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Presented by Biogen and the Lemelson-MIT Program
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GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS.
KENNEDY AND MARKEY DEBATE AMID CHAOS — The last time Sen. Ed Markey and Rep. Joe Kennedy III met on the debate stage, they did it while crowded around a table with two moderators and an audience close behind them.
But when Markey and Kennedy finally squared-off yesterday for the first time in three months, the candidates debated at podiums spaced far apart in a studio without a live audience. Even some of the debate moderators joined by video stream. The post-debate spin room was replaced with a Zoom call.
Last night’s socially-distant debate illustrated how much the world has changed in the last several months amid the coronavirus pandemic and widespread protests against police brutality and racism. Shortly before the debate began, footage of police using tear gas on protesters outside the White House aired on live TV. By the time the debate finished, images of the National Guard rolling down Newbury Street in Boston flashed across social media.
And consider this question to the candidates from debate moderator Janet Wu of WCVB: "Is the pandemic or racism the more immediate danger in your mind?" Both Kennedy and Markey agreed they could not separate the two issues.
What had been shaping up to be a race focused on climate change and whether it's time for a new generation in the Senate has dramatically shifted gears to the dual crises playing out across America. Those original issues still came up in the debate, but the protests and the pandemic took center stage.
AUCHINCLOSS: 2016 LETTER 'A MISTAKE' — Newton City Councilor Jake Auchincloss, a Democrat running in a crowded primary to replace Rep. Joe Kennedy III, is apologizing for comments he made regarding the Confederate flag in 2016.
Auchincloss made the comments four years ago after students displayed a Confederate flag at a Newton school. He wrote a letter to the school superintendent saying the school was right to “denounce this act of bigotry” but urged officials not to punish students because he said it would violate their First Amendment right to free speech. Auchincloss cited the Tinker v. Des Moines landmark Supreme Court case.
“I doubt you would ban a Black Lives Matter banner, for example, and I know you would not ban an LGBT flag, though these might sincerely upset some students,” Auchincloss wrote in the letter.
But asked about the letter this week, Auchincloss said he “should have been a better ally.” The acknowledgment comes as protests spread across the country in response to the death of George Floyd, an African American man who was killed by police in Minneapolis. Auchincloss attended a protest against Floyd's death in Newton over the weekend.
“When this incident happened four years ago, I condemned these students’ actions but argued, with other city councilors, that school officials needed to discipline them without running afoul of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court’s wide latitude for student speech,” Auchincloss said in an email to POLITICO.
“It was a mistake to focus on this distinction, and I wouldn’t do so today. My privilege allowed me to see this as a free speech issue, but I should have focused on the bigger, more important truth: the Confederate flag is a racist symbol of hate that has no place near a school―or frankly, anywhere in our society,” Auchincloss added.
SPECIAL ELECTIONS TODAY — Voters in two state legislative districts will head to the polls today for special elections. Like the special Senate elections last month, voting day was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
In the race to replace former state Rep. Shaunna O'Connell, now the Republican mayor of Taunton, Democrat Carol Doherty and Republican Kelly Dooner are on the ballot. And Democrat Danillo Sena and Republican Catherine Clark are running to replace former Democratic Rep. Jennifer Benson of Lunenburg, now the president of the Alliance for Business Leadership.
Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Get in touch: smurray@politico.com.
TODAY — Rep. Ayanna Pressley, state Sen. Sonia Chang-Díaz, Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins, Suffolk County Sheriff Steve Tompkins, Boston City Council President Kim Janey and Lawrence Mayor Dan Rivera hold a press conference at the State House with the Massachusetts Black and Latino Legislative Caucus.
Organizers from Black Lives Matter Boston and Violence in Boston Inc. hold a rally and vigil. Attorney General Maura Healey speaks to the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce. Sen. Ed Markey joins a NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts webinar.
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A message from Biogen MIT:
The link between biotech and health outcomes is undeniable. We need to overcome educational barriers and inspire young people to learn science. That’s why Biogen and MIT teamed up to bring Virtual Science Learning Lab. For more information, visit: biogen.com/community lab. |
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HAPPENING TODAY AT 9 a.m. EDT – HOW FAST, HOW SOON: REBUILDING AMERICA'S ECONOMY PART II. Join POLITICO chief economic correspondent Ben White today for a virtual interview with Senator Tim Scott, who sits on the Senate Finance Committee. Senator Scott will discuss what additional measures are needed to combat the economic fallout from the pandemic, the role that tax breaks for low-income neighborhoods can have in the recovery, and his work with the Trump administration to address the disproportionate impact that Covid-19 has had on minority communities. REGISTER HERE.
