slides: Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot & Who’s Not? - September 23, 2016

Friday, September 23, 2016

Russ Moore, GoLocalProv MINDSETTER™

 

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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. 

 

Related Slideshow: Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot & Who’s Not? - September 23, 2016

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HOT

Patrica Serpa

The Chairwoman of the Oversight Committee of the RI House of Representatives deserves some serious kudos for promising to hold hearings to question the poor performance of the Rhode Island pension fund. Up until this point, the Rhode Island General Treasurer has managed to avoid any criticism on this issue, so it’s nice to see someone attempting to bring some accountability out of the General Treasurer’s office.

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HOT

Billy Gilman:

The Westerly native killed it on NBC’s The Voice earlier this week, representing the state well. Let’s all wish Gilman the best of luck as he moves forward with his already successful music career.

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HOT

 K. Joseph Shekarchi

The word on the street is that Skeharchi is having little trouble lining up the votes to become the next House Majority Leader, assuming that House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello hangs on and wins reelection against what should be a spirited challenge from Rhode Island GOP National Committeeman Steve Frias. Shekarchi would relish being next in line to become the state’s most powerful politician, but being the number two man in the House might put him into some sticky situations when Governor Gina Raimondo and Mattiello clash on certain issues. Shekarchi has a very close relationship with the Governor and even ran her first campaign, when she ran for General Treasurer in 2010.

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HOT

John Lombardi

Often looked at as a strong and legitimate challenger to Mayor Jorge Elorza in the 2018 election, Lombardi may find himself in a position to line up the votes to become the state’s most powerful position—Speaker of the House of Representatives—should Mattiello fail to win reelection this November. Certainly, chaos will ensue, but don’t be surprised if Lombardi is standing atop the rubble when all the dust settles if the doomsday scenario comes to pass. A former Providence City Council President, Acting Mayor, and current Providence municipal judge and state legislator, Lombardi certainly has all the experience, and then some, that one would need for the job.

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HOT

Lauren H. Carson

The Chairwoman of the House Tourism Committee has joined a growing chorus of Rhode Island leaders who are seeking the release of the documents from the state police and Rhode Island Attorney General’s four year-long investigation into 38 Studios. GoLocal has recently released a petition located on change.org that has already been signed by hundreds of Rhode Islanders, which calls for the Governor to direct the state police to release those records. Sign the petition here. 

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HOT

David Ortiz

It’s hard to believe that the superstar designated hitter for the Boston Red Sox is actually retiring this year. Ortiz smacked his 36th home run on Tuesday night, a three-run bomb that provided the Red Sox with the margin of victory and all but guaranteed that they’ll win the American League East crown this year. Put simply: “Big Papi” is having the best final year of any player in the history of the game.

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NOT

Bishop Thomas Tobin

The leader of the Catholic Church in Rhode Island said that St. Mary’s Church in Providence had “no choice”, but to fire Michael Templeton, the Music Director at the Church of St. Mary in Providence, after it found out that he had married his male partner. Sorry Bishop Tobin, but you cannot convince me that that’s what Jesus would recommend—firing someone who is otherwise good at their job because of a personal relationship they’ve entered into that isn’t harming anyone.  That seems like more the work of the Pharisees, whom Jesus so often quarreled.

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NOT

Dick Spies

If you’re going to claim that your organization is going to move forward in a “straightforward, transparent manner” following an embezzlement controversy at the organization you serve as Board Chairman of, it would make sense if you agreed to answer questions from the press. That commonsense is apparently lost on Dick Spies, the Board Chairman of ProvPlan, which is facing a mountain of controversy after firing top staff over a brewing embezzlement investigation. It’s time for the leaders of ProvPlan to start answering questions.

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NOT

Alex and Ani

Apparently, all is not well at Alex and Ani. Once considered a major Rhode Island success story, the company has gone through what seems like constant management changes. This week, the company dismissed its Chief Operating Officer/Chief Financial Officer Jane Fitzpatrick-Conway, its Senior VP of Sales Dan Sills, and Greg Williams who served as the organization’s Director of Retail. 

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NOT

West Nile Virus

IT’s that time of year again, early autumn/late summer, and that means the West Nile Virus has reared its ugly head once again.

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NOT

Curt Schilling

The founder of 38 Studios would constantly tell anyone who would listen to him—a diminishing number of people with each passing day—that he would relish the day when the 38 Studios Civil trial would take place, so that he could tell his story in court. Well, like so many other of Schilling’s statements, that turned out to be more empty words of a loud mouth braggadocio. Schilling and other top executives agreed to settle the lawsuit with the state for $2.5 million.

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NOT

2nd Worst

The state ranks the second worst in the nation for its integration of Hispanics into the community, according to a study from Wallethub.com. That’s a troubling fact considering that the state has a large and growing Latino population. The state scored especially poorly or its educational integration, economic integration—though the economy is rough for everyone here, not just Hispanics.

 

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