DID YOU EVER NOTICE THAT REP. BILL KEATING NEVER SEEMS TO FIGURE OUT WHERE HIS DISTRICT IS AND NEVER VISITS? 

DID YOU EVER NOTICE THAT IF YOU HAVE A PROBLEM, REP. BILL KEATING'S OFFICE NEVER CALLS YOU BACK?

DID YOU EVER NOTICE THAT IF YOU SEND AN EMAIL SEEKING A RESPONSE, YOU NEVER HEAR FROM REP. BILL KEATING? 

DURING THE LAST FEW ELECTIONS, REP. BILL KEATING WAS THE ANNOINTED DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE FOR NO GOOD REASON...IT CERTAINLY HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH HIS PERFORMANCE?  

YET HERE HE IS..... 

ALONG WITH CONGRESSMAN JOE KENNEDY EVEN THOUGH IS THIS EVEN WITHIN HIS DISTRICT OR SIMPLY BECAUSE HE RUNNING FOR SENATOR EVEN THOUGH KENNEDY HASN'T REPRESENTED ANY OTHER DISTRICT IN THE COMMONWEALTH WHEN SIGNIFICANT ISSUES EXIST? 

WHAT'S WITH THE CURRENT FEDERAL GRAND JURY? WHO'S ASKING? 

GENUFLECTING FOR VOTES!




AND NO ONE ASKS ABOUT GENTING AND IF THESE MATTERS WERE EVER ADDRESSED: 

Genting was the Gambling Investor supporting the Mashpee Wampanoag lifestyle.

Genting Connected to Islamic Extremists? [THIS ARTICLE APPEARED FOR A SINGLE DAY, THE SITE WAS HACKED & WHEN IT WAS RESTORED, THIS ARTICLE HAD BEEN REMOVED. NOT TO WORRY, HACKERS! COPIES HAVE BEEN PRESERVED ON OTHER COMPUTERS.]

The money rush is on. A shady, but well-heeled Asian casino gambling giant swoops into town, buys an outdated office facility and valuable underlying real estate from the Miami Herald and launches a multi-million dollar campaign to approve non-Indian casino gambling in Florida and put a license on the former Miami Herald tract.

Kuala Lumpur-based Genting has multinational operations in tourism, resorts, gambling, plantations, power generation, and oil and gas. Genting’s market capitalization value, or net worth, reached $46 billion at the end of last year — making it one of Malaysia’s largest companies.

The Miami Herald suspends their normally skeptical eye, conducts no due-diligence on their new Chinese friends from Malaysia and their newspaper becomes a public relations machine for a client they don’t even really know.

Every glad-handing semi-corrupt politician in Miami-Dade and the City of Miami with their hand out will be jumping on the Genting gravy train. Genting is a target for every con-man lobbyist/political consultant/PR man which Miami-Dade County abounds with.

Recently a group of “Community Leaders” were flown to South East Asia including visits to Genting casinos in Malaysia and Singapore. Genting refuses to disclose the names of “Community Leaders” – including elected officials – who were flown to South East Asia in a private luxury jet and wined and dined at 5-Star resorts reserved for high-rollers in the Asian gaming world.

World Resorts Genting, also known as Genting Highlands, opened in 1965 and is the company’s flagship resort in Malaysia. The resort features Malaysia’s only land-based casino, six hotels, three theme parks, a convention center, and numerous restaurants and nightclubs, among other attractions.

Resorts World Sentosa, which opened last year in Singapore, features one of the world’s most expensive casinos, six hotels, a Universal Studios theme park and a Marine Life Park, among other features. The Florida Delegation visited both, reportedly racking up more than $790,000 worth of hotel, restaurant, spa and entertainment costs in both 5-Star resorts.

