Who's a real Republican? PAC paints Shortsleeve as ‘one of them’

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Massachusetts First, the super PAC backing GOP candidate for governor Mike Minogue, is stepping up its attacks on Brian Shortsleeve with a mailer sent to voters calling him a “Democrat plant” set on helping Gov. Maura Healey.

Minogue and his allies have been pushing Shortsleeve to drop out of the Sept. 1 Republican primary after Minogue triumphed among the insiders who attended the Republican convention in April.

A Suffolk University/Boston Globe poll of likely Republican and unenrolled state primary voters, released yesterday, found Minogue pulling in 45% to Shortsleeve’s 13.1%, with 40.2% undecided.

Underscoring how primaries can become party purity tests, the Minogue super PAC mailer took aim at Shortsleeve’s donations to Democrats, including Attorney General Andrea Campbell and $10,000 to the super PAC tied to the Environmental League of Massachusetts, which has backed Healey and Mayor Michelle Wu. “He’s not one of us. He’s one of them,” said the mailer, while placing Shortsleeve’s face on a cartoon sunflower.

Shortsleeve’s campaign hit back against the mailer, calling the super PAC “shady” and saying Minogue should “man up” and debate his primary rival. Spokesman Pat Nestor added: “As Minogue hides in fear from face-to-face debates with Brian Shortsleeve, he commissions his PAC to make wildly hypocritical attack ads.”

Chris Russell, the super PAC’s strategist and spokesman, responded via email: "The only thing more embarrassing than Brian Shortsleeve's lame schoolyard taunts are the new polling numbers out today that show him down 30+ points to Mike Minogue.”

Shortsleeve, a venture capitalist who worked for Republican Gov. Charlie Baker, does have a history of donating to Democrats. But at the state level, he has mostly also opened his wallet to Republicans, the state GOP and conservative causes, including $25,000 to a campaign committee that sought to stop the millionaires tax.

Minogue, a medical device executive, has also largely donated to Republicans, including Donald Trump, though he also cut a check to Josh Kraft, a Democrat who ran against Wu in 2025. Early in the GOP primary, Minogue caught flak from his opponents for saying, “I don’t identify with a party,” leading him to later say he backs Trump and the Republican Party.

The Minogue super PAC has taken money from a donor to Democrats and Republicans, MASSterList reported last month. Former Reebok executive Paul Fireman has hosted a fundraiser for Mitt Romney and donated to former Gov. Deval Patrick and congressional candidate Dan Koh.

Super PACs haven’t done as much of the heavy lifting so far, with Shortsleeve and Minogue shoveling their own cash into their respective campaigns, though that could change as the primary approaches. Shortsleeve’s super PAC, Commonwealth Unity, has largely stuck to social media and fired away at Healey.

On Tuesday, Shortsleeve said he was shelling out an additional $600,000 for his gubernatorial campaign, bringing his total to $1 million. Minogue has given his campaign $13.5 million, and compared his run for governor to the charity work he and his wife have been doing for years.

What’s your take on the back-and-forth between Shortsleeve and Minogue? Is the primary essentially over or will it heat up before people head off to their summer vacations? Send along your thoughts: [email protected].

HAPPENING TODAY

9:30 | Boston Mayor Michelle Wu delivers remarks at the Black Men’s Health Activation Summit. | UMass Boston, 100 Morrissey Boulevard, Dorchester

10:30 | Senate President Karen Spilka joins AFT President Jessica Tang and members of the Senate to make an announcement related to retirement of Massachusetts educators. | Senate Reading Room, State House, Boston

11:00 | Gov. Maura Healey attends Pride Flag raising hosted by the LGBTQ+ Legislative Caucus. Attendees also include First Lady Joanna Lydgate, Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll, Treasurer Deb Goldberg, Senate President Karen Spilka, Attorney General Andrea Campbell, Rep. Kate Hogan, Sen. Julian Cyr, and others. | Front of the State House, Beacon Street, Boston

11:00 | Sens. Jake Oliveira and Adam Gomez attend a regional briefing for Western Massachusetts chambers of commerce and regional partners on workforce development grant programs and funding opportunities for local employers. Commonwealth Corporation hosts, in partnership with the Western Mass Economic Development Council and the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center. | Western Mass Economic Development Council, 1441 Main St., Springfield | Register

3:20 | Gov. Maura Healey gives opening remarks and Economic Development Secretary Eric Paley speaks as Takeda hosts a forum on how Massachusetts could maintain its global competitive edge in innovation. | Takeda, Fortis Hall, 200 Shire Way, Lexington

