House Minority Leader’s Statement on Long Overdue Resignation of Probation Commissioner

BOSTON—House Minority Leader Bradley H. Jones, Jr. issued the following statement this evening after hearing Probation Commissioner John O’Brien finally handed in his resignation.

This evening’s resignation of Probation Commissioner John O’Brien is long overdue, however an appropriate way to usher in the New Year. It is my hope that this will be the first step in the long, difficult process of cleaning up what is known to be a very corrupt probation department.

The road to restoring the public’s confidence in state government will be a bumpy one but nonetheless this resignation is a critical step in making that effort become a reality.

Sales Tax Holiday a Win for Taxpayers

As you may recall, during the summer, the state held a sales tax holiday to help businesses and taxpayers alike. While many Democrats would have you believe, this relief came at too high of a cost to the state, we here at The Capitol View see it as a win-win. Not only were businesses able to generate some much needed traffic in their stores during the lull of summer, but taxpayers were able to save close to $20 million as well.

The taxpayers of Massachusetts face one of the highest tax burdens in the country. The least the state can do is provide one weekend where shoppers can make purchases without being heavily taxed. Additionally, businesses here in Massachusetts have a serious disadvantage when it comes to competition thanks in part to tax-free internet shopping, not to mention sales tax-free New Hampshire. In times of economic despair, we, as a legislative body must do everything we can to allow business to thrive and flourish while also enabling middle-class families to enjoy the lifestyle they work so hard for.

We say kudos to the sales tax holiday weekend and bravo! We fully intend to file this legislation when the new session convenes next week and look forward to providing a little more relief next summer.

Appreciation and Gratitude to Secretary Kelley

As many of you have probably heard by now, Governor Patrick has asked Veterans’ Services Secretary Thomas Kelley for his resignation. Although we understand Secretary Kelley serves at the pleasure of the Governor, we are disappointed and confused by this decision.

Secretary Kelley has not only served the Veterans of Massachusetts well, but he has served his country with honor for many, many years. A Vietnam Veteran and a Medal of Honor recipient, Secretary Kelley has unconditionally fought for his country and the Commonwealth.

We here at The Capitol View would like to thank him for his many years of service. He is a true American Patriot who deserves all the respect we can give him. His successor certainly has big shoes to fill.

Thoughts and Prayers with Family of Fallen Police Officer

As many of you know by now, this weekend, the life of a Woburn Police Officer was tragically cut short when a career criminal shot and killed the officer as a robbery attempt went terribly wrong.

Woburn police officer John Maguire served on the force for more than three decades and until this incident, it has been reported by several media outlets, that he had never fired his weapon before.

While there’s nothing we can say to console the family and friends of Office Maguire, we here at The Capitol View would like his loved ones to know that our thoughts and prayers are with them and they go through the very difficult process of grieving.

May God bless Office Maguire and his family.

From all of us here at The Capitol View, we'd like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas. We'd also like to extend our thoughts and prayers to all of our service men and women serving domestic and abroad who will not have the opportunity to celebrate the holidays with their loved ones.

House Minority Leader’s Statement on Massachusetts Losing a Congressional Seat

BOSTON—House Minority Leader Bradley H. Jones, Jr. issued the following statement today after hearing the Commonwealth will be losing a Congressional seat.

I am disappointed that despite growth in population in Massachusetts, our state is set to lose a congressional seat. One less Congressman means one less voice advocating on behalf of Bay State residents in Washington. While this loss has been long anticipated it is disappointing nevertheless. In addition, our modest growth compared to other areas of the country will likely mean we could lose out on significant federal funding over the next decade.

A Welcome, but Long Overdue Decision

In case you missed it, today the Patrick Administration announced that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts will, “sign an agreement to formally join Secure Communities, a federal program that screens all people who are arrested and fingerprinted to determine who is an illegal immigrant.” That’s according to a recent update on the Boston Globe’s website.

The program will allow law enforcement to report those people who are here illegally and get arrested to be reported to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE will then make the decision whether to detain and deport them.

While this is a welcome policy shift on the part of the Patrick Administration, it is indeed long overdue. Hopefully, Governor Patrick will follow through on this initiative.

Click here to read more on the subject.

