WALSH DRAGGED BACK INTO COP DRAMA — Boston Police Commissioner Dennis White appears willing to fight to the bitter end to keep his job — even if it means former Mayor Marty Walsh ends up as collateral damage.
In a video statement released on the eve of his pre-termination hearing before the city, White said he told Walsh that he had been the subject of a 1990s restraining order over "false allegations that I threatened to shoot somebody."
The sworn statement directly contradicts what Walsh has said for months — that he didn’t know about the decades-old domestic abuse allegations against White when he hastily made him police commissioner earlier this year.
The he-said-he-said drama spawned a new batch of less-than-favorable localheadlines for Walsh and frustrated his allies. A source close to the former mayor emphasized that Walsh has been consistent in his statements on the matter and that “at no time was he informed about” the allegations against White until after the commissioner was appointed.
But damaging Walsh isn’t White’s endgame, according to the cop's attorney.
“We are not in this to hurt anyone, including Marty Walsh,” White's attorney Nick Carter told me. “But Dennis White has been wrongly treated and accused, and we’re going to defend Dennis White because he deserves the truth to come out and he deserves to be the commissioner.”
White’s attorneys have released a series of videos in his defense in the run-up to his behind-closed-doors hearing scheduled for later this morning with acting Boston Mayor Kim Janey, who’s then expected to decide the top cop’s fate.
Janey said she wants to “move our city forward” during a Tuesday appearance on GBH’s Boston Public Radio.
But moving to oust White as commissioner could set up a protracted legal battle that could become a distraction for Janey as she pursues reforms within the Boston Police Department.
And it could leave an open sore for Walsh as he navigates his new job as Labor secretary. The hometown controversy has yet to get much traction in Washington, but it’s creeping into national interviews and could come up when Walsh hits the road to promote President Joe Biden’s American Jobs Plan in Pennsylvania today.
GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Massachusetts GOP Chairman Jim Lyons is hosting a party fundraiser at his Andover barn later this month with Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas), according to an invite obtained by POLITICO.
But the more notable guest might actually be former Secretary of Veterans’ Services Francisco Urena, who lost his job last spring when GOP Gov. Charlie Baker’s top health official asked the vet to resign from his post ahead of the release of an outside investigation into the deadly coronavirus outbreak at the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home.
That report is now being called into questionby lawmakers, as is the Baker administration’s treatment of Urena. But Lyons told me Urena’s appearance is rooted in his shared military experience with Crenshaw and nothing more. Urena didn’t respond to a call for comment.
Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Get in touch: lkashinsky@politico.com.
TODAY — Rep. Ayanna Pressley talks coastal flood resiliency during a visit to Chelsea’s Island End Park with local officials at 10:30 a.m. Pressley later joins Boston City Councilor Lydia Edwards and environmental advocates for a climate, jobs and justice press conference at Piers Park in East Boston at 3 p.m. Acting Boston Mayor Kim Janey delivers remarks at a flag raising in recognition of the start of National Caribbean-American Heritage Month at 11 a.m. Sen. Edward Markey visits Horizons for Homeless Children in Roxbury at 11 a.m., and then the Dimock Center at 12:30 p.m. Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Jake Auchincloss visit Triumph Inc.'s Head Start facility in Taunton at 11:30 a.m. Warren then visits Brockton Neighborhood Health Center at 1:30 p.m. Rep. Lori Trahan tours economic development and vaccination sites in Devens with MassDevelopment leader Daniel Rivera, state Sen. Jamie Eldridge and state Rep. Sheila Harrington at 1:30 p.m. Gov. Charlie Baker, Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito and Health and Human Services Sec. Marylou Sudders visit a Market Basket mobile vaccine clinic at 10:30 a.m. in Chelsea. Baker and Polito congratulate the Boston College championship lacrosse team at 12:50 p.m. at the State House.
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THE LATEST NUMBERS
– “Massachusetts reports all-time low average for new coronavirus cases,” by Rick Sobey, Boston Herald: “Massachusetts health officials on Tuesday reported a total of 12 more virus deaths and 179 new infections during the last two days, as the seven-day average of new virus cases hit an all-time low just as the state fully reopens.”
