City Councilor Emily Norton admitted to Boston Globe columnist Marcela García that she (Councilor Norton) is the person seen in doorbell-cam footage leaving an anonymous anti-Jim Cote flyer. Councilor Norton says she had nothing to do with the Ward 3 GOP e-mail.
Regarding the flyer, Councilor Norton is unrepentant.
From the column:
In an interview, Norton confirmed she was the person in the video, but denied involvement with the e-mail.“What [the e-mail authors] did was very different, making up an organization saying it’s from the cemetery,” she said. “I was out there with my face handing this to people in person.” Norton said she made the pamphlet on her own. “I was getting worried that [Cote] was going to beat [Malakie] and I started looking at his Twitter feed,” Norton said. “And I was like, ‘There are some really conservative statements here.’ ”
Councilor Norton goes on to explain how, reading former Councilor Cote’s tweets, she discovered how conservative he and felt the need to nip his Trump-iness in the bud. Former Councilor Cote expresses doubt that Councilor Norton had a last-minute aha moment about out his politics.
“I’ve known Emily since 2013,” Cote said. It’s absurd “for her to say she’s just had a revelation; she always knew that I was a Republican, so you know she’d have put particular attention to anything I said.”
García weighs in: “Cote’s tweets are certainly reflective of Republican ideology, but they’re not Trump bombs.”
The rest of the column mostly covers ground that’s covered in Jerry’s post and the 231 comments.
One other bit of new news. García writes: “(His actual opponent,Malakie, distanced herself from both efforts.)” (Both efforts being the email and the letter.)
I’ve asked García where Councilor Malakie said anything about the flyer. In her comment here, Councilor Malakie doesn’t talk about the flyer, only the email.
—
Some observations:
Councilor Norton claims that she discovered how conservative former Councilor Cote is from his Twitter feed. The flyer includes the following text:
From a 2017 Newton TAB article about the ‘Welcoming City’ ordinance, approved by then-Mayor Setti Warren and the City Council, which protects undocumented immigrants from harassment:
Ward 3 Councilor at-large Jim Cote characterized the ordinance as “grandstanding.”
“The reality is that we don’t even need it,” Cote said, “There has been no issues, the police have had no problem, the police haven’t asked for any guidance.”
Councilor Norton was there for former Councilor Cote’s comments and vote.
A few months later, she supported him for re-election.
Councilor Norton suggests she just discovered former Councilor Cote’s Twitter feed. She has been following him for years.*
She’s mentioned him or replied to him over 40 times, dating back to September 11, 2014.
Councilor Norton claims to just have discovered how “conservative” former Councilor Cote is. Here’s a tweet of her kidding him about Trump.
Councilor Norton claims to be fighting the good fight against the dangers of Trump.
“If we’ve learned anything from the Trump years, it is you have to battle that attitude at every level, and Donald Trump and his supporters are trying to take down our democracy,” Norton said. “That is a nonstarter for me … If you’re going to be Trumpy, I’m going to tell the world that you’re Trumpy.”
The tweet where she kids former Councilor Cote is almost a year earlier than her tweet asking for a yard sign.
And, it is not as though Councilor Norton only recently realized the danger of Trump. To her credit, she has tweeted dozens of anti-Trump tweets, including this one days before the yard sign tweet.
* Go to Councilor Norton’s Twitter profile. Click on Following. The people she is following are listed most recent follow to first follow, with former Councilor Cote way down the list.
Stranger things have happened, but it seems way too coincidental that the flyer and email appear within a day of each other. To me it strains credulity that there isn’t a connection somewhere. It doesn’t sound like Emily sent the email, but was she aware of it.and was there some coordination..the verdict is still out on that.
It is extremely unbecoming of an elected official to distribute a flyer like that. You can bet Emily would be up in arms and play the victim if the tables were turned and a city councilor distributed a flyer smearing her name.
One other point I would add is that the only reason she admits to distributing it is because she was caught on camera. She would have stayed silent otherwise and we wouldn’t have known who created the flyer if it hadn’t been for the Nest video.
No, I get it. Clearly, rules of behavior are meant for others, especially if the ends justify the means. Also, that two wrongs make a right. And that lies of omission are not still lies. And that no explanation is necessary unless one is caught. And this kind of activity in the dead of night is normal. And that phony letters to the newspaper with phony names is A-okay.
This must be that new math I keep hearing about.
Emily Norton is really insulting our intelligence when she disingenuously says “I was out there with my face handing this to people in person” when the camera shows that she was sticking this in doorways at night without making any attempt to have someone come to the door so she could hand the flyer to them.
