Mass General Brigham’s commitment to improving community health beyond hospital walls continues as we address food insecurity. Through our partnership with the Greater Boston Food Bank, we’re expanding access to nutritious food across the communities we serve.
Sam Kennedy, the Fenway Sports Group CEO, had a mischievous grin on his face when he sat down for a fireside chat with former Gov. Charlie Baker.
This was all a bait and switch, he announced to attendees of the Boston College Chief Executive Club’s luncheon, and in fact they were there for the exploratory committee “Baker for America.” “Let’s go,” Kennedy said.
Baker laughed. Regularly marked as the most popular governor in America when he was on Beacon Hill, Baker has heard the suggestion, mischievous or not, from others.
Baker’s mentor and a popular former governor himself, Bill Weld, was in attendance and remembered when Baker spoke at the UMass Club in 2024, he didn’t rule anything out.
“I told [retired ad exec] Karen Kaplan right away and she said, ‘sign me up.’ I told him that right now, ‘there’s your first million,’” Weld, who mounted a run for president himself and unsuccessfully challenged Donald Trump in 2020, told MASSterList. “I think he’s got presidential timbre written all over him.” Baker would be “a long cool drink of water” after Trump, Weld added.
But Baker, politically speaking, is something of an endangered species. He’s among the last of the Weld Republicans, fiscally conservative and socially liberal. Baker was a Weld Republican even when Weld himself wasn’t, having left in 2016 to join the Libertarian Party’s ticket as vice president.
Now Baker’s bouncing around the country as president of the NCAA, in large part thanks to FSG’s Kennedy, who called him about the job as Baker was wrapping up his time in the State House. It’s a harder job than governor, given the constituencies, but it also pays better.
After the fireside chat, when a reporter pressed him on grading the performance of his Democratic successor, Maura Healey, Baker said, “Given the amount of time I've actually spent in Massachusetts in the past couple of years, no, I can't answer the question.” He declined to say if he had a favorite among her three GOP candidates challengers, two of whom worked in his administration.
Baker is not accompanying his fellow Massachusetts Republicans on Saturday when they trek to Worcester for their convention. Instead, he’ll be in Virginia for a “little bit” of work and to see family. It’s just as well: Worcester will have a different crowd than the one that beseeched him to run for governor.
“I don't see any of the candidates running as Charlie Baker,” Stephanie Pollack, who served as Baker’s transportation chief, told WBUR. “But I also understand that it may not be possible to run in a Republican primary in Massachusetts as Charlie Baker.” And by extension, a Republican primary in most of the country.
Up on the stage with Sam Kennedy, Baker stuck to sports. Kennedy lobbed softballs. Baker discussed student athletes and getting rid of dozens of NCAA committees. Baker also managed to turn the tables on Kennedy, too. The governor, who once aspired to be a sports reporter, got in his own questions about the FSG CEO’s career and the company’s golf investments.
When the topic of mentoring came up, Baker pointed to Weld, sitting at the table in front of the stage. “The biggest lesson I learned from you – and I wish to God there was more of this in politics these days – was: ‘Don't take it personally,’” Baker said. “Bill Weld was a master at blocking out the noise and focusing on the task at hand and the work to be done.”
Weld also understood “we lived in a distributed decision-making model, which meant sometimes you won and sometimes you lost,” Baker added. “But at the end of the day, it was all about the relationships and the opportunity, because, direct quote, ‘You never knew where your next coalition was coming from.’”
Could Charlie Baker have won a GOP gubernatorial primary this year? Send along your takes: [email protected].
