Middleboro Review 2: POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook: Healey blasts Trump over offshore wind

Thursday, April 18, 2024

POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook: Healey blasts Trump over offshore wind

EXCLUSIVE: LIAR, LIAR, THE WORLD'S ON FIRE — Gov. Maura Healey sees Donald Trump as a threat to Massachusetts’ burgeoning offshore wind industry — and she’s pledging to do everything in her power to make sure he doesn’t blow it down.

Healey blasted Trump for reportedly declaring “I hate wind” while trying to woo oil and gas executives into opening their wallets during a campaign fundraising dinner at his Florida estate last week.

“We can't let Donald Trump get away with continuing to lie , and lie about things that are important to a lot of people — whether it's reproductive rights, or, in this instance, climate,” Healey told Playbook in a phone interview Wednesday.

“I know how important climate is to the people in Massachusetts . I know how important [the offshore wind] industry is to Massachusetts and our economic growth and development,” she continued. “And he's a threat to that.”

Trump’s broadside against the offshore wind industry came over a chopped steak dinner with fossil fuel executives at his waterfront resort, according to The Washington Post , which first reported the president’s remarks. Trump’s campaign didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

But Trump’s distaste for wind energy dates back much further. Wind turbines have attracted the former president’s ire since his time in the White House. His administration held up the Vineyard Wind project.

POORLY INFORMED VOTERS REGURGITATE THE
FOSSIL FUEL INDUSTRY'S DISINFORMATION ABOUT WHALE DEATHS WHEN EVIDENCE PROVES THAT WHALES ARE BEING KILLED BY VESSEL STRIKES AND ENTANGLEMENTS.

HEROIC RESCUERS RISK THEIR LIVES TO REMOVE THE ENTANGLEMENTS.

He has repeated unproven claims from opponents of offshore wind that the construction of turbines is responsible for whale deaths . And on the campaign trail this year, he’s repeatedly pledged to “drill, baby, drill — right away.”

Giant wind turbine blades for the Vineyard Wind project are stacked on large racks in New Bedford, Massachusetts. | Charles Krupa/AP

Healey, meanwhile, has a lot riding on wind power, which she called “critical” to the state’s economy and its transition away from fossil fuels. After pledging in her inaugural address to double the state’s offshore wind targets, the industry faced a series of setbacks last year when developers backed out of their contracts citing rising costs and supply chain disruptions.

But Healey successfully helped push the Biden administration to expand offshore wind tax credits . And the state is now evaluating four new bids to build wind farms off the southern New England coast. Healey declined on Wednesday to provide a status update on the reviews.

“What Donald Trump is suggesting happen — to just shut down renewables and just live or die by fossil fuels — that’s not where we are, that’s not where we need to go,” Healey told Playbook.

Healey has regained her longtime foil now that Trump is again his party’s presumptive presidential nominee — and now that she’s serving as a surrogate for his rival, President Joe Biden.

The governor who has emerged as a leader among Democrats nationally in protecting abortion access has repeatedly hammered Trump for paving the way for restrictions on reproductive care. And she’s also done her part to champion the Biden administration, appearing virtually alongside New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek on Wednesday to tout the president’s workforce agenda during a White House event.

As for how Healey is picking her battles: “Anyone who is a threat … to Massachusetts’ interests and Massachusetts’ economic interests, I’m going to speak out about," she said.

GOOD THURSDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS . Tips? Scoops? Email us: lkashinsky@politico.com and kgarrity@politico.com .

TODAY — Healey has no public events. Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll speaks at an artist talk at the governor’s office at 11 a.m. House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark is honored at MomsRising’s Toddlers’ Choice Awards at 11 a.m. at the Capitol. Auditor Diana DiZoglio speaks at state Sen. Jamie Eldridge ’s annual Senior Conference at 12:30 p.m. in Marlborough.

THE GOLD STANDARD OF POLICY REPORTING & INTELLIGENCE: POLITICO has more than 500 journalists delivering unrivaled reporting and illuminating the policy and regulatory landscape for those who need to know what’s next. Throughout the election and the legislative and regulatory pushes that will follow, POLITICO Pro is indispensable to those who need to make informed decisions fast. The Pro platform dives deeper into critical and quickly evolving sectors and industries—finance, defense, technology, healthcare, energy—equipping policymakers and those who shape legislation and regulation with essential news and intelligence from the world’s best politics and policy journalists.

