Seth Moulton

In business circles these days, there’s a question no one really wants to be asked: Are you Team Markey or Team Moulton?

Some folks want to stay off the record because they’ve supported Senator Ed Markey in the past, but now back his challenger, Democratic Congressman Seth Moulton. Others want to stay out of the spotlight because they don’t feel strongly, and perhaps just made a campaign donation as a favor. Others like Amos Hostetter and Barbara Hostetter might be hedging their bets, actively giving to both candidates.

The suddenly-closer-than-some-expected race is becoming a touchy subject. Still, you’d be surprised by the high-profile supporters who’ve lined up behind Moulton since he jumped in the race in October, especially given he’s challenging a longtime incumbent who bested another up-and-coming congressman, Joe Kennedy III, six years ago.

Among Moulton’s backers from the business world: Boston venture capitalist Jeff Bussgang, former Bain Capital co-chair Josh Bekenstein, Vertex founder Josh Boger, Ginkgo Bioworks CEO Jason Kelly, SRGE construction accelerator founder J.C. Burton, public relations maven Colette Phillips, and Boston developers Steve Samuels and Brian Kavoogian.

Bussgang, who also teaches at Harvard Business School, is serving as Moulton’s finance chair, a role he held when the Salem Democrat first ran for Congress in 2014. Bussgang got to know him at HBS, where Moulton was a student after four tours of duty as a Marine during the Iraq War and has since watched him develop into a political star who, at just 47, still has plenty of time to grow.

“The zeitgeist is … turn the page, time for a new generation of leadership,” said Bussgang.

To some, Moulton can feel more ambitious than likeable. But others say Markey – who turns 80 in July – represents part of the problem with today’s Democratic party, yet another incumbent who’s past his prime. But Moulton’s tapping into corners of the business community that are worried about more than just age, who feel Markey has been ineffective at preventing the Trump administration from undermining the Massachusetts economy.

The campaign this week will announce the formation of a labor council with leaders from IBEW, Teamsters, and Ironworkers and other locals, as well as a business advisory council with roughly 40 members, co-chaired by Bussgang and Kelly. These business leaders believe that Moulton, with his Harvard MBA and moderate views, can be more effective at negotiating across the aisle to protect higher education and health care sectors than progressive stalwart Markey has been.

Kelly – who cofounded life sciences company Ginkgo as an MIT graduate student – sees biotech startups launching in China and millions of square feet of lab space in Greater Boston sitting empty. Something’s got to change, he said.

“I’m just watching Cambridge turn into Detroit,” said Kelly. “Who’s fighting for us? I think Seth will fight for us … If we keep doing the same thing, it is not going to get better.”

Moulton is off to a brisk start, raising more money than Markey in the last two quarters. But it’s too early to say who will have the financial edge after super PACs and dark money groups get involved.

Markey has his own loyalists in business circles, who see value in his decades of Washington experience – first in the House, then the Senate. They chafe at the idea that Markey is too old and say the senator is sharp and an incredible campaigner.

Those ardent supporters include Granite Telecommunications CEO Rob Hale, Suffolk Construction CEO John Fish, Triumvirate Environmental CEO John McQuillan, IBM Consulting head Mohamad Ali, former Boston Federal Reserve president Cathy Minehan, former state economic secretary Dan O’Connell, banker-turned-fundraiser Shanti Fry, Boston developer John Rosenthal, and PR honcho George Regan.

Hale, for instance, donated $350,000 to a Markey super PAC. He credits Markey with helping to deregulate the telecommunications industry, and paving the way for companies like Granite Telecommunications, which today has more than 2,000 employees in Quincy.

Markey’s age is not an issue for Hale. “That actually might be a strength,” he said. “Forty years of understanding how Capitol Hill works is an asset.”

Still, the discontent is real. And while the backing of blazer-wearing executives may not be as catchy as the “Markeyverse” – the network of meme-savvy progressives who helped Markey fend off Kennedy in 2020 – I’m starting to wonder if business support can rally Moulton to victory.

This November, Massachusetts voters might face up to 11 ballot questions, and that means we’ll be seeing a barrage of TV ads telling us how to vote. The first ones to show up come from Housing for Massachusetts, a real-estate-industry-backed group that opposes rent control and along with its allies has vowed to spend $30 million on a no-campaign. Its 30-second ad, titled "The Facts," goes negative fast, with a sinister-sounding narrator warning about how rent control can drive up rents and slow housing construction. The “no” group made a seven-figure ad buy with major TV stations in Boston and Springfield. Keep Massachusetts Home, a group backing the rent control ballot initiative, recently began filming ads of its own, and plans to spend several million dollars to put their message on TV, too; polls have indicated that the majority of voters support rent control. Expect the air wars to intensify as November approaches, with one silver lining: Not all initiatives have deep enough pockets to buy ads like this.

