Saying that fighting dark money in politics is his “patriotic duty,” Senator Sheldon Whitehouse sat next to Congressmembers David Cicilline and James Langevin in a “roundtable discussion” to highlight his work on the DISCLOSE Act, introduced by the Senator in June, which would “require disclosure of donations greater than $10,000 to organizations spending at least $10,000 in an election.”
“The American people want and deserve accountability in their elections,” said Whitehouse, “Unchecked secret corporate spending has tipped the scales of power away from ordinary Americans and in favor of big special interests. If Congress is going to make meaningful progress in the months and years ahead on important issues that matter to Rhode Islanders like addressing climate change, reforming our broken campaign finance system is the first step.”
Whitehouse’s DISCLOSE Act, which has been supported by Langevin and Cicilline in the U.S. House of Representatives, is part of the “We the People” legislative package to deal with secret corporate political spending, lobbyist influence, the revolving door, and other facets of the campaign finance system. Whitehouse touted the suite of legislation as a solution to the corporate spending blocking meaningful legislative action on issues like ensuring economic security for the middle class and addressing climate change.
It seems that Whitehouse mentioned climate change and chose Save the Bay’s headquarters in Providence as the location of his round table discussion because, as the Senator said in response to Meghan Kallman, chair of the RI Sierra Club, “I think it’s pretty safe to say, that at a national level, the climate battle is the campaign finance battle. They’re totally married together into one thing.”
Notably, there were protesters outside Save the Bay holding signs reminding their elected representatives about both Invenergy’s proposed $700 million fracked gas and diesel oil burning power plant and National Grid’s proposed LNG liquefaction facility for Fields Point in the Port of Providence, a stone’s throw away. They were there to remind elected officials that their jobs in Washington do not absolve them from taking positions on local issues. None of the elected leaders in the room, aside from State Senator Juan Pichardo, who has publicly taken a stand against the LNG plant in Providence, have thrown their considerable political weight behind the opposition to these projects.
“This is a national package, [but] many many many issues are local,” said Kallman, “We’re watching Dakota. We’re watching Burrillville. We’re watching Fields Point… We have something of a disconnect between what’s happening on the national level and where the front line battles are being fought.”
The influence of corporate spending on elections since the 2010 Citizens United decision by the Supreme Court is a major concern to all who attended the event. Citizens United unleashed a previously restricted torrent of special interest money into the political system. More than $1.5 billion in unlimited contributions, including more than $500 million in secret contributions, have been poured into federal elections since the decision was issued.
“It didn’t take long after Citizens United for secret money has find its way to the shores of Rhode Island,” said John Marion, Executive Director of Common Cause Rhode Island. “We know that Rhode Islanders don’t want unlimited undisclosed money in our elections. We are fortunate to have a congressional delegation that has taken this issue seriously and has offered real solutions for the problems posed by big money in our politics.”
“Senator Whitehouse is a national leader fighting to make our elections and government work for everyday people again through the We the People Act,” said Aquene Freechild, campaign co-director of Public Citizen‘s Democracy Is For People Campaign. “He’s pushing the current congressional majority to snap out of their campaign cash-induced paralysis and stand up to the tiny but influential donor class: by overturning Citizens United, disclosing all spending in elections, and slamming shut the revolving door that transforms public servants into corporate shills.”
Also in attendance at the roundtable discussion were RI Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea, RI State Representative Art Handy, state director of Clean Water Action Jonathan Berard, Save the Bay’s Topher Hamblett and Dean Michael J. Yelnosky of the Roger Williams University School of Law. You can watch the rest of the video from the event below.
[Edit: 5pm: This story has been updated with additional information and a statement from the Secretary of State.]
When Rhode Island Board of elections chose to open only 144 of the state’s 419 polling stations for the April 26 primary, some cried foul. The move was seen by some as an attempt to stifle voters who might turn out for Bernie Sanders instead of Hillary Clinton. (On the Republican side, a Donald Trump victory was never in question.) RI Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea, vice chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) Platform Committee, was cast as a political insider working for the Clinton campaign, though all polling locations were and are determined by local municipalities and the RI Board of Elections.
