THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2021 Page 19 Beacon Hill Roll Call By Bob Katzen GET A FREE SUBSCRIPTION TO MASSTERLIST– Join more than 22,000 people, from movers and shakers to political junkies and interested citizens, who start their weekday morning with MASSterList—the popular newsletter that chronicles news and informed analysis about what’s going on up on Beacon Hill, in Massachusetts politics, policy, media and influence. The stories are drawn from major news organizations as well as specialized publications selected by widely acclaimed and highly experienced writers Chris Van Buskirk and Keith Regan who introduce each article in their own clever and never-boring, inimitable way. MASSterList will be e-mailed to you FREE every Monday through Friday morning and will give you a leg up on what’s happening in the blood sport of Bay State politics. For more information and to get your free subscriptions go to: www.massterlist.com/ subscribe. THE HOUSE AND SENATE: There were no roll calls in the House or Senate last week. This week, Beacon Hill Roll Call reports on the percentage of times local senators voted with their party’s leadership in the 2021 session. No additional roll calls in the Senate are planned until 2022. Beacon Hill Roll Call uses 111 votes from the 2021 Senate session as the basis for this report. This includes all roll calls that were not quorum calls or on local issues. The votes of the 34 Democrats were compared to Senate Majority Leader Cynthia Creem (D-Newton), second-in-command in the Senate. We could not compare the Democrats’ votes to those of Senate President Karen Spilka (D-Ashland) because, by tradition, the Senate president rarely votes. The senator who voted with Creem the least percentage of times is Sen. Diana DiZoglio (D-Methuen) who voted with her only 83 times (74.7 percent). Rounding out the top three who voted with Creem the least number of times are Sens. Walter Timilty (D-Milton) who voted with her 91 times (81.9 percent) and Marc Pacheco (D-Taunton) who voted with her 96 times (86.4 percent) All in all, 31 of the 34 Democrats (99.1 percent) voted with Creem 90 percent or more of the time — including 11 (32.3 percent) who voted with Creem 100 percent of the time and six who voted with Creem all but one time. The votes of the two Republican senators were compared with those of GOP Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr (R-Gloucester). In 2021, as in 2020, none of the two voted with Tarr 100 percent of the time. In 2021, the Republican senator who voted the lowest percentage of times with Tarr was Sen. Patrick O’Conmore populous, Brooklyn or Manhattan? 9. What U.S. state’s language is the derivation of a word for an appetizer? 10. Are flamingos always 1. On December 24 what country has a traditional “Feast of the Seven Fishes”? 2. In 1817, Hawaii’s first coffee was planted in what district of the Big Island? 3. On Dec. 25, 1821, Clara Barton was born – the “Angel of the Battlefield” and founder of the American Red Cross – in North Oxford in what N.E. state? 4. In 1970 who wrote and recorded “Feliz Navidad”? 5. Simba is a Swahili word for what animal? 6. December 26 is the first day of Kwanzaa, which has how many days? 7. What TV music show had a bubble machine? 8. Which NYC borough is pink? 11. On Dec. 27, 1932, what “Showplace of the Nation” opened at Manhattan’s Rockefeller Center? 12. How are thiamin, riboflavin and niacin similar? 13. What well-known Englishman wrote the 1842 travelogue “American Notes for General Circulation,” including the line “The tone of society in Boston is one of perfect politeness, courtesy, and good breeding”? 14. On Dec. 28, 1958, what teams – based in Atlantic nor (R-Weymouth) who voted with Tarr 82.8 percent of the time. Sen. Ryan Fattman (R-Sutton) voted with Tarr 90 percent of the time. SENATORS’ SUPPORT OF THEIR PARTY’S LEADERSHIP IN 2021 The percentage next to the senator’s name represents the percentage of times the senator supported his or her party’s leadership in 2021. The number in parentheses represents the number of times the senator opposed his or her party’s leadership. Some senators voted on all 111 roll call votes. Others missed one or more roll calls. The percentage for each representative is calculated based on the number of roll calls on which he or she voted. Sen. Brendan Crighton 100 percent (0) HOW LONG WAS LAST WEEK’S SESSION? Beacon Hill Roll Call tracks the length of time that the House and Senate were in session each week. Many legislators say that legislative sessions are only one aspect of the Legislature’s job and that a lot of important work is done outside of the House and Senate chambers. They note that their jobs also involve committee work, research, constituOcean ports – played at the first NFL sudden death overtime game? 15. How are shekel, rand and real similar? 16. “Frosty the Snowman” was first recorded in 1950 by what “Singing Cowboy”? 17. On Dec. 29, 1997, what Asian port began killing chickens to contain the spread of avian flu? 18. The Times Square New Year’s Eve Ball is covered with triangles made of what? 19. What two planets have polar ice caps? 20. On Dec. 30, 1865, Rudyard Kipling was born, who authored what book with a one-word title that is a person’s name? ent work and other matters that are important to their districts. Critics say that the Legislature does not meet regularly or long enough to debate and vote in public view on the thousands of pieces of legislation that have been filed. They note that the infrequency and brief length of sessions are misguided and lead to irresponsible late-night sessions and a mad rush to act on dozens of bills in the days immediately preceding the end of an annual session. During the week of December 13-17, the House and Senate each met for a total of 24 minutes. Mon. Dec. 13 House 11:00 a.m. to 11:12 a.m. Senate 11:05 a.m. to 11:18 a.m. Tues. Dec. 14 No House session No Senate session Wed. Dec. 15 No House session No Senate session Thurs. Dec. 16 House 11:00 a.m. to 11:12 a.m. Senate 11:06 a.m. to 11:17 a.m. Fri. Dec. 17 No House session No Senate session Bob Katzen welcomes feedback at bob@beaconhillrollcall.com ANSWERS 1. Italy 2. Kona 3. Massachusetts 4. José Feliciano 5. Lion 6. Seven 7. “The Lawrence Welk Show” 8. Brooklyn 9. Hawaii (pūpū for pupu platter) 10. Flamingo chicks are grey or white, and a diet of plankton with carotenoids causes them to change color. 11. Radio City Music Hall 12. They are B vitamins. 13. Charles Dickens 14. The Baltimore Colts and the New York Giants 15. They are types of currency (for Israel, South Africa and Brazil, respectively) 16. “Gene” Autry 17. Hong Kong 18. Waterford crystal 19. Earth and Mars 20. “Kim”
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