The American Hotel & Lodging Association last week released its outlook for bookings during the World Cup, and the picture wasn’t pretty. In several markets, Boston among them, nearly 80 percent of hotels reported a booking pace below expectations and lagging a typical summer. Many described the pro soccer tournament as a “non-event,” with FIFA letting go of big blocks of rooms and softer-than-anticipated demand among international travelers. Don’t necessarily cry for Boston’s hoteliers, though. Consulting firm Pinnacle Advisory Group expects local hotels to reach 86 to 87 percent occupancy in the next two months, with rates 6 to 7 percent higher than last year. The firm also says revenue per room will climb 3.5 percent, much faster growth than last year. It’s just that the World Cup will be less of a factor than originally expected here.

No intercity rivalries here, at least not among neighboring Massachusetts cities. Last month, when Boston Mayor Michelle Wu met with tech executives at the David Rubenstein Treehouse in Allston, Flagship Pioneering chief operating officer Yvonne Hao offered to host the next tech summit at her office – in Cambridge. It looks like Wu is taking Hao up on that offer. Wu has set her next meeting with tech executives on Wednesday, just across the Charles from Boston, near Kendall Square, co-hosting a session with Hao and Flagship chief executive Noubar Afeyan, with a focus on how Boston businesses can lead in the AI age. It’s a sign that Wu sees the value in speaking to local innovation leaders, no matter where their office happens to be.

What was once one of Boston’s largest independent investment advisors is independent no more. Private equity firm GTCR has completed its purchase of Fiduciary Trust, known for its service to Boston’s wealthy elite. It’s also known for the building it once occupied, aka the Fiduciary Trust Building, at 175 Federal St. across from South Station (though Fiduciary Trust relocated to 53 State St. in 2019). Terms of the deal were not disclosed. But chief executive Austin Shapard is staying on board, working with a new executive chair, former Wilmington Trust chief executive Doris Meister. Before the sale, the roughly 160-person money manager was owned by a mix of current and former employees as well as some clients and their families.

Our colleagues Michael Silverman and Chris Serres have done a great job chronicling the fund-raising troubles of Boston Soccer 26, the local group raising money for FIFA World Cup events, even journeying to Philadelphia to show how that city appears to be far better prepared than Boston.

In contrast to the local World Cup efforts, Boston seems to be faring better with fundraising for the 250th anniversary of the nation’s independence. That initiative, with the July 4 Boston Pops show and fireworks as the centerpiece, has now exceeded its initial target. Pledges total $16.7 million, more than $1 million over the goal, and several multiples beyond Boston’s typical July 4 extravaganza. (This afternoon, the organizers announced the guest stars for the upcoming July 4 show: country music singer Lainey Wilson, Chance the Rapper, and Trombone Shorty.)

Nearly 50 corporate donors have kicked in so far, with pledges starting with $10,000 and rising all the way to $1 million apiece for Takeda (the Japanese drug company is the largest life sciences employer in the state) and Eastern Bank (executive chair Bob Rivers is leading the fundraising). Other big donors, with gifts exceeding $500,000, include Dunkin’, Vertex, Liberty Mutual, and Sanofi. Of those, only Sanofi is a major donor to the local World Cup group, too.

This one’s from Business producer extraordinaire Dana Gerber:

America’s 250th birthday is less than two months off, and preparations in Massachusetts are well underway. That includes selecting Bay State artifacts for inclusion in “America’s Time Capsule,” a stainless steel vessel to be buried in Philadelphia on July 4, and opened in 2276.

What are we sending? Mostly very old things, according to the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism: A Paul Revere Boston Massacre print; letters by John Hancock, Benjamin Franklin, and John Adams; a reproduction of a Revolutionary medal, and — of course — proclamations by the Healey administration and the co-chairs of the MA250 Commission.

Exciting stuff. But what about the last quarter-millennium of our great Commonwealth? Surely there are contributions to industry, medicine, sports, and culture that might be worth including?

The Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism said it chose contributions based on limited space in the time capsule, as well as the fact that items have to survive 250 years. Still, other states seemed to think more broadly about their heritage: Maine is offering a whale bone. Utah is submitting Olympic pins. And Montana? Beaded artwork.

It’s true, a dollop of Marshmallow Fluff or a Celtics pennant might not stand the test of time. But the list could use at least one item that reflects the state we call home today. A CharlieCard? An empty vial of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine? A Dunkin’ straw?

Fortunately, MA250 is preparing its own state-specific time capsule, with those same historic artifacts and an as-yet-unnamed item to represent modern-day Massachusetts.

What should it be? Share your best idea here.

We asked our readers which 2000s-era Boston band got recognized with platinum record status by the Recording Industry Association of America, two decades after the fact. Unfortunately, we had a technical glitch, so we can’t tell you how many of you picked the correct answer. It was The Dresden Dolls, a self-described “punk cabaret” duo consisting of Amanda Palmer and Brian Viglione, for their album “Yes, Virginia…” Palmer posted a photo of the award on social media on May 4, saying: “Words really do fail me when I try to describe how it feels to see my band (formed in 2000) reaching an entirely new generation of humans.”

Today’s edition was edited by Tim Logan and Greg Huang, and produced by Diamond Naga Siu.

Have a question for the team? Email us at [email protected].

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