With the release of a giant crop of leaked DNC emails from Wikileaks, Gorbea appears to be exonerated from the charge of electioneering. However, the emails do seem to indicate that operatives within the Democratic National Committee were interfering in the election on a national level, placing more than a thumb on the scales in Clinton’s favor, even as they attempted to manage the public’s perception of their interference. Favoring one candidate over another is a violation of DNC rules.
The Wikileak emails show that ahead of Bernie Sanders’ big win in the Rhode Island primary, highly placed operatives in the Democratic National Committee were worried about the optics of the RI Board of Election’s decision to not open more than a third of the polling places, mistakenly believing that Gorbea was the one who made the decision.
On April 25 DNC Deputy Communications Director Eric Walker wrote to his boss, Luis Miranda, “Bernie leads Hillary by 4 in the latest poll. If [Clinton] outperforms this polling, the Bernie camp will go nuts and allege misconduct. They’ll probably complain regardless, actually. We might want to get out in front of this one with an inquiry to [Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo], even though she’s one of ours.”
By “one of ours” let’s assume Walker simply meant, “a Democratic governor”.
The next day was April 26, the day of the actual primary. Having been informed by DNC Northeast Regional Political Director Erin Wilson that, “We’ve got a pretty close relationship with Nellie,” Walker suggested contacting Gorbea directly.
“Was thinking a letter so that if press asks us about it, we can show we are responsive and active,” wrote Walker, “If we’re crying foul in AZ, we might need to do the same – at least nominally – in RI so we don’t look like hypocrites.”
This prompted DNC National Political Director Raul Alvillar to write, “I am fine with that. Before we do that we should talk to [Gorbea] to get all of the details.”
Walker responded, “I would like to be on this call, but first, I don’t think we even need a statement. We just need something to cover ourselves.
“I think when we start getting inquiries, if we have a letter to the [Secretary of State] that we can point to, it will show that we are engaged and that we don’t just pipe up when it’s a Republican administration closing poll locations.
“We can make the point to reporters individually off the record that it’s not apples and oranges: Arizona more serious because the state was covered under [Voting Rights Act] and has had a history of problems – Rhode Island doesn’t have those same historical issues.”
The primary in Rhode Island was in full swing just before 1pm when Erin Wilson came back with more information. “[Pratt Wiley, DNC National Director of Voter Protection] and I were reminded that in RI, the Secretary of State doesn’t manage elections, but they’re run by the Board of Elections that are appointed by the Governor. Apparently the number of polling locations they’ve opened are consistent with the numbers opened in 2008 and 2012, and they’ve also increased the number of poll workers, ballots and booths to accommodate any unexpected surges. For example they’re telling us that they printed 300K ballots for an expected turnout of 180K. Again, these decisions are made by the Board of Elections.
“The Secretary has been traveling to polling locations all morning/afternoon and they haven’t seen any issues. Apparently the longest wait they’re seeing is 25 minutes.
“So, if we do write a letter, it would need to be to the Board of Elections. I’d be a little cautious about pulling the trigger on it too soon. Can we give some of this info on background to show we’ve made inquiries to the state if we start getting calls and then punt it back to RI?”
Eric Walker, now having been in contact with Gorbea, writes, “To be clear – no inquiries yet, but RNC will be pushing it.
“Pratt just swung by my desk – [Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea is] ready to go on record with these points defending their approach, which is good.
“I think that if DNC press office gets inquiries about hypocrisy between AZ / RI then we can direct them to RI [Secretary of State] comment, and explain on background that it’s not as dire as AZ and that RI doesn’t have the same VRA baggage.”
The final email on Wikileaks regarding the issue came from DNC National Political Director Raul Alvillar, who wrote, “Perfect. This is good.”
Of course, the entire issue of whether or not the Board of Elections declined to open more polling stations to favor Clinton in the primary went away when Sanders clobbered Clinton, taking 55 percent of the vote. This upset caught local machine Democrats completely off guard and surprised national pundits.