Our newsroom is deeper, more experienced, and better sourced than any other—with teams embedded in the world’s most active legislative and regulatory power centers. From Brussels to Washington, New York to London, Sacramento to Paris, we bring subscribers inside the conversations that determine policy outcomes and the future of industries, providing insight that cannot be found anywhere else. Get the premier news and policy intelligence service, SUBSCRIBE TO POLITICO PRO TODAY .

WHAT'S ON CAMPBELL'S DOCKET

KELLY AYOTTE IS DESPERATE!
NEW HAMPSHIRE RESIDENTS CLOG MASSACHUSETTS HIGHWAYS TRAVELLING TO GOOD PAYING JOBS THAT NEW HAMPSHIRE LACKS!

NEW HAMPSHIRE RANKS:
EDUCATION #19
FISCAL STABILITY #41
HEALTH CARE #17
INFRASTRUCTURE #30
US NEWS

CAMPBELL’S DEFENSE — New Hampshire gubernatorial candidate and former Sen. Kelly Ayotte is again leaning into the anti-Massachusetts messaging she’s relied on throughout her campaign. She attempted on Wednesday to link what she called Gov. Maura Healey 's "soft-on-crime policies" to the armed robbery of a mail carrier in Nashua that was allegedly carried out by a Lowell man .

But Attorney General Andrea Campbell defended her predecessor during a GBH interview on Wednesday , calling Ayotte's attack “ridiculous.”

"Obviously, our governor used to be the attorney general, and at no point would even law enforcement say that she was soft on crime," said Campbell. That “narrative” mostly comes from Republicans, Campbell said, who conflate criminal legal reforms, like the blanket marijuana pardons Healey announced, with lax criminal punishments.

Campbell also defended herself amid her own high-profile legal battle with the town of Milton over its refusal to comply with the MBTA Communities Act.

“We've been reasonable every step of the way. It's not about an adversarial process or working against a municipality or elected leaders or even residents,” Campbell said of the lawsuit she brought against the town. A lot is riding on the case for Campbell, but she’s “confident” the state's Supreme Judicial Court will rule in her favor.

FROM THE HUB

— “Boston plans sweeping replacement of city parking meters,” by Adam Reilly, GBH News: “Over the next two years, the city of Boston plans to replace the vast majority of its existing single- and dual-space parking meters with new kiosks that accommodate multiple spaces and provide additional payment options, the city’s transportation commissioner said Wednesday.”

KENNEDY COMPOUND

CAMELOT CAVALRY — Many of the Kennedys are already publicly behind President Joe Biden (except for the one running against him, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ). Now, they're officially endorsing the president at a campaign event in Philadelphia today.

Former Rep. Joe Kennedy III and his father, Joe Kennedy II , Kerry Kennedy and Rory Kennedy are among the family members joining Biden for the big announcement. The Biden administration's special envoy to Northern Ireland will also introduce the president at grassroots organizing event, and members of the family will make calls to voters and head out to knock on doors.

YAHD SIGNS AND BUMPAH STICKAHS

SURVEYS SAY — The Harvard Institute of Politics is out with its latest poll of young voters across the country, and it’s got some warning signs for both Biden and former President Donald Trump .

Trump is cutting into Biden’s lead among voters ages 18 to 29. The Democrat leads the Republican 45 percent to 37 percent among the young adults, according to the Harvard Youth Poll. But that margin is much smaller than the one Biden held over Trump at this point in the 2020 election — 8 percentage points now versus 23 percentage points then.

There's cause for concern for Trump, too. A conviction in any of his criminal cases would grow Biden’s lead. And the current president is trouncing his predecessor among non-white voters, young women, people with college degrees and college students.

Meanwhile, a new nationwide UMass Lowell survey of likely voters shared first with Playbook shows Biden and Trump locked in a dead heat with 42 percent support apiece. Kennedy follows with 7 percent.

Sub superstar Taylor Swift in for Biden — yes, the pollsters really asked that — and there’s no love story for Democrats, maybe just some teardrops. The mega-famous singer-songwriter trails Trump 43 percent to 26 percent, with Kennedy at 12 percent.

Something both polls make clear: There’s support within the electorate for a permanent cease-fire in Gaza. Nearly three quarters of respondents to the UMass Lowell survey either “somewhat” or “strongly” support a cease-fire, with 45 percent falling into the latter category. And 51 percent of respondents to the Harvard Youth Poll said they support a permanent cease-fire.

