Beacon Hill Shake Up?

Speculation has always been focused on whether or not Governor Deval Patrick will leave the Corner Office in a hypothetical Barack Obama administration. Despite Patrick’s repeatedly denials, and his constant reassurance that he will be around for a while, most agree, if Obama is elected, Deval is going to DC.

But could there be another departure from the State House that would certainly shake things up a bit on Beacon Hill? There are unconfirmed rumors afloat that Governor Patrick’s chief of staff Doug Rubin may leave his job to work on the Obama campaign.

Yes, this is just a rumor, but think of how this would affect the Patrick Administration. Could this be the foundation for Patrick’s departure, or could Rubin joining Camp Obama ensure Patrick staying put?

Rubin is currently the second chief of staff for Patrick, hired to be a “politically and media savvy” replacement of the “outsider” Joan Wallace-Benjamin. While Rubin’s tenure has been less tumultuous than Wallace-Benjamin’s, Patrick is still fledgling with disapproval ratings at over 50%. If Obama wants a guy like Rubin, or Patrick for that matter, perhaps Obama is not as politically savvy as people think.

MassGOP Submits Ethical Inquiry Regarding Tsongas Campaign

The Massachusetts Republican Party has submitted an FOIA request to the Deval Patrick administration in order to obtain records of all communication between Douglas Rubin, Deval Patrick’s Chief of Staff, and the Niki Tsongas Committee.

According to FEC reports, on March 20, 2007 Doug Rubin received a $10,000 consultant fee from the Niki Tsongas campaign through his company, North Wind Strategies consulting.

Following are three guidelines for public employees from the Office of Campaign and Political Finance’s website:

• An appointed public employee may provide consulting services to candidates and political committees for a fee on his own time and without using public resources, as long as no fundraising is involved. (AO-04-07)

• A public employee may provide services, before and after work and on weekends, to campaign, provided there is no solicitation or receipt of funds for political purposes, and that employee also complies with M.G.L . c. 55, ss. 14-17. (AO-93-34)
• Public employee may not do part-time/volunteer consulting work which is integrally involved with fundraising activities. (AO-90-27)

“It’s no secret that Doug Rubin, the Governor’s Chief of Staff is consulting for Niki Tsongas and it’s also no secret that there is an enormous wall separating government employees from influencing and being involved in political campaigns while on the job” said Robert Willington, Executive Director of the MassGOP who sent the request today.

“It’s unusual that a person with such an influential position as Chief of Staff would still find the time and have the motive to meddle in campaign politics and we want to be sure that the power of the executive branch is not being used to influence partisan elections” said Willington.

“The question of good, ethical government should not even have to be raised but unfortunately we do not live in an ideal world and there is a pattern here ‚Äì Doug Rubin’s former staffer is currently under investigation by the Ethics Commission” said Willington, referring to former undersecretary of economic development, Robert K. Coughlin, as reported recently reported by the Boston Globe on October 3, 2007.

Ogonowski Shut Out of State House 9/11 Ceremony

Jim Ogonowski, the Republican candidate vying for the vacant seat in Congress, has been a speaker at the State House 9/11 ceremony for the past four years…but not this year.

Jim Ogonowski, whose brother, John, piloted American Airlines Flight 11 when it was hijacked on Sept. 11, 2001, has been a speaker for the past four years at State House anniversary events but was left out this year. In past years, Ogonowski was invited by former Republican Gov. Mitt Romney.

But this year, he has been replaced by former U.S. Rep. Martin T. Meehan (D-Lowell), whose wife, Ellen, is chairing Democrat Niki Tsongas’ campaign against Ogonowski. Ogonowski won the GOP nomination this week and will face Tsongas in an Oct. 16 election for Meehan’s vacant seat.

Gov. Deval Patrick, who will speak at Tuesday’s State House event along with Lt. Gov. Tim Murray, is backing Tsongas in the race and was in Lowell campaigning with her this week. Also, Patrick’s chief of staff, Doug Rubin, was Tsongas’ political consultant before he joined Patrick’s staff.

Something stinks here. All these Tsongas supporters in the State House, the governor included, and now the Republican challenger to Tsongas has been left out of the ceremony. Coincidence?

“It would be terrible if they’re playing politics with 9/11, but what other conclusion can you reach when Gov. Patrick’s chief of staff was consulting for Niki Tsongas, Deval was knocking on doors with her this week, and the person they replaced Jim with to speak is the husband of Niki’s campaign manager?” asked state GOP executive director Rob Willington.

But Patrick spokesman Kyle Sullivan said the governor Рunlike Romney Рgave no input into who would speak at the ceremony, and instead “deferred completely to the Massachusetts 9/11 Fund for the program.”

The Governor’s office is saying that they deferred the decision completely to the Massachusetts 9/11 Fund. Okay, assuming that is completely true, who’s to say there weren’t some phone calls made or private lunches had to dissuade the committee from letting Ogonowski speak because it could hurt Tsongas?

As if people would be shocked closed door meetings occur on Beacon Hill.

Massachusetts 9/11 Fund executive director Ted Livingston said the committee, which is made up of victims’ relatives, decided on Meehan because “he’s been involved with the 9/11 families all along.”

Asked why Ogonowski wasn’t speaking this year, Livingston said: “It was the past administration’s decision to have him speak. It didn’t come up during committee meetings.”

