Marie Proulx Meder has a growing interest in what she calls “Mary’s Gardens,” outdoor statues of Mary, the mother of Jesus, usually in a special setting, often incorporating flowers.

Photo by Dave Roback / The RepublicanMarie Proulx Meder poses in her sister's Mary's Garden.

CHICOPEE--They catch her eye while she is driving along the highway and through neighborhoods.

Family members and friends tell her about them, and she has been known to knock at the doors of people she does not know to inquire about them, even photograph them.

Marie Proulx Meder has a growing interest in what she calls “Mary’s Gardens,” outdoor statues of Mary, the mother of Jesus, usually in a special setting, often incorporating flowers.

Stemming from her personal religious devotion, Meder’s growing hobby is rooted in the image she has in her mind’s eye of a statue of Mary visible from the Massachusetts Turnpike in Warren. She had long admired the statue as she passed by it in her travels.

After reading an article in The Republican about it and learning more, she became fascinated with searching out other Mary’s Gardens in yards throughout the region.

Her sister, Jeanne Hebert, who also lives in Chicopee, has a Mary’s Garden, and Alfred Brodeur, (who owned the statue visible from the turnpike) allowed Hebert and Meder to visit the statue in Warren. “Despite the noise of the (nearby) highway, (it) was so peaceful,” Meder said. “It truly felt like we were on holy ground.”

So far, Meder has photographs of 25 statues, most of them older statues, most at locations around Western Massachusetts.

She’s looking for more and planning to compile photographs and information about them into a book or booklet.

Her mother, Edna M. Proulx, of Chicopee, always kept a small statue of Mary on her bureau, and that nurtured Meder’s interest.

Her own name, Marie, is French for Mary. “So I thought, OK, I’m supposed to do this,” she said.

Meder, a Catholic, said many of her neighbors have statues of Mary in their yards; one is in a stone grotto built by the owner’s grandfather.

She prefers the older statues to new ones because they are “more individualized and more beautiful and different” than those which are mass produced today.

Meder has had the idea for the Mary’s Garden project for years, and last summer she began taking photographs of the various statues she found.

But for years as she traveled and has been photographing other statues with a particular interest in statues of Mary and her mother, St. Anne; she took photos of the statues at her former parish, St. Mary of the Assumption in Chicopee, before it closed.

Most of the Mary’s Garden statues she has photographed are at the homes of older people who placed the statues there as many as 50 years ago. “Riding around and seeing so many, I just became really fascinated and interested in how strong a devotion to Mary people had,” Meder said.

Since medieval times, flowers have taken their names from the virtues of Mary; hundreds of types were named after her and held as symbols of her life, mysteries and privileges associated with her and are particular favorites. They include the sunflower (Mary’s gold), impatiens (mother’s love), morning glory (Our Lady’s mantle), asters (Mary’s stars), geraniums (Lady beautiful), petunias (Our Lady’s praises), zinnias (The Virgin), tulips (Mary’s prayers), forget-me-nots (Mary’s beautiful eyes) and lily of the valley (Mary’s tears).

The book, “Mary’s Flowers: Gardens, Legends & Meditations,” by Vincenzina Krymow, has information about the legends that fostered such names. Readers can spend time with meditations they inspire and view 30 designs that bring each bloom to life.

Meder has not yet created her own Mary’s Garden because she has been looking for just the right statue. “I would love to find an older one,” she said.

Anyone interested in participating in her project can contact Meder by email at marysgardenproject@aol.com. 

Parents raised concerns about traffic on Walnut Street, where the school will be located.

View full sizeDrummey Rosane AndersonAn artist's rendering of the front facade of the planned new Elias Brookings Elementary School in Springfield.

View full sizeDrummey Rosane AndersonAn artist's rendering showing an aerial view of the planned new Elias Brookings Elementary School in Springfield.

SPRINGFIELD — The city has chosen a 3.5-acre site on Walnut Street for the new Elias Brookings Elementary School, set to replace the current building on nearby Hancock Street that was severely damaged by the tornado of June 1, 2011.

During a neighborhood meeting on Wednesday, city and school officials unveiled the schematic design of the new school in the Six Corners area, and said they will address concerns about traffic and student safety.

In addition, officials said they agree with residents that the plans and outreach efforts must encourage community uses of the new building both after-hours and with some programs during school hours.

Approximately 30 people attended the meeting at the JC Williams Center on Florence Street.

Rita L. Coppola-Wallace, the city’s director of capital asset construction, said the city is proposing to purchase land owned by Springfield College along with three homes and a small business to make room for the school. All are “friendly takings,” with the cooperation of the owners, and will need approval by the City Council, Coppola-Wallace said.

The $28 million school project is planned with up to 80 percent reimbursement of costs approved by the Massachusetts School Building Authority plus federal disaster aid still being calculated.

The new school will front Walnut Street, and will be bordered by Marshall and Hickory Street. In addition, part of Melrose Street would be closed to make room for the school property, under the plans.

The project includes a parking lot to the left of the school along Marshall and Melrose streets, and a play area and green space to the right of the school along Hickory. The building will range from one story to three stories high on the sloped parcel, and there will be an open-air, fenced rooftop play area, according to the plans unveiled by the city and its architect, Drummey Rosane Anderson of Newton Center.

Olivia Walter, a resident of Manhattan Street, who has two children attending Brookings, raised concerns about the speed of traffic on Walnut Street.

“As a parent, I need to make sure the kids are safe,” Walter said. “I feel like they are putting safety in a small box.”

Superintendent of Schools Daniel J. Warwick said safety and traffic will be addressed and will be a priority. He said the School Department will review traffic lights, signs and crossing with its safety officer and the Police Department.

Brookings Principal Terry Powe said the school has coped with the use of modular classrooms since the tornado.

The students and staff “are extremely excited” with the pending move to a new school, Powe said.

Neighborhood resident Anne Kandilis said the new school “is beautiful,” but said more action is needed to create a “full service community school” given existing problems in the neighborhood, including poverty.

School Committee members Christopher Collins, Barbara Gresham and Denise Hurst, and Ward 3 City Councilor Melvin Edwards attended the community meeting.

The map below shows the approximate location for the new Elias Brookings Elementary School:

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More than 200 workshops are offered over the three-day conference.

File photo by David Molnar / The RepublicanDale Perkins, of Rutland, hows how to hook up a New England "D" Ring Harness to his horse Gypsy during a demonstration at the 33rd Annual Northeast Organic Farming Associaiton Conference at Hampshire College in 2007. The 38th annual conference is this weekend at UMass.

AMHERST – A consumer advocate and a congresswoman who is also an organic farmer are the keynote speakers at the 38th annual Northeast Organic Farming Association conference that begins Friday and continues through to Sunday at the University of Massachusetts.

U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, a Maine democrat, and member of the Agriculture Committee in the U.S. Congress, will speak Friday night at 7:30 about the Local Farms, Food and Jobs Act bill she introduced to Congress.

“Chellie’s fantastic,” said conference spokeswoman Mindy Harris. Her visit “is very timely. We’re very lucky she’s coming…She is a bit of a local hero for us.”

