GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS.
PROGRAMMING NOTE: I’m going on vacation... to my backyard! Massachusetts Playbook won’t publish the week of July 20. I’ll be back in your inbox on Monday, July 27. In the meantime, reach me at smurray@politico.com.
FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: MARKEY RELEASES TAX RETURNS — Sen. Ed Markey is releasing a batch of tax returns dating back to 2013 this morning, and his primary opponent Rep. Joe Kennedy III plans to release his own returns in the coming days.
Markey's newly-posted taxes span his 6-year term in the Senate, and he's calling on Kennedy to do the same for the time he's been in the House. Markey's decision to make his taxes public came after a POLITICO inquiry, and the documents show the Malden Democrat Markey filed separately from his wife, physician Dr. Susan Blumenthal.
"I am releasing my full tax returns for the years I have been in the U.S. Senate because it is important for the voters of Massachusetts to have the information they need," Markey said in a statement to POLITICO. "I challenge my opponent Congressman Kennedy to join me in releasing his full tax returns for his time in Congress so that voters can compare and inform their decisions.”
"Joe is happy to release his tax returns and will do so in the coming days," Kennedy spokesperson Emily Kaufman told me.
In the state's last blockbuster Senate race, Scott Brown and Elizabeth Warren both released their tax returns during the 2012 showdown. Warren released another batch when she ran for president, and released her 2019 return in May.
And while it's still a little unusual, the trend is catching on in some primary races this year. All but one of the Democrats running to replace Rep. Joe Kennedy III plan to release their tax returns ahead of the primary, WPRI reports. Plus, House Ways and Means chair Richard Neal and his Democratic primary opponent Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse released their tax returns last year. Markey's tax returns.
DEMS POUR THEIR OWN CASH INTO CONGRESSIONAL RACE — Candidates running to replace Rep. Joe Kennedy III poured nearly $1.5 million of their own money into the Democratic primary race this spring and summer, according to this quarter's campaign finance reports. The second quarter of the year began April 1 and ended June 30.
The top spender is former Wall Street regulator Ihssane Leckey, who gave her campaign $700,000 this quarter. Newton City Councilor Becky Grossman gave herself $350,000 this month, her campaign said, and tech entrepreneur Chris Zannetos gave himself $300,000. Also self-funding are Dr. Natalia Linos, who gave her campaign $45,000 this quarter and former White House aide Dave Cavell gave his campaign $20,000, according to his FEC filing.
That leaves four candidates: Newton City Councilor Jake Auchincloss, former Gov. Deval Patrick aide Jesse Mermell, attorney Ben Sigel and City Year co-founder Alan Khazei, who did not self-fund over the last several months.
At least one candidate caught some criticism for loaning her campaign money. Leckey's former finance director Rachel Craig blasted the Brookline Democratic socialist on Twitter on Thursday. Leckey's campaign declined to comment.
"This is what we call in the business, 'buying a seat,'" Craig wrote on Twitter. Craig was laid off by the campaign in December.
Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Get in touch: smurray@politico.com.
TODAY — Sen. Ed Markey begins a bus tour with stops in Fall River, New Bedford, and Taunton. Rep. Joe Kennedy III promotes his new jobs program with stops in Taunton, Plymouth, Buzzards Bay, Barnstable and Dennis. State Sen. Barry Finegold and state Rep. John Lawn voting in a panel hosted by the Kennedy Institute and moderated by Pam Wilmot of Common Cause Massachusetts. Sen. Elizabeth Warren and former CFPB Director Richard Cordray discuss consumer protection and financial justice in a webinar hosted by Americans for Financial Reform. Boston Mayor Marty Walsh is a guest on WGBH.
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 | THE LATEST NUMBERS |
– “Massachusetts reports 11 new coronavirus deaths, 143 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday,” by Tanner Stening, MassLive.com: “Massachusetts health officials said on Thursday that another 11 people have died from coronavirus. The death toll now stands at 8,163. Officials also confirmed another 143 cases of the virus, for a total of at least 106,271.”
| DATELINE BEACON HILL |
– “$1.1 billion budget bill packed with local earmarks,” by Shira Schoenberg, CommonWealth Magazine: “The Legislature sent Gov. Charlie Baker a $1.1 billion supplemental budget bill on Thursday, an indication of the staggering sums the state is spending responding to the coronavirus pandemic. The 57-page bill also includes around $35 million –– 24 pages worth –– of local earmarks, inserted by lawmakers looking to help their constituents, mostly with coronavirus-related expenses.”
