Comments by "J Hacksb" (@jhacksb1399) on "GBH News"
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It is good that Gov. Maura Healey sent a general to deal with the illegal immigration crisis down at the southern border.
It is only too bad she did not send an army with him.
But the mission of Lt. General L. Scott Rice, Healey’s Emergency Assistance director, and his team was not to stem or stop the flow of illegal immigrants into the country.
Their goal was to keep them out of Massachusetts.
Otherwise, General Rice, former head of the Massachusetts National Guard, could have taken some troops of the 8,500 strong Massachusetts National Guard with him to help Texas guard the border as some other states have.
Healey did call out 250 members of the Massachusetts National Guard a year ago to deal with the immigration crisis. But they were ordered to help the migrants already here at overcrowded hotels and shelters, not to keep they away.
And those states that sent National Guard troops to help Texas Gov. Greg Abbott guard the border — like Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Oklahoma, Utah, North Dakota and others — are not even close to Massachusetts when it comes to doling out welfare benefits to illegal immigrants.
Any migrant with half a brain would certainly choose Boston over Boise. You would too, considering the generous perks Massachusetts provides. Massachusetts is a magnet.
It is now costing taxpayers $1 billion a year to care for illegal immigrants through its emergency shelter system, a system that is now overloaded.
Apparently, Healey has had enough, even though she walks a fine line between supporting President Joe Biden and his open borders policy while dealing with the overflow that has consumed her time and agenda.
Illegal immigrants along with immigrant crime have become a major issue across the country, including in Massachusetts.
So far, Healey’s answer has been to blame Congress or former President Donald Trump, the man who closed the border, while praising Joe Biden, the man who opened it.
And now she wants to persuade illegal immigrants not to come to Massachusetts simply by asking them to stay away rather than enforcing existing laws or changing rules and regulations that provide generous benefits to anyone who walk in the front door.
Healey said it was important to tell the “folks” on the ground “that we have reached our capacity here.”
That will not work because progressives bill Massachusetts as a “Right to Shelter” state that must provide aid to the homeless and the needy. That is only partly true.
Under the so called Right to Shelter law, which is the 1983 Chapter 450 “Act Further Regulating Assistance to Certain Needy Persons,” the law specifically refers to actual residents of the state and not immigrants seeking benefits.
It states that “any such person who enters the Commonwealth solely for the purposes of obtaining benefits under this chapter shall not be considered a resident.”
It would take a stronger governor than Maura Healey to enforce that law when she can barely remove the “folks” — illegal immigrants — from sleeping at Logan Airport. When she does, others arrive.
In lieu of troops, General Rice was accompanied by a five-member team of state bureaucrats who were charged with telling the illegal immigrant world that there was no longer room for them in Massachusetts.
To that end they visited migrant shelters in Brownsville, San Antonio, McAllen and Hidalgo which, according to the Healey administration, are the most common points of entry for families who later come to Massachusetts.
Their message was like a play on the old saying, “You don’t have to go home, but you can’t come here.”
Or they could have rewritten Dave Loggins’’ famous “Please Come to Boston” to “Please Don’t Come to Boston.”
General Rice said it was important that immigrants were told about the lack of shelter space in Massachusetts “so that families can plan accordingly to make sure they have a safe place to go” — as long as it isn’t here.
Republicans jumped ugly over the trip. MassGOP Chair Amy Carnevale called it “a publicity stunt,” which it probably was.
And nobody bought it.
Peter Lucas is a veteran political reporter. Email him at: peter.lucas@bostonherald.com
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CRIME WATCH
Leah Foley only cop on the beat
AG Campbell needs to do her job
mainTania03_1092906046.jpg
Disgraced Boston City Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson, state Rep. Chris Flanagan and former State Police Sgt. Gary Cederquist all have been hauled into federal court in various degrees of alleged and admitted corruption. HERALD FILE PHOTOS
A state cop, a state rep and a Boston city councilor — all bagged at the same time by U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Leah Foley.
It was a trifecta.
The cop is former State Police Sgt. Gary Cederquist who last week was found guilty on federal charges in selling Commercial Driver’s Licenses to unqualified applicants.
Cederquist “chose bribery and extortion over his oath to protect the community over which he was sworn to serve,” Foley said.
The state rep is Chris Flanagan of Cape Cod, who was indicted on five counts of wire fraud and falsification for allegedly defrauding a home builders association where he once worked.