Consumer advocate Jeffrey Smith will talk Saturday night at 7 about the health dangers of genetically modified organisms and healthier food choices. Both talks are in the Campus Center Auditorium.

People can attend just a talk for a cost of $15 at the door.

Smith will also be holding a preconference program Thursday from 1 to 5 in the Cape Cod Lounge called “Fighting GMO's: Training for Consumers, Community
Leaders, Activists, and Organizers.”

More than 200 workshops have been scheduled and many address the growing interest in the local food movement.

“People are definitely interested in growing local foods, living a sustainable life,” Harris said. There is so much interest in the eastern part of the state the association hired someone specifically to devise workshops to address that need.

The northeast chapter has between 1,100 and 1,200 members and Harris said the largest percentage are suburban gardeners and consumers, or people raising food for themselves. That interest continues to hike conference attendance, Harris said.

Some workshops are clustered to focus on particular areas of interest, Harris said.
For example, there a cluster focuses on farmers who have less then 10 years of experience. She said the association is trying to find ways to link young farmers with mentors.

Another group is catering to growers seeking to extend the farming season and another focuses on permaculture, or on those who want to farm with draft animals.
The conference also offers workshops geared for youngsters and teens as well as music and a contra dance

Conference registration is Friday from 7 to 9 a.m. and 11 to 7 p.m. at the Northeast Residential Area Courtyard at UMass. Saturday, registration is 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 4 to 7 p.m., and Sunday from 
 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. Costs vary depending on the number of days. Visit the conference Web site for more detailed information.

The city already has a 1 a.m. shutdown of entertainment in bars, including music, with exceptions granted by permit

File photo by Mark M. Murray / The RepublicanFat Cat Bar and Grill at 232 Worthington St., in downtown Springfield recently received permission to provide entertainment until 2 a.m.

SPRINGFIELD – Mayor Domenic J. Sarno said this week he is looking for discussion and a future public hearing regarding his recent request to the License Commission to consider an earlier closing hour for bars and clubs.

The mayor’s letter is scheduled for an initial discussion at the commission’s meeting Thursday at 5:30 p.m., at City Hall. However, there will be no decision on bar closing hours until there is a review of the mayor’s request and a public hearing, commission Chairman Peter L. Sygnator said.

Sarno enacted a 1 a.m. entertainment curfew in April that allows bars to stay open until 2 a.m., but requires them to shut off music and other entertainment at 1 a.m., unless they are granted a late-night entertainment permit.

Sarno said that a 1 a.m. closing of bars and other options deserve consideration in the goal of improving public safety.

The 1 a.m. closing suggested now by Sarno is a “natural progression,” he said.

“Any decisions or considerations I base solely on the public safety of residents, businesses affected, visitors and police officers,” Sarno said. “To me, it is a natural progression of the discussion I wanted on both sides of this issue exploring what other cities and towns and venues do.”

Some business owners, employees and patrons have criticized Sarno for the 1 a.m. curfew, saying it has harmed business financially, harmed the vitality of the entertainment district, and driven many customers to other communities. In addition, critics have said that closing bars or shutting down music early does not reduce crime. Sarno said the early statistics have indicated that the curfew is working to reduce late-night crime.

The License Commission is being asked to consider additional steps to improve public safety, he said.

“I want everyone to have a good time and feel safe when they come to Springfield, whether it’s the downtown or neighborhood bars where we have had some issues,” Sarno said.

In Northampton, the bars and clubs have a 1 a.m. closing time, unless the later hour is approved by that city’s License Commission. Approximately 20 bars and restaurants have permission for the 2 a.m. closing hour in Northampton, according to a recent summary.

In other business, the Springfield License Commission will consider a liquor license transfer at the Stonewall Tavern at 1716 Main St. to a new ownership group. Corporation at 1716 Inc., led by the New England Farm Workers Council and local businessman Ronald Krupke, has a purchase and sale agreement to buy the business.

It was the 1st meeting the Massachusetts Gaming Commission held in Western Massachusetts, a region that is immersed in a winner-takes-all competition for a casino.

SPRINGFIELD — Members of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission left Springfield today with some important lessons about casinos.

Stephen P. Crosby, the chairman of the five-member commission, helped lead a five-hour forum today at Western New England University on mitigating the effects of casinos, tourism and workforce development.

It was the first meeting the gaming commission held in Western Massachusetts, a region that is immersed in a winner-takes-all competition for a casino involving some of the biggest names in the casino industry.

Several casino companies sent representatives, including the Mohegan Sun, Hard Rock Entertainment, Ameristar Casinos and MGM Resorts.

Many panelists said it is key for casinos to be connected to other attractions and businesses in a region.

"If you don't sit these folks down, they will try to maximize their little box and keep everybody in the box," Crosby said about casino companies when asked about the comments of one panelist at the forum. "That's their business model – keep everybody in the box. We ... have to take the initiative to make sure that there is an incentive for them to look outward and figure out how to enhance the rest of the tourism industry."

Crosby and the four other gaming commissioners – Bruce Stebbins, Gayle Cameron, James McHugh and Enrique Zuniga – convened at the end of the forum to officially announce the commission is ready to accept initial applications from possible casino developers. Starting Thursday, developers seeking a casino license in Massachusetts can fill out a form and pay a $400,000, nonrefundable application fee to achieve the status of official applicant, allowing them to meet with state agencies about permits and letting communities know they are serious.

During the event, a top tourism official in a casino-rich area of Indiana told leaders in Western Massachusetts to come up with "a comprehensive game plan" when negotiating with casinos.

"Ten years from now, they won't know who you are and they won't care," Speros A. Batistatos, president of the South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority in Hammond, Ind., said about casino companies in general.

Batistatos and other panelists emphasized that communities need to find ways to link casinos to other entertainment attractions and to help other businesses in the region share in the economic advantages.

Outside Rivers Memorial Hall at the university, anti-casino advocates and a pro-casino group from Palmer both demonstrated before the forum started.

Springfield lawyer Michael T. Kogut said he is considering creating a political action committee to support the anti-casino side in a possible vote in Springfield.

"I do not believe it is going to offer the economic stimulus," Kogut, a Springfield resident for 28 years, said of a casino. "It's going to add to inherent urban problems."

The Republican | Michael S. GordonOpponents of a casino located in Springfield gather at the meeting site of a forum featuring members of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission at Western New England University Wednesday.

People in so-called host communities would vote in referendums on proposed casino deals before casinos apply for licenses from the gaming commission.

Kevin E. Kennedy, the chief development officer for Springfield who attended the forum, said it's possible that Springfield will receive multiple proposals for a casino.

Kennedy said a casino could help revitalize the downtown. He said any casino, including a proposal by Ameristar Casinos off Page Boulevard and Interstate 291, must be tied to the MassMutual Center, Symphony Hall and CityStage, for example.

"It's critical that the casino become part of the community," Kennedy said.

Last month, in one downtown proposal, two companies associated with Peter A. Picknelly, chairman and CEO of Peter Pan Bus Lines, submitted a proposal for an option to buy The Republican's Main Street building and property in Springfield and the newspaper's eight vacant acres on the Connecticut River. The two Picknelly-associated companies would like to develop a casino in the city's North End.