– “Baker faults decision to shift data collection from CDC,” The Associated Press: “Gov. Charlie Baker is criticizing a decision by the Trump administration to shift the collection of hospital data related to the coronavirus pandemic in the U.S. from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to a private technology firm.
– “Native American advocates revive push to change Massachusetts flag, seal as bill moves forward on Beacon Hill,” by Steph Solis, MassLive.com: “As monuments and sculptures across the country come under scrutiny, Native American advocates in Massachusetts revived a push for a change of the state flag and seal before the end of the two-year legislative session.”
– “Millions of Massachusetts applications for mail-in ballots are in the mail,” by John R. Ellement, Boston Globe: “Millions of applications for mail-in ballots are arriving across Massachusetts Thursday, but civil rights groups remain skeptical that Secretary of State William Galvin will comply with a new law aimed at increasing voter participation during the pandemic and in future elections.”
– “Gov. Charlie Baker announces $19.6 million for homelessness prevention, food assistance, as he weighs eviction moratorium deadline,” by Steph Solis, MassLive.com: “Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker announced the state will disburse $19.6 million that he says will help fund homelessness prevention, food assistance and job training in communities across Massachusetts during the coronavirus pandemic.”
– “Veterans tell Baker: Listen to us,” by Shira Schoenberg, CommonWealth Magazine: “A day after independent investigator Mark Pearlstein released his scathing report on what went wrong with the coronavirus outbreak at the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home, Gov. Charlie Baker released a bill that would implement several reforms recommended by the report.”
– “Transportation And Police Reform: Big Differences Separate House and Senate Massachusetts State House,” by Mike Deehan, WGBH News: “In the final days of it's 2020 formal session, the Massachusetts Legislature appears split on two of the session's most pressing issues: police reform and transportation financing during the pandemic.”
| WHAT CITY HALL IS READING |
– “Marty Walsh, Michelle Wu tangle over Boston Resiliency Fund,” by Sean Philip Cotter, Boston Herald: “Mayor Martin Walsh and City Councilor Michelle Wu are publicly trading barbs in the media over the city’s coronavirus response in an exchange that could be a preview of the 2021 mayoral race. Wu on Thursday declared that Walsh’s Boston Resiliency Fund creates ‘conflicts of interest’ — a criticism the mayor slammed as the councilor playing politics with an important COVID-19 measure.”
| FROM THE HUB |
– “Boston superintendent facing revolt among high school headmasters,” by Malcolm Gay, Boston Globe: “One year into her tenure leading Boston Public Schools, Superintendent Brenda Cassellius is facing open rebellion from the city’s high school leaders who are publicly attacking one of her signature initiatives, calling it ‘deeply flawed’ and ‘a top-down exercise in poor planning.’”
– “Walsh Says Boston Stepping Up Outreach To Latino Communities Amid Pandemic,” by Paul Singer, WGBH News: “Mayor Marty Walsh said Thursday the city is stepping up efforts to combat a rise in COVID-19 cases in the city’s Latino community by increasing outreach and testing in Boston’s Hispanic neighborhoods. ‘We are seeing higher than average positive [test] rates in the Latino community,’ Walsh said at his regular COVID press conference.”
– “29% Of Mass. Nursing Homes Refused Patients Who’ve Used Opioids, Study Finds,” by Martha Bebinger, WBUR: “Twenty-nine percent of nursing facilities in Massachusetts refused to take patients in 2018 who had a history of drug use and needed post-hospital care. The findings are in a study out of Boston Medical Center’s Grayken Center for Addiction. Researchers said they were surprised to see ‘do not take people who use drugs’ or ‘do not accept methadone patients’ in comments explaining why skilled nursing and rehab centers rejected a referral.”
| PRIMARY SOURCES |
– FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: “International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 4 Endorses Jake Auchincloss for Congress,” from the Auchincloss campaign: “The International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 4 chapter has endorsed Jake Auchincloss for Massachusetts’ 4th Congressional seat. IUOE Local 4 represents more than 5,000 heavy equipment operators, mechanics, surveyors, equipment house employees, wastewater technicians, and apprentices throughout Eastern Massachusetts.”
– FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: “Three More Massachusetts Democratic Party State Committee Members Back Grossman for Congress,” from the Grossman campaign: “Today, Becky Grossman’s campaign announced that three Massachusetts Democratic Party State Committee members, Nazda Alam, Sam Liao, and Benjamin Bloomenthal have endorsed her candidacy in the 4th Congressional District. They join seven other Democratic State Committee Members in supporting Grossman’s campaign.”
– FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: “IBEW Local 103 Endorses Kevin Honan,” from the Honan campaign: “Today, IBEW Local 103 endorsed State Representative Kevin Honan citing his commitment to working families and supporting the Massachusetts green economy. ‘We are grateful for the work Representative Kevin Honan has done throughout his career to help improve the lives of working families,’ said IBEW Local 103 Business Manager Lou Antonellis.”
– “Records detail money trails in Neal, Morse congressional race,” by Dusty Christensen, Daily Hampshire Gazette: “Candidates running for the U.S. House seat in the 1st Congressional District filed campaign finance reports on Wednesday, offering the last look at their fundraising and spending before the Sept. 1 Democratic primary election. The quarterly filings with the Federal Election Commission, or FEC, show that incumbent U.S. Rep. Richard Neal, D-Springfield, raised $336,920 during the period from April 1 to June 30.”
| DAY IN COURT |
– “Charlie Baker must pick a person of color for the SJC,” by Shirley Leung, Boston Globe: “It shouldn’t take a historic moment of racial reckoning to compel Governor Charlie Baker to diversify the Supreme Judicial Court. But here we are. The seven-member court is down to one justice of color — Kim Budd, a Black woman whom Baker appointed in 2016. With Justice Barbara Lenk set to retire next month, the governor has another chance to reshape the court.”
– “Attorney General Maura Healey suing online vape company ‘Puff Bar’ alleging it sold flavored tobacco products in Massachusetts,” by Tanner Stening, MassLive.com: “Attorney General Maura Healey is suing an online e-cigarette company called ‘Puff Bar’ for selling disposable flavored tobacco products in Massachusetts in violation of state law, her office on Thursday.”
| WARREN REPORT |
– “Elizabeth Warren wants answers on Facebook’s fact-checking loophole,” by Rebecca Heilweil, Vox: “Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Tom Carper, Brian Schatz, and Sheldon Whitehouse are demanding more information from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg about a reported ‘loophole’ for climate misinformation in Facebook’s fact-checking program.”
| FROM THE DELEGATION |
– “House Ethics panel finds no violation by freshman Democrat Trahan,” by John Bresnahan, POLITICO: “The House Ethics Committee has cleared Democratic Rep. Lori Trahan over allegations that the freshman lawmaker failed to properly disclose the source of $300,000 in personal funds she loaned to her congressional campaign in 2018. Conservative groups filed complaints against Trahan following her 2018 victory, claiming that she failed to properly disclose all her personal financial assets until after winning her House race.”
– “Markey, Pressley Push Feds To Install Air Quality Monitors In Chelsea,” by Miriam Wasser, WBUR: “Between the daily exhaust of 37,000 trucks, huge piles of road salt, tanks of jet and heating fuel and various other industrial activities, Chelsea is one of the most polluted cities in New England. Its residents have higher than average rates of asthma, heart disease, lung disease and cancer. And as has been well documented, it’s experienced the highest rate of COVID-19 infections in the commonwealth.”
| THE CLARK CAUCUS |
– “Katherine Clark on MSNBC: We can’t have a healthy economy without investing in child care,” by Mark Gartsbeyn, Boston.com: “Child care is in crisis in America, and Rep. Katherine Clark says she’s fighting to fix it. Around 40% of child care providers say they’ll be forced to permanently close without more public assistance in the shadow of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a report published by the National Association for the Education of Young Children this week.”
| KENNEDY COMPOUND |
– “New House bill seeks equal pay, protections for growing legions of temporary workers,” by Eli Rosenberg, The Washington Post: “Temporary workers would get paid the same as permanent workers for doing the same work under a bill Democrats introduced in the House on Thursday. The bill, which was introduced by Reps. Joe Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Emanuel Cleaver II (D-Mo.), would also ensure temporary workers receive information that clearly describes the work they are going to do, their hours, pay rate and information about their worksite employers, at least two days before they begin work.”
“Joe Kennedy says family trusts have divested from fossil fuel companies,” by Nik DeCosta-Klipa, Boston.com: “During a Senate primary race forum Wednesday night, Rep. Joe Kennedy III was asked if he would commit to divesting from the fossil fuel industry. It turns out that he — or, to be more specific, his family — recently did.”
– “Sara Bareilles, Kelli O’Hara, Rita Moreno, More Set for Broadway Sings for Joe Kennedy III Concert,” by Andrew Gans, Playbill: “In conjunction with the Campaign for Kennedy for Massachusetts, Group5 Productions will present Broadway Sings for Joe Kennedy III beginning July 21. The 30-minute, pre-taped virtual concert, which will be followed by a Q&A moderated by Tony and Oscar winners Benj Pasek and Justin Paul.”
