In less than a week, Charlie Baker will take his last walk out of the Massachusetts State House as Governor. Baker did not seek reelection after 2 terms in office.
In a one-on-one interview, he told Boston 25 News Anchor Kerry Kavanaugh through tragedies and triumphs over the last 8 years, he tried to be present in communities and accessible to the media. He said that made him very familiar to the people of Massachusetts and he will miss that personal interaction as he moves on from Beacon Hill.
The challenges and lessons learned
“How do you describe your time in office in one word. Can you,” Kavanaugh asked.
“Surprising,” Baker responded. “Nobody told me it was going to snow for 30 days right when I took office, that we would have ice storms in Western Mass, bomb tornadoes on the Cape at the very beginning of the tourism season, that we would have the Merrimack Valley gas explosion in the fall of 2018 and then, of course, the pandemic. So, there was a lot of stuff that wasn’t part of the transition documents. It wasn’t part of any message I got from anyone going out the door.”
Baker said with each crisis he tried to be present in communities taking questions and offering the best information that he had.
“Is there one that keeps you up at night,” Kavanaugh asked of the challenges he’s faced while in office.
“Well, all of the ones that don’t work out quite the way you hope it would keep you up,” Baker said. “And you certainly never forget them. And you hope you did everything you could once you understood them to deal with them. There really aren’t a lot of ‘spike the ball’ moments here. It’s more about making progress. It’s more about did you make it better than you found it.”
“Do you think the MBTA is better than when you found it,” Kavanaugh asked.
“Yeah, I do,” Baker said. “The MBTA has 900 funded, vacant positions. It did not have 900 funded vacant positions before the pandemic. But like a lot of 24/7 operations, they lost a lot of people during the pandemic.”
Baker says he supported the Federal Transit Authority stepping in earlier this year after numerous safety issues on the T’s Orange and Red lines. But, he also pointed to MBTA achievements on his watch.
“Southcoast Rail is going become a reality after 40 years of people wanting it. Green line extension, after of 30 years of not much happening, and we got that done,” Baker said.
“But wasn’t that an FTA criticism to an extent that a lot of money was spent on improvements at the sake of safety,” said Kavanaugh.
“No I think a lot of those improvements were specifically related to safety,” Baker responded.
“What do you think needs to happen moving forward to continue to improve the experience of children in Massachusetts DCF care,” Kavanaugh asked.
“2 or 3 times we’ve tried to get legislation passed that would require a ‘guardian ad litem’ to represent the child every time the child is in court.”
Baker says that is the single biggest missing link before the courts…pointing to the tragic cases involving cases of Harmony Montgomery and David Almond.
“In both of those cases there was nobody there representing just the child,” Baker said.
Looking to the future
On December 15th, came a somewhat surprising move. After whispers of a possible presidential run, we learned Baker would become the president of the NCAA.
“How did that come about” Kavanaugh asked. “I don’t assume you were just scrolling LinkedIn and applied for a job.”
Baker laughed and recalled a phone call he got in the fall.
“So, Sam Kennedy who’s president of the Red Sox, whom I’ve known for a long time, in the middle of October he called me up and says I was just talking to this search firm that’s looking for the next president of the NCAA. And, I got to say after listening to them for a little bit, I thought of you. And if it’s ok with you I’d like to recommend you to them.”
At first, Baker says he was reluctant. But the more he learned the more he liked.
“We got to make sure that the future of college athletics is fair to women’s sports, to kids who play sports, to the big schools and the small schools,” he said.
Baker called it another way he can continue to serve.
The Final Goodbye
“So, when you’re soon referred to as ‘former’ Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker, what do you hope your legacy is and how do you hope to be remembered,” Kavanaugh asked.
“I hope people believe that the Lieutenant Governor [Karen Polito] and I gave everything we had to this job because we did,” Baker said. “I hope that they believe that along that continuum that you and I talked about, we made things better for them.”
“What’s that last walk out the door of the State House and down those steps going to be like for you next week,” Kavanaugh asked.
Baker paused and sighed.
“Well, I think it will be complicated,” he said. “I love this job. As difficult and as challenging and as humiliating as it can be, I believe it’s an incredible opportunity to do incredible things for people. I will miss it horribly when I’m gone.”
And Governor Baker will have another new job in 2023. He’s becoming a grandfather for the first time. His eldest son and daughter-in-law are due in February.
He will begin his new role with the NCAA in March.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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