Happening Today
Markey presser, Trahan rally, and more
— Preliminary August and revised July unemployment rate, labor force and job estimates for Massachusetts will be released today by the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development.
— Boston Mayor Martin Walsh, Secretary of Education James Peyser, City Council President Andrea Campbell and state Rep. Russell Holmes join the Brooke High School class of 2020 for a ribbon cutting ceremony to commemorate the completion of the charter school’s new building, 200 American Legion Hwy., Boston, 9:30 a.m.
— U.S. Sen. Ed Markey holds a press conference to announce new legislation that would require prescription opioid bottles be labeled with a “consistent, clear and concise” warning about addiction and overdoses, JFK Federal Building, Room 900A, 15 New Sudbury, Boston, 10 a.m.
— Historian Doris Kearns Goodwin discusses her new book ‘In Turbulent Times’ on ‘Boston Public Radio,’ WGBH 89.7, 1:35 p.m.
— Republican U.S. Senate candidate Geoff Diehl holds a press conference, Outside UMass conference center, 50 Warren St., Lowell, 5:30 p.m.
— Museum of African American History hosts ‘Afro-futurism: The Graphic Novel/ Black Comix Symposium’ that will focus on the history of black graphic novels, comic books and other African American artists, African Meeting House, 46 Joy St., Boston, 5:30 p.m.
— U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Democrat nominee for governor Jay Gonzalez lead rally in support of Third Congressional District candidate Lori Trahan, UMass Lowell Inn and Conference Center, Lower Locks Conference Room, 50 Warren St., Lowell, 6:30 p.m.
For more calendar listings, check out State House News Service’s Daily Advances (pay wall – free trial subscriptions available) and MassterList’s Beacon Hill Town Square below.
Today’s Stories
Worst-case scenario coming true: It may take ‘several months’ to restore gas service in Merrimack Valley
Just what they need in the Lawrence area. From the Globe’s Milton Valencia and Matt Racheleau: “Columbia Gas said Thursday that restoration of gas service across the Merrimack Valley could take ‘several months,’ a dark new prediction for local business owners and residents as frustrations continue to grow with the company amid uncertainty over the future.”
In related gas-line news: Mary Serreze at MassLive reports that the DPU has rebuffed/sidestepped/whatever Attorney General Maura Healey’s call for an investigation of National Grid’s pipeline safety practices since the utility locked out more than 1,250 natural-gas workers over a contract dispute, saying it’s already looking into safety issues. Meanwhile, Gov. Charlie Baker choked up while describing the efforts of volunteers trying to help those in need in the Merrimack Valley, reports SHNS’s Katie Lannan (pay wall).
Healey’s turn: AG, and not the feds, announces charges against three more troopers
Until yesterday, the feds were the ones leading the legal charge against State Police troopers accused of filing for overtime pay for work they never performed. But now Attorney General Maura Healey is on the beat, with her office yesterday announcing the indictments of three additional troopers in the unfolding OT drama. The Globe’s Danny McDonald and Shelley Murphy and the Herald’s Joe Dwinell have the details.
Warren for president? Majority of Mass. voters hope she doesn’t go for it
This is interesting. From the Globe’s Victoria McGrane and James Pindell on U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren possibly running for president: “A new poll shows a healthy majority of her constituents don’t think the Cambridge Democrat should jump into the 2020 race, which essentially begins as soon as the November midterm elections conclude less than 50 days from now.”
This is equally interesting: Former Gov. Deval Patrick seems to have the most support, among those polled, for a possible White House bid in 2020, according to a separate Globe piece. Even John Kerry has stronger support for a run than Warren. Then again, no local pols (including Reps. Seth Moulton and Joseph Kennedy) seem to have strong overall support for a bid, the poll shows. Make of it what you will.
