Latest news with #DiZoglio
Boston Globe
16-04-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
‘Never had an auditor do something like this.' Diana DiZoglio fights, polarizes her fellow Democrats.
Advertisement Practically, DiZoglio's hard-charging approach has yet to realize the audit itself. Even potential litigation over whether the Legislature has to comply sits in limbo. Politically, however, the fight has defined her short tenure as state auditor, and elevated DiZoglio and the relatively obscure constitutional office she holds. The path she chose has led to an odd duality: She's both isolated among party leadership, and simultaneously able to claim wide support among the public. Some Democratic activists view her as a rising star and natural at retail politics; others chafe at her approach, likening her to an unnecessary bomb-thrower. In other words: DiZoglio may be the most polarizing political figure in the Massachusetts Democratic Party. 'To come out in public, take a stand and say, 'This is my mission,' it has a lot of people perplexed. This is a first. You've never had an auditor do something like this,' said Melvin Poindexter, a Massachusetts Democratic National Committee member. Advertisement In contrast to DiZoglio, the role of state auditor previously felt more akin to a low-profile detective, he said, a 'Columbo backstage making sure everybody is doing what they're supposed to do.' By statute, her office must audit hundreds of agencies and departments every three years, and the auditor's website touts her as the ' State Auditor Diana DiZoglio spoke during a rally of public employee unions in front of the State House in 2023. Pat Greenhouse/Globe Staff DiZoglio doesn't work in the wings. Last summer, when it appeared she might temporarily serve as acting governor, she When circumstances robbed her of the temporary role, DiZoglio released it anyway. She 'When I go to town committee meetings, people ask the same question: Is this all a prelude for something else?' Poindexter said. That includes whispers of an eventual run for governor, he said. 'That's one of the things people have tossed out there.' In a Globe interview, DiZoglio waved off waging a Democratic challenge to Healey, who next fall, without directly addressing whether she could one day vie for higher office. She also said she doesn't have 'any plans' yet for 2026, when she, too, would be up for reelection. 'It's not an election year, and I have no plans to run for governor. I am simply focused on the work of my office,' DiZoglio said. 'It's the biggest challenge of my life just to stay standing and continue to say, 'The people voted for this, and the law needs to be followed.'' Advertisement The feud between DiZoglio and the Legislature's leaders has laid bare an extraordinary, and long-running, friction between constitutional branches and the Democrats who control them. DiZoglio told lawmakers in January that she intended to use of nondisclosure agreements dating back years. Lawmakers have resisted every step of the way. House leaders hired an outside attorney, arguing an audit could violate the constitutional separation of powers, which allows the chambers to set their own rules. The Senate launched a subcommittee to craft its response, taking testimony last week from a panel of attorneys and experts, most of whom warned a legislative audit is unconstitutional and that DiZoglio has 'impairments' to her own independence given she is a former lawmaker who's spoken repeatedly about probing the bodies in which she once worked. DiZoglio declined to testify, and cast the hearing as a 'kangaroo court.' 'This committee, regardless of what the media likes to talk about, is not going after the auditor,' state Senator Cindy Friedman told reporters afterward about the chamber's efforts. 'We're going after the question.' State Auditor Diana DiZoglio held up a sign during last month's annual St. Patrick's Day Breakfast touting the support a ballot question, which gave her the authority to audit the Legislature, received at last November's ballot. Pat Greenhouse/Globe Staff DiZoglio's targets have varied. She publicly about the goal of her audit. She has openly criticized Attorney General Andrea Campbell for not answering her request to allow her to bring a lawsuit against the Legislature over her audit attempts. Advertisement The two Democrats have also after DiZoglio's office issued a letter calling a massive rezoning law advancing multi-family housing known as the MBTA Communities Act an ' a pointed rebuke from Campbell, who's DiZoglio wasted no time, either, punching back against even a one-time ally, state Representative Mike Connolly, a progressive Cambridge Democrat who supported DiZoglio's ballot question. In late February, he DiZoglio's decision to produce a 12 minutes later. 'Shame on ANY Democrat who tries to tie this 72% voter approved mandate, a democratically decided law, to Trump,' she That combative style makes some Democratic officials careful in openly prodding her, particularly given what she lacks in Beacon Hill allies she can wield in public support for the audit. 'Let's say you use my name in this article,' said one Democratic town committee chair, who spoke on the condition that their name not be used. 