4:45 | Mayor Michelle Wu delivers remarks at the ribbon cutting ceremony celebrating the opening of Visa Street Soccer Park Boston. | 110 Flaherty Way, South Boston

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AROUND TOWN: RENT CONTROL, COLLINS OPPONENT AND MORE

The rent control ball appears to be back in the Legislature’s court. Proponents of a rent control ballot measure sent along to lawmakers what they called a compromise agreement with several figures in the real estate sector, including Tom O’Brien and Sal Lupoli. O’Brien, Lupoli and others were not negotiating on behalf of the ballot committee opposing rent control, which includes NAIOP Massachusetts. The real estate group blasted out a statement saying no compromise was reached. They have seen the language from the “Yes” side, the statement said they would review the proposal, but raised concerns: “There have been no direct conversations between our campaign and the proponents." Elements of the agreement touted by proponents are similar to what Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has proposed, allowing local control on opting into a rent control policy. Proponents will continue gathering signatures for the ballot, but plan to drop the question if lawmakers pass their proposal by July. Colin Young of State House News Service has more here (gift link).

Latoya Gayle, the Dorchester community activist challenging South Boston Sen. Nick Collins in a Democratic primary, picked up two key union endorsements this week: SEIU 32BJ and the AFSCME Council 93 Boston Presidents’ Committee, which is co-chaired by Chris “Tiger” Stockbridge, a longtime code enforcement sergeant for the city of Boston. Council 93 also has thousands of union workers in the public works department as well as schools and libraries, and state agencies. 32BJ represents 22,000 janitors, airport workers and other service employees. Both unions have ties to Mayor Michelle Wu, and the Gayle campaign teased another “major endorsement” happening in Dorchester today. Collins has pulled in the support of building trade unions, including the North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters.

The lobbying and public relations shop Benchmark Strategies launched a new service that seeks to measure “how organizations are portrayed across generative AI platforms,” according to the firm’s founder and president, Patrick Bench. The index “evaluates factors such as narrative accuracy, discoverability, source authority and reputational risk, and measures how AI-generated descriptions diverge from an organization's public positioning.” The service comes as AI-generated summaries are front and center in search engines such as the one offered by Google.

FROM BEACON HILL

RECORDS LAW CHANGES: House Democrats are moving to pass a bill that puts the governor’s office under the state public records law, while keeping the Legislature exempt. The bill also narrows what Auditor Diana DiZoglio can look into, prompting her to say they’re “not only throwing the 72 percent voter-mandated law in the dumpster — they’re taking a match and lighting that dumpster on fire.” – Boston Globe

SPENDING BILL: House and Senate negotiators announced a $1.56 billion spending agreement that funnels surtax money towards education and transportation. The compromise also includes $10 million for World Cup funding, in addition to the previously provided $10 million. – State House News Service

LAST, LAST CALL: Gov. Maura Healey said she supports a later last call for bars to help in hosting the World Cup and other major summer events. Bars could stay open until 3 a.m., rather than 2 a.m., under a bill under consideration on Beacon Hill. – CBS Boston

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As Summer Power Demand Builds, National Grid’s Work to Keep Massachusetts Running Is Already Underway

As electricity demand rises heading into the summer cooling season, National Grid is already taking steps to reduce risk, improve the customer experience, and support businesses and economic activity across the Commonwealth, helping bring energy to power possibilities for customers and communities. Investments in system reliability, coupled with proactive planning and newer technologies, help minimize disruptions and avoid costs that ultimately impact customers. — LEARN MORE

NEWS NEXT DOOR

FOXBORO STATION: The MBTA reopened a renovated Foxboro Station, days before the first World Cup match at Gillette Stadium. But if Gov. Maura Healey and transportation chief Phil Eng had tried to take a train to the ribbon-cutting, they would’ve been late as the train was 20 minutes behind schedule. – Sun Chronicle

STREET CLOSURE: Boston City Hall officials and the MBTA reached an agreement to close Summer Street to cars for eight hours on four days as part of World Cup planning. – WCVB-TV

WOBBLY HOSPITALS: Proposed cuts to Medicaid and their impact on financially pressured hospitals are a top concern for Rep. Stephen Lynch. The congressman appeared before a Dorchester civic association to outline his priorities as he faces a Democratic primary challenge. – Dorchester Reporter

RUTLAND LATEST: Town officials in Rutland, under fire for canceling a Fourth of July celebration and withholding donations meant to go to the event, say they can’t refund the money due to state law. – Boston Herald

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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