Is Menino sticking out his neck for Hillary?

The Boston Globe‘s Political Intelligence blog is reporting today that nearly 50 Massachusetts supporters of the pro-choice group NARAL have signed a letter asking that the organization retract its recent endorsement of Barack Obama over Hillary Clinton. "We believe NARAL’s endorsement was not only the wrong one, but entirely premature," the letter states, according to the Globe.

The signers include state Senate President Therese Murray and House Speaker Sal DiMasi, but perhaps the most notable name is Tom Menino, the mayor of Boston. Menino has been a strong Clinton supporter since before the Massachusetts primary in February, but he also has a long history of advocating for more federal aid to go to cities like Boston. ("We need a partnership with the federal government to secure our cities — and that means financial assistance," he said as president of the US Conference of Mayors in 2003.) If Obama is nominated (which seems more than probable) and then elected president, Menino’s late stand for Clinton may make things awkward when the mayor goes to Washington to lobby for funds.

Menino may be betting that Obama is a forgiving sort, or he may feel it’s more important to maintain relations with Murray and DiMasi, who can influence any state aid to Boston. Or, more simply, he really thinks it’s a mistake not to nominate Clinton.