Grievance Denied

Posted on March 31, 2008 by billmanzi

I have denied a grievance by the Methuen Police Patrolman’s Association which essentially demanded an extra day off on Christmas Eve, a benefit bestowed by contract on another bargaining unit. The MPPA demand would have cost Methuen taxpayers a chunk of money without a corresponding benefit defined in the generous contract that the City has bestowed upon them. The MPPA has taken my action to arbitration. Todays Eagle Tribune covered the story.
Read the Tribune story here.

Posted in Methuen | 2 Comments

Rep. Barbara L’Italien Roasts Manzi in Song

Posted on March 30, 2008 by billmanzi

State Rep. Barbara L’Italien really takes me over the coals with song. Unlike Rep. Linda Dean Campbell Rep. L’Italien can really sing.

Posted in Methuen | Leave a comment

Clinton: In to the Convention

Posted on March 30, 2008 by billmanzi

Senator Hillary Clinton, responding to some calls for her withdrawal, stated that she is in the race until the convention, and renewed her call for a resolution to the issue of seating the Michigan and Florida delegations. From the Washington Post:

“I know there are some people who want to shut this down and I think they are wrong,” Clinton said in an interview during a campaign stop here Saturday. “I have no intention of stopping until we finish what we started and until we see what happens in the next 10 contests and until we resolve Florida and Michigan. And if we don’t resolve it, we’ll resolve it at the convention — that’s what credentials committees are for.

“We cannot go forward until Florida and Michigan are taken care of, otherwise the eventual nominee will not have the legitimacy that I think will haunt us,” said the senator from New York. “I can imagine the ads the Republican Party and John McCain will run if we don’t figure out how we can count the votes in Michigan and Florida.”

The reference to the credential committee should be considered a Clinton call to arms on the Michigan and Florida issue. It means to me that she is intent on bringing this fight to the convention floor, and is not going to allow the Obama political effort to squash re-vote efforts in both states to go unchallenged. It could also create an ugly situation at the convention. President Bill Clinton weighed in with an email:

Bill Clinton sent out an e-mail, titled “Not big on quitting,” on Saturday that reminded supporters that his wife is behind in the popular vote by less than one percentage point and that she trails by 130 delegates.

“With the race this close, it sure doesn’t make sense to me that she’d leave now — does it make sense to you?” the former president’s e-mail read.

Clinton has dismissed concerns by some in the Party that the protracted struggle will hurt the Democratic nominee in November:

In the interview, Hillary Clinton brushed aside concerns from party leaders that the campaign will hurt the party’s chances against McCain, who launched his first general-election television ad last week and who has spent the month raising money and attacking the Democrats.

“General elections start where there is a nominee or a putative nominee,” Clinton said. “They think they have theirs, we don’t yet have ours. . . . We have frozen this election.”

Asked whether Obama could win in November, Clinton deflected the question. “I’m saying I have a better chance,” she said. “You cannot as a Democrat win the White House without a very big women’s vote. What I believe is that women will turn out for me.”

The battle is continuing, and a string of Clinton victories in the upcoming April primaries will only fuel the continuing fight. Do the Obama surrogates calling for Clinton’s withdrawal have a point? Or is the call for a Clinton withdrawal simply part of the Obama playbook?

Posted in National News | 2 Comments

Mayor Mike Sullivan at Luncheon

Posted on March 29, 2008 by billmanzi

Lawrence Mayor Micharl Sullivan makes fun of me during the St Patrick’s day lunch in Methuen. Mike looks pretty heavy to me.

Posted in Methuen | Leave a comment

St Patrick’s Day Fun Video Clips

Posted on March 29, 2008 by billmanzi

I will post some of the video clips from our St Patrick’s day luncheon. This first one features Colie Ryan of the Claddagh Pub telling a couple of jokes and making fun of Mike Sullivan and I.

Posted in Methuen | Leave a comment

Methuen Girls Basketball Video 3

Posted on March 29, 2008 by billmanzi

The third installment of the Methuen Girls Basketball teams recognition at the Methuen School Committee.

