Dave is correct … no amount of happy talk and wishful thinking can overcome the burdens continually placed on small businesses by greedy lawmakers so they can have more money to play with.
— Mike Stenhouse (@MSten37) November 24, 2017
At its Monday meeting, the Rhode Island Board of Elections directed its lawyer to propose fixes to the loophole created in 2008, which no longer required proper identification for those registering, in person, to vote … as required by 2003 federal law. Despite baseless attacks against Ken Block, it turns out that his research was accurate.
Stunning. Unions and progressives have mastered the art of skimming and diverting taxpayer money into their own, or their allies', coffers.
— Mike Stenhouse (@MSten37) November 19, 2017
BLOW TO CRONY UNIONISM? Rumors from our DC sources that Trump Admin soon to end DUES-SKIMMING of SEIU home-care workers, enforcing SCOTUS Harris v Quinn decision, to stop FORCE DUES & gov't collusion w unions. Also would end critical Medicaid funds ending up in union coffers.
— RI Ctr for Freedom⚓️ (@RICenterFreedom) November 17, 2017
Per Institute for Justice, RI again ranks in BOTTOM-10, this time as the 10th most broadly & onerously licensed state when it comes to needing permission from the government to engage in lawful work. This lack of freedom must end! https://t.co/1nCdhrDxIQ pic.twitter.com/qczAA8nhsK
— RI Ctr for Freedom⚓️ (@RICenterFreedom) November 14, 2017
On Friday, the Center held our first inaugural fundraising banquet -the 2017 Ocean State Freedom Banquet. At the banquet, a capacity crowd of 200 people were on hand to hear the keynote address by Grover Norquist, famed DC anti-tax warrior and President of Americans for Tax Reform.
Thank you to @RISpeaker Mattiello for accepting a meeting w @GroverNorquist & me, as described by @TedNesi, in search for common ground in 2018. Full Nesi's Notes here: https://t.co/7EluSumKoE
— Mike Stenhouse (@MSten37) November 12, 2017
Thank you to the 200+ people who came to our Freedom Banquet today and heard @GroverNorquist speak! Rhode Island has reason to have hope. pic.twitter.com/A2ZyfI4aJ8
— RI Ctr for Freedom⚓️ (@RICenterFreedom) November 10, 2017
President Trump’s tax reform plan, released this week, is a winner! Our state’s partisan political class will no doubt trot out their standard, mindless, and divisive class warfare mantras, but having attended two national seminars to learn details of the President’s tax reform plan, I can assure the people of Rhode Island that this sweeping reform plan is indeed designed to mostly benefit the middle-class. It is disappointing that our state’s political leaders would choose to deny Rhode Islanders the chance to keep and make more money just because they are hung-up on an anti-jobs, tax-the-rich platform.
BREAKING! Secretary of State @NellieGorbea’s Comments on Election Integrity Misleading and Inadequate #VoteRIhttps://t.co/JFOMSaX5E0
— RI Ctr for Freedom⚓️ (@RICenterFreedom) November 1, 2017
The transgender issue extends far beyond bathroom or locker-room rights. As expressed in a June 2016 “guidance” document from the RI Department of Education (RIDE) on transgender rights, RIDE itself will be seeking to bully local school districts into conformity, openly flaunting its disrespect of other students and of parental rights.
In the Ocean State, the political elites work hard to keep the average family out of the process. It appears that the Board of Elections and the Secretary of State’s office have deliberately left the door open for individuals to register to vote and cast a vote, without ever providing personally identifying information as required by state and federal law. As I have said before, the scale of these findings potentially shake the very foundation of our state’s democracy … and must be formally and independently investigated.
In Rhode Island, it appears that the BOE and the Secretary of State’s office, over the years, have purposely left the door open for individuals to register to vote, and cast a vote, without ever providing personally identifying information as required by state and federal law. As I previously commented, the magnitude of these findings potentially shake the very foundation of our state’s democracy … and must be officially investigated.
Mark Janus is a child support specialist with the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services. He advocates for children’s rights when their parents are no longer together. When he was hired, he didn’t know that he was going to be forced to pay union dues until he saw the fees deducted from his first paycheck.
Following the release this week of city-by-city and district-by-district voter registration and 2016 election voting research by Ken Block, via his Simpatico Software Systems data analysis company, we call on the Governor and/or the Attorney General to initiate an independent investigation. This shocking data means our current registration practices may need to be amended, with individuals appropriately held accountable, if voters are to maintain confidence in our State’s elections integrity.
Capitulation to the harmful progressive-Democrat agenda was enough to turn what might have been a positive special fall session of the state’s General Assembly into a net negative.
After the reality-shock of announced job losses from Benny’s and Alexion, and when the General Assembly reconvenes on Tuesday, Rhode Island legislators will be put to the test. Will they continue to push our state into the progressives’ anti-business, anti-family land of make believe?
Despite the false hopes expressed by lawmakers based solely on a reduced unemployment rate, Rhode Island families are hurting. The Ocean State suffers under a terrible business climate, and remains stuck 48th rank on our Center’s Job’s & Opportunity Index. Just this week, it was announced that Benny’s, a Rhode Island institution, is closing.
The progressive agenda is an assault on the human workplace. Indeed, Rhode Island is engaged in a battle of ideas. The progressive vision is transforming the Ocean State, right before our eyes, into an anti-human-work hell.
Already ranking a dismal 45th on the overall Family Prosperity Index, Rhode Islanders will soon suffer from a 16-21% increase on their electricity bills, making matters even worse.
In a heavy-handed edict, reminiscent of soviet-style totalitarianism, the state of Rhode Island considered restricting the free-flow of goods and commerce by restricting trucker traffic on secondary roads this week.
Rhode Island progressives’ extremist agenda can no longer be denied.
We simply spend too much. With no major reforms and by capitulating to the progressive agenda, the 2018 state budget will be even more destructive for the people of Rhode Island.