In a lesson that could hit home in Springfield, Batistatos, a panelist at the forum, said casinos in the city of Gary, Ind., hired thousands of workers, but those employees soon moved to the suburbs. They took their families, their paychecks and they left, he said.

Batistatos also advised that local businesses, including restaurants and banks, need to prepare for casinos possibly luring away their employees. He said businesses need to start thinking now about how to retain employees.

"Give them some love," he said, referring to employees.

When negotiating with casinos, communities should assure neighborhoods are improved, small businesses are developed and schools and residential housing are boosted, he said.

Under the state's gaming law, casinos will need agreements with communities where casinos would locate and with surrounding communities. The agreements could include payments from casinos or other methods to reduce the effects of casinos on areas such as traffic, education, water, sewer and public safety.

The Indiana visitors authority includes representation from five communities with waterfront casinos on Lake Michigan or an inlet including two in Gary, Ind. Indiana approved casinos in 1993.

Paul E. Burns, a Palmer town councilor, said Palmer is already negotiating with the Mohegan Sun, which is planning a casino off Exit 8 of the Massachusetts Turnpike. He said the town is making good progress.

Ultimately, he said, both the town and the Mohegan Sun will talk with leaders of surrounding communities.

"In many respects, a regional approach is the only approach in terms of mitigating this," said Burns, who attended the event.

One sticking point is that the commission needs to define what determines a surrounding community.

Crosby, the gaming commission chairman, said a surrounding community will likely be defined as one that would receive a "substantial negative impact on some aspect" of the municipality. He said most surrounding communities will be obvious.

"If a casino company has identified a site and is working on it already, a potential surrounding community would be well advised to call up and get talking," Crosby said. "If you have got an identified site, then I would say, yeah, they probably ought to be proactive."

Timothy W. Brennan, executive director of the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission, said a casino means regional impacts. Brennan said he would like the planning agency to facilitate regional talks on casinos. "I just see that as beneficial," said Brennan, who was a panelist and moderator at the event.

“She told me that she was sorry for everything,” Kennedy said in a statement that was part of a police file that was released.

Photo by Brian Snyder / Associated Press, poolThe late Mary Kennedy and her husband Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and arrive during funeral services for U.S. Sen. Edward Kennedy at the Basilica of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Boston in 2009.

By JIM FITZGERALD

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. – Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told a detective that on the day before his wife hanged herself, she called him to say “everything was her fault.”

“She told me that she was sorry for everything. ... She said that I was right about everything,” Kennedy said in a statement that was part of a police file released Wednesday.

Kennedy’s wife, Mary Richardson Kennedy, hanged herself May 16 in a garage on their Bedford estate. The statement from her husband – son of Sen. Robert Kennedy and nephew of President John Kennedy – was given the next day, the documents show.

Much of the file was blacked out before being released, and it was not clear what Mary Kennedy was referring to by “everything.”

When she died, the Kennedys were in the midst of a divorce and custody battle. They have four children.

An autopsy report showed Mary Kennedy had antidepressants in her system.

Her death sparked a battle between Kennedy and his wife’s siblings, who tried to take control of her remains and held their own memorial service. Kerry Lawrence, an attorney for the siblings, was on vacation Wednesday and could not be reached for comment, his office said.

In his statement, Kennedy said that during the May 15 phone conversation, his wife “told me that she needed me to take care of her.”

He described her as “a great person” and said he’d known her since she was 14.

Kennedy also described a May 16 search for his wife after the housekeeper, sounding “very scared,” called him to say she couldn’t find her in the house.

After he searched the attic and the shore of a lake, “I heard a lot of screaming coming from the garage,” he said. Someone told him not to go inside, but he did and saw his wife.

Kennedy’s details of the discovery were blacked out, but other papers in the file show that Mary Kennedy was found in black gym clothes. Three metal crates and a metal ladder were on the floor.

A statement from an unidentified employee says that on May 14, Mary Kennedy asked her “to pray for her, because she got more bad news from her lawyer.”

The employee told police she had noticed changes in Mary Kennedy and told Robert Kennedy, “She needs help. Bobby told me that she doesn’t want to help herself.”

To comply with the Endangered Species Act, the South Hadley Landfill is proposing to make up for the loss of habitat by improving the habitat of the pine barrens moth at another site.

SOUTH HADLEY — Builders who plan to disturb the habitat of a rare species can get legal permission to do so from the state, if they can “mitigate” their damage by improving habitat for the same species at a different site.

Now the Conservation Commission in South Hadley is trying to decide whether to approve a current mitigation plan by the South Hadley Landfill.

The landfill, which has been expanding vertically by building “berms” of trash, is about to enter the horizontal phase of its expansion.

The expansion will damage a priority habitat of the pine barrens moth, which is a “threatened” species, according to the Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program of the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife.

The species is found in only three sites in Western Massachusetts.

To comply with the Endangered Species Act, the landfill is proposing to make up for the loss of habitat by improving the habitat of the pine barrens moth at another site.

At this new site, the plan is to cut down trees the moth doesn’t feed on, and to let the pitch pine re-seed and thrive. The moth’s larvae feed on pitch pine needles.

The new site is in the Bynan Conservation area, which belongs to the town and serves hikers.

The landfill proposes cutting down 12 acres of white pine and hardwoods there. It also promises to fund management of the moth habitat at the new site for 10 years, with an account established for future management.

The landfill correctly worked through the permitting process with the Natural Heritage program, said Janice Stone, conservation administrator for South Hadley, but it should have consulted the town much earlier in the process.

Stone said it could take 25 to 35 years for a new generation of pitch pine to grow.

In the meantime, hikers would find a different landscape. “Right now it’s very woodsy,” said Stone, “but if it’s cleared, it would be hot and dry. We’re just concerned about what it’s going to look like along one of our main walking trails.

“We’re trying to balance the moth and passive recreation.”

Stone wants to make sure the mitigation project doesn’t do more harm. For example, the Conservation Commission wants to know if the landfill’s plan would affect other plants and animals.

The commission did not make any decisions at its meeting with landfill representatives last week, but will meet again after the proponents get answers to their questions from a Natural Heritage-approved biologist.

Some Republican strategists expressed chagrin at the favorable reference to the Massachusetts law that Romney signed.

File photo by Josh Reynolds / Associated PressMitt Romney's campaign national press secretary Andrea Saul is seen at the Romney campaign's Boston headquarters in June. Saul said Wednesday, a cancer-stricken woman featured in a Democratic ad would have had health care under the Republican presidential candidate's Massachusetts health plan.

By DAVID ESPO

WASHINGTON – Mitt Romney’s campaign fiercely protested a searing attack ad aired by allies of President Barack Obama on Wednesday, but drew expressions of dismay from conservatives when an aide to the former Massachusetts governor invoked the benefits of a state health care system he signed into law.

“If people had been in Massachusetts under Gov. Romney’s health care plan, they would have had health care,” spokeswoman Andrea Saul said in an interview on Fox News. The Republican presidential candidate himself rarely mentions the law, which contains a requirement to purchase health coverage similar to the one in the federal law that conservatives despise and he has vowed to repeal.

