TALKING TRAHAN — Several top Democrats in the U.S. House hail from Massachusetts. Lori Trahan could join their ranks today.

Trahan is competing for co-chair of the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee — a key (if little known beyond Capitol Hill) panel that controls the caucus’ messaging. House Democrats will meet in a few hours to pick either Trahan or Colorado Rep. Jason Crow for the leadership post that will be instrumental to the party’s efforts to win the House majority in 2024.

“I am a competitor, a former athlete,” Trahan, who played volleyball for Georgetown University, told Playbook at the Capitol last night. “I want to do everything I can to make sure we leave it all out on the field coming next November.”

To the casual observer, the congresswoman’s bid came as a surprise — especially after Rep. Jake Auchincloss sent up a public trial balloon for the post Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) gave up before launching his presidential bid. (Auchincloss told Playbook he is supporting Trahan today.)

But Trahan has been quietly climbing the rungs of House Democratic leadership since she came to Congress in 2019. She’s already a senior member of Democratic Whip Katherine Clark’s whip team. And she’s a member of Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries’ Regional Leadership Council and the Democratic Steering and Policy Committee.

The chaos that gripped Congress this fall complicated Trahan’s campaign. Days that should have been filled with lengthy votes on appropriations bills were replaced by only occasional votes for House speaker, scrambling Trahan’s opportunities to pitch her caucus-mates.

So Trahan changed her approach, handing out fliers to members’ offices outlining why she was running — with a s’more from Lowell’s Sweet Lydia’s attached to each one. During the few votes that were held in October, Trahan was seen talking to dozens of Democrats around the House floor. In the end, Trahan told Playbook, she talked to every Democratic member.

If Trahan wins, she would increase the Bay State’s already outsized influence in the House. Massachusetts is a small but mighty state: Of its nine House members, three — Clark and Reps. Richard Neal and Jim McGovern — hold positions of power as minority whip and the ranking Democrats on the Ways and Means and Rules committees, respectively. “Pretty great for a small state,” Neal told Playbook.

Trahan heads into this morning’s vote with the backing of several Bay State colleagues, Neal included. Rep. Stephen Lynch even helped campaign for her. And while Clark, Trahan’s mentor, can’t endorse anyone because she’s a member of leadership, she lauded the Westford Democrat for stepping forward to run for the post.

“Lori is incredibly talented and would do an excellent job, especially going into an election year. She brings tremendous insight,” Clark told Playbook. “It’s a terrific opportunity for her to join leadership.”

GOOD WEDNESDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Say hi to Mia around Capitol Hill!

TODAY — Gov. Maura Healey participates in a press conference on the Army-Navy game at 11:15 a.m. at Gillette Stadium. Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll chairs a Governor’s Council meeting at noon. Healey and Driscoll swear in Peter Durant as a senator at 3 p.m. in the governor’s ceremonial office.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu hosts a winter weather preparedness press conference at 9:45 a.m. at the Boston Public Works Yard and speaks about a flood risk-management project at 11 a.m. in Fenway. Sen. Elizabeth Warren is on WBUR’s “Radio Boston” at 11 a.m.

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REMEMBERING ‘CAPTAIN SUNSHINE’ — John Walsh wasn’t one for the spotlight. But the dozens of top Democratic officials and operatives who packed Faneuil Hall’s Great Hall yesterday to pay tribute to the “architect of the modern-day grassroots” served as a public testament to his lasting impact on Massachusetts politics.

In all, hundreds of people came out to commemorate Walsh, an insurance salesman and son of Irish immigrants who helped engineer Deval Patrick’s historic rise to the governor’s office in 2006 and Sen. Ed Markey’s 2020 reelection. Walsh died on Nov. 20 at age 65 after a battle with stomach cancer.

“John Walsh changed the face of Massachusetts politics,” Rep. Ayanna Pressley said. “So many women and people of color count him as a mentor.”

Markey called Walsh a “Buddha with a spreadsheet” who’s probably “already started organizing Heaven.” Attorney General Andrea Campbell described him as the guiding force behind a generation of politicians and operatives and a strategist whose “political genius was unmatched.”

An emotional Patrick read a letter to Walsh’s family from former President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, offering their condolences.

But tears mixed with laughter throughout the nearly two-hour celebration of life. Friends and family and current and former elected officials commemorated Walsh not just for his political know-how, but for an optimism so unfailing that his sister once said he “was born with a rainbow up his ass” — a line delivered by Patrick to peals of laughter.

“John’s optimism wasn’t wishful thinking,” Patrick said. “It was leadership.”

ALSO SPOTTED — House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark, Gov. Maura Healey and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll; former Gov. Mike Dukakis, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, former Sen. Mo Cowan, state Sens. Julian Cyr, Lydia Edwards, Will Brownsberger, Jamie Eldridge, Robyn Kennedy, Adam Gomez, Pavel Payano and Marc Pacheco; current and incoming Boston City Councilors Gabriela “Gigi” Coletta, Ruthzee Louijeune, Sharon Durkan, Henry Santana and Enrique Pepén; former Boston City Councilor Larry DiCara; state Reps. Kate Donaghue, Dylan Fernandes, Judith Garcia, John Moran, Tram Nguyen, Samantha Montaño and Chris Worrell...

...former NBC10 reporter Alison King; Mary Anne Marsh, Doug Rubin, Scott Ferson, Corey Welford, former state Rep. Jim Cantwell, Chris Dempsey, former Auditor Suzanne Bump, Jon Cohn, Kate Cook, Liz Vlock, Jesse Mermell, former state Sen. Ben Downing; former Treasurer Shannon O’Brien; Easthampton Mayor Nicole LaChapelle; Alex Goldstein, Sean Curran, Sydney Asbury, MassDems Chair Steve Kerrigan, former MassDems Chair Gus Bickford and many more.

