"It's frustrating and very disheartening," said one of the state's most prominent politicians upon being asked his for reaction to news of the state's latest corruption conviction.
But that wasn’t said by someone recently or in regards to the news that Gordon Fox has plead guilty to public corruption charges. Ironically that was something Fox told me personally back in 2007 in the wake of news that former House Majority Leader Gerard Martineau had plead guilty to corruption charges stemming from the “Operation Dollar Bill” investigation.
Last week, the cycle of corruption was completed. Now, other prominent politicians are making statements similar to what Fox told me on that day back in 2007. But while it's easy to point the finger at Gordon Fox for his misdeeds, it's harder to address the fact that corruption is far from an isolated incident here or there. It’s inherent to our system of government.
Let's face it: Fox is going to jail because of his own stupidity in which he went about his twisted dealings. If Fox was smarter, like if he took his bribe in cash instead of by check, he wouldn't have been caught.
More to the point, if Fox had simply suggested in a roundabout way that his target legally raise $50,000 into his campaign account by hosting a series of fundraisers for him, it would've been hard to prove illegal.
What’s not hard is for US Attorney Peter Neronhna to stand on a podium with scores of other law enforcement officials and pump his chest out and claim that he'll root out corruption wherever it exists, as if those two isolated incidents were the extent of Fox's wrongdong. And what about the corruption of the system that isn't even illegal?
Neronha is usually evasive anyways, but I'd like to ask the Neronha if he really believe that when wealthy, connected people donate to political candidates, they do so with the intention that the candidate use their donations to benefit the general welfare and not that person's narrow particular interest. Campaign contributions are really just soft bribery.
Campaign Contributions are Soft Bribery
When the new Pawsox owners Terrence Murray, former Fleet Bank CEO, Thomas M. Ryan, former CVS CEO, and James Skeffington, the uber connected RI lawyer, donated money to then candidate Gina Raimondo, are we really supposed to believe that this money was raised without strings attached and without expectation of a facilitated move to Providence for their new team?
When a public sector union goes ahead and raises money for a mayor in one of Rhode Island's cities and towns, does anyone actually believe that the union isn't doing that in order to soften the ground for when the union negotiates with that same mayor against the taxpayers for more money?
And what about when the House and Senate leadership unilaterally doles out the so-called legislative grants in exchange for complicity throughout the session?
In Need of a Culture Change
Doesn't the fact that it's completely legal for individuals who do business with the state of Rhode Island and its municipalities to donate money to Rhode Island politicians engender inherent corruption to our system of government? In Connecticut, it’s not only illegal for people who get state contracts to donate to politicians; it’s also illegal for them to organize methods of raising money on behalf of politicians. I find it funny how nobody seems to be proposing that type of a law in the wake of this latest scandal.
Fox was convicted of using his campaign account for personal expenses. But if he had merely taken his colleagues out to dinner, like so many politicians do all the time, it would've been perfectly legal. Corruption in RI is really our own version of 50 shades of gray.
Inherently Corruption
With so much corruption that's both legal and inherent to the system, it's hard to get enthused about the conviction of a former House Speaker on an isolated incident.
I don't believe in Santa Clause. Nor do I believe in Easter Bunnies or Tooth Faeries. I'd like to believe in something--namely, justice. But until the average, everyday Rhode Islander reduces their apathy and becomes more involved in their local government, it's hard to see a more just system any time soon. Nor does the Fox conviction look like justice when more intelligent and careful schemers are living the lives of Riley.
Fox was right. It’s all very frustrating and disheartening.
Russell Moore has worked on both sides of the desk in Rhode Island both for print media and on political campaigns. Follow him on twitter @russmoore713. Send him email at [email protected]
Related Slideshow: Rhode Island Biggest Political Scandals
Vincent A. "Buddy" Cianci resigned as Providence Mayor in 1984 after pleading nolo contendere to charges of assaulting a Bristol man with a lit cigarette, ashtray, and fireplace log. Cianci believed the man to be involved in an affair with his wife.
Cianci did not serve time in prison, but received a 5-year suspended sentence. He was replaced by Joseph R. Paolino, Jr. in a special election.
Former Pawtucket Mayor Brian J. Sarault was sentenced in 1992 to more than 5 years in prison, after pleading guilty to a charge of racketeering.
