Topics
City/Town Government
Charles Callanan: Is East Greenwich Better Off Than A Year Ago? No.
Freedom isn’t free. East Greenwich needs an engaged citizenry to ensure liberty is preserved, not just for us but all those that come after. We are merely stewards of our community, and it is our sacred duty to take care of it.
Political Monday with John DePetro: A Creature of Their Own Making
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for November 25, included talk about:
- Insider Alves and the radical caucus
- The union view of employer responsibility
- Gaspee versus campaign finance laws
- Paint on the statute becoming blood on government’s hands
- Blood on the police officer’s hand gets a slap on the wrist
Theodore Vecchio: An Insider Loophole in the Code of Ethics
Once again, the RI Ethics Commission proves there’s a big loophole in the Code of Ethics for elected officials who earn their livings working for government agencies.
Civil Rights
A Suit on Behalf of Fundamental Rights
Putting campaign finance laws in terms of rights and responsibilities brings out the principles on which they should (and shouldn’t) be founded.
Political Monday with John DePetro: Connecting Political Dots
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for November 11, included talk about:
- The problem of public sector pensions
- The value of the Fung brand for the Mrs.
- Mayor Pete’s no-media, no-controversy event
- Nanny Bloomberg and Gina’s RFP
- No warning on the homeless transplants
Moira Walsh’s Bitter-Young-Employee Socialism
Rep. Moira Walsh’s desire to shut down any business with margins too thin to increase pay shows progressives’ demand for everybody to adhere to the world as they see it at the moment.
Congress
Very Political with John DePetro: Pols Go for Positioning
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for July 22, Mayor Jorge Elorza’s self-positioning on the schools problem, Gina Raimondo’s national adventures, and David Cicilline’s impeachment vote.
“Choice” is Clear in Upcoming Furious Healthcare Debate
A federal judge recently ruled that Obamacare is unconstitutional because the individual mandate, repealed in the 2017 federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, is no longer in force. Even though existing federal health-care laws will remain in effect during the appeals process, states should not panic and codify Obamacare into state law, as it is not certain how long federal subsidies will remain intact.
While the courts hear the appeals, and with Democrats winning back control of the U.S. House of Representatives largely on the health-care issue, another furious debate is about to unfold.
Democrats will probably introduce some kind of government-centric plan, while Republicans are poised to introduce their own free-enterprise solution. What we all want are simply more choices at lower net costs.
Dr. Prakash Chougule: Choose Flanders for Balance of Representation in Congress
It’s been almost three decades since we have had balance of power in Rhode Island’s representation of U.S. Senators in Washington DC. Senator John Chafee(R) and Claiborne Pell(D), both highly regarded and respected across party lines, made Rhode Islanders proud at home and in Washington DC.
Time has come for Rhode Island to do it again.
Culture & Family
Were There Empty Chairs At Your Thanksgiving Dinner Table?
Far too many Rhode Islanders are fleeing our state, leaving a swath of empty chairs at our family dinner tables.
If we want to keep our loved ones at home with us and give those who have left a reason to return, we must take bold action to reform our approach to public policy and to civil society.
Adversity and SATs Makes for an Interesting Scatterplot
Whether “adversity scores” are appropriate or useful changes whether the intention is to redistribute wealth or judge schools to which we might send our own children.
Milgram Revisited: Great News for Humanity
Review of a classic experiment finds that, no, most people won’t hurt others just because they’re told to (but telling people that they would has probably made it more likely).
Economy
Mike Stenhouse: Rhode Island motorists could find new gasoline taxes in their stockings
This Christmas season, Gov. Gina Raimondo could be the Grinch who stole affordable gasoline. If the Raimondo administration gets its way and bypasses the General Assembly to sign on to a new regional carbon-tax scheme, called the Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI), Rhode Island motorists will find a plan to increase gasoline taxes in their stockings this year.
TCI is a cap-and-trade tax on gasoline proposed by environmental extremists who purposely want gasoline to become so expensive — estimated at an extra 24 cents per gallon — that you will be financially forced to walk or bike to work and around town.
Like all far-left contrivances to reduce carbon emissions, TCI, a green-new-deal-type gas tax, will harm economic growth and will take money out of your pocket. Rhode Island already suffers from an Ocean State Exodus, where far too many of our children and loved ones, business investors, and neighbors are leaving for lower-cost living in other states. The TCI tax would be one more piece of coal that will drive people out of state (pun intended).
Most Rhode Islanders want a balanced approach, where there are multiple choices for abundant and affordable energy. But green-Grinches in government want to limit your options, and will force you to pay expensive new taxes if you make the wrong choice.
