Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not in RI Politics?

Friday, December 09, 2011

Dan McGowan, GoLocalProv MINDSETTER™

 

Who’s Hot

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Jack Reed -> Kudos to Rhode Island’s senior Senator for calling on Congress to not take a holiday break until an agreement is reached on the payroll tax cuts. Democrats want to extend and expand the cuts, which might be asking too much. But simply extending the cuts is the right idea and would save middle class workers millions in the Ocean State.

Patrick Kennedy -> Congrats to the former Congressman, whose wife is pregnant with the couple’s first child. It’s been a pretty successful first year out of office for Kennedy, who has gotten married and is currently watching the health care reform laws he has always pushed for truly take form.

Joseph Almond -> The Lincoln Town Administrator continues to be a logical voice in the ongoing Mayoral Academy debate. Almond is spot on by suggesting that competition is a good thing for schools in his town. It’s nice to hear from someone who actually wants the traditional public schools and Mayoral Academies to work together to improve education in Rhode Island.

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Mark Zaccaria -> Sources say the former Congressional candidate is now the favorite to run the Republican Party in Rhode Island. Zaccaria is a level-headed guy who would make a good leader, but he lacks the national punch Ken McKay had. It will be interesting to see if the Party decides to take a more aggressive approach with local elections, something McKay didn’t appear to care about.

Stephen Ucci -> The State Rep. is going to head up the commission to investigate the smell coming out of the Johnston landfill. While it’s a little embarrassing that it is going to take a commission to study a smell, at least the state is taking a proactive approach and seems committed to addressing the problem.

Steve Laffey -> The former Cranston Mayor is getting ready to unveil his documentary titled, “Fixing America, The Movie.” Whether you agree with him or not, it is sure to have educational/entertainment value. It is unclear if he’s still considering a Presidential run.

Joseph McNamara -> This State Rep. deserves credit for trying to address the state’s disastrous car valuation process. There isn’t a person in the state (including members of the Vehicle Value Commission) that doesn’t think the process is totally screwed up. Hopefully changes are on the horizon.

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Who’s Not

Bishop Tobin -> Is there a Bishop in the country that wants to be involved in the political process more than Bishop Tobin? It’s one thing for him to play a behind-the-scenes role in killing gay marriage, but he probably didn’t need to blast Governor Chafee this week. The church has its own share of problems and it might be a better use of time for the Bishop to focus on that.

George D. Caruolo -> Not the best idea to want to limit to the number of hearings on the Achievement First proposal. Parents and officials in all the towns that may be affected by the opening of a Mayoral Academy deserve to have their voice heard and the least the Board of Regents can do is sit through a few extra meetings.

Woonsocket -> It’s amazing how a couple of million dollars can send everything into flux. Now WPRI is reporting that the state is keeping an eye on the city’s finances and while the appointment of a fiscal overseer may not be imminent, it certainly looks like Woonsocket is heading down the same path as East Providence.

North Providence Town Council -> The town that has become the capital of corruption in the state of Rhode Island will begin swearing in public speakers to make sure they’re telling the truth. Because the oaths the Council members took really led to more honesty, right?

Occupy Boston -> The group took a gamble by filing an injunction in court and they’re looking foolish now that a judge has ruled their First Amendment rights don’t include the right to permanent encampment. The question now is what will the ruling mean for the future of Occupy Providence?

Herman Cain -> The collapse happened as quickly as the rise for Herman Cain, who had a lot of bright ideas, but allowed his personal life to get in the way. It will be interesting to see where his supporters end up. Newt Gingrich must be salivating.
 

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