WGBH Radio; The Callie Crossley Show

I'm Cally Crossley and this is the Cali Crossley Show some of the nation's finest breads have raced into the winners circle at Suffolk Downs legendary Seabiscuit and triple crown winner world away this weekend Suffolk Downs celebrates its seventy fifth anniversary. Ironically it might be its last year as just a racetrack. The Tracks owners are betting on a different future as a full fledged resort casino. We'll discuss this latest development. But first our ongoing 2010 mass decision election coverage. Our political strategist weighs in on Tim Cahill's latest campaign ads and the unlikely relationship forged by Senator Scott Brown and Congressman Barney Frank. Plus temperatures may be spiking into the 90s but no amount of heat will keep these cooks out of the kitchen. I will break bread with a local author who documented recipes and stories from immigrant kitchens. Up next horse history hot politics and warm kitchen. First the news. From NPR News in Washington I'm Janine Herbst.

The U.S. and Russia are working out a spy swap. While details about the exchange are sketchy NPR's Dina Temple-Raston reports. It appears the 10 people arrested as Russian agents last month could be traded for spies in Russia. News of the spy exchange comes just days after the FBI arrested 10 people it said had been under deep cover for Russia for years. The agents were supposed to make friends with policymakers and then pass intelligence back to Moscow. Prosecutors say they never got very far. They didn't uncover any secrets. That's why they're being charged with acting as an agent for a foreign country without registering. In recent days a number of people in Russian prisons have been contacted about being part of a potential swap the 10 alleged agents here would be traded for some unknown number of U.S. spies there. Officials tell NPR that the details have yet to be worked out. But the talks have been underway for days. Dina Temple-Raston NPR News New York. Heat and humidity are blanketing the eastern seaboard for a second day. Forecasters say temperatures are hovering around

100 degrees with higher humidity. It's not keeping everyone indoors though. Cyclist Bob Freedman says the heat won't stop him from biking like the other day but come out almost every day. This word is better than being called scattered power outages were reported up and down the East Coast here in Washington D.C. More than 1000 people are without power. More than 6000 in are in the dark in New York. Meanwhile much of Ontario and Quebec are also sizzling in this latest heat wave. And carbon check reports from Toronto. Temperatures in southern Ontario and Quebec will again rise to the low 90s but feel about 10 degrees hotter with the humidity. For the past two days Canadian officials have issued heat alerts as well as smog and humidity warnings as the region bakes in the extreme weather. The smog in particular has health officials warning people with cardiac arrest praetorian problems to take extra care in Toronto and other cities cooling centers have been opened to help shelter people from the heat. Many public swimming pools have extended their operating hours although spikes are being reported in electricity usage as people crank up their air conditioners. Officials say there are no problems yet with the

electrical power grid. For NPR News I'm Dan Karpen shuk in Toronto. After spending two decades behind bars in the United States former Panamanian dictator manual nor Noriega may be trying out a Parisian jail a court in Paris convicted him of money laundering sentencing him to seven years in prison. His lawyers though will appeal or oil prices are higher today after six straight sessions of losses climbing about $73 a barrel as crude followed the stock market higher on encouraging earnings news benchmark crude oil rose a dollar fifty two cents to seventy three dollars fifty cents a barrel in midday trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Stocks are higher on Wall Street right now the Dow is up 148 points at nine thousand eight hundred ninety one. The Nasdaq is up 28. The S&P 500 is up 16. This is NPR. Good afternoon I'm Cally Crossley and this is the Calla Crossley Show. It's fried egg on the sidewalk hot outside. The temperature spiked up to 100

here yesterday and will stay in the high 90s for the rest of the week. And if that's not enough hot air in the Bay State there's plenty of heated debate in the governor's race in the state legislature and on the floor of Congress. Today in our ongoing 2010 mass decision election coverage will review the recent goings on. Joining us to talk politics and strategy is Dorie Clark. Dorri is president of Clark strategic communications and a frequent guest on this program. Welcome dory. Thanks for having me Calley. Well we have to talk about the latest salvo in the governor's race and that's Tim Cahill. He decided prior to this weekend a holiday weekend that he would put his ads out begin his television ad campaigns now. We should say that this is somewhat in response to the kind of attack ads that have been running I guess about a month or so by the Republican Governors Association the Republican candidates the Republican candidate Charlie Baker says that's not him.

That's the that's a different organization but be that as it may. So for people just to get a sense of what Tim Cahill's ad was in case you missed it while you were driving to and from the Cape here it is Tim Cahill surprising many by rolling out his new ad first commercial the governor's race. Washington insiders attack me while I was working. Just Baltics as usual one of my opponents fights for big government. The other health insurance executive if for them I'm for you as Treasurer I strengthen our pension fund. We did better than 90 percent of states and I found a fiscally responsible way to build schools for our children. I'm Tim Cahill the independent candidate. When they attack me they attack all of us. We're better than that. Well what do you think. Let's translate a CALLI where when they're attacking me and my poll numbers are going down. OK so that is what you think. Did anybody listen to this was it a good timing. Nobody ever wants to be in a position where they're rolling out a new campaign ad over the Fourth of July holiday.