Only the General Assembly can raise taxes. Fortunately, the governor cannot unilaterally impose a new tax on gasoline without legislative approval. But the governor has purposely tried to keep this TCI tax under the radar. Her team has been working stealthily with unelected bureaucrats at TCI to advance the imposition of gas taxes among 12 Northeast states.
Did you know that the really high electricity prices we pay, among the highest in the country, are partly because of a different regional cap-and-trade program, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI)? RGGI imposes tax-like fees on electricity power plants, which, of course, get passed on to you. Unfortunately, RGGI has been a complete failure; it has significantly increased the cost of electricity but has resulted in no added emissions reductions!
And now they want to try the same failed idea on gasoline with a TCI gas tax. Like RGGI, TCI is designed to increase the cost of fossil-based fuel so much, that families like yours — and businesses where you work — will be forced to use less of it.
Part of the RGGI and TCI schemes is that the extra money you pay at the gas pumps and on your electric bill is supposed to be spent by participating states on energy projects that are favored by greenie Grinches. Rhode Islanders understand that it is patently unfair for government subsidies to be handed-out to benefit a specific industry or company … at the expense of everyone else.
History has proven that too many government regulations and taxes on energy mean that the beneficial use of America’s rich natural resources might be put out of reach for many. Worse, such government imposed taxes as the RGGI tax and the TCI tax are regressive; they disproportionately harm low-income families who already struggle to pay heating bills and gasoline costs.
Also, many businesses, similarly burdened with higher energy costs, will be forced to reduce employee work hours, cut jobs, or even shut down and move to another state.
The secrecy must end now. The governor should have been more transparent about an issue that will cause economic hardship for many. I call on Ms. Raimondo to reject the TCI tax plan, expected out on Dec. 17; and I call on Senate and House leadership to ensure there is a robust public debate about whether you and I should pay higher gasoline taxes.
RGGI has failed miserably … and TCI is also doomed for failure. Why should any Grinch force any of us to pay unnecessarily higher gasoline taxes if it will not result in any environmental benefit?
Wexford: A Half-Empty Glass of Promises
Reviewing the tenants (and even contractors) associated with the Wexford complex in Providence raises the question of whether there’d be any economic activity there at all, but for the state government’s subsidies.
Governor’s Back Door TCI Tax Would Cost You At The Pump
The prices for gasoline could soon rise dramatically for your family if the Raimondo administration undercuts the authority of the General Assembly, and moves forward with its plan to sign-on to a new stealth carbon-tax scheme – the TCI Tax… a move that would necessarily increase costs on families and business at the pump, and that also could lead to Constitutional legal challenges.
This tax – a green-new-deal type government mandate – is also a regressive fuel tax that will disproportionately harm low-income families, who will struggle much more than the wealthy to pay the higher gasoline prices.
Education
Adversity and SATs Makes for an Interesting Scatterplot
Whether “adversity scores” are appropriate or useful changes whether the intention is to redistribute wealth or judge schools to which we might send our own children.
Political Monday with John DePetro: A Creature of Their Own Making
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for November 25, included talk about:
- Insider Alves and the radical caucus
- The union view of employer responsibility
- Gaspee versus campaign finance laws
- Paint on the statute becoming blood on government’s hands
- Blood on the police officer’s hand gets a slap on the wrist
The Longing for Good News in Education, East Providence
The RI education establishment trumpets the “transformation” of East Providence because its focus is on schools as a jobs program rather than a service to children.
Energy & Environment
Mike Stenhouse: Rhode Island motorists could find new gasoline taxes in their stockings
This Christmas season, Gov. Gina Raimondo could be the Grinch who stole affordable gasoline. If the Raimondo administration gets its way and bypasses the General Assembly to sign on to a new regional carbon-tax scheme, called the Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI), Rhode Island motorists will find a plan to increase gasoline taxes in their stockings this year.
TCI is a cap-and-trade tax on gasoline proposed by environmental extremists who purposely want gasoline to become so expensive — estimated at an extra 24 cents per gallon — that you will be financially forced to walk or bike to work and around town.
Like all far-left contrivances to reduce carbon emissions, TCI, a green-new-deal-type gas tax, will harm economic growth and will take money out of your pocket. Rhode Island already suffers from an Ocean State Exodus, where far too many of our children and loved ones, business investors, and neighbors are leaving for lower-cost living in other states. The TCI tax would be one more piece of coal that will drive people out of state (pun intended).
Most Rhode Islanders want a balanced approach, where there are multiple choices for abundant and affordable energy. But green-Grinches in government want to limit your options, and will force you to pay expensive new taxes if you make the wrong choice.
Only the General Assembly can raise taxes. Fortunately, the governor cannot unilaterally impose a new tax on gasoline without legislative approval. But the governor has purposely tried to keep this TCI tax under the radar. Her team has been working stealthily with unelected bureaucrats at TCI to advance the imposition of gas taxes among 12 Northeast states.
