Street in Newton is in a prime location, not far from Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s on Washington Street…The 50-year-old, who is not related to the former NBA star of the same name, and his wife decided to walk to Whole Foods on May 20 after a day spent packing up that Eddy Street residence.”
– “Cardinal O’Malley says ‘four rogue police officers’ murdered George Floyd in pointed letter on racism,” by Jeremy C. Fox, Boston Globe: “The archbishop of Boston said ‘four police officers [saw] themselves entitled to murder a black man’ in the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis last month, as he denounced racism in a blunt letter Friday that also acknowledged the Roman Catholic Church’s ‘historical complicity in slavery.’ Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley, who first spoke out on May 30 about Floyd’s death, took a more forceful tone Friday.”
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| PRIMARY SOURCES |
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– “AFT Massachusetts endorses Markey for re-election,” by Abigail Feldman, Boston Globe: “One of the state’s most powerful labor unions has endorsed US Senator Edward M. Markey’s re-election campaign. The American Federation of Teachers Massachusetts, a chapter of one of the nation’s largest teachers unions, announced Saturday night that it has endorsed Markey, who is seeking his second full-term in the Senate. He is being challenged for the Democratic nomination by Congressman Joseph P. Kennedy III of Newton in the September primary.”
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| PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES |
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– “The MBTA says it will no longer bus police ‘to or from’ protests,” by Nik DeCosta-Klipa, Boston.com: “The MBTA says it will no longer bus police to protests, following a request from members of the agency’s oversight board. ‘At the direction of several members of the MBTA’s Fiscal and Management Control Board, effective today, June 5, the MBTA will no longer provide transportation for non-MBTA law enforcement personnel to or from public demonstrations on MBTA buses,’ Joe Pesaturo, a spokesman for the T, said in an email Friday.”
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| DAY IN COURT |
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– “Judge rules Interior Department decision on Mashpee Wampanoag violates law,” by John Hilliard, Boston Globe: “A US District Court judge has ordered the federal Department of the Interior to reconsider its 2018 decision that threatened the status of the Mashpee Wampanoag, writing that the agency didn’t follow its own legal guidance in making that determination. In 2018, the Mashpee Wampanoag filed a federal lawsuit in an effort to retain sovereignty over the tribe’s reservation, after the Department of the Interior determined the government could not hold the land in trust for the tribe.”
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| THE PRESSLEY PARTY |
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– “Ayanna Pressley is leading legislation to end qualified immunity. Here’s what that means.” by Nik DeCosta-Klipa, Boston.com: “Despite the national protests against — and mounting examples of — excessive use of force by police, officers remain shielded from being held legally responsible except in the most clear-cut cases. Rep. Ayanna Pressley wants that to change.”
– “Warren, Pressley introduce bill to make it a crime for police officers to deny medical care to people in custody,” by Tal Axelrod, The Hill: “Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) announced Friday they will introduce a bill that would hold law enforcement officers criminally liable for not providing medical care to people in their custody. The two Massachusetts lawmakers will bring forth the Andrew Kearse Accountability for Denial of Medical Care Act, named after Andrew Kearse.”
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| TRUMPACHUSETTS |
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– “Fall River veteran says attack won’t keep him from supporting Trump,” by Joe Dwinell, Boston Herald: “Charlie Chase has a message for the guy accused of beating him up for holding a Trump 2020 sign: ‘You will not scare me away!’...Chase said the middle of his back ached after the attack, but the nonstop calls of support have eased his pain — especially kind words from Donald Trump Jr.”
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| DATELINE D.C. |
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– “Romney marches in Floyd protest 'to make sure people understand that black lives matter,'” by Paul LeBlanc and Ted Barrett, CNN: “Republican Sen. Mitt Romney on Sunday marched in a Washington, DC, protest after the death of George Floyd in a break from other GOP lawmakers who have largely aligned behind President Donald Trump's militarized response to nationwide unrest. Romney told a Washington Post reporter that he was participating in the demonstration ‘to make sure that people understand that black lives matter.’”
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| ABOVE THE FOLD |
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— Herald: “COMING TOGETHER,” — Globe: “Shops, restaurants scramble to open," "Scholar bringing antiracist expertise," "Crowd alerts a work in progress.” |
| THE LOCAL ANGLE |
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– “Pandemic complicates planning for hurricane season,” by Geoff Spillane, Cape Cod Times: “The Atlantic hurricane season began last week, and reimagining regional congregate shelter sites is a priority for state and Barnstable County emergency management professionals. The typical scenario of packing evacuees and cots into a high school gymnasium during an emergency could pose significant public health risks if social distancing and medical screening controls are not followed.”
HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY – to Rianna Mukherjee, field director for Ceylan Rowe's state legislative campaign, who celebrated Friday.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY – to Bill Douvris, Joseph Prezioso, David Ciampi, Michael Emanuel Vallarelli and Ben Case.
NEW EPISODE: PROTESTS AND PATHS FORWARD – On this week’s Horse Race podcast, host Jennifer Smith speaks with Boston City Councilor Andrea Campbell about recent protests against police brutality, and policy solutions. 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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