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Brookline man buys North End condo, so, voila, people are talking about him running for mayor
By adamg on Fri, 12/01/2023 - 2:42pm
Josh Kraft, of the New England Patriots Krafts, is suddenly being touted as as possible candidate for Boston mayor in 2025, because, well, why not? CommonWealth Beacon reports he already has a bunch of ties to Boston, including a long turn as president of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston. He's a past Charlie Baker donor and gave money to several council candidates supported by Trump backer and New Balance Chairman Jim Davis, who doesn't like the incumbent.
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Comments
Carpetbagger
Carpet Bagger be gone. There outta be some rule about a cooling off period after you buy a condo before you can run for office.
Silly Trumpers really think they can win on this side of the state. LOL
Personally, I can’t wait…
To not vote for this wannabe oligarch.
I’m not fully onboard with the Wu train, but this bozo brings nothing to the table but being rich and bored.
I don't know what his
I don't know what his national and state politics are but suggesting that Josh Kraft is simply some rich bored kid is not a fair assessment at all. I can't vote for Boston mayor and have no interest in getting involved... But have met Josh on several occasions (one of my canvas prints of a photo I took was hanging in his old home, not sure if it made the switch over) and he is quite adept at organizing business ventures and has put significant time into the benefit of low income communities. He was a key mover in getting a Boys and Girls Club in Chelsea years ago and has continued to be involved in multiple non profit ventures that did everything from feeding people during the pandemic to getting public health vans into low income communities.
Is it possible that your opinion of him isn't based on actual observations and the fact that he doesn't promote himself nearly as much as he could? Most of the ventures I'm familiar with here were never pushed to the wider media despite his obvious connections to those apparatuses.
Yes, he does have an impressive resume
As anyone who bothers to read the linked article will see (e.g. soon to be appointed chair of the board of Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts). Whether he has the kind of experience transferrable to being a successful Mayor is debatable. A number of non-profit leaders over the years have been rumored to consider themselves ideal candidates for public office but fail to get donor or voter support. And as a longtime Boston resident, I'm not inclined to vote for someone who doesn't actually live here (real estate ownership does not equal residency). And the Jim Davis association definitely does not sit well!
credentials
I don't honestly know what kind of background might be needed to be an "effective" mayor. It's such a weird ass job and you have a certain amount of limited power, but so much of what the job entails is purely optics. You basically have a pulpit to to draw attention to whatever you want (or what you think your constituents want).
If you do nothing as mayor, the city is going to keep on keeping on regardless. Changes good and bad will happen regardless and you'll get credit/blame for all of it in varying measures. You certainly can affect some measure of change, but not that much.
At the end of the day, the most impactful stuff will be coming out of Beacon Hill, not City Hall Plaza.
My comment was not on his
My comment was not on his qualifications for Mayor as much as it was a response to the condescending nature of the comment above mine (and others lower in the que now.) As I mentioned I can't vote for the mayor in Boston and the race (or lack thereof) isn't really my concern. It's just a reaction to the kneejerk attacks on a guy who has put in considerable time making the world a better place without sounding the sirens over it. Whether or not he runs for mayor isn't really a concern of mine.
He is the product of immense
He is the product of immense privilege, nothing about immense privilege qualifies one to be mayor or anything else, why are we even talking about this man?
It doesn't disqualify him, either
Besides, being the product of immense privilege wasn't even his choice.
As I said previously, I know nothing about the guy.
Kneejerk?
Perhaps it's the result of a few decades of "business leaders" thinking that because they inherited money and privilege and didn't completely go bust, they're qualified to hold public office (combined with the stupidity of the electorate in voting for them).
business ventures
are not at all acceptable experience for governing. in fact, I'd say they count against any candidate.
what does "involved in multiple non profit ventures" mean? on the board? donates money? I work in the non profit industry. being on the board generally doesn't mean much in terms of actually knowing communities, their needs and how they want to resolve them. If anything, I'd say your glowing review of him (just because he bought one of your works, I guess?) only says he's someone more than happy to let "private ventures" and "non profits" do the work that government should be doing - namely, feeding people and providing public health services.
I'm sure he's a perfectly personable fellow, after all, generating confidence helps generate profits, but if we know his politics, why can't that count for something?
Carpetbagging…
Boston/MA would never condone such a thing…
Yes
Somerville would have liked this rule to be in place for Billy Tauro (who lives in Tewksbury but bought a condo in Assembly Sq.)
I dunno
I, for one, enjoyed watching him get fewer votes than the number of signs he put up.
You do know
Wu and many in her administration are carpetbaggers? Or is this a different type of carpetbagger?
Oh, dear, yes, nobody should ever be allowed to move to Boston
I realize Kraft has done Many Good Things (tm), but Wu had actual Boston residency for a long time before running for mayor (and acted in a parental role getting her younger sister through Boston public schools) - she was an at-large Boston city councilor for eight years before getting elected mayor.
