| | | |  | | By Kelly Garrity | UP FOR A CHALLENGE — Could the Massachusetts' recently sleepy congressional elections see some competition next year? It’s still early, but some potential candidates are already eyeing 2026. Patrick Roath, an attorney, voting rights advocate and Deval Patrick alum, is seriously considering challenging Rep. Stephen Lynch in the state’s 8th Congressional District, according to a person familiar with his plans. Lynch defeated his last primary challenger, Dr. Robbie Goldstein (who now serves as Gov. Maura Healey’s public health commissioner) handily in 2020, a busy election cycle for Massachusetts Democrats that saw then-Rep. Joe Kennedy take on Sen. Ed Markey, opening up his seat for a crowded primary. But the cycle before that saw several incumbents fall to challengers from the left in the wake of President Donald Trump's ascension to the White House — including here in Massachusetts, where Rep. Ayanna Pressley ousted longtime Rep. Mik Capuano. Roath, a Jamaica Plain resident, chairs the advisory board of Common Cause Massachusetts, and was part of successful litigation to cut the number of signatures that candidates needed to get on the ballot during the Covid-19 pandemic. North of Boston, it looks like Rep. Seth Moulton could see a Republican challenger. Micah Jones, an attorney and a U.S. Army veteran is considering running in the 6th District, according to an email sent to potential supporters obtained by Playbook. Jones met recently with members of the Gloucester City Republican Committee, according to the email, and is hosting a fundraiser headlined featuring former GOP presidential hopeful and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson in April, according to the invitation. GOOD TUESDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. UMass Amherst tested another congressional matchup in a poll out this morning: Sen. Ed Markey vs. former GOP Gov. Charlie Baker. The results? It’s a statistical toss up. Markey held a slight lead over Baker, 35 percent to the Republican’s 33 percent. But that’s within the poll’s margin of error of plus or minus 4.8 percentage points. Thirty-three percent also said they didn’t know who they would pick. TODAY — Gov. Maura Healey has no public events. Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll joins NAIOP to discuss the state’s Unlocking Housing Production Commission report at 10 a.m. in Boston. Driscoll and state Auditor Diana DiZoglio attend the Cambridge State of the City at 6:30 p.m. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu hosts a media availability about city safety after meeting with faith leaders at 12:30 p.m. Sen. Elizabeth Warren hosts a forum on the White House’s efforts to eliminate the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau at 2 p.m. in D.C.; Attorney General Andrea Campbell testifies. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Drop me a line: kgarrity@politico.com.
| | | | Donald Trump's unprecedented effort to reshape the federal government is consuming Washington. To track this seismic shift, we're relaunching one of our signature newsletters. Sign up to get West Wing Playbook: Remaking Government in your inbox. | | | | | |  | DATELINE BEACON HILL | | — “A new wrinkle in MBTA Communities rebellion, courtesy of DiZoglio,” by Gintautas Dumcius, CommonWealth Beacon: “Auditor Diana DiZoglio determined the MBTA Communities Act is an 'unfunded mandate' from the state, drawing a sharp rebuke from Attorney General Andrea Campbell, a top defender of the zoning law that eases regulations for multifamily housing in neighborhoods close to public transit. DiZoglio’s office made the pronouncement in a letter to local officials in Wrentham, a town close to the Rhode Island border. The 'unfunded mandate' determination came from the auditor’s Division of Local Mandates, which decides whether the Massachusetts state government has provided local governments with the funding required to implement a new law or regulation. The move prompted Campbell to call the determination incorrect and declare that it carries no impact.” — “Healey halts plans for hospital closures,” by Lance Reynolds, Boston Herald: “Gov. Maura Healey is halting her plans to close a Cape Cod psychiatric hospital and a Canton children’s rehab hospital after hearing ‘directly’ from community members about how important the facilities are. Thousands of concerned stakeholders sounded the alarm immediately after Healey proposed to close Pocasset Mental Health Center in Bourne and Pappas Rehabilitation Hospital for Children in Canton to save money in the state budget.” — “With Mass. House set to vote on its rules, is transparency a priority or a talking point?,” by Abigail Pritchard, The New Bedford Light. ICYMI — “Vieira, Muradian Round Out House GOP Leadership,” by Sam Doran, State House News Service (paywall): “The House Republican Caucus beat Democrats to the punch in getting its top-level leadership structure organized for the session, with the appointment of two veteran lawmakers. House Minority Leader Bradley Jones Jr. has named Reps. David Vieira and David Muradian as third assistant minority leaders, his office told the News Service on Friday. Vieira and Muradian fill two open slots in Republican leadership left after the death of Rep. Susan Williams Gifford in October and the retirement of Rep. Jay Barrows after last session.”
| | FROM THE HUB | | — “Galvin orders overhaul of Boston election practices,” by Roberto Scalese, WBUR: “Massachusetts Secretary of State Bill Galvin has ordered Boston to ‘overhaul’ its election practices after polling locations ran low — and in some cases ran out — of ballots on Election Day in 2024. Monday's order also included findings from his office's investigation into the reported shortages. Beyond the apparent ballot shortfalls, investigators said the city did not communicate clearly with workers in polling stations, which led to disenfranchising some voters.” — “Pro soccer group got early jump on Boston’s controversial White Stadium deal, public records show,” by Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald: “Public records reveal negotiations to rehab Boston’s White Stadium for a new pro soccer team were underway long before the city sent out a request for proposals. When that RFP went out, it very closely reflected the framework discussed between the investor group and city. Internal city emails obtained by the Herald show Boston Unity Soccer Partners first reached out to the Wu administration about their plans to bring a new professional women’s soccer team to Boston in September 2022, when the for-profit group indicated their intense interest in Franklin Park’s White Stadium as the team’s future home.” RELATED — “Community members voice support for White Stadium renovation,” by 7 News WHDH. — “City Council hearing on Trust Act upcoming as Congress, feds takes aim at Boston’s sanctuary city status,” by Grace Zokovitch, Boston Herald.