This is Tim Cahill clearly backed into a corner. He has three million bucks in the bank he was a prodigious fundraiser and unfortunately he discovered once he bolted the Democratic Party that he had become radioactive and now nobody wants to give him money it's trickling in. And so the Cahill strategy originally had been OK we're not getting as much money as we need. Let's save it all to the end and then we'll come out with a howitzers. The Republican Governors Association as you were alluding to earlier was a little tricky though and they started blasting him and his numbers Cahill's numbers went into the cellar. So this is clearly evidence that they feel like they need to do something there a little bit panicked and so they're starting to say use some of that money. Unfortunately Fourth of July weekend is clearly not the time to be doing that. All the voters are on the Cape not paying attention. It's wasted money. OK so I mean you're the strategist that you know better than I do but because I'm sitting around at

home I'm hanging out with the family and I see here the I heard the radio it in my travels this weekend so I'm I'm not one of the people he's trying to reach in my travels this weekend. I think for most people they're they're tuning it out I mean you'd be lucky if you went down the street and oh you know who is Tim Cahill who is Charlie Baker. Most people have no idea. And so to put in context an ad where Tim Cahill says oh you know it's business as usual and everyone's attacking me we're better than that. I think for the average voter it's not necessarily going to make sense because they're not actively saying who should I be voting for in November. And so consequently it's going over their head. They're they're focusing on Where's the hot dogs. OK. So now I know I've read all the statistics that say really it's about six weeks before any election that Americans start paying attention. I do know that. But I'm just wondering. Short of that is there a time where you as a strategist would have advised him he at one point was second under Patrick in the in the polling. And now he's

fallen to 9 percent behind Charlie Baker actually. So is there another time short of the six weeks before that you would advise him to roll out these ads. Will you know what I would say retrospectively. Is he should have acted the minute the RGA put out these negative ads against him. And here he is sitting back a month two months letting the damage go I mean he's just taking body blows and unfortunately that was that was John Kerry's problem with swift boats. Oh no one's going to pay attention they won't believe that about me. And then lo and behold a couple months later they discover oh no that had a huge impact it dramatically changed people's perception and now it's too late and he's starting from a trough and having to build his way upward. So I mean yes it at this point he has made a tactical error and so he does need to be on the airwaves. I certainly wouldn't rule it out Fourth of July weekend I probably would have started it today instead. Oh yeah he needs he needs to be up in on the air. OK so I didn't count that he did come out without ads and immediately respond

to those attack ads he was all over the place responding so that doesn't count. Well you. There's an adage in in the world of political media that you need to always respond in kind. And so if there's a negative TV ads against you you want to be on TV because you want to be reaching those same people with it. So yes Tim Tim Cahill was trying to conserve his resources and he was going the so-called earned media route so he was you know trying to get free exposure via newspapers or radio or whatnot. That's good but it's not necessarily reaching the people that all they do is watch Seinfeld. OK. All right I got it. Well at the same time a little bit earlier than than Tim's new ads Charlie Baker ran out started running his new television ads and we keep hearing that he's trying to define himself. So these are his this most recent advertisement shows him in his basketball uniform from Needham High School. Let's take a listen. I am Charlie Baker. I spent my life here not going anywhere else. But the welfare reform welfare that I turned over Told them are today Beacon Hill is

broken with too many people. Why were they continue to spend what they won. Tax what they can. We can change the status quo. I have a plan to do it and the will to make it happen. Buchanan. Joined us Charlie Baker 2010. Well what do you think. So I think I think the subtext of this ad you know in in the Needham High basketball uniform is ok I worked for Bill Weld but I'm not going to go to New York and run for governor and oh yeah I'm kind of like Paul solution but I'm not going to go to Ottawa and well I'm kind of like Mitt Romney but no I'm not going to run for president. I mean Massachusetts had a bad run of Republicans that are just fleeing for the hills. And so the first thing that that one would assume perhaps about Charlie Baker is that like all his predecessors this is a stepping stone that he's you know thinking President Baker at some indeterminate point in the future. So he wants to knock the legs out from underneath that stool. I think it's a good thing for him to do he does need

to address that upfront and proactively. I think the biggest problem for Charlie Baker though is that he really as a candidate hasn't found his voice he's pretty good at saying what I'm not he's not that good at saying who he is. Now he's got these sort of you know back and forth about trying to figure out where he fits on the spectrum of social conservatism he's you know he's trying to say oh no Yama I'm a moderate I'm a regular moderate Republican guy. But there there's sort of these twitches. I mean you know a month or two ago he was supporting a bill at the legislature that Governor Patrick for one said was ridiculous in superfluities and politically motivated which would have specifically denied to illegal immigrants you know state benefits which under policies they're already denied. So it's kind of a a little rhetorical flourish there. And then meanwhile at the Republican convention here he is denouncing the bathroom bill which is the language that anti-gay people are using to knock it while he's standing next to his gay running mate. So I don't think he knows

