By: Brian Genest ~ July, 2024
It didn’t take long for Selectman Josh Taylor to show his true colors. As a candidate, Josh Taylor claimed he’d be “independent.” As a selectman, he’s already proven to be anything but.
Josh Taylor has quickly aligned himself with the most negative and nasty voices in our community.
That alignment was on display after Josh Taylor’s very first meeting as a selectman. According to the Lowell Sun, John Taylor’s buddy and supporter, former Selectman John Zimini, was waiting for him after that meeting, to discuss his vote to buy the Proper Farm on Broadway Road from John Brox. The paper said John Zimini was in a “huff” and that he “berated” Josh Taylor after the meeting.
Apparently, they’ve patched things up. Now, Josh Taylor has started sponsoring John Zimini’s cable television show, a local version of Wayne’s World with a similar level of maturity and cast of characters. A washed-up political has-been, John Zimini spends the waning days of his twilight launching personal attacks on town employees, elected officials, their family and friends, business owners, and private citizens.
For years, John Zimini has used his cable TV “shows” as a political weapon without any consequences, so far, from Comcast, DATV, or the ratepayers who fund his warped smear campaigns.
John Zimini calls people sleazy, corrupt, and many other things. He talks about back room deals, political patronage, and insider politics.
His hypocrisy is stunning. Remember when John Zimini, then a Dracut selectman, was included in a flurry of news articles in the Boston press in January 2012?
He’d probably like you to forget.
Google “John Zimini” and you’ll find a bunch of published reports about his dealings with former Lt. Governor Tim Murray and former Chelsea Housing Authority Executive Director Mike McLaughlin, one of his friends who went to federal prison.
In the Boston Herald, Howie Carr wrote a column about Tim Murray’s ever-changing story about his 108-mile-per-hour crash, that said “Then there are his shifting stories about the aforementioned Mike McLaughlin. He knew him well enough to obtain a hack job for his son (who has since been fired) and for a friend, one John Zimini, who has likewise been booted from the public trough.”
According to an expose in the Boston Globe, “McLaughlin reveled in his proximity to power, say his former employees, and the help he could get from the lieutenant governor. Murray once angrily called former labor secretary Suzanne Bump when she fired one of McLaughlin’s old friends, John Zimini, according to someone who was briefed about the call.
Murray later helped Zimini find a new job at a quasi-public state agency. In addition, Murray recommended people to housing authority boards on McLaughlin’s word, giving McLaughlin added clout.” (You can read it here:
https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2012/01/21/mclaughlin-raised-money-for-murray-employees-say
RedMass Group published campaign contributions from OCPF records showing that John Zimini, his wife Kristin and his daughter Alyssa each donated $500 to Tim Murray shortly before John Zimini was hired at MassHousing in 2010. It sure doesn’t sound like John Zimini’s hiring was a coincidence or the result of a nationwide search!
Speaking of housing, don’t forget the scandal at the Dracut Housing Authority and the 217 phone calls between John Zimini and Mike McLaughlin. (You can read it here:
https://www.lowellsun.com/2012/02/05/dracut-housing-officials-face-calls-to-step-down-over-mclaughlin-ties
According to the Sun, “Zimini did not return multiple calls seeking comment for this story.” John Zimini has plenty to say, except when it comes to answering news reporters about his own alliances and dealings, apparently.
Meanwhile, John Zimini continues to spew toxic venom on social media and his cable tv show. Now, that hate speech against town citizens is being paid for by Dracut’s newest selectman.
Josh Taylor isn’t independent. He’s a political shill and a hypocrite. And he should be ashamed of himself for lying to the voters and for funding John Zimini’s vicious tirades. Dracut deserves better.
— Brian Genest is the producer and host of Eye On Dracut, winner of the Hometown Media Award for News, sponsored by Lucky Oil. ◊