President George W. Bush’s hopes for re-election are now riding on turning Iraq, a country riven by ethnic and religious factions with no memory of anything but dictatorship, into a stable, thriving democracy. In that daunting task, the president is counting not only on the US military, which has suffered more casualties from guerrilla attacks […]
State Government
Posted inCriminal Justice, Politics
Romneys public safety chief calls for a targeted approach to fighting terrorism
It’s been a grueling half-year for Gov. Mitt Romney, who has taken his lumps from Beacon Hill Democrats over the state budget and his government reorganization plan, which was summarily rejected by the Legislature in June. But in Washington, Romney has cut an impressive figure as the National Governors Association’s point man on homeland security, […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics
The way we tax
With revenue diminishing due to the stock market downturn and rising unemployment rates, the Bay State is experiencing the same fiscal squeeze being felt nationwide. As states across the country struggle with tax levies that no longer seem to be covering the spending obligations they took on during the 1990s boom years, the adequacy, fairness, […]
Posted inPolitics
Mitt sends his missionaries to Capitol Hill
The Congressional Pig Book, published annually by the Washington, DC-based Citizens Against Government Waste, is supposed to shame the states that are the biggest recipients of pork-barrel spending–and the members of Congress who champion dubious federal outlays. But the Massachusetts congressional delegation, as well as state officials, must have felt a different sort of embarrassment […]
Posted inPolitics
Patrick will sign sentencing reform bill
The following is a statement from Governor Deval Patrick. “I asked for a balanced bill and, after many twists and turns, the Legislature has given me one. Because of the balance between strict sentences for the worst offenders and more common sense approaches for those who pose little threat to public safety, I have said […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
The Know Somethings?
The Tea Party phenomenon aims to upend Massachusetts political structures with a combination of anti-establishment populism, a challenge to prevailing economic wisdom, and anti-immigrant vehemence. John Mulkern has written a superb book exploring these factors – but the book was published in 1990, and is titled The Know-Nothing Party in Massachusetts. Most of us have […]