Did you know that the really high electricity prices we pay, among the highest in the country, are partly because of a different regional cap-and-trade program, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI)? RGGI imposes tax-like fees on electricity power plants, which, of course, get passed on to you. Unfortunately, RGGI has been a complete failure; it has significantly increased the cost of electricity but has resulted in no added emissions reductions!
And now they want to try the same failed idea on gasoline with a TCI gas tax. Like RGGI, TCI is designed to increase the cost of fossil-based fuel so much, that families like yours — and businesses where you work — will be forced to use less of it.
Part of the RGGI and TCI schemes is that the extra money you pay at the gas pumps and on your electric bill is supposed to be spent by participating states on energy projects that are favored by greenie Grinches. Rhode Islanders understand that it is patently unfair for government subsidies to be handed-out to benefit a specific industry or company … at the expense of everyone else.
History has proven that too many government regulations and taxes on energy mean that the beneficial use of America’s rich natural resources might be put out of reach for many. Worse, such government imposed taxes as the RGGI tax and the TCI tax are regressive; they disproportionately harm low-income families who already struggle to pay heating bills and gasoline costs.
Also, many businesses, similarly burdened with higher energy costs, will be forced to reduce employee work hours, cut jobs, or even shut down and move to another state.
The secrecy must end now. The governor should have been more transparent about an issue that will cause economic hardship for many. I call on Ms. Raimondo to reject the TCI tax plan, expected out on Dec. 17; and I call on Senate and House leadership to ensure there is a robust public debate about whether you and I should pay higher gasoline taxes.
RGGI has failed miserably … and TCI is also doomed for failure. Why should any Grinch force any of us to pay unnecessarily higher gasoline taxes if it will not result in any environmental benefit?
Political Monday with John DePetro: May Forms of Political Performance Art
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for December 9, included talk about:
- Cicilline v. Trump
- Energy protesters at the State House
- Empty Wexford
- Sports gambling lawsuit goes forward
- Truck toll lawsuit goes forward
- The Transportation & Climate Initiative (TCI) tax
Governor’s Back Door TCI Tax Would Cost You At The Pump
The prices for gasoline could soon rise dramatically for your family if the Raimondo administration undercuts the authority of the General Assembly, and moves forward with its plan to sign-on to a new stealth carbon-tax scheme – the TCI Tax… a move that would necessarily increase costs on families and business at the pump, and that also could lead to Constitutional legal challenges.
This tax – a green-new-deal type government mandate – is also a regressive fuel tax that will disproportionately harm low-income families, who will struggle much more than the wealthy to pay the higher gasoline prices.
Gambling
Political Monday with John DePetro: May Forms of Political Performance Art
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for December 9, included talk about:
- Cicilline v. Trump
- Energy protesters at the State House
- Empty Wexford
- Sports gambling lawsuit goes forward
- Truck toll lawsuit goes forward
- The Transportation & Climate Initiative (TCI) tax
Political Monday with John DePetro: Hints of a Constitutional Crisis
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for November 18, included talk about:
- Raimondo fundraising as governance
- The governor sues the General Assembly
- Municipalities sue the state government
- Protestors’ liberal-meeting interruptions
- Cranston seeks investigation of another department
What’s in..What’s out…10/4/19
A run-down of items in Rhode Island political news for the week.
General Assembly
Political Monday with John DePetro: Shaking Up the Personalities
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for December 4, included talk about:
- The return of Laffey (?)
- RI’s suffocating labor unions
- Progressive tricks with statistics
- Getting a kick out of soccer stadiums
- Smiley’s pay-cut stepping stone
Political Monday with John DePetro: Hints of a Constitutional Crisis
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for November 18, included talk about:
- Raimondo fundraising as governance
- The governor sues the General Assembly
- Municipalities sue the state government
- Protestors’ liberal-meeting interruptions
- Cranston seeks investigation of another department
Rhode Island Became A Less Hospitable Place To Raise A Family In 2019
Recently, our Center released our 2019 Freedom Index and Legislator Scorecard for the Rhode Island General Assembly.
Sadly, with only 12 of 113 lawmakers scoring above zero, the members of the political class failed to fulfill their promises to help everyday citizens. Worse, the 2019 legislative session was an unadulterated assault on individual and economic rights, the totality of which I have not seen before.
Government
Political Monday with John DePetro: A Creature of Their Own Making
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for November 25, included talk about:
- Insider Alves and the radical caucus
- The union view of employer responsibility
- Gaspee versus campaign finance laws
- Paint on the statute becoming blood on government’s hands
- Blood on the police officer’s hand gets a slap on the wrist
Theodore Vecchio: An Insider Loophole in the Code of Ethics
Once again, the RI Ethics Commission proves there’s a big loophole in the Code of Ethics for elected officials who earn their livings working for government agencies.
