SOUTHIE SMACKDOWN — Top pols gathered in Boston Sunday for state Sen. Nick Collins’ annual beatdown/cringefest St. Patrick’s Day political breakfast — and a chance to air their barely-simmering grievances. Here’s what you missed:
NOTE QUITE OFF TO THE RACES — With a deep bench of Democrats all with nowhere to go, one of the main themes of the morning was everyone’s ambitions for higher office.
Senate President Karen Spilka joked about state Auditor Diana DiZoglio challenging Gov. Maura Healey for governor (prompting DiZoglio to hold up a “false” sign, (Trump joint-address style). Boston mayoral hopeful Josh Kraft said he’d gladly vote for Mayor Michelle Wu … for a Senate seat. And DiZoglio and Healey herself joked about the first-term governor’s perceived national ambitions after recent interviews with The New York Times, Seth Meyersand political podcaster Molly Jong-Fast.
TARGET PRACTICE— Wu and Kraft had one of their first face-to-face confrontations since the son of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft officially got in the race last month.
Wu roasted Kraft for his family wealth and his father’s connections to President Donald Trump. Kraft responded with some playful and pointed ribbing of his own, knocking Wu over bike lanes and the $650,000 tab for lawyers who helped her prep for her testimony before the House Oversight Committee in D.C.
GRUDGE MATCH — DiZoglio brought down the house with remixed renditions of pop songs pushing for — what else — her audit of the state Legislature.
“It’s me, Hi! I’m the problem, it’s me. On your … dime — everybody agrees,” DiZoglio belted to the tune of Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero.” That’s a line Spilka and House Speaker Ron Mariano can probably agree with.
MISSING IN ACTION— Notably absent from the lineup: any members of the state’s congressional delegation. Rep. Stephen Lynch, who represents South Boston, was on a congressional mission in Switzerland, Collins said during the event.
GOOD MONDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS . Happy St. Patrick’s Day.
Another no-show at Sunday’s breakfast: the Dunkin tracksuits Healey and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll first broke out at last year’s reception.
“We are a nation of laws, not of DunKings or DunkQueens,” Healey said, paraphrasing a line from former President John Adams. “So you won’t be seeing me in the outfit ever again.”
TODAY — Gov. Maura Healey and First Lady Joanna Lydgate visit Boston’s Children Hospital to highlight the impact of cuts to National Institutes of Health funding at 2:40 p.m. Secretary of State Bill Galvin hosts a viewing of Revolutionary War-era artifacts that will be on display as part of the Revolution 250 Commonwealth Museum exhibit at 11 a.m. in Dorchester.
State Auditor Diana DiZoglio speaks at the Massachusetts Municipal Auditors and Accountants Association Conference at 8:45 a.m. in Amherst. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu attends the South Boston Citizens Association’s Evacuation Day event at 9:30 a.m. in South Boston and joins the East Boston Senior Center’s St. Patrick’s Day celebration at noon in East Boston.
Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Drop me a line: kgarrity@politico.com.
Policy moves fast—stay ahead with POLITICO’s Policy Intelligence Assistant. Effortlessly search POLITICO's archive of 1M+ news articles, analysis documents, and legislative text. Track legislation, showcase your impact, and generate custom reports in seconds. Designed for POLITICO Pro subscribers, this tool helps you make faster, smarter decisions. Start exploring now .
DATELINE BEACON HILL
SHELTER SHIFT — Gov. Maura Healey rolled out regulations Friday lowering the limit on the number of families in the state’s emergency shelter system from 7,500 to 5,800 and following through on reforms laid out in the supplemental budget she signed last month. As of May 6, there were roughly 5,500 families in state-run shelters, according to a report from the state’s housing office.
As of Friday, those seeking shelter are required to consent to criminal background checks, and anyone convicted of a serious crime (murder, arson, kidnapping, rape) in the last three years will be ineligible for emergency shelter. Read the regulations.
***MORE WITCH HUNTS TARGETING NON-EXISTENT PROBLEMS! PEOPLE - HUMAN BEINGS, SOME WITH FAMILIES - WERE SHELTERED FROM THE COLD DUE TO TRUMP'S FAILURE TO SUPPORT THE BIPARTISAN BORDER BILL! TED CRUZ IS PROVING HIMSELF TO BE JUST ANOTHER MINDLESSS LACKEY AS HIS USAID ACTIONS PROVE - US FARMERS CONTRACTED TO PROVIDE FOOD THAT'S SITTING & ROTTING WITH US FARMERS UNPAID! IT'S TIME TO THINK!
ANTI-SEMITISM? TRUMP PRAISED CHARLOTTESVILLE WHITE SUPREMACISTS WHO CHANTED "JEWS WILL NOT REPLACE US"! *****
— “Massachusetts is increasingly becoming the target of Republican ire,”by Chris Van Buskirk, Boston Herald: “President Donald Trump’s administration and Congressional Republicans are increasingly targeting Massachusetts over immigration policies and alleged antisemitism at institutions of higher education. From Boston Mayor Michelle Wu’s testimony in Washington on the city’s so-called ‘sanctuary status’ to investigations into local colleges and universities, federal lawmakers and officials in the Trump administration are setting their sights on the Bay State. The latest salvo from conservatives on immigration came in the form of Sen. Ted Cruz’s threat to subpoena the Massachusetts Port Authority in an effort to produce information on the migrants that slept at Logan International Airport during the height of new arrivals.”
****NEVER A SINGLE MENTION OF THE ORIGINS OF THE MBTA COMMUNITIES ACT! WHERE WERE THOSE WHO NOW OBJECT WHEN GOV. CHARLIE BAKER SIGNED IT INTO LAW?****
****DON'T BLAME GOV. MAURA HEALEY FOR ENFORCING A STATUTE THAT GOV. CHARLIE BAKER ENACTED! *****
excerpt:
When then-Gov. Charlie Baker signed the bill in January 2021, much of the focus landed on a different zoning measure: a lower, simple-majority threshold for towns to adopt some zoning changes. That's in no small part because Baker had been trying to get that particular measure passed for years. In February 2021, Baker’s housing and economic development secretary Mike Kennealy called that change “the most significant zoning reform in decades.”
The zoning requirements — and the grant eligibility rules — had emerged in a late-night, last-minute compromise between House and Senate lawmakers before the curtain officially closed on their 2019-2020 legislative session. Before Baker signed it, the Massachusetts Municipal Association urged the governor to veto the MBTA Communities language, arguing it would "override local-decision making” and penalize communities that fail to meet the mandate.
But Baker wasn’t swayed. He told lawmakers that while he didn’t propose the section, he would still sign it into law because it gave his administration “considerable discretion to determine compliance.”
And now, three years later, Gov. Maura Healey and her administration are the ones tasked with determining the cost of non-compliance.
— “Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey rewards, punishes communities with MBTA zoning law,”by Lance Reynolds, Boston Herald: “The Healey administration is rolling out $8.7 million to Massachusetts cities and towns complying with the controversial MBTA zoning law while withholding previously committed grant funds from resistant communities. Gov. Maura Healey has rewarded 10 municipalities following the state’s orders by enacting zoning plans compliant with the MBTA Communities Act. At the same time, her administration continues to be taken to court.
— “Faculty unions seek more money for public colleges,”by Christian M. Wade, The Eagle-Tribune: “A coalition of college faculty unions is calling on state leaders to carve out more money from the millionaires’ tax to offset anticipated federal cuts to public higher education funding. Gov. Maura Healey wants to pump at least $2.5 billion into facilities at the University of Massachusetts, state universities and community colleges over the next decade to modernize campuses by building new labs, classrooms and training facilities that support fields like web development, robotics and advanced manufacturing.”
— “Mass. lawmakers don’t have to follow the public records law. Few of them say that should change,” by Matt Stout and Anjali Huynh, The Boston Globe: “Massachusetts state legislators say they are creating a new era of openness on Beacon Hill. They want to make more votes public, better explain the bills they’re proposing, and make changes that promote, as one Democrat put it, ‘extreme transparency.’ Very few, however, say they are inclined to embrace another basic requirement: that the Legislature, like the vast majority of public bodies in Massachusetts and its legislative counterparts nationwide, provide records when the public asks for them.”
