Local Politics Thread

[kmp1284]

Ask me anything!!

Have you commenced eviction proceedings?

 

[kz1000ps]

Have you commenced eviction proceedings?

Mentally it began and ended two weeks ago.

 

[Justbuildit]

What's his stance on bike lanes, and how high should we rezone all of Beacon Hill to house the homeless?

Thinking more about Kraft, it's clear he's running to the right of Wu (duh) and in any other region he'd just be a centrist R. Since Boston voted ~20% for the current president in the last election, there are Republican voters out there, albeit a minority.

Someone should ask Kraft why the current POTUS is great and excellent, and to share what he likes the most of these last few weeks and what he would bring to Boston. Responses either positive or negative would be fun to follow.

 

[kz1000ps]

What's his stance on bike lanes, and how high should we rezone all of Beacon Hill to house the homeless?

Ruh roh, someone blew the dog whistle that is bike lanes.... gee I wonder how uncle wearing his "back the blue" hoodie feels about that one. Or maybe I should just go straight to the source and ask Brett Baier for a nuanced discussion on them.

 

[thepixelnation]

Thinking more about Kraft, it's clear he's running to the right of Wu (duh) and in any other region he'd just be a centrist R. Since Boston voted ~20% for the current president in the last election, there are Republican voters out there, albeit a minority.

Someone should ask Kraft why the current POTUS is great and excellent, and to share what he likes the most of these last few weeks and what he would bring to Boston. Responses either positive or negative would be fun to follow.

Yeah I think the Kraft family's long history of supporting Republican politicians will add something interesting to this race. I feel like a lot of his family's pull would work better at the state level; I think people who vote in Boston might think differently about a Foxboro Prince...

 

[themissinglink]

Days after Josh Kraft floats a version of ‘rent control,’ the Boston City Council just advanced something very similar - The Boston Globe

Wu, who is facing a challenge by Josh Kraft in this year's mayoral race, recently slammed Kraft's characterization of the policy, calling it "fake rent control."

www.bostonglobe.com

 

[themissinglink]

Mass. House leaders will move to make committee votes public, vow a ‘more accessible’ Legislature - The Boston Globe

Massachusetts House leaders said Thursday they will pursue a series of changes to open a legislative process long criticized for its opacity.

www.bostonglobe.com

 

[KCasiglio]

Surprised to see "less parking" from a suburban rep

 

[themissinglink]

House Dems Deflect Voter-Approved Audit Law

House Democrats rejected a measure that sought to force their compliance with a voter-approved audit law, reinforcing their opposition to Auditor Diana DiZoglio's attempts to pull back the curtain on

www.statehousenews.com

 

[KCasiglio]

Cambridge city councilor, cancer surgeon among those identified as men who allegedly bought sex through brothel ring - The Boston Globe

“I caused pain for the people I care about most. For that, I will be forever sorry," Paul Toner, a Cambridge city councilor, said in a statement.

www.bostonglobe.com

Cambridge City Councilor Paul Toner probably has his days numbered in politics.

 

[KCasiglio]

Boston City Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson will plead guilty in federal corruption case against her - The Boston Globe

The status report filed Tuesday does not specify which of the six charges the Boston city councilor will plead guilty to.

www.bostonglobe.com

 

[themissinglink]

Not fleeing: New report shows more wealthy residents in Mass., 2 years into 'millionaire's tax'

Despite previous concerns, Massachusetts' "millionaire's tax" hasn't seemed to deter high-earners from continuing to live here, according to a new study from the Institute for Policy Studies.

www.wbur.org

 

[Justbuildit]

This can't be correct. I was assured that this would be catastrophic and leave Mass (and Boston in particular) looking like Detroit.

As mentioned earlier this month there are slugs of money going to the MBTA and schools for the most part, but tactically the state should pave a few key roads in and around Boston with signs announcing that the work was paid for with Fair Share funds.

Mass. House proposes spending $1.3 billion in ‘millionaire’s tax’ money on MBTA, education - The Boston Globe

Most of the surtax money would go toward the MBTA under the state House plan.

www.bostonglobe.com

 

[themissinglink]

In ‘millionaires tax’ bill, House speaker carved out $25m for a parking garage in his hometown. Critics call it a ‘power play.’ - The Boston Globe

Massachusetts House leaders tucked $25 million for a parking garage in downtown Quincy into a spending bill backed by revenue from the so-called millionaire tax.

www.bostonglobe.com

 

[Justbuildit]

Patrick Roath, voting rights attorney, will challenge Stephen Lynch in Democratic primary for Congress - The Boston Globe

“I’m just convinced that we need new leadership, we need new people, we need new ideas," Roath said in an interview.

www.bostonglobe.com

Don't know him, but after Lynch's BS letter on the Southie apartment project it's worth taking a look who else is out there.

 

[KCasiglio]

In ‘millionaires tax’ bill, House speaker carved out $25m for a parking garage in his hometown. Critics call it a ‘power play.’ - The Boston Globe

Massachusetts House leaders tucked $25 million for a parking garage in downtown Quincy into a spending bill backed by revenue from the so-called millionaire tax.

www.bostonglobe.com

The other garage they just built a block over is never half full, despite being $1/hour. I get that a medical center needs a certain amount of parking, but this isn't even going to have an emergency room.

If Mariano wants to bring home the bacon for Quincy, how about replace the money we're expecting to lose from the feds for Southern Artery? An actual critical transportation project.

 

[Longfellow]

https://www.reddit.com/r/boston/comments/1kh22f8/cambridge_city_council_votes_to_ban_mandatory

Cambridge has voted to ban broker's fees. But for weird Mass reasons this has to be approved by the legislature.

Unpaywalled globe article here.

 

[HenryAlan]

Patrick Roath, voting rights attorney, will challenge Stephen Lynch in Democratic primary for Congress - The Boston Globe

“I’m just convinced that we need new leadership, we need new people, we need new ideas," Roath said in an interview.

www.bostonglobe.com

Don't know him, but after Lynch's BS letter on the Southie apartment project it's worth taking a look who else is out there.

One of the big problems with Lynch is that he usually runs unopposed. Roath seems to have some strong progressive bona fides, that can hopefully pull Lynch further in that direction. And maybe the challenge can actually succeed? I don't know Roath either, but a few people I do know have a pretty positive opinion.

 

[F-Line to Dudley]

If Mariano wants to bring home the bacon for Quincy, how about replace the money we're expecting to lose from the feds for Southern Artery? An actual critical transportation project.

The occupant of this gerrymandered abomination of a district probably doesn't care much about Quincy overall, and certainly not much about real transportation issues near and dear to the city as a whole.

 

[F-Line to Dudley]

One of the big problems with Lynch is that he usually runs unopposed. Roath seems to have some strong progressive bona fides, that can hopefully pull Lynch further in that direction. And maybe the challenge can actually succeed? I don't know Roath either, but a few people I do know have a pretty positive opinion.

You definitely wouldn't be getting petulant scenes like this if he had to sit through a primary once every blue moon: