Snark-Infested Waters by Mike Bailey

Snark-Infested Waters by Mike Bailey

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The Week In Politics – August 17, 2012

Friday, August 17th, 2012

We open this week with something from the Credit Where It’s Not Necessarily Due file.

Last week Eric R. Steinhilber, Republican candidate for Barnstable County Commissioner, issued a press release boasting this bold headline: Steinhilber: 1, MWRA on Cape Cod: 0 — The MWRA solution is ‘off the table.’ Steinhilber declares victory.”

What he’s referring to is the recent proclamation by county officials that a Cape-wide wastewater management agency with possible taxation authority, akin to the Metropolitan Water Resources Authority, was not under consideration as part of the county’s wastewater management game plan.

In the press release, Mr. Steinhilber claims that he first “took action” in February when the commissioners formed a working group to examine the wastewater authority proposal. He does not specify this action, which predated his official declaration of candidacy by about a month.

“After months of hard work and advocacy,” he said in the release, “the County Commissioners have heard the calls and have abandoned any plans to support an MWRA-type taxing authority.”

Uhh…what?

I contacted some of the county officials who reviewed this proposal — Commissioners Sheila R. Lyons and William Doherty, and Cape Cod Water Protection Collaborative director Andy Gottlieb — and they portrayed the public push-back against the “MWRA on Cape Cod” concept as limited to a small handful of “usual suspects” rather than a large, broad-based outcry. If anything, they said, most of the opposition they heard came from town selectmen worried more about loss of local control than the taxation issue.

(In the interest of putting the preemptive kibosh on accusations I led the witnesses, so to speak, I asked them about this without ever mentioning Mr. Steinhilber by name; they were simply asked how much negative public feedback they received.)

While Mr. Steinhilber did make the wastewater authority proposal a key issue of his campaign, and his website features a prominent “No MWRA for Cape Cod” section, trying to portray himself as the man who slew this particular dragon is disingenuous. It’s a lame effort to turn the lemon of losing a key platform issue into political lemonade.

Perhaps he did indeed speak with voters about it in his travels, but there is nothing to support the claim that he somehow sparked a significant grassroots anti-wastewater authority movement.

***

James M. Cummings, Barnstable County sheriff, this week endorsed Adam G. Chaprales for US Representative of the Ninth Congressional District. The sheriff issued his endorsement during a brief press event Tuesday, calling Mr. Chaprales “the best candidate to serve as our next Congressman.”

Mr. Chaprales is facing fellow Republican Christopher Sheldon of Plymouth in the primary.

***

US Senator Scott P. Brown (R) will be back in Falmouth tomorrow, August 18 for a fundraiser house party. If you’d like to get in on this event, shoot an e-mail to organizer Larry McDonald at lgm@lawrencegmcdonald.com for details and to RSVP.

Political news and announcements may be e-mailed to Michael Bailey, senior political reporter, at bailey@capenews.net.

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The Week In Politics – June 15, 2012

Friday, June 15th, 2012

Hi there, everyone. I’m back from vacation and ready for action.

I’ll mark my return with something from the Shoe’s On the Other Foot File. I’ve reported here previously that Bristol County DA C. Samuel Sutter, who is challenging Congressman William R. Keating (D) in the Democratic primary for the Ninth Congressional District, was under the microscope for alleged misconduct by his office tied to a 2010 murder case.

Mr. Sutter’s office was earlier this month cleared of any wrongdoing in that case, but now Rep. Keating is under similar scrutiny. While still in office as the Norfolk County DA, Rep. Keating’s office allegedly failed to turn over documents to a defense attorney involved in a statutory rape case.

The case was later dismissed without those documents ever being turned over to the defense attorney, and last month the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that the DA’s office displayed “egregious prosecutorial misconduct” for its actions.

Rep. Keating defended his former office, claiming that withholding those documents was in the best interests of the alleged victim and the office was under no legal obligation to hand the information over.

Meanwhile, Mr. Sutter’s office is still under investigation for a second alleged instance of misconduct tied to a 2011 murder case that ended in dismissal over a recanted testimony, which the office allegedly failed to tell a grand jury about.

Frankly, it’s tough to take either of these situations as a major issue. Yes, all our candidates should have sterling ethics and spotless records, but in this day and age it’s hard to find anyone in politics with a flawless background. Unless either of these reveals a serious ethical lapse on the direct part of the candidates, voters would be better off trying to learn where they stand on the issues.

***

However, don’t expect to be educated through a debate this week on WBSM-AM 1420, because Rep. Keating has refused to participate. Why? Because on-air personality Phil Paleologos was tapped as the moderator, and he’s a Republican. Mr. Sutter said he planned to show up anyway.

Rep. Keating is calling his decision a matter of political principle, but I’m calling it silly posturing. Personally, I’d be very interested in hearing a debate guided by a moderator who holds politically contrary positions as compared to the participating candidates.

***

On another Congressional note, Republican candidate Christopher Sheldon of Plymouth has secured his spot on the ballot. Mr. Sheldon announced on May 31 that he had submitted more than enough certified signatures to qualify for the race.

***

Someone who won’t be on any ballots is US Senate candidate Marisa DeFranco, who was planning to challenge Elizabeth Warren for the Democratic nomination. Ms. DeFranco failed to receive 15 percent of the delegates at Democrats’ June 2 state convention, and under the party’s rules she is not eligible for the ballot.

While DeFranco had no realistic chance of beating Ms. Warren, it would have been nice if voters had a choice in September. It’d also be nice if all the signatures she collected to get on the ballot actually mattered more than internal party processes.

***

Linell and Steven Grundman of East Sandwich will host tomorrow (Saturday, June 16) a campaign event for R. Patrick Ellis, Democratic challenger to State Representative Randy Hunt (R – Sandwich). The event is scheduled to run from 7 to 9:30 PM and will be held at 51 Wing Boulevard E in Sandwich.

Shoot an RSVP e-mail to grundmans@comcast.net. Campaign contributions will be accepted but are not requested.

***

Thomas F. Keyes, Republican candidate for State Senator of the Plymouth and Barnstable District, welcomes former state auditor candidate Mary Z. Connaughton to town on Monday. Ms. Connaughton is the special guest at a campaign reception for Mr. Keyes at the Nimrod in Falmouth, and that runs from 7 to 9 PM.

Admission is a donation to Mr. Keyes’ campaign, payable at the door or make arrangements in advance by calling 774-208-3480.

***

Finally, Andrew V. Putnam of Falmouth has filed his nomination papers for the Barnstable County Assembly of Delegates, making him the first 100-percent-official candidate for the county’s legislative body.

Mr. Putnam will have a campaign kick-off event next week, details TBA, but in the meantime, go groove to his new campaign website at http://andrewputnam.org.

Political news and announcements may be e-mailed to Michael Bailey, senior political reporter, at bailey@capenews.net.

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The Week In Politics – May 4, 2012

Friday, May 4th, 2012

It’s candidate roll call recap time, and things are looking a bit disappointing for the local ballot.

Tuesday marked the deadline for candidates for district and county offices (not including the Barnstable County Assembly of Delegates, more on that below) to file their nomination papers with their local registrars of voters, and the final tally is pretty sad: only five of the Cape’s 12 incumbents seeking re-election — two State Senators, six State Representatives, two Barnstable County Commissioners, and two county officers — have challengers in the coming election.

Senate President Therese M. Murray (D – Plymouth) is poised to first face a new (and so far invisible) primary challenger, Democrat Stephen M. Palmer of Plymouth, and the winner of that contest will face Sandwich Republican Thomas F. Keyes. State Representative Demetrius J. Atsalis (D – Barnstable) will take on Centerville Democrat Brian R. Mannal, and whoever prevails will go on to the November general election unopposed.

The other contested local races are State Representative Randy Hunt (R – Sandwich) and Sandwich Democrat R. Patrick Ellis for the Fifth Barnstable District; and Commissioners Mary L. (Pat) Flynn of Falmouth and Sheila R. Lyons of Wellfleet against Eric R. Steinhilber of Barnstable (see below for the latest wrinkle in this race).

There’s a chance this number could dwindle further if, during the nomination paper certification process, any candidate should become disqualified for failing to collect enough valid signatures, but this happens infrequently.

I’m truly surprised by the slim pickings considering this is a presidential election cycle, which is generally more active than mid-term elections, but I also feel sorry for voters. Solid contests are good all around: they make the incumbents work for their jobs, open up opportunities for new blood and new ideas and government, and lead to more educated voters. A greater number of contested races would have been beneficial all around.

