2013 elections

The Globe reports Suffolk County Sheriff Steven Tompkins has paid a $2,500 fine to the state Ethics Commission for going into Egleston Square stores during the 2013 campaign, flashing his official badge and demanding they take down signs supporting Doug Bennett.

MassLive.com reports.

A weary citizen in Maverick Square sighs:

I know our vote on the casino didn't matter but I thought the election for mayor was settled? Can we get these taken down?

Ed. note: Over the past few weeks, Citizens Connect has gotten a scattering of complaints about another candidate with green signs, but the city always marks the cases closed because the signs are on private property.

As Tom Menino quietly left City Hall this morning, Marty Walsh was heading up to the stage at BC's Conte Arena to become Boston's first new mayor in 20 years.

In the speech, Walsh plans to say we're all in this together. And he updated Winthrop's famous "City Upon a Hill" reference:

We are a City Upon a Hill, but it’s not just the shining light of Beacon Hill.

It's Savin Hill, where I live. It’s Bunker Hill, Bellevue Hill and Fort Hill. It’s Pope’s Hill, Jones Hill, and Telegraph Hill. It’s Copp's Hill, Mission Hill and Eagle Hill.

So when I say we are sworn in together, it means we’re in this together.

We are in this together - every neighborhood.

We are in this together - every race and religion.

We are in this together, every man, woman and child. For our seniors and our students, for rich and poor, and everyone in between.

We will expand opportunity so it reaches every person in every corner of our city. We cannot tolerate a city divided by privilege and poverty.

We will protect and grow our sense of community. For it is Boston’s greatest source of strength.

And we will ensure equality for all: No matter your age, race, religion, sexual orientation. No matter what.

Together, we can create ONE Boston … one Boston, a hub of opportunity, community, and equality for all.

But Walsh said his top priority is curbing violence - and that one of his first acts today will be to convene a meeting on curbing "senseless violence" in the city:

I will bring together mothers of children killed by that violence, with members of the law enforcement community who work hard to stop it. Members of the recovery community, who know too well the hard road back from drug and alcohol abuse, and how such abuse contributes to the violence and crime. And
people who know what it takes to move away from a life of violence to become productive, contributing neighbors in a safe community.

There were fewer murders last year - 40 homicides in our city. And while that lower number is good news, and a testament to the hard work that has been done, we know, as Acting Police Commissioner Evans said the other day, 40 homicides still represents 40 grieving mothers too many. And I agree.

Walsh said that tomorrow, he will start talking to School Committee members about a nationwide search for a new school superintendent, one who will not just lift Boston schools but expand vocational opportunities at schools across the city.

Remember that woman from Roslindale who suddenly had $480,000 burning a hole in her pocket that she decided to spend on ads backing Marty Walsh in the last week of the campaign? The Globe reports she got the money from the American Federation of Teachers, which apparently decided Walsh's support of charter schools was nowhere near as bad as Connolly's support of charter schools.

The Atlantic considers 20 years' worth of "Thomas M. Menino, Mayor" signs in thousands of locations across this great city of ours and talks to a Walsh spokesperson, who says the Mayor to Be plans to replace just one sign - in the City Hall lobby.

“Mayor-Elect Walsh ran a campaign focused on improving education, strengthening public safety, and supporting economic development in Boston,” Norton told me. “Changing signage is not on the priority list right now."

Peter Stidman, director of the Boston Cyclists Union, is urging members and bike fans to call Michelle Wu - and other city councilors, but especially newcomer Wu - to try to convince them not to vote for Councilor Bill Linehan (South Boston, South End, Chinatown) as the next city-council president:

You may remember that Bill Linehan is the only city councillor to oppose a bike lane anywhere in the city this decade. ... City Council has to approve all federal and state funding for bike projects and we cannot risk having the one councillor who opposed bike infrastructure setting the agenda.

The Dorchester Reporter posts a statement from Wu on why she plans to vote for Linehan to take over from Steve Murphy:

I'm supporting Bill because of his ideas for the structure of the Council and his years of experience in City Hall. His plan to decentralize power and engage individual committees in deciding relevant priorities will empower Councilors to advocate for Boston residents more directly, clearly, and effectively.

Jim O'Sullivan and Andrew Ryan at the Boston Globe review Mayor-elect Martin Walsh's fundraising efforts since Election Day and find he's continued to raise thousands of dollars in donations, banking $63,000 since Nov. 5th. At the same time, he's helped former Boston mayoral candidate Charlotte Golar Richie retire her campaign debt, hosting a fundraiser just this past Tuesday.

That's no big deal, right?

The reporters admit, it's not unusual for a politician to get contributions from interested parties after he's won, and, "It is not uncommon for a victorious candidate to help a former rival raise money to pay off campaign debt.".

So what's their beef?

What Sullivan and Ryan say is unusual (they use the words "less typical", actually) is for a winning candidate to help a former rival who is now advising him or her, and in this case, Ms Golar Richie is on Mr Walsh's transition team, which raises the question (at least in the Globe's mind) - are people contributing to Golar Richie as a way to curry favor with "Mayor" Walsh?

But, what I find more interesting than the above (which I really don't find very surprising, unexpected, or disturbing) is Charlotte Golar Richie's latest campaign finance report, a copy of which is recreated above. (Courtesy of Jed Hresko.)

Large campaign contributors in Massachusetts are required to state who they work for; if they don't, a candidate is required to at least request this information from the donor. (There's no penalty if the donor doesn't respond, as far as I know.)

As you can see, none of the 29 contributors who gave $500 apiece to Golar Richie on November 13th provided their occupations or employers.

And, what's up with all the misspellings and wrong addresses, as well as incorrect ZIP Codes? (Who doesn't know the ZIP for South Boston is 02127?)

What's that all about?

Disclosure: Yes, I was a John Connolly supporter in this year's election, not that I think it's relevant. My issue is with the campaign contributions, not the candidates themselves. (And, in fact, prior to this year, I was begging Charlotte to run, on Twitter.)