Keverian Opens Doors for Cantabs

Cambridge's state legislators will be carrying a lot more clout around Beacon Hill in the next few months, after newly-elected House Speaker George Keverian '53 (D-Everett) announced key leadership appointments over the weekend.

In his overhaul of the Legislature's rules and chairmanships, Keverian named two Democratic state representatives from Cambridge, Rep. Charles F. Flaherty. Jr. and Rep. Saundra Graham, as House Majority Leader and chairman of the Federal Financial Assistance Committee, respectively.

Both Flaherty and Graham supported Keverian in his year-long battle to wrest the Speaker's gavel from Thomas W. McGee (D-Lynn), who ruled the 160-member body for almost a decade.

While Keverian repays his political debts, the Cambridge delegation stands to emerge as a powerful force within the Statehouse.

Patronage

"Tommy McGee helped his home city of Lynn tremendously," says Richard J. Doherty, Harvard's Director of State Relations, adding. "While Flaherty isn't the Speaker, those benefits could well come Cambridge's way."

Doherty said the new leadership positions will probably help the City in terms of increased constituent services, greater access to the state for the City Council, and a larger chunk of urban housing grants, especially from Graham's committee.

"Cambridge will be well represented in terms of dollars that come out of the Commonwealth." Graham said after Saturday's announcement. "I'll be in good position to make sure that my district gets its fair share."

Although Graham had wanted to chair the Housing and Urban Development Committee, Keverian offered her the Energy Committee, which she refused.

An eight-year veteran of the Legislature and current Cambridge City Councilor, Graham says she was the only minority in the House qualified for such a chairmanship.

"The Speaker had a tough job distributing the seats of power fairly between East and West [Massachusetts]," said Graham, who congratulated Keverian for placing a fair number of women in "heavy" committees such as Judiciary. Ways and Means, and Education.

Of the three Cambridge legislators, only Peter A. Vellucci, a House member of three years, did not receive some sort of leadership position. According to Graham, Keverian denied chairmanships to representatives with less than four years' experience.

Flaherty was unavailable for comment yesterday.