March 31, 2012
Ciccone Re Ruggerio: Do You Know Who He Is???
"Do you know who I am???"
That bullying, boastful phrase made famous by Moe Greene and sometimes uttered by politicians and the famous when they get in a jam.
After hearing a full accounting of the arrest of Senate Majority Leader Dominick Ruggerio (D) for allegedly DUI, some of us were left slightly wanting (and slightly impressed) by the absence of that phrase or the attendant attitude on the part of the arrestee.
Now, thanks to some excellent FOIA work by the Providence Journal, it turns out that the substance of the phrase was very much employed at the scene. But it emanated from a third party.
A North Providence state senator threatened police officers with legislative retribution Wednesday and tried to pull strings to get Senate Majority Leader Dominick J. Ruggerio off the hook after Ruggerio was pulled over and later charged with drunken driving, according to a Barrington police report released Friday after The Providence Journal filed an Open Records Request.In a roadside confrontation, Frank A. Ciccone III told Patrolmen Michael J. Gregorzek and Walter C. Larson, "You think you got pension problems now, wait 'til this [expletive] is all done. This guy voted against you the last time, it ain't gonna get any better now," according to Gregorzek's report.
Gregorzek also declared that Ciccone "was calling numbers from his cell phone trying to contact the major of the state police and every other person he could think of to deal with 'the problem.'"
The officer also said that Ciccone urged him to call "John," whom he identified as Police Chief John M. LaCross of Barrington.
The ProJo link above has links to both police reports: the "supplemental" report issued Friday by the Barrington police which contains this new information and the original report about the arrest of Senate Majority Leader Ruggerio.
I would be remiss if I failed to say:
Major kudos to the Barrington police for not being dissuaded from doing their job by such antics on the part of an unwelcome bystander.
Asked for his reaction to this new revelation, Senator Ciccone weakly tries to distance himself from it but ultimately does not deny its substance.
In a statement, Ciccone declined to address the details of the report. "While the Barrington Police were at all times courteous and professional, I do not agree with the accuracy of some of the details in the report," he said. "However, I certainly regret anything I may have said Tuesday evening that was inappropriate."
Two small questions arise from these new details about the incident: where did Senator Ciccone pop from to do this bullying and blustering? The "supplemental" police report says that he walked up to the scene where Officer Larson was questioning and administering a field sobriety test to Senate Majority Leader Ruggerio. Presumably, Senator Ciccone was not jogging beside the Senate Majority Leader as he drove down Wampanoag Trail but had been leading or following Senate Majority Leader Ruggerio in his own vehicle. If so, was the smell of alcohol also detected on Senator Ciccone?
This could turn out to be good news if the 90% Democrat GA gives as big an "F.U." to municipal "Labor" as they did to the state unions last year.
Otherwise...Bring On The Dictators!
It's nice as a fiscally sane person who has lived in the funhouse that is RI for 5 decades to finally see "Labor" put in a heads we lose tails you win position.
Couldn't happen to a better crew.
Both of these crooks are awash in public union cash year after year.
Oh look, Local 799 heavily contributes to both. What a surprise.
Posted by: Dan at March 31, 2012 4:02 PMDidn't Watson say pretty much the same thing to the SK police
Posted by: Mark at March 31, 2012 4:13 PMLOL :-) isn't anyone curious as to who the babe was that they were going to vist????
Posted by: r g at March 31, 2012 4:48 PMOh look, Local 799 heavily contributes to both. What a surprise.
Posted by Dan at March 31, 2012 4:02 PM
God dang-looks like all the bribes paid to Democrat politicians and all the "Firefighters For (fill in the blank)" signs that the scummy, scuzzy, criminal Local 799 carried isn't going to mean she-it now that the golden goose has been fried and eaten up.
Firefighter unions, police unions, teachers unions - the campaign donor lists of these gangster Democratic politicians who run the state look like public union convention rosters. Local this, local that as far as you scroll down. But the union members will be the first to tell you they have no power and aren't responsible for who gets elected. Anyone with functioning eyes can make the connection.
The absolute worst are the members who come on here and leave comments about how noble their unions are and how they have nothing to do with the financial and corruption problems in Rhode Island. Take some responsibility for your own organizations and stop them from feeding cash to these corrupt lowlives like coal into a furnace year after year.
Posted by: Dan at March 31, 2012 9:30 PMYes, Tommy let's bring on the dictators. We can start by eliminating all home rule charters in Rhode Island. Let's see if we can find a Senator who's proposed that before. Ah, here's one -- Senator Frank Ciccone.
www.rilin.state.ri.us/news/pr1.asp?prid=5930
And I'm sure the fact that it'd be easier for a State Senator to get a special favor by a making a phone call to an official who gets his power directly from the state, and isn't answerable to anybody who has to stand in a local election, has never crossed Sen Ciccone's mind, at least before last week.
Posted by: Andrew at April 1, 2012 6:56 PMGreat find, Andrew. Senator Ciccone's proposal from 2009 reads like a Charlie Hall skit.
... but, at this point, consolidation is the only alternative to raising taxes. The legislation I will introduce at the beginning of the next session will effectuate the change we so desperately need in this state.”To allow the state to seamlessly transition into a county-type form of government, Senator Ciccone will also introduce a bill to eliminate all home rule charters- which allow cities and towns to adopt their own forms of government.
Oh, well, he's just trying to effectuate a seamless transition. So, of course, it's perfectly fine to eliminate home rule ...
Question for Senator Ciccone about this (hopefully long dead) proposal: how many F.T.E.'s would it eliminate?
Posted by: Monique at April 1, 2012 9:56 PMQuestion for Senator Ciccone about this (hopefully long dead) proposal: how many F.T.E.'s would it eliminate?
Posted by Monique at April 1, 2012 9:56 PM
Thousands, if done correctly. If governed as a unitary state think of all the councilmen, school committee people, police chiefs, solicitors, fire chiefs, school superintendents, public works chiefs, municipal judges, mayors, bodyguards for mayors, chiefs of staff and others would go bye bye bye.
Again, if it is done correctly.
"Thousands, if done correctly."
Ah. Thank you for explaining. One of the advantages of a dictatorship is that it cuts way down on F.T.E.'s ...
Posted by: Monique at April 2, 2012 11:08 PM