Pressley’s message from Mexico
TRAVEL LOG — When Rep. Ayanna Pressley left for Mexico earlier this week, tariffs were top of mind.
Pressley and a handful of her congressional colleagues – Jesús “Chuy” García, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, Maxwell Frost, Jonathan Jackson, Summer Lee and Delia Ramirez — had planned the trip (known as a CODEL) to line up with the latest tariff deadline.
Then there was another delay. As Pressley met with members of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum's administration, Sheinbaum’s cabinet secretaries had to keep stepping away to deal with unfolding tariff negotiations. Before the delegation left last night, President Donald Trump had announced that the higher tariffs set to take effect today would be delayed another 90 days to allow for more in-depth talks.
The situation underscored one of the recurring themes of their meetings, Pressley told Playbook: the “uncertainty and the chaos,” and the nagging question about how “to develop some sort of response when it is changing constantly.”
Since losing power in Washington (particularly as Trump’s tariff plan started to kick in), Democrats have looked to shore up their own international ties. In Massachusetts, Gov. Maura Healey invited Canadian premiers and New England governors to Boston earlier this year to do just that. Pressley’s trip — her first such one abroad since joining Congress in 2019 – was motivated in part by what she described as “the absence of leadership under the hostile Trump administration.”
“Our destinies really are tied,” Pressley said — whether it’s migration, gun violence or the impact of tariffs on members of the electrical workers’ union she met with.
In addition to meeting with Mexican officials during the three-day trip, Pressley and the group of progressive lawmakers she traveled with heard from organizations combating gun violence and arms trafficking in the region. And they spoke with migrants who had been deported or fled the U.S. amid the White House’s tightened immigration restrictions — an opportunity to “put a human face to all these issues,” Pressley said.
Expect some of those experiences to come into play during Congress’s summer recess and beyond. Pressley said she’s already been talking with other members about oversight initiatives they can push for when they reconvene this fall.
“In order for Democrats to regain the gavel, we have to make it very clear to [voters] that the harm that they're already experiencing, the harm that they might bear witness to, that their neighbor is experiencing, who is the architects of that harm?” Pressley said.
GOOD FRIDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS
TODAY — Gov. Maura Healey has no public events. Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll speaks at the Fiestas Patronales de Holyoke 2025 at 7 p.m. in Holyoke.
THIS WEEKEND — Massachusetts AFL-CIO President Chrissy Lynch is on WBZ’s “Keller @ Large” at 8:30 a.m. Sunday. Boston City Councilor Ed Flynn is on WCVB’s “On the Record” at 11 a.m. Sunday. Governor’s Councilor Mara Dolan is on NBC 10 Boston Weekend Today at 9:30 a.m. Sunday.
Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Drop me a line: kgarrity@politico.com .
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— Bar advocates stand firm against Massachusetts bill that boosts pay by $20 per hour by Flint McColgan, Boston Herald: “Bar advocates don’t like the hourly pay rate proposed by the Massachusetts legislature, according to one of the leaders of the work stoppage, who said the ‘slap in the face’ offer has only ‘strengthened our resolve.’ The proposal to raise wages by $20 per hour over two years was passed Thursday afternoon by both the House and Senate. The legislation was contained in a larger bill, a supplemental budget, that the House passed by a vote of 150-6. The Senate passed it with a voice vote. Gov. Maura Healey has 10 days to sign the bill.” BOSTON HERALD PROPAGANDA RAG PAY WALL
RELATED — Judge orders $100 pay for select indigent defense counsel as Beacon Hill passes raise by Aaron Curtis, The Lowell Sun: “One day before Beacon Hill lawmakers passed legislation to raise pay for bar advocates — prompting disappointment from attorneys who called it a ‘slap in the face’ — a judge authorized $100 per hour compensation for indigent defense counsel in three cases, writing that the defendants’ continued detention without counsel was an 'egregious violation' of their constitutional rights.”
