Letters to the Editor

Thank You, Julia Wallerce

Dear Editor,

I’m writing to publicly acknowledge the work that Chair Julia Wallerce and all members of the Transportation Advisory Committee (TAC) have done to improve the MBTA busing service here in Winthrop.  Under Julia’s leadership since 2016, Winthrop residents are now able to use their Charlie Cards on the 712 and 713 buses transferring at Orient Heights to the Blue Line or other “T” buses. 

In addition, bus stop signs marking the route (712; 713) and destination have recently been created.  If needed, sidewalks or curb extensions may take place.  Julia explained that the TAC has recently been disbanded.  Julia Wallerce will be joining the Winthrop Planning Board, but remaining TAC members will merge with the Traffic Safety Advisory Committee (TSAC).  They will “continue to advocate for shelters, seating, maps, and other amenities” to make riding the Winthrop buses a good experience, Wallerce indicated.

Thank you, Julia Wallerce and the TAC for all the fine work you’ve done over the past 4 years.  Special thanks to Julia, who is a knowledgeable and dedicated community leader who sets out to make “vision” a reality.

Donna Segreti Reilly

Support Ed Markey

Dear Editor,

 Massachusetts is facing a critical political opportunity in which to strengthen its negotiating power in Washington regarding a host of enormously important public policy issues, such as the Green New Deal which Ed Markey co-authored along with his legislative colleague and strong supporter Representative Alexandria Occasio-Cortez, assuring full health care for all Americans, and continuing to lead the fight for the economic and racial  justice agendas.

Ed Markey, unlike his opponent, fully supports a Manhattan-type project to cope with the intense Alzheimer’s disease tragedy which currently affects nearly six million Americans, predicted to increase to seven million by 2025.

I Believe the attached Boston Globe endorsement stated the case for Ed’s re-election in many ways, stressing the real value of his Senate seniority in achieving his true progressive agenda which would be lost to the state with a rookie candidate.

I urge you to study the Boston Globe editorial endorsement is support of Ed Markey’s re-election, and cast your vote for Ed’s re-election.

Thanks,

John

Ed Markey for U.S. Senate

I am supporting Ed Markey for re-election to the U. S. Senate because he has been a leader in Washington and Massachusetts since his first election to Congress in 1976.

Ed Markey first made a name for himself as a young State Representative from Malden when he stood up to the state House leadership in a fight for critical judicial reform and won.  For his efforts, he was removed from the Judiciary Committee and his desk was put out into the hallway.

In the campaign for Congress, Ed was one of a dozen candidates in the Democratic Primary, and he had one of the most memorable TV advertisements in our state’s political history with the campaign slogan, “The bosses can tell me where to sit, but no one tells me where to stand.”  I was fortunate to work on his campaign as the issues coordinator and when Ed won, I was hired as a staff assistant in his District Office, and served for three years.

Ed Markey has always been a leader in the Congress and Senate, often ahead of his colleagues, on issues such as climate change, clean energy, safeguarding privacy, nuclear non-proliferation, investor protection or preserving an open Internet. With the current pandemic crisis, Markey has been fighting for legislation to aid vulnerable families who have lost jobs, businesses and health insurance.  He is at his best when he challenges the status quo to think bigger in this moment rather than settle for incremental progress.

This year, Ed Markey is being challenged for re-election by Representative Joseph P. Kennedy III, who is a good man and also cares about progressive causes.  He has that Kennedy name and the charisma that goes with it, but he has not made a compelling case for his candidacy.

The job of a United States Senator from Massachusetts is to be a leader on important issues in Washington and a fighter for the people in our home state.  Let’s look at the records of Markey and Kennedy since 2013 when Kennedy first entered Congress. According to a July article in The Nation, Kennedy has sponsored 60 pieces of legislation while Markey has sponsored 505 – more than eight times as many.  GovTrack.us, an independent open government transparency website has statistics on the records for Markey and Kennedy during the 115th Congress (2017 and 2018).  Compared to all Senators, Markey was a leader in introducing and cosponsoring bills, and in supporting government transparency.  Kennedy, on the other hand, compared to the other eight Members of Congress from Massachusetts, filed few bills on his own, and was not a leader on government transparency.

Ed Markey has also earned the wide support of leaders across the state because he does not forget where he comes from.  He has been endorsed by Senator Elizabeth Warren and five of the eight other members of the Massachusetts Congressional Delegation.  He has been endorsed by Boston Mayor Marty Walsh and twenty-four other mayors in the Commonwealth.  He has been endorsed by Speaker of the House Robert DeLeo and 100 other State Representatives, and Senate President Karen Spilka and 23 other State Senators.

Markey has the support of labor unions like the Massachusetts Association of Teachers, the Communication Workers of America, SEIU, UNITE HERE, and AFSCME.  He has the support of progressive groups on the environment, social justice and a woman’s right to choose such as the Sierra Club, the League of Conservation Voters, the Coalition for Social Justice, Planned Parenthood and NARAL Pro-Choice.

Ed Markey has not merely been a progressive vote.  He has been an extraordinary leader.  He has always taken on big special interests, and he has won.  In these urgent times, we need Ed Markey as our U.S. Senator.

