Happening Today
WW I art and election analysis
— Nam Pham, assistant secretary of business development and international trade, and Tim Murray, president of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce, will deliver remarks at the U.S. Small Business Administration – Massachusetts District Office’s annual meeting, Worcester State University, Student Center – Blue Lounge, 486 Chandler St., Worcester, 9 a.m.
— Education Secretary James Peyser presents awards to winners of the Massachusetts 8th Grade World War I Art Competition, a program of the state’s World War I Centennial Commission, Nurses Hall, 1 p.m.
— Boston Globe political reporter Joshua Miller will moderate a discussion of the results of Tuesday’s federal and state elections with Putnam Investments President and CEO Robert Reynolds, Chartwell Strategy Group Managing Director David Tamasi and Ferox Strategies Principal Cristina Antelo, Putnam Investments, 100 Federal St., Boston, 12 p.m.
— Local elected women of color including state Rep.-elect Liz Miranda, Rep.-elect Nika Elugardo, Suffolk County DA-elect Rachael Rollins and Framingham Mayor Yvonne Spicer are guests on ‘Basic Black’ by Callie Crossley, WGBH-TV Ch. 2, 7:30 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
Sound and fury: Rallies held across state to protest potential firing of Mueller
Hundreds of liberal activists gathered on Boston Common and rallied elsewhere across the state yesterday to protest any move by President Trump to fire special counsel Robert Mueller and/or block release of Mueller’s investigative findings into Russian meddling in the 2016 election. The Globe’s Danny McDonald has the details on the Boston rally, while Lucas Ropek at MassLIve reports on a smaller rally in Springfield.
Separately, Ropek reports that more than 40 rallies were planned in communities across Massachusetts – and it sure looks like there were indeed a lot of them. Here’s a sampling: From the Telegram: ‘Activists in Worcester show support for Mueller, press’ … From the MetroWest Daily News: ‘Demonstrators in Framingham call on Congress to ‘protect Mueller’ … From the Berkshire Eagle: ‘In Pittsfield, Great Barrington, protestors tell Trump: You’re not above the law’ …From South Coast Today: ‘New Bedford joins nationwide ‘Nobody is above the law’ rallies.’
Meanwhile, Shira Schoenberg reports that U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren reiterated yesterday her position that Mueller must be protected. But the Herald’s Mary Markos reports that Warren’s current position is a bit at odds with what she’s demanded in the past regarding the ouster of U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
Nothing here to see: Steve Wynn sues to block release of state report on his sexual misdeeds
He really doesn’t want this stuff to spill out in public. From Bruce Mohl at CommonWealth magazine: “Steve Wynn is suing his former company, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, and the commission’s chief investigator, seeking to block the upcoming release of a report on his sexual misconduct that allegedly relies on improperly obtained privileged information.” The lawsuit, filed on Wednesday in Las Vegas, was publicly disclosed at a Gaming Commission hearing yesterday.
Former Senate President Bulger among few who attend his brother Whitey’s funeral
A funeral mass was held yesterday in South Boston for James “Whitey” Bulger, the convicted gangster murderer who himself was murdered in a federal prison last week, reports NBC Boston. Among the small number of people at the private service was Whitey’s brother, former Senate President Bill Bulger. The Herald reports that victims’ kin were unhappy that Whitely Bulger was given formal funeral rites. “What are we supposed to do? Say 10 Hail Marys and all is forgiven?” asked one relative of a victim.
So who are Massachusetts Dems going to choose? Deval or Liz?
The Herald’s Joe Battenfeld writes that if U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren really wants to turn for president, then her biggest primary threat may be a fellow Massachusetts resident, i.e. former Gov. Deval Patrick. If the two do run, it ought to make for a very interesting presidential primary here in Massachusetts. Separately, Warren said she has no firm timeline for making a decision on whether to run for resident, Shira Schoenberg at MassLive reports.