– “Joe Kennedy, a Top Recipient of Hedge Fund Cash, Declined to Back Tax Fairness Act,” by Donald Shaw, Sludge: “In his campaign to unseat progressive stalwart Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Rep. Joe Kennedy (D-Mass.), the grandson of former attorney general Robert F. Kennedy, has painted himself as a reformer who will work for the people who have been disenfranchised by the political system.”
| MARIJUANA IN MASSACHUSETTS |
– “Regulators, advocates press Legislature to follow through on promise of marijuana equity,” by Dan Adams, Boston Globe: “Suddenly, equity is on the lips of politicians across the country as lawmakers scramble to respond to a historic national movement seeking racial justice and fairness. But in Massachusetts, one industry was always supposed to equitable: the legal marijuana business, created by voters in 2016 after an unsuccessful century-long ‘war’ on the drug that disproportionately targeted Black people.”
| ABOVE THE FOLD |
— Herald: “FIGHTIN' WORDS," "HOT ON THE HILL,” — Globe: “A call to expose volunteers to the virus," "School leaders take on Cassellius.”
| FROM THE 413 |
– “Turners Falls may be renamed because of association with Native American massacre,” by Cori Urban, Springfield Republican: Will the name ‘Turners’ be eliminated from the Montague village of Turners Falls just as the ‘Indian’ mascot was removed from Turners Falls High School? An online petition requesting the name change because it honors a man who led a massacre of Native Americans has garnered more than 2,500 signatures, while another seeking to preserve the status quo has more than 1,300 backers.”
– “Pittsfield City Council: Social media post sparks acrimony,” by Amanda Burke, The Berkshire Eagle: “Councilor Earl Persip III has condemned Councilor Chris Connell for sharing a Facebook post of a widely circulated article that falsely claims that Irish indentured servants were enslaved in the American colonies. Persip responded to Connell's sharing of the article in a Facebook post of his own, in which he criticized Connell for sharing a post whose claims about Irish ‘slaves’ repeatedly have been discredited.”
| THE LOCAL ANGLE |
– “This City's Coronavirus Safety Measures Could Become Best Practices,” by Nadine Sebai, NPR: “When the meatpacking industry in the U.S. started seeing a rise in COVID-19 cases, local officials in New Bedford, Mass., worried that their city was next. But the city took action, issuing emergency orders that safety experts say should be a model for workplaces across the U.S., if those orders can be properly enforced.”
– “Cape Hotels Were Almost Fully Booked Over July 4th Weekend, As Travel Starts To Rebound In State,” by Zeninjor Enwemeka, WBUR: “Despite the pandemic, hotels on Cape Cod were almost fully booked July 4th weekend, according to data from the Cape Cod Commission. It's a sign that that summer travel is returning to the region, however slowly. Before the holiday weekend, hotel occupancy was down 48% the last week of June (Sunday through Thursday) compared to the same period last year.”
| MEDIA MATTERS |
– Ally Donnelly leaves NBC10 Boston after nearly two decades in the biz. Tweet.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY – to Rep. Katherine Clark, who is 57; Katie Zezima, WaPo deputy America editor; R. Kevin Ryan, COS for Rep. Stephen Lynch; Christine Haughney, Chanel Prunier, former Republican National Committeewoman; Rep. Katherine Clark alum Lauren Pardi; Brendan Beroff, Jacob Watts and John Dacey (h/t Meher Gandhi).
HAPPY BIRTHWEEKEND – to Saturday birthday-ers state Rep. Paul Schmid, Sarah Iselin, EVP of government programs and diversified business at GuideWell and Florida Blue; Democratic activist Michael Bakshi and Emerson College lecturer Keri Thompson. And to Sunday birthday-ers former state Rep. Jeffrey Sanchez, Milton state Sen. Walter Timilty, candidate for state representative Jordan Meehan, Paula Pacheco and Google’s Catherine Cloutier.
DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS - The MassGOP held its recent candidate meeting in Woburn, not Worcester.
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TRANSLATING GLOBAL PUBLIC HEALTH : For the next three months, our Global Translations newsletter, sponsored by Bank of America, will feature a spotlight focus on global public health. This week, Ryan Heath examines mounting criticism of the World Health Organization, and what Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is doing to fight back. Stay on top of emerging global news and trends that you might otherwise miss. Subscribe to our Global Translations newsletter today.
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