Boston hedge fund billionaire Seth Klarman emerges as major force in the U.S. Senate battle
The Washington Post reports that wealthy donors are now pouring millions of dollars into the national Democratic Senate super PAC – and among those at the top of the donor list is Boston hedge fund billionaire Seth Klarman. The NYT’s Bari Weiss recently talked with Klarman, who used to be a big GOP donor and is now hopping mad at Donald Trump and Republicans.
Of banners and flags: The mystery and the outrage
Somerville police are now trying to find out exactly how a pair of guys happened to come across that Red Sox AL East title banner that they claim they found on McGrath Highway in Somerville, CBS Boston reports. A Globe video about the duo has gone viral, in case you haven’t heard. It’s a mini-classic, quintessential Boston.
Meanwhile, Universal Hub’s Adam Gaffin, who flagged the CBS Boston piece, notes that, yes, police are “also investigating (and charging) the alleged flag urinator (NECN),” in case some people jump to the conclusion that police are prioritizing a Sox banner over the American flag.
Scare tactics: Anti-transgender rights ad drawing criticism
The Globe’s Danny McDonald has a piece on a controversy over a Yes on 3 campaign TV ad that’s blatantly trying to scare voters into thinking their daughters are at risk in public bathrooms if the state’s new transgender-rights law remains on the books. McDonald’s description of the ad: “The 30-second ad shows a man in a hooded sweatshirt in a women’s locker room, watching a teenage girl from a bathroom stall before exiting the stall as the girl unbuttons her shirt.”
Independent candidate raring to debate Rollins over ‘decline to prosecute’
Independent Suffolk DA candidate Michael Maloney says his Democratic rival, Rachael Rollins, has accepted his offer to debate – and he sure sounds cocky about taking her on, specifically over Rollins’ controversial “decline to prosecute” agenda. Alexi Cohan at the Herald has the story.
Quickie observation: Maloney ought to be careful about what he wishes for. Rollins is not “hiding,” as Maloney indicates. Among her numerous public appearances, she’s had the guts to appear on Howie Carr’s radio show, for heaven’s sake, and her views are not as radical or as hard to explain as Maloney and others think.
Message to Michael Moore: ‘Don’t smear Boston Light & Sound’
Film critic Leonard Maltin is riding to the rescue of a friend who owns a small Brighton multimedia company that’s currently feuding with famed filmmaker Michael Moore. It’s getting nasty – and personal. Laura Crimaldi at the Globe has the details.
With meeting now set, Brockton casino backers hope second time is the charm
It’s alive. The bid to put a resort casino on the Brockton Fairgrounds has been given new life, at least briefly, with the state Gaming Commission saying it will discuss whether to reopen the state’s southeastern region to new casino applications, Marc Larocque reports at the Enterprise. Mass. Gaming & Entertainment stands poised to effectively re-apply, after its original bid was rejected in 2016. Since its first failed attempt, federal authorities put up a major roadblock to the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe’s effort to build its own casino in Taunton.
RGA throws another $1.7M Baker’s way
They’re trying to make the campaign rubble bounce, it seems. Shira Schoenberg at MassLive reports that the Republican Governors Association has funneled another $1.75 million to help Gov. Charlie Baker win re-election, via a donation to the Commonwealth Future PAC, which is funded by the RGA.
Baker takes flak for lack of Western Mass. debates
Democrats are lashing out at Gov. Charlie Baker for declining an invitation to debate his opponent in Western Massachusetts during the run-up to the Nov. 6 general election, noting the incumbent agreed to far more debates in his two previous runs for the corner office. MassLive’s Gintautus Dumcius has the details.
Attention Jay Gonzalez: ‘Harvard raises $9.6B in capital campaign, shattering higher education record’
This doesn’t exactly strengthen Harvard’s case that its endowment fund shouldn’t be taxed. From the BBJ’s Max Stendahl: “The richest school in higher education just got a lot richer. Harvard University announced Thursday that it had completed a five-year capital campaign that raised a total of $9.6 billion. That figure shatters the previous record for a university capital campaign, held by Stanford University, which completed a $6.2 billion fundraising effort in 2012.”
