The Chafeedom

Deficit Hawk… Not So Much

By Justin Katz | March 10, 2011 |

Sadly, whatever else they might say, people seem to believe Governor Lincoln Chafee’s characterization of himself as a deficit hawk. Indeed, following a press briefing from State Budget Officer Thomas Mullaney, which Ian Donnis mentions here, Ted Nesi put up a post titled “Chafee’s budget shrinks Carcieri’s long-term deficits.” And indeed, although Nesi’s accompanying chart…

Naming the Broader Tax Base

By Justin Katz | March 10, 2011 |

Matt and I talked budget and a “broader tax base” for Governor Chafee’s sales tax on Matt Allen Show, last night. Stream by clicking here, or download it.

RE: Budget Thoughts

By Marc Comtois | March 9, 2011 |

To fall into a political trap, as Justin suggests I have done, one would first have to take the bait. To stretch the metaphor further, I didn’t take the Governor’s budget bait–much less get caught in a trap–so much as look at the bait (tax “cuts”) and offer a few observations. If anything, maybe I’m…

Budget Thoughts

By Marc Comtois | March 9, 2011 |

After I looked at how other states deal with sales tax, I began to think that it would be a clever move by Governor Chafee to lower the overall rate while expanding its application. It would both increase “revenue”–its a tax hike after all–but also would provide a lower number for the various state tax…

To Liveblog or Not to Liveblog

By Justin Katz | March 8, 2011 |

Well, I can find no evidence that there’s actually a Tiverton School Committee meeting tonight (except, you know, for the fact that it’s been on their calendar all year), so I guess I’ll give Governor Chafee’s budget address a try… I’ll offer running commentary (if any) in the comments section; feel free to join.

Balance Is Airing One Side

By Justin Katz | January 31, 2011 |

Governor Lincoln Chafee may be the archetype of the presumptuous wealthy liberal. We’ve seen him tell representatives of his ideological opposition that he’s already done all of the broad listening that he’s going to do on particular issues. Now, we’re seeing his method of consideration: “He strongly believes Rhode Island needs a deep and healthy…

State Bankruptcy Watch

By Carroll Andrew Morse | January 21, 2011 |

About a month-and-a-half ago, I sent the transition team of (at the time) Governor-Elect Lincoln Chafee a set of potential interview questions, including this one…There has been speculation in national media that several states facing long-term fiscal problems — a category that can be fairly said to include Rhode Island — may ask for a…

What’s Hiding Behind Chafee’s Divisive Rhetoric?

By Justin Katz | January 14, 2011 |

I’m beginning to worry about what the Chafee administration and its puppeteers might be trying to distract Rhode Islanders from with his assault on talk radio. As you’ve likely heard, yesterday RI Governor Lincoln Chafee called on advertisers to boycott talk radio. Apart from the petty activism indicated by his lambasting of an entire information…

A Governor for Bringing Everybody Together… Unless You Listen to Talk Radio

By Justin Katz | January 11, 2011 |

There he goes again. Governor Lincoln Chafee — in the interest of bringing Rhode Islanders together and eliminating divisiveness from our political realm — has banned talk-radio appearances for himself and employees who work under him: Chafee doesn’t plan to spend his own time on talk radio, and he intends to ban state employees from…

The Common Purpose of Agreement with the Aristocrat

By Justin Katz | January 7, 2011 |

Sitting next to Kate Coyne-McCoy, who is regional director of the pro-abortion advocacy group Emily’s List, for the WRNI Political Roundtable that airs today, I saw first-hand just how thrilled the far left is with the election of Governor Lincoln Chafee. (Listen around 6:40 a.m. and 7:40 a.m. on 102.7 FM/1290 AM and online later…