Foley said he used the money to bankroll his campaign and for personal use. She said it was “an appalling breach of public trust.”
“No one is entitled to power by way of fraud, and the people of Massachusetts deserve better,” she said.
And the councilor is Boston City Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson, the first Muslim elected to the council, who last week pleaded guilty to wire fraud and theft. She has yet to resign.
Fernandes, who migrated to Boston from Cape Verde as a child, was accused of a scheme in which she gave a bonus to a staffer who then allegedly kicked back $7,000.
Pulling no punches, Foley said, “Her guilty plea today says what she refuses to admit in her media interviews: she broke the law, lied to the public, and used her office for her own personal gain. Ms. Fernandes Anderson leaves a legacy not of a selfless trailblazer, but one of fraud, greed and deceit.”
Foley, of course, could have said the same things about other public officials who have gone astray since they all seem to have something in common.
What these three cases illustrate is that all these alleged and confirmed transgressions of state law could have been investigated and prosecuted by Attorney General Andrea Campbell, the state’s “chief law enforcement officer.” But they were not.
Campbell, like Gov. Maura Healey before her, is apparently too busy suing President Donald Trump to pay much attention to crime or political corruption taking place under her very nose. Nor is there any sign of cooperation between Campbell and Foley.
Massachusetts is, in effect, a sanctuary state that views cooperation with the federal government on criminal matters like dealing with Russia.
Foley, nevertheless, is racking up an impressive record dealing with crime in Massachusetts. One week of criminal actions from her office reads like a drug and sex police blotter from some South American hellhole. For instance:
Monday, April 28: Connecticut man sentenced to 10 years on narcotics charges. Dominican national arrested for child pornography. Registered Holyoke sex offender charged with child pornography. Boston man pleaded guilty to possession of a machinegun.
Tuesday, April 29: Four illegal immigrants from Brazil, Mexico, Honduras and Guatemala all arrested for illegal reentry into the U.S. Saugus man sentenced to 15 years for drug conspiracy.
Wednesday, April 30: A Dominican national living in Lawrence sentenced to three years in prison for fentanyl trafficking. Two other Dominicans living in Chelsea and Haverhill charged with distributing fentanyl and oxycodone. In one case, a 2-year-old child tested positive for fentanyl and cocaine.
Thursday, May 1: Boston man, a gun-carrying felon, sentenced to 57 months in prison under the RICO statute for distributing cocaine. An Ecuadorian man residing in Lawrence indicted for reentering the U.S. after being deported,
Friday, May 2: An assistant admission director for Emmanuel College arrested for soliciting an underage college applicant for commercial sex. Revere man pleaded guilty for laundering hundreds of thousands of dollars in drug money for Central and South American drug dealers. Four Boston men arrested or pleaded guilty to child pornography charges.
Saturday, May 3: Foley (maybe) took a well-deserved day off.
At least one cop is on the beat.
Veteran political reporter Peter Lucas can be reached at: peter.lucas@bostonherald.com.
Boston Herald. /10/2025
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I don’t understand why Healey’s gay and liberal friends from Cambridge, Somerville, Arlington, Wellesley, Newton, Dover, Lexington Concord, Sudbury, Roslindale, Provincetown, Needham, Nantucket, Martha’s Vineyard, and Northampton don’t help her out with the illegal alien housing problem. They certainly have numerous bedrooms and bathrooms. Even Michelle and Barry could take in two or three pregnant illegal biological women and their children!
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By Jon Fetherston
When Gov. Maura Healey told MSNBC she would do “everything in her playbook” to protect known rapists and criminals in migrant shelters — her so-called “Healey Hotels” — I realized it was time to speak out. For far too long, the public has been kept in the dark about the horrors occurring under her poorly managed shelter program.
As a former shelter director with years of experience working and volunteering in multiple shelters, I have seen the violence, chaos, and suffering that have become all too common. Incidents of rape, violence, sex trafficking, domestic abuse, fraud, and property destruction are not isolated — they are systemic.
I personally raised these issues with Gov. Healey in a face-to-face meeting, explaining the dire conditions and dangers in the shelters. She assured me I could follow up with her office. I did — multiple times. Yet, to this day, despite my efforts and the issue becoming a national story, there has been no response.
