 | By Kelly Garrity | CONSTITUTIONAL QUESTIONS — Massachusetts is facing a fledgling constitutional crisis while the audit battle wages on. Months after voters backed a ballot question giving the state auditor the authority to audit the Legislature, top Democratic legislative leaders are still moving slowly to comply with Diana DiZoglio’s attempt to crack open their books. They continue to warn it could violate the separation of powers laid out in the state’s constitution, while DiZoglio maintains they’re violating the voter-approved law. A big reason for the lack of clarity? A quirk in the ballot petition process that allows the state attorney general to approve questions, but not weigh in on whether the policy — once passed — would be constitutional, Attorney General Andrea Campbell said during an interview on WCVB’s “On the Record” that aired Sunday. “The ballot question — and this is just stupid by government from the past — we don't get to assess what's constitutional or not,” Campbell said. “So, people are actually voting on a ballot question, and it could be actually unconstitutional in some of its implementation.” Campbell has been thrust into the middle of the drawn-out fight between the auditor and legislative leaders, as DiZoglio presses for a lawsuit to force the Legislature’s hand (which would require Campbell to defend her office, or step aside and allow another lawyer to represent the auditor’s office). The AG still isn't ready to go to court over the issue — she wants more details from DiZoglio’s office first. “[There] are constitutional limitations, so I need the auditor to tell me and my team, what's the legal strategy, what's the legal basis, what's the scope of her audit, and then we bring that to court,” she said. “But until we have that, we go into court, we will be laughed out of court.” But DiZoglio contends that’s Campbell’s job. “Putting together the legal strategy to enforce this law is literally the job of the AG and we have indeed, continually, answered the AG’s questions as best we can,” DiZoglio told Playbook. While the House is readying for a court challenge, the Senate subcommittee tasked with managing the auditor’s requests is keeping the conversation going — but not meeting DiZoglio’s demand yet. Senators say they still haven’t received the details sought from DiZoglio’s office during a tense meeting last month and are holding an April 2 hearing to gather facts and “information from subject matter experts,” state Sen. Cindy Friedman said in a statement late last week. GOOD MONDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS . After decades of lobbying from local pols and transit advocates, the South Coast Rail is finally leaving the station. Starting today, commuter rail riders can hop on a train in Fall River or Taunton that will take them into Boston. The line will be fare-free through March, and on weekends in April. TODAY — Gov. Maura Healey and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll ride the South Coast Rail at 10 a.m. and host a celebratory press conference at 11:30 a.m. in East Taunton. Auditor Diana DiZoglio is the keynote speaker at the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women advocacy day at 11:30 a.m. at the State House. 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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| ‘A CHAMPION FOR THE MOST VULNERABLE’ — Kitty Dukakis, the wife of former Massachusetts governor and 1988 Democratic presidential nominee Michael Dukakis, died Friday night. She was 88. The former first lady of Massachusetts “lived a full life fighting to make the world a better place and sharing her vulnerabilities to help others face theirs,” her family said in a statement. “She was loving, feisty, and fun, and had a keen sensitivity to people from all walks of life.” Tributes poured out for Dukakis, who Sen. Ed Markey described as “her husband’s most trusted adviser and confidant … a champion for the most vulnerable in society and a fierce advocate for raising awareness about the Holocaust.” “She spoke courageously about her struggles with substance use disorder and mental health, which serves as an inspiration to us all to break down stigma and seek help,” Gov. Maura Healey said in a statement. Her legacy “is one of resilience, compassion, and a commitment to making the world a better place,” Rep. Bill Keating said in a Post on X . “We’re all better for her having been here,” state Auditor Diana DiZoglio posted . And she “made our Commonwealth—and our world—a better place,” MassDems Chair Steve Kerrigan said.
| | FROM THE HUB |
| *****DEPT. OF ED FUNDING CUTS**** $4.5 TRILLION TAX CUTS FOR WEALTHY! — “$100M in federal education funds to BPS at ‘substantial risk,’ officials say,” by Grace Zokovitch, Boston Herald: “As the Trump administration moves to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education, BPS officials say a “very significant” portion of the district’s funding and programs could be under threat from federal cuts and restrictions.”
| | MIGRANTS IN MASSACHUSETTS |
| ****IMMIGRATION HYSTERIA!***** — “‘He has no criminal records’: ICE expands enforcement, leaving immigrant families shaken,” by Giulia McDonnell Nieto del Rio and Samantha J. Gross, The Boston Globe: “Across Massachusetts, federal immigration agents appear to be conducting increasingly visible enforcement operations, carrying out arrests that are not only aimed at apprehending convicted criminals. While enforcement during the Obama and Biden administrations was focused largely on apprehending individuals who posed national security or public safety threats, the Trump administration is warning that anyone who violated immigration law could face arrest.”
| | FROM THE DELEGATION |
| ****RECKLESS PURGE!***** — “Mass. delegation presses feds for details on mass firings: ‘Reckless purge’,” by Will Katcher, MassLive: “Members of the Massachusetts congressional delegation want more details from the Trump administration on the scope of its federal workforce cuts in Massachusetts. In a letter Friday, they accused the president of overseeing a ‘reckless purge’ with negative implications on disaster preparedness, public health, public safety and national security.”