From reading the emails, it seems clear that Gorbea answered concerns from the DNC and coordinated a response to criticisms of the Board of Election’s decision as to the number of polls to open, but no evidence of outright collusion for the purpose of electioneering can be seen in them.
According to Nicole Lagace, Senior Advisor and Communications Director to the Secretary of State, “The DNC reached out to Secretary Gorbea on April 26 to inquire about the decreased number of polling locations in Rhode Island for the Presidential primary. We explained that we do not oversee polling locations and that was the end of that correspondence.”
[Andrew Stewart contributed to this reporting.]
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Rhode Island celebrated World Refugee Day on Saturday in the People’s Park (Burnside Park) in downtown Providence. The Rufugee Dream Center’s Omar Bah, a Gambian refugee and now a United States citizen, was the emcee for the event. He noted that Rhode Island’s founder, Roger Williams, was a refugee from Massachusetts seeking freedom and safety in our state. Bah said that welcoming refugees is a Rhode island tradition that must be protected.
Dorcas International Institute of Rhode Island sponsored the event.
On stage were cultural dances, poetry and music from around the world, including Colombia, Burma, the Congo, India and many more. The event ended with dancing from members of Rhode Island’s Syrian refugee community.
The United Nations notes that “World Refugee Day has been marked on 20 June, ever since the UN General Assembly, on 4 December 2000, adopted resolution 55/76 where it noted that 2001 marked the 50th anniversary of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, and that the Organization of African Unity (OAU) had agreed to have International Refugee Day coincide with Africa Refugee Day on 20 June.”
This is the first outdoor World Refugee Celebration in Providence. Representatives David Cicilline and James Langevin, as well as Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea, spoke briefly.
It’s morning again in Rhode Island. At least that’s what it feels like to the progressive left the day after Bernie Sanders beat Hillary Clinton in the Ocean State’s presidential primary poll.
The socialist-leaning senator from Vermont all but conceded the nomination to the more conservative Clinton after losing four other states in the so-called Acela Primary. Last night even Bernie Sanders admitted he probably won’t be the next president. It was not a good night for those holding out hope he might pull closer in pledged delegates.
But by pulling off a convincing victory in Rhode Island, a state dominated by neoliberal leadership, Sanders sent a strong message that Rhode Islanders want progressive change. He won 55 to 43 percent.
He won 66,720 votes, Clinton got 52,493, Donald Trump got 39,059 and John Kasich took 14,929. The difference between Sanders and Clinton was greater than the difference between Clinton and Trump. The two Democrats got well more than twice as many votes as all three Republicans. Rhode Island seems very open to the idea of a progressive political revolution.
“I hear all the time, ‘…that is too liberal, we’ll get voted out if we do that,’” said progressive Providence Rep. Aaron Regunberg at the Sanders victory party last night. “That argument no longer holds any water.”
Sanders won 35 of 39 municipalities in Rhode Island. Clinton took Barrington and East Greenwich, the two most affluent suburbs in the state, and Central Falls and Pawtucket, very close to her campaign headquarters. Sanders took the rest rather convincingly.
Providence was close, with 51 to 47 percent for Sanders. But he won cities like Warwick, Cranston and Woonsocket by substantial margins. His key to victory was the rural vote – the Swamp Yankee Progressives. Sanders won in affluent liberal enclaves like South Kingstown (62%-37%) by similar margins that he won working class communities like Coventry (61%-36%).
Burrillville backed Sanders over Clinton 64 to 34 percent, but only 1,337 people voted in the Democratic primary compared to 2,167 in 2008. In the Republican primary, which Trump won with 73 percent of the vote, 1,261 people voted compared to 399 in 2008. More Burrillville residents voted for Clinton in 2008 than voted for a Democratic in 2016. There were three polling places open this year compared to four in 2008.
Burrillville was an important bellwether because of a controversial proposal for a fossil fuel power plant there. The Invenergy methane gas facility is backed by Governor Gina Raimondo and organized labor but opposed by residents and grassroots activists. Congressional climate champion Sheldon Whitehouse has tried to avoid taking a position.