who he wants to be. OK so say here once again is I miss that whole you know I might leave the state point so you know I'm a problem for you strategists. So what I took away from it is that oh he's a MS Needham High School uniform that means you know he's a regular guy was there not that message as well I think. Do not adjust There's an old layered on top of each of the other thing is Charlie Charlie Baker brainy Harvard policy wonk. Oh what's he best known for I mean if you asked. If you asked a Beacon Hill POLITICAL REPORTER Well he's best known for being Bill Wells a f secretary administration in finance he was the budget guy. And as Deval Patrick and all his aides are you know salivating about how tall he was he was the big big finance architect. So that's going to be the thing that they're you know slapping him around with for the next couple of months. But yeah he said he wasn't very much involved in this. That's right. That's right we need to believe. But you know basically Charlie Baker does want to say I mean you know for all politicians it's never a good

thing to be in a northeastern liberal. And so he wants to say yeah I'm a regular guy just like you. OK. Well I did get that message so I don't know how far I'll take him but I got that message. OK. Let's switch our attention to the national scene just a little bit but via our local folks there is a really interesting relationship between Congressman Barney Frank who was just here on Emily Rooney show moments ago and State Senator Scott Brown really two polar opposites ideologically and they sort of came together in a very efficient way around this financial overhaul bill. What do you make of that. Well I think Barney Frank I mean he's renowned on Capitol Hill as being one of the most canny intelligent strategists out there. He knows that he you know Scott Brown for better or for worse really is the swing vote really is the decisive vote on a lot of issues. And so it makes eminent sense for them to try to forge coalitions I mean you look back to Ted Kennedy and here you know he was always co-sponsoring bills with

Orrin Hatch and people like that you know trying to find common ground. And so for Barney Frank it makes sense. Scott Brown is part of the delegation. You might as well you know you get farther with honey than vinegar so you might as well try to bring him in and build a relationship. Well from a strategic standpoint it seems like Scott Brown's being pretty canny himself. He was able to they had come to an agreement about how they were going to proceed in trying to get this bill forward. Everybody is all happy Frank is happy he's happy. And then at the last minute Barney Frank inserted a 19 billion dollar tax on large financial institutions to pay for the bill. And Senator Scott Brown said I don't think so. So that would seem to indicate a sophistication that perhaps some had not granted him before. That's true. But I'm going to put my money on Barney in the end because apparently you know the latest salvo is that Barney may be forging a coalition with Maria Cantwell who's a Democrat of course and his own party to get her to come on board so that Scott Brown's vote may ultimately prove to be superfluous.

So I think that you know it's not it's not the first time I'd venture to guess that Barney Frank has deftly maneuvered a handsome man. I mean leave that alone. Let me just ask this though If so let's say he does out maneuver him you know on in the final analysis about where the where the bill goes and all of that has not Scott Brown proven himself in a very short period of time as a really wet behind the here is freshman senator to be if not equal. But you know standing up in some circles that nobody expected him to be and from a strategic standpoint. Oh yes Scott Brown has done a very good job thus far I think that the big the big test for him is actually going to be coming up very soon in fact perhaps as soon as this coming week which is the Elena Kagan confirmation for almost all of Scott Brown's previous big votes I mean obviously there was health care which he campaigned on and everybody knew that he was going to go to town and fight it to the death. So we had that one with with unemployment benefits he's been very resistant to extending them. That's

made him a lot of friends in the Republican base. But you know he's always found a way to kind of play both sides now he's saying well you know it's not that I'm opposed in principle to extending unemployment benefits I am just fiscally conservative and so I'll come up with my own way to do it I'll have my own bill. So you know he's been able to. To work both sides. However with Kagan that is a yes or no vote that is the first case where it's really clear and definitive. I mean with this Barney Frank thing that you're referencing. You know there's a lot of parliamentary moves so on some He's with the Democrats on some He's with the Republicans. And you know it all kind of works out with Kagan. Here's the big question is he going to diss obviously qualified talented woman from Massachusetts and vote no and defend independence and the female constituency. Or will you vote. And you know in the process of course you know this would be very pleasing to his conservative base which contributed two thirds three quarters of the money that got him elected.

It is a no win situation for Scott Brown and he's going to have to play that one really carefully so it won't balance if for example he says no on the unemployment extensions and. You know maybe even know on Elena Kagan that's not a that's not a balance but strategically politically. Well ultimately for for Scott Brown the red meat that gets people excited the conservatives who gave him money across the country it's ideology I mean money issues are great but they want Kagan to go down in flames if you votes yes. He's in trouble with them. Well we have to leave it there today. We always have a lot to talk about we've been talking about recent political goings on with Dorie Clark president of Clark's strategic communications and one of our contributors during thank you for joining us. Thanks Kelly. Up next the seventy fifth anniversary of Suffolk Downs and plans for a very different future for the racetrack. We'll be back after this break stay with us. The.

