October 2017 - NewBostonPost

Somerville Landowner Sues City, Says Officials Trying to Drive Down Property Values Ahead of Eminent Domain Taking

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  SOMERVILLE — A landowner is claiming in federal court that Somerville officials pushing the city’s Union Square redevelopment plan illegally ordered the installation of curbs in front of several Webster Avenue garages, part of an effort to drive down property values in anticipation of an eminent domain land grab. “I’m in a battle with......

How Much Are Massachusetts Congressional Staffers Making? Maybe More Than You Think

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Working as a top staffer for the Bay State’s members in Congress can fetch a salary well in excess of $100,000 — with some earning nearly as much as the official salary for a U.S. representative or U.S. senator. The two highest-paid staffers work for Massachusetts’s two senators. Elizabeth Warren’s chief of staff, Daniel Geldon,......

Puzzled By Player Policing Protests? There’s a Good Reason

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President Jimmy Carter, in an interview with the New York Times, expressed disagreement with the professional football players who are kneeling during the national anthem before games as a protest against police brutality. “I think they ought to find a different way to object, to demonstrate. I would rather see all the players stand during the American......

Another Massachusetts Bishop Shifts Policy on Signature Gathering for Abortion-Funding Petition

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Roman Catholic churches in central Massachusetts are now allowed to host signature gatherers trying to put a referendum on the ballot that would enable the state to stop public funding of abortion. Bishop Robert J. McManus, bishop of Worcester, released a letter Monday similar to a statement that Cardinal Sean O’Malley, archbishop of Boston, made......

Markey Concerned Trump Might Fire Mueller, Refuses to Address Russian Dossier

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Massachusetts’s junior U.S. senator, Ed Markey, told MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell on Monday that he’s worried President Donald Trump may move to fire special prosecutor Robert Mueller, whose investigation into allegations of Russian-driven election collusion has now resulted in the indictment of a former Trump campaign manager and the guilty plea of a campaign underling.  “This......

Former Trump Campaign Manager Turns Himself Over To FBI

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By Robert Donachie Former Trump campaign director Paul Manafort turned himself over to the FBI Monday morning. Manafort walked into the FBI’s field office in Washington, D.C., Monday at approximately 8:15 a.m., after he and his business associate, Rick Gates, were instructed to turn themselves in to federal authorities. Manafort and Gates are the first......

Twenty Questions for Beth Lindstrom and John Kingston

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It’s been said that you can’t split dead wood. Surprisingly, the Massachusetts Republican Party, usually barren tundra when competing in statewide races, is fielding a forest of formidable candidates to challenge Democrat incumbent U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren in 2018. Two of them — Beth Lindstrom and John Kingston — are twin oaks of establishment politics......

Cardinal O’Malley Shifts Course on Signature Gathering for Anti-Abortion-Funding Petition at Churches

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Activists trying to get a referendum on the ballot that would allow the state to stop public funding of abortions can now collect signatures at Roman Catholic churches in the Boston area, a reversal of a policy announced this past June. The new policy comes with restrictions:  Signature gatherers aren’t supposed to be in the......

Beacon Hill Democrats Looking to Add More Tolls to Boston-Area Highways

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BOSTON — One year after the lights went permanently dark inside the Bay State’s remaining human-staffed tollbooths, giving way to the era of all-electronic tolling, a bill on Beacon Hill touted by a powerful Democrat from Lynn would expand tolling throughout Greater Boston, with high-traveled freeways like Route 128, Interstate 93, Interstate 95, and Route......

FACT CHECK: Did The CIA Director Call The Trump Dossier The ‘Foundation’ Of The Russia Investigation?

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By David Sivak   Conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh claimed Wednesday that former CIA Director John Brennan “touted” the now-infamous Trump dossier as the basis of the Russia investigation. Verdict: False While it’s now clear the intelligence community, the FBI in particular, relied upon the Trump dossier to some extent, Brennan and other intel chiefs have repeatedly downplayed any suggestion that......

Liz Warren’s Dueling #MeToo Recollections of Sexual Assault Draw Skepticism

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CAMBRIDGE — U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren’s decision to insert herself into the feminist social media anti-sexual harassment #MeToo campaign has sparked controversy after reports of a different story-telling surfaced, questioning the veracity of her much-publicized recollection. Warren appeared on NBC for Sunday’s Meet the Press news program, one of four female Democratic senators who responded......