Genting has retained a team of slick lobbyists including Jonathan Kilman, with the law firm of Foley & Lardner. Kilman’s partner, Chris Kise, is under investigation for erasing email records generated during Governor Rick Scott’s Inauguration. The missing emails are thought to contain correspondence exposing the business dealings of Kise and Scott’s political adviser Enu Mainigi. Scott has ordered the FDLE review. Kise insists the emails were erased accidently. Foley and Lardner’s influence in the Governor’s office is not likely to be strong in 2012.

Before it’s over, expect that Genting, their lobbyists, and other retainers, will lavish the Republican Party of Florida and other selected party redistricting vehicles with millions of dollars. They’ll even buy Governor Rick Scott a golden toilet seat for the Governors mansion is he wants!

Genting, the Asian casino giant, does not hold a casino gaming license in any U.S. jurisdiction that has serious regulation. New York State requires relatively little scrutiny in the contract Genting has with the State of New York to operate slot machines at Aqueduct Racetrack.

Genting made millions of dollars as the money-men behind two controversial Indian Casino gaming developments in the Eastern United States. In both cases, Genting operations were directed by G. Michael Brown, a former New Jersey Attorney General who was later charged with embezzlement and cocaine use in the Seneca Tribal Court.

Brown was charged with putting various mistresses on the casino payroll and using casino funds to pay for luxury condominiums, imported sports cars and expensive jewelry for them. Brown famously drove a 4-door sedan owned by the Seneca Tribe through the picture window of a Niagara Falls resident while driving drunk.

Genting was the financier of the Seneca Niagara Casino Hotel in Niagara Falls, New York. Genting charged the tribe an exorbitant 28 percent interest rate, potentially in violation of the Indian Gaming Regulations under the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Genting also stayed in the deal for almost 15 years when they were legally limited to five. Seneca Tribal Council members have testified that armed Chinese thugs showed up to collect Genting’s money when tribal lawyers pointed out that Genting was violating the law.
All of this became known to the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Indian Affairs, which held hearings and launched an investigation into corruption in the Indian gaming industry in the United States. But what the Senate Committee found out about Genting was even more disturbing: an apparent pattern of multi-million dollar payments to Islamic extremist organizations in Malaysia who most definitely are not friends of the United States of America.

U.S. Senate Special Committee records regarding Genting and their financing of multiple Islamic-based organizations in Malaysia are classified. Some U.S. Senator needs to launch an investigation to determine whether Genting has relationships that would make their holding a casino license in Miami (a money machine) inappropriate. U.S. Senate staff investigators should get a firm understanding of Genting’s questionable relationships in Malaysia and China.

Genting executives told Senate investigators at the time that the millions of dollars funneled to various Islamic extremist organizations known to finance jihad were made under direst and viewed as a cost of doing business for a Chinese businessman in heavily Islam-run Malaysia. Investigators had reason to be skeptical when photos of K.T. Lim and North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il surfaced. The Senate investigators also obtained photos of Lim socializing with at least two Islamic figures wanted by the United States for terrorist activities.
Senate investigators were also interested in K.T. Lim’s relationship with Stanley Ho, the Asian casino magnate who has been identified as a member of the Chinese Triad, the Chinese crime organization, by the U.S. Justice Department and by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Ho has been denied a casino license in every jurisdiction except in Macau and North Korea. Genting has refused to address their business dealings with Ho and his company Shun Tak Holdings Ltd.

While the Miami Herald is telling us that Genting boss K.T. Lim is a brilliant businessman, he could be one of the largest funders of Islamic terrorist activity in Asia. Instead of giving press conferences to the Miami Herald, perhaps K.T. should be interrogated under subpoena by U.S. Senate lawyers.

The Miami-Dade politicians who suck up Genting’s food, drink and accommodations and support Genting’s development will jump off of them like rats when they learn where a substantial portion of Genting’s profits in Florida may be going. Just because Genting has a lot of money doesn’t mean that they are suitable to operate casinos in the United States based on their associations and business practices.

Neither Governor Rick Scott, nor Senate President Mike Haridopolos will agree to casino gaming without a local county referendum. Perhaps Miami’s Cuban voters should decide whether they want to approve a casino for a foreign company who could be financing Al-Qaeda and the Taliban.