Saul volunteered her observation after sharply denouncing the ad. In it, which a grim-faced former steelworker, Joe Soptic, suggests that Romney and Bain Capital, the private equity firm he founded, might bear some responsibility for his wife’s death from cancer several years ago.

“It’s just despicable, to be honest,” Saul said of the commercial, which is aired by Priorities USA Action, a super PAC that supports Obama’s re-election. “Of course he doesn’t want to see ill come to anyone.”

Independent fact checkers judged the commercial harshly, sometimes unusually so.

Additionally, the Romney’s campaign alleged that the president’s campaign “lied repeatedly about its knowledge of the content” of the commercial. The allegations were denied.

Whatever the particulars, conservatives were quick to react to Saul’s remark about the health care law that Romney signed as governor of Massachusetts.

Conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh excoriated Democrats over the TV spot. But he added that the Romney aide’s remarks were “a potential gold mine for the Obamaites, because they can say, ‘Well, yeah, and Romneycare’s the foundation for our plan, Obamacare,’ which they are already out there saying.”

The back and forth over the commercial largely overshadowed the day’s campaign activities by the president and his challenger.

Romney campaigned in Iowa, where he drew a standing ovation for promising to repeal “Obamacare,” the derisive label that Republicans long ago hung on the law the president won from Congress.

“That doesn’t mean that health care is perfect,” he said. “We’ve got to some reforms in health care. And I have some experiences doing that, as you know.”

Obama was in Colorado, where he embraced the Obamacare tag in an appearance before an audience largely made up of women.

“I actually like the name because I do care,” he said. “That’s why we fought so hard to make it happen.”

The president’s campaign aides said throughout the day they had no connection with the controversial television commercial and added that they didn’t know the specifics of when Soptic’s wife became ill. But Soptic was featured in an ad the Obama campaign aired in May.

Republicans responded quickly with evidence of a conference call arranged last spring by Stephanie Cutter, a top aide in Obama’s campaign, in which reporters were given an opportunity to speak with Soptic.

Under federal law, the president’s campaign may not coordinate its activities with independent groups such as Priorities USA Action.

Privately, some Republican strategists expressed chagrin at the favorable reference to the Massachusetts law that Romney signed. One prominent conservative blogger, Erick Erickson of Redstate.com, wrote forebodingly that the episode “may mark the day the Romney campaign died.”

That seemed unlikely in the extreme.

Polls make the race a close one, to be decided in a battle for eight or so swing states where neither candidate has a decided edge. Key campaign events are yet to unfold, including national political conventions set to begin later this month, Romney’s selection of a vice presidential running mate, and a spate of campaign debates a few weeks before the election.

Romney has been outraising Obama in the competition for campaign cash in the past three months, and is backed by deep-pocketed super PACS that have vowed to spend heavily to help him win the White House.

Ironically, given the events of the day, Democratic outside groups have generally struggled to keep pace with those aligned with Romney.

The Obama campaign refused to call on Priorities USA Action to pull the ad. Bill Burton, a former White House aide and co-founder of the group, defended it.

In the ad, Soptic says that the plant where he worked was closed by Romney and Bain in 2001. “I lost my health care, and my family lost their health care. And a short time after that my wife became ill. I don’t know how long she was sick and I think maybe she didn’t say anything because she knew that we couldn’t afford the insurance.”

By the time she went to the hospital, he added, she was found to have cancer and died 22 days later.

“I do not think Mitt Romney realizes what he’s done to anyone,” Soptic says, “and furthermore I do not think Mitt Romney is concerned.”

Romney has long said he left Bain Capital in 1999 to take over the management of the troubled 2002 Salt Lake Olympics Games.

Associated Press writers Steve Peoples in Iowa, Julie Pace in Colorado, Kasie Hunt in New York and Matthew Daly in Washington contributed to this report.

A lawsuit filed against the commonwealth argued that Massachusetts was failing to comply with a federal law requiring people to have the opportunity to register to vote when they sign up for public assistance.

File photo by Bizuayehu Tesfaye / Associated PressU.S. Sen. Scott P. Brown is seen with his wife, former WCVB-TV reporter Gail Huff at a gathering in Boston last month.

By STEVE LeBLANC

BOSTON – Republican U.S. Sen. Scott Brown is faulting Massachusetts officials for agreeing to send out voter registration letters to nearly half a million welfare recipients as part of a court settlement.

In a statement Wednesday, Brown portrayed the effort as an attempt to give Democrats an advantage in the November elections, including his Democratic rival, Elizabeth Warren.

Warren campaign manager Mindy Myers called Brown’s claim “bizarre.”

The letters cost about $276,000 to send and were part of an agreement the state made after several groups filed a lawsuit in federal court.

The lawsuit argued that Massachusetts was failing to comply with a federal law requiring people to have the opportunity to register to vote when they sign up for public assistance.

“I want every legal vote to count, but it’s outrageous to use taxpayer dollars to register welfare recipients as part of a special effort to boost one political party over another,” Brown said in a written statement.

“This effort to sign up welfare recipients is being aided by Elizabeth Warren’s daughter and it’s clearly designed to benefit her mother’s political campaign,” Brown added.

Warren’s daughter, Amelia Warren Tyagi, sits on the board of the New York-based think tank Demos, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit. Similar lawsuits have been filed in other states.

Warren’s campaign disputed Brown’s claims, saying the 1993 National Voter Registration Act requires states to designate as voter registration offices those state offices that provide public assistance.

The law is known more commonly as the “motor voter” law because it also made it easier for people to sign up to vote when visiting registry of motor vehicle offices.

“Let’s be very clear – Republican Scott Brown’s baseless attack on Elizabeth’s daughter is ridiculous. His entire attack is built on efforts in multiple states to enforce a law passed almost 20 years ago with bipartisan support,” Myers said.

“For Brown to claim this is some kind of plot against him is just bizarre,” Myers added, saying Warren is very proud of her daughter’s efforts.

The lawsuit was also pushed by New England United for Justice, which describes itself as a non-partisan organization working to “educate low income families on how their voice impacts our communities through voting.”

The story was reported by the Boston Herald on Wednesday.

State officials defended the decision to send out the voter registration letters, saying it was necessary to comply with federal law. The state has also agreed to run public service announcements and equip welfare office waiting rooms with television screens explaining how to vote.

“Voting is one of the most important civic duties and helping our agencies comply with the National Voter Registration Act is a top priority,” Executive Office of Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary Marilyn Chase said in a statement.

Brown said the effort to register more welfare recipients “means that I’m going to have to work that much harder to get out my pro-jobs, pro-free enterprise message.”

A group of veterans from Westover Air Reserve Base have repeatedly been denied benefits after learning they flew planes that had been contaminated with Agent Orange.

Photo by Maika Elan / Associated PressVo Thi Thuy Nga, 24, left, and her uncle Vo Duoc sit inside their home in Danang, Vietnam, on Tuesday. She was born with physical and mental disabilities that a rehabilitation center's director said were caused by their parents' exposure to the chemical dioxin in the defoliant Agent Orange. Washington was slow to respond, but on Thursday the United Stats for the first time will begin cleaning up leftover dioxin that was stored at the former military base, now part of Danang's airport.

