John said on WPRO that this is about Steve Laffey and Gio said it is too late - both said it is a good idea but too late - so where were they as far as party leadership since RIRA has been pushing this since 2004 and in earnest since 2005 when I became President of RIRA - Carol Mumford called WPRO supporting closing primary and said John would make a great Secretary of State!!!

Linc announcing his candidacy under the Moderate banner would explain his assertion that it will be "historic". There is no other way he can make that claim, unless of course, this is the first time a farrier has run for Governor of RI.

I object to your slanted commentary, Andrew. What do you mean "eventually kill their credibility"?

I think the primaries should be closed. After the last primary, the proof was in, the dems will do anything to fix the elections to better their chances for victory. Pick a party and make a commitment. If you are a Moderate, vote in that primary, if a dem vote in your own damn primary, and that goes for the R's too.

I am surprised that Carol Mumford would be so snippy and make such a silly comment. We elect our leaders, not appoint them. If someone wants to run for office, has a campaign team, a bevy of supporters, and the energy and ideas to make this nutty state better, God bless them!

Kathy you hit the nail on the head. The normally classy Carol Mumford turned whiney bi*ch because her and her fellow kool-aid guzzlers want their boy Laffey put into office via coronation not open election. John Robitaille running in an open Rep primary interrupts their wet dream and that makes Carol very unhappy as you and I both heard.
It's hilarious how easily the Laffey crowd becomes unhinged. Much like their idol. lol
This is going to be a very interesting year in RI politics.

Whooda thunk it?? More bald faced lies and liars coming out of Carcieri's office.
No surprise there. I'm sure Robitaille agonized over this one before letting Carcieri in on his plans. I also believe in the tooth fairy.
Whats the matter Timmyboy?? Is Carcieri that afraid of Laffey showing everyone just what an incompetent blowhard he truly is?
Maybe you can explain just one little thing to me about your liar boss - whatever made him sign that pathetic fraudulent budget? Is he THAT stupid?

In one column, Laffey said he has never seen a happy homosexual.
"This is not to say there aren't any; I simply haven't seen one in my lifetime. Maybe they are all in the closet," he wrote. "All the homosexuals I've seen are sickly and decrepit, their eyes devoid of life."

In another column he wrote that pop music was turning the children of America into sissies, and criticized the singer Boy George, referring to him as "it."

"It wears girl's clothes and puts on makeup," he wrote. "When I hear it sing, 'Do you really want to hurt me, do you really want to make me cry,' I say to myself, YES, I want to punch your lights out, pal, and break your ribs."
What say you Mrs Mumford?
Do you support this HATE
PUNCH YOU LIGHTS OUT AND BREAK YOU RIBS?

Oscar, are those columns from his college days, about 25 years ago? Should everyone be held to things they did during their college days?

baronci why are you so angry? Why is Carol Mumford so angry? Why is Laffey's political consigliere No Show Joe the barber Musciano always so angry?
What seems to be the problem with you peeps?
It's so simple for everyone else. You think about running, you do run, you win or you lose. But not so for Laffey. Laffey needs his bum wiped, his ring kissed and the game fixed before he'll sign on. It's so obvious what you see in him. What a leader!! lol
Seems to me baronci the only one consistently afraid and whining is Laffey and his pompom brigade.

Things said 25 years ago may or may not matter. Has Mr. Laffey ever publicly disavowed these comments?

Wow, Timmyboy!
I don't see any anger there. Just questions you won't answer.
Let's try again, Timmy - whatever made your moron boss sign that pathetic fraudulent budget? Is he THAT stupid?

Thomas,

Oscar (who sometimes says he [or she] is a Vietnam veteran, other times says that she [or he] is a 56-year old woman named "Joyce", and today is using the name of a real 29-year old man charged with theft as his [or her] e-mail address) is referring to events that were reported on in the Projo three years ago, where Laffey did express some regret over the comments.

Andrew,

1. Obviously, anything you might have to say about "Oscar" is totally irrelevant and a distraction. Either Laffey said the things or he did not. He clearly did.

2.In the cited ProJo article, Mr. Laffey clearly tries to excuse his comments as "sophomoric political humor", but asked if any of the columns represented his views, Laffey said in an interview at his Cranston home yesterday, "No. Not now, nor then, or ever . . . Do I regret writing some of these things? Sure. But at the time, we were just having fun. We thought it was funny."