This is a lot like the Clinton/Sanders divide in Rhode Island. Raimondo was a regular on the campaign trail for Clinton while Whitehouse called Clinton’s position on climate change “adequate” and didn’t really publicly stump for her. Whitehouse and Raimondo probably represent the range of local elected officials who backed Clinton, which also included Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea, General Treasurer Seth Magaziner and the entire congressional delegation.
I strongly suspect there’s a high correlation between Bernie voters and Burrillville power plant opposers. For liberal Democrats like Whitehouse, Sanders big win is an invitation to tack left on issues ranging like climate, economic and social justice. For neoliberal Democrats like Raimondo, who would rather reinvent Medicare than the energy grid, it’s a cautionary tale. Bernie Sanders beat Hillary Clinton 55 to 43 percent. Raimondo did even worse than Clinton when she ran in the 2014 Democratic primary, winning only 42 percent of the vote.
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The ACLU of Rhode Island today commended Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea for introducing, the General Assembly for passing, and Governor Gina Raimondo for signing legislation adopting online voter registration for the state’s residents, and particularly for addressing voters with disabilities.
While Rhode Island is the 35th state to adopt online voter registration, its law is the first in the country to establish detailed assurances that voters with disabilities will have full access to this online process.
Without such assurances, people who are, for example, blind or visually impaired or who have disabilities preventing them from using a mouse or keyboard would likely face difficulties registering online. However, Rhode Island’s new online voter registration law:
- Requires experts on website disability access to be included in the development of the site and to verify that it is useable for people with disabilities;
- Requires the site to follow certain detailed accessibility standards set by the World Wide Web Consortium; and
- Requires full compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Nicole Kief, Advocacy and Policy Strategist with the American Civil Liberties Union in New York, said: “We applaud Rhode Island for setting a national standard. As states update their voting systems to fit with modern life, it’s critical that those systems are open and accessible to all voters.” Susan Mizner, Disability Counsel at the ACLU, added: “Rhode Island’s preemptive action to ensure accessibility is not only smart as an inclusive step, it’s also financially savvy. It will save Rhode Island the costs that other states are likely to incur when they have to re-design their inaccessible websites.”
[from a press release]
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That Bernie Sanders‘ presidential campaign motivates young voters is a given. They gave him the surprise victory in Michigan, after all, but to see the power of Sander’s campaign up close, even at a micro-scale, is revelatory. Sanders says he is leading a political revolution. Sometimes I actually find myself believing that.
I originally went to the Community College of Rhode Island (CCRI) in Warwick to ask local Bernie Sanders supporters about the surprising results of the Michigan primary the night before. That primary demonstrated the strong ground game Sanders has in this campaign. His supporters are devoted: they show up and they work hard.
Lauren Niedel, RI District 40’s Democratic State Committewoman and the RI State Contact for Bernie Sanders, lead a small team of Sanders campaigners at a voter registration drive held as part of a mock election at CCRI. (In the mock election, Sanders won 78 percent of the vote. See here.) A table next to theirs, reserved for Hillary Clinton supporters, was empty.
To attract attention to the mock election and generate a strong turnout for the voter registration drive, David Sears, president of student government at CCRI, invited representatives from the RI state Democratic and Republican Parties to attend. No Republican representatives could participate but RI State Democratic Party Chair Joseph McNamara (also a State Representative in the General Assembly) and Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea spoke to a crowd of around fifteen people for about twenty minutes.
Meanwhile, the Bernie Sanders table was nonstop action. Students were eager to register to vote, eager to take stickers and pins and actually were excited about this political campaign. The win in Michigan the night before had invigorated both the Sanders campaigners and the interested students. The video below shows the action at the Sanders table versus the action at the McNamara/Gorbea speeches.
Still, despite the Hillary campaign no-show and the general disinterest of students about anything but the Bernie Sanders table, Rep McNamara was a good sport, and stopped to take a picture with the cardboard Sanders stand-up for the Warwick Beacon, even though he plans to vote for Hillary.
By the way, when I got around to asking the Sanders campaigners about how they felt about the big upset in Michigan, I got the following responses.
Linda Ujifusa said, “When I saw 538 [Nate Silver‘s blog] I thought it was over. But it was awesome.”
