Middleboro Review 2: POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook: Harris lends a not-so-needed hand

Thursday, November 3, 2022

POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook: Harris lends a not-so-needed hand

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MASS. CONFUSION — Anyone looking for an answer as to why Vice President Kamala Harris was in reliably blue Massachusetts stumping for Democrats who are all leading their Republican rivals by double digits in polls didn’t get much of one yesterday.

Maybe it was the personal connections — though those were hardly mentioned. Maybe it was in preparation for an eventual presidential run, as the Boston Globe posits . Maybe it was a way for Harris to deliver the Biden administration’s closing message to a friendly crowd — minus a few hecklers quickly escorted out — in a media market that extends into New Hampshire.

“What you do here, over these next six days, really matters. It really matters. It matters who you talk to — your neighbors, your friends,” Harris told the few hundred people gathered at the Reggie Lewis Center. And, perhaps in a nod to places with more competitive races, she added: “Call your cousins living in other states.”

Or maybe it was as simple as a barrier-breaking vice president coming to campaign for a slate of statewide candidates who are poised to shatter several glass ceilings next week. That was, after all, the message delivered by speaker after speaker.

Vice President Kamala Harris, center, is joined on the stage by Attorney General nominee Andrea Campbell, left, and Massachusetts Attorney General and Democratic candidate for Gov. Maura Healey during a campaign rally in support of the statewide Massachusetts Democratic ticket, Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2022, in Boston. (AP Photo/Mary Schwalm) | AP

Whatever the reason, Republican gubernatorial nominee Geoff Diehl’s campaign interpreted Harris’ Bay State swing to mean “the Democratic ticket is losing.” Well…

UMass Lowell will release a poll today showing Diehl trailing Democrat Maura Healey by 27 points. Diehl and his campaign have questioned the methodology of some general election polls. But no matter the pollster, they’ve all shown him behind by double digits .

Democrats continue to lead down the ballot statewide: Andrea Campbell is up 55 percent to 28 percent over Jay McMahon in the attorney general's race; Secretary of State Bill Galvin leads Republican Rayla Campbell 58 percent to 24 percent; and state Sen. Diana DiZoglio leads GOP auditor nominee Anthony Amore 44 percent to 29 percent, with 19 percent of likely voters undecided in that contest. The poll was conducted Oct. 18-25 and has a margin of error of 4.1 percentage points. It will be online later today .

The real intrigue, then, comes with the ballot questions. Sixty-one percent of respondents would vote “yes” on Question 1, the so-called millionaires tax, while 34 percent would vote “no.” More than half of respondents, 53 percent, said they would vote “yes” on Question 4 to keep the new law granting undocumented immigrants access to driver’s licenses, while 39 percent said they would vote “no” to repeal it. That’s similar to recent polling.

Fewer pollsters have surveyed ballot Questions 2 and 3, which would regulate dental insurance and expand alcohol licenses, respectively. The UMass Lowell poll found 63 percent support for Question 2 and 21 percent opposition. The fate of Question 3 is murkier — 45 percent of respondents would vote “yes” on the measure, while 40 percent would vote “no.”

GOOD THURSDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Harris notably came and went without setting foot in neighboring states where Democrats are facing far tougher fights. But a separate UMass Lowell poll of New Hampshire likely voters shows vulnerable Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan up 10 points over Republican Don Bolduc.

That’s a stark contrast from other recent surveys that have shown a much tighter race. Pollster John Cluverius contends the race “is not as close as polling averages say it is” even if his is an outlier. The UMass Lowell survey, which has a margin of error of 5.1 percentage points, was conducted Oct. 14-25. Since then, outside Republican groups have poured new money into New Hampshire to back Bolduc. The candidates also clashed in a debate last night.

TODAY — Gov. Charlie Baker and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito tour the MPTC Academy at noon in Lynnfield and attend an Inclusive Concurrent Enrollment ceremonial bill signing at 2 p.m. at the State House library. Baker delivers the 2022 Godkin Lecture at the John F. Kennedy Jr. Forum at Harvard’s Institute of Politics at 6 p.m.; Polito attends. Rep. Richard Neal attends a roundtable discussion at Educare in Springfield at 11:15 a.m. Rep. Ayanna Pressley and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu host a roundtable discussion on anti-racism at 10:30 a.m. at the Boston Public Health Commission.

