Tardy Tuesday Takedown 2/18/14…
…And the World:
We begin today in the Ukraine, where fresh eruptions of protests have turned violent, after efforts at reaching an amnesty agreement failed. At least eighteen have died so far in fresh clashes. Russia has released some funds from loans, which could buoy the embattled Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych.
India’s Parliament approved the creation of the 29th state in the World’s Largest Democracy.
Uganda’s President says he will sign an anti-gay bill Parliament has passed.
In Isarel, America is on the minds of many. Haaretz reports on a show featuring Isareli youth that is prompting some to question whether or not the country’s young people are too Americanized. Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, last seen being reasonable about something, suggests American Jews should immigrate to Israel to avoid being assimilated.
Western Australians may face a new vote for Senate after controversy over the ballot in September.
Matteo Renzi, the Mayor of Florence, Italy, has gotten the green light to form a government after deposing the former leader of his party, Enrico Letta, who resigned as Prime Minister last week, in a bid to upend the country’s political establishment.
The Feds:
The Congressional Budget Office released a report claiming that President Obama’s plant to raise the minimum wage would benefit more than 16 million workers, but also reduce employment by 500,000 jobs. The White House and its allies are pushing back against that 500,000 number, with some saying the net result would actually be 85K new jobs created.
In Maryland, a poll shows Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown way ahead of Attorney General Doug Gansler.
New Jersey Congressman Rush Holt, Congress’s resident rocket scientist, has announced his retirement after eight terms. The New York Times has more.
A California Appeals court has stayed a judge’s ruling that stopped financing for the Golden State’s High Speed rail program in its tracks.
The State of Things:
Per Massterlist, an Irish paper had a mistaken impression about the structure of Boston’s government putting City Council President Bill Linehan ahead of Mayor Marty Walsh. Since corrected, the story now says Linehan is ONE of the city’s top pols.
Eric Lesser, a former White House aide, formally joins the 1st Hampden & Hampshire fray. Take your pick from media sources, but we’ll go local. Masslive here and our report here. If you missed it, Tim Allen, Springfield’s Ward 7 City Councilor, jumped into the race on Friday. The whole gang was in Chicopee this past Saturday.
Hampden and Northampton get the shaft from the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, losing designation as communities affected by the casino. Longmeadow, however, received the designation today and now MGM must negotiate a deal with the town. But a pact between the two has proven elusive.
Holyoke’s City Council will ask the legislature to approve a few more liquor licenses in the hope of reviving some of the Paper City’s more moribund neighborhoods.
Mike Dobbs at The Reminder interviews Suzanne Sequin, running as an independent for Registrar of Probate, a seat for which Democrat Gale Candaras has also announced.
City Slickers:
The Springfield City Council Public Safety Committee meeting on the Police Commission ordinance scheduled for today was postponed to Thursaday. Also in the Valley Advocate’s link is a bit on SpfldPoliSatire, mentioned below.
Things like this do not help Mayor Domenic Sarno’s case against a commission.
Twitter Chatter:
Social Media in Springfield has long been embraced by the populace, but not so much by the body politic. Sure, we’ve been there, the TV & Printer reporters have been there, but it has not had a huge impact on the way debates on issues are formed locally. That may be slowly changing. This week we award the Tweet Prize to a new up & comer Twitter handle: @SpfldpoliSatire. Not all of their meme-based tweets are a home run and a few seem a little mean-spirited. Clearly they are advocates of the Police Commission, but they’ve got a few other tricks, too. Today we award the Tweet Prize to these new jokesters. Lots to pick from, but we’ll go for the Futurama pick that pokes Mayor Sarno.
— Springfield Satire (@SpfldpoliSatire) February 17, 2014