“I was at the edge of my seat,” said Roland Gauvin, “I’m looking for a decisive win in Florida to show that Hillary doesn’t have the super-delegates wrapped up. We the people determine the election.”
Sally Mendzela told me that she “couldn’t be more excited” and Lauren Niedel just smiled and said, “It was great.”
The Rhode Island Historical Society (RIHS) formally announced its new status as a Smithsonian Affiliate last night in an event attended by US Representatives David Cicilline and James Langevin, Lt. Governor Dan McKee and Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea. The new status makes the RIHS, the fourth oldest historical society in the United States, one of 204 Smithsonian Affiliates nationwide, and the only affiliate in the state. The event was hosted by RIHS executive director C. Morgan Grefe and took place at the John Brown House on the East Side of Providence.
Harold Closter, Smithsonian Affiliations Director, spoke briefly about the beginnings of the affiliation program. In 1996 Providence was the first stop of the 150th Smithsonian Anniversary tour, a tour that ultimately convinced the Smithsonian that a more sustainable way of interacting with local Historical Societies was needed. In essence, with the addition of the RIHS, the program has come “full circle,” said Closter.
Closter also mentioned Rhode Island’s importance in the history of the United States as being integral to the development of religious freedom and the first state to declare independence from British rule.
According to the RIHS press release, “There are Smithsonian Affiliates in 46 states, Puerto Rico, and Panama. Affiliates represent the diversity of America’s museum community – size, location and subject – and serve all audiences. More than 8,000 Smithsonian artifacts have been displayed at affiliate locations. These loans reflect the entire Smithsonian collection: space capsules and aircraft from the National Air and Space Museum, Abraham Lincoln’s hat and Kermit the Frog from the National Museum of American History, sculptures and paintings from the Smithsonian art museums and ethnographic and mineral collections from the National Museum of Natural History, to name a few.
“While the Affiliation designation is new, the RIHS has lent artifacts to the Smithsonian before, and is working on plans to do so again. Artifacts from the DeWolfs, the leading slave-trading family in U.S. history, will be lent to the National Museum of African American History and Culture for their inaugural exhibition ‘Slavery and Freedom.’ The National Museum of American History is also considering the collections of RIHS for its exhibitions “Religion in Early America” and ‘Many Voices, One Nation,’ and may include the loan of Roger Williams‘ pocket compass-sundial.”
This should make for some very exciting future exhibits.
Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea told a funny story about being in Philadelphia and noticing an exhibit with a timeline that mentioned the Boston Tea Party but neglected the Burning of the Gaspee as one of the founding acts of resistance against British rule. “That already set me on edge,” said Gorbea, “but what really put me over the edge was they actually have New Hampshire as the first state to declare independence.”
Gorbea announced herself as the Secretary of State in Rhode Island and said, “We have a problem with your board here…
You can watch the full event below.
Bills S999 and H6312, sponsored by Senator Cynthia Coyne (District 32) and Representative Kathleen Fogarty (District 35), gives the Secretary of State the power to purchase new voting equipment, a duty that was formerly carried out by the Board of Elections.
“Back in 1997, when the last purchasing bill was done, it was set up so that it would revert over to the Board of Elections,” Secretary Gorbea explained. “So, for the last 17 years that’s where it had rested, and the legislature, in this past session, saw fit to turn that around. Now, of course, the Board of Elections is an instrumental part of this, and is working with us on this process.”
She added that voting equipment is part of a democracy’s infrastructure, and that citizens in a democracy depend on that equipment to “deliver fair, fast, and accurate elections.”
Gorbea has ordered the creation of a Voting Equipment Task Force, to inform the Department of State’s process of researching and buying new equipment, which has not been updated since 1997. John Marion, the executive director of Common Cause Rhode Island, is a member of the task force, said the Board of Elections was not moving into the 21st century fast enough when it came to voting infrastructure, so the new legislation is a good way to move forward, even though it may be less transparent.