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 | THE LATEST NUMBERS |
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– “Mass. begins reporting ‘probable’ coronavirus cases, pushing death tally over 7,000,” by Jaclyn Reiss, Boston Globe: “The Massachusetts death toll from the coronavirus pandemic surged to more than 7,000 and the total number of cases surpassed 100,000 Monday, as the state announced it had begun including probable as well as confirmed cases in its tallies. The state said that, in using the new figures, it was following guidance from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and trying to be transparent.”
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| DATELINE BEACON HILL |
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– “Gov. Charlie Baker calls out President Donald Trump for ‘incendiary’ rhetoric, says ‘compassion, leadership nowhere to be found’ in White House,” by Benjamin Kail, MassLive.com: “Gov. Charlie Baker on Monday delivered a sharp rebuke of President Donald Trump’s rhetoric on the unrest over George Floyd’s death, deriding what he described as lack of leadership just hours after the president urged governors to “dominate” amid escalating violence on city streets.”
– ‘This burning rage ... is real’: DA Rachael Rollins speaks out on race,” by Jeremy C. Fox, Boston Globe: “Suffolk District Attorney Rachael Rollins on Monday gave a frank and emotional assessment of the response to the the deaths of George Floyd and other Black Americans killed by police, offering her view that the nationwide protests are grounded in the life experience — and anger — that she shares with millions.”
– “Baker says camps, child care can reopen during Phase 2 of reopening,” by Stephanie Ebbert, Travis Andersen and Jaclyn Reiss, Boston Globe: “Massachusetts day camps and child care facilities can open in Massachusetts during Phase 2 of the state’s gradual reopening of the economy amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Governor Charlie Baker said Monday. Baker, speaking during his daily State House briefing, said child care and camps can open during the second reopening phase, which is slated to begin as soon as June 8.”
– “With Some Restrictions, You Can Now Visit A Loved One In A Mass. Nursing Home,” by Miriam Wasser, WBUR: “Ten weeks after asking nursing homes and other senior long-term care facilities to prohibit all outside visitors and non-essential health personnel, the Baker administration is easing the guidelines. Beginning June 3, people can visit friends and family in long-term care facilities as long as they and the facility’s staff adhere to certain rules.”
– “Restaurants will be able to serve booze in outdoor spaces,” by Jessica Bartlett, Boston Business Journal: “When restaurants partially reopen to customers in the coming days, restaurants with liquor licenses will be allowed to serve alcohol in newly established outdoor spaces. The process, laid out by an executive order issued by Gov. Charlie Baker on Monday, bypasses a weeks-long state approval process to expand liquor licenses to outdoor spaces.”
– “Baker: Violent protests won't be tolerated,” by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: “Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker said he was "outraged" by the death of a Minneapolis man in police custody and supports peaceful protests over the incident, but said acts of violence like those that engulfed Boston Sunday night won't be tolerated. Speaking at a briefing on the state's coronavirus response, Baker praised the peaceful demonstrations and law enforcement officials who responded to the protests but he blasted the violence afterward.”
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| FROM THE HUB |
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– “Looting, violence in Boston led to 53 people arrested, police officers and bystanders injured during bedlam that caused ‘untold economic damages,' Mayor Marty Walsh says,” by Jackson Cote, MassLive.com: “Violence that erupted Sunday night following largely peaceful protests in Boston caused dozens of people to be taken to the hospital and led businesses and public spaces to suffer major economic damages, the city’s mayor said Monday.”
– “Demonstrators In West Roxbury Stand In Solidarity With Black Lives Matter Movement,” by Tori Bedford, WGBH News: “Vicma Desir stood with her two children on the edge of the Holy Name rotary in West Roxbury Monday night, holding a ‘Black Lives Matter’ sign in front of her pregnant belly. Around the trio, a crowd of more than 1,000 protesters stood with signs calling for justice and police reform, and took a knee with their fists in the air, in response to the police killing of George Floyd last week in Minneapolis.”