Nothing short of full disclosure of all the finances and holdings of Genting should be required under Florida casino regulation. If they deny ties to radical Islam only full disclosure will verify this claim, a protection the public requires.

New Jersey Casino Control law is considered the toughest in the country and is the model for casino regulation in the rest of the country. Nevada’s regulations are similar, but the process in that small state is “more political.” Florida’s casino regulation must not and cannot be lax. We need to know far, far more about Genting and their friends before they get a casino license in Florida.

Spending bill includes protections for Mashpee tribe

By Jessica Hill
Posted Jul 24, 2020

Amendment passed by House would bar federal interference over reservation.

WASHINGTON — The House passed a spending bill Friday that includes an amendment to protect the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe and its reservation land.

The amendment approved as part of the measure, a package of four fiscal 2021 appropriations bills, will protect the tribe from “endless litigation” and will fully recognize its tribal lands without interference from the federal government, according to a statement from U.S. Rep. Joseph P. Kennedy III, D-Mass.

The Senate will consider its own version of the appropriations bill and then work with the House to resolve any differences.

The Interior Department announced in March that it would revoke the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe’s land-in-trust status, saying the department had no authority in the first place to put the land into trust in 2015. The tribe fought that, and in June a federal judge ordered that the department take a second look at the case and apply certain criteria that could help the tribe qualify for trust status.

“In recent months, the Trump administration has used the COVID-19 pandemic as cover to try to steal the Tribe’s land and define their people out of existence,” Kennedy said in the statement. “This amendment will put an immediate stop to those dangerous efforts.”

Kennedy and U.S. Rep. William Keating, whose congressional district includes the Cape and Islands, introduced the amendment with Reps. Deb Haaland and Lori Trahan. It will prohibit the Interior Department from using money to rescind the original September 2015 Record of Decision that took the tribe’s land into trust, revoke the proclamation recognizing the reservation lands of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe or to annul the determination that the lands are eligible for gaming pursuant to the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.

[Rep. Deb Haaland represents New Mexico's 1st Congressional District.]

“I want to thank Congressman Kennedy and Congressman Bill Keating along with the Mass. delegation for their unwavering support for the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe,” Tribal Council Chairman Cedric Cromwell said. 

Cromwell said the lawmakers understand the tribe’s historical footprint, as it helped establish the country and helped the Pilgrims through their first harsh winters 400 years ago.

“We’re looking for justice around our tribe to ensure our homelands are stabilized so we can continue to prosper and move forward,” Cromwell said. “This amendment is one step closer to helping us keep the integrity and ensure that we have our homelands in Massachusetts. It’s pretty important.”

Kennedy and Keating had introduced the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Reservation Reaffirmation Act, which passed the House in 2019 and could help the tribe if the Interior Department decides to appeal Judge Paul Friedman’s June decision. That legislation, however, has been stalled in the Senate. Last month, Haaland and Kennedy introduced the Tribal Reservation Pandemic Protection Act to protect reservation lands, but that bill was referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.

“The fact that the Tribe of the First Thanksgiving is fighting for federal, tribal recognition should astound everyone,” Keating said in a statement Friday. “This amendment will limit the Trump Administration’s constant efforts to undermine the Tribe’s rights. We all know that for the President, this is about his casino lobbyist friends, but for us and the Tribe, this is about people, their rights, their health, their education, and their livelihoods.”

“This measure ensures that no more nefarious activity from the administration around taking our tribe’s land away could happen,” Cromwell said. “This has to go to the Senate; the House passed this and that’s important.”

SEE ALSO REEL WAMPS

WAMPALEAKS

GLADYS KRAVITZ
carverchick

Army Corps to move ahead with Cape Cod Canal bridge replacement

Army Corps to move ahead with Cape Cod Canal bridge replacement

By Ethan Genter 

Posted Apr 3, 2020 

Agency headquarters approves project report, will pursue funding and design.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has decided it will move forward with replacing the Bourne and Sagamore bridges, and the federal agency is now working to figure out how the replacement bridges will be designed and funded.