I confess that I don't find this very convincing. Or funny.

Actually, bringing up the 25-year old column, in the context of the topic being discussed, is the distraction. I thought you might be interested in the record of integrity of the person who raised an issue not related to anything in the thread, but it is apparently not a concern of yours.

Andrew,

I agree that bringing up an unrelated topic in a thread is inappropriate and makes the conversation much less valuable.

However, I did not respond to "Oscar", who introduced the subject, but to "Patrick", who said Laffey's early statements were irrelevant.

I am concerned with the credibilty of a report, but the credibility or integrity of an affiant/informant is totally irrelevant when the veracity of his report is undoubted, which is the case here.

Schmeling,
that's because u r a politcally correct jacka$$ liberal who is simply coming up with lame ways to distract from the fact that your candidates stink.
I actually find the comments rather amusing - and all the more so when I see it offends you.

Hey Thomas, where did I write:
"but to "Patrick", who said Laffey's early statements were irrelevant."

Where? Care to retract? Reading what you want into others' statements now?

As for the statements themselves:

"Asked if any of the columns represented his views, Laffey said in an interview at his Cranston home yesterday, "No."

So rather than running away from them and lying, he owned the statements but claims he didn't honestly believe those things nor does he today. What more do you want from the man with regard to them?

Patrick,

You said, "Oscar, are those columns from his college days, about 25 years ago? Should everyone be held to things they did during their college days?"

Were you not implying that Laffey's early statements were irrelevant? If not, what were you saying?

Also, "So rather than running away from them and lying, he owned the statements but claims he didn't honestly believe those things nor does he today. What more do you want from the man with regard to them?"

He did not "own" the statement. He said he didn't believe it when he said it. I said I found his disowning of those statements unconvincing. I still do.

I'm going to refrain from saying a lot of what I really feel like saying, because I know I'd like to say a lot.

I absolutely and unequivocally support closing the primary. It is a party primary. It is a pro-Republican position; that means any Republican, not one specific individual. We have the right to determine who our nominee will be. Period.

Anyway, I've known John for a long time, and think he's a good, honest person. He's fairly conservative, so that in of itself is not a problem. I would not be afraid to tell him to his face to not do this for several good reasons. I don't think he was per se "recuited" by any specific individual or group to possibly run for the GOP nomination. However, I do think there are people in high places who hold grudges who are trying to take advantage of his interest in that office in order to satisfy their own political vendettas.

That being said, John is not remotely in a position to do what's needed to run a credible race for governor this year or any year in the immediate future. He has no grassroots political network to speak of. His name recognition is less than zero. What is his plan to fundraise or loan himself $3-4 million to run a credible general election campaign? If he already has such a wonderful secret plan to raise oodles of cash, how come he hasn't shared it with the rest of the RIGOP which can't scrape two dimes together? If you not in a race with the intent of having a reasonable opportunity to win it, you have no business running.

John has never held elective office. I do think John would make a great Secretary of State or a Lt. Governor. Given his knowledge of State House stuff, I think SoS would be a good fit. I do not believe that Carol, whom I know quite well, actually meant her remark as an intentional slight towards John. However, I do think it was one of those things said quickly off the cuff, which she probably wouldn't repeat if she had a little more time to compose her thoughts. I didn't think it was particularly diplomatic for John to dismiss the comments of the Republican National Committeewoman so flippantly as merely being those of a "Laffey supporter," as if she were incapable of independent thought. One thing about Carol, is that she is very independent!

Will, Carol called into Dan's show (Dan didn't solicit her views) to make her remarks. She had every intention of slapping down Robitaille. That kool-aid makes you folks act very strange at times. Why the objection to Robitaille? From what I can see the Republican party has no candidates for governor so why the objection?? It's crystal clear to everyone if you don't wipe Laffey's bum to his liking and don't kiss his ring to his liking and don't "fix" the primary to his liking then John Robitaille is all you have.
Btw, not a good idea for the Laffey camp to ever whine over the supposed vendettas of others. That draws laughter far and wide.

baronci, why do you continue to be so angry and why are you venting against my boss? My boss has nothing to do with state budgets since he and I have nothing to do with state employment.
One doesn't need to be politically connected to see what a megalomaniacal fraud Steve Laffey is. All you need to do is pay attention.

