Rhode Island Politics
We are now broaching a topic about which I know almost nothing. But certain aspects of this situation sound familiar. The bond rating agency Moody’s Investors Service announced on Monday it has lowered its outlook for Connecticut’s general obligation bonds from stable to negative. At the same time, the agency said it held its rating…
Concise and clear as it is, Matt Jerzyk’s Providence Monthly piece (PDF) brings into relief an inconsistency in the narrative of the local left: Conservatives are quick to blame the majority Democratic General Assembly for most of Rhode Island’s ills, but that’s not fair or accurate. First, many of the so-called Democrats in the General…
Anchor Rising’s Justin Katz and Matt Jerzyk (former proprietor of RI Future) were asked by the Providence Monthly to handicap the presumed 2010 Rhode Island gubernatorial candidates. But there was a twist: Justin took a look at the Dems (and Chafee) and Matt looked at the GOP (and Chafee). Matt has helpfully provided links to…
I made that mistake, and the House is debating H5582, which would mandate the number of apprentices who can be supervised by journeymen in trades. Majority Leader Gordon Fox just gave an impassioned speech about good workmanship, living wages, people of color, etc. In short, it’s a lot of rhetoric by people who have no…
Monique and Matt called for more content, specifically streaming online video, coming out of the State House on last night’s Matt Allen Show. Such a feature could not only provide a window into committee meetings about which few people are interested, but also remedy very odd omissions, such as the blackout of the House Labor’s…
Probably the most significant item to emerge, thus far, from the legislative appendix underway at the State House was House Majority Leader Gordon Fox’s assurance that binding arbitration for teacher contracts is not going to make a surprise appearance: Fox confirmed that a proposal to allow binding arbitration in contract disputes with teachers’ unions is…
Thomas Sowell pauses for a moment of disbelief at the conversation in America: Just one year ago, would you have believed that an unelected government official, not even a Cabinet member confirmed by the Senate but simply one of the many “czars” appointed by the President, could arbitrarily cut the pay of executives in private…
Well, he’s a Democrat and a lawyer, which means he’s got two strikes against him, but Scott Pollard (D., Coventry, Foster, Glocester) counterbalances with a dozen good ideas on saving Rhode Island. Here’s the first: Problem: Rhode Island’s tax structure is not business- or citizen-friendly, which harms the state’s reputation and potential for growth. Solution:…
As Justin warily explained, we’re about to witness two fun-packed days of legislative confusion–at least to outsiders. For, as Lt. Holden said in Operation Petticoat, “In confusion, there is profit.” Just so. The line was uttered at a point in the movie when the submarine aboard which Holden served as the supply officer was in…
This is not encouraging: [Rhode Island’s] Legislative leaders have scheduled hearings or floor votes for 196 individual proposals between Tuesday afternoon and Thursday night. And that number is expected to grow. … The scope of the agenda apparently surprised several political observers. “I thought it was going to be more targeted,” said John Marion, executive…