Changing the Rules to Compensate for Falling Political Capital?

State Representative John Loughlin (R-Little Compton/Portsmouth/Tiverton) has an interesting theory, told to today's Political Scene column in the Projo, as to the motivation of the State House's Democratic leadership in seeking to severely limit the range of matters that can be debated on the House floor…

You have to wonder if maybe these rules are so harsh because we have a lame-duck speaker and he realizes it’s the only way he can control the room.”

But Murphy bristled at any suggestion that he is a lame duck. “I think it’s a distraction now for anybody to talk about who the future speaker of the House will be in Rhode Island because we do have a speaker right now that was just elected, and in 2011 I look forward to being elected again.”