'And I say, 'Diana has been an incredible auditor. But I'd like to see her do better on the (MBTA) Communities Act.' I would be dead to her. It would be, I'm on the other side, and I'm the enemy.' DiZoglio swept into office in 2022 as part of a history-making class of women, who Advertisement That dynamic offered an opportunity to create a 'power bloc' of women working together at the highest reaches of state government, said Jacquetta Van Zandt, a Democratic strategist. 'Instead,' she said of DiZoglio, 'she's too busy tearing them down.' 'She's trying to make this office as powerful as the other constitutional offices. But I think her approach is wrong,' Van Zandt added. 'She's losing ground with people like me.' DiZoglio said she's never hidden her goals as auditor, or ways of accomplishing them. As a state representative in 2018, for example, she bucked leadership on the House floor, 'My platform was presented very clearly, and my style was always very apparent. And some people like my style and some people don't,' DiZoglio told the Globe. 'That doesn't change that 72 percent of voters in this commonwealth went out and voted for this initiative.' Indeed, her approach has drawn pushback but not shock in the legislative bodies she once served. 'This is her modus operandi. She's just a puncher,' said one Democratic lawmaker, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. 'This is her comfort zone.' It also hasn't changed what DiZoglio said can be an 'isolating' experience. She said she'll take photos with rank-and-file lawmakers at events, only to be asked not to post them online. Healey, Campbell, and others have publicly said they voted for the ballot question, but the constitutional questions have muted any full-fledged backing from other elected officials. Advertisement 'You feel very alone,' she said. Not entirely. Liz Bradt, Salem's Democratic city committee chair, said DiZoglio 'has inspired the people of Massachusetts' with the ballot question. Ray Gottwald, the longtime chair of Harwich's local Democratic committee, said DiZoglio spoke at a committee event on the Cape in February, arriving with citations to honor party activists. She works the room, remembers people's names, 'she calls people back,' said Gottwald, a former administrative manager in the auditor's office under Bump. DiZoglio is a regular at local committee meetings, speaking to activists in 'I'm 72 years old, and I've been involved in politics a long time. I've never met a more effective politician than Diana DiZoglio,' Gottwald said. 'I sincerely haven't.' Matt Stout can be reached at
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Constitutional experts claim legislative audit could create 'interference'
BOSTON (SHNS) – Constitutional experts invited by Senate Democrats to testify Wednesday said that allowing a voter-approved audit of their chambers to take place could lead to 'executive control' and 'indirect interference' in the legislative process. However, another legal expert testifying before a Senate's subcommittee on the new audit law said it is within the state auditor's legal rights to probe the Legislature, and argued that lawmakers should not preemptively dismiss the audit based on hypotheticals that the auditor's office would overstep its authority. 'The power to investigate the General Court could threaten to undermine its basic functioning,' said Lawrence Friedman, a constitutional law professor at New England Law Boston. Friedman is the author of a constitutional law casebook and edited Oxford University Press's series on American state constitutions. Friedman argued that an audit performed by the elected state auditor, a constitutional officer under the executive branch, could lead to 'indirect interference' with how the Legislature conducts itself. 'There lies the possibility that an unscrupulous auditor would use the opportunity to audit these functions as a wedge with which to subject the General Court to continuous audit requests, and should the Legislature fail to respond to the auditor's satisfaction, litigation over those requests, which ultimately could undermine the Legislature's ability to conduct its constitutionally assigned business on its own terms,' he said. Auditor Diana DiZoglio, who has made the legislative audit a top priority, was invited to testify at the hearing but declined, according to subcommittee Chair Sen. Cindy Friedman's office. 'The Senate is determined to malign the work of our office — at all costs — to block the public from being able to view the basic financial and contracting records we have requested,' DiZoglio said in a statement shared with the News Service. 'We did not participate in the Senate's unconstitutional show trial, purported to be a hearing. Senators are not judges and their actions in deciding whether or not they have to follow the law — by holding a kangaroo court on this matter — blatantly violates the Constitution which states that the power to interpret the law rests with the Judiciary — not with the Legislature. Accordingly, I call on the Legislature to immediately seek an SJC opinion on this matter.' One of the key issues in the debate is the scope of the audit that DiZoglio intends to perform. Lawmakers have said they need more information from DiZoglio about what she'd be looking for, and Attorney General Andrea Campbell has also said she needs more information about the scope, as DiZoglio has asked Campbell to enforce the law. Friedman, however, said even a more limited scope 'administrative audit,' as opposed to an audit examining 'core legislative functions,' would still challenge the separation of powers. Any investigation into communications and documents shared between legislators and staff could interfere with deliberative process privilege, he said. This privilege protects the internal communications and documents between legislators and staff during negotiations, aimed at allowing for more open debate outside of the public eye. Ray La Raja, a professor of political science at UMass Amherst who specializes in constitutional democracy, campaign finance and election laws, agreed with Friedman. 