Massachusetts Candidate Tim Cahill Sues Ex-Strategists

Timothy Cahill, the independent candidate for governor in Massachusetts, has filed a lawsuit accusing his former top strategists of plotting to doom his campaign by helping his running mate resign and conspiring to give damaging information to his Republican rival, The Boston Globe reported.

The suit filed Thursday points to e-mails in which the strategists allegedly orchestrated the resignation of Paul Loscocco as Cahill's running mate. Loscocco, a former Republican state lawmaker, created a stir last Friday when he abruptly quit the campaign and immediately endorsed Cahill's GOP rival, Charles Baker.

"Paul will be given/offered a substantive lifeline," one of the strategists, John Weaver, wrote Sept. 18 to an associate, John Yob, and Adam Meldrum, Cahill's campaign manager at the time, according to the Globe.

Cahill is seeking to prevent Weaver, Meldrum, Yob, and former political director Jordan Gehrke from handing over any confidential information and documents to Baker and the Republican Governors Association. All four former aides quit the campaign two weeks ago, but Cahill says they are still in possession of strategic information related to his candidacy.

"The defendants . . . knew (and know) essentially everything there was to know about the campaign's strategy and tactics for the final push to the election," the suit says.

The Globe said the suit also accuses Baker campaign manager Tim O'Brien and RGA staff members of actively soliciting negative information on Cahill from the former operatives, for use in the final weeks of the governor's race.

Baker told the newspaper he had not authorized anyone in his campaign to reach out to the former Cahill aides to get inside information.

Recent polls show Baker and Democratic incumbent Deval Patrick in a dead heat, with Cahill trailing by double digits.