AARP Massachusetts is calling for a statewide ban on cryptocurrency ATMs. These machines are a preferred tool for scammers. They operate without meaningful consumer protections. Millions have been stolen from residents across the Commonwealth. Lawmakers should act now and pass the SCAM Act (SB3048) to eliminate devices that fuel fraud. Join AARP in fighting crypto kiosk fraud and protecting older Americans’ life savings: aarp.org/ma
HAPPENING TODAY
9:30 | Congresswomen Ayanna Pressley and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez join Boston Mayor Michelle Wu for a classroom visit and roundtable conversation with early childhood educators. | RSVP for location information
10:00 | The New England Aquarium marks the fourth annual Massachusetts Right Whale Day, which it uses to "educate and inspire" the public about the importance of the critically endangered species. The celebration this year is set to focus on "the power of community in right whale conservation," according to the aquarium. | New England Aquarium, 1 Central Wharf, Boston
10:00 | Boston City Council holds a hearing on examining and modernizing the city charter in advance of the city's 400th anniversary. The 400th anniversary of the city's founding will take place in 2030. Councilor Julia Mejia is sponsoring the hearing. | More Info and Livestream
11:45 | Attorney General Andrea Campbell participates in a fireside chat at the American Bar Association’s Litigation Section Annual Conference. | Hilton Boston Park Plaza, 50 Park Plaza, Boston
12:00 | U.S. Sen. Ed Markey, Boston Chief Climate Officer Brian Swett, MGH Institute of Health Professions Director of Center for Climate Change and Health Equity Suellen Breakey, and AFGE Local 3428 Legislative Coordinator Dana Donovan hold a press conference to recognize what they're calling "Scorched Earth Day." Speakers will discuss the effects of Trump administration policies on the environment. | New England Aquarium, South Terrace, 1 Central Wharf, Boston
2:00 | Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu offer remarks at the inauguration of Roxbury Community College’s 18th President, Dr. Jonathan K. Jefferson. | Roxbury Community College, 1234 Columbus Ave, Boston
MASSterList Job Board |
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Chief Policy Officer — NEW!, Project Bread |
Executive Operations and Coordination Manager — NEW!, Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities |
Public Health Director, Town of Nantucket |
Assistant Director of Planning and Economic Development, Town of Amherst |
Senior Accountant, Massachusetts Housing Partnership |
Assistant Director of Parks and Open Space, City of Newton |
Vice President of Client Services, Lifebridge North Shore |
Jobs continue below the fold — post a job
2026 CAMPAIGN FIX
MARKEY/MOULTON LATEST: A new University of New Hampshire poll shows Sen. Ed Markey leading Rep. Seth Moulton 46% to 33% among primary voters. Another Democrat, Alex Rikleen, pulled in 6%. “We have seen the gap close from 23 to 17 to 13 points in recent months because the voters want change and a new generation of leadership,” a Moulton spokesperson said. – MassLive
BALLOT ROYALE: State lawmakers continue to eye an overhaul of the ballot initiative process as they express frustration with paid signature-gatherers. Restrictions on the process may raise constitutionality concerns, however. – State House News Service
On May 4, Massachusetts REALTORS® unite as one powerful voice at the annual Margaret C. Carlson REALTOR® Day on Beacon Hill. This year, REALTORS® are fighting to increase housing access by advancing zoning reform, housing production, fair housing education, funding for crumbling concrete foundations, and pre-service board & commission training—and opposing real estate transfer taxes and rent control.
NEWS NEXT DOOR
ANOTHER ONE: Anna Maria College, a private Catholic school outside of Worcester, plans to close its doors. It’s the latest school to shut down, coming soon after Hampshire College’s closure in western Massachusetts. – CBS Boston
TRURO TOWN SEAL: At a town meeting in May, voters will be asked to vote on a new seal. The current seal, drawn in 1900, inaccurately depicts Native Americans. – Provincetown Independent
SOCCER SCHEDULE: A proposal to change the National Women’s Soccer League schedule could complicate plans for Boston Public Schools teams playing at a refurbished White Stadium. Opponents of the rehab have seized on the potential change, arguing it would further privatize the stadium. – Boston Herald
RELIEF FUND: Hampshire College workers are setting up a relief fund as they get ready for layoffs. The closure is set to leave many of the 250 faculty and staff without severance. – Daily Hampshire Gazette
Join legislators and thought leaders for a timely forum on the AI revolution in Massachusetts. Explore the challenges and opportunities of AI policy on Thursday, May 7, at the MCLE (Boston). RSVP!
MORE HEADLINES
THE SUNDAY SHOWS
KELLER AT LARGE: 8:30 a.m., WBZ-TV. Political analyst Jon Keller's guests are the Boston Globe’s Kelly Garrity and yours truly. We discuss Sen. Ed Markey versus Seth Moulton, the state of the MassGOP and Gov. Maura Healey’s reelection efforts.
@ ISSUE SIT DOWN: 9:30 a.m., NBC 10. Reporter Matt Prichard interviews Sean O’Brien, president of the Teamsters.
ON THE RECORD: 11 a.m., WCVB. The guest is New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen.
JOB BOARD
Do you have an open job you'd like to feature here? Click here to place a job board order, or email Dylan Rossiter at [email protected].
Deputy City Clerk and Elections Manager, City of Newton
Senior Financial Investigator, Massachusetts Office of the Inspector General
Investigator, Division of State Police Oversight, Massachusetts Office of the Inspector General
Senior Litigation Paralegal – Strategic Litigation, Conservation Law Foundation
Systems Advocacy Fellow, Jane Doe Inc
Joan and Irwin Jacobs Program Officer for American Institutions, Society, and the Public Good, American Academy of Arts & Sciences