What is this thread? How many people want this soap opera to continue? Not me , I am sick to death listening to this never ending nonsense. Our city councilors are divided over its power structure. I can list every Councilor and slot them on one side or the other. Every council vote is determined by this divided structure. The new president and Vice President plus committee chairs will be fought over in January based on the council power divide. Unfortunately, for voters V14 members sit squarely behind the Albright, Lipof team. This is not right for Newton. Of course V14 will continue with the focus on Emily. She represents the challengers to the Albright, Lipof team. There are many vested interests in the final outcome. Jim Cote supports Albright and her team. He is very mad about losing the race and he will demonize Emily constantly as the weeks go by. For all the city councilors this terrible Emily massacre is a stain on all of you. Enough is enough. Emily has a family to raise. Where is your sense of decency? To see this new thread makes me and many others sick to the stomach. STOP NOW!
@ Meredith…are you kidding? You think she should have been ringing peoples doorbells at night? This is turning into a witch hunt. If you are up in arms about an email focus on that and forget about everything she wrote and said in the last 20 years of her life
For anyone keeping score, why I continue to support Councilor Norton…
1. In the (3?) years since discovering v14, Emily has been a constant target of certain contributors – especially Sean.
2. Let’s take a closer look at the smoking (flyer) in question. First sentence states “vote Julie Malakie” so this was created in support of Julia, the content comes from known sources, and there is no intended or misleading affiliation with any PACs. Is there anything untrue in the flyer? It was looks like it was paginated by a third grader, but beyond an unflattering (and large) picture of Trump, I am not understanding how this is has become MAGAgate? How is this different than the cartoons used by Shawn Fitz’ supporter on FB? It’s also not the first time Trump was used to dissuade voters from a candidate. Look no further than v14. It was literally the only counter argument to Valerie’s candidacy.
https://village14.com/2021/10/26/valerie-pontiff-for-newton-school-committee/
Is this the return of print media as a viable source of influence (even if the printer is a home LaserJet printer)?
3. There’s been MANY an innuendo made that’s if someone does not support dense development, they are somehow associated with being Republican. Hell, “NIMBY” is practically the unofficial acronym. And these innuendos if not out right accusations have literally come from the keyboards of those ripping on Emily for the flyer today. She just took a page out of your book.
4. Emily has been an effective councilor, speaking in support of affordable housing, but also defended Newton against overly dense housing. That puts a constant target on her back especially on this blog. Her biggest failure in this affair is underestimating the blow back for the flyer and the fury of her detractors.
@Colleen,
“For all the city councilors this terrible Emily massacre is a stain on all of you. Enough is enough. Emily has a family to raise. Where is your sense of decency? To see this new thread makes me and many others sick to the stomach. STOP NOW!”
What about Jim and his family?
The psychology here is so intriguing. Reminds me of how some people bend over backwards to justify Trump even when it is clear that he is slimy. This is not at the Trump level .. I know that .. but there is an echo.
I don’t know most of the politics here. I’m a casual observer. But this is cheap. Easy to see. The fact that she kept her mouth shut for so long, even when directly asked if she did it, shows that she knows it is slimy.
And Matt L – your first post on this whole thing, dropping the F bomb and arguing the video wasn’t clear … wow. You are exhibit A in the psychology case study mentioned above.
Oh, and Sean – very impressive. Your detective skills and available time and energy should not be underestimated!
@Matt-
Well said.
I was hopeful when Sean closed the other thread but waking up to find yet ANOTHER thread on the same topic is, well, typical and I really shouldn’t be surprised, because there are just some folks who won’t change their minds and won’t change the subject. So perhaps a little fact checking is in order – not the sort of “I spy” and “whataboutism” Sean offered – just the cold verifiable facts:
1. The flyer: Multiple individuals – myself included have confirmed that the tweets are from Jim Cote’s Twitter account. They were not manipulated in any way whatsoever. He has joined, inter alia, the crowd of folks who believe that Trump created the vaccine. Again – his words, among others, not mine.
2. The timing: the video has a date and time stamp indicating as I recall (if I’m wrong I know someone will quickly correct me) that Emily was out in the early evening. This was hardly (melodramatic voiceover) “under cover of darkness” as some have suggested. She indicated that she spoke with voters as she passed out the flyers as well. Which makes sense because, as she reasonably explained, she wanted her colleague Julia Malakie to be re-elected.
3. No laws have been violated. To the contrary, any individual is free to create a flyer or pamphlet (hint recall Poor Richard’s Almanac, The Federalist Papers??) -anonymously even and distribute it. Why? The First Amendment. We, including Councilor Norton have a right to speak and write – particularly and most importantly on the topic of government, without fear of government reprisal or censure. Allow me to repeat this point which is very important for members of the City Council: The First Amendment protects our right to speak and write about matters, particularly those related to government, WITHOUT FEAR OF GOVERNMENT REPRISAL OR CENSURE.