– “Salem Police probing ‘wildly inappropriate’ tweet from official department account,” by Travis Andersen, Boston Globe: “Salem police officials have launched an investigation into a ‘wildly inappropriate tweet’ sent from the department’s official account Monday that called Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh ‘ridiculous’ over state social distancing rules, authorities said. The tweet, since deleted from the Salem Police Department’s official account, made an apparent reference to the Boston protests Sunday on the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers last week.”
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| PRIMARY SOURCES |
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– “Joe Kennedy revives an old charge — with a new twist — against Ed Markey during second Senate debate,” by Nik DeCosta-Klipa, Boston.com: “During the second debate of their increasingly contentious primary race, Sen. Ed Markey and Rep. Joe Kennedy III found themselves in broad agreement on the most pressing issues of the moment, from increased coronavirus relief to confronting institutional racism to Medicare-for-All. The sharpest disagreement between the two Democrats came down to who could deliver.”
– “Sen. Ed Markey picks up host of western Mass. endorsements in primary against Rep. Joe Kennedy III,” by Benjamin Kail, MassLive.com: “Sen. Ed Markey has picked up a host of recent endorsements from local officials based in western Massachusetts, including mayors, city councilors and local school board members in a region taking center stage in a live televised debate with primary challenger Rep. Joe Kennedy III on Monday night.”
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| PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES |
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– “As Things Got Ugly, Protesters Trying to Flee Downtown Boston found MBTA Stops Closed,” by Spencer Buell, Boston Magazine: “‘Peaceful protestors along Tremont Street are asked to vacate the area,” the Boston Police Department wrote in a tweet at 9:40 p.m. ‘If you are a peaceful protestor, the time to vacate and go home is now.’ But anyone who sought to heed that advice and flee the center of activity in Downtown Crossing and Back Bay on public transportation suddenly found themselves out of luck: By that time, major MBTA stops in the area had been closed.”
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| DAY IN COURT |
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– “Businesses, with conservative backing, sue Baker to overturn state of emergency orders,” by Matt Stout, Boston Globe: “A group of salons, restaurants, and religious organizations, with the backing of a local conservative group, sued Governor Charlie Baker in state court Monday in a bid to overturn the emergency powers he’s wielded during the coronavirus pandemic, comparing them to the authority of a king. The lawsuit, filed in Worcester County Superior Court, seeks to void Baker’s March 10 state of emergency order, as well as the dozens of orders he’s issued since.”
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| WARREN REPORT |
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– “Elizabeth Warren Says Trump's Threats to Use Military Against Protesters Places 'Our Democracy in Danger,” by Jeffrey Martin, Newsweek: “Massachusetts Senator and former presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren criticized President Donald Trump's statements that the military could be called in against demonstrators on Monday. Demonstrations have broken out across the U.S. since the death of George Floyd, a black Minneapolis man who died while being detained by a white police officer.”
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| THE PRESSLEY PARTY |
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– “Rep. Ayanna Pressley Calls For Focus To Remain On Peaceful Activism, Passing Legislation That Condemns Police Brutality,” by Kaitlyn Locke, WGBH News: “On Monday, after an hours-long peaceful protest calling for the end of police brutality in Boston turned toward violent clashes between police officers and individuals, Rep. Ayanna Pressley called for the focus to remain on the peaceful activism, and on the reasons why protests and activism remain necessary today — to fight racist policies that have been in place for decades.”
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| MARIJUANA IN MASSACHUSETTS |
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– “Black-owned Boston marijuana store looted in what owners call a ‘targeted’ attack amid protests,” by Dan Adams, Boston Globe: “Pure Oasis, the first Black-run marijuana store to open in Massachusetts, was looted early Monday morning in what its owners are calling a “targeted attack” that coincided with the protests that rocked Boston. Kobie Evans, the co-owner of the shop in the Grove Hall neighborhood, said at least a dozen people entered Pure Oasis after someone broke through the window and opened the front door from the inside around 1:43 a.m.”