'The public needs to understand, and this is something very hard to convey, that a deliberative process sometimes requires people to speak frankly outside the public eye, and that's a tough one to explain… It will have a chilling effect when the executive can interfere and pose questions and reveal dialogue you're having,' La Raja said. Lawmakers have resisted complying with the audit law three months after it went into effect, largely under this unresolved separation of powers argument. La Raja told senators Wednesday that the voter law challenges 'legislative independence… exactly at a time when the premier legislative institution in America, Congress, has never been weaker.' President Donald Trump has signed over 100 executive orders during his first two months in office, prompting some watchdogs to raise alarms around executive overreach. 'With their power seized by an executive at dangerous levels at this time, state Legislatures should be the exemplars of legislative independence. They are the bulwarks against executive overreach, and principal guardians of representative democracy — the idea that government should be divided into three distinct, co-equal branches,' he said. However, the third speaker invited to testify Wednesday, retired attorney and advocate for legislative reform Jeanne Kempthorne, said the comparison of the Trump administration is not directly applicable. 'So, if Elon Musk were to propose to audit Congress and to say, 'Give me access to your data systems and my whiz kids are going to identify some issues for your improvement.' Would that be something you'd advise Congress to consent to? … and how is that different than this?' Sen. William Brownsberger asked Kempthorne. She responded that the auditor is directly elected by the voters. Kempthorne later added that the auditor serves in a different capacity than the president of the U.S. or governor of a state, and that though the auditor is under the executive branch, she does not report to the governor. 'Elon Musk is not the state auditor. Elon Musk has no authority, but it's clearly an intrusion on the functioning, the core functioning of Congress. It's also unduly burdensome,' she said. 'There can be many reasons why that is materially different from what's being presented here.' Kempthorne also argued to senators that voters gave DiZoglio the authority to investigate by a considerable 71% threshold of support, and that the Supreme Judicial Court formerly issued an opinion that the auditor's authority could be 'expanded by statute, so long as those enhancements do not impermissibly invade the province of other branches of government.' Given the strong public support for an audit, she said lawmakers could consent — as previous Legislatures have consented to audits — and if the auditor's office is unduly burdensome in their requests, harassing towards lawmakers, or asks for documents well beyond a reasonable scope, at that point the Legislature could seek an outside opinion from the courts or attorney general. 'The Legislature, I suggest, should be less focused on abstract legalistic theory and far more concerned about the crisis of public confidence in this institution,' Kempthorne said. 'The wise reaction to that crisis of confidence is not to throw more alligators in the moat and reinforce the walls of the citadel, but to allow the audit to proceed unhindered and to commit to far greater transparency.' She continued, 'A frontal challenge to the will of the people, in this historical context, is a mistake. It gravely misreads this moment in history when democratic institutions are under attack.' Sen. Paul Feeney asked her if lawmakers should knowingly cede their constitutional power to another branch in the name of preserving public good will. 'We need to answer for our colleagues in the Senate, if you take this action and, I think you use the word comply or volunteer for an audit, are you as a legislator who, just months ago, raised your hand to uphold the constitution of the commonwealth — are you knowingly violating that in the interest of political expediency?' Feeney asked. Kempthorne, a former State Ethics Commission member and former Common Cause board member, replied that she does not believe there is a risk of violating the constitution, based on the SJC opinion that said the powers of the state auditor could be constitutionally enhanced. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
24-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Disconnect leaves wheels spinning on legislative audit law