4. The email – Apart from naked suspicion, there’s nothing whatsoever that connects Emily to the emails. The NPD certainly have the wherewithal to conduct a forensic examination to try to determine the origination of the emails and there’s been no inkling from NPD that Ms. Norton is in anyway associated with the emails. That claim is baseless, and unfounded.
So once again the divide – in my eyes – really does come down to the City Council power divide. Julia Malakie has been a fine counselor for her Ward but she didn’t tow the line. There’s really not a lot of room for creative discussion when the mentality is “you’re either with us or against us” and the leader of the body even has certain members referring to her as “President” in public outside of the Chamber. (Both laughable and pathetic).
@Councilor Norton – allow me to recommend a song for you that just might come in handy over the next few weeks during which you may encounter some grumpy colleagues (and especially since it’s so appropriate to high school snark) Taylor Swift Shake It Off…
Cause haters gonna hate, hate, hate,
You just gotta shake, shake, shake, shake, shake….
Shake it off.
Lisa,
Following your numbers …
1. Yes. The tweets are real. And, they are problematic, to say the least. But, I don’t think it’s a fair read of the vaccine tweet that Jim actually thinks Trump developed the vaccines in his spare time. The vaccines were developed during the Trump presidency, which, I know, is an amazing irony given the anti-vax sentiment among his supporters. But, that’s the world we live in.
2. Emily did a lit drop, not a canvass. It doesn’t appear that she rang doorbells, she just dropped the flyer. As someone who has done his share of lit drops, it’s highly unusual to run into many people. So, for most people receiving the flyer, it was completely anonymous. Nothing on the flyer indicating Councilor Norton’s involvement. (Check out her newsletter to see what it looks like when Councilor Norton wants to be associated with a communication. Picture. Logo. Signature.) No doubt, she ran into a few people, but I would hardly call her effort out-in-the-open. For days, we were debating whether or not it was her in the video. It took her five days to acknowledge it.
3. No laws were broken. Looks like that’s true. So? Is that your measure of acceptable behavior? It wasn’t illegal?
4. Agreed. There is no evidence connecting Councilor Norton to the emails.
Making Councilor Norton the victim here is what’s laughable.
A number of City of Newton employees have been fired for unethical action far less serious than this one. How and why can those in positions of authority hold City of Newton employees to a higher standard than their elected officials? The implications for the future of this city run much deeper than the incidents that occurred last weekend. Get to the bottom of it so we can move on with an understanding that an elected official will be held accountable for unethical behavior in the same way that a City of Newton employee is.
As an aside, at the bottom of the email, it says “You are receiving this email because you opted in via our website”, then gives the address for the Newton Cemetery. The website doesn’t exist. The email is generated through Mailchimp with requires an address, but I assume doesn’t check each organization or individual for verification. However, people couldn’t have opted in, so those who received this email must be on some other local list.
While some may want this to go away, many others want to get to the bottom of it, with good reason: everyone in the city wants THIS to be the bottom of what dirty political tricks are acceptable in this city.
Well said @Lisa Parlagreco and agree entirely!!
@Jane, yet another attempt to muddy the waters and connect Norton to the emails. I know it’s a convenient narrative for you, but there’s no evidence. Just making the connection over and over again doesn’t make it so.
@Sean Roche
You are being dishonest. It is obvious that supporting Trump in 2016, and finding tweets from that period, is very different than supporting Trump in 2020. Joking about Cote’s support for Trump years before Trump attempted a non-violent coup threatening our democracy is simply not relevant.
Trump is a traitor to this country. Supporting Trump is not acceptable under any circumstances. No different than supporting Hitler because you agreed with “some” of his other policies. Hitler’s actions were obviously more vile, but Trump threatened our democracy and crossed a line that none of us should tolerate under any conditions.
If Cote supports Trump, he is not fit for office.
You guys are squabbling over silly stuff while the very foundation of our country is at risk. It’s crazy how many of you have short memories, but we ALL should be supporting ALL activities to rid Trump supporters in ALL public capacities.
Cote is a disgrace for supporting Trump in 2020. This is not about being a Republican. Emily is fully within acceptable standards for sharing a FACTUAL and TRUTHFUL flyer about Cote’s Trump support.
@Jane-
With the constraints of a blog, I’ll try to answer succinctly. The 1st Amendment was primarily concerned with political speech directed toward or about government. An employee – like a student- doesn’t completely lose their 1st Amendment rights, but we aren’t concerned with the same type of speech or oppression by the government. So in the case of work, we ask is the employee engaged in a protected activity? Because various laws have been enacted to fill the gap to essentially extend protection to workplace speech eg a whistleblower, union organizing? There the employee is acting lawfully snd has protected rights. Or is the employee disseminating cartoons that are offensively critical of the administration (insubordination)? So, we really are talking about apples and oranges here when it comes to work place discipline versus political speech.
What is process to recall Emily Norton, just start the process and collect the signatures.
