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Lucas: Like Tom Brady, no thanks for Charlie Baker in Massachusetts

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Lucas: Like Tom Brady, no thanks for Charlie Baker in Massachusetts


Gov. Charlie Baker is leaving a lot the identical manner Tom Brady did.

With nobody saying goodbye. With no thunderous applause ringing in his ears. With not a lot as a thanks. A lot for gratitude.

New England Patriots Tremendous Bowl hero Brady acquired no heat applause from the Patriots when he left the group in 2020 after spending twenty years successful for the group.

Republican Gov. Baker is leaving the identical manner. Baker, after eight years as governor, won’t even attend the Republican Celebration conference in Might.

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Brady, upon leaving the New England Patriots, a minimum of went on for extra glory with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Baker’s glory days could also be over.

There will probably be no Baker conference farewell speech, no summing up of his accomplishments, no views of the long run and no endorsement of a possible GOP successor. The occasion will occasion with out him.

That is the occasion that gave Baker its endorsement for governor thrice.

Baker misplaced his first run for governor in 2010 to Democrat Deval Patrick, however received the subsequent two elections.

However the 2022 Republican Celebration isn’t your conventional reasonable/liberal Republican Celebration of the previous, which Baker epitomized. That Baker-led occasion is useless after it grew to become indistinguishable from the Democrats, and Baker was labeled a RINO — a Republican In Title Solely.

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It didn’t assist that Baker was a staunch critic of fellow Republican and former President Donald Trump.

So, Donald Trump Republicans, led by former state Rep. Jim Lyons, the occasion chairman, wrestled management of the occasion away from Baker.

The consequence was that you simply had a Republican governor unable to manage the occasion he was presupposed to be main.

Nonetheless, Baker was practical sufficient to know that to get issues accomplished as governor he needed to work with a closely Democrat-controlled Legislature. This meant governing as a Democrat.

That made for some awkward Republican politics. Whereas Baker is common with Democrats, Independents and liberal Republicans, he misplaced out with Trump supporters who now management the occasion.

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Lyons mentioned that regardless of Baker, he believed that Trump’s America first message was per the message of the Massachusetts Republican Celebration.

Had Baker determined to run for a 3rd time period, he confronted the potential for shedding the conference to Geoff Diehl, the conservative former state consultant who ran unsuccessfully in opposition to U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren in 2018.

Diehl, who challenged Baker even earlier than Baker selected to not run, is supported by Lyons, who will management the conference, and nearly all of conservative conference delegates. Diehl has additionally been endorsed by Trump.

The opposite Republican working for governor is businessman Chris Doughty.

Including a conservative taste to the conference is the selection of Thomas Homan, the outspoken former appearing director of ICE, as a featured speaker.

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Homan has been strongly vital of Biden’s open-borders coverage.

Baker, in asserting his absence, mentioned it was necessary that delegates hear from candidates who’re working, and never from those that are usually not.

He’s mistaken. If something, it’s extra necessary for delegates, in addition to the general public, to listen to from a governor who’s lastly free to talk his thoughts with out worrying about looking for delegate votes.

Eight years in the past, outgoing two-term liberal Democrat Gov. Patrick, who was not looking for a 3rd time period, wowed the delegates on the state Democrat Celebration conference together with his farewell speech.

In a rousing speech, Patrick had the delegates in a frenzy when he attacked Republican conservatives and “the exhausting proper.”

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These are the identical conservatives that took the Massachusetts Republican Celebration away from Baker. They are going to be on the Republican Celebration conference.

However Baker received’t. Possibly he ought to ship Patrick in his place.



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Several new Massachusetts laws take effect in 2025

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Several new Massachusetts laws take effect in 2025


Several new Massachusetts laws take effect in 2025 – CBS Boston

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Several new laws will go into effect in the new year in Massachusetts. WBZ-TV’s Juli McDonald reports.

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Balloon drop pulls massive Lego display onto New Year’s Eve arcade revelers, injuring 10

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Balloon drop pulls massive Lego display onto New Year’s Eve arcade revelers, injuring 10


A Lego display at a packed arcade in Massachusetts collapsed Tuesday afternoon when employees triggered a New Year’s balloon drop — injuring 10 people, including eight who were sent to the hospital.

The shocking, caught-on-camera accident during the “Happy Noon Years” event at In The Game on Lowell Street in Peabody, Mass., stunned the crowd of revelers.

