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Archive for the 'Massachusetts politics' Category

Debate continues on casino bill

Posted in Massachusetts politics, Nelson Benton on Mar 11th, 2008 Comments

A vote on Gov. Deval Patrick’s proposal to license three resort casinos in Massachusetts could be taken by the House of Representatives early next month.
A hearing on the proposal has been scheduled for March 18 at which there will be a full airing of the pros and cons of allowing casinos in the Bay State. [...]

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What’s in a name - or not in a name?

Posted in Massachusetts politics, Municipal meltdown, State issues, Taylor Armerding on Feb 20th, 2008 Comments

George Orwell may be gone, but his prophetic vision lives on, in our continued quest to name things in ways that will obscure their real intent. You know, if you want to let union advocates intimidate workers by forcing them to “vote” for or against a union in front of them, instead of the privacy [...]

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Divide the people and raise taxes

Posted in Local politics, Massachusetts politics, Municipal meltdown, Taylor Armerding on Feb 6th, 2008 Comments

Newton state Rep. Ruth Balser’s bill to exempt senior citizens from the impact of Proposition 2 1/2 overrides (something she has tried before) is not only a very bad idea. It is transparently disingenuous. It’s not about helping seniors, who already have more than enough help available to them if they really can’t pay their [...]

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Hillary’s Bay State surprise

Posted in Ken Johnson, Massachusetts politics, Presidential race on Feb 5th, 2008 Comments

Barack Obama was supposed to win the Democratic primary in Massachusetts.
Gov. Deval Patrick endorsed him. Sen. John Kerry endorsed him. And the Elder Statesman of the Democratic Party himself, Ted Kennedy, endorsed him — as did a good chunk of the Kennedy clan.
Everyone was for Obama — except the state’s Democratic voters.
By 9:30, Hillary Clinton [...]

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Mayors unite

Posted in Massachusetts politics, Municipal meltdown, Nelson Benton, Uncategorized on Feb 5th, 2008 Comments

We’re drifting towards fiscal failure.
That’s according to Amesbury Mayor Thatcher Kezer who made the comment at the start of a meeting Monday between Merrimack Valley mayors and the Eagle-Tribune’s editorial board.
The municipal chief executives want two things — more money and the tools with which to better manage their cities.
Unfortunately for them, voters are already [...]

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Illegal immigration: How big an issue?

Posted in 6th District, Massachusetts politics, Nelson Benton, Presidential race, Uncategorized on Jan 31st, 2008 Comments

Outrage over the more liberal provisions of the bipartisan immigration bill put forward last year had everyone from Harry Reid to John McCain to George Bush running for cover.
Yet here we are less than a year later and McCain is leading the GOP pack despite opponent Mitt Romney’s best efforts to paint him as soft [...]

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But how will it play in Peoria?

Posted in Massachusetts politics, Nelson Benton, Presidential race on Jan 29th, 2008 Comments

Much is being made of the Kennedy family’s anointing of Barack Obama as the candidate best suited to follow in JFK’s footsteps.
Sen. Ted Kennedy, who’s long since given up his dream of becoming the second Kennedy brother to occupy the White House, was at his rip-roaring best Monday as he declared Obama “ready to be [...]

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“Massachusetts is on the move”

Posted in Massachusetts politics, Nelson Benton on Jan 24th, 2008 Comments

That was the mantra for Gov. Deval Patrick’s State of the State speech tonight, repeated five times in the first half of a speech meant to inspire the Legislature into giving him his budget and the means of paying for it.
At the other end of the half-hour speech came several choruses of “the cost of [...]

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Another Ogonowski run

Posted in 5th District race, Massachusetts politics, Nelson Benton, Uncategorized on Jan 15th, 2008 Comments

It’s says something about the sad state of the Massachusetts Republican Party that an also-ran in last fall’s 5th District congressional election can be touted as a credible opponent for incumbent U.S. Sen. John Kerry.
Though he’s been in office since 1985, Kerry should be vulnerable on any number of issues. (Like taking an unofficial two-year [...]

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