Where oh where will the state get $800M to finish the South Coast rail project?
Bruce Mohl at CommonWealth magazine reports that transportation officials still plan to have South Coast Rail service up and running by late 2022. But there’s a problem: The state still doesn’t know where it’s going to get the $800 million to finish the project. The Baker administration says it will have an answer – after the election, Mohl notes.
Cape Air revives idea to use Boston Harbor for seaplanes
Former state Sen. Dan Wolf, the founder and CEO of Cape Air, hasn’t given up on the idea of using Boston Harbor as a landing and takeoff strip (so to speak) for seaplane flights to connect Boston and New York. The East Boston Time-Free Press has the details, via Universal Hub.
‘Hamilton’ storms Boston
Fear not: The Broadway hit ‘Hamilton’ hasn’t lost any of its appeal and punch as a touring production in Boston, writes the Globe’s Don Aucoin, who has a glowing review of the show. “The quality of this touring production serves notice, in case anyone was wondering, that ‘Hamilton’ is built to last,” he writes. We’re psyched to see it, if we can find tickets.
Housing activists versus housing activists: A clash of visions
Michael Jonas at CommonWealth magazine has an interesting piece about how housing activists, all of them sharing the same goal of easing the housing crunch in Boston, are at odds with each other over, well, how to ease the housing crunch in Boston. It’s a case of both sides having sound arguments, though we tend to tilt toward the pro-growth types.
Miracle of miracles: Rent prices are actually falling (a little) in Greater Boston
Speaking of housing issues: It’s only a small dip in rent prices in Greater Boston, but there is a tentative trend forming, based on Zillow data, and Zeninjor Enwemeka at WBUR has the details. It appears new housing coming on line is making a small difference.
The price of fame: Boston hospitals fined $1M for alleged privacy violations in TV show
From the BBJ’s Jessica Bartlett: “Boston Medical Center, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital have paid a combined $1 million to settle claims by federal regulators that they compromised patient privacy during the filming of the ABC medical documentary show ‘Save My Life: Boston Trauma.’” The feds alleged the hospitals HIPAA provisions.
Separately, the BBJ’s Bartlett (pay wall) also reports that the physicians group and flagship hospital of UMass Memorial Health Care will pay $230,000 in fines to the state after suffering two data breaches that allegedly released the personal data of 15,000 patients.
Opponents of Beth Israel-Lahey merger urge Healey to file lawsuit
Speaking of hospitals, from SHNS’s Katie Lannan at the Salem News: “Opponents of a planned merger that would blend Lahey Health and Beth Israel Deaconess into a new 13-hospital system are looking to Attorney General Maura Healey to intervene as they continue to raise concerns about potential impacts on the cost of care, community hospitals and minority populations.”
Indictment says Belchertown property owners voted twice in ’16 election
This will only serve as red meat for conspiracy theorists who think the N.H. presidential election was rigged in 2016: A New Hampshire grand jury has indicted a married couple on charges of voter fraud after officials say they cast votes via absentee ballot in New Hampshire and in person on election day in the Bay State during the 2016 presidential election, reports Jacquelyn Voghel at the Daily Hampshire Gazette. So there you have it: Two fraudulent votes. Two! The rigged-election evidence is now overwhelming.
NOAA seeking $3 million in civil fines against Carlos ‘Codfather’ Rafael
Federal authorities are signaling they aren’t done just yet with punishing Carlos “The Codfather” Rafael, with the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration now seeking $3 million in civil fines as well as the revocation of 42 of his federal fishing permits, Michael Bonner reports at the Standard-Times.