The New England District of the Corps, which owns and operates the 84-year-old bridges that cross the Cape Cod Canal, had recommended in October that the bridges be replaced, saying its preferred design would be two wider bridges that would be built next to the existing spans.

On Friday, the assistant secretary of the Army for civil works approved the final report on the project and agreed that replacement was the most cost-effective long-term solution.

“We look forward to continuing our strategic partnership with Massachusetts Department of Transportation as they conduct a Type, Size and Location Study for the replacement bridges,” Corps spokeswoman Beth Gosselin said in a statement. “We also look forward to participating in future discussions on alternatives and delivery methods.”

The Corps had conducted a yearslong study, weighing a major rehabilitation of the bridges against replacement, and found that the continued major repairs the bridges would need would cost more than new construction.

The price tag for two new bridges is about $1 billion.

As recommended, each new bridge would have four travel lanes, two in each direction, and an auxiliary lane on both sides. There also are plans for a median, shoulders and a separate bike and pedestrian lane, which the current bridges do not have. The lanes also would be 2 feet wider than those on the existing bridges.

After the new bridges are completed, the existing spans would be demolished.

“The Bourne and Sagamore Bridges are vital parts of the Cape’s economy and way of life, and also serve as crucial evacuation routes should an emergency arise,” U.S. Sen. Edward Markey, D-Mass., said in a statement. “I have long believed that replacing both structures is the only viable long-term solution for the region. The Army Corps has listened to our call in its final report, and we can now focus our efforts on the next phase of the project.”

The Corps’ decision to replace the bridges triggers two things, U.S. Rep. William Keating, D-Mass., said

It allows the state to move forward with its preliminary plans to overhaul the roads around the bridges and gives Keating, who lives in Bourne, leverage to get funding for new bridges in coming infrastructure bills.

Corps officials have said that funding the new bridges could be a challenge, as the current project estimate takes a large portion of the agency budget.

The Corps announcement that it wanted to replace the bridges was met with almost unanimous praise from Cape Codders, but many Bourne residents have concerns about where the bridges would be located and the possible need for land-takings.

The Corps has promised it will have more public meetings on the next phases.

Keating praised the Corps’ decision to move forward with replacement.

“It really was the only approach to take,” he said.

POLITICO MASSACHUSETTS PLAYBOOK: PATRIOTS plane brings supplies from CHINA to Mass. — KENNEDY raises more cash than MARKEY — The big BUDGET DO-OVER

PATRIOTS plane brings supplies from CHINA to Mass. — KENNEDY raises more cash than MARKEY — The big BUDGET DO-OVER

By Stephanie Murray

GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. PATRIOTS PLANE BRINGING SUPPLIES TO MASS. — A New England Patriots plane full of much-needed personal protective equipment from China is flying into Boston today, according to someone familiar with the plans. Gov. Charlie Baker will greet the plane when it arrives at Logan Airport this afternoon with Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito and Patriots owner Bob Kraft. From there, the National Guard will transport the equipment to a strategic stockpile in Marlboro, according to the person familiar with the plans. The move was first reported by POLITICO just after midnight. For weeks, Baker has warned that Massachusetts is in desperate need of more protective equipment like masks, sanitizing wipes and gowns for health care workers on the front lines of the coronavirus crisis, especially as cases are expected to surge sometime between April 7 and April 17. The state saw its largest spike in coronavirus cases on Wednesday - there were 1,118 new cases reported yesterday, and a total 7,738 cases. Baker has raised his concerns about protective equipment with President Donald Trump. He told the president the federal government was outbidding Massachusetts on equipment, even after it advised states to work on getting their own supplies. A week later, the Bay State was still being outbid and had only received a fraction of what it requested from the Strategic National Stockpile. Baker grew increasingly frustrated, saying he'd seen confirmed orders for millions of pieces of gear evaporate before his eyes. So with Kraft's help, it appears Massachusetts has found another way to get supplies. It wasn't clear last night whether Kraft or the state is paying for the protective equipment imported from China, and Baker's office did not respond to a request for comment. When he was asked about protective equipment during a press briefing in Worcester on Wednesday, Baker did not say much, but hinted at an announcement planned for Thursday. "We've been working on a variety of processes and opportunities to make sure that we have the gear that we need to serve our medical community and our first responders," Baker said. "I think we're gonna have a lot more to say about gear tomorrow," Baker said. "I'm gonna leave it at that." Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Get in touch: smurray@politico.com. TODAY — Gov. Charlie Baker, Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito and New England Patriots owner Bob Kraft greet a Patriots plane full of protective equipment at Logan Airport. Sen. Ed Markey and state Rep. Liz Miranda host a joint livestream on the coronavirus and the federal stimulus and relief package. Rep. Katherine Clark holds a virtual conference on the CARES Act. Rep. Jim McGovern is a guest on WBUR. Rep. Joe Kennedy III talks to the Newton-Needham Regional Chamber via livestream.

