How to Respond?
This comment from my post on Dennis Michaud has admittedly left me baffled:
Mr. Katz,
I am new to Rhode Island and new to the politics of the state. However, I have noticed something that troubles me. You are supporting Gov. Carcieri and several people on this board have spelled out specific offenses, offenses, which you have yet to counter.
I have been living in DC and so I am quite used to the bob and weave routine that politicians and bloggers routinely perform. Please stand up and defend yourself and your candidate rather than pointing fingers at the actions of others.
Additionally, please address Gov. Carcieri’s role in the breach of fiduciary responsibility by his appointee at Beacon-Mutual. This to me is a very serious issue. Is your candidate appointing cronies and then using his position to exert inappropriate influence?
How does one respond to such a request? I’m not sure what “offenses” I’ve yet to counter, and judging from the specific charge in final paragraph, I’d be left in a quandry over them. Either the Beacon-Mutual question is some truly audacious spin or the questioner has somehow not encountered anything other than truly audacious spin.
Dear Justin,
Maybe you need to inform Mr. Michaud that I’m a Democrat and as such, don’t expect those who love the Governor to respond to anything I say about him.
I certainly haven’t seen any of you present “charges” of any kind. (Don’t get me wrong – there’s plenty to present but you haven’t been a party to it.)
Don’t worry about this guy. The Journal has been far harder on Michaud than you have been and everyone knows that Michaud is a hack that was recruited to run in the GOP primary anyway.
I haven’t seen any “offenses” spelled out, unless trying to clean up the state is an “offense”. Which to some Democrats in RI, it is.
This so-called “new Rhode Islander” who came from DC should take a look at Beacon’s board at the time when the government investigations took place. Any assertions that Carcieri is guility of cronyism are immediately answered.
Politically, I hope this issue continues because Caricieri is on the winning side of it.
I have absolutely no idea what this post was referring to. Everything that we’ve talked about, has been stuff reported in the news. He must be very new to Rhode Island — like just came off the boat new — because I don’t have a clue what he’s talking about. Which appointee? The governor gets several. As I recall, the governor tried to dismiss several of his. Does inappropriate influence mean exerting some oversight? I wouldn’t spend too many minutes thinking over this one.
Finally, something we can all agree on!
Indeed! The post sounds suspicious to me.
Justin,
Perhaps this person was refering to the whistle-blower on the Beacon board (the Diector of Labor and Training) who first exposed the corporate misdeeds that quickly led to the downfall of the Beacon chairman and CEO. The defenders of Beacon’s old guard claim that the whistle-blowing was a breach of fiduciary duty. Of course, most disinterested Rhode Islanders understand that in blowing the whistle on malfeasance the director was doing her duty as a state official.
Jeff, if the person was referring to that, I would sugggest that he is anything but a “newcomer” to RI politics.
Yet another reason to suspect Dennis Michaud’s motives: at one point, he was a paid consultant to Beacon Mutual.
Of course, the breach of fiduciary responsibility at Beacon was committed by Sheldon Sollosy, Joseph Solomon and David Clark. Ms. Orefice deserves a medal for bringing all the monkey business to light.
Susan