Political Monday with John DePetro: Cracks in the Wall of Corruption
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for October 21, included talk about a political operative’s indictment, other political operatives’ hemp biz, Block’s complaint against government operatives, Wyatt protesters, and an unpopular governor.
Governor
Mike Stenhouse: Rhode Island motorists could find new gasoline taxes in their stockings
This Christmas season, Gov. Gina Raimondo could be the Grinch who stole affordable gasoline. If the Raimondo administration gets its way and bypasses the General Assembly to sign on to a new regional carbon-tax scheme, called the Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI), Rhode Island motorists will find a plan to increase gasoline taxes in their stockings this year.
TCI is a cap-and-trade tax on gasoline proposed by environmental extremists who purposely want gasoline to become so expensive — estimated at an extra 24 cents per gallon — that you will be financially forced to walk or bike to work and around town.
Like all far-left contrivances to reduce carbon emissions, TCI, a green-new-deal-type gas tax, will harm economic growth and will take money out of your pocket. Rhode Island already suffers from an Ocean State Exodus, where far too many of our children and loved ones, business investors, and neighbors are leaving for lower-cost living in other states. The TCI tax would be one more piece of coal that will drive people out of state (pun intended).
Most Rhode Islanders want a balanced approach, where there are multiple choices for abundant and affordable energy. But green-Grinches in government want to limit your options, and will force you to pay expensive new taxes if you make the wrong choice.
Only the General Assembly can raise taxes. Fortunately, the governor cannot unilaterally impose a new tax on gasoline without legislative approval. But the governor has purposely tried to keep this TCI tax under the radar. Her team has been working stealthily with unelected bureaucrats at TCI to advance the imposition of gas taxes among 12 Northeast states.
Did you know that the really high electricity prices we pay, among the highest in the country, are partly because of a different regional cap-and-trade program, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI)? RGGI imposes tax-like fees on electricity power plants, which, of course, get passed on to you. Unfortunately, RGGI has been a complete failure; it has significantly increased the cost of electricity but has resulted in no added emissions reductions!
And now they want to try the same failed idea on gasoline with a TCI gas tax. Like RGGI, TCI is designed to increase the cost of fossil-based fuel so much, that families like yours — and businesses where you work — will be forced to use less of it.
Part of the RGGI and TCI schemes is that the extra money you pay at the gas pumps and on your electric bill is supposed to be spent by participating states on energy projects that are favored by greenie Grinches. Rhode Islanders understand that it is patently unfair for government subsidies to be handed-out to benefit a specific industry or company … at the expense of everyone else.
History has proven that too many government regulations and taxes on energy mean that the beneficial use of America’s rich natural resources might be put out of reach for many. Worse, such government imposed taxes as the RGGI tax and the TCI tax are regressive; they disproportionately harm low-income families who already struggle to pay heating bills and gasoline costs.
Also, many businesses, similarly burdened with higher energy costs, will be forced to reduce employee work hours, cut jobs, or even shut down and move to another state.
The secrecy must end now. The governor should have been more transparent about an issue that will cause economic hardship for many. I call on Ms. Raimondo to reject the TCI tax plan, expected out on Dec. 17; and I call on Senate and House leadership to ensure there is a robust public debate about whether you and I should pay higher gasoline taxes.
RGGI has failed miserably … and TCI is also doomed for failure. Why should any Grinch force any of us to pay unnecessarily higher gasoline taxes if it will not result in any environmental benefit?
Political Monday with John DePetro: May Forms of Political Performance Art
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for December 9, included talk about:
- Cicilline v. Trump
- Energy protesters at the State House
- Empty Wexford
- Sports gambling lawsuit goes forward
- Truck toll lawsuit goes forward
- The Transportation & Climate Initiative (TCI) tax
Wexford: A Half-Empty Glass of Promises
Reviewing the tenants (and even contractors) associated with the Wexford complex in Providence raises the question of whether there’d be any economic activity there at all, but for the state government’s subsidies.
Healthcare
RI’s Civic Society Needs a Breathing Tube
The story of misplaced breathing tubes by Rhode Island EMTs brings us directly to the deepest problem in the Ocean State.
Political Monday with John DePetro: A Creature of Their Own Making
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for November 25, included talk about:
- Insider Alves and the radical caucus
- The union view of employer responsibility
- Gaspee versus campaign finance laws
- Paint on the statute becoming blood on government’s hands
- Blood on the police officer’s hand gets a slap on the wrist
An E-Cig Ban Throws Caution (and Liberty) to the Wind
Leaders contemplating a vaping ban to consider the data we have available, wait for more research to be conducted, and think of the long-term consequences of actions.
