Springfield on the Hill

Massachusetts Death with Dignity campaign could accelerate national legislation

By Farah Mohamed

    WASHINGTON – Massachusetts is looking to become the third state to pass the Death with Dignity Act, and its reputation as a medical mecca may accelerate the legislation’s popularity nationally.

    Implemented in Oregon in 1998 and later passed in Washington, the Death with Dignity Act allows physician-assisted suicide for terminally ill patients.

    As Massachusetts attempts to legalize this practice, it has met with opposition from the Catholic and pro-life community. If the act passes amid the state’s conflicting medical, Catholic and pro-life communities, other states could follow Massachusetts’ lead.

    The campaign is called Dignity 2012 and it began in September with 15 original petitioners. The group aims to put the physician-assisted death question on the 2012 ballot and its petition must be approved and summarized by the secretary of state before being sent to the legislature. If the legislature fails to decide within five months, it will go to November’s election.

     Traditionally liberal, Massachusetts hasn’t completely shed its “city upon the hill” mentality. Members of the Catholic community, including Sean P. O’Malley of the Archdiocese of Boston, have denounced the Death with Dignity proposition.

    “What makes Massachusetts newsworthy is not that we are a state with such a strong medical community, but a state with a strong Catholic community,” said Steve Crawford, a spokesman for Dignity 2012.

Brown vows to end money channeling to U.S. enemies

    Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) announced Thursday that the Senate approved his legislation to prevent money from reaching U.S. enemies.

    Co-authored and co-sponsored by Sen. Kelly Ayotee (R-N.H.), the No Contracting with the Enemy Act seeks to prevent taxpayer money from reaching America’s enemies by simplifying the contracting process. Presently, it is difficult to void contracts even if contractors are channeling money to groups like the Taliban.

    “The Senate’s action today will give our Defense Department a critical tool in ensuring our tax dollars aren’t being siphoned off by the enemies of the United States and used against us,” said Brown in a press release. “The stronger oversight and ability to void bad contracts will directly benefit our troops on the battlefield.”

    Brown serves as the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Contracting Oversight of the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee and has participated in hearings with key security officials on the topic of money contracting and enemies.

     Brown and Ayotee first introduced the act in February at the Senate Armed Services Committee, where Gen. David Petraeus agreed on the importance of the bill. In September, the Commission on Wartime Contracting reported that U.S. taxpayer money had gone directly to corrupt officials.

    The legislation is part of the Fiscal Year 2012 National Defense Authorization Act and will go to the House next.

Massachusetts big money Senate race could show that campaign finance isn’t everything

By Farah Mohamed

    WASHINGTON – The 2012 Massachusetts Senate race is shaping up to be a big money event but the campaign finances of candidates Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) and Elizabeth Warren show why money might not be a deciding factor.

     The race will be watched nationally, especially because it could alter congressional control. How much it will cost and whether it will be the most expensive Senate race to date is to be determined.

    Maurice Cunningham, chairman of the department of political science at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, said she heard the race could cost from $50 million to $70 million.

    “That may well occur and it would make it by far the most expensive race in Massachusetts history,” Cunningham said

    Candice Nelson, academic director for the Campaign Management Institute, a two week nationally recognized program at American University focusing on campaign strategies, disagrees.

 “I doubt it will be the most expensive Senate election ever,” Nelson said. “One thing that drives the cost of elections is the cost of paid media . . .Massachusetts only has the Boston media market, and while it is not cheap, it is not as expensive as New York, Los Angeles or San Francisco.”

Bostonian brings archaeological and environmental past abroad to state's transportation sector

By Farah Mohamed

    WASHINGTON – John Walkey signs his emails with a witty warning: “Sent smugly from my iPhone (so please excuse the typos).” It is this combination of playfulness and attention to detail that has come to define the way he approaches his work in the transportation sector.

     Walkey is the Massachusetts field organizer for Transportation for America, an organization that advocates for better transportation systems and change in national transportation policy. He is also an organizer for the Transportation for Massachusetts Coalition.