Dan- Newton’s charter does not have a recall process.
Lisa P –
You are a lawyer and concerned about the legalities of the incident. i understand that.
I ask that you understand other perspectives. I’m a longtime employee of the City of Newton and I’m not concerned about the legalities of this incident. My greatest concern is the fallout from this incident in the future on the workings of the local government in the future. If this behavior is okay for a sitting city councilor, is it okay for employees as well? Because in the past, legal or not, employees have been terminated for actions that are not illegal but are unethical.
The city charter does not have a recall provision.
Emily just sent a message on this matter to her newsletter distribution list.
ANYONE with something to say today needs to step back.
Jim brought this to the attention of the a police and we have been told told it’s being investigated by the DA.
We should let them do their job and wait to hear their results are.
If YOU have something to say today, YOU are what’s wrong with politics in Newton.
Until the investigation is complete ANYTHING said here today is frankly for your own amusement and damaging to the city.
Choose to be better. Please.
All:
I think I’ll say a few last points, and try to stay away from this for a bit.
Alec, you are doing more unfair reputational damage to Jim Cote. He has denied ever voting for Trump. (check out the Boston Globe article). At no point have I ever heard Jim say he was a Trump supporter, especially not once Trump was elected. To the contrary, he supported Jake and Kennedy from my recollection. So tying Jim Cote to Trump was part of the original issue, and why these actions ring so false to many of us.
Lisa P.: I respectfully disagree (although I do like your legal posts typically, even when I disagree). Don’t blame Village14 for starting a new post, it is Councilor Norton who changed the story by admitting it was her in the video.
She could have responded to Jerry that it was her, she could have posted a short post here that she was in the video and it was just passing out a last minute flyer and she drafted it (which is somewhat key to your legal post, which assumes some of the facts you need to make your case for a 1st amendment savings clause, ignoring the behavior being unbecoming of a city councilor of course). She also could have just apologized. A simple, look I take elections seriously, my friend was in danger of losing her seat, I went too far here, I apologize to Jim and his family. Instead she hung her supporters out to dry (lots of folks decided it wasn’t her, just someone who looked like her, Matt wasn’t the only one. How silly do they look for saying that after she admitted the truth?) It was only 4 days later that the truth comes out, and she admits it to the Globe.
One of the first rules of crisis management is to get all the facts on the table and if you want the story to go away, admit to the truth. Because the more you lie or hide the truth, the more the story comes back when the truth is revealed. So yes, the story is still a story, because previously no one was sure it was her, and folks denied it was her. Now we know that is NOT the case. That’s on her. Not us.
As for telling her to shake it off, my kids love that song. It is generally a good idea. But in your post focusing on the legal aspects, you are ignoring the very real reputational part of this story. Even if everything you say is true, the reality is that Jim Cote is a known quantity in Newton. People know who he is. Emily knew who he was too. He isn’t some firebrand Trumper. He’s a good man. When you do what Emily did, especially considering she is a city councilor, that she KNEW Jim, and should be above this type of behavior, people notice. This isn’t haters gonna hate, just ignore the haters. A lot of the folks upset about this aren’t Emily’s haters, they are folks who thought she was better than this.
In the words of a mentor of mine, if you decide to set your reputation on fire in the public square, don’t be surprised or upset if people gather to watch it burn.
Look, I think Emily Norton has done a lot for this city and the environment. And I think all of us are complex people and sometimes go overboard in our actions, go too far, take a wrong step. She is human, like all of us, and it is damn hard being a human being sometimes. I’m not trying to ruin her life or make her miserable. I’m not trying to be a hater. I think she owes Jim Cote an apology, and I’d like to see Newton politics become less hurtful and painful, both to watch and to participate in. I’d like her, and many of our elected officials, to do better. I don’t think that is too much to ask.
And with that, I’m done for a long while.
(and Lisa P., when I continue to hum Shake it Off at 11 pm tonight, I’m going to be upset with you)
Newtoner, did it contain an apology? Could someone post it here?
Here’s what Emily sent out this morning:
St. Emily, lol.
4Wdrive-My comment about the email list was misinterpreted. I stated that a local list was used and did not mean to imply that it was Ms. Norton’s list. Most likely, it was someone else’s and I hope an investigation will get to the bottom of that.
For those attempting to frame the dirty politics involved as normal, including Emily Norton, and true – because the tweets are real.
The first thing on the flyer isn’t “Vote for Julia,” it’s a grotesque picture of an angry Trump, fists raised, with an X through and enormous bold red letters saying
No Trump Republicans in the Newton City Council. (With Trump underlined and in Black.)
When I first saw it, it frightened me. It brought back the visceral feelings of seeing a crazy, angry, lying Trump on Jan 6. It may have done the same for some voters.
Jim Cote is nothing like Trump or even Trumpy, as Emily knows.