By MIKE IVES

DANANG, Vietnam – Vo Duoc fights back tears while sharing the news that broke his heart: A few days ago he received test results confirming he and 11 family members have elevated levels of dioxin lingering in their blood.

The family lives in a two-story house near a former U.S. military base in Danang where the defoliant Agent Orange was stored during the Vietnam War, which ended nearly four decades ago. Duoc, 58, sells steel for a living and has diabetes, while his wife battles breast cancer and their daughter has remained childless after suffering repeated miscarriages. For years, Duoc thought the ailments were unrelated, but after seeing the blood tests he now suspects his family unwittingly ingested dioxin from Agent Orange-contaminated fish, vegetables and well water.

Dioxin, a persistent chemical linked to cancer, birth defects and other disabilities, has seeped into Vietnam’s soils and watersheds, creating a lasting war legacy that remains a thorny issue between the former foes. Washington has been slow to respond, but on Thursday the U.S. for the first time will begin cleaning up dioxin from Agent Orange that was stored at the former military base, now part of Danang’s airport.

“It’s better late than never that the U.S. government is cleaning up the environment for our children,” Duoc said in Danang, surrounded by family members sitting on plastic stools. “They have to do as much as possible and as quickly as possible.”

The $43 million project begins as Vietnam and the U.S. forge closer ties to boost trade and counter China’s rising influence in the disputed South China Sea.

Although the countries’ economic and military ties are blossoming, progress on addressing the dioxin legacy has been slow. Washington still disputes a claim by Hanoi that between 3 million to 4 million Vietnamese were affected by toxic chemicals sprayed by U.S. planes during the war to eliminate jungle cover for guerrilla fighters, arguing that the actual number is far lower and other environmental factors are to blame for the health issues.

That position irks Vietnamese, who say the United States maintains a double standard in acknowledging the consequences of Agent Orange.

The U.S. has given billions of dollars in disability payments to American servicemen who developed illnesses associated with dioxin after exposure to the defoliant during the Vietnam War.

A group of veterans from Westover Air Reserve Base in Chicopee, Mass., have repeatedly been denied benefits after learning they flew planes that had been contaminated with Agent Orange.

From 1972 to 1982 mechanics and air crews worked on and flew on C-123 Providers that had also been flown during the Vietnam War. Nearly two years ago they learned some of the planes they flew had been used to spray Agent Orange during the war.

Surface samples taken in 1994 on one former Westover plane came back saying it was “highly contaminated.” In 1996 – 14 years after the planes were flown at Westover – 17 planes tested positive for dioxin.

But an Air Force study released in April said it was unlikely for air crews and mechanics to have fallen ill from being exposed to dioxin and said the tests were too few, too limited and too late to prove exposure.

The veterans, many of whom still live in Western Massachusetts, are continuing to fight to be eligible for benefits.

In 2004, a group of Vietnamese citizens filed suit in a U.S. court against companies that produced the chemical, but the case was dismissed and the Supreme Court declined to take it up.

Until a few years ago, Washington took a defensive position whenever Agent Orange was raised because no one had determined how much dioxin remained in Vietnam’s soil and watersheds, and the U.S. worried about potential liabilities, said Susan Hammond, director of the War Legacies Project, a U.S. nonprofit organization that mainly focuses on the Agent Orange legacy from the Vietnam War.

“There was a lot of the blame game going on, and it led nowhere,” Hammond said by telephone from Vermont. “But now at least progress is being made.”

Over the past five years, Congress has appropriated about $49 million for environmental remediation and about $11 million to help people living with disabilities in Vietnam regardless of cause. Experts have identified three former U.S. air bases – in Danang in central Vietnam and the southern locations of Bien Hoa and Phu Cat – as hotspots where Agent Orange was mixed, stored and loaded onto planes.

The U.S. military dumped some 20 million gallons of Agent Orange and other herbicides on about a quarter of former South Vietnam between 1962 and 1971.

The defoliant decimated about 5 million acres of forest – roughly the size of Massachusetts – and another 500,000 acres of crops.

The war ended on April 30, 1975, when northern Communist forces seized control of Saigon, the U.S.-backed former capital of South Vietnam. The country was then reunified under a one-party Communist government. Following years of poverty and isolation, Vietnam shook hands with the U.S. in 1995 and normalized diplomatic relations.

Since then, the relationship has flourished and the two countries have become important trading partners. Military ties have also strengthened, with Vietnam looking to the U.S. amid rising tensions with China in the disputed South China Sea, which is believed to be rich in oil and gas reserves and is crossed by vital shipping lanes.

Although Washington remains a vocal critic of Vietnam’s human rights record, it also views the country as a key ally in its push to re-engage militarily in the Asia-Pacific region. The U.S. says maintaining peace and freedom of navigation in the sea is in its national interest.

The Agent Orange issue has continued to blight the U.S.-Vietnam relationship because dioxin can linger in soils and at the bottom of lakes and rivers for generations, entering the food supply through the fat of fish and other animals.

Vietnam’s Ministry of Defense and the U.S. now plan to excavate 2.5 million cubic feet of soil from the airport and heat it to a high temperature in storage tanks until the dioxin is removed. The project is expected to be completed in four years.

Walter Isaacson, CEO of the Washington-based Aspen Institute, said Thursday’s start “marks the coming together of our two countries to achieve a practical solution to dioxin contamination.”

His organization coordinates the U.S-Vietnam Dialogue Group on Agent Orange/Dioxin, which connects prominent American and Vietnamese scientists, health experts and former officials.

Jeanette Deforge, a staff writer for The Republican, contributed to this report.

What began in that little house on College Highway that remained in use as the town’s public library until 1999 has blossomed into a modern facility on Route 57.

Photo by Manon MirabelliBrett Outchcunis, "the yoyo guy," spins a yo-yo top on the head of James O. Macknight, 7, of Granville, who was among the crowd of children and adults who celebrated the 120th anniversary of the Southwick Public Library last month.

SOUTHWICK – The town’s library was founded in 1891 in a private residence that offered the public 1,300 volumes by 1898. Today, the 12,000-square-foot, 120-year-old institution boasts more than 50,000 works.

The 1891 founding date of the first public library came 121 years after the town was incorporated in 1770. Recently, the Southwick Public Library, its patrons, supporters, state and local officials celebrated the library’s 120th anniversary with a presentation, entertainment for children, a birthday cake and free yo-yos and interactive performance.

What began in that little house on College Highway that remained in use as the town’s public library until 1999 has blossomed into a modern facility on Route 57 that serves the community with 51,841 books, DVDs, CD books, music titles and children’s books.

“A lot has changed over the years, but the important thing is for children and adults to take advantage of what the library has to offer,” said Town Chief Administrative Officer Karl J. Stinehart, who was among the dignitaries who celebrated the occasion.

In addition to Stinehart, the celebration was attended by state Rep. Nicholas A. Boldyga, R-Southwick; state Sen. Michael R. Knapik, R-Westfield; selectmen, representatives for U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield; U.S. Sen. Scott Brown, R-Mass; visitors; and children enrolled in a summer reading program.

