Surprisingly, the Massachusetts Republican Party, usually barren tundra when competing in statewide races, is fielding a forest of formidable candidates to challenge Democrat incumbent U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren in 2018. Two of them — Beth Lindstrom and John Kingston — are twin oaks of establishment politics and just recently announced their candidacies. They are worthy contenders, nevertheless, and deserve recognition.
Activists trying to get a referendum on the ballot that would allow the state to stop public funding of abortions can now collect signatures at Roman Catholic churches in the Boston area, a reversal of a policy announced this past June.
The new policy comes with restrictions: Signature gatherers aren't supposed to be in the direct flow of foot traffic to and from Mass.