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I'm Kelly Crossley and this is the Calla Crossley Show Seabiscuit whirl away just a couple of the champion horses who run victories as Suffolk Downs race track this year Suffolk Downs marks a milestone 75 years of horse racing history. But just yesterday the tracks owners revealed their plans for the next phase of Suffolk Downs a full fledged resort casino. Here to talk about Suffolk Downs its past and possible future Christian TGA. He authored a book about the history of the track and he's also Suffolk Downs as director of public and media relations. Kristen Teju thank you for joining us. Great to be here thanks for having me. Well a lot has changed in just a few. A few hours I suffered ounces at the owners of Suffolk Downs have put their bid in to turn the current facility into a full fledge Resort Casino which would involve let's see 5000 slot machines more than 200 table games and four to 600

room hotel plus later maybe a spa and some restaurants. Tell us about that. Well our vision for the future is if the legislature were to allow and we would be to be given the opportunity would be to turn Suffolk Downs into a full resort gaming an entertainment complex with some of the stuff you mentioned and continue to be a horse racing track that's really the bread and butter of our history a 75 illustrious years really of horse racing but we would love to again if the legislature were to to give us that opportunity to to be able to to really bring the track into the next century the next 75 years and just make it a comprehensive gaming and entertainment facility would be would be great that the number of jobs that would be created and not too much of the revenue for the state the the tourism into an already already rich tourist attraction of course that Boston is but it's a great location near the airport so and having been a gaming institution for 75 years we feel that we have a pretty good resume for something like this.

Going forward well that might be just the advantage you have already been a gaming facility you know parimutuel betting happening there so a lot of people are thinking that maybe you have an edge Well we'll talk about that in a second but I did want to give listeners a chance to hear from the CEO chip Tuttle who explains his vision behind this resort style casino. We knew that we had to do something here that is in character with with the local with our location in character with the city of Boston in the north shore in character with Massachusetts. So I think what you see here is is a spectacular Voc. New England traditional coastal design. Now listeners what do you think about the proposed changes for Suffolk Downs would you go there to gamble if it were a full fledged resort casino. Give us a call at 8 7 7 3 0 0 1. Eighty nine seventy. That's 8 7 7 3 0 1. Eighty nine seventy. Do you all have no pun intended the inside track to getting one of the

possible three casinos that are the legislature is considering approving. I want to know about the inside track I think just kind of what I had stated previously as far as 75 years of history and that we've been a gaming destination in the state of Massachusetts for 75 years. We currently handle. Roughly two hundred million dollars in wagering on an annual basis we have a trained workforce. So the 163 acres that we have situated in East Boston and revere we've been we feel a good community partner. And we've been very had a great line of communication we feel with our neighborhoods and whatever the as this goes on there will be a comprehensive transparent Community Process seeking their input. They'll be certainly a lot a lot of meetings I presume if again if we're fortunate enough to to have this opportunity. But that's kind of our case there whether we have the as you said the inside track or not we just feel we have a strong case to be made.

Well I'm just looking at it as you know a consumer. Just you know you already got a facility you can expand the facility as it is that means no additional facility for people who are already uncomfortable with having some more. Some can see notes being built in other parts of the state so that's one thing we're talking about a resort casino so that would seem to get around the governor's objection to just slots because that was part of one of the bills that there would be you know up to seven hundred fifty slots at the racetrack facilities in the state. But this way and he's in favor of resort destination casinos. That's what you're proposing here. And then I hear recently that Mayor Menino is in favor of this as well. Mayor Menino has pledged support in various ways over the last few years really and we really were appreciative of the support from from both chambers in the state house. We certainly we've been supportive of both of the bills the House bill in the Senate bill of although there are differences in each we have supported voiced our support for each of them they they both recognize our history as a

racetrack in their own ways. And Speaker DiLeo certainly from Winthrop neighboring to Suffolk Downs. We appreciate that the role he has taken in bringing this this matter into the into the forefront and having having the legislature address it in this session so again supportive of both bodies and and watching with a close ally is says how things progress in the next few weeks. Ok well as I said Your it's the timing couldn't be better for you if you're looking back at your wonderful history and then looking forward it what may become the next phase. I want to give people a sense of what you've written about in this book called Suffolk Downs images of sports which really chronicles the seventy five years of history at Suffolk Downs. So let's take a listen to a part of a sequence of this was put together by you guys out at the track and it's called a trip to Suffolk noun and in this clip we hear the sounds of spectators gearing up for a race. Check out some racist sentiments. Connie's lower lip service for us is a proper

status OK. Protests are just when the horse is going to post that appears on everyone's you know everything and so he likes the company. Like if your sense of the excitement that's been going on there for 75 years. I'm speaking with Christian teaching. He has authored a book about the history of the suffix down Suffolk Downs as race track which is celebrating 75 years this weekend. Your book is very interesting. I'm looking at a picture of standing room only when this track opened. Yes the check opened in 1935 opening day was July 10th 1935 and a perfect symmetry which falls on a Saturday which is our biggest racing day of the week so. So Saturday July 10th the exact seventy fifth anniversary 35000 people showed up that day

and crowds of routinely 20 25000 the the average attendance peaked in one thousand forty five it was just over 18000 on a daily basis and we're talking weekdays and in addition to the Saturdays. And you see there the crowded grandstand and over on radio but but you can see service for example on our website but everyone's got the hat and everyone's dressed to the nines and you look at the sporting landscape back then you talk in 1935 so the Red Sox the Red Sox have always been big here since since the 1800s they've been around the Bruins were also in existence the Celtics were not in existence. The Patriots were formed and they just celebrated their 50th anniversary. And you look at nationally and locally really the big sports in the country were baseball horse racing and boxing those are really the big three sports. Wow. Now what of course everybody anybody who knows a little bit about Suffolk Downs recognizes this was the place that Seabiscuit. You know continued its legendary making its legendary place in history and Seabiscuit being you know a champion