Also present were Peter Heap, president of The Friends of Southwick Public Library, and Michael McMahon, chair of the Southwick Public Library Board of Trustees.

“The library started in a small building across the street from the Southwick Inn,” McMahon said. “Today, we’re celebrating 120 years of service to the town.”

Library Director Ann M. Murray said the library offers programming for children, young adults and adults, as well as instructional programs and relaxation.

“Today’s celebration underlined the importance of the library as a multi-resource venue,” she added. “It’s no longer just a place to get books. It’s become a center – a hub, if you will – that fosters a sense of community.”

The celebration was highlighted with a performance from Brett C. Outchcunis, of Franklin, professional yo-yo trickster, who delighted the crowd with his skill, which included hula-hooping while spinning a yo-yo top in his hand. 

A trial date was set after a brief hearing.

Associated Press file | Stephan SavoiaDouglas Kennedy, lower right, is seen at the 1998 funeral of Michael Kennedy in Centerville. Also in the photo are, clockwise from lower center, Michael's son, Michael Jr., Timothy Shriver, Robert Kennedy Jr., Joseph Kennedy, Stephen Kennedy Smith, and Douglas.

MOUNT KISCO, N.Y. — A judge is due to rule on what evidence must be made available to a son of the late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy in connection with a maternity ward scuffle.

Douglas Kennedy is expected Thursday in Mount Kisco town court. He has pleaded not guilty to physical harassment and child endangerment.

The charges stem from Kennedy's Jan. 7 attempt to take his 2-day-old son from the maternity ward at Northern Westchester Hospital in Mount Kisco. Nurses tried to stop him, citing hospital policy, and two claim he injured them.

Kennedy says he wanted the baby to get some fresh air.

At a hearing in June, he requested information from the hospital, including medical and personnel records. The hospital resisted and the judge said he would rule by Thursday.

According to NewCity Patch.com, a trial date was set for Oct. 22 following a brief hearing.

The judge also denied most of Kennedy's requests for access to hospital records. But he said the hospital should turn over its written policies about taking a baby from the hospital.

Residents complained about excessive litter, graffiti and vandalism at the parks.

The Republican file photo | Don TreegerFour people play basketball at Szot Park. The hoops have since been removed by the Parks and Recreation Department because of complaints of litter and vandalism.

CHICOPEE — The City Council is asking for a meeting with the Parks and Recreation Committee after hearing complaints that department officials removed basketball hoops from three parks in the city.

“I have had phone calls from people who are for and who are against removing them from the parks,” City Councilor Frank N. Laflamme said. “I want to find out what is happening.”

Laflamme said he has mixed feelings about the attempt to cut down on vandalism and littering in the parks by removing the hoops.

“I know there is a lot of vandalism. At the same time I think our residents are missing out,” he said.

About a week ago the Parks and Recreation Department removed the basketball hoops at Dana Park on Newbury Street, Lincoln Grove Park on Broadway and Szot Park off Front Street, the city’s biggest park, Stanley J. Walczak, parks and recreation superintendent, said.

There were few problems at the rest of the parks so the hoops remain there, he said.

“There have been problems at several basketball sites with litter, graffiti, damage to hoops and nets,” Walczak said

Walczak said he personally visited the three parks where they were having problems and talked to the players and asked them to keep the parks clean. Despite that discussion, parks employees day in and day out have had to return to pick up empty plastic bottles and other trash left behind, even though there are several barrels at each court.

Even the basketball rims and backboards have been damaged and sprayed with graffiti. It costs about $150 to replace each rim.

Although some have complained, Walczak said many neighbors have thanked the Parks Department for removing the hoops.

“When we took the basketball hoops down the problems stopped. Where they were taken down people are very happy,” he said.

Walczak said he has been working with the police department, but wants to build the relationship and find ways to prevent problems or at least catch them as soon as they happen so they don’t escalate when the hoops are returned.

City Councilor James K. Tillotson endorsed the meeting, saying there needs to be more discussion on monitoring the parks.

“We need to figure out how to control the parks so everyone can be safe,” he said.

Here are some highlights from Day 13 in London.

Here are some highlights from Day 13 in London.

The U.S. women's soccer team won the gold medal, avenging one of its most painful defeats with a 2-1 victory over Japan. Carli Lloyd scored in the eighth and 54th minutes for the Americans, who lost to the Japanese in penalty kicks at last year's World Cup final. The U.S. team has won three consecutive Olympic titles, and Lloyd delivered the winning margin for the second straight Olympics. [VIEW PHOTOS]

» MORE: Gold-medal soccer match the most electric moment of today's Olympic events (The Oregonian)

Jamaica's Usain Bolt, center, Jamaica's Yohan Blake, left, and Jamaica's Warren Weir celebrate their medals in the men's 200-meter final during the athletics in the Olympic Stadium at the 2012 Summer Olympics, London, Thursday, Aug. 9, 2012. Bolt won gold, Blake silver and Weir bronze. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

TRACK AND FIELD

Ashton Eaton won the decathlon gold medal and Trey Hardee got the silver in a 1-2 finish for the United States. Leonel Suarez of Cuba took the bronze.

» MORE: Ashton Eaton just 'taking care of business' (The Oregonian)

Christian Taylor won the triple jump gold medal, overtaking U.S. teammate Will Claye with his fourth jump in the final. Taylor, the world champion, earned the Olympic title with a best jump of 17.81 meters.

American Manteo Mitchell ran the last 200 meters of the opening lap of the 4x400-meter relay preliminaries with a broken leg. He said he felt a pop in his left leg but still finished the lap in 46.1 seconds and helped the Americans to a tie for first with the Bahamas in 2 minutes, 58.87 seconds.

The United States' Claressa Shields, celebrates after winning her fight against Russia's Nadezda Torlopova, during the women's middleweight 75-kg boxing gold medal match at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Thursday, Aug. 9, 2012, in London. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

The U.S. women's basketball team faced its first challenge of the Olympics, but found a way to beat Australia and advance to the final.

Trailing
early in the second half, coach Geno Auriemma turned to his Olympic
rookies and the group — led by Tina Charles and Lindsay Whalen —
pressured Australia into turnovers and bad shots. That led to a pivotal
scoring run in the third quarter of an 86-73 victory. [VIEW PHOTOS]

WATER POLO

The United States won its
first gold medal in women's water polo, getting five goals from Maggie
Steffens and a sterling performance from goalkeeper Betsey Armstrong to
cruise to an 8-5 win over Spain.

According to the Department of Environmental Protection, 13 odor complaints were confirmed between February 14 and June 4, and seven more by July 27.

The Republican file | Dave Roback This is a view of the South Hadley landfill, as seen in December.

SOUTH HADLEY – The South Hadley landfill has been fined $20,693 by the state Department of Environmental Protection for creating “nuisance odors.” The state has charged it with violations both “willful” and “part of a pattern of non-compliance.”

The landfill, operated by Interstate Waste Services, is allowed 21 days to appeal.

