Question of the Week: Is Rhode Island statutorily required to offer a head-slapping political story every January to make up for the demise of the Follies? Ponder that as you dig into my weekly column. As usual, your tips and comments are welcome, and you can follow me through the week on the twitters. Here we go.
1) When mold was cited as the reason for tearing up the basement Statehouse office of the powerful Joint Committee on Legislative Services, the explanation was destined to join the pantheon of weird Rhode Island political stories. For long-time observers, the instant reference point was former Gov. Ed DiPrete’s Dumpster dive at a Walt’s Roast Beef in Cranston, reportedly for an envelope containing $10,000 in cash. Yet as State Police continue an investigation of the controversial audit sought, and then cancelled, by House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello, it remains unclear where the story is headed. For now, it seems telling that only five Democratic critics of the speaker signed onto a news release this week calling for a caucus to discuss Mattiello’s leadership; barring dramatic news, the speaker appears to retain overwhelming support from the party rank and file in his chamber. Mattiello greeted guests at his packed fundraiser Thursday night at the Crowne Plaza in Warwick, and he seemed unfazed by the latest controversy engulfing the Statehouse. (He maintains he had a legitimate reason for requesting an audit of the RI Convention Center Authority, despite the proximity in timing to the suspension there of his friend James Demers. The Center is now seeking an expedited state audit.) Looking ahead, suffice it to say, the outcome of the State Police investigation will be a significant factor in Mattiello’s political future.
2) A string of Mattiello headlines – the Cranston chiropractor, the Jeff Britt case, even a childhood scrap with Joe Trillo – have overshadowed the smoother sailing of Dominick Ruggerio’s tenure as Senate president. While Ruggerio was steeped in labor through his working days, he’s emerged as a forceful advocate for issues like creating more affordable housing and reducing the spread of plastic bags. As the claims and counter-claims between Marc Crisafulli and Brett Smiley flared last year, Ruggerio emerged as the adult in the sandbox, pointing to the need for an approach that would help protect RI’s third-largest revenue source. Not coincidentally, Ruggerio was lauded for his involvement by IGT and Twin River execs when they unveiled their joint venture this week.
3) The IGT-Twin River proposal underscores a certainty – there was just too much money to be made for the two companies to remain at odds. The outlook has been clouded due to how things got so bitter between the two sides last year. But all was sweetness and light between the former rivals during a news conference Thursday on the seventh floor of the IGT building – and it certainly helped to have a cooling-off period, thanks to the December holidays. “What has been said and done has been said and done,” IGT Chairman Robert Vincent said. “We turned out sights to the future and trying to find common ground. At the outset, it was not easy or necessarily comfortable for either side.” Now, Vincent, Crisafulli and IGT’s Jay Gendron call their proposal a win-win-win for their companies, RI taxpayers, and the state’s competitive stance against Massachusetts and Connecticut on gambling. Yet the proposal also follows on the heels of a House-commissioned report raising questions about such things as the merit of a 20-year contract, so the new plan could face skepticism at the Statehouse.
4) One of the sharpest reactions to the IGT/Twin River plan came from RI GOP National Committeeman Steve Frias: “As we have learned over the last few months from Twin River and others, IGT’s twenty-year billion-dollar no-bid contract is a bad deal for taxpayers. This deal does not automatically become a good one for taxpayers because IGT and Twin River will now be business partners. As shown by the recent report by Christiansen Capital Advisors to the House of Representatives, a competitive bid process is the best way to ensure taxpayers get the best price. This deal may now be good for both IGT and Twin River, but it remains a risky deal for taxpayers because we will be locking ourselves into a no-bid contract affecting our third largest source of revenue for the next twenty years. If the General Assembly approves this deal, they will be engaging in fiscal malpractice.”
5) Via Politico: Gov. Gina Raimondo is among the newly named co-chairs of Organizing Together, “a massive organizing program in six battleground states — an effort aimed at minimizing the damage from a potentially protracted primary and giving the party’s eventual nominee a fighting chance against Donald Trump’s political machine.”
6) With Rhode Island Education Commissioner Angélica Infante-Green taking the lead role on the push to improve Providence schools, Mayor Jorge Elorza insists he still has a series of roles to play in the push to improve public education. “The first thing is that on the city side and my office we’re still responsible for all of the school infrastucture work, and there’s not this clear line between infrastructure and instruction,” Elorza said on Political Roundtable this week. “They really go together, so we’re coordinating with the state to make sure that work goes well.” Secondly, Elorza said, he will continue to advocate for “parents and community voice to be at the table. We’re committed to this over the long term, and the way that this can be different from turn-around efforts in other states if we truly engage the community from the very beginning.” Elorza points out how kids are in school for just about a quarter of their waking hours, and he said the city will continue to put some focus on their out-of-school time. Finally, the mayor said, the city will work to support and partner with Harrison Peters, who was named this week as the turn-around superintendent in Providence. Meanwhile, give a listen to John Bender’s interview with Infante-Green about the move to hire Peters and next steps on schools.