horse. Yes Seabiscuit a very popular story has been popularized in recent years. Laura Hillenbrand wrote a tremendous book about Seabiscuit one of my favorite books of all time probably not surprisingly is as a horse racing person and followed up by the feature movie and actually GBH did a great documentary as well as part of a series. And we just happen to be a great part of that story the horse a kind of a rags to riches story. He had been at an average horse and he'd been competing in New England at Suffolk Downs and some other different race tracks. And one day. Certain trainer saw the race and saw something special in him that no one else had appeared to see yet or been able to bring out the best in him yet. And the trainer convinced a businessman to own it to buy the horse. And when he took over that's when he started winning all these races but he he identified the horse that day June 21 1936 after winning a race at Suffolk Downs he went on to great glory. Then he kind of moved to Santa Anita California was

kind of his home base but he came back out in 1937 won the Massachusetts handicap our signature race in record time and it really cemented his place in New England racing lore. One of the things that you know when you when you look at these pictures and you see the kind of excitement that was going on through all of these races including the one run by Seabiscuit and the mass handicap you know it makes me think given the latest information. Well if this turns into a resort style casino will it effect the kind of atmosphere that you've had there with the racetrack with you know people just being right down there looking at the races looking at the horses up close. You know we feel it would enhance the racing because with if you look at other states it's kind of what has happened in the last 10 to 15 years and a lot of states have had expanded gaming. And that simple income is able to support the purse structure which is the money that the horses compete for. And if you can raise your purses then. You're able to attract more horses a better quality of horse because like any other sport if you're

competing for more money you're going to get better athletes. In this case the horses so we really feel that this could help grow the racing product and enhance it going forward. Now there's one part of this book that you know I guess I was just like asleep or something I didn't realize. There are all kinds of concerts and that have been hell other kinds of special events like that at Suffolk Downs show and the big one I'm sure you that caught your eye was August 18th 1966 when none other than the Beatles made their final Boston appearance. And it was their one of their final performances ever and it was about 25000 people attended and you go into East Boston revere now and if you talk to somebody who is around in their 60s or so every one of them was there will tell you they don't. OK so they watched it from Orient heights but everyone's got a story and it's really a great part of the track when you when you sit back and think about one of the world's largest musical most popular most famous musical acts of all time and of all places they played right at Suffolk Downs in East Boston.

I have no sense and you can help me. How Suffolk Downs ranks in the spectrum of race tracks around the country's smaller or larger medium. You know where where is it. Yeah. Unfortunately over the years as I mentioned because a lot of other states have the purse is supplemented by by expanding gaming. And so if it dances like a little bit behind that's something that we were really striving for. We would hope with with it a future development part of the vision would be to elevate its stature certainly was at its time and I do 35 was a state of the opposite Ian and had some of the biggest names in racing. And but you know in recent years and kind of industry wide this it's been it's been tough because of the competition. And in this day and age is a lot more competition for entertainment and gaming dollars. Now what's interesting to me is that you know this is been as we know 75 years it's been going on. But when people start talking about gambling coming to Massachusetts they seem to overlook the fact that

we already had it. Yeah I mean 75 years ago it's interesting if you look at the history of horse racing in America the tracks some of the tracks in California prominent track Santa Anita Del Mar they open around the same time and it was it was similar to now there's casinos. Some form of expanded gaming in thirty eight thirty nine states right now. And just how this horse racing in pretty much every state. So if you look back in the history around that time 75 years ago a lot of states legalized parimutuel wagering which is the type of wagering on horse racing and many states followed suit and it's a little bit similar to what you see now where state by state more and more states have added slot machines casinos expanded gaming. I'm not saying it's a good thing or bad I'm not I'm reserving judgement on that but you know a lot of other people in their proposals about these other casinos you know happening in the state you know maintain that they will be you know certain number of temporary jobs in a certain number of permanent jobs. I have to say that in this case it makes sense to me I actually believe that there actually might be some

permanent jobs afterwards and I can see there would be some temporary jobs with regard to the construction going on there. Sure it certainly thousands of construction jobs and you talk about permanent jobs I mean if the full development plan we talk about a hotel and and restaurants and shops I mean you can just imagine a spot and employees involved in that doesn't even know. And that's not even to mention the existing workforce right now when we're in season we're well over 1000 people between taking care of the horses in the food service and the people taking the bets. Security. It just is. You can see there is a lot of different jobs involved. I looked at the website with the announcement and if such is there it's criticism that people are concerned about parking and I know that seems like a Monday thing but it's a huge thing in Boston. So you guys are going to address that. Yeah well I mean traffic yeah yeah i traffic certainly if we have a vast amount of parking and it's it's a great place. We've had we've hosted a fundraiser for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation for a number of years and an autism walk and the