I’ve known Emily for many years as part of her constituency. Although she does wonders for those who need her in Newtonville, if you don’t agree with her in the public arena, she will do most anything to get her way including spreading lies. My first public disagreement with her was over Austin Street where she and others spearheaded the “they are taking away Newtonville’s municipal parking lot.”
So I’m not at all surprised that she carried out this underhanded ploy to garner votes for Julia or for any other of her cronies. I’m just surprised she got caught. She is as said very smart and I will add cunning.
@Fig
Big miss on my part. Just read the Globe article and the flyer more closely along with Cote’s twitter feed for the past few years (thankfully not too long).
Apologies to Jim Cote.
Labeling all Republicans as Trump Republicans is not accurate and a disservice to this country. As I wrote earlier, Trump is a unique threat to this country. Trying to using Trump as a political leverage against all Republicans muddies the issues, is dishonest and make it MORE likely he returns to office. We want Republicans to feel free to not support Trump and Norton’s (and others) efforts to lump them together makes it harder to rid ourselves of this traitor.
Jim, sorry this happened to you.
I’ve been a big supporter of Emily. She is a continual target here (Sean should not be allowed to post on Emily, he’s violated the community’s trust multiple times) and elsewhere. But this isn’t OK. As a supporter, I understand we all make mistakes, but an apology is in order. Unless she has evidence otherwise, labeling Cote a Trump Republican was a horrible mistake on her part. Getting rid of Trump should be the most important priority for everyone in this country. This ran counter to that.
Jim Cote has continued to work tirelessly for West Newton, even though he is no longer an elected official. He has a knack for factually explaining what is going on with respect.
I’ve known he is a Republican – the kind I grew up with way before the craziness between parties became animosity. National political parties are not supposed to be a part of local politics. I also know that Jim Cote has his heart in doing what’s best for West Newton and Newton as a whole.
I also know that he wouldn’t even consider pulling a dirty trick like Emily did.
At times I haven’t agreed with Emily’s positions, and then there are topics she led and I am thankful. When I email the Council, she responds quickly & thoughtfully — even when we have opposing views — and that means a lot. I wish this fiasco didn’t happen. I wish I didn’t feel like my neighbors were disrespected with an anonymous flyer. There are ways to reconcile with a community & acknowledge a mistake was made.
Alec, I know we often disagree with each other but thank you for posting that. I appreciate it and respect you for posting it.
Going back offline but I just wanted to say that before I left.
This whole incident makes my horribly sad. I’ve had to think about exactly why, though. I want to take some time to to explain it.
I supported Jim Cote in spite of his politics because I know Jim Cote, as a neighbor and community member. He is a good man, and he is not a bad man. That’s the benefit of local politics. While national politics pushes us towards caricatures, labels, and partisanship, we can actually talk to the people who seek to represent us and see them as people. We can get to know them beyond sound bites and political positions. Not everyone may have time for that, though, and others may find Jim’s membership in the Republican party or anything he says disqualifying. That’s democracy. I can only give my personal testimony for him.
As national politics have changed and Donald Trump took over his party, I see Jim Cote as basically staying Jim Cote, to the point that the City Republican Party effectively disowned him for “putting his lot in with the progressives”.
While I don’t know Councilor Norton as well as I know Jim, but I’ve had a chance to talk with her personally for the first time over the past year or so and have found it very rewarding. Her conservation work brings a unique perspective to the Council, in a time with climate and the local watershed are becoming urgently important from a public policy point of view. She’s also trusted by many people in the Newtonville and larger Newton community in a way that enfranchises them where they may otherwise feel their voices aren’t being heard.
And that brings me to my simple question: “Why?” Why do this? Councilors Norton and Cote were colleagues for six years, and friendly to each other if not friends from what I understand. Councilor Norton supported Councilor Cote in previous elections. Councilor Norton followed him on Twitter, so the she knew what he was saying over the span of many years. She new him as an ex-Marine, a parent and grandparent, a person active in his community and various charities, and a Republican.
But in this election, Jim Cote was running against Julia Malakie, who is likely more aligned with Councilor Norton on a variety of issues. Choices have to be made, and it was natural that Councilor Norton chose to support Councilor Malakie for reelection. It’s politics, and that’s what politicians do.
I’m sure it isn’t always easy. Effective politics involves building relationships with other elected members in spite of ideological differences. It’s what enables mutual trust, understanding, education, compromise, and ultimately progress. Those are personal relationships that they sometime clash with politics and ideology. The best and more effective politicians, and people, somehow find a balance between the two and don’t lose themselves in either one.
Although I see no evidence to support her view, let’s take Councilor Norton at her word that she didn’t just support Councilor Malakie but felt concern that Jim Cote, her former colleague, had become unsuitable to serve. Not just a choice between candidates (there were months to campaign for Julia Malakie), but a need to get out the word against Jim Cote.