History
“Publick Occurrences” – The Fundamentals: Patriotism & Faith
As part of the recent Providence Journal sponsored “Publick Occurrences” panel discussion at RI College, I’d like to share some thoughts I prepared, but did not have the chance to put forth. The event’s premise – “Why Can’t We All Just Get Along?” and the polarization of public discourse – leaves us two factors to consider:
Cable Street and the Facially Fascist
Comparing the Battle of Cable Street with today’s Antifa attacks would be a good lesson in critical thinking, if our education system were keen on teaching that skill.
Abraham Glazer: My First Visit to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
A visit to the Holocaust Memorial Museum teaches lessons about evil and humanity, especially in contrast with the memorials to humanity’s highest ideals elsewhere in Washington, D.C.
Immigration
Political Rorschach in the Wyatt Protest
If we were inclined to pause and review video of incidents with an eye toward understanding why each person is doing what he or she is doing, maybe we could reduce the level of conflict in our society, but where’s the profit in that?
Do Elorza and Regunberg Support the ICE Firebombing?
While the mayor of Providence sows distrust of the federal government and his policy advisor likens the U.S. to Nazi Germany, an Antifa radical in Washington behaves as if their accusations are true.
Progressive Cranston Action Network Holds Pro-Illegal Immigration Rally Outside Cranston City Hall
Under thirty people rallied in front of Cranston City Hall on Monday evening to protest Mayor Allan Fung’s campaign promise to side with Rhode Island families over prisoners who have illegally immigrated to the United States when elected Governor.
Infrastructure
What’s in… What’s out… 9/6/19
A run-down of items in Rhode Island political news for the week.
What’s in… What’s out… 8/23/19
A run-down of items in Rhode Island political news for the week.
Rhode Island’s Latest Highway Ranking Underscores Non-Necessity of Tolls
The grotesque incongruity of some of the highest per-mile infrastructure spending and some of the worst roads and bridges in the country.
Legislation
How the TCI Tax Will Steal Christmas
A Memorandum Of Understanding that Rhode Island says “yes”
To the Transportation & Climate Initiative at a price we can’t guess.
A new TCI tax is just what they’ll do.
They say it’s an “allowance,” but it’s a “tax” through and through.
The Legislature Needs a Direct Intervention from Voters
Legislators’ relentless attack on Rhode Islanders’ rights may leave only recourse to a constitutional convention.
What’s in..What’s out…10/4/19
A run-down of items in Rhode Island political news for the week.
Media
Political Monday with John DePetro: A Creature of Their Own Making
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for November 25, included talk about:
- Insider Alves and the radical caucus
- The union view of employer responsibility
- Gaspee versus campaign finance laws
- Paint on the statute becoming blood on government’s hands
- Blood on the police officer’s hand gets a slap on the wrist
Political Monday with John DePetro: Connecting Political Dots
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for November 11, included talk about:
- The problem of public sector pensions
- The value of the Fung brand for the Mrs.
- Mayor Pete’s no-media, no-controversy event
- Nanny Bloomberg and Gina’s RFP
- No warning on the homeless transplants
The Longing for Good News in Education, East Providence
The RI education establishment trumpets the “transformation” of East Providence because its focus is on schools as a jobs program rather than a service to children.
Musings & Announcements
Why I Will Carry the Torch at the Gloria Gemma Foundation’s “Illuminations of Life”
Personal experience with the ravages of cancer inspires an active response.
Proud of my Dad’s Big-League, Historic Anniversary
This week, let’s have a change of pace. Instead, I’d like to share something personal with you.
I’d like you to know how PROUD I AM OF MY DAD.
The Employment Situation In Rhode Island Is Getting Worse – Bucking National Trend
Happy Easter from everyone at the Center to you and your family! We hope you had a great holiday weekend.
We wish we had better news to deliver. Unfortunately, the employment situation in Rhode Island is getting worse, bucking the national trend. While state politicians crow each year about not implementing broad new taxes, the unfortunate truth is that by nickle-and-diming residents and by not implementing aggressive reforms Rhode Island will continue to lose ground, nationally.
National Security
Charles Callanan: Something Missing in East Greenwich on Veterans Day
The public events during East Greenwich’s Veterans Day activities did not match the reverence remembered from childhood or that the day deserves.
Media Language and a Virtue-Signaling Lie
A small example of political “news” can illustrate the language by which journalists promote partisan and ideological positions.
An “Adaptive” System of Leaks Depends on Trust and Consequences
Journalists who support leaks have a point about their value as a safety valve for government abuse, but that safety valve requires that the consequences for breaking the law be real.