places they love me took place because we have so much parking. But certainly transportation you mention traffic is certainly a legitimate issue in this matter. And we've addressed it and there's been studies that were going on and it's something that that is of utmost importance in this matter. If there's going to be a development and you look at I mean the traffic really nothing has been done there and quite some in a long time. And the existing traffic patterns it could use. Of a casino could probably use some improvement so. So we feel if there was some form of a development it could possibly expedite some already existing needed transportation improvements. It's me that's going to be the main issue that I guess there's an organization called neighbors against neighbors of Suffolk Downs and it's a coalition of community groups and they're opposed to it and they're just kind of worried about the roads just being messed up and they're also worried about bankrupting small businesses. But so you know we'll have to hear their

voices in this conversation. But we've made it clear to it we really reached out to the to the local business community when you're talking about an operation of this scale. If it were to happen we're going to need to buy local buy goods and services in the in the operation of this. So we see it as an opportunity for for local businesses to kind of be a part of it. And you're also talking about right now I mean you look at the unemployment rates right now if a family has if there's unemployed people adults in the family I don't they're probably not able to go out to dinner or or do dry cleaning or get. Their car washed away very soon. Think about it in those terms if someone all of a sudden if a lot more people are employed which which employment would would that we mention that we go through the jobs numbers that if all of a sudden he's more be more and more people are employed then they're going to be able to take their families out to their local restaurants more often and really enhanced the entire community. I wondered if you will in making a decision the owners making the decision to just go full fledged

if they were concerned because I have a sense from you know Governor Patrick and others that slots are considered a little bit Dick less a you know that's not really quite as spiffy as we like to think of ourselves if we're going to do gaming as you call it or gambling in the state. But a full fledged resort casino with all of the bells and whistles that you and I have described here that's a different thing than slots sort of take that become one of several things that are offered to the people who come. Well as you mentioned in supporting both proposals that we we do feel that offering a variety of forms of entertainment gaming in restaurants and shops is kind of the best way to go. OK. All right well we'll be hearing about this and something tells me I believe you're going to get the approval I know you're can't say it's you know I'm Kalee Crosley we've been talking with Christian Deja about Suffolk Downs a 75 year history as a racetrack and it's a possible future as a resort casino. As the author of Suffolk Downs images of sports and the tracks director of public and

media relations Christian thanks for joining us. Thank you. Up next recipes and stories from immigrant kitchens. Stay with us. With the. Support for WGBH comes from you and from the New England mobile book fair in Newton New England's independent bookstore. The Book Fair is your school summer reading list headquarters. More details online at any book fair dot com. That's an e-book fair dot com. And from Windsor place of Wilmington and all new assisted living residents minutes from Boston and New Hampshire off I-93 at Exit 38 offering a range of lifestyle and care plans more at Windsor place of Wilmington dot com. And from Bentley University. Offering customized corporate executive education

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WGBH dot org. This is eighty nine point seven dollars. Boston's NPR station for trusted voices and local conversation with FRESH AIR and the Emily Rooney show. The new eighty nine point seven. WGBH. Have a banana and. Java salami. Tommy. Give what degree they. Were listening to jazz band leader Cab Calloway 1047 hit everybody eats when they come to my house I'm Cali Crosley Moroccan couscous Venezuelan rice and plant tains Middle Eastern hummus. Merry traditions cooked up in immigrant kitchens. My guess Lynn Anderson is an adjunct professor of English at Boston College and Bunker Hill Community College who spent. Some time in those kitchens documenting the cooks and their food. Her book is Breaking bread recipes and stories from immigrant kitchens. Lynn Anderson welcome. Thank you so

you've got to tell us how this book came to be. Well it all started about 10 years ago when I first started teaching I was in the Boston public schools working with immigrant adults teaching ESL. And I was a new teacher and I remember looking out into the classroom and seeing this sea of faces grandparents and parents from places like Venezuela El Salvador Pakistan and China and thinking they almost seem frightened to be here they seem afraid of me their teacher and so I knew I had to find a way to connect with them. I knew that we had to have a common language. And that turned out to be food I love to cook and I love to talk about food in recipes so I just started doing that with them I'd say you know what did you what did you bring in for lunch today what is that how do you make it and what did you cook over the weekend at your family party and before I knew it they were bringing in their foods for me to try I was you know having lied to you. Yeah. 30 and

coos and Salvadoran papooses and they were telling me where I needed to shop for the ingredients so I could make them properly. And we just you know began connecting that way and I started to realize that. For them from my students people who have left so much behind. Food is almost symbolic. It's the one thing that they can hold on to. You know if their kids are losing their language they're no longer speaking Spanish at home or Arabic. They're speaking English. The food is the way that they can preserve the culture it's the way that they can give them a taste of home. You know one of the things that I liked about your book is it. And this is not just a recipe book in fact recipes are sort of the least thing the stories are about the recipes are what makes this book come alive and is particularly special. Why don't you share with some of the listers a few of those stories I was taken with. Why not teach them to cook. Guatemalan immigrant who

views food as a legacy. Yeah Beatrice's story is a wonderful story she's from Guatemala and she had been here for many years and had children here and was unable to take them home she is now but when I interviewed her she wasn't legal at the time. I really wanted them to have a sense of her culture and so she said I cook every day we make tortillas and it's a great thing to do with kids and if you have never done it I suggest trying it you know just mix up the Maza in a bowl with the water and you pad it with your hands and the kids sometimes make shapes with it. But it's a way it was a way for her to bring Guatemala into their house until she could get them there. And I like the swapping food on Sundays. Yeah it's Joanna. Joanne from Haiti is very very proud of her culture and her food she's also a professional cook. It was wonderful to spend a day in her kitchen. And she just feels that cooking and food is a way for people to kind of get to know Haitian culture who may not who may you know