— Mass. Democrats reach deal on bill that strengthens transgender, reproductive health care protections by Chris Van Buskirk, Boston Herald: “Beacon Hill Democrats said they reached a deal on legislation that aims to shore up transgender and reproductive health care laws in the state in the face of alleged threats from President Donald Trump’s administration. The proposal updates a 2022 law that provided more protections for reproductive and transgender care in part by targeting technology service providers and state regulators who handle patient data and requiring hospitals to treat patients dealing with abortion-related emergencies.”
BOSTON HERALD PROPAGANDA RAG PAY WALL
****POSTED BY RON FILIPKOWSKI:
… Daily Mail: “Canada is quietly siphoning off America's most essential workers - and experts warn it could deal a catastrophic blow to an already crumbling US healthcare system. Canada is aggressively poaching doctors, nurses and health professionals, offering simpler systems, universal care and a political climate many in the liberal-leaning field may prefer to life under Trump. The exodus is accelerating at a stunning pace. Between Nov 2024-April 2025, the Medical Council of Canada saw a staggering 718% surge in US medical graduates registering to get licensed across the border.”
… “CanAm Physician Recruiting, a firm specializing in cross-border placements, reported a 65% jump in US doctors exploring jobs in Canada just this year. The Nova Scotia-based company now receives up to 15 serious inquiries each day from medical professionals keen to leave America. At the heart of the trend is a Canadian campaign that some critics say amounts to a full-scale raid on America's struggling healthcare system.”
— Healey unveils $400 million plan to bolster research under fire from Trump by Samantha J. Gross, The Boston Globe: “In her latest effort to backfill the Trump administration’s cuts to federal funding, Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey on Thursday introduced legislation that would inject $400 million into research and development projects, including funds to sustain positions at colleges and universities imperiled by federal actions. The proposal would utilize revenue from the so-called ‘millionaires tax’ as well as interest accrued by the state’s rainy day fund to bolster an embattled industry under scrutiny from the Trump administration.”
GEARING UP — Republicans have their sights set on the governor’s office next year, but candidates for Congress and the state Legislature are also starting to stir.
A few made their pitch at a Republican State Committee meeting in Canton last night. Two GOP candidates — Dan Sullivan and Mattapoisett Select Board member Tyler Macallister — are eyeing Rep. Bill Keating’s 9th District seat. And Manny Silva is planning to run for the First Bristol and Plymouth state Senate seat held by Senate Ways and Means Chair Michael Rodrigues. Also in attendance: Gubernatorial hopeful Mike Kennealy.
MIGRANTS IN MASSACHUSETTS
— ICE stops sending detainees out of Mass. airport, starts flights out of N.H. by Todd Wallack, WBUR: “Federal immigration authorities are no longer using Hanscom Field in Bedford to transport people facing immigration violations. Previously, after people in Massachusetts were arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement or other federal authorities, the agency often flew them from Hanscom to detention centers, mostly in southern states. An ICE spokesman confirmed it moved the flights from Hanscom to an airport in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, this month.”
ICE didn’t provide a reason for the shift, but it comes after the flights have received scrutiny.
WBUR reported in June that the Plymouth County Sheriff's Office, which operates the only jail in Massachusetts to hold people for ICE, transported nearly 600 people to Hanscom between December 2024 and May of this year.
Most of the transports took place after President Trump was sworn into office. The agency said those figures would not include any additional detainees transported directly by ICE or its contractors.
Several members of the Hanscom Field Advisory Commission, which represents local communities around the airport, expressed concern about the flights at a meeting last month , after the WBUR report. Protesters have held small demonstrations against ICE and a company reportedly used to refuel aircraft there.
THE NEW BEDFORD LIGHT ALWAYS DOES DETAILED & THOROUGH
— A recent surge of candidates awakens ‘sleepy’ City Council races by Colin Hogan, The New Bedford Light: “With three weeks remaining before the deadline to submit nomination papers, a surge of potential candidates have indicated their interest in running for office in this year’s municipal elections. Twelve candidates pulled nomination papers for several local races within the last week — including six for an open at-large seat (which Linda Morad will vacate) and three more challenging Derek Baptiste in Ward 4. Until this recent wave of interest, many of the City Council seats were headed for noncompetitive contests, meaning incumbents were not facing a single challenger.”
