Essay
Yesterday, the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council (RIPEC), a venerable Rhode Island policy “voice and catalyst” founded in 1932, released a report analyzing the structure of the state’s quasi-public Economic Development Corporation (EDC) and suggesting a reorganization. Governor Lincoln Chafee requested the report in May, following the scandalous collapse of 38 Studios, which had been the…
According to Ian Donnis (via Twitter UPDATE: Ian has more), Rep. Jon Brien is claiming his primary opponent, “was ineligible due to a Hatch Act violation” because “Stephen Casey works for a fire department that gets federal funding.” Without having heard the specific claims, here is what the Hatch Act says, according to a Federal…
I occasionally listen to Imus in the Morning and this morning, I was lucky enough to hear John Hiatt perform “Blues Can’t Even Find Me”. It struck a chord–no pun intended–because I think we’re spending so much time being sorta-connected to everyone via Twitter and Facebook and the like that we’re not maintaining our valuable…
Mainly on media culpability and the economy: RIPEC’s unquestioned report; skewed polls; the president’s reportorial zombies; and the reluctance to invest in the economy. Continue reading on the Ocean State Current…
If we can chop this whole RI Congressional District 1 race (Doherty vs. Cicilline) down to a single sentence, does it get any more concise than this? “He’s dishonest” vs. “He’s a Republican” And with that, some polls (paid for by the Democrats) claim that Cicilline is leading. That tells me that voters in this…
Ian Donnis wonders, “Was Laura Pisaturo’s loss to Michael McCaffrey actually a win for same-sex marriage supporters?“ [A] closer reading of the election reveals a more nuanced outlook — one in which same-sex marriage could have a better shot of passing the Senate in 2013 than widely recognized. The outlook remains murky, to be sure,…
Believing the political worst of priests; spinning bad SAT results; the skill of being trainable; the strange market valuation in Unionland. Continue reading on the Ocean State Current…
In the battle of hidden video and archived recordings that is sure to characterize political campaigns during the digital age, audio emerged from a 1998 presentation by then-state-senator Barack Obama at Loyola University in Illinois. The statement that made headlines (at least on the center-right side of the media) was now-President Obama’s belief in economic…
Mass senatorial candidate Elizabeth Warren purports to represent the little guy. Just ask her website. Washington is rigged to work for those who can hire an army of lobbyists and an army of lawyers to get special deals. It isn’t working for small businesses and middle class families. That has to change. It’s turning out,…
Many faces of big government: standardized tests; interest group buy-offs; government as marketing practice; and the United States of Panem. Continue reading on the Ocean State Current…