According to the Department of Environmental Protection, 13 odor complaints were confirmed between February 14 and June 4, and seven more were confirmed by July 27.

The notice of the fine quotes a business owner near the landfill as saying that on July 25 her customers were gagging from the odor.

Complaints about the smell have been ongoing, with Interstate Waste describing repeated efforts to contain it.

On July 17, Interstate vice president for environmental management Mark Harlacker told the South Hadley Selectboard that the company was installing 12 new gas wells and laying down permanent capping which should alleviate the smell by August.

The town recently established an Landfill Advisory Committee composed mostly of residents, who complain not only of the smell but also of noise and dust created by the landfill.

Residents from the area have gone before the Selectboard and the Board of Health several times to report their experience.

“As a group,” said their spokeswoman Christine Archambault, “we’re very optimistic that (South Hadley) wants to do its best for the entire town.”

On Tuesday, the Selectboard appointed Suzanne Cordes, an outspoken critic of landfill expansion in South Hadley, to the town’s Board of Health. Expansion was approved in 2009.

Cordes previously gave a Power Point presentation to the Selectboard that paid particular attention to the berms, or towers of trash.

At Environmental Protection, spokeswoman Catherine Skiba said a crack in one berm has been “critically evaluated,” but her department was still monitoring it and still waiting for more information from a third-party inspector. Archambault said a second crack has since appeared.

Thomas Fields, operator of the landfill, was laid off by Interstate Waste on Tuesday.

When asked if his layoff was due to the DEP fine, he said, “I have no idea.

“I was in the hospital for a week for an eye condition,” said Fields. “On the day I got out the hospital, I got laid off.”

A group led by the New England Farm Workers Council was granted a liquor license to take over the Stonewall Tavern, with plans to termporarily close and fix up the site.

The Republican | Mark M. MurrayThe license for the Stonewall Tavern on Main and Gridiron Street in Springfield has been transferred to the New England Farm Workers Council.

SPRINGFIELD — The License Commission, asked by Mayor Domenic J. Sarno to consider a new 1 a.m. closing hour for bars and clubs, voted Thursday to wait until Jan. 31 to conduct a public hearing on the issue.

In other action, the commission voted unanimously to transfer the liquor license at the Stonewall Tavern on Main Street – the smallest bar in Springfield – to a corporation led by the New England Farm Workers Council, which owns the adjacent Paramount Theater building. The new owners plan to temporarily close the bar, beginning in about six weeks, to allow for alterations and cleanup.

Both issues surfaced during the commission’s regular meeting at City Hall.

Some commission members, including Raymond Berry and Orlando Ramos, said they favored waiting until January to conduct the hearing on the proposed 1 a.m. closing, so they could receive more statistics on late-night night crime and have those statistics gathered over a longer period of time.

Currently, bars and clubs are allowed to stay open until 2 a.m., but must shut off the entertainment including music and television sets, at 1 a.m., unless they have a late-night entertainment permit.

The 1 a.m. entertainment curfew was imposed by Sarno in April, under the stated purpose of reducing late-night crime, improving public safety and reducing a strain on police resources. While Sarno said that early statistics show the curfew is reducing crime, critics say the curfew has hurt nightclubs, has sharply reduced revenues, and are causing patrons to bring their business to other communities.

Commission Chairman Peter L. Sygnator said that crime statistics are just one factor that should be weighed by the commission in considering the mayor’s new proposal to shut down bars at 1 a.m. citywide.

The vote was 4-1 to schedule the public hearing on Jan. 31. Commission member Robert Casey was opposed, saying he believes it would be unfair to close bars early citywide based on late-night crime statistics in the downtown.

The hearing date was approved by Sygnator, Berry, Ramos and member Denise M. Kelcey.

Regarding the Stonewall Tavern, the liquor license was granted to the Corporation at 1716 Inc., but will not be final until approved by the state Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission.

The tavern is 592 square feet, has 14 stools, and is one of the oldest licensed bars in Springfield, according to local officials.

The Corporation at 1716 Inc., which includes the Farm Workers Council and local businessman Ronald Krupke, has a purchase and sale agreement to buy the Stonewall Tavern business, and plans to lease the building from Amtrak, the owner, and make interior and exterior changes.

Heriberto Flores, president of the corporation and the Farm Workers Council, and their lawyer, Thomas J. Rooke, said they anticipate the bar will close in about six weeks, and stay closed for three or four months during alterations and clean-up. It is possible it will change to a private club with membership, Flores said.

State police said the driver of a tractor trailer truck was in the breakdown lane when the truck was struck from behind by McCurry’s vehicle.

File photo by Dave Roback / The RepublicanTraffic backs up at the entrance to the Massachusetts Turnpike on Route 202 in Westfield. Gov. Deval Patrick is considering a plan that would eliminated the need for toll collectors and the current transponder system that some people use.

This is an updated version of a story posted at 4:15 this afternoon.

PALMER - A Monson man was charged with leaving the scene of an accident and operating under the influence of liquor, second offense, after he fled the scene of an accident on the Massachusetts Turnpike Thursday afternoon.

State police said Michael McCurry of Monson was apprehended by state police near the accident scene.

The accident, which occurred at 1:45 p.m. in the westbound lane of the turnpike, backed up traffic for 10 miles on the turnpike.

The turnpike was reopened by 4 p.m.

State police said the driver of a tractor trailer truck was in the breakdown lane when the truck was struck from behind by McCurry’s vehicle.

McCurry was driving a 2010 Honda from Curry Honda in Chicopee where he was employed as a general sales manager, state police said.

The car was in pieces across the road.

McCurry was treated and released from an area hospital, state police said.

The driver of the tractor trailer had no serious injuries, police said.

Squaring off at the Western New England University School of Law, the candidates split on whether the clerk needed a law degree to as a minimum requirement for the $110,000-a-year post.

The four Democratic candidates for Clerk of Courts of Hampden Superior Court are, clockwise from top left, Thomas M. Ashe, Laura Gentile, Linda A. Stec DiSanti and John P. DaCruz.

SPRINGFIELD – Four Democratic candidates for the Hampden Superior Court clerk’s post clashed over qualifications for the job during a debate Thursday, but agreed on the need to expand technology in the state court system.

Squaring off at the Western New England University School of Law, the candidates were split on whether a law degree should be a minimum requirement for the $110,000-a-year post.

The two lawyers – John P. DaCruz, a Ludlow selectman, and Laura S. Gentile, of Springfield, an assistant Superior Court clerk – argued that the job’s complexities demanded legal training, while the non-lawyers – Springfield City Councilor and former School Committee member Thomas M. Ashe, and Linda A. DiSanti, of Chicopee, a legal administrator and law office manager for the past four decades – said management and budgetary experience were crucial for the job.

Holding up the 1,907-page Massachusetts Rules of the Court, 2012 edition, DaCruz pointed to the title and said, “You have to know them, and to do that you have to be a lawyer.”

Gentile noted that she had legal training, plus 15 years experience in the clerk’s office. “The only real issue is who is more qualified,” Gentile said, adding later “it takes years to know and understand the procedures.”