***

On the plus side, the race for US Representative of the Ninth Congressional District is looking ever more robust. Republican Adam Chaprales of Sandwich is throwing his hat in the ring, setting the stage for a GOP primary race; Christopher Sheldon of Plymouth is already running.

Mr. Chaprales is a former one-term Sandwich selectmen whose main claim to fame is that at age 21, he was the town’s youngest-ever selectman. Now 28, he works for New York Life Insurance Co. He launched his campaign this past weekend. His official campaign website is www.adamforcongress.com.

(One bit of web design advice for the candidate: that floating “sign up for updates” bar is wicked annoying. Lose it.)

Incumbent Rep. William R. Keating (D), Democrat C. Samuel Sutter, the Bristol County District Attorney, and non-party candidates Daniel Botelho of Fall River and Peter A. White of Mashpee are also running.

The deadline for Congressional candidates with party affiliations to file their paperwork is this coming Tuesday. Non-party candidates have until mid-summer.

***

Nomination papers for the Barnstable County Assembly of Delegates were distributed this week to town clerks and Janice O’Connell, clerk of the assembly, and we already have two confirmed candidates for the county’s legislative body.

One of them is Falmouth’s Andrew V. Putnam, and the other is Ronald R. Beaty Jr. – the same Ron Beaty who was running for county commissioner…and I say “was” because none of the town clerks I spoke received his nomination papers by the Tuesday deadline.

This effectively ends Mr. Beaty’s plan to run dual races for county commissioner and the assembly. Earlier this year Mr. Beaty sought an opinion from the office of the Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth – Elections Division and was informed that he could legally could hold both seats, as long as he exercised due diligence to avoid voting on issues as a member of one board that directly impacted the other (e.g., he could not as a county commissioner vote to raise the stipend delegates receive).

Now, however, it looks like he’ll be running only for the assembly. “After carefully reevaluating the political ramifications of my non-party candidacy for Barnstable County Commissioner, I have finally decided to formally withdraw myself as an Independent Candidate,” he wrote in an e-mail, “and to throw my complete support to Eric Steinhilber and his candidacy.”

He is dedicating himself to his assembly run, and said his “various positions on the respective issues currently related to county government will now be vigorously pursued via that potent avenue!”

Political news and announcements may be e-mailed to Michael Bailey, senior political reporter, at bailey@capenews.net.

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The Week In Politics – March 16, 2012

Friday, March 16th, 2012

Looks like we have our first big controversy of the year.

Several news outlets last week picked up on allegations of misconduct against Bristol County District Attorney C. Samuel Sutter, Democratic candidate for the Ninth Congressional District. Mr. Sutter allegedly released confidential records of phone conversations between murder suspect Jonathan Niemic and his attorney, Robert M. Griffin, and now Mr. Griffin is asking for the indictment against his client to be overturned.

This is the second such instance of alleged misconduct by Mr. Sutter. In 2003 murder charges against two suspects were dropped after a Massachusetts Superior Court judge found Mr. Sutter had displayed “a reckless disregard for the truth” by knowingly presenting an eyewitness who lied to a grand jury about the case.

Between this and the fact that incumbent Congressman William R. Keating (D) already has the backing of the state party, Mr. Sutter is facing a serious uphill battle in the primary.

***

In other Ninth District news, Plymouth Republican Christopher Sheldon will officially launch his Congressional campaign on Tuesday. He’ll make the announcement at the John Carver Inn and Spa on Summer Street in Plymouth.

Mr. Sheldon will hold a private reception at 6 PM, a public reception at 6:45 PM, and full festivities begin at 7:15 PM. If you want in on this, shoot an e-mail to Allan Knowles at sheldon.congress@gmail.com or call 508-591-0195.

***

Ronald K. Beaty Jr. of Barnstable, who all year has been making much ado about his candidacy for the Barnstable County Board of County Commissioners, on Saturday very suddenly suspended his campaign.

Mr. Beaty said in a follow-up to his e-mail announcement that a medical crisis was behind the decision. He said the suspension was indefinite and gave no hint whether he would return to the race once his medical issues are addressed.

***

I normally don’t pay much attention when people say, “Oh, I hear so-and-so is going to run for such-and-such this fall,” but this one has piqued my interest.

Over the past week I’ve received two calls from folks saying the word on the street is that Andrew V. Putnam of Falmouth is contemplating a run for the Barnstable County Assembly of Delegates. Mr. Putnam is a Town Meeting member for precinct nine, chairman of the town’s equity/affirmative action committee, and son of Falmouth Selectman Brent Putnam.