THE LATEST NUMBERS

- "Massachusetts coronavirus numbers: 122 deaths and 7,738 cases," by Rick Sobey, Boston Herald: "Thirty-three more people in Massachusetts have died from coronavirus, state health officials reported on Wednesday, the second straight day of 33 deaths in the Bay State from the highly contagious disease. The state Department of Public Health also announced 1,118 new cases of coronavirus since Tuesday, bringing the state's total confirmed cases to 7,738. The 33 new coronavirus-linked deaths bring the state total to 122."

DATELINE BEACON HILL

- "Boston Fed chief warns economic hit from coronavirus could last longer than expected," by Jon Chesto and Shirley Leung, Boston Globe: "Boston Federal Reserve Bank president Eric Rosengren said Wednesday that the economic shock from the coronavirus pandemic will be deeper and more protracted than once thought, and Massachusetts will feel the pain sooner than other states. Rosengren expects the US unemployment rate will rise to at least 10 percent by the end of the second quarter, from 3.5 percent at the end of February." - "A measure to stop evictions starts moving on Beacon Hill," by Tim Logan, Boston Globe: "The state Senate is poised to vote soon on a bill that would stop many evictions in Massachusetts during the coronavirus crisis. But advocates for both tenants and landlords say the legislation doesn't go far enough to deal with the challenges facing many renters." - "To mask or not to mask," by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Magazine: "Gov. Charlie Baker, who is leading efforts to stop the spread of COVID-19 in Massachusetts, doesn't see a need to wear a mask as he holds press conferences at the State House or travels around the state, as he did on Wednesday visiting a new field medical station in Worcester. 'I think the thing we're doing most of all is practicing social distancing. We almost never have meetings anymore. We have conference calls. This is about as close as I ever get to anyone,' he said, pointing on Monday to the man standing near him who translates his State House press conferences in sign language." - "State budget writers are starting over," by Shira Schoenberg, CommonWealth Magazine: "Massachusetts budget-writers started the process of crafting the Fiscal 2021 budget in December with a hearing with economic experts about the state's anticipated revenues. Four months later they're starting over with those same experts invited back to testify at a second revenue hearing next week. State revenues have been yet another casualty of the COVID-19 pandemic." - "Gun Parlor in Worcester shouldn't have been open due to non-essential businesses order, Gov. Charlie Baker says," by Steph Solis, MassLive.com: "Gov. Charlie Baker said gun retailers were never deemed essential and was surprised to learn that some gun stores have remained open in Massachusetts despite his executive order closing non-essential businesses during the coronavirus pandemic. 'They were open last week? They shouldn't have been open last week,' Baker, a Republican, told reporters Wednesday afternoon."

