Rhode Island Politics
It’s a small thing, really, but curious to note: The Providence Journal‘s “In Quotes: The Week That Was” section touches on Patrick Kennedy’s attack on the Catholic Church and Bishop Thomas Tobin’s reply, but it puts the bishop’s call for an apology first and then doesn’t quote the more aggressive line from Kennedy’s interview. “If…
So, Chiefygate has driven former Chief Justice Frank Williams from his post-retirement seat on the court: [Chief Justice Paul] Suttell called Williams’ decision to step aside “best for the court.” He said he will not ask Williams to perform any further judicial duties, but that Williams will continue to deliberate and write decisions on cases…
Want another bit of evidence that Rhode Island ain’t done sinking, yet? Tune into the Speaker of the House race, as Ed Fitzpatrick does, here. Ed’s right that this story is very Rhode Island: In the small world of State House politics, the contest is coming down to three lawyer/legislators who shared a Broadway office…
For those listening to the Dan Yorke show, here’s the YouTube clip featuring Joe Trillo and Rory Smith that Dan’s been playing (the relevant video starts at 6:20 in the clip): In the last hour, Christine Hunsinger, executive director of the RI Moderate Party called in to discuss her party’s “discussions” with potential candidates. She…
Colleen Conley of the RI Tea Party was on WPRO AM 630’s Dan Yorke Show talking about the movement, including the upcoming “Welcome Back Tea Party” for the Legislature on October 28th at the State House. Conley revealed that she had a 3 hour conversation with former Cranston Mayor Steve Laffey but she didn’t delve…
H5142, which would expand the scope of the binding arbitration process to include monetary issues for teachers and non-teacher educational employees. It would also streamline the actual binding arbitration process itself. is scheduled to be heard by the House Labor Committee at 2:00 pm this Wednesday in Room 313 at the State House. Let’s remember,…
The headline for the article on the governor’s race that Andrew mentioned at lunchtime (and that Matt Allen‘s teasers say he’ll be discussing, tonight) bears the title, “Strong field surfaces in race for governor,” both in print and online. I can’t help but wonder whether this is really what qualifies as a “strong field” in…
In a prior post, a comment by Warrington Faust sent me to research Kennewick Man, the name given to a man who lived 9,300 years ago and whose remains, discovered in 1996 in the bank of a river, became the subject of a legal tug-of-war between archeologists and the Native American community of the state…
It’s one of those things that, once you’ve noticed, it’s difficult not to see everywhere: How in the world does the General Assembly always manage to step forward as the great authority and protector without shouldering any of the blame or responsibility? Consider: “Any way you slice it, [next year’s budget] is going to have…
That layoffs of police in East Providence are “the first in years” in Rhode Island is surprising, but not particularly noteworthy. In fact, we should hope that organizations — whether companies or municipalities — will operate in such a way as to ensure consistent, long-term employment. It’s difficult, however, not to see some sort of…