With the Sumner Tunnel closed and the MBTA in perpetual crisis, Gov. Maura Healey seems more interested in burnishing her national credentials than attending to problems at home.
Healey, one of the first openly lesbian governors in the nation, spent a week in Ireland celebrating LGBTQ rights — positioning herself as one of the prominent leaders on that issue in the country.
Even though she’s just in the first year of her term, Healey may already be getting tired of dealing with state issues like a late budget and legislative gridlock on tax relief.
What could be in Healey’s future in the next few years is still unclear but running for a second term seems far, far away and less and less likely.
Instead Healey could be waiting for a national appointment to the Biden administration or a U.S. Senate seat to open up.
If Joe Biden doesn’t run again that would likely lead to U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren mounting another presidential campaign that could take her out of her Senate seat. You’ll probably have to pry our other senator, Ed Markey, out with a crowbar.
Healey, who served two terms as state Attorney General, could also be in line to lead the U.S. Justice Department if Merrick Garland decides to leave or is nudged out.
That would leave her in position to return as Donald Trump’s worst nightmare. As AG, she sued Trump dozens of times and garnered some criticism at home for spending so much time and money on the lawsuits.
In a junket that drew national and international attention last week, Healey, who is of Irish descent, addressed the Irish Senate on the 30th anniversary of the decriminalization of homosexuality in Ireland.
“It was not so long ago when the story of Irish American unity and the story of gay liberation would never have been told together,” she said in her speech in Ireland.
“I can arrive in Ireland as the out governor of Massachusetts and make my first stop at a Pride reception at the U.S. Embassy,” she added.
Healey’s appearance even drew comparisons to former President John F. Kennedy Jr. when he visited Ireland 60 years ago.
That’s pretty heady stuff for a first-term governor who hasn’t really accomplished anything yet.
So it’s no surprise that Healey would choose to spend her time on international junkets rather than deal with problems back in Massachusetts.
She seems to have already caught the travel bug that plagued previous governors like William Weld, Paul Cellucci, Mitt Romney and Deval Patrick. They liked to travel first class and be treated like dignitaries — while Romney was more interested in running for president.
Healey after coming back from Ireland went immediately to Rhode Island for a personal trip that took her out of the Sumner Tunnel closing press conferences — leaving highway and T officials to address questions about long delays and traffic snarls. She’s not supposed to come back to Massachusetts until this weekend.
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