FROM THE HUB

- "31 and sturdy, until coronavirus hit: Youngest Massachusetts victim to date succumbs," by Dugan Arnett and Nestor Ramos, Boston Globe: "Of the four Rumrill brothers, Riley was always the extrovert. The 31-year-old Alabama native loved surrounding himself with people. Thursday nights were for bowling, and Sundays were for family, as he'd whip up a meal at his brother's Cambridge home. In addition to his work as a human resources generalist for Transdev in Boston, his family said, he occasionally drove for Uber, largely because it offered a chance to meet new people." - "Seaport convention center may become a coronavirus field hospital," by Tim Logan and Jon Chesto, Boston Globe: "Boston's biggest convention hall could soon become a recovery ward for coronavirus patients. Governor Charlie Baker on Wednesday suggested the cavernous Boston Convention and Exhibition Center in the Seaport could be used to treat patients who are suffering from Covid-19, but aren't sick enough to require acute hospital-level care." - "A critical number that is so hard to pin down: Are Massachusetts hospitals on track to being overwhelmed by coronavirus patients?" by Mark Arsenault, Boston Globe: "It is one of the key indicators of the spread of coronavirus and whether it will overwhelm our health care system: How many people are currently hospitalized with COVID-19? But right now it is impossible for the Massachusetts public to know this number, just weeks ahead of the projected peak of in-state coronavirus patients, in mid-April." - "Massachusetts convenience store workers see pay boost during COVID-19 pandemic," by Steph Solis, MassLive.com: "Convenience store clerks work round the clock, weathering rain, snow and now the coronavirus pandemic. Some of those workers in Massachusetts will receive raises or bonuses due to the state of emergency VERC, which operates 33 convenience stores and gas stations in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, gave $500 bonus checks to full-time employees and $200 bonus checks to part-time employees." - "Temporary morgue set up at Fitchburg State University," by Jeremy C. Fox, Boston Globe: "A temporary morgue has been set up at Fitchburg State University as an emergency measure should additional deaths from COVID-19 overwhelm state mortuary services and its workers, state officials said Wednesday. Mortuary trucks, where bodies would be placed temporarily, have been set up outside the university's Carmelita Landry Arena, the state Office of the Chief Medical Examiner said in a statement. - "Serious Crimes Drop In Boston As Nearly Everyone Stays Home," by Jenifer B. McKim, WGBH News: "Serious crimes in Boston have fallen since the coronavirus shut down the city. So-called 'Part 1' crimes including rape and residential burglary dropped 15 percent overall in March compared to the same time last year, according to data released Wednesday by the Boston Police Department. The total number of such crimes, 1,067, is at its lowest level in more than a decade as many residents stay indoors, city data shows." - "Moderna Is Manufacturing Its Potential Coronavirus Vaccine With Unusual Speed," by Callum Borchers, WBUR: "Cambridge biotechnology company Moderna is already manufacturing enough of its potential coronavirus vaccine to supply second and third phases of clinical trials — even though the first phase won't conclude until later this spring, CEO Stéphane Bancel said Wednesday." WHAT CITY HALL IS READING - "Boston Council Approves (Largely Symbolic) Call For Rent And Mortgage Moratorium," by Simón Rios, WBUR: "All but one of Boston's city councilors voted Wednesday to call for a moratorium on rents and mortgages — a symbolic move designed to pressure lawmakers at the state and federal level to take further action to protect renters and landlords. It was a second attempt to pass the resolution, which was scuttled last week when city Councilor Frank Baker blocked the emergency measure proposed by Councilor Ricardo Arroyo." PRIMARY SOURCES - "Joe Kennedy builds on his fundraising advantage over Ed Markey in first quarter of 2020," by Nik DeCosta-Klipa, Boston.com: "Despite not actively fundraising for the last two weeks, Rep. Joe Kennedy III is building on his fundraising advantage over Sen. Ed Markey in the Massachusetts Senate primary race, according to figures from both campaigns. In a memo Wednesday afternoon to supporters, Kennedy campaign manager Nick Clemons announced that they had raised $1.95 million during the first