Cole Tracy Madness: Assumption College receives $5,000 in donations from appreciate LSU football fans
Cole Tracy used to be the star kicker for Assumption College’s Division II football team in Worcester. Then he transferred to LSU, a Division I powerhouse, and this past weekend he kicked a clutch winning field goal to defeat Auburn. Now ecstatic LSU fans are sending donations to tiny Assumption in appreciation. Jennifer Toland at the Telegram has the details.
Sunday public affairs TV
Keller at Large, WBZ-TV Channel 4, 8:30 a.m. This week’s guest: Mark Leibovich, author of ‘Big Game: the NFL in Dangerous Times’ who talks with host Jon Keller about the Colin Kaepernick situation, Trump vs. the NFL, and new-stadium politics.
This Week in Business, NECN, 10 a.m. Jim Rooney, CEO of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, discusses the China tariffs, Jay Gonzalez’s proposal to tax universities and other issues; and Doug Banks of the BBJ reviews the top local business stories of the week.
CEO Corner, NECN, 10: 30 a.m. Direct Tire and Auto Service owner and president Barry Steinberg and his general manager Bob Lane talk about the auto repair industry and what it takes to compete with the giants.
On The Record, WCVB-TV Channel 5, 11 a.m. This week’s topic: Both sides in the nurse-staffing Question 1 ballot fight, moderated by anchor Ed Harding and co-anchor Janet Wu.
This is New England, NBC Boston Channel 10, 11:30 a.m. With host Latoyia Edwards, this week’s topics: Local reporter stories in the community and the Reebok Boston 10k For Women.
CityLine, WCVB-TV Channel 5, 12 p.m. This week’s main topic: The Best of Berklee – a look at the Berklee Beantown Jazz Festival.
2018 Better Government Competition Awards Gala
Join Us on Sept. 24th at the 2018 Better Government Competition Awards Gala! Remarks by Governor Charlie Baker Keynote Speaker: John Sexton 2018 Topic: Making higher education & career training options affordable & effective.
Starr Forum: The Assault on Intelligence
Starr Forum: The Assault on Intelligence: American National Security in an Age of Lies. A book talk with Michael Hayden, former director of the NSA.
MIT Center for International Studies (CIS)
Launching the Next Big Thing (Successfully) – A Panel of Experts Share Their Experiences
A panel of product development experts and serial entrepreneurs will share their experiences and guidance on the essentials of successful product development.
North Shore Technology Council
HIPAA Privacy Rule Compliance-Understanding New Rules and Responsibilities of Privacy Officer
Women in Science and Politics featuring Obama EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy
Gina McCarthy, former head of the EPA under President Obama, Nandita Scott, cardiologist and elected member of Hingham’s Rec Commission, and Katie McBrine, pediatrician and current candidate for State Senate, Plymouth and Norfolk, will discuss the importance of having science-literate women in public office.
Committee to Elect Katie McBrine
2018 Inner City 100 Conference & Awards
2018 Inner City 100 Conference & Awards – the premier networking and management education event for fast-growing urban businesses. Timed with its 20th anniversary of recognizing America’s fastest growing urban small businesses, the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC) has expanded its 2018 Inner City 100 Award ceremony (IC 100) into a two-day event.
Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC)
11th Annual Public Performance Conference
Please join us for the 11th Annual Public Performance Conference. The goal of the conference is to examine and discuss performance management research and models for the adoption and implementation of compelling practices in the public sector.
Today’s Headlines
Metro
Editorial: UMass Boston should make Bayside options public now – Dorchester Reporter
Boston school board weighs options for search – Boston Globe
Massachusetts
Worcester to conduct citywide housing study – Worcester Business Journal
UMass Amherst gets $3 million to encourage women, minorities to pursue STEM fields – MassLive
UMass Memorial names drug czar, launches opioids task force – Telegram & Gazette
12th Plymouth state rep candidates getting to know the district – Patriot Ledger
One year on, refugees from Maria still need homes – Daily Hampshire Gazette
Nation
Kavanaugh accuser opens negotiation on testifying next week – New York Times
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