In a video obtained by NBC Boston, the crowd chanted and cheered ahead of the balloon release.

The Lego display that fell onto spectators below Tuesday afternoon. Instagram/In the Game
The collapse hurt about 10 people, eight of whom elected to go to the hospital. CBS

But as soon as the barrage fell, it took with it a display of Legos assembled into what looked like an old-school arcade game — which tumbled directly onto spectators a dozen feet below.

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Ten people were hurt, according to Peabody police. Eight of those hurt were sent to the hospital, while two declined medical transport. It’s unclear if any of the victims were children.

“I didn’t know anybody was hurt until after,” Keegan Oblenes, 13, told NBC Boston.

The injuries were minor. WHDH

He added that it took a minute for the crowd to figure out what happened — and that the noisy collapse had actually hurt people at the sold-out event.

The incident caught the crowd by surprise, one witness said. CBS

“Then I was sort of worried and everybody started clearing out and then an ambulance showed up,” he said. “And a fire truck. And then the stretcher came out.”

Crews cleared the scene by 12:45 p.m.

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Another video posted to Facebook showed the net of balloons tied to the Lego display — and the collapse as the weight of the balloons being pulled took the Lego display down.



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These new laws take effect in Massachusetts in 2025

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These new laws take effect in Massachusetts in 2025


BOSTON – A new year brings change, and new laws will be going into effect in Massachusetts for 2025.

From salary transparency to affordable housing to new tax credits, we’ve rounded up a list of incoming policy changes that will be affecting Massachusetts residents at some point in the new year.

Salary transparency law

Toward the end of the new year, a salary transparency bill that was signed into law by Gov. Maura Healey in 2024 will take effect. As of Oct. 29, 2025, employers in Massachusetts that have 25 or more employees “will be required to disclose salary ranges and protect an employee’s right to ask for salary ranges,” the state says.

Massachusetts will become the 11th state to mandate pay transparency, advocates of the bill said. 

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“This new law is an important next step toward closing wage gaps, especially for People of Color and women,” Healey said in a statement. “It will also strengthen the ability of Massachusetts employers to build diverse, talented teams.”

Sealing eviction records

As part of the Affordable Homes Act that Healey signed in August, there are new provisions taking effect in 2025 to make it easier for some people to get a place to live. Starting on May 5, 2025, people can petition the court to seal past eviction records that might be preventing them from renting. 

The new law does not mean old evictions will automatically be sealed, as courts will make decisions on a case-by-case basis. “No-fault” eviction cases will be sealed immediately after an appeal period ends. 

Accessory dwelling units

Another aspect of the Affordable Homes Act, the Accessory Dwelling Units provision, goes into effect on Feb. 2, 2025.  

Accessory Dwelling Units are defined by the state as a “secondary residential living space located on the same lot of a single-family home.” That could include a backyard cottage, a basement converted into an apartment or new construction addition to an existing house.

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The new law allows for families to add a new rental apartment to their property by creating ADUs that are up to 900 square feet.   The governor’s office estimates this could lead to the construction of 8,000 to 10,000 ADUs and help lower housing costs in Massachusetts. 

Expanded child and family tax credit

Massachusetts families filing their taxes this spring will be able to take advantage of an expanded child and family tax from the tax cut package Healey signed into law in 2023. For tax year 2024 and going forward on a permanent basis, the credit per dependent child, disabled adult or senior will rise to $440.

The administration says this is the “most generous universal child and dependent tax credit in the country,” and estimates 565,000 Massachusetts families will benefit. 

Veterans benefits

A bill signed in August called the HERO Act will provide new benefits for Massachusetts veterans in 2025.

The disabled veteran annuity will increase to $1,250 in February 2025 and then become an annual payment of $2,500 starting in August 2025. Also in 2025, veterans who quality for the disabled veterans license plate can use those Purple Heart specialty license plates for a sales tax exemption. 

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Ballot questions

Massachusetts will also see impacts in 2025 from two ballot questions approved by voters back in November. 

Voters passed an initiative that gets rid of the MCAS graduation requirement for students in 2025 and beyond. As the State House News Service reports, that means school districts need to come up with new graduation standards by the end of the school year.

Another ballot question, which authorizes Auditor Diana DiZoglio to audit the state Legislature, will take effect Jan. 5. DiZoglio has been at odds with House and Senate leaders over the scope of the audit, and several groups are threatening a potential lawsuit early in the new year to force their cooperation with the auditor. 

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