    A self-proclaimed non-transportation junkie, Walkey began working for T4 America in January. His passion for the big picture and experience overseas has helped him adjust to the position. As field organizer, he adopts a variety of local, state and federal projects for the recently developed Massachusetts coalition. Unperturbed by technicalities or lack of funding, Walkey focuses on how his work impacts people’s daily lives.

    “We look at projects which have a local impact but are representative of a federal program and try to make [them] connect with people,” he said.  “It’s a lot of mind-numbingly boring policy and bureaucracy, but when you can hunt through and find a project . . .it’s worth it.”

Gardiner Harris on journalism

     WASHINGTON – As he gets up to leave, his yellow tie still off center from the rush to the classroom, Gardiner Harris is suddenly struck with a new insight.

    “You’d be surprised by the kind of people you can have coffee with,” he says.

    Harris, who currently serves as a national reporter at the New York Times covering the Federal Drug Administration, spoke to an advanced reporting class at American University today.

    What began as brief biography soon shifted into something opinionated: why the New York Times has adapted to the online format better than the Washington Post or how journalism is changing.

    But at the heart of the tough journalism questions were insights into Harris’ personality and the way his life as a journalist has shaped up to be.

    “I thought I’d meet somebody who had a better job than I,” Harris said. He never found that somebody.

    Perhaps that’s what has kept him in the business for some 20 years.

     And yet, there’s a restlessness to Harris. His hands constantly move as he explains the benefits to being a temporary secretary or what it was like trudging through a flooded nursing home after Hurricane Katrina.

    When he reflects on his past, he’s emotional.

    “I went to school with people who make 10 times what I make and I was the smart guy. . . sometimes I get jealous,” he said.

     But then he reverts back.

     “I’ve always sort of felt myself something of a rebel,” he said.

    As he nears the end of the discussion, Harris hints that he plans to work abroad soon.

    “The leash is much looser abroad . . .you’re freer from your bosses…” he said.

     It seems the restlessness has never stopped ticking in Gardiner Harris.  

 

Kerry is proactive in preparation for Council meeting

    In preparation for the New England Fishery Management Council meeting next week, Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) focused on Massachusetts fisherman relief and emphasized the importance of the industry’s future.

    In a letter to Colin McAllister Cunningham, Jr., acting chairmen of the Council, Kerry discussed his specific plans. His points included calling for a meeting in Massachusetts on fishing regulation and small boat fisherman assistance, addressing unused quota above the limit, opening irrelevant banned fishing areas and working with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, the Science Center and the National Marine Fisheries Service to monitor conditions and avoid undesirable impacts.

    “Fishing is more than a deep part of Massachusetts’ culture and history; it’s also the foundation of many working people’s livelihoods and their families’ economic security, supporting more than 77,000 jobs in Massachusetts,” Kerry wrote in the letter. “As I’ve said repeatedly, I’m not about to let these fishermen’s way of life end on my watch. It’s up to all of us to make smart decisions in the present to support fishing and guarantee it has a strong future.”

     Kerry’s letter comes after previous efforts by the senator to stabilize the fishing industry. In October, Kerry chaired a Commerce Committee field hearing on the strength of the fishing industry. He also sent a letter to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association urging specific actions to prevent economic and business setbacks for Massachusetts fishermen and the state at large.

    The New England Fishery Management Council meeting is scheduled to take place Tuesday. 

Sen. Brown favors power outage refund legislation

    Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) said Thursday that he supports Rep. Dan Winslow's (R-Norfolk) bill on power outage rebate. The bill would force utility companies to offer a refund to customers if they are without power for more than eight hours.  

    This legislation comes after an early winter storm that hit the state last weekend, leaving many without electricity. 