I find this a little hard to believe. The brother of the pilot of American Airlines Flight 11, who has spoken at the ceremony the past four years didn’t come up?

Ogonowski declined comment, but a source close to the retired Air Force lieutenant colonel said he’s “upset” about the flap but will still attend the event. In past years, Ogonowski would eulogize his pilot brother and raise the flag at 8:46 a.m., the time the first jet hit the World Trade Center.

Sorry, but it is too much of a coincidence that within months of the special election that Jim Ogonowski gets slighted from speaking at ceremony in favor of the former congressman who’s vacated seat is being sought by a Democrat who is supported by the Governor, the Governor’s Chief of Staff and the Lt. Governor. I must not forget that the said former congressman’s wife is the campaign chair for Tsongas’ campaign.

This one doesn’t pass the stink test.

Whether or not Ogonowski’s being slighted was intentional, it doesn’t matter, because it sure looks like he was intentionally left out. Whoever “forgot” about Ogonowski hasn’t done Niki Tsongas any favors.

Shake Up In Deval’s House

The State House, that is.

His governorship has been closely resembling the candidacy of former Attorney General Tom Reilly, and now Governor Deval Patrick has a new chief of staff has he begins to move out of the so-called “honeymoon period” and on passed his first 100 days.

Governor Deval Patrick has tapped his top campaign adviser, Doug Rubin, to replace Joan Wallace-Benjamin as his chief of staff, a move aimed at ramping up his senior staff with politically and media savvy aides, senior administration sources said yesterday.

Patrick is shuffling his staff as he tries to recover from a tumultuous first 100 days in office, during which he made a number of missteps that have weakened his political position on Beacon Hill and damaged public confidence in his ability to handle the job.

Rubin’s appointment as chief of staff, which takes effect Tuesday, will give Patrick what many of his critics and supporters say has been lacking in the governor’s office in the critical first months in office: a strong hand to guide him through the political minefields on Beacon Hill and to shape the administration’s media operations.

Rubin will serve in the top post at least through the budget season, which generally ends in July, and perhaps into the fall. His tenure will depend on how much he is needed and how quickly he can get Patrick’s inner circle working effectively, an administration source said.

Ramping up his senior staff with politically and media savvy aides… Yeah, that’s a good idea, those are your two weakest areas.

Deval Patrick Watch notes a recent phone call made to Deval Patrick, and no, not another shady Ameriquest phone call.

Hypocrisy: Patrick Supporters Harass Healey’s Kids

So it looks like Deval Patrick’s supporters have committed a “tit-for-tat” in response to the isolated behavior of some Healey supporters who took it upon themselves to demonstrate in front of the house of Patrick’s campaign manager John Walsh, over a week ago. This caused a bit of controversy because of the protest occurred in front of Walsh’s 12-year-old son.

Deval Patrick’s camp went nuts last week when Healey supporters clad in orange jumpsuits picketed a campaign manager’s house and allegedly berated the man’s 12-year-old son.

But according to the Healey camp, Patrick’s sign-toting minions committed a similarly ugly foul recently . . . on Healey’s kids.

Sources close to Healey said Deval supporters camping out in Beverly recently “harassed” the lieutenant governor’s children, ages 11 and 14, as the kids walked to a friend’s house.

The kids were not harmed, but a source said they were upset by the incident.

Patrick campaign adviser Doug Rubin said, “If that did happen, we do not condone it. We would hope our volunteers would act more professionally.”

When Healey supporters committed a similar infraction, Healey issued an “apology” that was not really an apology. Frankly, I don’t see why a candidate needs to directly apologize for the behavior of passionate supporters. Now, Doug Rubin’s “non-apology” is a bit more interesting to examine, because the Patrick campaign demanded an apology from Healey, and saw her non-apology as not sufficient enough when they were asked by Kim Atkins if Healey had apologized.

I think Rubin’s response is more than sufficient to account for the behavior of Patrick’s impassioned supporters, but if that is the response they deem appropriate, which is as much an apology as Healey’s “apology,” then they have some apologizing to do.

What a lost opportunity for the Patrick campaign. They could have issued a real apology and really made Kerry Healey look like John Kerry. They could have said rather simply, “we apologize for their behavior…” and used the incident to remind the voters that Healey barely apologized if at all when the tables were turned. But no, Doug Rubin pulls a “if that did happen, we do not condone it…” non-apology.

This incident also reeks of hypocrisy on those Deval Patrick supporters. First, those who harassed Healey’s kids, who we can bet the farm were outraged at the inmates’ behavior just over a week ago. Second, a prediction; we will either not see a condemnation of the actions of the unruly Patrick supporters, or we will see a defense of them from the internet activists who whined that Healey took too long to take responsibility for the actions of her supporters whom they called “thugs” and “skinheads,” called the actions disgraceful and disgusting, and complained she did not offer a real apology.

Third, of course, is the hypocrisy of Deval Patrick. Patrick responded to the demonstrations in front of his house and the house of his campaign manager saying the protest was “an indication of another gap in Kerry Healey’s readiness to lead.” Can we expect Deval Patrick to public suggest that actions of his supporters is an indication of another gap in his readiness to lead?

I doubt it. Words come back to haunt, don’t they, Mr. Patrick?

I’m not one for giving advice to the opposition, but they really botched an opportunity here. Deval Patrick, who often claims that his campaign is taking the “high road,” did not take the “high road” this time, and it’s too late to bang a youie.