On a Lighter Note
What’s in… What’s out… #WaterFire,#Sharks, #TwinRiver, and more. 8/16/19
A run-down of items in Rhode Island political news for the week.
Proud of my Dad’s Big-League, Historic Anniversary
This week, let’s have a change of pace. Instead, I’d like to share something personal with you.
I’d like you to know how PROUD I AM OF MY DAD.
Finding a Word for the New Ennui
What do adults call this feeling of boredom with all the tasks that must be done?
Pensions
Political Monday with John DePetro: Connecting Political Dots
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for November 11, included talk about:
- The problem of public sector pensions
- The value of the Fung brand for the Mrs.
- Mayor Pete’s no-media, no-controversy event
- Nanny Bloomberg and Gina’s RFP
- No warning on the homeless transplants
The Pressure on Teacher Salaries
One reason for stagnant or declining teacher pay is the legacy costs of defined-benefit pensions, which weigh down government budgets.
The Aesthetics of Benefits with Government Unions
The union-management dynamic within the context of government employment changes the way both sides see compensation packages.
Political Theory
Wexford: A Half-Empty Glass of Promises
Reviewing the tenants (and even contractors) associated with the Wexford complex in Providence raises the question of whether there’d be any economic activity there at all, but for the state government’s subsidies.
Political Monday with John DePetro: A Creature of Their Own Making
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for November 25, included talk about:
- Insider Alves and the radical caucus
- The union view of employer responsibility
- Gaspee versus campaign finance laws
- Paint on the statute becoming blood on government’s hands
- Blood on the police officer’s hand gets a slap on the wrist
A Suit on Behalf of Fundamental Rights
Putting campaign finance laws in terms of rights and responsibilities brings out the principles on which they should (and shouldn’t) be founded.
Politics
Mike Stenhouse: Rhode Island motorists could find new gasoline taxes in their stockings
This Christmas season, Gov. Gina Raimondo could be the Grinch who stole affordable gasoline. If the Raimondo administration gets its way and bypasses the General Assembly to sign on to a new regional carbon-tax scheme, called the Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI), Rhode Island motorists will find a plan to increase gasoline taxes in their stockings this year.
TCI is a cap-and-trade tax on gasoline proposed by environmental extremists who purposely want gasoline to become so expensive — estimated at an extra 24 cents per gallon — that you will be financially forced to walk or bike to work and around town.
Like all far-left contrivances to reduce carbon emissions, TCI, a green-new-deal-type gas tax, will harm economic growth and will take money out of your pocket. Rhode Island already suffers from an Ocean State Exodus, where far too many of our children and loved ones, business investors, and neighbors are leaving for lower-cost living in other states. The TCI tax would be one more piece of coal that will drive people out of state (pun intended).
Most Rhode Islanders want a balanced approach, where there are multiple choices for abundant and affordable energy. But green-Grinches in government want to limit your options, and will force you to pay expensive new taxes if you make the wrong choice.
Only the General Assembly can raise taxes. Fortunately, the governor cannot unilaterally impose a new tax on gasoline without legislative approval. But the governor has purposely tried to keep this TCI tax under the radar. Her team has been working stealthily with unelected bureaucrats at TCI to advance the imposition of gas taxes among 12 Northeast states.
Did you know that the really high electricity prices we pay, among the highest in the country, are partly because of a different regional cap-and-trade program, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI)? RGGI imposes tax-like fees on electricity power plants, which, of course, get passed on to you. Unfortunately, RGGI has been a complete failure; it has significantly increased the cost of electricity but has resulted in no added emissions reductions!
And now they want to try the same failed idea on gasoline with a TCI gas tax. Like RGGI, TCI is designed to increase the cost of fossil-based fuel so much, that families like yours — and businesses where you work — will be forced to use less of it.
Part of the RGGI and TCI schemes is that the extra money you pay at the gas pumps and on your electric bill is supposed to be spent by participating states on energy projects that are favored by greenie Grinches. Rhode Islanders understand that it is patently unfair for government subsidies to be handed-out to benefit a specific industry or company … at the expense of everyone else.
History has proven that too many government regulations and taxes on energy mean that the beneficial use of America’s rich natural resources might be put out of reach for many. Worse, such government imposed taxes as the RGGI tax and the TCI tax are regressive; they disproportionately harm low-income families who already struggle to pay heating bills and gasoline costs.
Also, many businesses, similarly burdened with higher energy costs, will be forced to reduce employee work hours, cut jobs, or even shut down and move to another state.
The secrecy must end now. The governor should have been more transparent about an issue that will cause economic hardship for many. I call on Ms. Raimondo to reject the TCI tax plan, expected out on Dec. 17; and I call on Senate and House leadership to ensure there is a robust public debate about whether you and I should pay higher gasoline taxes.
