Locked shampoo and woke politics: Will Auchincloss take on Markey?
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It's all shadowboxing right now. Auchincloss, 37, has said he is running for reelection. Still, when asked in the spring if he might challenge Markey,
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Representative Jake Auchincloss joined protesters on June 1 outside of Milford Town Hall a day after 18-year-old Marcelo Gomes da Silva was detained by ICE.
Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff
Like Markey, Auchincloss is up for reelection in 2026. So he would have to give up his House seat to run a primary race against Markey. That didn't work out for his predecessor, Joe Kennedy III, who challenged Markey in 2020 and lost that election, along with his seat in Congress. But that was a different time, when Markey's wokeness, best illustrated by the endorsement he received from Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, was a cherished prize.
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Today, Democrats are trying to negotiate the new, furiously unwoke world of MAGA, in which a deportation center for undocumented immigrants is located in the Florida Everglades, the better to watch would-be escapees try to evade hungry alligators. In Massachusetts, Governor Maura Healey is kicking migrants out of hotel shelters and Auchincloss is expressing concerns about 'degradations to public order,' such as drug use, loitering, panhandling, encampments, vandalism, and shoplifting that could 'compound into lawlessness.'
In MAGA world, both Markey and Auchincloss would be considered soft on 'degradations to public order.'
Auchincloss didn't get into such nuance in his blog post. He just talked about how Democrats get less popular 'every time a customer has to ask the CVS clerk to unlock the shampoo.'
Markey, meanwhile, shows no signs of running from the progressive label.
Last month,
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Message to fellow Democrats: As long as Markey is upright, he's running.
When it comes to progressive cred, the biggest endorsement that Markey could get would still come from AOC. Will he get another nod from her? Her press office did not respond to a question about that. If Representative Ayanna Pressley, a member of the House progressive 'squad' that includes AOC, got into the race, that could influence the calculation.
From the Markey camp comes word that he and Ocasio-Cortez continue to have a close relationship and are collaborating on a wide range of legislation. At the right time, there is reason to believe there would be 'a celebration of that partnership,' a Markey source said.
AOC's most recent endorsement went to Mamdani. In giving him her blessing, she
Across the country, including in Massachusetts, Democrats are adjusting to the MAGA era. Shortly after last November's election, Representative Seth Moulton, who represents Massachusetts' Sixth District and who is also mentioned by political insiders as a possible Markey challenger, worried out loud about the safety of his children if they must compete against transgender athletes.
Given the shifting political ground, is an endorsement from AOC as valuable to Markey in 2026 as it was in 2020? Or does he risk looking too woke?
To put it another way — is running against locked-up shampoo a winning strategy for Auchincloss?
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Something to chew on, along with your Fourth of July hotdog.
Joan Vennochi is a Globe columnist. She can be reached at
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Los Angeles Times
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It opens with Bernstein's 'Overture to 'Candide'' and closes with Tchaikovsky's 'Francesca da Rimini,' but the heart of the show brings together contemporary LGBTQ+ artists including vocalists Pumeza Matshikiza, Jamie Barton and Anthony Roth Costanzo for the world premiere of Jake Heggie's song cycle 'Good Morning, Beauty,' featuring lyrics by Taylor Mac; a performance of Jennifer Higdon's 'blue cathedral'; and a set of comedy, music and reflection from violinist and drag performance artist Thorgy Thor of 'RuPaul's Drag Race.'Prokofiev's Fifth, 8 p.m. Tuesday; Classical Pride, 8 p.m. Thursday. Hollywood Bowl, 2301 N. Highland Ave. Thor Steingraber, executive and artistic director of the Soraya, announced he is stepping down after 12 years following the end of the 2025-26 season. In a letter to patrons, Steingraber wrote, 'I'm not stopping, but rather am pivoting to new opportunities.' He previously directed opera for many years at L.A. Opera, San Francisco Opera, Lincoln Center and venues around the world, and he held leadership roles at the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia and the Los Angeles Music Center. Steingraber went on to thank his Soraya and CSUN colleagues, the many artists he's worked with and supporters of the Soraya, including Milt and Debbie Valera and to the Nazarian family. No successor has been named. For the first time since the 1912 Salon d'Automne in Paris, a rare Diego Rivera portrait is on exhibit, and fortunately for us, it's at the Huntington Art Museum in San Marino. The painting is of Señor Hermenegildo Alsina, a Catalan bookbinder, photographer, publisher and close friend of Rivera. 'This is a rare, early Rivera, from his European years, before he returned to Mexico and became synonymous with the muralist movement,' said the Art Museum's director, Christina Nielsen, in the press release. 'It's elegant, formal, and very unlike the Rivera most people know.' The J. Paul Getty Museum announced a gift of rare Italian manuscript illuminations last week. The collection of 38 manuscript leaves were donated by T. Robert Burke and Katherine States Burke. The works were made by the most prominent artists of the 14th and 15th centuries, including Lorenzo Monaco, Don Silvestro dei Gherarducci, Lippo Vanni, Giovanni di Paolo and Sano di Pietro. They depict religious scenes primarily drawn from the lives of Jesus, Mary and the saints and largely originated from Christian choir books. The donation also includes 'Initial H: The Nativity,' made around 1400 by the prolific Don Simone Camaldolese. 