One more thing Will. You might want to get guys like Mike Napolitano under control. His angry whining on the radio this morning about Robitaille messing up Laffey's coronation is not going to do you Laffeyites any good. You don't want to make this a Laffey vs Carcieri issue. Carcieri knows too much about your boys' bad behavior and may start sharing that info with the people of Rhode Island.

The conclusion that I've come to is that Laffey would probably be great for RI because of all the hate and venom that comes out of so many people every time his name comes up. Rory Smith? None. John Robitaille? None. Laffey? People explode. It's fear. People are afraid of Steve Laffey and what he'd bring to the state. It's not incompetence. We have plenty of that and those people don't bring out the same reaction. So I can't think of anything else it can be!

Patrick,

You beat me to the punch. Laffey is the only person who gets people in the game.

You either fear him (and try to advance a weak candidate in an open primary) or shout "Yeah! This guy gets it. Let's go storm the castle!"

--“In one column, Laffey said he has never seen a happy homosexual.”

A silly statement, since we all know how they are all so gay.

(Just kidding!)

--“Things said 25 years ago may or may not matter. Has Mr. Laffey ever publicly disavowed these comments?”

Didn’t you get the memo?

Making insulting, moronic comments is now a prerequisite for higher office, at least for RI Democrats.

Just look at Shelly Whitehouse’s comments last week, and Patches Kennedy’s rant about a month ago.

If anything, making such comments would mean that Laffey is extending the hand of bipartisanship to the Democrat voter, only he'll need to update with something more current.

As for Robitaille / Laffey: the former is, I believe, a decent man albeit with (only) partially-conservative credentials. But no matter -- without having held prior elective office and next to zero name recognition, I don’t believe that he’s ready for the prime time of a Governor’s race.

As regards Laffey, while I have some misgivings about him, and he is a polarizing figure, that may be exactly what RI needs right now.

He may end up at loggerheads with the GA, but that might be a good thing too, since he won’t be afraid to point out the elephants in the room AND begin opening up the closet doors on Smith Hill, letting the many skeletons see daylight, so that the RI electorate finally starts to get the connection between their own lack of opportunity and joblessness and high taxes and the Democrats who run this state.

My personal preference at this point is to have a Democrat win so that that party will own the coming wave of municipal bankruptcies and pension system collapses that the General Assembly has rendered inevitable. That said, I would not be unhappy to see a Laffey exposing the skeletons and making the Democrats squirm (if not be subjected to multiple indictments).

(Though as to the latter I wouldn't hold out much "hope" given the current administration's origins and practice of Chicago corruption.)

"Tim", I don't know who you are, but I wonder. Are you always a frightened, hateful, jealous, babbling psychopath...or just when Laffey's name is mentioned?

If it's the latter (which I'm not sure I'd believe), then would you either take a pill, or use those breathing exercises your therapist taught you, and then enlighten us as to the source of your fear and accompanying flailing frenzy by answering a few simple questions?

Putting your perceptions of Laffey's personality aside, what is it about his policies and ideas that set you so far back on your road to recovery?

Since Laffey is the only presumed candidate who has offered any ideas with respect to solving the state's problems; please elaborate (remember your breathing) on what you don't like about Laffey's ideas.

I was going to ask next; if you would explain why you think anyone else's ideas are better... but since no one else has any ideas...(and we're taking baby-steps)... I don't want to push you over the edge.

We'll see how you do on this one and maybe on the next post, we'll see if you're ready for the next step.

(Remember your breathing)

Tim, OTL, Schmeling, et al:

Please think long and hard about this.

- Your arguments are all ad hominum abusive. These false arguments are illogical and speak to a hopelessly weak position. A better method would be to actually do your homework and present some cogent arguments to present your position. Why not start by reading Laffey’s 13 OpEd pieces from the Providence Journal (2000-2009), and then compare his positions to the ones you’ve presented in your OpEd pieces.

- Your personal attack mentality is barbarian and juvenile. Think about using reasonable language and not violent and hateful words as you are wont to do. You may not be hateful but you sound like you are.

