Rhode Island Politics
Matt and Marc talked about the state of the state, on the Matt Allen show, Wednesday night, and the peculiarity of having a lieutenant governor from the governor’s opposition party (sports analogy employed). Stream by clicking here, or download it.
[This post should in no way be interpreted as an acceptance or approval of the “stimulus” bill furiously being worked out in Congress. The premise that massive government spending can lift or save an economy is a non-starter; most of the line-item spending in the bill qua economic stimulus is an absurdity. In short, this…
This is an instructive episode: A House vote to raise the state’s cigarette tax by $1 a pack — to what would be the highest level in the nation — was aborted at the last minute yesterday after Republican Governor Carcieri yanked his support from his own tax-raising proposal. Carcieri’s eleventh-hour move was announced by…
I’ve been hearing that the stars are aligning behind a bill in the RI House (PDF) — introduced by Representatives Brian Newberry (R-North Smithfield, Burrillville) and Michael Marcello (D-Scituate, Cranston) — that would eliminate the straight-party, master-lever option on RI ballots. The House Judiciary Committee is to hear testimony today, and from the news from…
There’s a hearing at the State House today on an excellent bill (PDF) from newcomer Representative Roberto DaSilva (D, East Providence, Pawtucket): (a) No educational mandate shall be enacted or promulgated after the effective date of this chapter, unless the body enacting or promulgating the same shall first, after public hearing, determine the cost of…
The governor’s office has sent along the text of his state of the state speech, and I’ve included it in the extended entry, below. They’ve also sent along his eye-opening chart from the speech: It would be interesting to see other industries and a total plotted, as well, but it certainly makes a statement as…
Good evening fellow Rhode Islanders and visitors from near and far. The Governor of Rhode Island, Donald Carcieri, will be giving the State of the State Address at 7 PM. This post is being provided as an “open forum” for people to comment upon the speech and its contents. So, if your of a mind…
Treasurer Frank Caprio’s online transparency site is up and running, providing a browsable collection of all expenditures for his department. Anchor Rising readers first heard of the project when we sat down with the treasurer last month. The site is set up such that any other department in state government could quickly and easily follow…
A caller to WPRO’s John Depetro today reproached the East Providence School Committee for failing to engage the teachers union in substantive negotiations and, instead, simply “dictating” terms of a contract. Anthony Carcieri, Chair of the EP School Committee and John’s guest by telephone, explained that, faced with a $3m shortfall, the School Committee had…
We can discuss the weighty obligations that fall to those who choose to serve in elected office and thereby come to possess the tax gun. Emphatically absent from that list of obligations is to cast an ever widening net – in this case, beyond the borders of our country – in search of wrongs to…