“Beacon Hill Roll Call February 1, 2019,” Bob Katzen, Beacon Hill Roll Call

Jonathan Cohn, chairman of the Issues Committee of Progressive Massachusetts: “Too often, House Democrats will vote in lockstep with the speaker, whether he’s right or wrong, without doing their own due diligence about what they are, in fact, voting on. Legislators should come to their own conclusions about bills and amendments based on their own promises and principles and the input from advocates, policy experts, and their own constituents—not just on how the speaker chooses to vote … The House had a long debate about its rules, but for the rest of the session, there needs to be a serious debate about the norms by which the chamber operates and how badly they are in need of a change.”