'The exceptional quality of the Burke Collection will radically change the Getty Museum's ability to tell the story of Italian illumination,' said Elizabeth Morrison, senior curator of manuscripts at the Getty Museum, in a press release. The new pages will be available through the Getty Museum's collection online once they are digitized. The Los Angeles County Museum of Art held its first event Thursday night inside the Peter Zumthor-designed David Geffen Galleries last week. The new building may still be empty, but jazz saxophonist Kamasi Washington and more than 100 musicians filled it with a sonic work of art. Times classical music critic Mark Swed was there and found the experience captivating: 'Washington's ensembles were all carefully amplified and sounded surprisingly liquid, which made walking a delight as the sounds of different ensembles came in and out of focus. … The whole building felt alive.' Times photographer Allen J. Schaben was also there to capture the visuals. As far as the building itself, Times art critic Christopher Knight is less than enthusiastic, writing, 'Zumthor and LACMA Director Michael Govan pronounce the new Geffen building to be 'a concrete sculpture,' which is why it's being shown empty now. The cringey claim is grandiose, and it makes one wonder why being architecture is not enough. 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(Compare, say, one of Josh's rants with those of a character in a Terrence McNally, Richard Greenberg or Jon Robin Baitz comedy, and the drop off in verbal acuity and original wit will become crystal clear.)' — Kevin Crust She Thought Lady Gaga Bought Her Art. Then Things Got Strange.
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an hour ago
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Gavin Newsom Is Heading to a Key 2028 State
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. California Governor Gavin Newsom is heading to South Carolina, likely to be a key Democratic primary state, amid speculation he plans to run for president in 2028. Newsweek reached out to Newsom's office for comment via email. Why It Matters Newsom has long been believed to be a potential presidential candidate for Democrats, and his trip to early-voting South Carolina is likely to continue to fuel that speculation. Newsom has cast himself as a leading rival to President Donald Trump amid his second term in office. Several prominent Democrats are expected to jump into the race. While the primary is still more than two years away, potential candidates are already making early moves with the goal of giving themselves an advantage among Democratic primary voters. What to Know The South Carolina Democratic Party (SCDP) announced a multi-county tour with Newsom across some of the most "economically challenged and environmentally vulnerable rural counties in South Carolina" next week. Several of these counties have experienced "hardship" from job loss, wildfires and hurricanes, the SCDP wrote in a statement, adding that the rural areas have been "left behind" by Republican leaders in the state. California Governor Gavin Newsom speaks during a press conference on March 26, 2025 in Los Angeles. California Governor Gavin Newsom speaks during a press conference on March 26, 2025 in Los Angeles. Frazer Harrison/WireImage via Getty Images It will also give Newsom the opportunity to engage with voters in what is likely to be an early-voting state. South Carolina voted first in the 2024 primary but has long been among the four first states to vote—along with Iowa, Nevada and New Hampshire. Whether the schedule may change remains unclear at this point. The statement, however, makes no mention of his potential 2028 ambitions. SCDP Chair Christale Spain wrote in a statement that Newsom "leads the largest economy in America and the fourth largest in the world" and is "coming to meet folks in towns that have been hollowed out by decades of Republican control." "This is about building partnerships, uplifting communities, and showing rural voters they aren't forgotten," Spain wrote. Gavin Newsom's Chance of Winning 2028 Primary—Polls Newsom has been among the leading candidates in most polls of the 2028 primary, along with former Vice President Kamala Harris, former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The latest Morning Consult poll of the potential 2028 field showed that Newsom's standing doubled after the Los Angeles protests over Trump's immigration policies and mass deportations. Eleven percent said they planned to support him, up from 5 percent in March. Still, 34 percent said they leaned toward Harris. Seven percent said they planned to vote for Buttigieg and Ocasio-Cortez. The poll surveyed 1,000 Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents from June 13 to June 15, 2025. An Emerson College poll last month showed Newsom with 12 percent support, compared to 16 percent for Buttigieg, 13 percent for Harris and 7 percent for Ocasio-Cortez. The poll surveyed 1,000 registered voters from June 24 to June 25, 2025, and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points. What People Are Saying Spain wrote in the press release: "Our strategy isn't about chasing cable news coverage, it's about showing up and building trust, town by town, county by county, that is our path back to power. We're proud of the gains we are making but we're even more focused on what's ahead." Newsom told The Wall Street Journal in June: "I'm not thinking about running, but it's a path that I could see unfold." What Happens Next Typically, most candidates do not begin announcing presidential runs until after the midterm elections. Newsom has not confirmed plans to run for president.
