How to fail at politics without really trying

Josh Kraft’s run for Mayor of Boston may merit a full chapter in any book about how not to campaign for political office.

The son of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, who promised “transparency at all levels of government” is apparently unwilling to extend that to his personal finances, despite a pledge to release his tax returns.

Instead, Kraft has offered a two-page statement saying he earned a total of $12.8 million over 2023 and 2024, apparently in part as the head of his family charity, the New England Patriot Charitable Foundation.

A foundation’s whose federal income tax filing shows he received no compensation.

The Globe reports “a spokesperson for his campaign said he was paid a salary by the Kraft Group for his work at the foundation. The spokesperson did not provide the dollar amount of that salary.”

“The brief summary provided to the media on Friday does not specify the source of Kraft’s income over the two-year period, but a spokesperson said it includes salary, interest, dividends, and capital gains. The campaign said it will not disclose specifics about Kraft’s investments. Some of Kraft’s income is derived through a blind trust that he has no control over, a spokesperson said.”

This “transparency” is in keeping with the information on the purchase of a condo in Boston’s North End after a move from his home in Chestnut Hill in anticipation of a mayoral run.

“The $2 million unit was purchased in October 2023 by an LLC, Two BW Boston LLC, that lists the Patriots’ home field, Gillette Stadium, as its address. A spokesperson said the condo is Kraft’s primary residence, where he votes and receives mail. However, public records show he did not file for a residential tax exemption on the property.”

Kraft has no intention of providing additional details or a copy of his tax returns.

In comparison, Mayor Michelle Wu’s tax return, provided to the Globe on the condition it not be published, showed she made just over $184,000 in federal gross income last year. As a public official, she also filed a financial disclosure form, which listed her Roslindale home as an asset, along with several index funds and stocks her husband owns. The campaign told the Globe that the total value of those investments is roughly $450,000.

A recent Kraft campaign spending report is more transparent, showing the support he has received from Robert Kraft’s friends and business associates, including National Football League Commissioner Roger Goodell.

Money that’s been used by a SuperPAC to pay for a series of ads attacking Wu on issues ranging from the state of the perpetually fouled up Boston public schools to what may be one his top priorities — bike lanes.

Oh, and the cost of building a soccer stadium in Boston’s Franklin Park to replace the decrepit facilities used by student athletes.

And partially financed by a group bringing a professional women’s soccer club to Boston.

Wu has rightfully been pressed about the rising cost estimates — and her acknowledgment that a more formal figure than the current $91 million estimate won’t be available until after the election.

In a lovely example of cluelessness, Kraft has accused Wu of a lack of transparency:

“From the get-go, Michelle Wu has tried to downplay the cost of this project. With construction having already begun, with her proposed transportation plan increasingly being described as ‘unworkable’ and with state officials expressing greater and greater concerns about environmental impact, her lack of transparency is completely unacceptable.”

Yet Kraft is being less than fully transparent about his own involvement in a plan by the New England Revolution, owned by Robert Kraft, to build a soccer stadium in Everett, right on the city line with Boston.

And with the team’s lowball offer for mitigation to offset increased traffic from fans coming to Everett.

Josh Kraft insists he has no involvement in the Everett effort by the Kraft Group, which paid a portion of his salary to run the charitable foundation. He also insists he would recuse himself from any decision about the stadium which would become the new home for the club that now plays at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro.

But does Boston need two professional soccer stadiums?

The latest financial disclosure walk back is unlikely to make a positive impression on voters who back Wu by a 2-1 margin in a recent Globe poll.

Contrarian Boston (paywall) is reporting Kraft is planning a major campaign reboot. He’s going to need it.