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Here’s what 6 Mass. political observers want to hear in Thursday's State of the Commonwealth speech
Gov. Maura Healey is set to deliver her annual State of the Commonwealth address Thursday night, amid national debates around affordability, immigration and President Trump’s expanding use of executive authority to implement his agenda.
At home in Massachusetts, Healey is contending with rising energy costs and sky-high housing prices. Political observers are watching for Healey to lay out specific policy goals on those issues and to provide details about her fourth state budget proposal, which is due next week.
The address comes only days after Healey kicked off her reelection campaign, pledging to “lower costs, make life better, and stand up to Donald Trump.” The governor did not outline specific approaches to tackling those issues in her launch video.
In the State of the Commonwealth speech, Healey has an opportunity to reflect on past victories, lay out an agenda for the end of her first term in office and convince voters she deserves another four years as the state’s chief executive.
WBUR reached out to six observers from across the political spectrum in Massachusetts to learn what they hope to hear from the governor in her primetime speech.
- Political Strategist: Joe Caiazzo, a Democratic political strategist based in Massachusetts, said Healey will likely use the speech to counter Trump and the federal government. But Caiazzo contends the governor needs to address housing affordability: “Look, it sounds boring, but new home construction is a big item out there. The genesis of the housing problem is a supply issue, and this is something where an aggressive public policy could work,” he said.
- Immigration Advocate: Maroni Minter, political director at the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition, said Healey should outline how she plans to push back against federal immigration agents and limit local law enforcement cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. “I don't think Massachusetts is immune to what is happening in Minneapolis, so really hope to hear from the governor what action she is envisioning the state to take,” Minter said.
- Budget Analyst: Doug Howgate, president of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, said Healey is expected to tease details of the fiscal 2027 budget she’s slated to roll out next week. Howgate said he wants to hear how the state plans to deal with federal policy changes related to Medicaid enrollment that could have a “huge” impact on the local health care sector, low-income communities and the state budget. “That is something that the state hopefully is, but needs to be, working with stakeholders in the sector around the state to mitigate those impacts,” he said.
- Business Community: Jim Rooney, chief executive of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, said he wants to hear “pro-business, pro-free enterprise, pro-growth” messaging from Healey. That includes addressing affordability issues for workers and the business environment in Massachusetts. “The ability of Massachusetts to compete for business and for jobs to be here depends on having a state that is viewed as and can compete on these factors,” he said.
- Fiscal Watchdog: Paul Craney, executive director of the conservative-leaning Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance, said he’s heard a lot of “rhetoric” from Healey on housing affordability, tax relief and lowering utility bills. He said the governor should use her speech to outline specific actions she plans to take on each of those topics. “We don't want to hear vague, fluffy rhetoric anymore,” Craney said.
- Progressive Democrat: Jonathan Cohn, policy director at the advocacy group Progressive Mass, said he has “quite a long wish list” for Healey’s speech. At the top of that list is outlining “a clear agenda on reining in corporate power in the state” and plans to take action against ICE in the Commonwealth. “What are we actually doing to protect the people of the Commonwealth from the abuses of the Trump administration, most notably, the terrorism that ICE has been unleashing on communities,” Cohn said.
