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Steve
Grossman, President of Somerville based Grossman Marketing Group, hopes
to be the next State Treasurer and an elected official people will have
trust in. ~Photo by Bobbie Toner |
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By Martin Levenson
"The
people want stability; they want to look, I think, at their elected
officials and say 'I trust that person'" says local businessman Steve
Grossman, as he visited The Somerville News offices two weeks ago,
locally announcing his bid for State Treasurer. The current State
Treasurer, Timothy Cahill, now a newly converted member of the
Independent Party, plans to challenge Gov. Patrick in the gubernatorial
race this November. "I didn't really expect to run for state-wide
office again," says Steve Grossman alluding to his failed 1999 attempt
at the Governorship. However, Cahill's party-switch, and according to
Grossman, the supposed financial crisis it will bring to the State if
Cahill wins, was enough for Grossman to throw his hat in the ring
again. "How many leave because they cannot afford to stay here or the
jobs aren't here or the opportunities aren't here?" Grossman asks
reporters sitting by.
Grossman is a businessman by heart and
by trade. He is currently President of Grossman Marketing Group on
Cobble Hill Road in Somerville, a business his grandfather started many
years ago. Because of his belief in American capitalism as a way to
benefit all, he is considering (but has not made a clear declaration)
of bringing casino gambling to Massachusetts. He recounts a visit to a
casino in Connecticut in his past, saying that 27 of 100 license plates
he saw were from Massachusetts. Admitting this was an unscientific
poll, which he did on his own time, Grossman still states "That's
hundreds of millions of dollars going to Connecticut [from
Massachusetts residents]." Grossman's unwillingness to legalize casinos
comes from the fact that, as he says, "We have the most successful
lottery in the United States."
Grossman started his political
career helping Michael Dukakis in his 1988 Presidential bid. Since
then, Grossman has been involved with appointed positions in government
and philanthropic endeavors. He is the founder of Massachusetts
Institute for a New Commonwealth, which caters to the needs of the
middle-class in Somerville and towns and cities all over Massachusetts.
He is active in Project Bread, and considers Jewish charities of great
importance, saying, "I've been involved with Jewish communal
activities; helped raise money for the U.S. Holocaust Museum."
President
Clinton appointed Grossman Chair of Democratic National Convention in
1997, a position he held for approximately two years, leaving due to
his father having died suddenly of Parkinson's disease. "My father was
my business partner and one of my heroes," Grossman tells The
Somerville News.
Grossman declares he is pro-union and
pro-worker rights, and says that he is fit for the State's top treasury
seat because of his experience in the business-world, namely at
Somerville's Grossman Marketing Group. Grossman states that "…for
almost thirty years [he has] run a business, met payrolls, created
jobs, negotiated contracts, managed money and hopefully treated people
with a certain amount of dignity."
The statutory
responsibilities of the State Treasurer are funding for schools,
retirement, lottery, pension and general state assets. While the
Treasurer will not have a direct say – since this position is not in
the legislature – in how these funds are manipulated and handled,
Grossman states he will use his influence to instill "financial
literacy" among the public. "You may not have a vote, but I think you
have a voice," he says.
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