Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not
Friday, March 06, 2015
Russell J. Moore, GoLocalProv MINDSETTER™
Every Friday, GoLocalProv's Russ Moore breaks down who is rising and who is falling in RI politics, business, and sports. Moore has worked on both sides of the desk in Rhode Island media, both for newspapers and on political campaigns. Send him email at
[email protected] and follow him on Twitter @russmoore713.
Related Slideshow: Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not - March 5, 2015
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HOT
Peter Kilmartin
The Attorney General, who was a former ally of former House Speaker Gordon Fox as a representative, played a key role in bringing Fox to justice by agreeing to indict him on a charge of bribery on the state level (on the federal level the statute of limitations had expired). Kilmartin stood with the people of Rhode Island by putting aside a personal friendship to do the right thing.
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HOT
Sheldon Whitehouse
The United States Senator deserves credit for taking a principled stand in refusing to attend Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's address to Congress earlier this week. The Republican Congressional Leadership broke protocol by going over President Obama's head in inviting Netanyahu, and the Israeli Prime Minister's speech was very condescending.
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HOT
Sebastian Zuleta
The 17-year-old Boy Scout from Central Falls was chosen for a tremendous honor when he was selected as one of 10 Boy Scouts from across the nation to deliver the organization's "Report To The Nation", which details the work of the scouts and their positive work in their communities. A senior at Central Falls High School, Zuleta is also associated with several other volunteer organizations and after school activities and has an unbelievably bright future ahead of him.
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HOT
William Murphy
The former House Speaker who served as Gordon Fox's defense attorney (another former House Speaker) did a tremendous job in defending Fox. Not only will Fox serve just 3 years out of a possible 33 had all the charges stuck, but there will be no testimony about the wrongdoing that occured under Fox's reign of terror, and that's a relief to many public officials. All that means Murphy's power as a lobbyist is increasing.
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HOT
Sara Potenza
The Rhode Island native and Smithfield High Grad has made quite a name for herself with her strong performances on NBC's The Voice, particularly her rendition of "Stay With Me." Her performance garnered her comparisons to Janis Joplin, which leads one to believe she has a bright career in music ahead of her.
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HOT
LaDontae Henton
Let's hope Providence Friar Men's Basketball fans appreciate the just how awesome Henton has been over his 4-year Providence College career. Henton scored his 2,000th point for the Friars on Wednesday and collected his 1,000th rebound last Saturday. Can Henton lead the Friars on a magical NCAA tournament run this month?
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NOT
Gordon Fox
Let's hope that the former RI House Speaker serves as a deterrent to any public officials who are contemplating serving themselves instead of their constituents. Fox pled guilty to taking a bribe as a member of the Providence Licensing Board and used his campaign fund to finance his own personal expenses.
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NOT
Peter Neronha
Yes, the US Attorney did get a guilty plea of out former House Speaker Gordon Fox and he sure sounded like a tough guy at his press conference. But the people of Rhode Island, judging by the discussions heard on talk radio and in coffee shops, seem peeved that he only got a 3 year sentence for Fox. And there's a feeling out there that there's so much corruption that, for some reason, he simply can't uncover and prosecute (38 studios, PEDP loans, etc.).
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NOT
Gina Raimondo
The Governor called it unacceptable that the former Speaker took bribes and misused his campaign fund. But the Governor failed to mention that she campaigned on Fox's behalf in 2012 when she was General Treasurer by walking his district encouraging residents to vote for him. Raimondo owes us an apology for her lack of judgement.
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NOT
Providence Journal
For the second time in two weeks the Providence Journal has been accused of plagiarism, this time by a wpri.com reporter. One week prior, GoLocalProv filed a complaint with Gatehouse for "free riding" on their reporting. It's sad for a newspaper like the Providence Journal, with such a proud tradition of great reporting, to have sunk so low so fast.
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NOT
Rhode Island State Legislators
There are so many good legislators that truly serve the interests of their constituents (not their own) in their official capacities. But when the former House Speaker pleads guilty on public corruption charges, (who so many of them voted for time and again for Speaker) it, fairly or not, tarnishes their image.
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NOT
Courthouse Motto
On the surface, the RI Supreme Court's slogan, "not under man, but under God and law" is a just and honorable saying that's relevant for our highest court. But the fact that the person who made the statement, Sir Edward Coke, was a 16th century religious persecutor who denied that atheists had the same legal protections as everyone else, as Stephen Beale reports this week, is not so hot.
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