"People are pissed"

By PAUL MCMORROW

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Pretty much everybody inside Boston City Hall has heard the rumors of City Councilor Steve Murphy's demise. These rumors are thick with money and political calculation, but-according to Murphy, at least-they've been greatly exaggerated.

Reportedly, Murphy has asked Governor Deval Patrick for a job as secretary of public safety, as an undersecretary in public safety and as DCR commissioner, but he was denied. (Patrick's office declined to comment.) Patrick and Lieutenant Governor Tim Murray countered with three or four less public (but relatively lucrative) job offers, all of which Murphy turned down. According to a source with knowledge of the talks, when negotiating, Murphy asked the administration for more money, a car and the ability to take his staff with him. Reportedly, he also asked that he be allowed to keep his city council seat, at which point the talks ended.

"I don't want to discuss any specifics," Murphy said recently. "We've had a couple of discussions this year. I was one of the few elected officials in Boston who was with [Patrick] early on. I'm humbled that I'd be considered, but I have not, as of yet, accepted a position."

Asked about the report that he wanted to hold down two public jobs, Murphy responded, "That isn't true. That's something that [Michael] Flaherty put out there-it's not accurate." (Earlier, he'd told the Dorchester Reporter that council challenger John Connolly was responsible for leaking word of the housing job to the Globe; Connolly denied that charge.)

Murphy has spent much of his time on the city council trying to get off it; he ran for state treasurer and sheriff, and his detractors saw job-hunting in his endorsement of Patrick. In that sense, it's surprising that he's had such a hard time finding a job to take. People inside City Hall say Murphy became upset that Patrick's people wanted to bury him in some obscure state agency. It's also possible that, by staying-at least for now-he blocks Connolly from cruising into his council seat.

"There's been some wishful thinking that I might not be there, and that hasn't happened," Murphy said. "I think a couple of my opponents are jealous that I have a supporter in the governor. My commitment to the council is strong. The fact that I didn't just move aside has got to be maddening. People are pissed. Well, too bad about 'em."