For a cause of either such seriousness or such urgency, or both, neither Councilor Norton nor Councilor Malakie really raised this issue during the election, until the last couple of days. Then we have the flyer and the still unattributed viral email.
My critique comes down to one of judgment, “can” versus “should”. Was is necessary to target the person in this inflammatory way? Could this seemingly important message of unsuitability not been conveyed, even more effectively, by releasing a statement months ago saying, “I have worked with and previously supported Jim Cote with the knowledge of his Republican affiliation. Since Donald Trump hijacked the Republican Party and staged an insurrection against the United States, I have come to believe that some of Jim Cote’s past comments raise serious questions. I am supporting Councilor Malakie for reelection because she has been a terrific City Councilor.”
Instead of a principled statement like this that would at least acknowledge Jim Cote the human being and former colleague, at almost literally the last hour Councilor Norton chose a tactic that cast Jim Cote the person as extreme, a caricature of who he is, and explains it as a sudden epiphany. I simply don’t understand that.
“But it was all legal.” Legality is not the standard for acceptable behavior, merely the outer guardrails of what we agree is unacceptable. “Councilor Norton has been attacked unfairly so many times.” I believe the greatest leaders stand taller when they stand above the unfairness and adversity they have faced. In doing so, they lead us to a better place.
“Politics is a contact support, get over it.” I guess. But politics is a precursor to governing, and governing is dependent on trust. Councilor Norton may have bolstered her reputation as a fighter, but I can’t see how she becomes more effective as a member of legislative body built on personal relationships and trust. And this comes at a time where Councilor Norton’s unique experience and community connections are critically important. It’s a waste, and for no good reason.
I’ve compared this incident to shivving an old neighbor in an alley, and that really is how it feels to me. It was gratuitous political violence that simply wasn’t necessary. It’s a non-partisan Ward Councilor race that, if you believe the message Councilor Norton said she was trying to convey, should have been pretty easily been put in the bag with some conventional tough campaigning. Even if winning required caricaturing Jim Cote as out of the mainstream, It didn’t need this tactic. It moved the issue out of the realm of informed debate into the world of gotcha.
Ultimately it hurt or weakened everyone involved. A Ward Councilor should have the best relation with the most people in the ward to be most effective, and now that job’s just that much harder.
And scars like this last. Our actions set precedent. They trickle down to non-electoral interaction between us, where we have already seen increasing cries of unfairness and resulting alienation over several years. The next election will either be a referendum on tactics including ambush attacks like this, or it will be the repeat of them. I think we can do better.
@Jackson Joe – no, I don’t think she should have been ringing people’s doorbells late at night. I never said that I did. I said it was disingenuous of her to claim she was meeting people face to face to hand them the flyer – would it have been clearer if I’d said she was lying?
V14 has made Emily Norton Public Enemy No. 1 over the years because she doesn’t follow the wishes of big business or big developers. Instead Norton listens to her constituents and will stand up to the bullies on this blog.
If you don’t think Jim Cote is a Trump Republican you are sadly mistaken. One of the tweets has Cote congratulating Jeff Diehl-a major Trump supporter. Cote also cheers on the nomination to the Supreme Court of Amy Barrett. If you’re in favor of the Republicans packing the Supreme Court with conservatives who will take away a woman’s right to choose, eviscerate voting rights and eliminate gun control you’re a Trump Republican!!
If you watched the Channel 10’s coverage of this situation you heard the Newton Police report there were no laws broken. There are no election rules that prohibit a candidate labeling someone a Republican when they are a Republican.
I’m still waiting for V14 to launch a full scale investigation of City Council President Susan Albright for sending out a false statement slandering City Councilor Julie Malakie as anti LGBT to the entire West Newton list serve the day before the election. Where are the calls for Susan Albright to resign?
Emil Norton’s flyer was truthful. Susan Albright’s email was not. Can you believe the disparate treatment of the two?
I hope Emily Norton continues to stand up to the bullies on this blog and fights for her constituents. We need more people who represent the marginalized in our society and not the rich developers and their friends in big business.
Thank you.
I’ve been holding my tongue on this whole issue but the hypocrisy of everyone is unreal in a campaign it is absolutely fair game to point out what one candidate has said on Twitter or in the Newton Tab. These are his own words. If he didn’t want the world to see them, then why did he put them on Twitter? I’m more disappointed and disgusted with the fact the progressive of Newton knew this and turned a blind eye to his comments. Disturbing he was tweeting in support of trump and a “hunter Biden cover up” during dec 2020, when the country was in chaos and trump was attempting to steal the election. He left it on social media, Jim cote is no victim here
Emily: The Mayor and her friends at the Globe probably see you as her next challenger, so they’re trying to knee-cap you in advance. Politics at it’s finest. Please don’t lose any sleep over this … take it as a sign that those in power are taking you seriously.