RGGI has failed miserably … and TCI is also doomed for failure. Why should any Grinch force any of us to pay unnecessarily higher gasoline taxes if it will not result in any environmental benefit?
Political Monday with John DePetro: May Forms of Political Performance Art
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for December 9, included talk about:
- Cicilline v. Trump
- Energy protesters at the State House
- Empty Wexford
- Sports gambling lawsuit goes forward
- Truck toll lawsuit goes forward
- The Transportation & Climate Initiative (TCI) tax
Political Monday with John DePetro: Shaking Up the Personalities
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for December 4, included talk about:
- The return of Laffey (?)
- RI’s suffocating labor unions
- Progressive tricks with statistics
- Getting a kick out of soccer stadiums
- Smiley’s pay-cut stepping stone
Regulation
Mike Stenhouse: Rhode Island motorists could find new gasoline taxes in their stockings
This Christmas season, Gov. Gina Raimondo could be the Grinch who stole affordable gasoline. If the Raimondo administration gets its way and bypasses the General Assembly to sign on to a new regional carbon-tax scheme, called the Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI), Rhode Island motorists will find a plan to increase gasoline taxes in their stockings this year.
TCI is a cap-and-trade tax on gasoline proposed by environmental extremists who purposely want gasoline to become so expensive — estimated at an extra 24 cents per gallon — that you will be financially forced to walk or bike to work and around town.
Like all far-left contrivances to reduce carbon emissions, TCI, a green-new-deal-type gas tax, will harm economic growth and will take money out of your pocket. Rhode Island already suffers from an Ocean State Exodus, where far too many of our children and loved ones, business investors, and neighbors are leaving for lower-cost living in other states. The TCI tax would be one more piece of coal that will drive people out of state (pun intended).
Most Rhode Islanders want a balanced approach, where there are multiple choices for abundant and affordable energy. But green-Grinches in government want to limit your options, and will force you to pay expensive new taxes if you make the wrong choice.
Only the General Assembly can raise taxes. Fortunately, the governor cannot unilaterally impose a new tax on gasoline without legislative approval. But the governor has purposely tried to keep this TCI tax under the radar. Her team has been working stealthily with unelected bureaucrats at TCI to advance the imposition of gas taxes among 12 Northeast states.
Did you know that the really high electricity prices we pay, among the highest in the country, are partly because of a different regional cap-and-trade program, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI)? RGGI imposes tax-like fees on electricity power plants, which, of course, get passed on to you. Unfortunately, RGGI has been a complete failure; it has significantly increased the cost of electricity but has resulted in no added emissions reductions!
And now they want to try the same failed idea on gasoline with a TCI gas tax. Like RGGI, TCI is designed to increase the cost of fossil-based fuel so much, that families like yours — and businesses where you work — will be forced to use less of it.
Part of the RGGI and TCI schemes is that the extra money you pay at the gas pumps and on your electric bill is supposed to be spent by participating states on energy projects that are favored by greenie Grinches. Rhode Islanders understand that it is patently unfair for government subsidies to be handed-out to benefit a specific industry or company … at the expense of everyone else.
History has proven that too many government regulations and taxes on energy mean that the beneficial use of America’s rich natural resources might be put out of reach for many. Worse, such government imposed taxes as the RGGI tax and the TCI tax are regressive; they disproportionately harm low-income families who already struggle to pay heating bills and gasoline costs.
Also, many businesses, similarly burdened with higher energy costs, will be forced to reduce employee work hours, cut jobs, or even shut down and move to another state.
The secrecy must end now. The governor should have been more transparent about an issue that will cause economic hardship for many. I call on Ms. Raimondo to reject the TCI tax plan, expected out on Dec. 17; and I call on Senate and House leadership to ensure there is a robust public debate about whether you and I should pay higher gasoline taxes.
RGGI has failed miserably … and TCI is also doomed for failure. Why should any Grinch force any of us to pay unnecessarily higher gasoline taxes if it will not result in any environmental benefit?
Governor’s Back Door TCI Tax Would Cost You At The Pump
The prices for gasoline could soon rise dramatically for your family if the Raimondo administration undercuts the authority of the General Assembly, and moves forward with its plan to sign-on to a new stealth carbon-tax scheme – the TCI Tax… a move that would necessarily increase costs on families and business at the pump, and that also could lead to Constitutional legal challenges.
This tax – a green-new-deal type government mandate – is also a regressive fuel tax that will disproportionately harm low-income families, who will struggle much more than the wealthy to pay the higher gasoline prices.
RI’s Civic Society Needs a Breathing Tube
The story of misplaced breathing tubes by Rhode Island EMTs brings us directly to the deepest problem in the Ocean State.
