April 6, 2006
Yorke: GOP Primary Opponent for Carcieri?
Dan Yorke is reporting that Brown Adjunct Professor Dennis Michaud--who has testified on behalf of Beacon Mutual and has been on their payroll--has put forth the idea that he will run for Governor on the GOP ticket against incumbent Donald Carcieri. Michaud purportedly gives three main reasons for such a run:
1) Lack of economic progress.
2) State needs more moderate candidates (like Chafee).
3) He'll bring young people into the process.
He also claims that key Republicans initially approached him to run on the GOP ticket because, as they told him, the governor had financial problems and may not run. Michaud has stated that even if the governor can overcome these alleged financial difficulties, he will still run for governor (and thus in a primary against the governor) anyway.
Hm. Do you think this has anything to do with the focus that Governor Carcieri is bringing against Beacon Mutual? Nothing like good old fashioned threat by innuendo, huh? Rhode Island politics as usual. Yorke speculates that J. Michael Levesque--who happens to work for Harrah's Casino, who is also opposed by Governor Carcieri--may be one of those unnamed Republican insiders.
There isn't much doubt about those unnamed Republicans.
John Holmes and Lincoln Almond, both involved with Beacon Mutual and lots of other dubious associations.
Now do you understand why the Republican party has never grown in Rhode Island and why someone like me will never join the party?
Over the years the leadership has always been plugged into the corrupt game and has been made fat and happy because of it.
Carcieri is an outsider who can't be bought and they'll stop at NOTHING to be rid of him.
NOTHING!
Check out the "he's having financial problems" rumor floated by this individual.
That's either just another attempted smear by the likes of Guy Dufault (no dount involved here) since the comatta smear didn't work or it's a roundabout attempt at extortion.
You decide!
Too right. Here in RI we should just abandon the Democrat and Republican labels, and admit that we have three parties: Labor, Liberals, and the Rest of Us. And Holmes, Jackvony, Traficante and their ilk are clearly all members of the Labor party.
Posted by: John at April 6, 2006 10:32 PMJohn,
that's an awesome name for a blog: Labor, Liberals, and the rest of us. Love it!
But to the point, what does challenging Carcieri do? Will he get beat? No. Will it be close? No.
I don't see any reason why any Republican in Rhode Island would challenge the governor. I've certainly not agreed with everything the governor has done, but it makes little sense to challenge the most powerful conservative in one of the most liberal states.
It reeks of political nepotism and only speaks to how far outside the inner sanctum Carcieri truly is. And I like that in one sense, and hate it in another.
If the inner sanctum is looking for yes men, no wonder the GOP is hurtin' in lil' Rhody. Rhode Islanders have and will continue to be independent, praising the same and reviling politicians bent on being good soldiers for the party (or for their respective employers *ahem*)
If today weren't April 1st, I'd think this would have been a great April Fool's joke. Who ever the shady hacks that found this nobody are (I'm absolutely certain there's a Mike Levesque connection in this somewhere), they obviously have no idea what they are stirring up. If they are looking for a great way to kick start Carcieri's re-election campaign off into overdrive, and to galvanize his supporters, this is certainly one way to do it.
Unlike the Laffey/Chafee Senate race, there is no one, and I mean NO ONE, in real, active Rhode Island Republican circles that seriously wants anyone other than Governor Carcieri at the helm. There is a very rare amount of consensus on that. Despite any boogeyman scenerio that Dan Yorke might try to have us believe, this poses no threat whatsoever to Gov. Carcieri's reelection chances -- if anything, it will probably help him energize any potentially complacent supporters.
If you want to see a good old-fashioned political arse whooping, ala Gary Reilly in Cranston, all I can say to the Beacon Mutual/ Harrah's/ Blue Cross/ Board of Elections/ Paid Lobbyist/ Greedy Trial Lawyer/ Municipal Union axis of evil, and to all the other lowlife insider hacks out there is BRING IT ON!
Posted by: Will at April 8, 2006 12:51 AM