- You offer no solutions. Try to come up with some real solutions. You may not have any of your own right now, but if you do some research you may be able to either find one that someone else has articulated and borrow it from them or come up with something original (which is a lot harder).

The track you are currently on will lead ultimately to embarrassment and pain. We want to help you, but like most disobedient children you may need some time in detention. Justin? What do you think?

“A rational argument should always lead to either changing an opponent’s mind or agreeing to disagree. Irrationality leads to violence and much sadness.” SV

SV

Hi!
Steve Laffey is ELECTABLE!
While I hope to be on the nominating committee of the RI GOP, I must ask ALL candidates about campaign finances, their election game plan, do they have anything that would embarass the party,
can they work with others, what will they do to build the party, and personal qualifications for the job among other things I am sure.
I see no candidate on the horizon, with the business experience of Laffey combined with municipal experience as Mayor of Cranston. I might add the leadership of Laffey after taking over from O'Leary as Mayor speaks for itself.
I suspect Rhode Island voters want to see proven leadership in solving difficult problems and it appears Laffey has those credentials. He has the advantage of knowing what is like to be a local official in unpleasant times. Steve may have a strong ego, but can he produce?
I like Carol Mumford and at the GOP National Convention was hospitable to me and I think she reflects well on the RI GOP!
Regards,
Scott Bill Hirst
Republican State Committee From Hopkinton
Vice Chairman, Hopkinton Republican Town Committee
Hopkinton Town Council,1996-2004

P.S. I only speak for myself. I also still believe with the vote split more than two ways anything is possible but necessarily likely in The Governor's race.

Hi!
In my P.S it should say " not necessarily likely",.
Regards,
Scott
377-4643

Why are we even having this discussion? Robitaille is a total waste of time. The only reason he has even stuck his head out of the rat hole known as the Governor's office is that his boss hates Stephen Laffey. Why you ask? Well, maybe because Laffey has called on Carcieri to resign after committing either fraud or incompetence signing the last budget. And you know what? Laffey is right! This Governor is a silly old slobbering joke. His court jester Robitaille is more of the same, only not as rich or as smart. The Governor lies, Robitaille swears to it, such as "we have to sign the budget or the Feds will take away millions of dollars in stimulus money." Wrong. Federal fiscal years end the end of September, begin October first. The reason the jerk Governor signed the budget is that he wanted to get his Chief of Staff confirmed as a judge and that was the price for this bit of let's make a deal. Robitaille will be Don. This state needs Laffey. Hopefully we will be wise enough to elect this great man as our Governor!

Why are we even having this discussion?

The way for a presumptive frontrunner, which Steve Laffey was six months ago (and now is again with Smith's departure), to have closed off the field was to have gotten in early. By not building any buzz outside of dedicated Republican circles, the door has been left open for someone else to try to walk in (and I might be fighting the last war here, but I'm not buying any "this election is different" arguments this time around).

On the other hand, a primary between two serious Republicans who've got definite ideas about what Rhode Island needs to do to repair itself wouldn't be the end of the world. It would, in fact, be the best way for the Republicans to get free media coverage in the pre-summer campaign, which will become increasingly dominated by Lynch/Caprio, as time goes on. And it would set up a heckuva contrast with the Democrats, as they are in the midst of the traditional run-to-the-left phase of their primary.

Hi!
I think because of the state of affairs in Rhode Island, the turnout will be higher than a normal off year election. Clearly it appears no candidate will get 50% of the vote.
The question but thusly is this:
What experience, credentials, and vision and bold leadership do you have to commend you to voters to address serious economic and general government issues facing Rhode Island? It appears Laffey would be in the first ranking.
One good political slogan for Laffey "He can do for Rhode Island, what he did for Cranston". I do have plans to speak with any perspective GOP candidate for Governor. Others: "Laffey In 2010-The Stakes Are Just Too High For Rhode Island For Anybody"; or "Laffey: Bold Decisions, Vision, And Leadership",.
In think Laffey would be more of a party builder than Carcieri if he was Governor.
Regards,
Scott

The issue is not whether or not to have a Republican primary -- whether it be a real one or a mere formality -- it's about whether or not to have another Republican Primary (like in 2006) in which more than half the voters in it are not in fact registered Republicans.

I don't have any problem at all with a primary where Republicans decide who their own nominee will be.