BOSTON (SHNS) – Attorney General Andrea Campbell accused Auditor Diana DiZoglio over the weekend of delaying a legal showdown in her longstanding quest to probe the Legislature. Campbell warned the pair would currently be 'laughed out of court' as uncertainty swirls over DiZoglio's proposed audit. 'There are constitutional limitations, so I need the auditor to tell me and my team what's the legal strategy, what's the legal basis, what's the scope of her audit, and then we bring that to court,' Campbell said in a TV interview that aired Sunday. 'But until we have that, if we go into court, we will be laughed out of court.' Campbell sought to 'correct the record' on WCVB's 'On The Record' as she reiterated why her office has yet to intervene and enforce the new voter law that gives DiZoglio the explicit authority to audit the Legislature. Top Beacon Hill Democrats have resisted DiZoglio's audit, citing constitutional concerns, while the auditor contends lawmakers are breaking the law that 72% of voters backed in November. 'I absolutely support all of those voters that voted in favor of this question, but we cannot go into court saying 72% voted in favor of it — and just look cute, and we look good going into court,' Campbell said. 'The judge, and any judge assigned to a case, wants to hear what's your legal argument and why should we give you some type of relief and why should we allow you to audit the Legislature? And we've asked the auditor to give us that information.' Campbell claimed the ongoing sparring stems partly from a flaw in the initiative petition process that might need to be remedied in the future. While Campbell's office certified the audit ballot question as ballot eligible, she said that review did not delve into whether the referendum could pose constitutional challenges. The AG, in a November 2023 letter to DiZoglio, had separately warned about 'constitutional limitations' if the question were to win voter approval. 'The ballot question, and this is just stupid by government from the past, we don't get to assess what's constitutional or not,' Campbell said on OTR. 'So people are actually voting on a ballot question, and it could be actually unconstitutional in some of its implementation, but we don't assess that when approving the ballot question. So clearly, we gotta change that or someone does.' DiZoglio fired back at Campbell's remarks on social media Monday morning. 'Actually @MassAGO you did weigh in on constitutionality when you approved Question 1 for the ballot,' DiZoglio said on X. 'That's why there's no ability to change your mind now that we, the voters, passed it. Thankfully it's now up to the courts, not you or the Legislature, to decide.' DiZoglio has repeatedly and unsuccessfully called for Campbell's support in the feud with House and Senate leaders, who did not hand over documents the auditor requested once the voter law took effect in January. Campbell says her office must follow a process to determine which branch of government to represent in court. 'We represent almost every state agency in the commonwealth. Anytime we go to court, we ask them for information,' Campbell said. 'The auditor, she's saying publicly she's giving us that information. She has not, and so I'm going to correct the record. We're happy to go into court where necessary, but we cannot go into court until she provides us the legal strategy, the information we need to create a case to then go into court.' DiZoglio told the News Service earlier this month that her office provided all the information the AG requested. DiZoglio said Campbell's office keeps coming back with more questions. A Senate subcommittee handling the voter law has also berated DiZoglio for not answering questions about the scope of her probe. The panel is holding a hearing next week as senators seek clarity on 'serious constitutional questions.' 'Recently, the Senate received the Auditor's latest letter in response to the Subcommittee's questions that, while containing several inaccurate accusations as to the motives of the Subcommittee, does not contain the substantive, clear, or consistent response the Senate requested,' chair Sen. Cindy Friedman said in a statement Friday. 'Therefore, the Subcommittee will gather facts and information from subject matter experts and hold a hearing on April 2, following the traditional process of legislative committees. The Subcommittee invited the Office of the State Auditor to participate, but they have declined.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Yahoo
Massachusetts audit reveals $2M state benefits fraud, SNAP leads
BOSTON (WWLP) – A report released by the Massachusetts state auditor shows over $2 million in state benefits were fraudulently funded, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). In a news release on Friday from State Auditor Diana DiZoglio, the report from the Bureau of Special Investigations (BSI) shows $2,041,723 in public benefits fraud from an audit between October 1, 2024 to December 31, 2024. Five Massachusetts offices were examined with a total of 971 cases. Of those cases, 153 had overpayments as identified fraud. Analysts speculate about how Medicaid cuts might be made SNAP benefits ranked as the highest in identified fraud with 60.7% of the cases. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP): $1,239,688 Medicaid: $536,800 Transitional Aid to Families with Dependent Children (TAFDC): $156,397 Department of Early Education and Care (EEC): $75,341 Emergency Aid to the Elderly, Disabled, and Children (EAEDC): $31,789 Personal Care Attendant (PCA): $1,706 The individual benefit programs are responsible for collection activities related to BSI cases which may involve settlement through civil recoupment or criminal prosecution. 'When public benefits fraud occurs, it impacts the lives of everyday people across the Commonwealth who depend on these programs and services to purchase food or access care,' said Auditor DiZoglio. 'That's why the work of our fraud examiners is critical to help ensure these programs and services are operating efficiently and reliably for everyone who needs them.' WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Politico
