Keller: Moulton’s mountain to climb

Keller at Large

The DJ in charge of the music at Saturday’s Massachusetts Democratic Convention sure has a dry sense of humor.

Per the party’s livestream of the event, he or she followed up the announcement that Rep. Seth Moulton had easily cleared the 15% threshold for ballot access by playing the classic Marvin Gaye/Tammi Terrell hit “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.”

LOL. Perhaps there is some other explanation, but the song worked just fine as a commentary on the steep climb Moulton now faces.

Consider the case the congressman made for pink-slipping Sen. Ed Markey in his convention speech. Even before the obligatory strafing of Donald Trump (“a monster,” he called him) Moulton was executing his generational offensive. “The status quo playbook has failed us time and time again….we cannot afford to wait six more years for change…. It’s time for the generation that grew up with the internet, and will have to live for decades with AI, to lead our way through it,” he said.

And in his only explicit swipe at Markey, Moulton warned “this is not a time for Democrats to think small,” and thinking big “means I will not vote for Chuck Schumer for Senate leadership. You cannot promise next-generation leadership while supporting the same status quo establishment in Washington.”

Plenty of Massachusetts Democrats are sick of Schumer, including Markey’s prized 2020 re-election endorser, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Yet judging from Markey’s official website, bulging with press releases in which Schumer is name-checked as an ally, he’s not about to chuck him under the bus.

But in his turn on the convention podium, Markey responded to Moulton’s jab with a carve job that made Uma Thurman’s bloodletting in “Kill Bill” seem tame.

CONTINUE READING…

HAPPENING TODAY

10:00 | Funeral services are held for Boston Firefighter Robert Kilduff Jr., 51, who died May 23 after falling from a burning house in Dorchester. Boston Firefighters Local 718 IAFF said all off-duty members are expected to attend. Mayor Michelle Wu will offer remarks. Gov. Maura Healey is also set to attend. | Cathedral of the Holy Cross, 1400 Washington St., Boston

11:30 | U.S. Rep. Richard Neal joins Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts President James Birge, North Adams Mayor Jennifer Macksey, and students, faculty, and staff to announce federal funding for MCLA's Early Education Center. | MCLA, Feigenbaum Center for Science & Innovation, 375 Church St., North Adams

12:45 | Mayor Michelle Wu delivers remarks at the city of Boston’s Pride Month kickoff and flag raising. | City Hall Plaza, Boston

1:00 | Treasurer Deb Goldberg delivers remarks at the Top100Funds Fiduciary Investors Symposium. | Harvard University, Cambridge

2:00 | The Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technology accepts written testimony through 2 p.m. on a Rep. Carole Fiola bill (H 5465) that would enable municipalities to let bars and restaurants sell alcohol for an extra hour, but no later than 3 a.m., from June 1 through Aug. 31. The measure, which Fiola filed May 1, comes as Massachusetts prepares for a busy summer between World Cup matches and 250th celebrations. Cities and towns can also designate areas where alcohol can be consumed in public spaces under the proposal. | More Info

3:00 | Mayor Michelle Wu joins employers and workforce partners to announce an expansion of school-year jobs connecting Boston students to career readiness and learn-and-earn opportunities. | Eagle Room, City Hall, Boston | Livestream

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FROM BEACON HILL

MASSDOT SCANDAL LATEST: Facing the possibility of getting fired, six MassDOT workers resign as state officials investigate potential overtime fraud uncovered by a Boston25 News undercover investigation. – Boston25 News

BILLS COME DUE: The Committee for Public Counsel Services (CPCS) is telling vendors that it’s asked the Legislature to appropriate funds so the state-funded agency can keep paying its bills. Vendors were asked to keep submitting their bills with the expectation they would eventually get paid. – Universal Hub

NEWS NEXT DOOR

BOSTON’S BIG SUMMER: The big events, from the World Cup to Boston 250 and the Tall Ships, are getting lots of attention. But they also prompt the question, who are they for? Joe Keohane attempts to find an answer. – Boston Magazine

NEGLECT AND ABUSE CASES: State prosecutors say there were 13,431 reports of child abuse or neglect in the fiscal year that ended last June, but they don’t have enough money or resources to handle the growing caseload. – Eagle-Tribune

BALLOT COALITION: A top environmental advocacy group is missing from a coalition of groups that are backing a ballot measure that seeks to put aside $100 million in sales tax revenue from sporting goods purchases. – CommonWealth Beacon

BOSTON BUDGET: Boston city councilors are grappling with Mayor Michelle Wu’s proposed cuts to grant programs and other items in her $4.9 billion budget proposal. – WBUR

FED’S POWELL IN BOSTON: Jerome Powell, the former Federal Reserve chair, accepted the “Profile in Courage” at the JFK Library last night. He called the Fed’s credibility a “priceless asset” and warned that if one presidential administration finds a way to remove Fed officials due disagreements over policy, other administrations will later attempt the same. – Wall Street Journal

How will Boston navigate federal policy challenges and economic woes in a time of political uncertainty? What are the challenges and opportunities facing Boston in 2026? Kicking off a blockbuster summer featuring the World Cup and America 250, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu joins MASSterList columnist Jon Keller for an in-person fireside chat at the MCLE Conference Center in Downtown Crossing. Register here.

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