Sarault was arrested by state police and FBI agents at Pawtucket City Hall in 1991, who alleged that the mayor had attempted to extort $3,000 from former RI State Rep. Robert Weygand as a kickback from awarding city contracts.
Weygand, after alerting federal authorities to the extortion attempt, wore a concealed recording device to a meeting where he delivered $1,750 to Sarault.
Thomas Fay, the successor to Bevilacqua as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, resigned in 1993, and was later found guilty on three misdemeanor counts of directing arbitration work to a partner in his real estate firm, Lincoln Center Properties.
Fay was also alleged to use court employees, offices, and other resources for the purposes of the real estate firm. Fay, along with court administrator and former Speaker of the House, Matthew "Mattie" Smith were alleged to have used court secretaries to conduct business for Lincoln, for which Fay and Smith were business partners.
Fay was fined $3,000 and placed on one year probation. He could have been sentenced for up to three years in prison.
Cianci was forced to resign from the Mayor’s office a second time in 2002 after being convicted on one several charges levied against him in the scandal popularly known as “Operation Plunder Dome.”
The one guilty charge—racketeering conspiracy--led to a five-year sentence in federal prison. Cianci was acquitted on all other charges, which included bribery, extortion, and mail fraud.
While it was alleged that City Hall had been soliciting bribes since Cianci’s 1991 return to office, much of the case revolved around a video showing a Cianci aide, Frank Corrente, accepting a $1,000 bribe from businessman Antonio Freitas. Freitas had also recorded more than 100 conversations with city officials.
Operation Plunder Dome began in 1998, and became public when the FBI executed a search warrant of City Hall in April 1999.
Cianci Aide Frank Corrente, Tax Board Chairman Joseph Pannone, Tax Board Vice Chairman David C. Ead, Deputy tax assessor Rosemary Glancy were among the nine individuals convicted in the scandal.
In 2003 Operation Dollar Bill, a codename for an undercover investigation by the FBI, looked into corruption in the state of Rhode Island. State Senator John Celona was investigated for accepting money and gifts from CVS, Blue Cross & Blue Shield, and Roger Williams Hospital.
In 2005, charges were filed against Celona for accepting gifts and money from CVS, Roger Williams and Blue Cross & Blue Shield. These companies all had interest in legislation that Celona was involved in as the Chairman of the Senate Corporation Committee.
Celona did his best to receive a lenient sentece by cooperating with the governemt and proved to be a key witness in the conviction of two former Roger Williams Medical Center Executives. Celona was later sentenced to two and a half years in prison.
Three North Providence City Councilmen were convicted in 2011 on charges relating to a scheme to extort bribes in exchange for favorable council votes. In all, the councilmen sought more than $100,000 in bribes.
Councilmen Raimond A. Zambarano, Joseph Burchfield, and Raymond L. Douglas III were sentenced to prison terms of 71 months, 64 months, and 78 months, respectively.
Central Falls Mayor Charles Moreau resigned in 2012 before pleading guilty to federal corruption charges.
Moreau admitted that he had give contractor Michael Bouthillette a no-bid contract to board up vacant homes in exchange for having a boiler installed in his home.
He was freed from prison in February 2014, less than one year into a 24 month prison term, after his original sentence was vacated in exchange for a guilty plea on a bribery charge. He was credited with tim served, placed on three years probation, and given 300 hours of community service.
38 Studios was a video game company founded in 2006 by former Major Leaguer Curt Schilling. First based in Massachusetts, the company moved to Rhode Island to secure a $75 Million loan guarantee from the state’s Economic Development Corporation (EDC).
In 2012, 38 Studios released its first game, “Kingdoms of Amalur”. In May of 2012, 38 Studios missed a payment of $1.125 million to the RIEDC. Later that month 38 studios paid a check for that amount, but it was later returned by the state for inefficient funds. On that same day 38 Studios did not make the payroll for its employees.
At the end of May, 38 Studio laid off all of their employees. In June, 38 Studios filed for bankruptcy. At the same time Federal and State officials begin a probe of the company. That year the state sued 38 Studios as well as Schilling.
In May of 2014, a report came out that the video game company knew that the money they had received was not going to be enough to cover the development of their first project.
The Rhode Island State Police and FBI raided and sealed off the State House office of Speaker of the House Gordon Fox on March 21--marking the first time an office in the building has ever been raided.
Following the raid, Fox resigned as Speaker of the House. Days after the resignation from Fox, Nicholas Mattiello was chosen to replace him.