have some negative perceptions about it that you know there are some incredible things about Haiti like the fresh food fruit and the incredible foods and this tradition of just sitting around the table for hours and hours and eating and talking and spending time with the family. I liked you one of your points that Stu's seem to be. You're speaking about food as a common language and stews seem to be a really common language. Yeah. Cultures Yeah. Explain. Yeah there's you know slang code show that the Dominican Sisters cooked for me which is actually quite similar to the Cape Verdean called Tupelo which is quite similar to Joann's Haitian soup you move. So it seems in what way are their grievances similar yet you know they all seem to have planned tains And you know some sort of a squash whether it's bought or not or the color bought so which is the Caribbean squash and then a meat based So beef or pork and then cilantro or wreck out which is a Caribbean Herb similar in taste to Ceylon churro but gives it a nice aromatic flavor. And just something that you know meat that really needs to cook

for a long time to tenderize it and something that you can put on the stove and then go out in the fields and do what you need to do and then come back and eat in eight hours. One of the great advantages of reading a book that is written by a local author is that sometimes you see people you know in the book. So the Ethiopian lamb stew that you mention and the person that you interview is so he her sister Selim a Korean somebody who I know he had underbody FILMMAKER Yeah I was like oh my goodness. Yeah so that was really quite special and I love the stew in the back from Sudanese lamb and Milo stew that is a wonderful stew if you like Lamb It's got a strong lamb flavor and the mellow is just an interesting combination. So and again one of those things you can put on the stove for a few hours and you know go do something else and then all come together and eat. OK so one of the things that is makes so much sense to me because I run into this in my own family with elders. There were no recipes you had to sort of suss this out from people as you were putting together the book

people just were cooking and you know you had to know a little bit he handed me a recipe except for Yasi from Iran who happens to teach a cooking class at Boston Center for Adult Ed so she had recipes on her computer and she printed one out. But that was a real challenge for me is you know watching people in the kitchen sometimes not one cook but three four five six cooks throwing things into the bowl and trying to figure out was that a half a cup or a quarter of a cup you know. Not all the cooks always spoke English so trying to gesture you know could you slow down a little bit of what is that ingredient. But I think you know I would get my notes at home and play around in the kitchen I think for the most part the recipes and it up tasting pretty close to what I had in their kitchen. A couple things a couple responses I had to that note about not having the recipes and that are from our food contributor who the food editor at The Boston Globe is Sheryl Julian and she has the ability to look at a recipe and tell if it's right or not which you know would that be helpful to

all of us. So that's just I thought to myself wow she could look at this and you know help you a lot if you were doing that. But the second thing is I recall trying to get my great aunt's recipe for rolls she was homemade rolls she was well known for this is and Louisiana and of course there was no recipe so my sister was determined to get it so she was just going to watch her. So a big part of it was put the yeast in. Then you pray over it. Then you wake up and you pray over it. Then there's two more steps later then there's a bit more prayer. My sister is like OK we're going to be in church here all day if I ever get to the end of this recipe. But that's part of the thing I didn't really think down I was going to do you know I know sometimes it's a little detective work here at these old family recipes. Yeah but you know in these in these families they just the kids cook particularly girls but sometimes the boys are right there by their mothers grandmothers side so they know it inherently. They cooked differently I think from most American cooks because you don't see cookbooks and you

don't see recipe cards they just cook by feel they're you know tasting constantly they know when something's done they know when the smell is right. Now what has been the response of the people that you featured in this book. They're sharing their recipes and the stories with you and having others respond to their stories and recipes. Yeah it's been a wonderful response it's been this part of it has been really nice because I feel like it's not just my book it's their book and they're proud of it you know I've had a couple of them tell me you know I came to this country with nothing and you know I've been here for some time now and I'm in a book and people are interested in my story and they're cooking my food and so that's been wonderful and just I think some of them you know I remember interviewing a couple of them and and them saying afterwards thank you for you know being interested in this so I think it feels for them it feels nice that that that story is out there and that maybe people are kind of interested in where other people from the world come from and what their concerns are and what they like to eat.

And I also think that if you have a story about the food I'm reminded of a smart ghost of his book. You know many years ago when he just talked about living in Paris and she tell a story of the interested OK this is what we eat when six people ate when six people came over. And it just was so much more special because you thought oh well I'm one of those six people who came home or out right ate this this meal. Something else I was struck with is that you said talian women people just drop by for coffee or dinner dinner and they're always expecting that someone will come by. Yeah fellas to talks about that. And there's this song an Italian a ginger. And she said it's just a part of our life at a place at the table you always expect that someone else is going to drop by. You always cook a little more and she really belongs the fact that here that doesn't happen she said when I first got here I waited to you know I waited for someone to come by and Americans don't do that so now I'm in the habit of you know inviting people. But I think it is you know a nice thing to think about just dropping by on