Moulton and Neal on collision course over Pelosi
U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton is once again gunning to take down Nancy Pelosi as Democratic leader in the U.S. House, but this time he has some new allies: Congressional newbies who won office on Tuesday and are committed to new leadership in the House, or so says Moulton, reports the Globe’s Liz Goodwin. Meanwhile, Pelosi’s bid for another term as speaker is dividing the state’s delegation, report Christian Wade at the Gloucester Daily Times.
But the Washington Post reports that Pelosi’s allies are confident she’ll once again fend off a challenge to her leadership. “The other side has thrown everything but the kitchen sink at her, and she’s still standing,” said Massachusetts Rep. Richard E. Neal, the likely next chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. “And I think a lot of people have lost a lot of money betting against her.”
Women will hold a record 57 legislative seats on Beacon Hill
More evidence that Tuesday was a big day for women candidates in general. From SHNS’s Katie Lannan at South Coast Today: “In a campaign cycle where record numbers of female candidates sought elected office, women picked up a handful of seats on Beacon Hill to boost their representation in the Legislature to new high of 28.5 percent. … Between the two branches, women are set to hold 57 of 200 seats in the 191st General Court, up from
Eversource writes off Access Northeast — literally
Eversource’s corporate suits and PR types may say the fight over the Access Northeast pipeline project isn’t over. But the bean counters at Eversource have literally written off the project, saying the utility’s stake in Access Northeast is now virtually worthless, an indirect victim (perhaps) of the catastrophic natural-gas explosions and fires in Merrimack Valley in September, the Globe’s Jon Chesto reports.
‘Capitalists for cannabis’
The BBJ’s Jessica Bartlett has a piece on the increasing number of deep-pocketed investors jumping into the marijuana industry in Massachusetts, including an investor in a new Maine casino who sees the pot sector as the next big thing. Meanwhile, Jack Sullivan at CommonWealth magazine reports that ‘Big Marijuana’ is indeed elbowing its way into Massachusetts – but is that such a bad thing?
Third time the charm? Chick-fil-A plans eatery in Boston, following prior rebuffs
Chick-fil-A, the Atlanta-based chicken chain, has tried before to open a restaurant in Boston – only to run into a buzzsaw of opposition tied to its CEO’s opposition to gay marriage. But Cameron Sperance at BisNow says it looks like the chain is going to succeed this time around by opening an eatery on Boylston Street in the Back Bay. Sperance has more on the move and past opposition once led by the late Mayor Tom Meninio.
Globe’s backhanded compliment of Amazon’s boring, soulless and perfect choice for HQ2
The Globe’s Tim Logan has a good story on how Amazon’s apparent choice of Crystal City, Virginia as one half of its planned HQ2 may be perfect: It’s dull, soulless and cheap, the exact opposite of what Boston was offering. He explains. And the Globe’s Renée Loth, btw, says Gov. Charlie Baker and Mayor Marty Walsh may have some explaining to do on why Amazon apparently didn’t choose Boston.
The Lyons takedown: A cautionary tale for other conservatives in Massachusetts?
The Herald’s Howie Carr is more than a little bitter over Tuesday’s defeat of conservative state Rep. Jim Lyons, after liberal groups pumped all sorts of money into the campaign coffers of Democrat Tram Nguyen. Ultimately, it was Lyons’ positions on abortion and transgender rights that galvanized his opponents in the election, reports Stephanie Ebbert at the Globe. Michael Jonas at CommonWealth magazine wonders if conservative Bristol County Sheriff Thomas Hodgson might be next on the political hit list.
Governor very discreetly signs civics-education bill
Gov. Charlie Baker says he was pleased to sign the “non-partisan” civics education bill passed by lawmakers earlier this year. Yet the governor’s office only informed the public about the bill signing, at an invite-only ceremony yesterday, after he put pen to paper. One has to wonder if this discreet approach had anything to do with conservative criticism that the new law is nothing more than an “indoctrination into liberalism.” Anyway, Shira Schoenberg at MassLive and SHNS’s Katie Lannan have the bill-signing details.