“The Board of Elections process could have been more transparent, because in the end the Board would have to vote in a public session on the purchase of the new machines, and now the Secretary can make the decision. The Secretary is not a board that has to have a public session,” he said. “But, fortunately, the Secretary convened a task force, to give input, and it’s a very expansive task force that brings in a lot of different people in the community. So, I think she is being as transparent as she can be, given the circumstances.”
Marion also said that the task force will be looking at what other states have done to influence how they will go about acquiring new equipment. Common Cause as a whole, he said, is also interested in making voting more accessible to Rhode Islanders. Senator Coyne shared that sentiment.
“The signing of this legislation is crucial to not only ensuring our elections are fair and accurate, but also to bringing the state’s voting machines into the 21st century,” she said. “In addition, modern equipment will make the voting process easier for Rhode Islanders, which will hopefully result in more people becoming involved in the democratic process.”
Governor Raimondo added that the main goal is to ensure that government works for everybody.
“This is a bill that I supported. I think the Secretary of State will do a good job. It will be efficient, and as I mentioned in my comments, really performance based. We want to make government effective and efficient, and the best use of tax dollars, and I think this does that,” she said.
An interesting side note about this bill that was mentioned at the signing is the fact that all the main stakeholders in its passage are women. Representative Fogarty, of South Kingstown, said that this proves that women create good legislation, which leads to good government.
“It was not something that was planned,” Gorbea said on the subject. “It was just something that happened organically, and I was pleased to see it happen.”
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The program required the seven women to attend weekly Saturday learning seminars, as well as submit a research project and work together on a group fundraiser. Over the course of their time with LLI, they were also given the chance to network with other prominent Rhode Island Latinas, including Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea, who gave the keynote address at the ceremony. Gorbea is the first Latina to hold an elected state office in New England, and one of the founders of the RILCF.
“The LLI is a wonderful example of what happens when people start things,” Gorbea said. “When I created the Civic Fund, this was the last thing on my mind that would come out of it. But how wonderful it is.”
Gorbea said the women who become alumni of the institute show commitment to a new beginning, and signal a bright future for the state. She added that those who graduate must never give up on trying to make a positive change in their communities, even though being a Latina in a position of power can seem daunting at times. Although the opportunities for them to make a change might not always seem significant, Gorbea encouraged them to push through.
“When people talk about seizing opportunities, its not those big ones, its those little tiny steps that get us somewhere else,” she said.
Gorbea said that she is lucky to hold the office of Secretary of State, because she believes she can directly transform how people participate in the democratic process. She told the graduates to embrace their ability to transform government as well, saying that by working to rebuild, strengthen, and expand their communities, they can change Rhode Island for the better.
“That’s why civic leadership is so incredibly important,” she said. “It involves bringing people together in new ways.”
Governor Gina Raimondo addressed the graduates as well, saying that they, as women, have an obligation to get involved in their communities and within the state. She said that better decisions are made when everyone has a voice in the discussion, and that includes Latinas.
“We know you have a commitment to be engaged, and I never want you to questions yourselves,” she said. “I want you to be confident, constantly develop yourselves, and never ask yourselves “Should I be here,” or “Should I be doing this,” because you have to.”
Raimondo also spoke on the power that women in the State House currently have. Thursday afternoon, she signed a bill that required businesses to make accommodations for pregnant women. She also announced that, as the first female governor, she has opened a lactation room in the State House for women who need it.
Two members of the class were given the chance to give their own speeches at the ceremony as well. Andrea James-Gomez remarked in her speech that LLI has given herself and her classmates the tools to move forward in their respective careers through both their group and solo projects.
“Not only did we research, but we had the opportunity to become passionate about the things that are important to us,” she said.
James-Gomez also said that the program did not just give the class the chance to develop themselves as career women, though. They also formed a sisterhood, helping each other to grow as people as they apply what they learned because of the institute. Olga Encarnacion, another member of the class, agreed.
“We empower each other as Latinas. That alone is an important lesson,” she said. “This is just the beginning, and this is not the last time you will see us.
