It's the Corruption, Stupid!

It's the Corruption, Stupid!

While James Carville's famous statement of "It's the Economy, Stupid" is still highly relevant for the Ocean State considering our double-digit unemployment rate and crippling foreclosure crisis, recent stories on alleged corruption in Central Falls and North Providence have all of Rhode Island's candidates for Attorney General focused on the issue of public corruption and what they would do about it.

Let's see where the candidates stand.

Democrat Peter Kilmartin said that “it is imperative that the General Assembly pass a bill that I have pursued for three years – the ‘Government Integrity and Public Accountability Act of 2010 (H.7425),’ which will make it unlawful, by penalty of a felony and imprisonment, for any public servant to fraudulently engage in conduct that deprives the public of honest services. This will provide the Rhode Island Attorney General with the tools necessary to aggressively prosecute those who violate the public trust.  Honest Rhode Islanders like us don’t deserve to have our trust violated. As Attorney General, I will use every power endowed to the office to prosecute those who violate public trust. For me, fighting crime and corruption is not a campaign slogan—it’s my three decade record of public service. I look forward to putting that experience to work as Attorney General by keeping our communities safe, cleaning up corruption in government, and moving the Ocean State towards a stronger and more secure economic future."

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Meanwhile, Democrat Steve Archambault called for the immediate passage of a measure that would put a constitutional amendment on the ballot to restore the State Ethics Commission’s jurisdiction over the General Assembly on the November ballot.  Archambault said, “We need more oversight of the General Assembly—not less. I urge the General Assembly to immediately pass this important and timely legislation.  Member of the General Assembly should be subject to the same Ethics Commission oversight as the rest of our state’s public officials.”   Archambault went on to say, “The recent allegations by Mayor Lombardi that a supplemental tax bill for North Providence was turned down by the State Senate because he refused to reappoint the former Senate President to a Municipal Court Judgeship highlights the importance of restoring the jurisdiction of the Ethics Commission.”

And, Democrat Joe Fernandez will formally launch his campaign for Attorney General tomorrow by unveiling his “Rhode Island Anti-Corruption Bill of Rights,” a pro-active plan for attacking corruption and making Rhode Island government accountable to the people it serves.  Fernandez stated that, "[a]s Rhode Islanders, we simply cannot tolerate the kind of behavior that has been alleged in North Providence. We also cannot tolerate political lip service when it comes to taking on corruption. We must be vigilant in the fight against corruption if we are going to make government work for the people of this state instead of for special interests.   While others may talk about the need to take on corruption, I am the only candidate for Attorney General who has demonstrated a willingness to take on the old ways of doing business. Whether it was denying pensions to corrupt officials or leading the investigation and firing of the people implicated in the Providence Police Department’s promotions test scandal during my tenure as the Providence City Solicitor, I’ve gotten results in the fight against public corruption.   As Attorney General, the fight against public corruption will be my highest priority."

Republican Erik Wallin has called for the appointment of a special prosecutor or the involvement of the U.S. Attorney into the ongoing investigation of Central Falls Mayor Charles "Chuck" Moreau.  Wallin stated, "Attorney General Lynch owes it to the people of Rhode Island to inform them of what will occur in terms of an investigation.  While the Rhode Island State Police have launched and are continuing to investigate, who will prosecute is a question that has not been answered.  Attorney General Lynch was put on notice over a year ago about what was occurring, but Attorney General Lynch took no action and therefore Mayor Moreau's friend reaped millions at the expense of the people of Central Falls, the people of Rhode Island and both national and local businesses."  Wallin stated that "under my administration, anyone who betrays the public trust will be investigated by my office, be it a republican, democrat, independent or moderate party member." 

Moderate Chris Little stated that "the most important responsibility for the next Attorney General is to dedicate resources to fighting public corruption in the this State, instead of allowing any prosecutions of this kind be handled by the federal prosecutors. Our tradition – unfortunately – of public corruption weighs down this state and is a blight on our morale, our ability to attract businesses, and on our confidence in government. The Attorney General’s office has ample resources to take a stand and I will do so. Lacking a history of political relationships I will not be hampered in my ability to attack those who are stealing from us all and I will make sure that Rhode Islanders have a direct confidential link to me to share information about such criminal behavior."

Meanwhile, former Democrat and current Independent candidate, Rob Rainville, has not made a statement nor has anything on his website about public corruption.