By the strictest definition
it is laughably incorrect to call Wu a carpetbagger. She’s moved to Boston twice, about 20 and 15 years ago. She attended higher education here, held jobs here.
Carpetbaggers move opportunistically to an area they have no local ties to, for the purpose of running for elected office. That doesn’t fit Wu’s biography, unless you think high school Michelle was really planning the long game back in Chicago.
Editing to add that I wouldn't consider Kraft to be a carpetbagger either under that definition; he's from Chestnut Hill, he grew up here and as best as I can tell he hasn't strayed far from the area throughout his life.
Go ahead, throw your money away
Unless she leaves the post voluntarily, Wu will be the Mayor for many years to come.
Don't count on that
Michelle Wu is waiting for Elizabeth Warren to get tapped for a post in the second Biden administration or (more likely) for Markey or Waren to shuffle off this mortal coil (or just retire). She doesn't really want to be Mayor, it is a stepping-stone position for her.
of course she will have to fight Governor Healy for the senate post first.
No, she seems happy as Mayor
Maybe she'll run for a higher office one day. Or maybe she'll leave politics and do something else. She's pretty young.
But she's not ignoring her duties as Mayor so it hardly matters.
Kidding, right?
You can't get elected to the Senate on the votes of Boston alone, and if Wu were to want the position, there are many people ahead of her in the hierarchy.
Yup
Didn't Wu just trounce the Jim Davis-ites and deftly sweep away some of the more annoying "progressives" in the past election?
And some rich white guy partially trading on daddy's name (unlike some, he actually has done something useful with his life) who just moved in from Brookline is going to sweep into office? Maybe if things in the City go way south in the next couple of years. But I wouldn't count on it.
Talentless trust fund brats
Talentless trust fund brats and republicanism. Name a more iconic duo.
KRAFT family has been giving
KRAFT family has been giving and handing out food from and 18 wheeler truck for the poor in Boston & metro Boston on a consistent basis , you don’t see other millionaires doing it….especially during the pandemic,…. it’s been going on for a while so be respectful to the krafts..
Call that food washing
Florida. No more need be said.
Handing out food from 18 wheeler trucks
Sounds like a great photo op. But, just like all those "fill the truck" food drives that pop up like mushrooms in December, it's not as effective as giving cash to a food bank.
I'm curious...
Do you know anything about Josh Kraft? Ok, other than he's a Kraft?
FWIW, I don't.
Like Matt, I have no skin in the game, either.
No disrespect to
No disrespect to philanthropist Robert Kraft but being the son of Robert Kraft with no city hall climbing up the political ladder, if you will , with experience is not going to cut it. They say money ,wealth , and family dynasty is not going get you a higher political position, Robert F Kennedys grandson ran a few years back and lost.
Shades of Bobby Newport
I've seen this storyline on Parks and Rec. Can't wait to watch Wu hand him his ass.
I smell…
I smell George Regan and the rest of the angry, bitter and pathetic “Save Boston” crew. I hear Annissa Essaibbi George is advising silver spoon Josh. This is gonna be a riot to watch. Picture if the Titanic being used as a “Gender Reveal.” LOL.
No Way
He'd probably have better luck running for Governor.
Why does he want to run for
Why does he want to run for mayor of Boston?
You must be Joshing
Politics in Boston is bloodsport. Many well-seasoned qualified candidates have tried and failed to win election as Mayor. City Council seats are occasionally won by inexperienced candidates with the right backing and money, but even that requires connecting personally with voters at the ward level. It still works that way in the North End, no matter how much it may have changed since the Aquarium was constructed.
Boston businesses
knows that anybody is better than the current anti-business administration. It’s either limit your business or cut your losses and bail out. As for residents, you need a mayor who respects quality of life issues.
How exactly is Mayor Wu
anti-business?
Business in Boston is
Business in Boston is thriving, do you have any evidence that it's not? Many people simply can't see a world that's not run by comfortable white men.
https://www.boston.gov/sites/default/files/embed/b/boston_economy_flyer_...
The Republican Party
especially in MA, is where you go if you want a place in politics that doesn’t require honesty, integrity, or ability.
All Republicans are stupid, useless trash, or they are cynical criminal opportunists. If you’re a Republican who is neither, you are a RINO and the nuts hate you, ala Baker.
get a fuckin grip
will ya
The un
based on Dapper O’Neil has issues with the tenor of my posts.
How about shoving it if you have a problem with me, Dap?
MBTA and the MassCass army
MBTA and the MassCass army throughout the state are two superpowers that continue to quickly show how weak, helpless and clueless any politician is. Guvnahs, state senators, mayors, state reps, city councilors, any governmental body.
Sounds like an organized press releases to me.
No way the idea of this guy running for mayor just pops up organically. Looks like CommonWealth Beacon can be bought like the Improper Bostonian.
Kraft of the Florida Dynasty?
Let's see, a Kraft, a Florida strip mall massage parlor and recently a raid on Cambridge based prostitution.
No way there is any connection.