Arlene Violet: Kudos and Bric-a-Bracs for Rhode Island Leaders

Arlene Violet: Kudos and Bric-a-Bracs for Rhode Island Leaders

Now that the General Assembly has left Dodge City, it is time to recognize the best and the worst leadership moves.

 

KUDOS

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CHRISTOPHER BLAZEJEWSKI - The Speaker of the House threw his support behind the establishment of the Office of  Inspector General with adequate funding.  While he was criticized for not extending that Office’s watchdog function to the legislative branch (and judiciary), there are issues with the doctrine of separation of powers that require careful hewing.  Step 2 will be the study and implementation of constitutional oversight of the other branches of government during next year's legislative session. Meanwhile, the Office of the Auditor General already has oversight over the legislature, and its duty should be that of a watchdog, not just a numbers-cruncher.

Kudos should also go to the Republican Lieutenant Governor candidate, JOHN LOUGHLIN, who stated that he would turn that office into a de facto Inspector General operation.  No doubt his announcement lit a fire under the General Assembly to pass the Inspector General legislation.

 

SABINA MATOS - The Lieutenant Governor proposed and fought for  a bill to outlaw restrictive covenants that grocery store chains have utilized  in their leases that bar another grocery store in that location long after they headed for the Hills. Retailers like Stop & Shop and Walmart use deed restrictions to ensure that properties they vacate or have never occupied can’t be rented to competing grocery chains or mom-and-pop grocery stores. Woonsocket, in particular, was made into a food desert, by such restrictions. Lieutenant Governor Matos, who is up for reelection, lobbied to eliminate such restrictions in the future and secured passage of the legislation. Kudos to its sponsors, Woonsocket democrats, SENATORS MELISSA MURRAY AND BRIAN THOMPSON.

 

PETER NEHRONA - The outgoing  Attorney General, who cannot serve again because the office is time-limited, has not rested on his laurels. After issuing a blistering report of the cover-up of sexual abuse of children within the Catholic diocese, he appeared on Capitol Hill to lend his support to legislation to allow victims of sexual molestation by clergy to sue the Catholic Church and any other institution that failed to protect them from such abuse. Kudos to lead sponsor, REPRESENTATIVE CAROL MCENTEE, and other democrat sponsors. Many legislators are Catholics,  so it took some guts for them to vote in favor of the legislation since they, no doubt, had “soft pressure” from the church.

 

HOUSE AND SENATE- Both Houses approved a “RHODE ISLAND FEDERAL CONSTITUTIONAL DEFENSE ACT’ which would allow lawsuits in state courts for constitutional violations by federal officials. Far too many untrained ICE law enforcement personnel have used jack-booted methods to control protest crowds. The legislature also passed a ‘PROTECT OUR COURTS” BILL, which prevents federal immigration from storming into state court buildings to make arrests without identifying themselves first to court personnel, stating their purpose and displaying a judicial warrant.  As a former Attorney General, I prosecuted crimes in poor neighborhoods where witnesses were assured they could come forward to testify about what they saw without being arrested. Murderers were convicted because these immigrants came forward. It is counterproductive to introduce such a chilling effect as having a witness arrested at court, since no one would eventually come forward.

REPUBLICANS IN THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY - For years, the Republicans argued for an Inspector General.  They get kudos for fighting the good fight. They further get kudos for their thoughtful reflections  on the burgeoning budget to run government. They rightfully have opposed the budget, including the monstrous $15.2 million buster that passed this year and added another billion dollars to the bottom line.

 

Bric-a-Bracs

LEGISLATIVE DEMOCRATS WHO VOTED FOR THE  BUDGET- Let’s face it. These folks never learned the art of subtraction when they were in grammar school. Many of them had nuns teaching them, too. Ugh! Quite simply,  increasing taxes are running the state into the ground.

DEMOCRATS AGAIN - Sorry. I’ll stop ragging on you after you stop this practice.  Stop telling us that “Bills are being held for future study,” which is your polite way of saying the legislation is dead. The state is full of adults who can take the bad news that the legislation didn’t have a prayer of passing, so please just tell the truth that you killed it.