Concerns about New Bedford’s tight election timeline will now resurface, as the Whaling City this year became the only city in Massachusetts with one month or less between the preliminary and general elections. Until this week, there was not enough interest to hold any preliminary; the recent surge of candidates now means preliminaries will likely be held.
DEMOCRACY DOCKET HAS DONE A GREAT DEAL OF REPORTING ON GOP EFFORTS TO DISENFRANCHISE VOTERS OR SUPPRESS VOTING - DEMOCRACY DOCKET IS AVAILABLE ON YOU TUBE AS WELL AS A NEWSLETTER
GEORGIA IS NOW IN THE PROCESS OF CONDUCTING VOTER PURGES, AS ARE OTHER STATES....JOHN LEWIS RISKED HIS LIFE FOR THE RIGHT TO VOTE....REPUBLICANS ARE STILL ATTACKING VOTING RIGHTS....
— Trump administration's DOJ seeks state voter records by Christian M. Wade, The Eagle-Tribune: “Massachusetts has become the latest state targeted by the Trump administration while it investigates state election policies as part of broader efforts to prevent voter fraud. The U.S. Department of Justice sent a letter to Secretary Of State Bill Galvin last week requesting a list of the state’s registered voters and other information for the agency’s Office of Civil Right’s probe of state election policies.”
— Judge tosses trash company's latest lawsuit over strike by Ally Jarmanning, WBUR: “A Boston federal judge again denied a trash collection company's request for a restraining order against the local Teamsters union that's been on strike for a month. Meanwhile, in a separate lawsuit, cities and towns lost their bid to force the company to pick up residents' garbage. Republic Services, which provides trash service to 400,000 customers in Massachusetts, had filed suit against Teamsters Local 25, alleging the union has taken part in unlawful strike activity and prohibited the company from doing business by blocking trucks and harassing replacement workers.”
IT'S NOT EASY BEING GREEN
— Springfield Marches into Court to Join the Legal Fight against Trump by Matt Szafranski, Western Mass Politics & Insight: “Next week, the City of Springfield will do what countless entities have done since January 20—it will march into federal court to confront Donald Trump and his administration. In particular, the city is suing the Environmental Protection Agency and its administrator as one of several municipalities and groups contesting the termination of several environmental grants the EPA had issued during Joe Biden’s presidency.”
****POSTED BY RON FILIPKOWSKI:
… Daily Mail: “Canada is quietly siphoning off America's most essential workers - and experts warn it could deal a catastrophic blow to an already crumbling US healthcare system. Canada is aggressively poaching doctors, nurses and health professionals, offering simpler systems, universal care and a political climate many in the liberal-leaning field may prefer to life under Trump. The exodus is accelerating at a stunning pace. Between Nov 2024-April 2025, the Medical Council of Canada saw a staggering 718% surge in US medical graduates registering to get licensed across the border.”
… “CanAm Physician Recruiting, a firm specializing in cross-border placements, reported a 65% jump in US doctors exploring jobs in Canada just this year. The Nova Scotia-based company now receives up to 15 serious inquiries each day from medical professionals keen to leave America. At the heart of the trend is a Canadian campaign that some critics say amounts to a full-scale raid on America's struggling healthcare system.”
— Report: Federal funding cuts could cost Mass. $16 billion by Zeninjor Enwemeka, WBUR: “Proposed federal cuts to research and development would cause the state to lose thousands of jobs and millions in revenue, according to a new report released Thursday by the University of Massachusetts Donahue Institute. Federal funding for research and development supports 81,300 jobs and more than $16 billion in total economic activity in Massachusetts, the report found. This funding goes to hospitals, colleges, pharmaceutical firms, research facilities and private and nonprofit organizations.”
HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to Boston City Council President Ruthzee Louijeune, Jehuda Reinharz, Nora Bergman and Asher Perez.
HAPPY BIRTHWEEKEND — to Gigi Kellett, Keyser Public Strategies’ Eileen O’Connor, and Caitlin Teeley, who celebrate Saturday; and to Sunday birthday-ers to Joe McCarthy, Andrea Battle, WBZ NewsRadio’s Nichole Davis and former Patriots/Bucs QB Tom Brady, who is 48.
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