When contacted this week, Mr. (Andrew) Putnam confirmed he is considering a run for the assembly. “My reason for considering running is simple,” he wrote in a brief statement. “I believe that I could give a new perspective on many of the issues that face Falmouth and the Cape and help those that have been ignored be brought to light (such as the importance of the Assembly of Delegates).”

Mr. Putnam is referring to a proposal to merge the assembly with the Barnstable County Board of County Commissioners – an idea that his possible opponent Julia C. Taylor, a 22-year member of the assembly, is open to exploring.

Still, I’m curious about the buzz that seems to be building over this tentative campaign. For starters: over a race for the assembly? The county body that few know about and fewer care about? Nothing personal against the delegates, but let’s call a spade a spade: I’ve been covering the assembly for 13-plus years now and people STILL ask me, “What’s the assembly of delegates?”

This occurs, I must note, despite the assembly’s traditional annual rallying cry of, “We need to increase the visibility of county government!” Which stands in contrast to the fact that many delegates show up to maybe one board of selectmen’s meeting per year to talk about what’s happening at the county level. But I digress…

It’s not unprecedented for candidates to start a “whisper campaign” in advance of a formal declaration of candidacy to build some name recognition, but my advice to Mr. Putnam is this: don’t whisper, dude. Shout. Loud. And a lot.

***

Finally, I present a slightly paraphrased version of one of Senate President Therese M. Murray’s (D – Plymouth) jokes from last weekend’s Barnstable Democratic Town Committee St. Patrick’s Day Brunch: a conservative, a moderate, and a liberal walk into a bar. The bartender says, “Hey, Mitt.”

Political news and announcements may be e-mailed to Michael Bailey, senior political reporter, at bailey@capenews.net.

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The Week In Politics – February 24, 2012

Friday, February 24th, 2012

 

Busy week this week, so let’s get to it!

Robert A. O’Leary has put an end to weeks of speculation and announced that he will not take another shot at Congress.

Mr. O’Leary, a former Barnstable County commissioner and State Senator of the Cape and Islands District, ruled out a re-match against Congressman William R. Keating (D) because of the heavy financial cost of running a Congressional campaign.

“It was painful to make this decision,” Mr. O’Leary said in a statement released last week.

Rep. Keating and Mr. O’Leary faced off in 2010 for the Democratic nomination, and Rep. Keating eked out a win with 51 percent of the vote.

With Mr. O’Leary officially out, the field of candidate for the Ninth Congressional District remains at four confirmed candidates: Rep. Keating; Democrat C. Samuel Sutter, Bristol County’s district attorney; Plymouth Republican Christopher Sheldon; and non-party candidate Peter A. White of Mashpee.

***

On another Keating-centric note, Rep. Keating last week picked up another early union endorsement, and it’s a big ‘un: the Massachusetts AFL-CIO has not only given the freshman Congressman its official thumb’s up, AFL-CIO President Steven A. Tolman said returning Rep. Keating to office was “one of our top priorities.”

***

Looking more locally, County Commissioners Mary L. (Pat) Flynn of Falmouth and Sheila R. Lyons of Wellfleet last week informed me personally that they would both be running for re-election this year.

That brings us to a field of three candidates for two spots on the board, the third being non-party candidate Ronald K. Beaty Jr. of Barnstable. I’ve heard chatter about a potential Republican candidate, who has taken out papers but has not made any formal announcements, so that’s not yet a done deal.

***

Also not a done deal, but close to it: Hyannis attorney Brian Mannal has announced plans to challenge seven-term State Representative Demetrius J. Atsalis (D – Barnstable) — in the primary!

Mr. Mannal was born in Centerville, moved to New Mexico with his family as a child, and returned to his hometown to raise his family. He briefly worked for former Milford state rep Marie J. Parente and for George H.W. Bush’s campaign in 2000.

This could be a very interesting contest. Rep. Atsalis has had only one serious challenge during his time in the Legislature: his 2002 race against Ann B. Canedy, which he won by a mere 101 votes. Could a fellow Democrat succeed where many Republicans have failed?

***

I’m going to change Thomas F. Keyes’ name to Thomas F. Tease.

The Sandwich Republican has, since losing his 2010 race against Senate President Therese M. Murray (D – Plymouth), suggested through occasional e-mails that read very much like campaign position papers and a couple of fundraisers that he would mount a second challenge this year.