7) Watch for an upbeat message when Mayor Elorza delivers his State of the City address for 2020 on February 10. He’s likely to tout improvements in municipal finances, a wave of development projects across the city, and the heightened focus on schools. But what about the nettlesome problem posed by Providence’s pension, which has just about 25 percent of the money needed to meet its long-term obligations? “You know, there’s only so many times you’re going to bang your head against the wall,” Elorza said on Bonus Q&A, describing the underwhelming support for his past proposal to monetize Providence’s water supply. The mayor said he plans to introduce a pension reform package this spring or summer, with “a number of smaller things we can do that I believe are best practices.” At the same time, Elorza said re-amortizing the pension fund “will likely have to be done at some point. I believe the first time it can be done is in 2033, so we’re still a few years away where that’s even an option.”
8) State Rep. Carol McEntee, whose sister, Anne Hagan Webb, became the public face of last year’s law to extend the statute of limitations for childhood victims of sexual abuse, is among the lawmakers who’ve received printed notices in the mail asserting that they won’t be allowed to receive communion, to act as witnesses at marriages, godparents, or lectors at weddings, funerals or any other church function. The return address on the notice sent to McEntee is a stamp indicating it came from Sacred Heart Church in Warwick, the same parish that Hagan Webb was a part of as a girl. Messages seeking comment from Sacred Heat were not returned; The Public’s Radio has learned the same message was included in a copy of the Sacred Heart’s bulletin. The notice has caused some head-scratching on Smith Hill since the notice prescribing a prohibition for state legislators includes the names of about a half-dozen Jewish lawmakers. (Carolyn Cronin, spokeswoman for the Diocese of Providence, said the Diocese was not involved in the mailings and that “daily pastoral and administrative decisions are made at the local parish level.”) Via email, McEntee said, “I feel that this notice is harsh and retaliatory especially toward me as well as the other elected officials. Although I have long ago left the Catholic Church, they continue to berate and diminish the reality of what my sister and my family have endured because of their criminal behavior and lack of remorse or contrition.”
9) Via WPRI’s Eli Sherman: 12 things to know about how RI might fund public schools.
10) Brown University has been working for some time to step up its commercialization of research. Now, the university has hired Neil Veloso as executive director of the Office of Industry Engagement and Commercial Venturing. Veloso tells Noel Rubinton, “Overall, I see IECV pursuing core values of transparency, accountability and promptness in how we interact with our customers — faculty inventors who give us new discoveries and technology buyers or investors who take those discoveries and turn them into products. We need robust internal systems in place so that we can effectively manage Brown’s technology, from patenting to licensing to license compliance. By having a robust system in place, and adhering to our core values, IECV can provide our customers the best service possible. Downstream, I would like to see more industry engagement with Brown, centered around technology and manifesting itself through licensing and industry research.”
11) Cycling advocates credit Providence Mayor Jorge Elorza’s “Great Streets” initiative for boldness, although some residents around the city remain critical of the plan. For his part, Elorza said Providence is overdue in slowing down traffic and making the city more welcoming to non-motorized activities and modes of transit. On Bonus Q&A, the mayor said he’ll continue trying to address the concerns of residents: “Our task on the city side is that as we build this out we help them see that this change actually enhances their quality of life and it doesn’t result in loss.”
12) Preach, NPR’s Mary Louise Kelly: “Ask journalists why they do the job they do, and you’ll hear a range of answers. Here’s mine: Not every day, but on the best ones, we get to put questions to powerful people and hold them to account. This is both a privilege and a responsibility.”
13) Via The Boston Globe: Is Boston going to suffer San Francisco’s fate?
14) Scott MacKay believes the Iowa Caucus has outlived its usefulness: “Nobody has anything against the good people of Davenport, Cedar Rapids or Sioux Falls. But their state shouldn’t be the kickoff event in choosing candidates for the most powerful job in the world. Some of this is obvious. The state is much whiter, older and more rural than the nation. As the New York Times recently pointed out, Iowa demographically reflects the United States of 1870. The largest city, Des Moines, has a population of about the same as Providence and is 70 percent white. Along with all this white, rural privilege is a focus on topics — think ethanol subsidies and farm price supports — that have scant traction in the rest of the country.”
15) This is a great listen from NPR: how two brothers formed a close bond after years of tension.
16) State of the Union guests: U.S. Sen. Jack Reed is bringing Rebekah Ham of Providence, a mother and childhood cancer advocate …. U.S. Rep. David Cicilline’s guest will be Carrigan Nelson of Portsmouth, 18, who is receiving cancer treatement through the Affordable Care Act …. U.S. Rep. Jim Langevin is bringing John Hazen White Jr., chairman and CEO of Taco Comfort Solutions … U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse’s guest will be Alan Kurose, president and CEO of Coastal Medical.
17) Woof: WeatherTech, the company that sells car accessories, is making a seven-figure ad buy during the Super Bowl to raise money for the University of Wisconsin’s School of Veterinary Medicine.
