Mass. Speaker DiMasi will resign Tuesday
Add a Comment January 25, 10:09 PM
by John Zorabedian, Boston Top News Examiner
« PreviousNext » Massachusetts House Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi, under investigation for corruption and under a cloud of suspicion since he was reelected to his powerful post earlier this month, said Sunday that he will resign from the legislature, the Boston Globe reported. DiMasi sent a letter to House colleagues explaining that he will step down effective at 5:00 pm on Tuesday, January 27.
DiMasi was unapologetic and told the Globe that he is leaving with his "head high." He blamed "powerful special interests," particularly the gambling lobby he successfully blocked from legalizing casinos in the state, for the ethics investigations underway against him.
In his letter, DiMasi recounted his record of achievements in his four years as speaker of the house, and said he made the decision to resign after speaking to his wife and children.
No matter what the cynics and critics will say, all of my actions as state Representative and as Speaker were based solely on what I thought was in the best interests of my district and the people of the Commonwealth," DiMasi wrote.
He concluded his letter: "I leave the State House knowing that I did what any good public servant hopes to do before they end their service--I made a difference. I am proud of all I have done and I leave with no regrets, not one."
DiMasi, who represented Boston's North End for 30 years, including as Speaker for the last four years, was the first Italian-American elected to serve as Speaker in the 225-year history of the state legislature. His record of accomplishments includes authoring the legislation that enacted Massachusetts' groundbreaking health insurance law.
But despite DiMasi's popularity among his constituents and among colleagues, he has been under pressure to resign since last week, when the Globe revealed that DiMasi's friend and accountant Richard Vitale paid off $7,500 in legal fees owed by DiMasi's in-laws. Vitale was indicted last week by a state grand jury on charges that he sought to influence state legislation through his relationship to DiMasi on behalf of clients, a group of ticket brokers who sought new rules on ticket scalping.
The Globe also reported that an aide to DiMasi met with the head of the ticket brokers' association at Vitale's office, on the same day that DiMasi and his wife signed paperwork for a $250,000 third mortgage Vitale gave them on their North End condo.
A federal grand jury is investigating the state's awarding of a multimillion-dollar computer software contract to a Burlington, Mass. firm, Cognos, that made $1.8 million in payments - sometimes undisclosed - to three friends of DiMasi.
DiMasi said House Democrats will caucus on Wednesday to elect his successor. |