Tips? Scoops? Campaign mailers? Email me: lkashinsky@politico.com .

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DATELINE BEACON HILL

— OH WHAT A RELIEF IT’S NOT: Top lawmakers finally reached an agreement on the Legislature’s long-stalled economic development bill , but they omitted further tax relief from the nearly $3.8 billion deal that also includes a spending bill that closes the books on fiscal 2022.

Top House lawmakers who had telegraphed that outcome again expressed concern Tuesday about pursuing tax breaks on top of the nearly $3 billion already on its way to taxpayers under Chapter 62F given an “uncertain economic future.” But House Speaker Ron Mariano and Ways and Means Chair Aaron Michlewitz, in conversation with reporters and in a statement with Senate leaders, pledged to take a look at permanent tax cuts next session. Still, Senate President Karen Spilka said in an interview with the Boston Globe , “we could and should” have passed those cuts this year.

Lawmakers intend to send the bill through to Gov. Charlie Baker's desk tomorrow, presenting the outgoing Republican with legislation that doesn't include the tax breaks for renters, seniors, families with children and low-income earners that he's spent all year championing.

— More on what’s in the bill from the Globe’s Matt Stout and Samantha J. Gross : “The 203-page bill touches a variety of areas. It would dedicate $350 million toward ‘fiscally strained’ hospitals, $17.5 million for ‘reproductive and family planning services,’ and $112 million to help the MBTA implement safety directives from the Federal Transportation Administration. Another $100 million would go to ‘promote and accelerate’ the use of electric vehicles, while a separate $100 million would flow to the state’s Unemployment Insurance Trust fund to offset estimated overpayments. The bill — backed by a mix of federal stimulus funds and a multibillion-dollar budget surplus — also includes a slew of smaller earmarks for museums, road repairs, and various projects important to individual lawmakers, many of whom are running for reelection Tuesday.”

— And from CommonWealth Magazine’s Shira Schoenberg and Bruce Mohl: “Lawmakers have already delayed the state comptroller from closing the books on the 2022 fiscal year, which state law requires him to do by October 31, by failing to pass a closeout budget bill. This bill will use up the 2022 state surplus and also allocate $510 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act money. That still leaves lawmakers with $1.75 billion in ARPA funds to spend next year.”

— “Mass. tax refund formula flawed, checks will be too high, new report claims,” by Alison Kuznitz, MassLive: “A host of unforeseen problems — including inflation, the COVID-19 pandemic and a separate tax law — collectively activated Chapter 62F and exaggerated refunds due back to residents, according to a new report released Tuesday by the left-leaning Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center.”

— “Baker signs bill curbing step therapy,” by Shira Schoenberg, CommonWealth Magazine: “A patient who is stable on a medication then switches insurance plans can no longer be kicked off that medication by their insurer, under a new law Gov. Charlie Baker signed Tuesday that limits the insurance practice of ‘step therapy.’”

— “Gov. Baker unsure how many workers fired over vaccine mandate took their jobs back,” by Alison Kuznitz, MassLive: “Nearly 50 former Massachusetts state workers faced a Monday deadline to reclaim their old posts in the aftermath of Gov. Charlie Baker’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate last year that led to the firings or voluntary resignations of about 1,000 Executive Department employees. But Baker told reporters Wednesday afternoon he didn’t yet know how many workers had accepted their offers of reinstatement, after they learned about their second chance opportunities in letters dated Oct. 18, according to copies obtained by MassLive.”

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FROM THE DELEGATION

— FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: We’ve heard a lot this governor’s race about affordable housing and a little about climate change. Now Rep. Jake Auchincloss is planning post-election events on both. The first, an affordable housing forum featuring Juana Matias, HUD’s regional administrator for New England, is at 10 a.m. Nov. 9 at Bristol Community College’s Attleboro campus.

“The cost of housing to me is Massachusetts’ single biggest challenge,” Auchincloss said in an interview. “This conference is really about keeping the focus on housing costs and being ready at the federal level to complement the work I know the state is going to continue doing on housing affordability.”