quarter of 2020 and had a total of $6.2 million. Markey campaign manager John Walsh told Boston.com in a statement Wednesday night that the incumbent senator had raised $1.2 million and had $4.4 million in cash on hand at the end of the quarter — roughly the same amount he had entering the year." ALL ABOARD - "MBTA subway, bus ridership continues to plummet," by Tanner Stening, MassLive.com: "Even fewer people are using public transportation as the novel coronavirus continues to spread rapidly across Massachusetts, according to the MBTA's latest data. For the week of March 29, subway ridership dropped to as low as 90% compared to the same week in February. Ridership hovered around only 10,000 "taps or ticket insertions" at 64 gated stations across the transit system" DAY IN COURT - "All state trials in Mass. postponed until at least May 4," by Matt Berg, Boston Globe: "Continuing efforts to protect the public from COVID-19, the Supreme Judicial Court issued an order Wednesday postponing all state trials to May 4, at the earliest. The order came one day after Governor Charlie Baker extended his previous order that limited gatherings to 10 people or fewer, also lasting until May 4." - "Closed-door hearing over inmate release for coronavirus concerns slammed," by Andrew Martinez, Boston Herald: "Attorneys Wednesday questioned why a high-stakes argument over inmate releases amid the coronavirus pandemic was held behind closed doors at the state's highest court, an issue one prosecutor called too important to be done in secret. The Supreme Judicial Court hearing, which lasted over 4 hours, was held via closed telephone conference and an audio file was released late Tuesday afternoon, which cut off arguments by prosecutors and sheriffs opposing the releases before the technical issue was corrected." WARREN REPORT - "Elizabeth Warren Calls on Uber, Instacart to Reclassify Workers as Employees," by Edward Ongweso Jr., VICE: "In a letter to the CEOs of Uber, Instacart, DoorDash, and Grubhub, Senator Elizabeth Warren called on the gig companies to do something they've fought for years: providing gig workers with 'basic rights and protections' that might protect them during the COVID-19 pandemic. For years now, it has grown increasingly difficult to ignore the precariousness of gig workers." FROM THE DELEGATION - "Keating To Mass. Small Businesses: Get Coronavirus Aid Fast, Before It's Gone," by Adam Reilly, WGBH News: "In a conference call with his congressional colleagues Wednesday, Rep. Bill Keating (D) urged small businesses in Massachusetts to seek relief via the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act as quickly as possible — warning that applications for much of the available funding will processed in the order in which they're received." MARIJUANA IN MASSACHUSETTS - "Two employees of pot firm NETA test positive for coronavirus, making workers question protocol," by Dan Adams, Boston Globe: "State marijuana regulators said Wednesday they are 'looking into' allegations that one of the state's biggest cannabis firms, New England Treatment Access, is failing to adequately protect its workers from the coronavirus, after employees at two of its facilities tested positive for COVID-19. NETA, best known for its popular Brookline dispensary, confirmed that a worker at its large cultivation and processing center in Franklin and another at its Northampton dispensary were diagnosed this week with the deadly, fast-spreading disease." ABOVE THE FOLD — Herald: "HARNESS PEOPLE POWER," — Globe: "Against this enemy, youth wasn't enough," "A bleak outlook for Mass. economy." FROM THE 413 - "Gov. Baker launches investigation into Holyoke Soldiers' Home; veteran deaths rise to 15," by Dusty Christensen, Daily Hampshire Gazette: " Gov. Charlie Baker has announced the hiring of an independent attorney to conduct an investigation of the Holyoke Soldiers' Home, where 15 veteran residents have now died since March 25 amid a coronavirus outbreak. Baker's office said Wednesday that it has hired Mark Pearlstein, a private attorney who previously practiced as a federal prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney's Office in Boston, to lead the investigation." - "His grief mixed with anger, son watches father die at Holyoke Soldiers' Home," by Brian MacQuarrie, Boston Globe: "Patrick Plourde sat beside his father's bed Wednesday at the Soldiers' Home in Holyoke, his face and body covered in protective gear as he kept vigil for the inevitable. His 88-year-old