Battenfeld: Back to the Future with Frank Baker

Frank Baker a scrappy blast from the past who used to regularly mix it up with progressives is running for City Council again but will he indeed help change the scandal-scared institution Baker the former Dorchester district councilor is running for an at-large seat which will pit him against President Ruthzee Louijeune and one of Mayor Michelle Wu s hand-picked flunkies Henry Santana He was part of what was viewed as the council s conservative wing for years and should make the race a lot more captivating because of his probable clashes with Wu and others I have heard a steady beat of Bostonians urging me to step back in and get involved he mentioned on X announcing his candidacy The question is whether Bostonians will welcome him back or reject him as part of the rapidly disappearing old Boston He should be good for headlines but will he be great for the council which badly demands reasonable and credible voices But Baker is viewed as an independent thinker who is not afraid to go against Wu or the progressive wing which now dominate the council He was one of just two votes against Wu s rent control proposal and is a political ally of former Mayor Marty Walsh I get viewed as conservative or whatever I m exactly in the middle I think Baker reported WBUR in I refuse to shut up Baker certainly could be bombastic He once accused a fellow councilor LIz Breadon of being anti-Catholic because she s from Northern Ireland a charge for which he later apologized The dustup flared over redistricting which Baker opposed and Breadon supported The Dorchester councilor mentioned priests were concerned about it And they re viewing this exercise as an all-out assault on Catholic life in Boston he commented And it s not lost on them that the person leading the charge is a Protestant from Northern Ireland Councilors called an unplanned recess after gasps were heard in the audience reports explained This is an insult It is an absolute disgrace Breadon shot back Baker was part of a lawsuit against the city council s redistricting plan which was eventually thrown out by a federal judge because it took race into account But Baker s former constituents especially those in the large Vietnamese public describe him as a moderate and a hard worker who fought for their necessities and helped improve the Dorchester district Baker could be a welcome lone wolf on the council who votes the way he sees it and not be influenced by Wu Or if he doesn t tone it down he could be just another embarrassment in the clown show that is the council The level of discourse is so low and petty now the council demands various adults to bring respect back to the chamber But is Baker the voice of reason to right the ship And is he out of touch with the majority of the city And with former Councilor Michael Flaherty booted from his cushy city job thinking of coming back to run again Boston voters could think they were watching Back to the Future