Click HERE to access the essay, published in Commonwealth Beacon on January 4, 2025.
Category: Uncategorized
The Barr Foundation and the Boston Globe “Rig the Discourse”
When I wrote Barr Foundation K-12 Interest Groups Throw Their Weight (and Dollars) Around in May I closed with a quote from Anand Giridharadas, “What wealthy people do is rig the discourse.” That is where I should have started and added “and the Boston Globe helps.” So here is The Barr Foundation and the Boston…
Democrats for Education Reform Brings Dark Money Back to Massachusetts Politics
So it begins: Democrats for Education Reform is pouring dark money back into Massachusetts politics. That is apparent from today’s Matt Stout story in the Boston Globe: So it begins: Business-backed group opposing MCAS ballot question rolling out $250,000 ad campaign. One of the donors for a digital media buy from the Protect Our Kids…
It’s True. The Globe Sports Page Really Does Provide Better Coverage of Sports than the Globe Does of K-12 Education Interests
I dragged myself down this rabbit hole by responding to a Globe story titled MCAS ballot question pits Massachusetts Association against business community – again. As a critique I wrote Why Is the Boston Globe’s Sports Coverage So Much Better Than Its K-12 Interest Group Coverage? It’s true. You can regularly see Globe sports reporters…
Mr. Duquette Goes To Beacon Hill: My testimony about the legislative audit ballot initiative
On Tuesday, March 26th, I had the opportunity to provide testimony to the Joint Committee on Initiative Petitions regarding the pending ballot initiative that would explicitly authorize the state auditor to audit the General Court (i.e. the MA state legislature). I had previously expressed my take on the measure HERE and HERE. All of the…
What the Globe Left Out of “MTA Exerts More Power”
The Boston Globe is messing with my Golden Years and I don’t appreciate it one bit. I really want just want to play some Sudoko and rest up for the blue plate special but then the Globe goes and prints something like MTA exerts more power amid a wave of teacher strikes, generating praise and…
CommonWealth Op-Ed on Auditor’s “Legislative Audit”
Click HERE to read Professor Duquette’s CommonWealth Magazine op-ed about the state auditor’s effort to audit the state legislature.
What is political courage?
In the aftermath of the mass shooting in Lewiston last week, Maine Representative Jared Golden publicly acknowledged his previous rejection of federal bans on assault weapons was a failure. His Democratic colleague, Massachusetts Representative Lori Trahan took to social media to declare his statement an example of “Courage in the face of unimaginable tragedy. Selfless…
Matt Gaetz and the Red Popsicle Approach to “Governing”
Whaaaa! That is the sound Representative Matt Gaetz and seven of his colleagues made when they did not get exactly what they wanted from Kevin McCarthy. The now former Speaker had the audacity to side with the majority of the Republican caucus to raise the debt ceiling in May 2023 (149-71) and again side with…
What Senator Dianne Feinstein Meant to Girls Like Me
Did Dianne Feinstein stay in the Senate too long? Yes. Is that how she should be remembered or how I will remember her? No. I remember Senator Dianne Feinstein’s election to the Senate as a part of the “Year of the Woman” in 1992 where four women won Senate seats. That this was such a…