Feb
8
Tim Cahill Goes Super
February 8, 2010 | Leave a Comment
Treasurer Tim Cahill unveiled his first TV ad, buying time during the Super Bowl. What do you think? Too early? Good ad? Tim for Governor is off and running.
Feb
6
The President on Small Business and Jobs
February 6, 2010 | 1 Comment
The President spends this week on giving help to small business and creating jobs. A bipartisan jobs bill appears to be winding its way through Congress. Lets see if this new “era of bipartisanship” bears some results. More tax incentives for business employment are needed. Lets stop providing disincentives to the private sector on employment.
Feb
5
Greg Fallon is February Artist of the Month
February 5, 2010 | Leave a Comment
MAYOR MANZI NAMES GREG FALLON AS FEBRUARY’S ARTIST OF THE MONTH
Methuen Artist’s Work on Display in the Mayor’s Office
Mayor William M. Manzi has named Greg Fallon as February’s Artist of the Month. Greg Fallon moved to Methuen at in 1984, and his parents still reside near Lowell Street in the house he grew up in. Greg majored in art history at University of Massachusetts at Lowell and helped create a 5′x15′ diversity mural in the basement of the school’s Coburn Hall. He has participated in several local art shows and released two self-published writings with illustrations. He has created art for other books as well. He works as a materials planner at the Yoplait Yogurt Production Plant in Methuen.
Mayor Manzi stated, “Greg is one of the many talented young artists working in our community. It is an honor to display his artwork. I was impressed by his use of color and attention to detail. I encourage people to come to my office and view Greg’s paintings.”
The Methuen Artist of the Month Program was created by Mayor Manzi four years ago in order to give members of the Methuen Arts Community a forum to display their work and to encourage participation in Methuen’s growing creative economy. Methuen artists interested in being considered as Artist of the Month should contact the Mayor’s Office.
Feb
4
The President on the Hill
February 4, 2010 | Leave a Comment
The President, back on the Hill, this time taking questions from Democratic Senators. It appears that those Senators with tough re-election fights got the most face time.
Jan
31
China Leading in Going Green
January 31, 2010 | Leave a Comment
For all those who have mocked the concept of investing in renewable energy I refer you to the story in today’s New York Times detailing the huge lead China is building in manufacturing in this critical area. The Chinese are not only investing in the business end, but they are taking strong steps to create substantially more power through renewables themselves. This manufacturing end of this business in China has created over a million jobs. Protecting their energy future and creating an industry that employs over a million people. What a novel idea.
Jan
31
The President Visits the Republican Caucus
January 31, 2010 | Leave a Comment
An interesting exchange of ideas between the President and the House Republican caucus. The President deserves great credit for doing this, and the Republican leadership deserves credit for inviting him. Both sides saw the chance for some political gain, but the result was a pretty good and free-wheeling discussion of the issues. Not nearly enough of this in Washington, and both sides should do more of it, even if great results are not immediately forthcoming.
Jan
30
The President on Deficits
January 30, 2010 | 7 Comments
The President used his weekly address to deal with federal government deficits, and some steps he now advocates to help deal with this burgeoning problem. The President highlighted a spending freeze, as well as calling for a bipartisan “deficit commission”. The “deficit” issue has hurt him politically, and he is now going to turn some “political” attention to it. Before the hail of criticism comes down lets say candidly that the President will not make any real dent in the problem with these changes. But a candid assessment would also acknowledge that the Republicans have dismissed the deficit as an issue going back to Reagan’s tenure. Tax cuts have always been the holy grail for Republicans, even at the expense of fiscal reality. Democratic opposition to deficit reduction is there and also is fairly subject to charges of fiscal irresponsibility. The refusal of both Parties to support a “deficit commission” with real bite shows that neither is truly serious about the issue. Both sides are making a big mistake. And in my view the public positioning by Scott Brown, that he is truly independent, is on its face truly attractive to the electorate. The public is sick of this type of nonsense and hypocrisy by both sides. Is our system designed to only produce results when catastrophe sets in? It sure looks like that today.
Jan
29
Scott Brown on Leno
January 29, 2010 | 2 Comments
Scott Brown mania persists, with the Senator-elect doing a bit on the Jay Leno show. The Senator seems to have as much energy as he did in the campaign, making the rounds in Massachusetts and nationally, and really hitting the right political notes. He has energy for sure, and appears to be looking at re-elect positioning already. He continues to take a strong independent stance, indicating to the Herald that he will not be a rubber stamp for the Republican leadership in the Senate. Lets face the facts. Scott Brown has had a great post-election political run.
Jan
28
The State of the Union
January 28, 2010 | 4 Comments
President Obama delivered the State of the Union last night, and he moved the agenda to job creation and the economy, removing his focus on health care reform. He also candidly acknowledged error, but challenged both parties to focus on governing, and to stop trying to score short term political gain. He announced an executive order creating a biparisan deficit commission, and although health care was not front and center the President made it clear that he still favored reform, and covering the uninsured. He challenged Republican and Democrat alike to come up with something better if they disagreed with him, but not to leave health care in its current state.
A good speech, in my view, but one that needs the necessary follow through. Fair or not the American public is looking for results. If he can deliver on jobs and the economy he will solve a big chunk of his political problem. If not he and the Democratic Party will be in for some tough times. The Republican response, from Virginia Governor Robert McDonnell, is posted as well.
An interesting side note came with the apparent head nod of disagreement given by Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito to the President’s criticism of their recent corporate free speech decision. Alito appears to be saying “not true” as the President issued his criticism. I had speculated at the Tribune live chat on what the response might be by the Supremes to the coming criticism, and it appears that that Alito may have broken with tradition by his mannerisms.
