Rhode Island GOP: Unethical Ethics Commission Covers for Corrupt Democratic Governor

Corruption is to Rhode Island what water is to fish.

The state pretty much survives on the pernicious misuse of power for private or special interest gain.

Gina Raimondo, the former Treasure and now incumbent Governor of Rhode Island is skirting ethical inquiries as the main levers of power in the state continue to cover for her.

We need Allan Fung on Smith Hill and we need to get rid of Raimondo for good!

For Immediate Release February 27, 2018

ETHICS COMMISSION MAKES EXCUSES FOR RAIMONDO

Warwick, RI - In response to the Ethics Commission’s decision to dismiss the R.I. Republican Party’s complaint against Governor Gina Raimondo, Rhode Island Republican Party Chairman Brandon S. Bell commented: “We are disappointed with the decision of the Ethics Commission not to investigate Raimondo’s fundraising deal with a state employee her administration recently hired. First, the Ethics Commission ignored the fact that Patrick Ward himself, not the office of Chairman of the Providence Democratic City Committee, was specifically named in the agreement as having control as to how the funds would be spent. The Ethics Commissions ignored the fact that under prior advisory rulings Ward would be considered a business associate of Raimondo since they were working together to achieve a common financial objective under the agreement. Second, the Ethics Commission decided to interpret the term ‘subordinate’ in its regulations very narrowly. According to Ethics Commission’s decision, Governor Raimondo’s subordinates are only those individuals who work in the Governor Office or are persons she directly appointed to lead a state agency. The Ethics Commission ignored the fact that Mr. Ward is a subordinate of Governor Raimondo’s appointee at the Department of Human Services or that a few months after Mr. Ward was hired by Raimondo’s appointee at DHS, he entered into a financial transaction with Governor Raimondo.” Bell concluded: “By its decision today, the Ethics Commission is saying Governor Raimondo can enter into a secret financial deal with a state employee as long as (1) the deal states it is with a group the state employee controls rather than the employee himself, and (2) the state employee answers to her appointee instead of her. We do not think these technicalities make Governor Raimondo’s conduct somehow ethical.”

Rhode Island Republican Party | 1800 Post Rd, Ste 17-I | (401) 732-8282 |  WWW.RI.GOP

Rhode Island GOP: Legislation to Address Liberal Governor's Corrupt Deals

For Immediate Release February 15, 2018

LEGISLATION TO EXPOSE RAIMONDO’S SECRET DEAL

Providence, RI -  Governor Gina Raimondo’s campaign and her subordinate, Patrick Ward’s Providence Democratic City Committee, entered into a secret fundraising agreement. Kevin Olasanoye, the executive director of the R.I. Democratic Party, believed that this agreement would lead to Raimondo’s donors giving $10,000 contributions to the Providence Democratic City Committee for “party building” and in exchange, the Providence Democratic City Committee would “then presumably give Raimondo some undisclosed degree of control over who was hired and how money was spent” (Providence Journal, February 12, 2018). Representative Mike Chippendale commented: “Rhode Island campaign finance law does not directly address fundraising agreements like the Raimondo-Ward deal. As a result, I am introducing legislation to require candidates to file with the Board of Elections any written agreement they reach with a party committee involving campaign contributions or expenditures. In Rhode Island, other documents other than campaign finance reports are filed with the Board of Elections. Under R.I.G.L. Section 17-25-11 (c)(2), candidates are required to file with the Board of Elections a copy of the bank statement for their campaign account annually so the Board in can verify the accuracy of campaign finance reports. Because of R.I.G.L. Section 17-27-3(a) certain state vendors file a copy of their contract with the Board of Elections so that the public is informed of how some campaign donors profit from state business. My proposed legislation will assist in ensuring our campaign finance laws are followed instead of evaded.”

Rhode Island GOP to PawSox: Show Us The Money

For Immediate Release

PAWSOX OWNERS NEED TO SHOW RI THE MONEY

Warwick, RI - According to recent news reports, the PawSox ownership, which is still refusing to publicly disclose their profit and loss statements, is reporting losses, writing down the value of the team, and needs more money than the team currently generates in order to pay off any stadium bonds. Meanwhile, the R.I. Secretary of State appears to be investigating the failure of advocates for building a new PawSox stadium to disclose in reports a $171,400 lobbying campaign, which was funded, in part, by the PawSox.   In response, Rhode Island Republican Party Chairman Brandon S. Bell commented: “The current owners of the PawSox paid more for the team than it was actually worth, and they are now reporting losses. As a result, the PawSox owners are secretly spending thousands to lobby for Rhode Island taxpayers to spend millions to build them a new stadium to bail them out.” Bell concluded: “The PawSox ownership won’t publicly disclose their profit and loss statements and have been hiding their financial involvement in a lobbying effort to get Rhode Island taxpayers to bail them out. Rhode Island taxpayers deserve to know all the facts about the PawSox’s financial condition and the extent to which the PawSox ownership has attempted to influence legislators. Until the PawSox’s profit and loss statements are made public and until a thorough investigation of the lobbying efforts by the PawSox and their allies is completed, the General Assembly should not even consider voting on any legislation for the PawSox. Secret finances and hidden lobbying efforts remind me of 38 Studios.”  

Rhode Island Republican Party | 1800 Post Rd, Ste 17-I | (401) 732-8282 |  WWW.RI.GOP

RIGOP Exposes Corruption and Sexual Perversion of Democratic Party

For Immediate Release

IT’S MORE THAN HARASSMENT, IT’S CORRUPTION

Warwick, RI -Today we learned from State Representative Edith Ajello that legislators and lobbyists have been asked for sexual favors in exchange for help moving their legislation. This revelation comes after State Representative Teresa Tanzi’s statement that she was harassed by a high ranking State House official and was told that sexual favors would help her bills go further. In response, House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello has created a study commission. Rhode Island Republican Party Chairman Brandon S. Bell commented: “This has gone beyond being an issue of workplace harassment. This is now an issue of corruption at the State House. There is no difference between a legislator asking for sex to support a bill than a legislator asking for a bag of cash to vote for a bill. The Rhode Island State House sounds like the center of a sex trade racket.”  Bell concluded: “Speaker Mattiello has not denied that this sort of behavior is going on at the State House, but he has not taken any steps to expose and remove from power the perpetrators of this corrupt sex-for-legislation racket. Instead he wants a study commission on harassment. We don’t need a study commission to stop corruption. We need state and federal law enforcement to investigate, and bring these politicians to justice.”