Like the Red Sox, Gov. Patrick believes in doing things more than once...
He took heat early in his administration for using the state police helicopter to fly around the state. Now, armed with a new policy, Gov. Deval Patrick is airborne again, and he intends to stay that way.
Patrick used the chopper three times this month, to travel to soldiers’ funerals and to attend an event in Somerset to announce plans for a clean energy research facility.
All three trips came after an internal policy on helicopter use was drafted by Patrick’s chief legal counsel and cleared by the state ethics commission Oct. 5. The policy permits the use of a state police helicopter to transport the governor or lieutenant governor when it is “reasonably necessary” for the safe performance of their duties.
The use of the chopper, which is costly and consumes hefty amounts of fuel, has proved controversial for Patrick and previous governors who have been criticized for the extravagance of their travel habits in a small New England state.
Former acting Gov. Jane Swift was mercilessly skewered in 2000 when she was lieutenant governor for taking the chopper home to the Berkshires for Thanksgiving at a cost of $1,000. Patrick caught it after using the helicopter twice for official travel within weeks of taking office. Patrick and top aides initially bristled at the criticism, but then decided to craft an official policy on helicopter use to help maintain the governor’s schedule.
UPDATE: More from Dan Kennedy and Holly Robichaud.
SECOND UPDATE: More from the Herald.
FOURTH UPDATE: More from Dan Kennedy, the Globe and Herald.