The second is a climate summit featuring former Rep. Joe Kennedy III, former energy and environmental affairs secretary Katie Theoharides, former state Sen. Ben Downing and state Rep. Jeff Roy, who co-chairs the Legislature’s energy committee. That’ll kick off at 8:30 a.m. Nov. 10 at Olin College of Engineering in Needham.

Auchincloss is “still optimistic” that Democrats can keep control of the House despite dour election projections for the party in power. But regardless of the outcome, “we’ve got to be full speed ahead on climate action and energy.”

— THE WARREN REPORT: Sen. Elizabeth Warren unsurprisingly has "a real problem" with Elon Musk owning Twitter. "I don't think any billionaire ought to be the one who has that kind of power to decide how Americans, how people around the world, get a chance to talk to each other," Warren said on "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" last night. Colbert asked Warren if she's blue-check verified — she is, on both of her accounts — presumably to see if she'd be willing to pay for it. "I just don't care," Warren replied.

A message from Delta Dental of Massachusetts:

FROM THE HUB

— “Boston City Council passes redistricting map; hurt from Irish ‘Troubles’ hurled,” by Sean Philip Cotter, Boston Herald: “The City Council has now passed a redistricting map following a meeting punctuated by frustrations, recesses, the announcement of a lawsuit and even some sectarian conflict. At the end of the — long — day, the body passed a version very close to what had been the going map by a 9-4 vote, sending it to Mayor Michelle Wu’s desk. The final ‘unity’ map, from City Councilor Liz Breadon, who’s the redistricting chair, and City Councilor Ricardo Arroyo plus input for a coalition of advocacy groups does the things that they originally sought, which are what made some of their colleagues so mad: it moves a chunk of South Boston out of City Council President Ed Flynn’s District 2 and puts it in City Councilor Frank Baker’s District 3, and moves a chunk of southern Dorchester from D3 into City Councilor Brian Worrell’s D4.”

— “After mayor’s veto, Boston City Council backs away from $125,000 salary for councilors,” by Emma Platoff, Boston Globe: “The Boston City Council on Wednesday reversed course and approved a slightly more modest pay raise for elected officials, backing away from the $125,000 city councilor salary that had drawn public criticism and a veto from the mayor. The council voted 9-4 for a graduated pay raise for councilors that would raise their compensation from the current $103,500 to $115,000 in 2024, $120,000 in 2025, and $125,000 in 2026 — retreating from the quicker increase, to $125,000 in 2024, that had passed unanimously just weeks ago. Mayor Michelle Wu vetoed that increase, though the latest vote provides for more over time than the mayor originally recommended.”

YOU'VE GOT MAIL

— “Race-baiting mailers accuse Biden of discrimination,” by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: “A group launched by one of Donald Trump's former aides is blanketing Massachusetts with political mailers warning white and Asian voters that the Biden administration is pursuing policies designed to hurt them because of their race. … The mailers were paid for by America Legal First, a Washington, D.C.-based organization founded by former top Trump advisor Stephen Miller, who has a long history of pushing hard-line immigration proposals and conservative social policies and espousing white nationalist sentiments.”

CAMPAIGN MODE

— WHAT THEY’RE SAYING: My colleague Sophie Gardner set out into the crowd at the Reggie Lewis Center to ask the question of the day: Why was Vice President Kamala Harris here? Rallygoers had a few ideas:

“Everyone wants to be with a winner, and [Maura] Healey looks like she’s gonna be a winner,” Boston’s Lennox Chase said.

“I presume because New Hampshire is in the Boston media market. I watch New Hampshire ads for Congress, Senate all the time,” Dorchester’s Neil Sullivan said, adding: “We are the capital of New England, you know.”

— SHOW NOTES: We all know outgoing Gov. Charlie Baker’s a Blink-182 fan. But we could be in for a lot of Lizzo if the Healey-Driscoll ticket gets elected. Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll, a known Lizzo fan, uses “Good as Hell” as her walk-out song. Healey walked onstage to Lizzo’s “About Damn Time.”

— FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: Rep. Seth Moulton and state Sen. Diana DiZoglio are endorsing a “yes” vote on Question 2, the Committee on Dental Insurance Quality said. A “yes” vote would require dental insurers to spend at least 83 percent of the premiums they collect on dental care costs, not administrative expenses.