DATELINE BEACON HILL
– “Lawmakers, in split with Baker, seek control of $5.28b,” by Shira Schoenberg, CommonWealth Magazine: “The money is in the bank – and the Massachusetts Legislature is seeking control of it. Massachusetts state government has now received $5.286 billion from the federal government through the American Rescue Plan, which Congress passed and President Biden signed into law in March. On Tuesday, lawmakers took a decisive step to ensure that they, not Gov. Charlie Baker, will have control over how the money is spent. The move raised a potential dispute with Baker’s administration over how quickly the money can be released.”
– “Union wages $250,000 ad offensive against Charlie Baker, charging he take ‘responsibility’ in Soldiers’ Home tragedy,” by Matt Stout, Boston Globe: “Union officials are launching a $250,000 campaign-style attack on Governor Charlie Baker, criticizing the second-term Republican for appointing an ‘incompetent,’ politically connected hire to lead the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home before COVID-19 swept through the facility last spring.”
– “Diana DiZoglio calls for state Senate oversight hearing over Charlie Baker and Holyoke Soldiers’ Home,” by Erin Tiernan, Boston Herald: “A state senator is calling for an oversight hearing following revelations that Gov. Charlie Baker did indeed meet with the disgraced former head of the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home where a deadly coronavirus outbreak claimed the lives of 76 veterans last spring prior to his hiring.”
REPUBLICAN BIGOT Deborah Martell -
– “Governor Baker, other Republicans call on member of GOP State Committee to resign after making anti-gay remarks,” by Emma Platoff, Boston Globe: “Massachusetts Republicans including Governor Charlie Baker are calling on an elected member of the Republican State Committee to resign after she made anti-gay remarks about a GOP congressional candidate.”
–“Gov. Baker proclaims June 2 Mass. Tip-Over Awareness Day,” by Nicole Shih, Worcester Telegram & Gazette: “After 16 years since (Kimberly) Amato’s three-year-old twin daughter Meghan Agnes Beck died on Dec. 18, 2004 from a dresser that toppled while the rest of her family was asleep, Gov. Charlie Baker has proclaimed June 2 Massachusetts Tip-Over Awareness Day.”
CORONAVIRUS UPDATES
– “Massachusetts safety-net hospitals on life support over high coronavirus costs,” by Erin Tiernan, Boston Herald: “Independent regional hospitals that bore the brunt of the state’s coronavirus pandemic are on financial life support, buckling under the high costs of caring for COVID patients and insufficient state and federal aid.”
FROM THE HUB
– “Boston police commissioner says he spoke repeatedly with Walsh about past troubles, claims former mayor knew of restraining order,” by Andrew Ryan and Danny McDonald, Boston Globe: “Police Commissioner Dennis White, fighting for his job on the eve of a termination hearing, released a sworn statement Tuesday in which he recounted telling former mayor Martin J. Walsh that he had been the subject of a restraining order when he was accused in the late 1990s of threatening to shoot his former wife.”
– “Embattled Boston Police Commissioner Dennis White Faces Wednesday Removal Hearing,” by Saraya Wintersmith, GBH News: “The fate of embattled Boston Police Commissioner Dennis White could move one step closer to resolution Wednesday in a hearing with acting Mayor Kim Janey, which will be closed to the public. ‘Right now, we’re going to get through this hearing, we’re going to hear from Commissioner White and do our due diligence moving forward,’ Janey told GBH News’ Boston Public Radio hosts Jim Braude and Margery Eagan during a Tuesday appearance.”
– “Student leaders call on Boston superintendent Cassellius to resign over handling of complaints of unlicensed counseling,” by Naomi Martin, Boston Globe: “Four Boston high school students on Tuesday called for Boston Superintendent Brenda Cassellius to resign over her handling of revelations that student leaders were subjected to an inappropriate form of group therapy.”