PS Congratulations to John Robitaille on being attacked by Bill Lynch in near record time. Now he knows he's being taken seriously as a possible candidate, otherwise, why would they have bothered?

Bottom line? Carcieri has destroyed the state and destroyed the Republican party. When he came in, he had 15 House Members and 10 Senate members. Now we have 6 House member and 4 Senate members. This incompetent blithering boob has ruined everything he has touched. Now, his sycophant Propaganda Minister, wants to be Governor? Huh??!!! This clown could not even beat the worst most liberal State Representative in the history of modern government, but now he wants to be Governor? Yikes!!! What a clod! He lacks experience, money, name recognition, no political experiences (other than losing a chip shot state rep race), and no brains. So, what does Heir Robitaille have? An unbridled hatred of Stephen Laffey, based solely on envy. See he shares this with Grampa Don. Carcieri who, by the way, is totally incompetent. His propaganda minister is worse. The state will be well rid of them both, and we might even be better off with a Patrick Lynch Governorship.

Carol Mumford was my state rep for years. She is a total class act and one of the best people ever to have served in State Government. For this blow-hole Robitaille to dismiss her as just some Laffey support is nauseating. This Robitaille scum bag needs to crawl back under whatever rock he crawled out from.

You who post personal insults and vile language in your comments should know that you are revealing more about yourselves than you are saying about your targets. I'm not a moderator here but if I were I'd delete every post that contained such vulgarity regardless of the merit of any other point in the post. If you can't express yourself with civility, why should I believe you have anything worthwhile to say?

Now to the topic:

1. Laffey asked for this by playing coy for too long. If he had formally announced shortly after Rory Smith's exit, there would have been no perceived pressure for Robitaille to fill a gap. He's known for weeks that he has the support of all the most important elements of the party.

2. One of the Governor's greatest failings has been his lack of involvement in and support for his party, despite the party's consistently loyal support of him. For example, it would have been a tiny effort with a big effect for him to endorse and make a few appearances with Tom Clupny. The Governor has failed many times to take advantage of his bully pulpit and communicate actively with the people. The fact that this weak communication strategy has been managed by John Robitaille indicates that John is not capable of fighting the battle on behalf of the people that we must wage in order to save our state from bankruptcy and collapse.

Since he only announced that he is "thinking about running" it does him no harm to change his mind at this point. I hope he does so.

Mark said,
Schmeling, that's because u r a politcally correct jacka$$

Mark, be grateful that the powers that be here are happy to allow you to call me such without repercussions. Don't ever dare to call them that. The rules for one are not the rules for the other.

btw, "u r"? Really? Are you older than twelve?

4Sol,

Nice try, but no cigar.

You said Tim, OTL, Schmeling, et al - Your arguments are all ad hominum abusive. These false arguments are illogical and speak to a hopelessly weak position.

I can't speak for Tim or OTL. Speaking only for myself, I say, "nonsense". Questioning a political candidate about his past comments is not ad hominem by any stretch of the imagination.

Laffey said what he said. It may have been a long time ago, but he still said it. He can stand by the statements or he can disavow them. Saying "we thought it was funny" does neither.

So, Josiah, you're a supporter of Steve Laffey. What is it you like about him - which of his policies, which of his issue stances?

Monique,

Laffey is what Rhode Island has come to. He is the only one who is willing and able to make the tough calls needed to save Rhode Island from 60 years of Democratic control. He recognizes that we, are in fact broke and that the coward Carcieri and his propaganda minister have simply blindly pushed the problem off to the cities and towns. He will end the pension system - plain and simple, that alone save us 7 billion dollars in unfunded liabilities. He will end the practice of unfunded mandates passed by the states and pushed down to the cities and towns. He will reduce taxes to make Rhode Island a business friendly place. Also, he will reduce public assistance to the minimum required by federal law, this will make Rhode Island less attractive to those who do not contribute to society. These are all tough choices, choices that non of the Democratic candidates or certainly liberal idiot Robitaille could ever make. Chafee? wow forget him. This is just the begining. Laffey will turn this state around.

I love the smell of unity in the morning.

It smells like - victory...