— "Maura Healey wants to be governor. She bristles at the suggestion that she always did," by Matt Stout, Boston Globe: "It took a whole nine days as attorney general-elect for Maura Healey to top a list of Massachusetts Democrats’ best hopes for retaking the governor’s office. ... Healey’s candidacy, it seems, has always been inevitable. Her face tightens talking about it. '‘That’s what you do: You run for AG, and then you run for governor.’ Personally, I bristled against that for years,' the South End Democrat said in a recent interview. 'And, in fact, part of me was, ‘That’s not going to be me.’' Until, of course, it was."

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BIDEN TIME

— “Will the Bidens be back for Thanksgiving? It's looking that way,” by Joshua Balling, Inquirer and Mirror: “It’s looking very likely that President Joe Biden will spend Thanksgiving on Nantucket this year, continuing a family tradition that started in the mid-1970s when he was a senator from Delaware. Lt. Angus MacVicar of the Nantucket Police Department said Monday he has recently been in contact with the Secret Service.”

FROM THE 413

— “Attorney General Maura Healey announces $1.7 million rate reduction for Berkshire Gas customers,” by Jim Kinney, Springfield Republican: “The Massachusetts attorney general’s Office announced Wednesday an agreement with Berkshire Gas Co. reducing its proposed distribution rate increase for 40,000 residential, commercial and industrial gas customers by more than $1.7 million. The deal announced by Attorney General Maura T. Healey also prevents the utility from imposing any other rate increases before November 1, 2025.”

THE LOCAL ANGLE

— “From Senate to sideline: Brown named high school hoops coach,” by Mark Pratt, The Associated Press: “Long before Scott Brown became a Massachusetts state lawmaker, a U.S senator, an ambassador and a law school dean, he coached basketball. Now he’s come full circle. Brown, 63, said Wednesday that he has been named the head coach of the Amesbury High School girls basketball team, which won a state championship last season.”

— “Racial disparities in juvenile justice start with how Black and Latino youth are arrested, report finds,” by Sarah Betancourt, GBH News: “Black teenagers in Massachusetts are four times more likely to be physically arrested than white teens who are facing also legal trouble, according to a new report released Tuesday by the state's Juvenile Justice Policy and Data Board. Latino youth are almost three times more likely to experience that kind of arrest than white youth, in a state where 64% of all 12 to 17 year-olds are white. And these racial disparities prevail despite a 50% drop in overall applications for complaint since 2017.”

— “Lowell mail carrier tried to bribe supervisor with cash in Dunkin’ bag,” by Tom Matthews, MassLive: “A Lowell postal worker admitted Tuesday to attempting to bribe a postal supervisor and to selling them cocaine, United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins’s office said.”

A message from Delta Dental of Massachusetts:

Delta Dental of Massachusetts connects with communities statewide to highlight the importance of oral health. Your oral health is a key predictor of overall health — with direct links to diabetes, heart disease, mental health, and other medical conditions. So, this fall, remind your loved ones – and yourself – to show your mouth some love. Get back to the dentist and remember to practice at-home preventive oral health habits like brushing and flossing regularly. Because the key to good health is right under your nose. Discover the connection between oral and overall health at ExpressYourHealthMA.org.

HEARD ‘ROUND THE BUBBLAH

REWIND — I joined WPRI’s Ted Nesi to help break down the auditor’s race .

SPOTTED — at Vice President Kamala Harris and Massachusetts Democrats’ GOTV rally in Roxbury: Rep. Ayanna Pressley, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, state Sen. Diana DiZoglio, Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll, Treasurer Deb Goldberg, Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden, state Rep. Liz Miranda, Suffolk County Sheriff Steve Tompkins and state Rep. Jamie Belsito.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to former Gov. Mike Dukakis, former gubernatorial hopeful Danielle Allen, Martine David, Medford City Councilor Zac Bears, The Daily Beast’s Jake Lahut, Barbara Zheutlin, Rowan Morris, managing director at Guggenheim Partners and David Case.

NEW HORSE RACE ALERT — The Bay State Banner's Yawu Miller and hosts Jennifer Smith and Lisa Kashinsky pick out what to watch in next week's election. Legislata's Chris Oates does a deep dive on #mapoli Twitter. Subscribe and listen on iTunes and SoundCloud .

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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