‘Sure, he’s a Republican, but not that kind of Republican’
Speaking of the governor, the Christian Science Monitor’s Christa Case Bryant tries to explain why “Mr. Fix It,” aka Charlie Baker, as a Republican, is so popular in blue-state Massachusetts. Meanwhile, Shira Schoenberg at MassLive talks with people who voted for both Baker and U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Tuesday – and finds their motives were, not surprisingly, mixed.
TD Garden planning first major renovation in 23 years
From Tim Logan at the Globe: “Delaware North is taking the wraps off of the biggest expansion in the 23-year history of the TD Garden: A 50,000-square-foot, $100 million addition designed to add concessions, spruce up club areas, increase seating, and — finally — give the Garden a proper front door.”
‘How Massachusetts helped win the Great War’
This Sunday’s Veterans Day marks the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I – and Jack Lepiarz at WBUR has a nice piece on the “Yankee Division,” the 26th division of the National Guard, comprised of 28,000 men from New England. They saw some horrible battles indeed.
Harvard Medical school gets record $200M donation for research
File under: ‘Holy mackerel.’ From Carey Goldberg at WBUR: “Harvard Medical School has received a pledge for the biggest gift in its 236-year history, the school announced on Thursday: $200 million aimed mainly at turning research into treatments faster. The gift, from the Blavatnik Family Foundation — named for Soviet-born industrialist Len Blavatnik, who got a Harvard MBA — will support work in several directions, Harvard Medical School says. They will include: research on basic science, treatments, data science and an incubator for biotech startups.”
Mega-success: Lottery sales soared last month due to huge Mega Millions payout
The state’s lottery saw its revenues skyrocket last month by 24 percent, or by $92.8 million, as a result of the $1.5 billion Mega Millions game that was ultimately won by a ticket sold in South Carolina, SHNS’s Colin Young reports. So we won even if no one here won.
SHNS (pay wall — free trial subscription available)
UMass police investigating racist materials plastered around campus
Diane Lederman at MassLive reports that UMass police are investigating racist materials that appear to have been plastered around campus by a white nationalist group, just as students were holding an anti-hate rally against white supremacy and ‘right-wing terror.’
In Fields Corner, divided thoughts on ’Little Saigon’
A push to designate part of Dorchester’s Fields Corner as a cultural district dubbed ’Little Saigon’—a nod to the large Vietnamese population that has settled there—is dividing the neighborhood even before the application for the designation has been filed with the state, Jennifer Smith reports at the Dorchester Reporter.
Former Obama administration official to head JFK Library
Alan Price, a former Obama administration appointee with close ties to Harvard, has been tapped to lead the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston, reports the Globe’s Travis Andersen. Caroline Kennedy is giving Price a ringing endorsement.
Globe lays off 15 employees, outsources death-notices business
From the BBJ’s Don Seiffert: “The Boston Globe plans to lay off 10 longtime employees in the classified department and outsource its ‘Remembered’ business, which prints death notices, according to the head of the union that represents editorial and business employees. Separately, the paper this week also laid off five newsroom employees.
In a literal sign of the times, the new owners of the Boston Globe’s old headquarters plant on Morrissey Boulevard have taken down the giant ‘Boston Globe’ sign that used to adorn the old Dorchester building. Universal Hub has the photo.
Advocates say strong ‘Question 4’ results point way on single-payer health care
Three-fourths of voters who went to the polls Tuesday in six state House districts—and nearly 90 percent of those who voted in Northampton—backed a non-binding measure aimed at prompting lawmakers to move toward a single-payer health care system, results that backers say amounts to a mandate, Bera Dunau reports at the Daily Hampshire Gazette.
Feds will add Bristol County outreach component to opioid battle in 2019
The federal Drug Enforcement Agency plans to implement a relatively new combined law-enforcement and community-outreach program in Bristol County next year aimed at curbing opioid addiction, Jordan Deschenes reports at the Enterprise. The ‘360 Strategy’ was first tested in Manchester, N.H. this year and the county was chosen to be among the locales to get the program next year.
Sunday public affairs TV
Keller at Large, WBZ-TV Channel 4, 8:30 a.m. This week’s guests: The Boston Globe’s James Pindell and Experience Magazine’s Joanna Weiss, who talk about this past week’s elections with host Jon Keller.