Farewell to the Outgoing Members

Today, the nearly 40 outgoing members in the Massachusetts House of Representatives bid a final farewell on the floor of the Chamber. From the Republican Caucus, Representatives Lew Evangelidis, Bob Hargraves, Jeff Perry and Karyn Polito all said their goodbyes to their colleagues.

We wish all of the members, especially our Republican colleagues, the best of luck in the future. No matter what paths they take, we know the future is bright for all four of them.

Congratulations to the Patrick-Murray Administration for finally catching up!

Today’s Consensus Revenue Estimate Hearing got under way with what we here at The Capitol View would call an epiphany on the part of the Patrick-Murray Administration. According to the Associated Press, testifying in front of House and Senate Leaders, A & F Secretary Jay Gonzalez said Massachusetts will have to cut spending by up to $1.5 billion. Gee, you think?

For nearly three budget cycles, House and Senate Republicans have been saying we need to change the way we deliver services on a state and local level. In addition, we’ve been insisting that we need to budget in a more responsible and sustainable manner. Instead, those warnings have been ignored time and time again and our state’s situation has grown more and more dire. It was only a week after Governor Patrick was re-elected, that Secretary Gonzalez would even acknowledge there was a budgetary shortfall going into next fiscal year. Now, he seems to be taking a more urgent stand. We only wish he had jumped on the bandwagon months ago.

And the bad economic news just keeps on coming…

It looks like Scrooge is looking to wreak havoc this holiday season in terms of the Massachusetts economy. In case you missed it, TJX announced today that it would be cutting 4,400 jobs nationwide, many of which are right here in Massachusetts. While we here at The Capitol View don’t enjoy being the bearer of bad news, it is essential that the public understand the severity of the economic crisis and not be fooled by Governor Patrick, who would have the taxpayers believe it is Christmas everyday!

Since Governor Patrick was re-elected, thousands of jobs right here in the Bay State have been slashed. Though he’d like you to believe we are “on the mend and on the move,” recent news would suggest otherwise. In addition to today’s TJX announcement, Biogen, Genzyme and Raytheon – all big employers in Massachusetts – have cut their workforce significantly.

We tend to believe that this may be just the beginning of even worse news. It’s time to get serious about improving the Massachusetts business climate. Until that happens, we fear even more people will be handed pink slips.

"A Date Which Will Live in Infamy"

Sixty nine years ago today, the American Army and Navy base in Pearl Harbor was attacked by the Imperial Japanese Navy. More than 2,000 Americans were killed and another 1,000 were injured. Today, on December 7th, we remember and honor those military men and women who lost their lives on that Sunday morning many years ago.

On this Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, all of us here at The Capitol View want to offer our sincere gratitude and appreciation to the service men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice. We thank you and we honor you.

Woodlief: "Republicans rarin’ to go"

In case you missed it, the Boston Herald ran a great op-ed by Wayne Woodlief today who said the growing Republican minority in the house is, "rarin’ to go." Woodlief, who spoke with House Minority Leader Brad Jones and Representative-elect Dan Winslow for the piece, said the re-energized caucus is, "ready to push for some fresh proposals that will be hard for the Democrats to deny our tax-burdened citizens."

Be sure to click here to read the op-ed in its entirety.

Happy Hanukkah!

From all of us here at The Capitol View, we wish you and your family a very Happy Hanukkah!

Is This What Being “On the Mend and on the Move” Looks Like?

Governor Patrick has been fond of saying Massachusetts in “on the mend and on the move” lately but the recent layoff announcement from State Street Corp. is yet further proof that our Commonwealth still faces serious economic woes.

In the last month, several big companies including Genzyme, Biogen and Raytheon have announced significant reductions in their work force. Despite this news, Governor Patrick continues to take a victory lap around the state insisting Massachusetts is recovering faster than any other state in the nation. Tell that to the 400 workers who are being handed pink slips at State Street.

This Administration and the Democratic-controlled Legislature needs to get serious about getting Massachusetts residents back to work. We need to tackle this issue right out of the gate when the new legislative session convenes on January 5th.

One thing everyone can count on moving forward is that the Republican Caucus will be offering a number of proposals that will provide a better economic climate to foster job growth. Specifically, we will be working to provide a more stable tax policy, contain small business health care costs and incentivize opening a small business in Massachusetts.