So what about it? Did the President manage to help himself with this speech?
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
Jan
27
Governor Patrick Files FY 2011 Budget
January 27, 2010 | 1 Comment
Governor Deval Patrick has filed the FY 2011 budget. His full budget message is below.
To the People of Massachusetts:
Lieutenant Governor Murray and I are proud to file our budget recommendations for fiscal year 2011. This budget reflects our collective values and makes investments in critical areas that will help us strengthen our economy in the near-term and position us for growth and prosperity over the long-term.
As with each budget we have submitted – and those we have revised amidst unprecedented global economic challenges – our fiscal year 2011 budget is guided by an important set of principles.
First, we are investing in our economy and our people: The economic downturn has undeniably strained the state budget, as it has likewise strained the finances of individuals, families and businesses across Massachusetts. But whatever the fiscal challenges we face today, we remain committed to investing in the Commonwealth’s economy and our people.
Thus, we have consistently protected Chapter 70 education aid from budget cuts because I believe education is the single most important investment we can make in our future. Earlier this month, I signed into law a sweeping overhaul of our K-12 education system, aimed at turning around underperforming schools, closing the achievement gap and fostering innovation in education. This budget builds on our commitment to education. It funds Chapter 70 at more than $4.04 billion – the highest levels in history, with all school districts funded at foundation levels and no operating districts experiencing a cut. Together, these steps will help our education system prepare our students for a successful future in a global economy.
On top of protecting Chapter 70 funding, we are preserving current funding for unrestricted general government aid for cities and towns – a major short- and long-term economic investment in its own right and a lever to help reduce pressure on property taxes. This funding is in addition to the numerous tools we have worked to give cities and towns to help balance their budgets and protect police, fire and other essential community services. We are also submitting, in conjunction with this budget, a new set of proposals that will further assist local government in meeting the needs of those it serves.
And we are maintaining our commitment to health care reform, an initiative that sets Massachusetts apart as a leader in health care with the highest levels of health insurance coverage in the nation. Today, thanks to continued investment in this groundbreaking program, more than 97 percent of our population has health insurance. Investments in health care strengthen our economy by improving the health and productivity of our workforce and bolstering our world-renowned medical sector.
These investments are part of our comprehensive strategy to create jobs, speed economic recovery and promote long-term prosperity for the Commonwealth – along with investments in infrastructure through our capital plan, our cutting-edge life sciences and clean energy initiatives and our other efforts to preserve a strong safety net for those in need. This strategy is positioning Massachusetts to recover faster and stronger than the rest of the nation and achieve its full potential as a leader in the global economy.
Second, we are changing the culture on Beacon Hill: Delivering on changes that had been talked about for decades has been a cornerstone of our fiscal and larger policy agenda, reflecting our commitment to making state government more efficient and responsive to our residents and to restoring integrity to public service. Working with the Legislature, we implemented groundbreaking improvements to our transportation system and the first phase of pension reform, tightened ethics rules, introduced competition into the auto insurance market, increased use of civilian flaggers and implemented a host of structural reforms that are changing the face of state government for the better.
Our fiscal year 2011 budget and accompanying proposals build on this strong record of improvements, including the next phase of pension reform, a reorganization of our parole and probation departments to help make our communities safer, a more coordinated approach to purchasing energy for state government and additional budget reforms to promote sound fiscal practices and transparency.
Third, we are committed to fiscal responsibility: The investments that we have made in the people and in the future of the Commonwealth have been part of balanced, fiscally responsible budget blueprints. Bond rating agencies have praised our record of prudent fiscal management – including our prompt and thoughtful steps to close unforeseeable budget gaps driven by a deep and unprecedented global economic recession. That commitment to fiscal responsibility endures in our fiscal year 2011 budget. Total spending grows at a rate slower than expected growth in tax revenues, as we make major strides towards structural balance even in a still-difficult fiscal environment.
Yet fiscal responsibility is not simply about aggregate budget numbers but also the values embedded in our budgets. We have insisted that the sacrifice required by our current economic and fiscal climate be shared, to build confidence that our budgets are fair and avoid disproportionate harmful impacts. In this budget, we continue to deliver major support for the state budget from independent authorities – with a total of $30 million in contributions helping to fund college scholarships, Soft Second mortgages, health care outreach and enrollment grants, assistance for small businesses and other important state initiatives.
Fourth, we are working with our federal partners: We have worked closely with President Obama and our congressional delegation to support our economic agenda to create jobs, speed recovery, promote long-time prosperity and mitigate the immediate harmful impacts of the economic downturn. Thanks to that partnership, Massachusetts maintains a competitive advantage in securing the funding necessary to move forward on many important initiatives.
The Commonwealth is expected to receive approximately $14 billion through the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, including funding for education, life sciences, transportation, clean energy and health care that builds on our own initiatives and provides direct relief to our state’s residents. Our fiscal year 2011 budget likewise benefits from “use or lose” federal funds that have already been secured through our efforts and anticipates further federal support in the coming fiscal year.
We are very proud of our record of accomplishment over the past three years, achieved in partnership with the people of Massachusetts and the Legislature. Our fiscal year 2011 budget blueprint reflects the simple notion that we must continue moving forward. No matter how challenging the economic climate, we cannot afford to retreat from the important progress we have made over the last several years.
With our investments in our speeding economic recovery and laying the foundations for long-term prosperity, and our enduring commitment to fiscal responsibility and reform, we move forward to a bright future for the Commonwealth and its residents.