CARPET BAGGER JOHN DEATON VOTED 3 TIMES
IN 20 YEARS, REGURGITATING GOP TALKING POINTS...CRYPTO SCAM KING...

ICYMI — GOP U.S. Senate hopeful John Deaton has been vocal in calling for term limits for “career politicians” in Congress. If he can oust Sen. Elizabeth Warren — and if he’s then able to win a second term — he wouldn’t run for a third, he said during an interview on Dan Rea ’s “NightSide” on Tuesday.

“I will not run for a third term if term limits don’t get implemented,” Deaton said while responding to questions from callers.

Deaton would have to win a crowded Republican primary and an even more uphill battle against Warren to even get close to that point, though he’s not sweating his GOP opponents. “I'm going to win the primary and I'm going to be the nominee,” he said. “That I can assure you.”

ENDORSEMENT CORNER — District 5 Governor's Councilor Eileen Duff has endorsed Methuen's Eunice Zeigler to succeed her on the panel that vets judicial nominees. Duff is running for Essex County register of deeds.

DATELINE D.C.

DISMISSED — U.S. Senate Democrats quickly voted to adjourn the impeachment trial against Alejandro Mayorkas after deeming it unconstitutional — ending a monthslong effort by Republican hardliners to boot the Homeland Security secretary over Biden’s border policies, our colleagues Ursula Perano and Burgess Everett report .

FROM THE 413

— “First look at how little Amherst’s police alternative being used called troubling,” by Scott Merzbach, Daily Hampshire Gazette: “Following a public records request for data, the committee that offers advice to town officials on advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and community safety in Amherst contends that there were only a handful of dispatch calls going to [Community Responders for Equity, Safety and Service] over the 80 or so days from Dec. 18 through March 4, according to Committee Co-Chairwoman Allegra Clark.”

— “Westfield Councilor Files in Western Mass Swing District, Taking on Incumbent GOP,” by Matt Szafranski, Western Mass. & Insight: “City Councilor Bridget Matthews-Kane, a Democrat, will run against Republican Rep Kelly Pease.”

POLITICO IS BACK AT THE 2024 MILKEN INSTITUTE GLOBAL CONFERENCE: POLITICO will again be your eyes and ears at the 27th Annual Milken Institute Global Conference in Los Angeles from May 5-8 with exclusive, daily, reporting in our Global Playbook newsletter. Suzanne Lynch will be on the ground covering the biggest moments, behind-the-scenes buzz and on-stage insights from global leaders in health, finance, tech, philanthropy and beyond. Get a front-row seat to where the most interesting minds and top global leaders confront the world’s most pressing and complex challenges — subscribe today .

WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD BE READING

— “Half of state residents support legalizing teachers’ strikes,” by Michael Jonas, CommonWealth Beacon: “State leaders have said they have no appetite for changing Massachusetts law to make it legal for public teachers to go on strike, but public opinion is more on the union side. In a new CommonWealth Beacon/GBH News poll, 50 percent of state residents favored legalizing teachers’ strikes, while 34 percent said strikes should remain illegal, and 16 percent said they were unsure or did not answer (toplines , crosstabs ).”

— “State panel approves request to add nearly 100 new beds at Massachusetts General Hospital,” by Travis Andersen, The Boston Globe.

— “On the verge of a breakup, Lawrence and Methuen make amends to keep public health partnership alive,” by Jason Laughlin, The Boston Globe.

— “'Transformative' agreement will help thousands of people leave Mass. nursing homes,” by Meghan Smith, GBH News.

— “Fight over 'buffer zone' around Karen Read trial continues in Massachusetts' highest court,” by Phil Tenser, WCVB.

— “People are leaving Massachusetts in droves. Who are they?,” by Dana Gerber and Kirkland An, The Boston Globe.

HEARD ‘ROUND THE BUBBLAH

WELCOME TO THE WORLD — Antonio Caban , associate VP at 90 West, and his wife welcomed Boston’s newest communications guru last week, the proud father of the healthy baby boy writes in. The little guy is already an expert at helping his clients — his mom, dad and older brother — navigate cuddles and develop a peekaboo strategy.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to Dewey Square Group’s Charlie Baker, Theresa Verbic, Kelsey Donohue, Trey Grayson, Tracy Spicer, James D. Lee and Muzammil Nazir.

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 .

Follow us on Twitter