Science
Global Climate Strike: An Inconvenient Data Point; Your Global Warming Confessions
Today, children around the world are participating in a Global Climate Strike. I won’t criticize them for this highly misguided activity but rather the adults – including, notably and disturbingly, educators – who have foisted on them a hysteria that is almost entirely free of facts and reasoning. For example, one important data point these children are almost certainly not learning in school or anywhere: the actual extent of the greenhouse gases generated by humans and, thereby, what we can conclude about our (very limited) culpability in global warming.
It is less than 6%. ALL of man’s fossil fueled activity – all factories, all power plants, all manufacturing, all cars, all countries, all 7.5 billion people – contributes less than 6% of greenhouse gases generated on the planet. The balance is generated naturally by Earth itself.
What’s in… What’s out… #WaterFire,#Sharks, #TwinRiver, and more. 8/16/19
A run-down of items in Rhode Island political news for the week.
The Humorous, the Grotesque, and the Fanatical from Pro-Choice Advocates
Planned Parenthood’s promotion of a higher minimum wage presents a multi-layered lesson on what it means to be “pro-choice.”
Sports
Political Monday with John DePetro: May Forms of Political Performance Art
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for December 9, included talk about:
- Cicilline v. Trump
- Energy protesters at the State House
- Empty Wexford
- Sports gambling lawsuit goes forward
- Truck toll lawsuit goes forward
- The Transportation & Climate Initiative (TCI) tax
Political Monday with John DePetro: Shaking Up the Personalities
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for December 4, included talk about:
- The return of Laffey (?)
- RI’s suffocating labor unions
- Progressive tricks with statistics
- Getting a kick out of soccer stadiums
- Smiley’s pay-cut stepping stone
Correcting Higher Education as a Funding Mechanism for Nonsense
If URI’s anti-Brady professor were expressing the ideological opposite views, we know how the school would be reacting, so maybe it should flip the script.
Taxation
Political Monday with John DePetro: May Forms of Political Performance Art
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for December 9, included talk about:
- Cicilline v. Trump
- Energy protesters at the State House
- Empty Wexford
- Sports gambling lawsuit goes forward
- Truck toll lawsuit goes forward
- The Transportation & Climate Initiative (TCI) tax
Governor’s Back Door TCI Tax Would Cost You At The Pump
The prices for gasoline could soon rise dramatically for your family if the Raimondo administration undercuts the authority of the General Assembly, and moves forward with its plan to sign-on to a new stealth carbon-tax scheme – the TCI Tax… a move that would necessarily increase costs on families and business at the pump, and that also could lead to Constitutional legal challenges.
This tax – a green-new-deal type government mandate – is also a regressive fuel tax that will disproportionately harm low-income families, who will struggle much more than the wealthy to pay the higher gasoline prices.
Were There Empty Chairs At Your Thanksgiving Dinner Table?
Far too many Rhode Islanders are fleeing our state, leaving a swath of empty chairs at our family dinner tables.
If we want to keep our loved ones at home with us and give those who have left a reason to return, we must take bold action to reform our approach to public policy and to civil society.
Unions
Political Monday with John DePetro: Shaking Up the Personalities
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for December 4, included talk about:
- The return of Laffey (?)
- RI’s suffocating labor unions
- Progressive tricks with statistics
- Getting a kick out of soccer stadiums
- Smiley’s pay-cut stepping stone
RI’s Civic Society Needs a Breathing Tube
The story of misplaced breathing tubes by Rhode Island EMTs brings us directly to the deepest problem in the Ocean State.
Political Monday with John DePetro: A Creature of Their Own Making
My weekly call-in on John DePetro’s WNRI 1380 AM/95.1 FM show, for November 25, included talk about:
- Insider Alves and the radical caucus
- The union view of employer responsibility
- Gaspee versus campaign finance laws
- Paint on the statute becoming blood on government’s hands
- Blood on the police officer’s hand gets a slap on the wrist
Welfare
Right AGAIN – Sometimes, It Takes Years To Get Them To Listen
Right AGAIN! Did you see Speaker Mattiello on GoLocal Prov Live?
We’re glad that he echoed our Center’s long-time call that the Commerce Corp, and the state overall, must diversify its economic development program beyond just corporate handouts.
Harvesting Free Breakfast on the Government Plantation
Mandating school participation in free breakfast programs makes sure that somebody gets fed, but it also feeds the government bureaucracy.
Governor Seeks to Punish Employers Via Proposed Medicaid Tax
Businesses should be applauded for hiring those most in need of work…not punished with more taxes, and certainly not made out to be the bad guy. It is misguided to think that if employees are not covered by their employer’s insurance plan, full or part time, and instead are enrolled in Medicaid, then the business should be punished.
