Mitt Romney

Did Mitt Romney Raise Taxes Or 'Close Loopholes'?

Benjy Sarlin | August 12, 2011, 9:40AM

News that then-Governor Mitt Romney's office played up his predecessor's tax hikes to secure a better rating from Standard & Poor's may undercut his hardline anti-tax image. But the S&P story also revives a longstanding debate over Romney's own revenue raisers as governor, an issue that takes on greater significance than it did in 2008 thanks to the recent debt ceiling talks.

On Wednesday, Politico reported on a presentation Romney's office gave to S&P in 2004 touting the strength of the state's budget thanks in part to a 2002 tax increase that he opposed. The presentation also highlighted higher fees and newly closed loopholes that Romney championed himself. While Romney supporters have long argued these policies should not count as tax increases, critics have long insisted otherwise and the S&P story pushes the debate into the headlines once again.

Read more »

Elizabeth Warren

Warren Moving Closer To Senate Run?

Michael R. Corjulo | August 12, 2011, 8:46AM

Consumer Affairs and Protection Bureau Director Elizabeth Warren

Rumours of an Elizabeth Warren Senate challenge to Republican Scott Brown (R-MA) grew Thursday as the champion of consumer protection penned a suggestive op-ed in the democratic blog Blue Mass Group.

Addressing Massachusetts voters, Warren gave a brief overview of her life story including a description of the fiscal constraints her family faced during her early childhood, her time in Washington establishing CFPB, and her desire to continue helping the middle class.

Read more »

2012

Mitt Romney Touted Tax Increase To S&P In '04 Presentation

Benjy Sarlin | August 11, 2011, 9:57AM

Mitt Romney

Mitt Romney insisted that Republicans rule out any tax increases in negotiations to avoid a debt ceiling default, but as governor of Massachusetts they were a key selling point in his efforts to raise the state's S&P rating.

In a presentation from 2004 obtained by Politico's Ben Smith, the Romney administration touted a 2002 tax increase of over $1 billion approved by his predecessor as evidence the state was in good fiscal health. According to the 50-page presentation, Massachusetts "successfully managed revenue and expense positions" in 2002 and 2003 and "acted decisively to address the fiscal crisis."

Read more »

Massachusetts

MA Dem Apologizes For Comparing Lobbyist Badges To Holocaust Tattoos

Jillian Rayfield | June 30, 2011, 11:42AM

Massachusetts State Rep. John Binienda (D)

Massachusetts state Rep. John Binienda (D) apologized Thursday for comparing a proposal to make lobbyists wear badges when talking to lawmakers to Adolf Hitler's forced tattooing of Jews during the Holocaust.

"Yesterday, I made an inappropriate analogy regarding a proposed change to the House Rules," he said in a statement. "No comparison can be made between the Nazi regime and a rules proposal made by members in good faith. I apologize to the sponsors as well as the people of Massachusetts for my words and look forward to working with the sponsors on these proposals."

Read more »

Massachusetts

Mass Gov. Deval Patrick On Collective Bargaining Cut: 'This Is Not Wisconsin'

Evan McMorris-Santoro | April 28, 2011, 9:41AM

Gov. Deval Patrick (D-MA)

Union supporters had a rude awakening on Wednesday with news of the Massachusetts state House vote to slash collective bargaining rights for municipal workers. Democratic-controlled, and among the bluest of the blue, Massachusetts is not the place where most expected to see the next battle in the nationwide organized labor fight with state legislatures crop up.

The state House bill, which passed with overwhelming support in the Democratic-controlled state legislature, would "strip police officers, teachers, and other municipal employees of most of their rights to bargain over health care," as the Boston Globe reported Wednesday. The goal, according to proponents, is of course to "save millions of dollars for financially strapped cities and towns."

What happens next is unclear. But the president of the state AFL-CIO and Gov. Deval Patrick (D) agree -- Massachusetts is not likely to be the next Wisconsin.

Read more »

Pres '12

Pawlenty To Headline Tax Day Tea Party In Romney's Home State Of Massachusetts

Eric Kleefeld | March 30, 2011, 2:02PM

Former Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R-MN) and former Gov. Mitt Romney (R-MA)

Former Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R-MN), who is exploring a run for president, is headed to the backyard of another potential GOP contender, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney -- with Pawlenty set to appear at a Tea Party rally in Boston on tax day, April 15.

The Boston Globe reports:

The speech will bring Pawlenty, the former governor of Minnesota, to the home state of a potential rival for the 2012 GOP nomination, Mitt Romney.

It also puts him in a Tea Party spotlight enjoyed last year by former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, who was the event's 2010 keynote speaker.

"Governor Pawlenty's leadership in Minnesota has put his state on a course towards economic success," said a statement issued by Christin Varley, the group's president. "His is a message voters need to hear."

Read more »