father, a former Air Force master sergeant from Westfield, lay dying in a hospice ward — unconscious, on morphine, and showing symptoms of coronavirus, Patrick said in a phone interview as he watched over his father." - "Area legislators happy with stimulus package," by Anita Fritz, Greenfield Recorder: "Members of the Western Massachusetts-North Quabbin legislative delegation say the $2 trillion federal stimulus package passed by Congress late last week is going to help Franklin County, its residents and its businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Rep. Paul Mark, D-Peru, said Massachusetts is expected to receive about $2.67 billion to not only help keep the state running but to aid communities from east to west that need help in dire times." THE LOCAL ANGLE - "DCU Center taking shape as COVID-19 field hospital," by Steven H. Foskett Jr., Telegram & Gazette: "Gov. Charlie Baker and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito on Wednesday visited the operation underway to convert the first-floor convention space at the DCU Center into a 250-bed field hospital for the least serious COVID-19 patients who would normally visit - and possibly overwhelm local hospitals during the pandemic." - "'No transparency, no plan' — Stoughton police unions fault chief amid department's outbreak of coronavirus," by Ben Berke, The Enterprise: "The town's police unions harshly criticized the chief and her deputy in a letter to the town manager last week for an "utter failure" to protect the department's rank and file from the coronavirus, which has now infected at least two police officers and left several more in self-quarantine. The letter was dated March 26, the same day as Town Manager Robin Muksian Grimm's announcement of the cases within the department." - "State offers more leeway on virus data," by Doug Fraser, Cape Cod Times: "Earlier this week, many towns on the Cape stopped releasing the number of town residents who have tested positive for the new coronavirus. Health directors and town officials said this decision was the result of a conference call Friday with the state Department of Public Health in which they believed the state told them not to reveal this data out of concern for patient privacy." - "As revenues plummet, virus spreads, tensions rise," by Bill Kirk, Eagle-Tribune: "Ridership is down 80 percent. The front of all buses have been blocked off to passengers. And some drivers are dissatisfied with the way the transportation agency is cleaning the vehicles they drive. Other than that, things are going great at the Merrimack Valley Regional Transit Agency." - "Outdoor municipal workers being called back to jobs in Attleboro," by George W. Rhodes, Sun Chronicle: "With jobs beginning to pile up, Mayor Paul Heroux announced Wednesday he is bringing the city's outdoor employees back to work under strict health and safety guidelines. The move comes after consultation with some of the affected departments: parks, recreation, public works, water and wastewater as well as personnel and health." MEDIA MATTERS - "How a Boston Globe website started connecting those in need because of coronavirus with those who can help," by Hanaa' Tameez, Nieman Lab: "I'd been looking for a way to help people in my community when Boston.com (the free news site owned by The Boston Globe) launched Boston Helps, a service to connect people in need with people who are able to help. As local news outlets suffer blow after blow in this pandemic, Boston Helps is a reminder that local news outlets are an invaluable resource in a person's day-to-day life." HAPPY BIRTHDAY - to state Rep. Frank Moran, Billy Jaffe, and Pete D'Agostino, partner at Tenax Strategies (h/t Victoria Ireton). NEW EPISODE: SUFFOLK CLOWNS - On this week's Horse Race podcast, hosts Steve Koczela, Jennfer Smith and Stephanie Murray talk about the Massachusetts Democratic Convention, which the party will vote to cancel, and a coronavirus tracking poll of Massachusetts residents. Subscribe and listen on iTunes and Sound Cloud or watch the Zoom video. 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 Stephanie Murray @StephMurr_Jour   Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook  |  Playbook PM  |  California Playbook  |  Florida Playbook  |  Illinois Playbook  |  Massachusetts Playbook  |  New Jersey Playbook  |  New York Playbook  |  Brussels Playbook  |  London Playbook View all our politics and policy newsletters Follow us   POLITICO, LLC 1000 Wilson Blvd. Arlington, VA, 22209, USA