AG Coakley Touts Record

Attorney General Martha Coakley’s campaign released the following information. The Medford Democrat is running for re-election.

Attorney General Martha Coakley has demonstrated once again this week that she has the proven ability to stand up for the consumers and taxpayers of Massachusetts.

Just in the past week, she has taken action by calling on Bank of America and other major lenders to cease foreclosures against homeowners, negotiated a major restructuring of a contract of the Caritas hospital chain to help protect access to health care and save thousands of jobs, and executed a major bust to break up a methamphetamine ring that was plaguing our streets.

In an email to supporters today, Coakley highlighted the work of her office standing up for people.

“We know the stakes of this election and we are out working hard every day – because at the end of this race, there is a job to do,” Coakley said. “We are doing that job every day by standing up for the consumers and taxpayers of this state, and working to keep people safe. Just this week, we’ve taken steps to protect homeowners, preserve jobs and healthcare access, and bust a major drug ring. This election is about who can do the job, and we are going to keep doing that job each and every day by standing up for you.”

Coakley’s decisive actions have come in direct contrast with the words of her opponent who has refused to take a position on whether he would approve the Caritas deal, saying that he did not have “details.” Yet the investigation lasted over five months, included six public hearings, and concluded with a 29-page report.

Coakley’s record of action as Attorney General is the reason she has continued to receive overwhelming support from law enforcement and public safety leaders. She has received the endorsements of District Attorneys – including Bristol District Attorney Sam Sutter today – as well as the Massachusetts Coalition of Police (Massachusetts C.O.P.) and the Massachusetts Police Association (MPA), representing law enforcement officers across the Commonwealth.

As a federal prosecutor, an Assistant District Attorney, Middlesex District Attorney, and now as Attorney General, Coakley has an unmatched record in this race of protecting our kids and communities. As a prosecutor for the Middlesex DA’s Office, Martha has personally and successfully prosecuted dozens of violent criminals in Massachusetts. As Chief of the Middlesex DA’s child abuse unit, Martha oversaw the prosecution of hundreds of predators who harmed children.

As Attorney General, Martha has been a national leader in working to protect people online. As part of her Cyber Crime Initiative, Coakley revolutionized the tools available to prosecutors for fighting crime in the 21st century, ensuring that Massachusetts is on the forefront of public safety challenges. In 2008, Coakley led a two-year effort with MySpace and Attorneys General across the country to develop a plan to make social networking sites safer for children. She also successfully took on Craigslist by calling on the site to take down its adult services section to better protect victims of human trafficking.

Coakley has a proven record of standing up for consumers to keep costs down and rooting out fraud and abuse to recover taxpayer money. Martha has led the fight in rooting out fraud and corruption and recovering money back for taxpayers. Overall, she has saved or recovered $5 for taxpayers for every $1 in the Attorney General’s budget. And at a time when every dollar counts for consumers, she has worked to keep costs down by successfully challenging proposed utility price increases and saving Massachusetts families and businesses over $100 million. Recently, she opposed National Grid’s request for the largest gas rate hike in the history of the Commonwealth after an investigation by her office revealed that the company included thousands in questionable expenses as part of their rate request, including private school tuition for executives’ children and wine shipments.