17-03-2025
- Politics
- Politico
Only kind of joking
SOUTHIE SMACKDOWN — Top pols gathered in Boston Sunday for state Sen. Nick Collins' annual beatdown/cringefest St. Patrick's Day political breakfast — and a chance to air their barely-simmering grievances. Here's what you missed: NOTE QUITE OFF TO THE RACES — With a deep bench of Democrats all with nowhere to go, one of the main themes of the morning was everyone's ambitions for higher office. Senate President Karen Spilka joked about state Auditor Diana DiZoglio challenging Gov. Maura Healey for governor (prompting DiZoglio to hold up a 'false' sign, (Trump joint-address style). Boston mayoral hopeful Josh Kraft said he'd gladly vote for Mayor Michelle Wu … for a Senate seat. And DiZoglio and Healey herself joked about the first-term governor's perceived national ambitions after recent interviews with The New York Times, Seth Meyers and political podcaster Molly Jong-Fast. TARGET PRACTICE — Wu and Kraft had one of their first face-to-face confrontations since the son of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft officially got in the race last month. Wu roasted Kraft for his family wealth and his father's connections to President Donald Trump. Kraft responded with some playful and pointed ribbing of his own, knocking Wu over bike lanes and the $650,000 tab for lawyers who helped her prep for her testimony before the House Oversight Committee in D.C. GRUDGE MATCH — DiZoglio brought down the house with remixed renditions of pop songs pushing for — what else — her audit of the state Legislature. 'It's me, Hi! I'm the problem, it's me. On your … dime — everybody agrees,' DiZoglio belted to the tune of Taylor Swift's 'Anti-Hero.' That's a line Spilka and House Speaker Ron Mariano can probably agree with. MISSING IN ACTION — Notably absent from the lineup: any members of the state's congressional delegation. Rep. Stephen Lynch, who represents South Boston, was on a congressional mission in Switzerland, Collins said during the event. GOOD MONDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Happy St. Patrick's Day. Another no-show at Sunday's breakfast: the Dunkin tracksuits Healey and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll first broke out at last year's reception. 'We are a nation of laws, not of DunKings or DunkQueens,' Healey said, paraphrasing a line from former President John Adams. 'So you won't be seeing me in the outfit ever again.' TODAY — Gov. Maura Healey and First Lady Joanna Lydgate visit Boston's Children Hospital to highlight the impact of cuts to National Institutes of Health funding at 2:40 p.m. Secretary of State Bill Galvin hosts a viewing of Revolutionary War-era artifacts that will be on display as part of the Revolution 250 Commonwealth Museum exhibit at 11 a.m. in Dorchester. State Auditor Diana DiZoglio speaks at the Massachusetts Municipal Auditors and Accountants Association Conference at 8:45 a.m. in Amherst. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu attends the South Boston Citizens Association's Evacuation Day event at 9:30 a.m. in South Boston and joins the East Boston Senior Center's St. Patrick's Day celebration at noon in East Boston. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Drop me a line: kgarrity@ DATELINE BEACON HILL SHELTER SHIFT — Gov. Maura Healey rolled out regulations Friday lowering the limit on the number of families in the state's emergency shelter system from 7,500 to 5,800 and following through on reforms laid out in the supplemental budget she signed last month. As of May 6, there were roughly 5,500 families in state-run shelters, according to a report from the state's housing office. As of Friday, those seeking shelter are required to consent to criminal background checks, and anyone convicted of a serious crime (murder, arson, kidnapping, rape) in the last three years will be ineligible for emergency shelter. Read the regulations. — 'Massachusetts is increasingly becoming the target of Republican ire,' by Chris Van Buskirk, Boston Herald: 'President Donald Trump's administration and Congressional Republicans are increasingly targeting Massachusetts over immigration policies and alleged antisemitism at institutions of higher education. From Boston Mayor Michelle Wu's testimony in Washington on the city's so-called 'sanctuary status' to investigations into local colleges and universities, federal lawmakers and officials in the Trump administration are setting their sights on the Bay State. The latest salvo from conservatives on immigration came in the form of Sen. Ted Cruz's threat to subpoena the Massachusetts Port Authority in an effort to produce information on the migrants that slept at Logan International Airport during the height of new arrivals.' — 'Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey rewards, punishes communities with MBTA zoning law,' by Lance Reynolds, Boston Herald: 