@ Lisa…. You miss one thing that ties The flyers to the email. And that is Jerry’s original posting and follow ups from Sean. They should know better that they had no concrete proof that she was responsible for the email but they misled people into thinking that there was probably a connection. They may have done that unintentionally but they did it. If it turns out that she has nothing to do with the emails can they be charged with “involuntary slander”?
Sean and Jerry if you have any proof that Emily is responsible for the email you should produce it otherwise you should make a clarification to the community
Jackson Joe,
Please read (or re-read) me
herehere.Arthur Jackson, if we cast everyone who views things different than us, or we disagree with, as an extremist, then at some point the only people who will remain are the unabashed extremists.
@matt lai— side note re your statement that “Emily has been an effective councilor, speaking in support of affordable housing, but also defended Newton against overly dense housing.”
This drives me crazy. Emily is supposedly an environmentalist, and environmentalism 101 is that density is green. Opposing housing as “overly dense” is literally anti-environment. Newton’s NIMBYism continues to be shameful.
And for the record, her tactics were also shameful. Progressives don’t need friends like that.
Holly gets it exactly right.
Let’s not turn this into another pro/anti density discussion…
Newtoner,
Nobody’s “turning this into another pro/anti density discussion,” it’s what’s at the heart of this. Read Councilor Malakie’s comment.
I have no dog in this fight. Jim Cote seems to be an upstanding guy though I echo many here that supporting Trump the person is a guarantee to lose lots of votes. Emily Norton did something “dirty” and mean. Illegal? Unethical? I doubt it, but she surely has lost some respect.
PS: Why can people post anonymously? I think it degrades the level of discourse.
@Scott Wolf – some of the most polite and thoughtful people making comments use pseudonyms or just first names. Some of the least polite use full names. Same is true on some of my favorite other blogs. Given that we can’t guarantee that people using full names are using their real names, they may be pseudonyms for all I know. Please, let’s not rehash this argument again.
Who wants a political activist at their door after dark while they are trying to enjoy dinner with their family ? That is intrusive.. there are a lot of bloated egos on the City Council and School Committee…
#PretentiousNewton
Sean – That link goes to Julia’s comments not yours. I’m afraid that you and Jerry are incapable of seeing that you helped lead many people astray into believing that the email came from Emily. Like I said it may have been unintentional or maybe you don’t care. I think the proper thing to do would be to set the record straight not deny what happened after the postings
Jackson Joe,
Good catch. I updated the link. This is the correct comment.
@Alison D
Yes! I too found a lot of Cote’s tweets really despicable. Almost equally despicable were supposed progressives making excuses and being apologists for Cote’s Republicanism because they disagreed with Julia on development. The mental gymnastics were mind boggling and they’re still happening right now.
I think the methods used to attack Cote were really bad.
But the lengths that supposed progressives are going to in order to downplay Cote’s really awful tweets are awful in and of itself.
Frankly, as a Ward 3 voter I felt we had two unfortunate choices.
I begrudgingly voted for Julia after looking at Jim’s Twitter a while back.
@Holly LeCraw
The whole reason for density is because economics and business in general require a growing population.
By 2030 there will be close to 10 billion people on earth, many of them wanting a “western” life style.
We aren’t going to be able to “green” our way out of that conundrum.
As a matter of comparison there was about 2 billion people in the planet in the 1970s.
Good luck all.
https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/
Sean what’s laughable is that once again your unwavering misogyny is showing. You and the rest of village 14 have had it out for Emily for YEARS. Why? because she disagrees with you politically on housing, HOUSING. Emily Norton is an effective powerful woman in politics and she had the balls to stand up and call out Cotes trump apologist tone. So now you and your friends will go after a powerful woman’s job and reputation because it will push your political agenda just an inch further? Your obsession with this story has gotten out of hand. I mean seriously how many threads on this do we have now? I’m assuming basing off your tireless defense of Jim Cote you’re okay with his Hunter Biden tweet? have we forgotten what the country was like at that time? That exact day Trump asked SCOTUS to steal Texas for him, and Cote tweeted in support of his cause, Are you okay with that? Are you okay with what happened on January 6th? Are you okay with attempting to steal an election in front of the whole country? Why are we normalizing trump apologists in exchange for housing?#trumphasnoplaceinnewton
Alison,
If Councilor Norton had signed her name to the flyer, I don’t think I would have bothered with this whole episode (with the exception of one post, yet to be published). If she had, in her interview with Marcela García apologized, copped to a believable explanation, or either, I would have dropped the whole thing (with the exception of that one post, yet to be published). But, she didn’t sign the flyer. And, she made up an explanation that is completely at odds with demonstrable facts. And, she continues, with each turn, to continue to smear Jim.
