Thursday, June 21, 2007

Governor Raises Money; Globe Raises Fuss

The front page of today's Boston Globe has an overblown story about a Deval Patrick fundraiser, written by usual suspect Frank Phillips. Phillips admits that such fundraisers are "not uncommon during previous administrations" but they are front page news when they are held for Governor Patrick for some reason anyway. After all, Patrick promised as a candidate that he would never raise any money, and he never held any fundraisers while running for governor. Oh wait, he didn't do that? Well, then, it's front page news because the Globe is still pissed that Patrick chided them months ago for not "getting it".

Here's what I don't understand. Nary a day goes by without some quote in the Globe or the Herald from Michael Widmer of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation complaining about how the Governor's tax loophole plans are bad for business, and now all of a sudden the Globe is upset that Patrick has a "growing relationship" with state's business leaders. Well, which is it? Is he too cozy or too anti-business? Personally, I don't think he's either, but he certainly can't be both.

For more, read Mass. Liberal's take.

Update: Note that while a Frank Phillips article on the Governor's fundraising belongs on the front page with an enormous headline, a Phillips piece on House Speaker Sal DiMasi's fundrasing doesn't make the paper, but lands in the Globe's new "All Politics is Local" blog that no one's heard of. Why is one so important and the other not?