Bill Schmidt

Kennedy for Massachusetts

As the Sept. 1st primary approaches and vote by mail is underway, there is a very important statewide race that has been high-profile and has featured many ads: The race for United States Senate. Let me start by saying that Ed Markey is a good man and has a dedicated and hardworking staff, however I believe that in this moment in time we cannot re-elect a candidate who has been a product of Washington since Jimmy Carter was our nation’s President.

Joe Kennedy is a once in a generation inspirational candidate. He is a Democrat with a backbone that isn’t afraid to say, “Black Lives Matter.” He is a supporter of Medicare For All, abolishing the electoral college, and in favor of humane immigration policies. He believes that weapons of war have no place on our streets, and he will continue to stand up to the NRA.

According to a recent Boston Globe article in 2019, Senator Markey spent more nights out of Massachusetts than the entire Massachusetts Delegation including Senator Warren who was actively running for President. He even missed over 60% of Senate votes this year. Joe has been present in our community during this campaign. If elected he will continue to show up in his role as a Senator and not just as candidate during campaign season.

Joe has secured key endorsements such as the late Civil Rights icon Congressman John Lewis, and our own State Senator Joe Boncore, and Suffolk County Sheriff Steve Tompkins. Congressman Kennedy has also received endorsements from many labor organizations including IBEW 103, IBEW 2222, Teamsters Local 25, and the Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts.

In closing like Congressman Kennedy’s grandfather Bobby and his two uncles; President Kennedy, and Senator Kennedy before him he is best suited to meet this moment in time and inspire the next generation of leaders. Washington is broken and we cannot vote for the same elected officials year after year. As Albert Einstein once said, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.”

Tino Capobianco

Precinct 3

Vote for Ed Markey

Dear Editor,

I urge the voters of Winthrop to support the reelection of our longtime friend Senator Ed Markey in the Sept. 1 Democratic primary. Ed’s record as our Congressman and Senator is outstanding. He has been in the forefront on such matters as internet access, climate change and Alzheimer’s research funding to name just a few. Meanwhile his opponent has yet to offer a coherent rationale for his candidacy. After many months we still don’t know why he is running against Ed Markey.

Beyond his work on national issues, the help Ed Markey has continually provided to Winthrop is a compelling reason for us to reelect him.  From the outset of his tenure as a Congressman and continuing as Senator, Ed made it a priority to work with and on behalf with local governments. This has been especially true over and over in Winthrop. Whenever we needed support he has been there for us. For a list of his recent assistance to Winthrop go to Edmarkey.com and open the Markey Map.

A small portion of Ed Markey’s history with Winthrop over the years include:

At the height of the 1978 blizzard Ed was the first to provide us with assistance. After the storm he was of great help with our federal disaster relief.

When the federal property at Fort Dawes became surplus, Ed Markey succeeded in getting the land conveyed to the town for Hannaford Park.

Ed was responsible for the congressional appropriation to fund the Winthrop ferry.

Please vote to return to the Senate a proven leader and even greater friend to Winthrop. Please vote for Ed Markey either by mail early in person or at the polls on September 1.

Tom Reilly

We Support Markey

Dear Editor:

We are writing to express our enthusiastic support for Senator Ed Markey. Simply stated, Ed is one of the most effective legislators in Washington DC. His knack for passing progressive legislation even while Congress is completely at an impasse is extraordinary. Ed’s vision and in-depth knowledge of the inner workings of our Capitol have earned him another term in the Senate.

In while in College, we were selected as interns in Markey’s Washington D.C. office. We supported the Congressman’s staff on the Affordable Care Act, the nation’s response to the BP oil spill, as well as the recovery and reinvestment act which made possible long-term projects in Winthrop such as the improvements to the landing and the new pier.

As Ed worked on these projects he would frequently talk with leaders in Winthrop about the impact that these improvements would have in their communities. Each morning we would read the local newspapers, including the Winthrop Transcript and prepare daily briefings for the staff about what was happening back home.

We both recall him telling stories about the many 30+ year relationships he had with so many members of our community. He knew when dads became grandparents, he would ask for phone numbers when loved ones died. He took these people and their stories with him every day in Congress.

Aside from his work on local issues he has proven to be an amazingly effective legislator throughout his career. His record on the environment is well documented, but beyond that he has many issues he has led and made progress on such as, internet freedom, medical research for cystic fibrosis and Alzheimer’s, consumer protection, homeland security to name a few.

While Ed is widely regarded as one of the most progressive members of Congress, when Republicans took over the House of Representatives, Ed shifted gears and worked on privacy legislation with one of the most conservative members of Congress on sweeping children’s privacy legislation to ensure that companies like YouTube could not track children watching cartoons on their site. He was challenging

Facebook and other social media sites on their polices long before it became a mainstream concern of our country.

In closing, we’d like to ask you to join us in voting for Ed Markey for Senate on September 1st. Ed is an  amazingly effective legislator who keeps our community (even now as US Senator) and many like it close to his heart as he works.

Kevin Harris and Peter Christopher, Precinct 5 Councilor

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