Posted in Methuen | Leave a comment

Methuen Girls Basketball Video 2

Posted on March 29, 2008 by billmanzi

Here is the second video from the three video clips I am posting.

Posted in Methuen | Leave a comment

Methuen Girls Recognized by School Committee

Posted on March 29, 2008 by billmanzi

I have placed the first of three videos here from the School Committee recognition of the Methuen Girls Basketball team. The second and third videos will have some clips from their trip to Biloxi to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Posted in Methuen | Leave a comment

Sacred Cows Falling-Police Details under Scrutiny

Posted on March 28, 2008 by billmanzi

Today’s Globe has a story by Matt Viser detailing the united front being put on by Governor Deval Patrick, Senate President Therese Murray, Speaker Sal Dimasi, and a host of legislators (including Methuen Senator and Transportation Chair Steve Baddour)for reform of the system regulating police details in Massachusetts. While the details have not been presented as of yet it is clear that with all of the legislative leadership together with the governor a bill will likely be successful. From the Globe:

Senate President Therese Murray, joined by Governor Deval Patrick and House Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi at a Beacon Hill press conference, said they had agreed to come up with new regulations that will encourage state and municipal officials to rely on civilians in bright vests with flags, instead of officers, to direct traffic and monitor some low-risk construction sites.

They offered few specifics about how the rules would work, but said they would focus initially on dead-end streets and side roads. The change would be modest, saving only about $5 million a year. The rules, which would apply to road construction and utility-work sites alike, could be in place in a matter of months.

The State Police Association responded as you might expect:

“The public safety that we offer is leaps and bounds beyond what a flagman could offer,” said Rick Brown, president of the State Police Association of Massachusetts. “I don’t know how you put a flagman out there without endangering the public.”

The coming proposal will rate streets, and concentrate the effort on allowing flagmen on dead end or lightly traveled ways. The State leadership also announced crackdowns in other areas.

The leaders, flanked by a dozen or so legislators, also announced plans to streamline construction projects, crack down on retirement and pension plans at the MBTA, and force the Turnpike Authority to look into adopting electronic toll systems and get rid of workers. But the police detail changes are expected to be the most controversial. The proposal would save the state $100 million over 20 years, according to Murray’s office, or $5 million annually.

Municipalities would also be able to save money:

Municipalities would also save between $37 million and $67 million a year by replacing most police details with less expensive flaggers, according to a 2004 study by the Beacon Hill Institute, a nonprofit economics study group at Suffolk University.

“The very fact that there’s movement in this direction represents a very important shift,” said David Tuerck, executive director of the Beacon Hill Institute. “It’s very promising.”

With all levels of government in fiscal crisis you can expect more “sacred cow” legislation to be filed. For those believing that it is business as usual get ready. There is more medicine coming.

Read the Globe story at this link.

Posted in State News | 5 Comments

Like a Phoenix- Al Gore on Ballot Two

Posted on March 27, 2008 by billmanzi

With both major candidates locked in a political death struggle, and with the possibility of a first ballot deadlock could Al Gore emerge as a compromise candidate on ballot two at the convention? While the idea (as far as I can tell) has not been raised by party officials it certainly is being written and talked about by the media and some bloggers. From Eleanor Clift on the Newsweek blog “stumper”:

Al Gore on the second ballot: A scenario that a few weeks ago seemed preposterous is beginning to look plausible to some nervous Democrats looking for a way out of the deadlock between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. It goes like this: We love them both, but neither is a sure bet when it comes to electability. It’s not about gender and race, each has more mundane vulnerabilities. Hillary’s negatives will drive white men to John McCain; Obama’s inexperience will require a gut check on the part of voters. What if the super delegates decide not to decide, denying either candidate the requisite number of delegates to secure the party’s nomination. Democrats want to win. The new rallying cry: Gore on the second ballot.

Maybe a little farfetched and I would concede the likelihood of some yearning for a reversal of the outrage of 2000, but lets face it; Gore would be a tough candidate for the Republicans to beat, especially with Obama as the V.P. Run Al Run! (I have just a little of that yearning inside myself. Sorry!)

Posted in National News | 7 Comments