excerpts: Members of the Massachusetts congressional delegation want more details from the Trump administration on the scope of its federal workforce cuts in Massachusetts. In a letter Friday, they accused the president of overseeing a “reckless purge” with negative implications on disaster preparedness, public health, public safety and national security. Downsizing the federal government, including eliminating thousands of jobs and slashing key functions from education to foreign aid, has been a central tenant of President Donald Trump’s return to office. On Thursday, the president signed an executive order aimed at eliminating the Department of Education, an effort likely requiring congressional approval. Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell signaled a legal challenge is all but certain. But the administration’s other widespread cuts have already begun to hit the Bay State, home to 46,000 federal employees. Those workers “play an essential role in safeguarding the health, safety and economic well-being of Massachusetts,” the state’s 11-member congressional delegation wrote Friday to Charles Ezell, acting director of the Office of Personnel Management, or OPM. “These indiscriminate cuts threaten the core functioning of critical federal services and will harm our constituents.” The letter, initiated by Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-7th District, walked through the administration’s attempts to reduce the federal workforce since President Trump returned to power two months ago. As the president’s second term began on Jan. 20, OPM — the office that manages the federal civil service — ordered government agencies to submit the names of employees on probationary periods, those relatively new to their positions with fewer job security protections. On Jan. 28, OPM sent an email blast to more than 2 million federal employees outlining an offer for them to provide “deferred resignations” ahead of any potential job cuts. Efforts by President Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, led by billionaire Elon Musk, to fire thousands of probationary employees have since been halted by two federal judges who separately found issues with how the mass terminations were executed. But the wide-reaching solicitation of resignations has been allowed to continue. In Massachusetts, the Department of Education laid off every employee at its Boston office earlier this month, “upending the Commonwealth’s ability to administer Title I funding and resolve more than 300 pending education-related civil rights cases,” the congressional delegation wrote in its letter. “This reckless purge directly harms children and families who rely on Head Start, after-school programs and disability accommodations.” Another 10,000 Massachusetts-based employees of the Department of Veterans Affairs face job cuts, the delegation said. “Many of those targeted are veterans themselves, betrayed as they seek to continue serving our country,” the letter read. “These attacks on public servants and the communities they support are unacceptable, and our constituents deserve better.” About 30% of federal workers are veterans, U.S. Rep. Stephen Lynch said at a protest outside the Veterans Administration Hospital in the Boston neighborhood of West Roxbury last month. The delegation sought details from OPM on the number of Massachusetts-based federal employees who have been fired, placed on administrated leave, taken early retirement or been subject to other cuts. It also requested specific data on the number of veterans affected by the cuts and information on employees who accepted the administration’s resignation offer. Additionally, the delegation requested a detailed plan for how OPM will work with federal agencies and Massachusetts officials to prevent impacts to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and other federal programs and benefits amid workforce reductions. Since the administration’s campaign to trim the federal bureaucracy began, members of the delegation have sought to draw attention to the plight of fired federal employees and the impact cuts to programs would have on both basic services and America’s standing in the world. When President Trump addressed a joint session of Congress earlier this month, Pressley invited an Everett resident whose position in the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development was a casualty of the administration’s cuts. Other members of the delegation extended similar invitations to the speech. Rep. Richard Neal, D-1st District, brought a U.S. Army veteran laid off from the Springfield Vet Center as a result of cuts to the Department of Veterans Affairs. Rep. Jake Auchincloss, D-4th District, invited the former assistant administrator for global health at the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID, one of the first agencies President Trump targeted for elimination. When President Trump addressed a joint session of Congress earlier this month, Pressley invited an Everett resident whose position in the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development was a casualty of the administration’s cuts. Other members of the delegation extended similar invitations to the speech. Rep. Richard Neal, D-1st District, brought a U.S. Army veteran laid off from the Springfield Vet Center as a result of cuts to the Department of Veterans Affairs. Rep. Jake Auchincloss, D-4th District, invited the former assistant administrator for global health at the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID, one of the first agencies President Trump targeted for elimination. | | TRUMPACHUSETTS |
| *****PROTESTING NAZI ELON MUSK!***** — “'There is no sitting back anymore': Protesters gather at Tesla charging stations at Auburn Mall,” by Jesse Collings, Telegram & Gazette. excerpt: Many of the signs held during the protest on Saturday mocked Musk for his Nazi-related controversies, with signs reading things such as "No excuse for the Nazi salute." "Being in front of a Tesla charging station represents him and it shows how we feel about him," said Tracy Wheeler, a resident of Rutland who held up a sign reading, "Bad DOGE, leave us elone!" "They are dismantling the Department of Education, and I just wonder how my grandchildren are going to go to school?" Caryn Stewart of Rutland said. "I work for a state organization, and I wonder what is going to happen to my job, and what is going to happen to the people that I serve in my job?" ****PROTESTING USPS CUTS & PROVATIZATION!***** — “Cape Codders protest in Falmouth against privatization of US Postal Service,” by Zane Razzaq, Cape Cod Times. excerpt: After cutting 30,000 positions since 2021, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy told Congress he expects to cut 10,000 more jobs in the next months through an early retirement program. In a letter to Congress, DeJoy also said he has authorized the General Services Administration and the newly minted Department of Government Efficiency, led by billionaire Elon Musk, to help find "further inefficiencies."
