“Progressives Push Legislative Agenda” — Trea Lavery, Bay State Banner (4/10/19)

“Especially since out of the White House we’re not going to see a lot of great policy for the next few years, it’s up to the states to show a lot of policy leadership,” said Jonathan Cohn, the chair of the organization’s issues committee, before attendees broke out to attend meetings with individual legislators.

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“Progressives See Potential For House To Shift Left” — Mike Deehan, WGBH (4/5/2019)

“We want the the State House in general to understand that there is a progressive population out there that is really strongly in favor of all these progressive issues,” Watertown Selectwoman Caroline Bays said Wednesday while at the State House for the annual lobby day organized by liberal advocates Progressive Massachusetts. Over a hundred dedicated lefties met with lawmakers to try to push moderate Democrats to dive in on social and economic issues Beacon Hill is reluctant to take up.

But those issues, be it more funding for district schools, enhanced health care for the poor, or expanded service and repairs for the MBTA, need to be paid for in order to balance the state’s budget.

For progressives like Bays, that answer is easy. Tax more, preferably the well-off.

“Today when I was lobbying my state my state rep, I said you’re taxing me too little,” Bays said.

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“Progressives try to push Mass. Legislature to left” — Victoria McGrane and Matt Stout, Boston Globe (4/5/2019)

“Even though the state might not be as liberal as many people think it is, we should make it as liberal as people . . . like to think it is,” Jonathan Cohn, chairman of the group’s issues committee, told members from many of its 16 chapters across the state…..

“It takes people like us to push things to the top of the pile,” Rachel Poliner, of West Roxbury, told them. “Times are different than they were a few years ago. . . . You could say that all of us — as voters and as legislators — have been a little too complacent. Why is the MBTA in the shape it’s in? Right, so we’re upping the ante.”