I'm going to let all of the crazy stuff stand in this thread, but when actual proposals are put on the table, beginning immediately with the 2010 legislative session, I'll be moderating comments in a way so that people who want to really discuss the issues are not going to have to suffer through off-topic or otherwise crazy invective to do so.

Josiah, I had been looking forward to a Steve Laffey for Governor campaign and was disappointed when he dropped out, but turning Rhode Island around is more than supporting one man for one office. It's only going to work if there's a movement of statewide officers, legislators, local officials and regular ol' members of the public working together. Saying everyone who is not Laffey sux is not a way to build that movement. And if you're looking for a Messiah, instead of a political and civic leader, you are probably a better fit for the Democratic party (which is especially true if you think Patrick Lynch is a good second choice for Governor).

Frankly, your over-the-top attacks on Governor Carcieri make you sound more like Michael Capuano from Massachusetts, who made Dick Cheney the focus of his 2009 Senate campaign, than anyone else.

"Off-topic and crazy invective"?

To what are you referring?

Andrew,

It's not about supporting the man, it's about supporting the over all mission which is going to be a very clear and unambiguous break from past practice, in order to propel Rhode Island into the future, s frankly, it will have one which we'll all be able to be a part of.

Obviously, the way that proponents and opponents state that is probably more important to those who are not yet engaged within the process. Let's try to keep it to the issues, and avoid focusing too much on the personalities.

PS Not sure if that's the real Gio commenting there, but I do sense an extraordinarily high degree of unity within the RIGOP for real change.

Josiah wrote:

"He will end the pension system ...He will end the practice of unfunded mandates...He will reduce taxes...he will reduce public assistance to the minimum required by federal law"

HA HA HA HA!! Ok, now, using your understanding of RI government, how exactly will Steve Laffey do all of these things? Does he have some special magic wand that he'll wave and get it all done, or are you saying that he'll simply start writing new laws and so it shall be? Is that how it will work in the Laffey administration?

Will,

I know there have been lots of people working for a long time towards the goals you've described, sometimes at times places where they've faced very long odds, often with not a lot of thanks from either the general public or even the Republican party. (And in some places, like East Providence, those efforts have started to shorten some of the odds).

I'm also aware that the nature of the political beast is that races for higher offices will tend to bring more new people into the process.

My point is that for the Republican party to be successful, people whose exclusive interest is the Governor's race in 2010 -- and again, I'm only referring here to the people who've decided they'll only be active if a particular gubernatorial candidate gets in, and will sit the entire electoral process out if their chosen candidate doesn't -- need to realize they're joining with some long-standing efforts that are already there (and with some new efforts from non-traditional directions just getting started), and not taking them over.

The attitude of "I support the highest-ranking candidate on the ticket, so everyone in the party should be unquestionably following my lead" is an attitude that should be associated with former Republican attitudes in the RI GOP, not current ones...

Thomas,

Against my better judgment, I'll pretend that you are actually interested in an answer to your question, and not trying to make some point.

This list is not complete, but references to actual individual's bodily functions or referring to them as body parts that people would generally not discuss in mixed company, or comparing people to animals or mythical species in a derogatory way will be discouraged. For a more mild example from the above thread, Mark will have to settle for pointing out your tendencies towards enforcing political correctness and stop there. Context matters. Decisions of the management are final and should in no way be considered an invitation to shut down a thread and turn it into a discussion of what is and what isn't considered beyond the lines of civility.

Let's see this clown Robitaille lost a State Rep race and scored himself a nice taxpayer funded $129,000 job. Perhaps he thinks he lose an even bigger race and get an even bigger job.

The hits keep coming for you Republican whack-o's and you think nobody is paying attention? Laughable!

Just for the record, the Gov had been telling cities and towns to follow his lead for many years. He told them to join the state employees by giving their workers United Health. He has been telling cities and towns for years to get their financial house in order because bad days are ahead. Well just like the people of New Orleans did before the hurricane that ruined their city, nothing, the storm has come and we have shock and awe by our cities and towns that didn't see it coming. Get the blinders off, and step into the reality. You can't play political footsie with the unions and save money for the rainy day.

Could the Gov been more present to the party for party building? Sure, but he does make the effort and shows up to an awful lot of events. We have members of the general assembly that don't do too much in recruiting or helping folks either. We have also had people leave of their own accord.