****RECKLESS SLASHING FOR $4.5 TRILLION TAX CUTS FOR THE WEALTHY!***** TRUMP'S TAX CUTS FOR THE WEALTHY CREATED THE DEFICIT! — “Mass. federal workers still unsure about future, despite reinstatement,” by Anna Rubenstein, WBUR.
| | FROM THE 413 |
| *****EDUCATION FUNDING MATTERS!**** — “Multi-town contingent organizes education funding appeal for UMass legislative hearing,” by Emilee Klein, Daily Hampshire Gazette: “South Hadley and Ludlow are organizing municipal and school leaders, students and community members from at least eight communities to attend a hearing Monday at UMass to persuade the state Legislature’s House and Ways Means Committee to support altering the state’s municipal education funding formula.” — “‘What it will take’: Springfield mayor concerned about ‘revolving door’ of repeat offenders,” by Alvin Buyinza and Ryan Mancini, MassLive.
After about a decade of voicing the same concerns, Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno is once again questioning, “What will it take” to keep what he calls violent repeat offenders off the streets. His renewed plea comes after police arrested eight Springfield residents last week, including a repeat firearms offender. Jahiem Sutherland, 21, is one of the eight city residents who was arrested on March 12, according to the Springfield Police Department. In addition to his prior firearms convictions, Sutherland has two open firearms cases. | | THE LOCAL ANGLE |
| BROTHEL CASE HITS CAMBRIDGE — Some local officials are calling on Cambridge Councilor Paul Toner to resign after he was identified as one of people who allegedly bought sex from a local brothel ring. Fellow Councilor Jivan Sobrinho-Wheeler quickly urged Toner to step down, and state Rep. Mike Connolly joined him Sunday. “As a society and as a community, we must reject all forms of sexual coercion and sexual violence, including sex trafficking,” he said in a stement . “Therefore, Councilor Toner cannot continue representing the City of Cambridge and its residents.” excerpts: To date, more than 20 such men have been identified in court proceedings that began this month, after a yearlong delay. The names with the highest profiles revealed in court on Friday were Paul Toner, a second-term city councilor in Cambridge and former teachers’ union leader; and James C. Cusack Jr., a surgical oncologist. Friday marked the second day of initial court hearings for at least 28 men who were accused of being among the most frequent patrons of the network that authorities have said dominated the illicit prostitution industry in the Boston area. On Friday, the Globe confirmed the identities of: Toner, of Cambridge; Cusack, of Concord; Anurag Bajpayee, of Cambridge; Jeffrey Henry, of Exeter, N.H.; Steven Riel of Laconia, N.H.; Howard Redmond, of Tewksbury; Frederick G. Rosenthal, of Marblehead; Timothy Ackerson, of Waltham; Matthew Ellis Fulton, of Belmont; and Nathaniel Welch, of Concord. None of the men whose names were made public Friday appeared in court. All will be summonsed to court on a later date to face charges of paying for sex. Last week, the names of the first 12 men became public. They spanned a range of professions and backgrounds: a software engineer, a hospital lab tech, a dentist. On Friday, 11 more were identified in open court. Authorities have sought charges against at least 28 men who they say most frequently exchanged hundreds of text messages with the brothel hot line and made multiple appointments.
The brothel network operated for at least three years out of luxury apartment buildings in Cambridge, Watertown, and the suburbs of Washington, D.C. In November 2023, federal authorities broke up the ring, arresting three operators. — “Everett mayor Carlo DeMaria facing more questions about his use of city funds,” by Stephanie Ebbert, The Boston Globe: “After a state investigator found he had used his position to “unjustly enrich himself” to the tune of $180,000, Everett Mayor Carlo DeMaria is facing a fresh challenge from city councilors asking whether he has been using other city funds for personal benefit. Everett City Council plans to vote on Monday night to ask the Massachusetts State Ethics Commission to look into the city’s payments to lawyers during the state inspector general’s investigation into how the mayor received $220,000 in bonus pay. Councilors are questioning whether Everett taxpayers have been paying to defend the mayor’s personal interests rather than their own.” *****HOMELESS STUDENTS!***** — “1 in 35 Quincy Public School students experienced homelessness,” by Peter Blandino, The Patriot Ledger: “One in 35 students in Quincy experienced homelessness, according to the most recent data from a full academic year. Over the 2023-24 academic year, 280 of 9,769 students enrolled in Quincy Public Schools received services under the McKinney-Vento Act, federal legislation passed in 1987 to protect homeless children's constitutional right to an education. Leslie Bridson, the district's full-time homelessness liaison, said 280 is the highest figure she’s seen since assuming the role 11 years ago.”
| | HEARD ‘ROUND THE BUBBLAH |
| HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to Matt Gorman of Targeted Victory, Vail Kohnert-Yount, Tyler Giles, Ford Hatchett and Paul Murray. 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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