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David S. Bernstein
David S. Bernstein covers local, state, and national politics for the Boston Phoenix. His nearly 20 years as a multiple award-winning journalist, including NEPA’s Journalist of the Year, has made him a must-read among political junkies and anyone who cares about good government and social justice.
Latest Articles
Elvis is Queen
Even as she faces the very real possibility of defeat this November, Pressley is receiving support and gushing praise from most of Boston's political figures.
Unfinished (monkey) business
The giant monkey of Danville was my symbol, back then, of the fin-de-siècle nadir in media fluffery, thankfully obsolesced in one grim morning.
Washington bigwigs love the idea, but Massachusetts insiders aren’t convinced — at least not yet
As soon as President Barack Obama began waffling about naming Elizabeth Warren director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the Democratic rumor mill began churning about Warren as a potential 2012 challenger to Republican US Senator Scott Brown.
With the Urban League conference coming next week, Boston's movers and shakers are scrambling to project a progressive racial image
After years of trying to convince groups with large minority membership that the Hub is now a welcoming, friendly destination for African-Americans, this is the first big organization to test the theory.
Right turn on campus
Funders are working through official university channels to underwrite lecture series, conferences and colloquia, and centers geared for the general-interest student, all carrying university imprimatur.
Get me rewrite
Watching Carr work those stories reveals little about the media revolution, and nothing about its effects on the Times.
Burning Down the House
Burning Down the House
Gaming the system
Last summer, when Deval Patrick's veto killed a gaming bill in the final days of the legislative session, many thought he had badly damaged himself politically. He was, after all, the one who had pushed for casinos in Massachusetts almost from the day he entered office.
Quiet fight
The past few years, Boston has been almost continuously wrapped up in big, attention-getting elections.
Sarah to the rescue?
Democrats are positively giddy over the sudden re-entry of Sarah Palin into Republican presidential politics.
Ready, Aim — Roast
Hey, thanks for having me back for the Third Annual Boston Phoenix Memorial Day Political Roast! Good to see so many of you here — the last time I saw this many Beacon Hill insiders in one place was on the prospective witness list for the Sal DiMasi trial!
Romney vs. the GOP
Political leaders don't always rally around the front-runner for their party's presidential nomination, but they normally at least offer deference and respect. That doesn't, however, seem to be the case with Mitt Romney.
Everything you always wanted to know about the Rapture, but were afraid to ask
Editors' note: We selected David S. Bernstein to serve as our resident Rapture expert, on account of his having seen all three Kirk Cameron Left Behind series film adaptations.
Farewell, Christians — don't let the gates of paradise hit you on the ass on your way out
Okay, I'm not happy , exactly, that, as a Jew, I am excluded from Saturday's date with Heaven's eternal rewards, and will instead be left to suffer through great tribulations before perishing, with the rest of the Army of the Antichrist, as a dismembered corpse beneath a waste-deep river of blood.
Five-way Boston bloodbath
By announcing his campaign for city council, Michael Flaherty immediately unleashed the bitter side of Boston politics.
By exposing his haters, the president has forced the GOP into a corner
It was a good weekend for the president.
Here He Goes Again
Mark this down: Tom Menino, already the longest-serving mayor in Boston history, will run for re-election in 2013.
New Hampshire's GOP operatives have lined up for the 2012 primary, and are ready to do battle
Over the next two weeks, New Hampshire will quietly transform into a proving ground for the Republican 2012 race to recapture the White House. At least 10 potential candidates, from heavyweights like Mitt Romney to obscurities like Fred Karger, are scheduled to visit this month.
To win the GOP nomination, Mitt will need to do things differently this time. Here's how.
Mitt Romney has been running for president more or less nonstop for the past seven years — and still hasn't figured out how to do it.
Slow play
Gaming bills have plagued the last two legislative sessions on Beacon Hill.