Along with James-Gomez and Encarnacion, the other five graduates were Ivonne Cam, Michelle Carrasco, Miguelina Perez, Yajaira Reyes, and Jahaira Rodriguez. A special LLI Alumni Award was also given to Sabrina Matos, the first Latina member of the Providence City Council. The Rhode Island Welcome Back Center also received a Community Partner Award for its assistance to the LLI and the RILCF.
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On July 7, Stacy DiCola, director of public information at the Secretary of State’s office, sent a rather ominous-sounding letter to David Norton, one of the lead organizers of the grassroots opposition to the proposed state-financing of a baseball stadium for the PawSox, informing him that he should be certain to register himself as a lobbyist. This is certainly problematic and half-brained for a variety of reasons.
In Ms. DiCola’s letter to Norton, she wrote the following:
Please be aware that, pursuant to Chapters 22-10 and 42-139 of the Rhode Island General Laws, all lobbyists and organizations they represent must register with the Rhode Island Department of State. Furthermore, all lobbying activity must be reported using our LobbyTracker online portal (lobbytracker.sos.ri.gov).
Organizations and their members must register if they are “promoting, opposing, ammending, or influencing in any manner the passage by the general assembly [sic] of any legislation or the action on that legislation by the governor.” RI Gen. Laws § 22-10-2. Registration is similarly required when organizations and their members promote, oppose, or influence “(A) any policy-making decisions or policy-making actions of the executive branch of government or of public corporations; or (B) any decisions or actions on the part of the executive branch of government or any public corporation involving the sale, lease, or other alienation or encumbrance of any real property owned or leased by the state or any public corporation.” RI Gen. Laws § 42-139-1(1)(i).
First, while Mr. Norton has named his group Organizing for Pawtucket, he actually does not fit the definition of a lobbyist. According to state law, the term lobbyist denotes
[A]ny person who engages in lobbying as the appointed representative of another person. A person is “appointed” by another if he or she receives compensation for lobbying or pursuant to a mutual understanding or agreement engages in lobbying. “Compensation” means any remuneration received or to be received for services rendered as a lobbyist, whether in the form of a fee, salary, forbearance, forgiveness, reimbursement for expenses or any other form or recompense, and any combination thereof. Where lobbying is incidental to a person’s regular employment, his or her compensation for lobbying shall be reported as such and the lobbyist shall record the dollar amount of that portion of his or her compensation that is attributed to the time spent pursuing lobbying activities. In such instances, it shall not be necessary to disclose one’s total salary or the percentage of one’s time spent on lobbying. The lobbyist shall be required to disclose only his or her best good faith estimate of the dollar amount which corresponds to the portion of his or her time spent on lobbying activities.
Person means an individual, firm, business, corporation, association, partnership, or other group.
In the case of Mr. Norton, his efforts have been self-financed and driven by passion, not corporate dollars.
Second, while PawSox owner Larry Lucchino has registered as a lobbyist, his spokesman Dr. Charles Steinberg, as well as his various handlers and assistants, are not registered lobbyists. In all likelihood, Lucchino may claim that his registration with the Department of State is meant as an umbrella to cover his workers also, something Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea may allow to pass because the various owners are also major donors to the Democratic Party. But the hypocrisy is still obvious.
Third, one is forced to wonder based on these developments just what is going through the mind of Gina Raimondo if this is being allowed to fly. On June 3, Raimondo’s office told WPRI News that they had received a 98% negative reaction from constituents. Activists in this issue have noted this and see it as a signal from the Governor. In terms of political ideology, there is much to discuss, but it terms of political strategy, she is obviously no fool. This issue may prove to be one of her first major tests in office and she cannot afford to drive away that many votes, especially if she intends to make a bid for either a second term (probably) or an office in Washington DC (definitely). Speaker Mattiello has no higher office to gain, he has alienated a large swathe of Democrats with his policy moves and statements that refute the basic planks of the National Democratic Party platform, such as choice, gun control, and the social safety net. Raimondo is a different story and knows she is on thin ice, she had no electoral majority, she came to office with no mandate, and people voted against her by casting their ballot for Bob Healey, whereas Allan Fung was basically a catered offering to the die-hard Republicans.
It remains to be seen if such a similar epistle will be dispatched to the PawSox lobby.