| | MIGRANTS IN MASSACHUSETTS | | — “Sanctuary cities sue over immigration crackdown,” by Christian M. Wade, The Eagle-Tribune: “A pair of Massachusetts ‘sanctuary’ cities are suing the Trump administration over its threats to withhold funding if they don't cooperate with federal immigration crackdowns. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Boston on Monday by Chelsea and Somerville, alleges that the Trump administration is attempting to 'commandeer' local governments to play an active role in mass deportation plans, ‘trampling on the rights of plaintiffs and other localities like them in the process.’”
| | THE RACE FOR CITY HALL | | ANOTHER ONE — The race for Boston’s District 7 council seat is getting a little more crowded. Mavrick Afonso, who spent several years working for Boston’s Parks and Recreation Department, is the latest candidate to wade into the race to unseat Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson. Afonso, who currently serves as director of external affairs for the state’s Office of Housing and Livable Communities, joins a handful of candidates who have announced plans to run (Said Ahmed and Said Abdikarim) or have filed paperwork with the state’s office of campaign finance (Samuel Hurtado, a former adviser to former Acting Mayor Kim Janey) in wake of Fernandes Anderson’s indictment on alleged federal corruption charges last year. — “Kraft raises over $71,000 in first days of mayoral campaign,” by Walter Wuthmann, WBUR: “Boston mayoral candidate Josh Kraft raised just over $71,000 from more than 100 donors in the first days of his campaign, according to state campaign finance data. The first-time candidate is pulling in money from family members, financial executives and real estate developers as he looks to oust incumbent Mayor Michelle Wu. The newly filed reports show Kraft received the maximum contribution of $1,000 from several family members, including his father, New England Patriots owner and billionaire Robert Kraft.”
| | TRUMPACHUSETTS | | — “Springfield’s $20M EPA grant moving forward after pause from federal government,” by Greta Jochem, The Springfield Republican: “A federally funded project to address a slew of environmental initiatives in the city is progressing after President Donald Trump’s flurry of executive orders put the program in limbo. … In January, the city was notified that a $20 million grant from the Environmental Protection Agency was paused because of an executive order Trump called ‘Unleashing American Energy.’ It instructed agencies to hold funds under the Inflation Reduction Act, the source of the city’s EPA grant.” — “Canceled meetings and confusion: NIH grant funding in limbo despite court injunction,” by Anna Rubenstein, WBUR: “Researchers awaiting National Institutes of Health funding say their grant meetings are being canceled, despite a court order blocking the Trump administration from freezing federal funds. Study sessions and council meetings are where review groups decide whether scientists will get the NIH money they’ve applied for. And last-minute cancellations are leaving scientists in a precarious limbo.”
| | IT'S NOT EASY BEING GREEN | | — “EV rule halts Mass. truck sales, but green groups say manufacturers are dragging feet,” by Jim Kinney, The Springfield Republican: “A new state regulation meant to clean the air — and lower childhood asthma rates in pollution hotspots like Springfield — is making it harder for buyers to get heavy and medium duty diesel trucks. … In January, Massachusetts joined other states in enforcing California Advanced Clean Trucks requirements for medium and heavy duty trucks. The state now requires that 7% of those trucks — like dump trucks, box delivery trucks or the powered front halves of tractor-trailer rigs — be zero-emissions electric vehicles. The rule affects trucks starting with this model year. The problem is, electric trucks are hard to sell.”
| | FROM THE DELEGATION | | NEW THIS MORNING — via D.C.'s Playbook: Sen. Elizabeth Warren will join Vox’s Kara Swisher at South by Southwest in Austin on March 8 for a live-taping of “On with Kara Swisher," to talk the future of the Democratic party, DOGE, the CFPB and the “tech bro government takeover.” Here's the lineup.
| | ON CAMPUS | | SCHOOL STRATEGY — Boston-area universities are tightening their belts as they brace for potential cuts to National Institutes of Health funding. Boston University is “slowing spending,” while the Massachusetts Institute of Technology imposed a hiring freeze on nonessential employees, The Boston Globe’s Larry Edelman reports. Local colleges and universities have also upped their lobbying game in recent weeks, POLITICO’s Daniel Lippman and Caitlin Oprysko reported earlier this month. MIT brought on S-3 Group’s Marty Reiser, a former aide to House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, in January, alongside John Scofield, Ashley Davis, Jose Ceballos, Chris Buki and Shimmy Stein, marking the first time in more than 25 years that the school has hired an outside lobbying firm in Washington. And Harvard University’s leadership hired Ballard Partners last month, per Daniel and Caitlin.
| | THE LOCAL ANGLE | | — “ACLU sends city admonishing letter: Saint statues at new police station would break law,” by Peter Blandino, The Patriot Ledger: “The American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts has sent a letter to city councilors and Mayor Thomas Koch, urging them to cancel plans to erect two larger-than-life bronze statues of St. Michael and St. Florian in front of the under construction Public Safety Headquarters. … The $850,000 statues are 98.9% paid for, according to a contract document that itemizes expenses. St. Michael and St. Florian are the patron saints of police officers and firefighters respectively.”
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