But DiSanti pointed out that not only is current Hampden Clerk of Courts Brian Lees not a lawyer, but the clerks in Franklin and Berkshire also lack law degrees, as does the clerk overseeing criminal cases in Suffolk County.

The three other candidates agreed with DaCruz’s emphasis on upgrading the technology in state court, especially putting case filings, schedules and other matters online, a practice used by the federal court system.

Ashe, the Worcester County Sheriff’s director of community correction, said that funding for any technology upgrade would have to come from the state Legislature.

He said he had the “political know-how” to work with state leaders, as well as the practical management skills to run the 23-employee office.

The debate – held at the Blake Law Center – was moderated by Arthur D. Wolf, director of the school’s Institute for Legislative and Governmental Affairs.

The candidates fielded questions from lawyers Marie P. Grady, of Agawam, and Jeffrey E. Poindexter, of Wilbraham.

The Democratic primary is Sept. 6, with no Republican candidates seeking the post.

“I don’t know whatever happened to a campaign of ‘hope and change,’” Romney said, a mocking reference to the spirit of optimism that Obama evoked four years ago.

Associated Press photosPresident Barack Obama, left, talks to supporters during a campaign rally at Colorado College in Colorado Springs, Colo., Thursday, while his Republican opponent Mitt Romney is seen leaving a finance event on the Upper East Side of Manhattan that day.

By JULIE PACE
and DAVID ESPO

PUEBLO, Colo. – Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama both deplored the pervasive presence of televised attack ads in the race for the White House on Thursday, though neither acknowledged being helped as well as harmed. Each blamed his foe.

Romney went first, saying of the president’s campaign, “They just blast ahead” with ads that have been judged false by independent fact checkers.

“I don’t know whatever happened to a campaign of ‘hope and change,’” he said, a mocking reference to the spirit of optimism that Obama evoked during his successful run for the White House in 2008.

Obama ignored the slap. He told an audience in Colorado that “over the next three months, you will see more negative ads,” and he suggested the blame lies with outside groups backing his rival.

“I mean, these super PACs, these guys are writing $10 million checks and giving them to Mr. Romney’s supporters,” he said.

Obama spoke as his own campaign unleashed yet another in the attack ad category, this one questioning whether there was ever a year in which Romney paid no federal taxes. ‘We don’t know,” the announcer says, then quickly adds that Romney once “personally approved over $70 million in fictional losses to the IRS as part of ... one of the largest tax avoidance schemes in history.”

Romney broached the subject two days after the release of a searing ad in which a former steelworker appears to suggest that he and Bain Capital, the private equity firm he owned, might bear some responsibility for the man’s wife’s death from cancer. The ad is the work of Priorities USA Action, a group that supports Obama, and it has been judged inaccurate by independent fact checkers and attacked vociferously by aides to the GOP presidential challenger.

The back and forth took place as Romney looked ahead to a bus tour through four states in as many days, ending next Tuesday in Ohio. The itinerary renewed speculation that the trip might culminate in the announcement that the state’s Sen. Rob Portman would be the named vice presidential running mate on the Republican ticket.

Obama barnstormed through battleground Colorado more like a candidate for statewide office than for the White House, with stops in several parts of the state over two days.

After saying in Denver that Romney advocated policies on women’s issues straight from the 1950s, he switched topics to alternative energy. Campaigning in Pueblo, the president noted that his rival wants to end a tax credit that benefits the producers of wind energy, an industry that Obama said supports about 5,000 jobs in Colorado and as many as 37,000 nationwide.

“It’s time to stop spending billions in taxpayer subsidies on an oil industry that’s already making a lot of profit, and let’s keep investing in new energy sources that have never been more promising,” he said.

Three of Colorado’s four Republican House members support the credit, as do senior Republican office holders in Iowa, another presidential battleground state where Romney’s opposition puts him at odds with the GOP establishment.

At issue is a tax credit that was originally signed into law 20 years ago by President George H.W. Bush, a Republican, and has generally enjoyed bipartisan support in the years since.

Legislation headed for the Senate floor would renew the tax break for existing facilities for one year, and also allow facilities that begin construction before the end of 2013 to qualify for a 10-year credit. The estimated cost is $12.1 billion over a decade, and the tax break has drawn criticism from some conservatives in Congress as a waste.

Romney sides with the critics, and in March he wrote, “In place of real energy, Obama has focused on an imaginary world where government-subsidized windmills and solar panels could power the economy. This vision has failed.”

In the clash over television advertising, Romney appeared to lump together commercials aired by Obama’s campaign with those aired by Priorities Action USA, the group that supports him. In his remarks to conservative radio show host Bill Bennett, Romney aides said, he was speaking about the Priorities Action USA commercial when he attacked the president’s campaign.

By law, candidates’ campaigns are not allowed to coordinate with independent groups that are aligned with them.

But most political experts agree that the finer points of campaign law are lost on most voters, who tell pollsters they dislike attack ads yet are known to shift their views of candidates because of them.

There is no dispute about their prevalence.

Obama, Romney and super PACs supporting both men have been running such ads for months at a cost of millions of dollars.

Restore Our Future, an independent group that backs Romney, aired ads during the race for the Republican nomination that first crippled Newt Gingrich and then sent Rick Santorum to the sidelines. The group spent more money on ads during the primary season than Romney’s own campaign.

The same group as well as American Crossroads and Crossroads GPS have aired ads critical of Obama in more recent weeks, outspending candidate Romney, who can’t fully dip into his campaign treasury until after the GOP convention in Tampa, Fla., this month.

Priorities Action USA went after Romney in the ad that sparked this week’s controversy.

In such cases, accuracy is not always observed.

This week, Romney accused Obama in a commercial of planning to “gut welfare reform” by dropping work requirements. Gingrich, now a Romney supporter, said there is “no proof today” of the claim.

Last February, Gingrich, then a presidential contender, asked Georgia television stations to remove an attack ad by Restore Our Future. It accused him of once having co-sponsored legislation that sent $60 million a year to U.N. programs supporting China’s “brutal one-child policy.” PolitiFact, an independent website, rated the charge as false, but the ad was not taken down.

Obama’s campaign last month aired an ad saying that Romney “backed a bill that outlaws all abortion, even in cases of rape and incest.” FactCheck.org found that Romney’s consistent position at least since 2005, is to oppose abortion except in cases of rape, incest or when the life of the mother is in danger.

In this week’s controversy, Priorities USA Action says it has no plans to remove the commercial that prompted Romney’s comments to Bennett.

Associated Press writers Kasie Hunt in New York and Steve Peoples and Philip Elliott in Washington contributed to this story. Julie Pace reported from Colorado.

The Patriots took a hit during Thursday's game.

FOXBOROUGH -- Regardless of the final outcome, the Patriots already suffered a loss during Thursday night's preseason game against the New Orleans Saints.

According to the NFL Network, linebacker Dane Fletcher suffered a torn ACL in his left knee when defending against a punt return in the first quarter.

Fletcher immediately fell to the ground following the play and was taken to the locker room with the help of the training staff. He started at middle linebacker in place of the injured Brandon Spikes.

The punt ended up not counting as the Saints were whistled for a procedure penalty.