– “City Hall makes no child care accommodations for returning employees,” by Stephanie Ebbert, Boston Globe: “The welcome news that Boston is reopening for business landed with a thud last week for many working parents. All city employees are due back at their desks full-time in six weeks, tops. Managers report for duty between two and four weeks. The city’s announcement, which offered no flexibility for those in need of child care, sent some working parents into a panic.”
–“A 5-Year Boston Area Housing Study Shows How Housing Stability Is Tied To Health Outcomes,” by Tibisay Zea and Simón Rios, WBUR: “A five-year study by the Boston Foundation makes the case that housing instability threatens the health of low-income Boston area residents. The Boston Foundation's Health Starts at Home initiative began in 2016, with funding for four local organizations that work on the two issues in question: housing and health care.”
– “Donut redo? Krispy Kreme (again) eyes Boston for expansion,” by Greg Ryan, Boston Business Journal: “Like a hot glazed donut scarfed down in four bites, Krispy Kreme’s initial reign in Greater Boston in the mid-2000s was glorious but brief. But in a new filing ahead of an initial public offering, the chain signaled an interest in giving it another shot in the Hub.”
THE RACE FOR CITY HALL
– City Councilor Annissa Essaibi George appears to be capitalizing on her background as a former teacher and is locking up more moderate voters in the Boston mayoral race, according to a survey released Tuesday by Poll Progressive and the Emancipated Group that showed Essaibi George in the lead. The poll, which consisted of automated calls to landline phones and texts to cellphones, was self-funded and unaffiliated with any campaign.
“We are progressives. We hope a progressive candidate prevails in the race. But we conduct the polling to find out what’s actually happening,” Poll Progressive’s David Fadul told me. Read more on the survey from the Bay State Banner’s Yawu Miller.
– “LGBTQ activists upstage mayoral forum by Boston Pride,” by Stephanie Ebbert, Boston Globe: “Frustrated LGBTQ activists who have been unsuccessfully pushing Boston Pride to diversify its board upended a planned mayoral debate by persuading three leading contenders to abandon the forum for their own. City councilors Andrea Campbell, Annissa Essaibi George, and Michelle Wu dropped out of Boston Pride’s planned Monday debate after being invited to a simultaneous one hastily arranged by activists who are critical of the organization.”
PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES
– “Amtrak's 15-year, $75B proposal includes new round trips between Boston and Springfield,” by Benjamin Kail, MassLive.com: “New round-trip trains between Boston and Springfield are among the expansions and service upgrades proposed in Amtrak’s recently announced 15-year, $75 billion ‘corridor vision’ plan.”
– “Partnering up on the campaign trail,” by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Magazine: “In campaigns in Milton and Needham, like-minded candidates in races with two open seats pooled resources, staff, and voting lists in a bid to broaden their name recognition and their base of support. In both cases, the tag-team approach was successful;each member of the team won with almost identical vote totals.”
DAY IN COURT
– “Court ruling could lead to immigration law reform,” by Scott Merzbach, Daily Hampshire Gazette: “Lucio Perez, who spent 3 ½ years in sanctuary in an Amherst church to avoid deportation to Guatemala, could have his case reopened, and might be able to seek permanent residency in the United States, based on a recent Supreme Court decision, according to his immigration lawyer.”
FROM THE DELEGATION
– “Warren visits Lawrence to bring attention to college food insecurity,” by Allison Corneau, Eagle-Tribune: “(Sen. Elizabeth) Warren visited Lawrence to tout the Student Food Security Act, legislation aimed at addressing food insecurity on college campuses.”
– “Ed Markey tours labs in Billerica and Chelmsford to praise PPP and tout climate work in Massachusetts,” by Stefan Geller, Lowell Sun: “Continuing his tour of local businesses and government agencies across Massachusetts, Sen. Ed Markey visited a pair of laboratories in Billerica and Chelmsford on Tuesday to celebrate the impact they are making in the fight against climate change, and to laud the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) for helping the former survive the pandemic.”