THE RACE FOR CITY HALL
— “William Reichelt to seek fourth term as West Springfield mayor,”by Michael Ballway, The Springfield Republican: “Closing in on a decade as mayor, William Reichelt says he still has work to do. ‘I love this job,’ he said when asked about his plans to run for reelection this year to a fourth term. ‘It’s been a blast these past 10 years. We’ve done a lot.’ He pointed to infrastructure projects at various stages of planning — a new police station, a new Fausey School, extensions of bike lanes and multi-use paths — as well as steps he has championed to make West Springfield’s roads safer, such as lane reductions and speed humps.”
PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES
BRAIN DEAD TRANSPORTION CLOWN SEAN DUFFY PROPOSED EMPHASIS ON BIRTH & MARRIAGE RATES - HE HAS 9 KIDS, HASN'T FIGURED OUT WHERE THEY COME FROM!
ANOTHER FOX NEWS = FAKE NEWS LIAR PUT IN CHARGE WHO CAN'T FIGURE OUT HOW TO KEEP AIRPLANES IN FLIGHT & SLASHED FAA PERSONNEL INCLUDING AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS!
CHINA HAS FOCUSED ON HIGH SPEED RAIL & CHEAP CLEAN RENEWABLES & THEIR ECONOMY PROSPERS WHILE THE US LAGS FURTHER BEHIND!
EXCLUSIVEDonald Trump's newTransportation Secretary Sean Duffy seen performing raunchy dance in embarrassing video
— “West-East Rail funding uncertain under Trump administration,”by Mitch Fink, Daily Hampshire Gazette: “President Donald Trump’s return to office has raised questions about the future of hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding Massachusetts secured for its West-East Rail plan with suggestions the administration may place a greater emphasis on birth and marriage rates and immigration policy.”
PAY WALL
DAY IN COURT
****IGNORING COURT ORDERS AGAIN! DEFINING DESPERATION OF DEPORTATION CLOWNS! *****
— “Judge orders U.S. Customs officials into court to answer for RI doctor's deportation,”by Tom Mooney, The Providence Journal: “A federal judge has ordered U.S. Customs and Border officials to respond Monday at a hearing before him to allegations they ‘willfully’ disobeyed his order not to deport a Rhode Island doctor until he could review her case. On Friday U.S. District Judge Leo T. Sorokin, in Massachusetts, issued an order that Dr. Rasha Alawieh, 34, who had been detained at Logan Airport on Thursday after returning from visiting family in Lebanon, not be deported without giving the court 48 hours notice.”
Documents filed in federal court ahead of the hearing allege that it was the contents of Dr. Rasha Alawieh's cellphone that led to her detention, and ultimate deportation, from Logan Airport in Boston.
Federal authorities say in court documents filed in the deportation case of Alawieh, 34, that custom and border officials found "sympathetic photos and videos" of Hezbollah leaders on her cell phone.
They also found "various other Hezbollah militants" in the deleted photo folder of her cell phone.
"With the discovery of these photographs and videos CHP questioned Dr. Alawieh and determined that her true intentions in the United States could not be determined," the documents allege.
"As such CBP canceled her visa and deemed Dr. Alawieh inadmissible to the United States."
On Friday U.S. District Judge Leo T. Sorokin, in Massachusetts, issued an order that Alawieh not be deported without giving the court 48 hours notice. That hearing was continued until March 25.
Despite his order, the Brown Medicine kidney doctor and Lebanese citizen departed for Paris Friday evening. Alawieh arrived back in Lebanon Sunday morning, said a friend and colleague.
U.S. Customs and Border Protections responds to deportation of Dr. Alawieh
On Sunday evening, for the first time since the incident began Thursday and ignited a wave of outrage on the part of Alawieh supporters, Hilton Beckham, the assistant commissioner of public affairs for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), issued a statement regarding the case.