'The Healey administration is rolling out $8.7 million to Massachusetts cities and towns complying with the controversial MBTA zoning law while withholding previously committed grant funds from resistant communities. Gov. Maura Healey has rewarded 10 municipalities following the state's orders by enacting zoning plans compliant with the MBTA Communities Act. At the same time, her administration continues to be taken to court. — 'Faculty unions seek more money for public colleges,' by Christian M. Wade, The Eagle-Tribune: 'A coalition of college faculty unions is calling on state leaders to carve out more money from the millionaires' tax to offset anticipated federal cuts to public higher education funding. Gov. Maura Healey wants to pump at least $2.5 billion into facilities at the University of Massachusetts, state universities and community colleges over the next decade to modernize campuses by building new labs, classrooms and training facilities that support fields like web development, robotics and advanced manufacturing.' — 'Mass. lawmakers don't have to follow the public records law. Few of them say that should change,' by Matt Stout and Anjali Huynh, The Boston Globe: 'Massachusetts state legislators say they are creating a new era of openness on Beacon Hill. They want to make more votes public, better explain the bills they're proposing, and make changes that promote, as one Democrat put it, 'extreme transparency.' Very few, however, say they are inclined to embrace another basic requirement: that the Legislature, like the vast majority of public bodies in Massachusetts and its legislative counterparts nationwide, provide records when the public asks for them.' THE RACE FOR CITY HALL — 'William Reichelt to seek fourth term as West Springfield mayor,' by Michael Ballway, The Springfield Republican: 'Closing in on a decade as mayor, William Reichelt says he still has work to do. 'I love this job,' he said when asked about his plans to run for reelection this year to a fourth term. 'It's been a blast these past 10 years. We've done a lot.' He pointed to infrastructure projects at various stages of planning — a new police station, a new Fausey School, extensions of bike lanes and multi-use paths — as well as steps he has championed to make West Springfield's roads safer, such as lane reductions and speed humps.' PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES — 'West-East Rail funding uncertain under Trump administration,' by Mitch Fink, Daily Hampshire Gazette: 'President Donald Trump's return to office has raised questions about the future of hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding Massachusetts secured for its West-East Rail plan with suggestions the administration may place a greater emphasis on birth and marriage rates and immigration policy.' DAY IN COURT — 'Judge orders U.S. Customs officials into court to answer for RI doctor's deportation,' by Tom Mooney, The Providence Journal: 'A federal judge has ordered U.S. Customs and Border officials to respond Monday at a hearing before him to allegations they 'willfully' disobeyed his order not to deport a Rhode Island doctor until he could review her case. On Friday U.S. District Judge Leo T. Sorokin, in Massachusetts, issued an order that Dr. Rasha Alawieh, 34, who had been detained at Logan Airport on Thursday after returning from visiting family in Lebanon, not be deported without giving the court 48 hours notice.' KEEPING UP WITH THE DELEGATION — ''Musk is killing veterans': Mass Rep. Moulton tells packed town hall,' by John L. Micek, MassLive: 'Tech billionaire Elon Musk is cutting a destructive path through the middle of the federal government, and the damage will take a deadly toll on the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton told constituents at a town hall on Saturday.' LISTEN — Rep. Jake Auchincloss joined Puck's 'Impolitic' podcast for lengthy conversation on the government shutdown situation, Trump's trade policies, House Speaker Mike Johnson's leadership and more. POLL POSITION — A poll conducted by the Republican-aligned firm Advantage Inc. for the Fiscal Alliance Foundation pitted Rep. Jake Auchincloss against Sen. Ed Markey in a hypothetical Senate matchup. The results? A statistical tie with lots of respondents still undecided. Of those surveyed, 25.25 percent said they would support Markey, while 24.5 backed Auchincloss, within the poll's margin of error of plus or minus 3.6 percentage points. But but but: The poll surveyed 800 likely Bay State voters, not just those likely to participate in a Democratic primary. It was conducted from March 6-12. FROM THE 413 — 'No one likes uncertainty: Here's how Trump's proposed tariffs on Canadian lumber will impact the Berkshires' housing market,' by Claire O'Callahan, The Berkshire Eagle. THE LOCAL ANGLE — ''To cultivate a culture of excellence': Saucier sworn in as Worcester police chief,' by Craig S. Semon, Telegram & Gazette. — 'Unanimous decision: Provincetown School Committee chooses Paul Teixeira as superintendent,' by Desiree Nikfardjam, Cape Cod Times. — 'Norfolk County sheriff in Washington to discuss funding for mental health programs,' by Imani Clement, WCVB. HEARD 'ROUND THE BUBBLAH HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to Northampton Mayor Gina-Louise Sciarra, former MassGOP Chair Jim Lyons, Daniel Bellow, Cam Charbonnier, Amber Jamanka and Jeremy Comeau.