– “Auchincloss tours downtown Attleboro after stops in North Attleboro, Norton,” by George W. Rhodes, The Sun Chronicle: “U.S. Rep. Jake Auchincloss took a walking tour of the city’s downtown Tuesday to learn more about its revitalization efforts and what he can do to help. Earlier in the day he visited North Attleboro and Norton, and on Thursday he’s headed to Somerset.”
THE LOCAL ANGLE
– “After 41 years on the job, Watertown police sergeant who tackled Boston Marathon bomber Tamerlan Tsarnaev retires,” by Travis Andersen, Boston Globe: “Watertown police Sergeant Jeff Pugliese, a 41-year veteran of the force who exchanged gunfire with Boston Marathon bomber Tamerlan Tsarnaev and later tackled him amid the chaos of the manhunt days after the blasts, retired Monday, the last day he could work under state law.”
– “The DNC’s Roger Lau made history. Can he grow Asian American political power, too?” by Deanna Pan, Boston Globe: “In February, (Roger) Lau, 43, was named deputy executive director of the Democratic National Committee, becoming the party’s highest-ranking Asian American staffer. A resident of Somerville (and soon, Washington, D.C.), he had made history two years earlier when, working for Senator Elizabeth Warren, he became the first Asian American to manage a major presidential campaign. Now, at a time of rising anti-Asian bigotry across the country — fueled by the coronavirus pandemic and former president Donald Trump’s racist “Chinese virus” rhetoric — Lau hopes he can use his platform to increase Asian American political power and representation.”
– “Pavement Coffeehouse Employees Move To Unionize; Would Be First Union Café In Mass.,” by Tori Bedford, GBH News: “Employees at Pavement Coffeehouse, a local chain with locations around Greater Boston, have begun the process of forming a union — hoping to become the first coffee shop in the state with a unionized workforce.”
– “Muni Matters: As Longtime Managers Retire, Towns Seek Next Generation of Leaders,” by Meg McIntyre, State House News Service (paywall): “Attracting qualified candidates for small-town positions -- especially in more remote areas -- can be a significant challenge. And as managers and administrators look to advance, some towns can start to feel like a revolving door with new leaders every three or four years.”
– “Natick condemns Confederate flag display at Memorial Day observance,” by Henry Schwan, MetroWest Daily News: “Paul Carew remains anxious about what he calls a ‘fiasco.’ Carew made that statement Tuesday morning, about 24 hours after a man displayed a Confederate flag during a Memorial Day observance on the Natick Common.”
– “Pete Buttigieg pushed to probe MBTA on night of looting, cruiser torching in Boston,” by Marie Szaniszlo, Boston Herald: “Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is being pressed to probe why the MBTA shut down several stations, stranding hundreds last spring, after a Black Lives Matter protest that later turned violent.”
– “First openly gay attorney general hopeful for a future of greater equality: ‘We will get there someday’,” by Tori B. Powell, CBS News: “At the start of the 52nd commemoration of the Stonewall riots, the first openly gay state attorney general said there is plenty to celebrate this Pride Month, while also recognizing the work still left in the fight to advance LGBTQ+ equality.”
– “More than 100 scholars, including 9 from Mass., sign statement warning of threat to American democracy,” by Christina Prignano, Boston Globe: “More than 100 academics on Tuesday issued a stark warning that American democracy is at risk because of efforts by Republican-controlled state legislatures around the country to pass restrictive new voting laws in the wake of the 2020 election.”
– “Editor of JAMA, a Boston University professor, will step down following racial incident,” by Apoorva Mandavilli, New York Times: “Following an outcry over comments about racism made by an editor at JAMA, the influential medical journal, the top editor, Dr. Howard Bauchner, will step down from his post effective June 30.”
TRANSITIONS – Amber Payne joins the Boston Globe as co-editor-in-chief for The Emancipator. Tweet. Tenax Strategies adds Jacob Hicks as an account coordinator leading recruitment for the “Voters for Cures” campaign to their client servicing team.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY – to Kathryn Grosso Gann and Liam Horsman. Happy belated to state Rep. Sally Kerans.
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