— “‘It’s frankly shameful.’ Mass. Legislature closes out least productive period in decades.” by Samantha J. Gross and Matt Stout, Boston Globe: “Nearly 11 months after it convened, the Legislature has failed to move proposals to Healey’s desk that would address some of the state’s most pressing issues — housing, gun control, and oversight of the beleaguered MBTA. And by Tuesday, lawmakers hadn’t yet sent Healey a nearly $3 billion spending bill designed to close out last fiscal year, and this time, includes hundreds of millions in funding for homeless children and families.”

— “Governor Healey unveils plan to protect Mass. coastline from climate change,” by Jason Margolis and Billy Baker, Boston Globe: “On Tuesday morning, the governor laid out a new regional approach called ‘ResilientCoasts,’ a plan to collaborate with 78 coastal communities. It will be led by a chief coastal resilience officer at the Office of Coastal Zone Management. The team will unite communities that share similar landscapes and face similar challenges from climate change, including sea-level rise, coastal erosion, and more severe storms.”

— “Gun control bills bring heated testimony to Beacon Hill,” by Matthew Medsger, Boston Herald: “Dozens of gun control measures under consideration by the state Legislature are plainly at odds with recent rulings by the Supreme Court and wouldn’t actually prevent gun violence or crime, firearms advocates told a legislative joint committee. However, some of the would-be gun laws might make Massachusetts safer and potentially save lives, if advanced to the full Legislature and given the governor’s signature, gun safety advocates told the same group of lawmakers.”

— “Goldberg indicates meeting with O’Brien to be private,” by Bhaamati Borkhetaria, CommonWealth Beacon: “State treasurer Deborah Goldberg’s office indicated on Tuesday that she intends to meet next week with Shannon O’Brien to discuss why she suspended O’Brien as chair of the Cannabis Control Commission. A spokesperson for the treasurer said the meeting would be private, suggesting the public will most likely remain in the dark about what led to O’Brien’s suspension more than two months ago.”

BIDEN’S GOT A FRIEND IN JAMES TAYLOR — Grammy-winning singer-songwriter James Taylor is hosting a concert with President Joe Biden in Boston on Tuesday to benefit the president’s reelection campaign and other Democratic fundraising arms. Tickets range from $50 to $7,500 for the event, according to the invitation. Biden’s visit comes less than a month after Vice President Kamala Harris traveled to Boston to fundraise for the Democratic National Committee.

CEASE-FIRE NOW — Somerville City Council President Ben Ewen-Campen joined residents in delivering an open letter to Markey and Warren’s offices in Boston urging the senators to “stand up for our shared humanity” and call for an “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza.

Dozens of hostages who were held by Hamas and more than 100 Palestinian prisoners in Israel have been freed in recent days thanks to a temporary truce that has allowed much-needed aid into Gaza. While Markey and Warren have praised the temporary pause in fighting — and called for it to be extended — neither has voiced support for permanent cease-fire.

— “Harvard University faces federal civil rights investigation for antisemitism amid Israel-Hamas war,” by Rick Sobey, Boston Herald: “The U.S. Department of Education has added Harvard University to its list of schools that are under investigation for possible civil rights violations as students have reported antisemitic incidents amid the Israel-Hamas war.”

— More: “Harvard, MIT presidents to testify before Congress about confronting antisemitism on campus,” by Hilary Burns, Boston Globe.

— “‘Stealing’ overtime was common for years in Mass. State Police, retired trooper testifies,” by Brad Petrishen, Telegram & Gazette: “‘Stealing’ by not working full overtime shifts was commonplace in the Massachusetts State Police dating to the 1980s, a retired trooper testified under an immunity agreement Tuesday in federal court.”

— “Police stun gun use continues to decline,” by Christian M. Wade, The Eagle-Tribune: “The use of stun guns and Tasers by Massachusetts law enforcement officers dropped in 2021, according to a new report, which shows the decline comes as more officers are trained to use the non-lethal devices.”

— “Resolution Against Hate now hangs in Attleboro City Hall,” by George W. Rhodes, The Sun Chronicle.

HALEY HAS A MOMENT — Fresh off a big endorsement from a Koch brothers-backed super PAC, Nikki Haley is turning new heads in New Hampshire. Spotted among the few hundred people who packed into the Derry Opera House to hear her last night: former Sen. Gordon Humphrey (R-N.H.) who backed John Kasich in 2016 and Joe Biden in 2020 out of disdain for Donald Trump.

Humphrey told POLITICO he’s “leaning” toward Haley and has requested a private meeting with her to help make up his mind. He said he’s drawn to her “experience, her qualifications, her energy, her policy positions and the fact that she can win” — or at least finish a “strong second” in New Hampshire.

As for whether he would support Biden again, Humphrey said it “depends on who the Republican nominee is. I supported Biden because I despise Trump.”

— “Mr. Amo goes to Washington (and Smithfield),” by Edward Fitzpatrick, Boston Globe: “Three weeks have passed since Amo, a Providence Democrat, defeated Gerry W. Leonard Jr., a Jamestown Republican, in the special election to fill Rhode Island’s First Congressional District seat. And at this point, even insiders are struggling to get his name right.”

TRANSITIONS — Former state Sen. John O’Brien has been named COO of JERA Americas, a Houston-based energy company expanding into New England.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to Joe Valente, Seth Gitell, Katherine Forde, Dominique Manuel, Trent Spiner, Kaveesh Pathak and Maddie Kilgannon.

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