Recently, 3,000 pages of incident reports were released through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. These reports confirm what I have been warning about for months. The governor has downplayed these revelations, calling them “isolated incidents.” But how can 3,000 pages of documented crimes, including the rape of children, be considered isolated? How many crimes, assaults, and destroyed lives are acceptable to this administration?
In her recent interview with Jon Keller of WBZ TV, Gov. Healey claimed Massachusetts is not a sanctuary state. Yet her actions tell a different story. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu’s decision to ignore ICE detainers, combined with the crimes being committed in shelters, paints a clear picture of a state prioritizing lawlessness over safety. Of the three rapes I personally reported from the shelters, no arrests have been made. The lack of accountability is staggering.
The failures of this administration extend far beyond rhetoric.
Gov. Healey’s refusal to address these issues has put every woman and child in Massachusetts at risk. If her staff has failed to inform her of the severity of the problem, she must hold them accountable. If she is aware of these dangers and has chosen inaction, the responsibility lies with her — and she must resign.
The primary duty of any elected official, especially a governor, is to protect the public. That duty becomes even more urgent when it comes to vulnerable women and children. On this most fundamental obligation, Gov. Healey has failed.
Massachusetts deserves leadership that prioritizes safety, transparency, and accountability. It is time for Gov. Healey to step aside. The people of this state — and the victims her policies have failed to protect — deserve better.
A call to action for anyone reading this. If you believe in holding leaders accountable and ensuring the safety of all Massachusetts residents, contact your local representative along with public safety officials and demand action. Boston Herald - 1/14/2025
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EDITORIAL
Do the math, Maura! Fix the budget
We’ve been saying this for years: Massachusetts spends like a giddy teenager with a new credit card. Sorry, kids, but that’s how it feels.
Now, Gov. Maura Healey says she plans to cut $375 million in spending. Why didn’t she see that giant snowball coming months ago?
Revenue projections must now be downgraded by $1 billion. So, what happened to being fiscally conservative?
“Our foundation is really strong here in the state,” Healey told the Herald in an end-of-year interview. It’s all about the messaging, not reality. But taxpayers need leadership, not spin.
The millionaire’s tax, a budget rising past the rate of inflation, the migrant crisis, overtime jumping 25% for those state employees pulling down $100,000 or more in bonus pay, and an underwhelming tax relief package are causing cracks in the state economy.
Healey’s philosophy is tied too closely with the state Legislature, which is fighting off Auditor Diana DiZoglio’s attempt to open state lawmakers’ books.
As we stated in this space last week, Massachusetts was a top 10 state for outbound residents, according to United Van Lines’ 47th annual National Movers Study. Among those making an exit from Massachusetts, 28.4% moved because of their job, 19.2% for family considerations, 18% for retirement, 16% for lifestyle, and less than 3% each for health or cost reasons, according to the study.
It all points to what Herald columnist Peter Lucas wrote this weekend: inflation can be tracked based on the cost of cucumbers. That’s a relatively cheap item that, when it fluctuates, can take a bite out of your budget. Maybe not for lawmakers, but for the rest of us who need to balance household budgets, any hike hurts.
That’s exactly what Healey and the House and Senate are striking out on. Any Massachusetts governor must rein in spending by lawmakers who only want to score points with constituents so they can keep in office. They’ll spend more energy trying to banish former President Donald Trump from the Super Tuesday ballot in March — when a Republican presidential candidate hasn’t been a threat — than cracking down on unnecessary spending.
Just look at the state payroll! (As the Herald has now done for 17 years.) It has more fat than bacon. How can Healey sit back and say cuts need to be made while overseeing runaway overtime?
Comptroller data shows 276 state troopers, MBTA workers, nurses, prison guards, and a social worker all pocketed $100,000 or more in OT last year — a double-digit jump year-over-year. That’s obscene. Yet it happens every year.
The reaction on Beacon Hill was muted, but it is a glaring example of greediness with taxpayers picking up that tab. That’s what’s wrong with state government. From the top down our government is not run like a business. It’s run like a club. An exclusive club where the money flows and the taxpayers can like it or leave.
Massachusetts is a great state, from the Berkshires to the tip of Cape Cod. Knowing that many are bolting to New Hampshire is not good news. It’s sad news.
Maura Healey should take a stand today against runaway spending and be the prudent governor the Bay State needs before we’re back again with more cuts and possibly services taken away that some of us actually enjoy.
— Boston Herald editorial staff
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