Beckham said: “Arriving aliens bear the burden of establishing admissibility to the United States. Our CBP officers adhere to strict protocols to identify and stop threats, using rigorous screening, vetting, strong law enforcement partnerships, and keen inspectional skills to keep threats out of the country. CBP is committed to protecting the United States from national security threats.”
Alawieh was in the U.S. on a valid H-1B visa
Thomas S. Brown, a lawyer who handles immigration and visa issues for doctors affiliated with Brown Medicine, said Alawieh was returning to the U.S. on a valid H-1B visa she had recently acquired at the American consulate in Lebanon.
The H-1B visa allows employers like Brown Medicine to sponsor highly skilled foreign citizens to work in “specialty occupations.”
Alawieh, who had studied and worked in the United States for six years, and in Rhode Island since last July, worked at Rhode Island Hospital evaluating potential kidney transplant recipients and followed the progress of those patients after their procedures, said Dr. George Bayliss, the transplant division’s medical director.
Alawieh was deported despite a court order to keep her in the country
On Friday, while Alawieh remained detained at Logan, her cousin, Yara Chehab, filed a complaint in U.S. District Court, Massachusetts against officials in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
In the complaint, Chehab said federal authorities had unlawfully detained her cousin “without any justification and without permitting [her] access to their counsel.”
In a subsequent motion filed Saturday, Alawieh’s lawyers alleged “that Customs and Border Patrol received actual notice of the court’s order [giving the court 48 notice before any deportation] and nonetheless thereafter ‘willfully’ disobeyed the order by sending her out of the United States.”
“These allegations,” Judge Sorokin said Sunday in his order “are supported by a detailed and specific timeline in an under oath affidavit filed by an attorney.”
Judge Sorokin orders officials into court to answer for the deportation
Sorokin ordered that federal authorities “shall respond to these serious allegations with a legal and factual response setting forth its version of events. This response is also due by 8:30 a.m. Monday March 17, 2025, so that it is available to the court and the petitioner in advance of the hearing on Monday.”
The hearing is set for 10 a.m. at the John J. Moakley Courthouse in Boston.
Her supporters have scheduled a protest for Monday at 6 p.m. outside the State House.
KEEPING UP WITH THE DELEGATION
****MUSKRAT/DOGE/TRUMP SLASHING WITHOUT THOUGHT TO PROVIDE FUNDING FOR TAX CUTS FOR THE WEALTHY!****
VETERANS SUICIDE CRISIS HOT LINE GONE!
— “‘Musk is killing veterans’: Mass Rep. Moulton tells packed town hall,”by John L. Micek, MassLive: “Tech billionaire Elon Musk is cutting a destructive path through the middle of the federal government, and the damage will take a deadly toll on the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton told constituents at a town hall on Saturday.”
Tech billionaire Elon Musk is cutting a destructive path through the middle of the federal government, and the damage will take a deadly toll on the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton told constituents at a town hall on Saturday.
“Musk is killing veterans with his cuts,” Moulton, a former Marine, told a constituent who’d asked whether the tech billionaire and his quasi-governmental Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has “the legal authority to cut and slash and burn the way he has been.”
“No, he does not,” Moulton, D-6th District, told a capacity crowd of about 600 people who’d gathered at Masconomet High School in Boxford on Saturday afternoon.
The move drew the ire of veterans' groups and Democrats in Washington and on Beacon Hill, including Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey.
“I made a commitment to continue going to the VA for my own health care, which I still do today,” Moulton told the crowd. “There are veterans who will die on waiting lists again because of what Musk is doing. Musk is killing veterans with these cuts. And I’m going to do everything in my power to stop it.”
Last week, Moulton and U.S. Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., a retired U.S. Air Force brigadier general, sent a letter to VA Secretary Doug Collins, seeking clarity on the reductions and their potential impact on workers who staff the Veterans Crisis Line, which assists veterans in their darkest moments.
In a statement, VA spokesperson Pete Kasperowicz told MassLive that “all 300,000-plus VA mission-critical positions — including all Veterans Crisis Line positions — are exempt from the federal hiring freeze and layoffs, and hiring for all open mission-critical positions continues."