We aren't much of a party to begin with, so the in-fighting has got to stop or more folks will leave.

Whoever runs, good for them, it shows they are taking an interest in the future of our state, instead of sitting home on their hands waiting for the other shoe to drop.

If the party keeps up with the petty antics, we will certainly suffer having a totally undesireable outcome this Fall.

Let's grown up and act like responsible adults. Use your energies to help the candidate of your choice, or put your money where your mouth is and run for office yourself and help build up the Repulican Party. It's time for action, not complaining.

"Let's see this clown Robitaille lost a State Rep race and scored himself a nice taxpayer funded $129,000 job. Perhaps he thinks he lose an even bigger race and get an even bigger job.

The hits keep coming for you Republican whack-o's and you think nobody is paying attention? Laughable!"

How are you doing, Amy Rice? Are you stil the dumbest member of the general assembly? I guess you would have a point, being that one of Robitaille's biggest weaknesses is that he lost to YOU of all people - that is something he is going to have a good answer for...maybe he can write it off on the 2006 election year being bad for the GOP. Either way, you are going to end up being exposed for the bumbling idiot you are...

"Let's see this clown Robitaille lost a State Rep race and scored himself a nice taxpayer funded $129,000 job. Perhaps he thinks he lose an even bigger race and get an even bigger job.

The hits keep coming for you Republican whack-o's and you think nobody is paying attention? Laughable!"

How are you doing, Amy Rice? Are you stil the dumbest member of the general assembly? I guess you would have a point, being that one of Robitaille's biggest weaknesses is that he lost to YOU of all people - that is something he is going to have a good answer for...maybe he can write it off on the 2006 election year being bad for the GOP. Either way, you are going to end up being exposed for the bumbling idiot you are...

The dems are doing such a great job, according to Bob. How's the hope and change going for you? I guess you have no clue that the state is going bust due to decades of corruption and mismanagement due to our "wonderful" GA.

RI is full of Bob's because look what we have in the GA, the Amy Rices' of the world, and the rest of the embarrassment called the GA.

We deserve what we get, thanks to Bob and his ilk.

Kathy - sorry for the confusion - the quote I was referencing was from Amy Rice - please notice the quotation marks.

George I don't fear you or Laffey. I laugh at him and pity you. Just answer me two questions George. How did Laffey balance Cranston's books? What was the significance of the consular cards for those possessing them?
Let me throw in a third question. How many Cranston city pensions did Laffey move into 401k's?
When you're done answering these questions "honestly" then you and everyone else will realize why I call Laffey a megalomaniacal fraud.

Will, please stop insulting our intelligence by suggesting the move to close your primary this year is not driven by Laffey. The whole world knows it is and don't think for a second Laffey is interested in party building. He doesn't give a crap about your party or this state. He's proven that over these past 2 years. He's interested in Laffey Army building to win the Gov's seat. All he wants from you is to {scatological are out for the New Year}, kiss his ring and be loyal to the death. That's it!!

Ah yes Rep. Moni...errrr Amy Rice. For some reason I always want to call her Monica. Wonder why? lol

Josiah (or is it baronci..lol), I strongly encourage you and other Laffeybots to make this a Laffey vs Carcieri contest. Beggin' ya as a matter of fact. A couple of well placed soundbites that find their way into political ads will bury Laffey statewide. The Governor, who is well liked and thought to be an honorable guy by most RI'ers, knows just how sleazy Steve Laffey really is. Keep pushing it and he'll glady begin to share that info with the citizens of RI.

Ok, lets recognize this for what this truly is, I mean the whole Robitaille candidacy farce. This is driven by Carcieri's unbridled hatred of Steve Laffey and is Carcieri's best and hopefully final attempt to fully destroy the Rhode Island Republican party, which he has done nothing to but weaken to the point of life-support. This dysfunctional failed governor won't even acknowledge the House Minority Leader as a General Assembly leader??!! He excludes his own party from every meeting, and treats members of his own party as low-level employees. It is my hope that he is successful in finally and completely destroying what little remains of the the Rhode Island Republican party - good riddens to that small band of do-nothing, know nothing loosers.

Has the State House been licensed as a Medical Marijuana Compassion Center? Because clearly somebody is smoking some kind of feel good weed up there in the Governor's office!