    "Like most of my neighbors, I find it unacceptable that hundreds of thousands of people in Massachusetts remained without power so long after Saturday’s storm,” Brown said in a press release.  “The inadequate response from the utilities raises serious questions about their storm preparations and whether they had enough assets in place to deal with the problem as it was occurring. What’s at the heart of this issue is safety. We had power out in homes with young children, and seniors living alone, with temperatures dropping to freezing at night. We need to put in place financial penalties for the utilities so they will allocate sufficient resources to preventing a recurrence of the problem."

    The refund, which would be active for each day customers are without power, would total roughly two days of the customer's average electrical bill.

Kerry: Universal Service Reform will benefit the state

    Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) said Thursday that he approves of the Federal Communications Commission’s reform to the Universal Service Fund and sees the action as something long-awaited in his state.

    The purpose of the fund is to advocate for universal telecommunications service. In the past,  funds have been inefficiently allocated and states like Massachusetts have lost out in the deal.

    A press release cites that in an eight year period, telephone customers in the state paid $1.47 billion to the Universal Service Fund but received only $415 million in return. Paying in more than they are receiving in benefits is frustrating to customers, especially when places near Springfield, Mass. often lack basic access to high-speed connections.

    “Massachusetts consumers have been paying into this fund for far too long without seeing the benefits they deserve,” Kerry said in a press release. “ A lot of people out in Western Massachusetts still don’t have access to affordable, reliable broadband, and that’s unacceptable. Now states like Massachusetts should get their fair share and Universal Service Fund dollars should go where they’re needed most.” 

    Kerry, chairman of the Commerce Subcommittee on Communications, Technology and the Internet, also favored the Universal Service Fund reform this month in a Senate hearing. 

Kerry: Bryson confirmation benefits fishing industry

    Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.) commended the appointment of John Bryson as the new Secretary of Commerce Friday, seeing it as a key step in helping the Massachusetts fishing industry.

    Bryson, who was confirmed by a vote of 74 to 26, has experience in business, served 18 years as the Chairmen and Chief Executive Officer of utility company Edison International and Chair of the Pacific Council on International Policy

    He proves especially important to Massachusetts because of his familiarity with the fishing situation.

    “There is a great frustration that exists between the fishing community in the region and the federal government,” Kerry said in a press release. “When I met with John Bryson, he exhibited an understanding of the importance of that issue and a willingness to come to Massachusetts and help us resolve this current situation.”

    Recent federal regulations in Massachusetts have limited the amount of fishing that takes place and cost local fishermen their jobs. Tension between fisherman and the government has resulted and the senator hopes that Bryson’s previous experiences will help him assist the state.

     Bryson is the 37^th Secretary of Commerce.

Brown launches domestic terrorism policy update

    Senators Scott Brown (R-Mass.) and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) and Congressmen Charlie Dent (R-Pa.) and Jason Altmire (D-Pa.) launched legislation Wednesday that would amend federal law regarding U.S. citizens and terrorism.

    The Enemy Expatriation Act would add an eighth category to a current federal statue, 8 U.S.C. § 1481. The current legislation lists seven categories whereby U.S. citizens can lose citizenship. Under the new category, U.S. citizens would be at risk of losing citizenship if directly or materially involved in anti-U.S. activity.

    The act comes after the death of al Qaeda leader Anwar al-Awlaki and the arrest of Rezwan Ferdaus, a Massachusetts man who planned an attack on Washington last month. Both incidents, according to the senators and congressmen, indicate that an update of domestic terrorism policy is needed.

    “The recent arrest of Rezwan Ferdaus, who was stockpiling advanced weaponry and planning a major attack against our nation’s Capital, highlights the growing problem of home grown terrorism, even in a peaceful community like Ashland, Massachusetts,” said Brown in a press release. “In future cases, this bill would take away what terrorists have already renounced through their words and actions—the right to call themselves Americans." 

    If suspected, citizens’ indication of citizenship resignation by participation in terrorist activities would be evaluated by the State Department. The individual would then have the chance to appeal to the State Department and federal district courts.