This week Mr. Keyes sent out to supporters a link to this video:

http://youtu.be/Db-1IkeIWpw

Please note that he doesn’t specify whether he means he plans to run again or refund the donations…although — and here’s your free grammar lesson for the day, Tom — the way he phrases his announcement makes it sound like he’ll be returning everyone’s money.

I somehow think that isn’t what he’ll announce next month, but we’ll all find out together, won’t we?

Political news and announcements may be e-mailed to Michael Bailey, senior political reporter, at bailey@capenews.net.

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The Week In Politics – February 17, 2012

Friday, February 17th, 2012

The unseasonably warm weather lately has apparently thrown everything out of whack: Nantucket is reporting premature cherry blossoms, Falmouth saw its first herring heading in to spawn, and we already have our first political endorsement.

1199SEIU, the largest union for health care workers on the Cape and Islands and the South Shore region, last week issued a formal endorsement for Congressman William R. Keating (D), who will be running for re-election.

Aside from Rep. Keating, the field of candidate for the Ninth Congressional District includes fellow Democrat C. Samuel Sutter, Bristol County’s district attorney, Plymouth Republican Christopher Sheldon, and non-party candidate Peter A. White of Mashpee.

Political news and announcements may be e-mailed to Michael Bailey, senior political reporter, at bailey@capenews.net.

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The Week In Politics For January 27, 2012

Friday, January 27th, 2012

The race for the new Ninth Congressional District is heating up in earnest (sure glad something around here is warm).

This month alone Democrat C. Samuel Sutter, the Bristol County DA, has announced the formation of an exploratory committee and could challenge the de facto incumbent William R. Keating (D) for the primary nomination; and non-party candidate Peter A. White of Mashpee announced he was abandoning his bid for US Senate to run for the Ninth.

Now let’s welcome to the race our first official Republican, Christopher Sheldon of Plymouth, businessman and member of the Plymouth County Charter Study Commission. This is, according to his official bio, his first run for public office, but he has served as a campaign manager for MaryAnne Lewis, who ran as a non-party candidate for the soon-to-be-retired 10th Congressional District in 2010.

“Like many from the South Shore, South Coast, Cape and Islands, I am very concerned about the direction of our country, and especially our economy,” Mr. Sheldon said in a press release announcing his candidacy. “I believe in the American dream and I believe that, if we start now, there is still time to get our nation back on track.”

Mr. Sheldon is pitching the “we need new blood” angle and calling for an ouster of the career politicians in Washington, as well as an end to partisan bickering — two points I can totally get behind, personally.

The candidate plans to formally kick off his campaign on March 20.

***

Republican Thomas F. Keyes, the not-quite-official candidate for State Senate of the Plymouth and Barnstable District, is holding a meet-and-greet on Sunday, February 4. That will be held at the Trowbridge Tavern & Canal Club in Bourne from 7 to 9 PM.

The evening will feature the music of Andrew Botieri and a silent auction to benefit Mr. Keyes’ campaign. Donations of any amount are also welcome.

To RSVP or for more information, call Agatha Bodwell at 774-208-3480 or e-mail her at events@votekeyes.com.

(PS: Tom. Dude. It’s pretty obvious you’re running again. Make a formal announcement already.)

***

Regardless of what anyone thinks of either US Senator Scott P. Brown (R) or Democrat Elizabeth Warren, you have to appreciate their willingness to play fair…or, at least, as fair as you can in the political world.

This week Sen. Brown and Ms. Warren signed onto a pledge to actively condemn any negative ad campaigns funded by third-party sources, and to personally shoulder the penalty for an infraction by an outside organization. Each candidate has promised to donate to charity 50 percent of the cost of any third-party ad that explicitly supports their own candidacy or attacks their opponent by name.

Sadly, there’s one potentially crippling flaw in this pledge: the political action committees (PACs) responsible for the mudslinging ads don’t have to honor it; legally, the candidates have no control over these PACs or the ads they put out, so don’t be surprised if the overall negativity does not subside to any appreciable degree.

Ironic postscript: as I was writing this, the pro-Republican PAC American Crossroads (Karl Rove’s group) sent me an e-mail claiming that all the loopholes in the agreement are totally Warren’s fault. Way to embrace the message, guys.

Political news and announcements may be e-mailed to Michael Bailey, senior political reporter, at bailey@capenews.net.

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