Monique Chartier

Regionalization? You May Want to Consider Who is Standing With You

By Monique Chartier | August 26, 2010 |

As Andrew highlighted in his signature coverage of the Rhode Island Republican Assembly Endorsement Convention, the campaign platform of Republican gubernatorial candidate Victor Moffitt includes regionalization. Audience Question: Unions and union contracts are out of control. What can we do to give more autonomy to the communities? Answer: “I’m actually going to say that I…

Heads Up, EDC, Looks Like You’ll Have a Visitor at Tomorrow’s Meeting (Though the Gov Tried to Dissuade Him)

By Monique Chartier | August 22, 2010 |

On Thursday, Governor Carcieri’s office released the two page letter in which he declines a request by former Senator Chafee’s to meet with the EDC board to express his objection to the process by which a $75 million state loan guarantee was given to 38 Studios. In response to your request to meet with the…

Scott Adams on the Travails of Building a Green House (… for people, not plants)

By Monique Chartier | August 21, 2010 |

Courtesy the Wall Street Journal. Let’s say you love the Earth. You see an article in a magazine about a guy who built a “green” house using mostly twigs, pinecones and abandoned bird nests. You want to build a green home, too. So you find an architect, show him the magazine and say, “Give me…

Go Get ‘Em, Nancy!

By Monique Chartier | August 19, 2010 |

For some reason, it never occurred to the Speaker that the negative reaction of many millions of people to the construction of a mosque within the crash zone of Ground Zero was spontaneous and not in response to a pre-arranged, pre-paid campaign. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is raising questions about who is funding criticism of…

In Action: Queen Weed and Her Highly Selective Hearing

By Monique Chartier | August 18, 2010 |

Good job, Operation Clean Government. Operation Clean Government (OCG) has posted a video on YouTube of the June 1st Senate session when Senate President Teresa Paiva-Weed and Majority Leader Daniel Connors used “bully tactics” to squash a floor vote on a controversial bill sponsored by Senator Marc Cote, (D), Woonsocket and cosponsored by 18 members…

Hey, If Former Senate President Irons Had Held Up a Bank, the Jurisdiction of the Criminal Court Would Have Been Contingent upon His Holding Office, Too

By Monique Chartier | August 16, 2010 |

Kudos to Katherine Gregg at the Providence Journal for uncovering this, which she broke a couple of hours ago. Former Senate President William V. Irons took $25,385 out of his long-running campaign account to pay legal bills he amassed while fighting ethics charges that resulted in the Rhode Island Supreme Court decision last year that…

Ketchup? Salt? Statin?

By Monique Chartier | August 15, 2010 |

From Friday’s Washington Times via the Daily Caller. As a public service, British researchers are proposing that fast-food eateries dole out complimentary cholesterol-lowering statin drugs to offset the hazardous glories of their fatty cuisines. “When people engage in risky behaviors like driving or smoking, they’re encouraged to take measures that minimize their risk, like wearing…

Take Two on the Proposed NY Mosque: Feeling Compelled to Comment, President Obama Succeeds Only in Stating the Broadly Obvious

By Monique Chartier | August 15, 2010 |

Breaking weeks of silence on the subject, President Obama remarked on Friday, Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as everyone else in this country. That includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and ordinances. This…

No Casino Referendum for Rhode Island. Place Your Bets on One for Mass.

By Monique Chartier | August 14, 2010 | Comments Off on No Casino Referendum for Rhode Island. Place Your Bets on One for Mass.

You may recall where Rhode Island’s had left off: the General Assembly had passed a referendum specific to Lincoln and Newport which the Gov had then vetoed, citing its excess of site specificity and its dearth of fiscal detail. While I strongly support voter referenda, and have spoken in favor of questions being put to…

The Deprivation Path Towards a Politically Correct (and Possibly Non-Existent) Fuel

By Monique Chartier | August 11, 2010 |

A couple of weeks ago, President Obama week showed off an expensive electric car with a short driving range and a nice taxpayer subsidy. On a tangential but important issue, Slate’s Charles Lane is correctly not happy about the latter aspect of this vehicle. … this little runabout is a rich man’s ride. And that’s…