All things considered, it might have been one of the easier questions that Moulton faced Saturday.
The 60-minute gathering was interrupted more than once by constituents demanding more actions and straight answers.
That tone was reflective of Democratic voters who have complained that their representatives on Capitol Hill aren’t doing enough to counter President Donald Trump’s radical government downsizing as he seeks to pay for $4.5 trillion in tax cuts.
One audience member wearing a “Trans Lives Matter” T-shirt was escorted from the room as Moulton began his remarks. Another stood up repeatedly to demand action.
“We’ve asked you, really calmly, to follow some basic ground rules,” Moulton told the crowd. “Other people who are here for the first time, students, a few. It matters to participate in democracy. So, I want to, first of all, thank you for showing up. And we do have a great turnout. And we will get to your questions.”
Those critics were, at times, also matched with applause, as when Moulton stressed that it was not enough for Democrats to match Trump’s rhetoric ― they also needed to win elections.
One of those students whom Moulton mentioned was Dania Delacruz, 17, a senior at Lynn English High School, who identified herself as the “proud daughter” of Guatemalan immigrants.
On Friday night, Delacruz’s mother cleaned the very school auditorium where Moulton gave his remarks, she said, asking the Salem lawmaker what he was “doing to protect the rights of children of immigrants?”
“And what are you doing to change the conversation surrounding immigration?” Delacruz asked.
Moulton said his office has been working along parallel tracks.
One involves “making sure that only the people who deserve to be deported get deported ... and the people who [have the] right to stay here, stay here. And we have intervened in many cases in the past, and we will continue to do so, despite the threats from the administration to the contrary.”
Moulton said he’s also “talking with my colleagues to try to get some sense into them about having good immigration policy.”
“Don’t forget, there was a bipartisan, an imperfect, but bipartisan immigration bill in the Senate, largely negotiated by Republicans but supported by both sides of the aisle, that was ready to get passed when one man, Donald Trump, said, ‘No, I want to make this an election issue,’” Moulton said referring to last year’s scuttled immigration reform measure.
With Republicans unwilling to step up, " we need Democrats who are willing to work on immigration, not deny it, not refuse to talk about it."
In an interview after the town hall, Delacruz said her parents, who came to the U.S. in the early 2000s, are documented but are not yet American citizens.
Delacruz was born after their arrival. And she is one of the millions of American young people whose legal standing is in jeopardy as Trump seeks to end birthright citizenship for the American-born children of immigrants.
“I’m really proud of being American,” she said. “I want to see change. But it can’t be done by questioning the citizenship of millions of American children.”
LISTEN — Rep. Jake Auchincloss joined Puck’s “Impolitic” podcast for lengthy conversation on the government shutdown situation, Trump’s trade policies, House Speaker Mike Johnson’s leadership and more.
WHAT WAS THE POINT OF THIS POLL? WE'VE NEVER MET ANYONE WHO WAS CALLED!
POLL POSITION — A poll conducted by the Republican-aligned firm Advantage Inc. for the Fiscal Alliance Foundation pitted Rep. Jake Auchincloss against Sen. Ed Markey in a hypothetical Senate matchup. The results? A statistical tie with lots of respondents still undecided.
Of those surveyed, 25.25 percent said they would support Markey, while 24.5 backed Auchincloss, within the poll’s margin of error of plus or minus 3.6 percentage points.
But but but: The poll surveyed 800 likely Bay State voters, not just those likely to participate in a Democratic primary. It was conducted from March 6-12.
FROM THE 413
***MUST READ! TRUMP'S INCOMPETENCE WILL IMPACT HOUSING & MUCH ELSE! TRADE WARS BENEFIT NO ONE! OTHER NATIONS ARE BOYCOTTING AMERICAN PRODUCTS AS A CONSEQUENCE & IMPOSING RETALIATORY TARIFFS! THE US WILL NOT WIN!****
HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to Northampton Mayor Gina-Louise Sciarra, former MassGOP Chair Jim Lyons, Daniel Bellow, Cam Charbonnier, Amber Jamanka and Jeremy Comeau.
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.