This Week in Business, NECN, 10 a.m. Doug Banks, editor of the Boston Business Journal, and Shirley Leung, interim editorial page editor of the Boston Globe, talk about the results and impact of the midterm elections on policies that matter to business, as well as discuss Amazon’s HQ2 and Papa Gino’s bankruptcy filing.
CEO Corner, NECN, 10:30 a.m. A look at both the work and partnership between the Dimock Center and Sanofi Genzyme, with Dimock CEO Dr. Myechia Minter-Jordan and the EVP and head of Sanofi Genzyme Bill Sibold.
Boston College Chief Executives Club, NECN, 1 p.m. Bank of America chairman and CEO Brian Moynihan talks about markets and the economy at a Boston College Chief Executives Club event held earlier this week.
The Midterm Elections: What Might They Mean?
Panelists including Mara Liasson, NPR national political correspondent, Mark Preston, CNN executive director of political programming and senior political analyst, and Kate Zernike, political reporter for The New York Times, interpret the results of the 2018 midterm elections. Nancy Cordes, chief congressional correspondent for CBS News, moderates.
John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum
Listening Across the Political Divide
There’s a lot of stress these days among family members and friends who are divided politically, and the current polarized public conversation doesn’t help. Please join us to learn skills for having respectful conversations that clarify differences, search for common ground, and affirm the importance of the relationship.
CONNECT Community Series at Park Avenue Congregational Church
A Nation of Immigrants Dinner & Reception
Join the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation for A Nation of Immigrants – Celebrating the Immigrant Experience in American Culture as we celebrate immigrants and their contributions to America’s culture and success.
Journalism And The First Amendment
Join the panel of experts and the New England First Amendment Coalition to discuss freedom of speech and freedom of the press in this era of “fake news”. They will help us to make sense of what is going on in our current political climate. Come get informed and bring your questions.
What’s Next? A Conversation with MA’s Up-and-Coming Political Leaders
Join the Massachusetts Women’s Political Caucus, State Representative Joan Meschino, Author of POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook Stephanie Murray, and three up-and-coming political leaders to reflect on the fall 2018 midterm elections and discuss the future of Massachusetts politics.
Massachusetts Women’s Political Caucus
Power 50
Join the Boston Business Journal to celebrate 2018’s Power50. These are the men and women who’ve made the biggest impact on Greater Boston’s business community and/or the region’s overall economy this past year.
Post Election Listening Cycle
Join Indivisible Mystic Valley for a special Listening Circle intended for anyone who has been working on the 2018 election!
2018 Distinguished Real Estate Awards Gala
Join NAIOP Massachusetts for the 2018 Distinguished Real Estate Awards Gala as we honor Related Beal for their achievements in real estate, charitable activities and community betterment. David Begelfer will be honored with this year’s Edward H. Linde Public Service Award in recognition of his 27 years of service to NAIOP.
TEDxBeaconStreet
On November 17, TEDxBeaconStreet will return to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum for a second year! Some of the most inspiring minds and speakers in the world will come to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum for the final day of TEDxBeaconStreet.
2018 Newman Civic Fellows National Conference
The Newman Civic Fellows National Conference is an annual conference exclusively for current Newman Civic Fellows that provides opportunities for networking, collaboration, and shared learning among Fellows. Only members of the 2018 Newman Civic Fellowship cohort may attend the 2018 Newman Civic Fellows National Conference.
Today’s Headlines
Metro
Education according to Marty Walsh – WGBH
For the first time in 23 years, TD Garden is growing – Boston Globe
Massachusetts
Hazing allegation ends Worcester Tech football season – Telegram & Gazette
Fishermen ask for more time to study wind impact – Standard-Times
Ex-police chief sues Otis, claims firing was retaliation – Berkshire Eagle
Atlas Distributing named founding sponsor of WooSox – Worcester Business Journal
Nation
How an all-woman, pro-gun control ad crew is flipping Republican seats – Politico
Keystone XL pipeline construction blocked by federal judge – New York Times
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