people or encouraging people to just stop by and you know I think it's a particular New England thing I have to tell you that as a Southerner when I first moved here it was years ago at Christmas time we do pop calls at home. Everybody just comes by so you have you know a table full of groaning desserts and other kind of tidbits for people to eat. And I made whipped up all this stuff. I'm a very good cook and I'm waiting for people. Nobody dropped by. Really. And then when I you know follow up with friends and said you know gee why don't just drop by. Oh nobody does it here. You know you have to have an invitation. It's very New England Yeah you know it's totally out of the Southern thing. So I find that I totally related to that story because I know about sitting there with all this food waiting waiting with Yeah but you know yeah you feel bad right. Right. And by the way my food's good so you they missed something tonight. What do you want people who are not cooks to take away from this. And maybe not just people that aren't cooks but people that maybe want to pick up a book about

immigrant stories just ahead. You know there is always a story with food every recipe has a story and that there are some things that we can learn from these stories I think I certainly have for instance thinking about just dropping by on people you know and. Building relationships that way and also slowing down a little bit so many times people talked about how fast Americans go through life how fast paced You know our culture is and you know this recurring theme throughout the book about just taking a moment to have a cup of coffee and hang out with the women in the neighborhood or to roll past with the kids and grand kids or to go foraging for mushrooms for a whole day and just get lost in the forest and not to worry about all the other stuff on our list that we always think we have to do. I know it's a constant struggle for me but just you know try to think about all of the incredible opportunities that food offers us the shopping gardening foraging cooking and of

course eating. OK well you know I have to ask you a favorite recipe. Yes. There are so many but I think this time of year because the herbs are in season spinach is great right now I love yes he's cashed a bit which is and her Kuku sabzi plate one is an eggplant dish and one is a fresh spinach an herb dish. They're just so incredibly subtly flavored they each have a little pinch of saffron in the interesting mixture of mint and other herbs. You can serve them at room temperature or even cold so it's like a great dish on a hot day like today and you can draw on all the local produce that we have around town. And speaking of that you know one of the things when I look through the book I realize she is not so as unfamiliar to me as I might have thought I was. Is it just because around here in New England there are so many ethnic restaurants and people are drawn to that as I am. And we're really bit more exposed. Yeah I think you know we're lucky to have such a diverse offering of foods

in Boston and some of this stuff is just really popular now in the United States scallion pancakes I mean the Chinese have been around right for years and that's a great recipe by a way. So I think that you know a lot of these recipes have been around when I set out to interview people and ask them what they wanted to cook I never said I want to do this or pick something that's kind of obscure I really just said cook what you want to cook for me whatever food is you know important to you. That you like to cook with your family that's what I want to see you cook so it I never tried to make it a balance between soups and salads and main dishes it's just a collection of recipes and each one represents something important to a family. One of the things that I think is a stereotype which may be actually factual is that often immigrant recipes are really budget recipes because you know people don't have that much when they came and they're trying to feed a whole crew of folks and so they paid very close attention to you know how much money they had to spend on food

is that correct. I think you know not necessarily all the the ones in this book and the people that I spoke with I mean Beardsley says recipe is very economical beings and tortillas but that's what she cooked at home. She has a section in there as she talks about that's what they ate almost every day and then there's the Brazilian recipe which calls for swordfish and the Persian recipes that call for saffron. So I think it probably depends on the family. Now would you do a follow up to this and what would it be. I you know I'm not sure yet maybe interviewing kids more hearing hearing what they have to say. But having. Give it that much thought yet. So when you go home today you'll be making one of these recipes Maybe And is everybody trying to come to your house to eat by the way. Now that you know well the recipe has had a lot of people over for dinner lately yes. And it's called Breaking bread so are you a big bread maker by the way.

Just I do like to make bread. Oh yeah. Breaking bread just this notion of coming together and breaking bread at the table. Actually a friend came up with the title and I absolutely love it. OK. I didn't ask you where you know your ethnic background what. What is it it is. Does that reflect in your cooking. Yeah it does my grandmother was of Irish descent so she made a lot of fresh bread sauce and Irish something she called Irish stew which had a lot of potatoes in it and I had a German grandmother so we have German potato salad. My grandfather was German so we cook a lot of sauerkraut. So it certainly influences my cooking. Well I have to say this. This is about the tastiest book. Read in a while. So I think that and it's so accessible and the stories are really really wonderful so that I hope that other people will pick it up and read it and them it's great. My thanks to Lynn Anderson thank you cal He's an adjunct professor at Boston College and Bunker Hill Community College. Her heart her new book is Breaking bread recipes and stories

from immigrant kitchens. Now we're going to go out with a just a little bit of a reprise of Cab Calloway as everybody eats when they come to my house because that's what people do. Based on this book. Today's show was engineered by Jane pink and produced by Chelsea murders and a white knuckle bully and Abby Ruzicka. We got special production help from Lucky show Landrum. This is the Cali Crossley Show a production of WGBH radio. Boston's NPR station for nums and culture. Says. It's when they come to my. Friends. Well. Don't make pick ups you choose. The heat and it's just as the napkins you got I can show you. You will have a piece this year. As in the last minute. Gone by me. Because my.

FACE. Busted. Shops. Yeah everybody. Would think. Yeah everybody. When they come to my.