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| ABOVE THE FOLD |
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— Herald: “RESPECT OUR CITY,” — Globe: “Walsh, Baker back protesters, their cause, decry violence," "Child care, camps can open during phase two.” |
| FROM THE 413 |
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– “Errors overpaid Baystate Health by $63 million in coronavirus relief; feds won’t say how widespread problem is,” by Peter Goonan, Springfield Republican: “In what may be an issue at hospitals across the nation, federal funding errors overpaid Baystate Health by tens of millions of dollars in coronavirus relief since early April, and the health system will give back nearly half the amount it received.”
– “Springfield officials urge public to remain vigilant on coronavirus as pandemic intersects with nationwide demonstrations,” by Peter Goonan, Springfield Republican: “Local officials said they continue to see positive trends in coronavirus cases, and urged the public to continue its vigilance to stay safe as the virus intersects with police brutality demonstrations nationwide.”
– “South Hadley readies for drive-in Town Meeting,” by Dennis Hohenberger, MassLive.com: “The upcoming Town Meeting will resemble a drive-in movie, sans the double feature. The annual Town Meeting will occur outdoors at St. Theresa of Lisieux Church at 9 E. Parkview Drive on Wednesday, June 17, at 6 p.m., according to Town Administrator Michael Sullivan.”
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| THE LOCAL ANGLE |
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– “Worcester protesters decry racism, call for change,” by Craig S. Semon, Telegram & Gazette: “Hundreds of people peacefully stood together in solidarity Monday night on the Common and then marched in the city streets to express frustration over the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis last week and a desire for fundamental change. The protest was loud, its message emotional.”
– “Protesters advocate for Tewksbury Hospital residents,” by Emma Murphy, The Lowell Sun: “As nursing facilities and jails have come under scrutiny for the risk of high COVID-19 transmissions, a group of Massachusetts residents is calling for similar attention to be paid to psychiatric units across the state. On Sunday a group of about 20 protesters gathered at Tewksbury Public Library to call for more transparency about the living situations for residents in Tewksbury Hospital’s psychiatric units under COVID-19.”
– “Natick squash club is ordered to close,” by Henry Schwan, MetroWest Daily News: “A squash club that bills itself on Facebook as the premier club in MetoWest has been ordered to close because it didn’t comply with a state order in March that only essential business could remain open during the coronavirus outbreak. Cross Courts Squash and Fitness, 19 Tech Circle, received a cease-and-desist order from the Natick Board of Health last Thursday.”
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| MEDIA MATTERS |
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– “TV news truck targeted by vandals following George Floyd protests in Boston,” by Travis Andersen, Boston Globe: “A 7 News crew that covered Sunday’s George Floyd protests in Boston was attacked early Monday by vandals who tossed projectiles at their network truck, shattering the driver’s side window, according to video footage posted by a WHDH-TV reporter. The reporter, Nathalie Pozo, tweeted out video footage of the attack around 5:30 a.m.”
HAPPY BIRTHDAY – to Erin Healy.
NEW EPISODE: ROAM ALONE – On this week’s Horse Race podcast, hosts Steve Koczela , Jennifer Smith, and Stephanie Murray speak with CommonWealth Magazine’s Sarah Betancourt about the state’s unemployment system. 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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A message from Biogen and the Lemelson-MIT Program:
Teachers and parents are struggling to deliver educational continuity during this public health crisis. At the same time, creative solutions abound, including bringing science education and lab experiences to life outside of physical settings. Inspiring young people to learn science, particularly at a time when health innovation is one of the world’s most pressing challenges, requires creative thinking and collaboration. For students historically underrepresented in science, access to education and hand-on exposure to the world of biotechnology can open a lifetime of opportunity. That’s why Biogen and the Lemelson-MIT program teamed up to bring a new Virtual Science Learning Lab to students in Massachusetts and North Carolina. Biogen is working with the Massachusetts Black and Latino Legislative Caucus to engage students in learning directly from, and being mentored by, leading scientists at Biogen and MIT. For more information, visit: biogen.com/community lab. |
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POLITICO Magazine Justice Reform: The Decarceration Issue, presented by Verizon : Over the past decade, the longstanding challenge of criminal-justice reform has emerged into the spotlight with a new twist: Both Republicans and Democrats are on board with reform. But if both parties want to lower the incarceration rate, why are U.S. jail and prison populations still so high? The latest series from POLITICO Magazine searches for answers to this important question and takes a deeper look into what it will take to make progress toward real justice reform. READ THE FULL ISSUE.
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