Also, I’m pretty sure I have never defended Jim Cote. Quite to the contrary. I find his political affiliation abhorrent, while not denying that as a person he is very decent. But, I think personal decency is easier. His support for a party that is increasingly white-supremacist and authoritarian (and so much else) and the cruelty that results in outweighs any personal decency.
@Allison – each V14 blogger writes independently of the others. Most of us have never written a post about Emily; all of V14 is not out to get her or anyone else in Newton.
@Meredith
As I’m found of saying, perception is reality, and the anti-Emily tone on V14 is certainly my perception…
@Meredith – At least Sean deserves a little bit of credit for stating “There is no evidence connecting Councilor Norton to the emails.”
Unfortunately he couldn’t stop there right afterwards he says “Making Councilor Norton the victim here is what’s laughable.”
Hello if you make up untrue stories about someone they are a victim (too).
Rick is right that there seems to be more interest in promoting V14 as a propaganda mouthpiece than an outlet for open discussion of topics of interest. Bring back Greg….uh no
Please consider this thought-the attack on Emily Norton on this blog and by the Globe is all very Trump like.
Trump denied he was anti-Muslin when he banned Muslims. Trump denied he was anti-immigrant even though he regularly disparaged immigrants. It’s the Trump way. Deny the truth over and over.
Jim Cote is denying the truth of his own tweets. He denies he’s a Trump Republican yet his tweets indicate he supports the Trump agenda. Cote seems like a charming guy, but his tweets demonstrate a pro Trump position. If you can’t accept that, you’re fooling yourself.
Here’s another step out of the Trump playbook-attack the messenger. Trump regularity castigated the press because they reported the truth about his presidency. Now Cote and his supporters are attacking Norton for highlighting actual tweets from Cote.
It’s ironic that Cote claims he’s not Trumpy while following the Trump playbook.
Thank you.
“Emily Norton is an effective powerful woman in politics and she had the balls to stand up and call out Cotes trump apologist tone.”
“Had the balls…”? Let’s see now: she and her significant other printed an ANONYMOUS flier that was delivered at night under the cover of darkness hours before an election so that her policy buddy’s opponent had no opportunity to challenge; it took a nest video to ID her and a couple of days for her to own up to it. That sounds super brave and on the up & up. Right?!!! Give me a break…
Native Newtonian , she’s owned everything she did , she hasn’t wavered once, she didn’t hide her face and she even admitted to seeing and talking to people while doing this. Maybe you should change your name to naive Newtonian if you can see through the other side’s false narrative. Just because you disagree with what she did doesn’t mean she didn’t take a stand for something she believes in. Everyone is picking part my statement expect for the part about cotes behavior, when will he be held accountable for his disgusting narrative of his twitter?
She owned no action until she had to.
“Rick is right that there seems to be more interest in promoting V14 as a propaganda mouthpiece than an outlet for open discussion of topics of interest”
Are you kidding? I hear President Xi of China is considering hiring Sean to work for his Ministry of Propaganda.
By the way, I have sent Greg an updated drawing for their masthead but they don’t seem to want it. I mean, there’s nothing at the top of this page but 3 ( and a dormer) story buildings, a paperboy, and some older looking trolley cars.
Are they nostalgic, or just out of touch?
I updated it with Photoshop to include 5 and 6 story buildings, but apparently they’d rather keep the appearance of a “village” while turning it into a city.
But V14 keeps me entertained! Keep up the nuttiness!
Sean on another thread you agreed with the statement he’s a nice guy and didn’t deserve this but he was okay with Trump attempting to steal an election and was pushing out Fox News propaganda while it happened, so you are defending him. I’m watching everyone run in circles defending cote but seriously look at what’s happening in Braintree right now, so please answer my questions. Are you okay with his Hunter Biden tweet? have we forgotten what the country was like at that time? Are you okay with what happened on January 6th? Are you okay with attempting to steal an election in front of the whole country? because Cote sure as hell seemed to be towing the party line at that time.
Alison,
I have said both nice things about Jim and harshly critical things. I will not object to your characterizing that as defending him. Personally, I find it very challenging to be 100% consistent about Jim.
Clearly, Emily’s actions were wrong and divisive. Instead of promoting her preferred candidate she used character assassination to accomplish her mission. She damaged her own credibility and reputation as a result.
So … a theme I see …. ‘I don’t like person X so I’m perfectly good with and will defend person Y acting in an unethical way against person X.’
I would suggest that there are more and more people, on both sides of the aisle, that are adopting this stance. Sad.
I wish all trying to avoid getting pulled down into this moral morass the best.
Regardless whether Councilor Emily Norton survives this scandal of her own making, none of her colleagues will or should ever trust her again. Ever. She may not have committed political suicide, but she will almost certainly be banished to the political wilderness.