Projo Politics Blog

May 14, 2008 Archives

Governor Carcieri is scheduled to be on the O'Reilly Factor on Fox News tomorrow night to talk about his executive order cracking down on illegal immigration.

The governor's office issued a news release saying Carcieri will tape a brief interview tomorrow with host Bill O’Reilly. The interview is expected to air at 8 and 11 p.m., according to the governor's office.

The announcement followed the release earlier this afternoon by the governor's office of a frequently-asked-questions answer sheet based on the controversial executive order, issued at the end of March.

The governor's office said the document is designed to answer questions about how the order is carried out. See the document here. The six-page FAQ sheet poses 26 questions followed by answers from the governor's office. The document is also offered in Spanish.

“As people have requested information about the executive order, we determined that a Frequently Asked Questions document might prove informative and helpful in dispelling misconceptions," Carcieri said in a statement. “I expect that the document will be constantly updated as new information becomes available and new questions or concerns come to light.”

Carcieri said he is setting up an advisory group to monitor how the order is carried out so there are no "unintended consequences" for immigrants here legally. Possible members' names are being gathered; a final slate will be presented to Carcieri within two weeks. The plan is for the panel to meet for the first time this summer.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

The Rhode Island Reagan-Lincoln Day Dinner, part of an effort to raise money for the state's Republican candidates, is tonight.

Former Cranston Mayor Stephen P. Laffey and local town committee leaders, members and guests will gather at Rhodes on the Pawtuxet, 60 Rhodes Place, Cranston, at 6 p.m. There will be refreshments at the bar and food stations.

Among invited guests are Governor Carcieri, party leaders and all candidates for national committeeman and committeewoman, according to an e-mailed news release from the South Kingstown Republican Town Committee.

A news release says that for every $100 ticket each local GOP sells, the net proceeds will go directly in the local GOP bank account. So when a local GOP sells 50 tickets to the local community, $5,000 goes into that GOP bank account and $1,250 (based on $25 cost) of that money will be a check to Rhodes on the Pawtuxet for net proceeds of $3,750.

Laffey left office after a failed bid to unseat then-U.S. Sen. Lincoln D. Chafee in a 2006 Republican primary. The Journal has reported Laffey is thought to be readying for a potential run for governor in 2010.

Laffey and his wife have contributed to defray the event's cost "to maximize benefit to local GOP," the release notes.

The Journal's Political Scene column reported in late March that Laffey said he donated $1,000 to the Cranston GOP to arrange the venue for the fundraiser.

U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa, is scheduled to hold a news conference at noon today after meeting yesterday with former Patriots videotape assistant Matt Walsh.

Earlier in the day yesterday, Walsh met with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, who announced after yesterday's meeting that further sanctions against the Patriots over the Spygate controversy were unlikely.

Goodell said Walsh affirmed that he does not have, nor did he make, a tape of the St. Louis Rams’ final walkthrough before Super Bowl XXXVI, in 2002.

Specter has helped keep the Spygate situation alive with comments critical of the league’s handling of the situation. Many have said, however, that his ties to Philadelphia-based Comcast, which is locked in a battle with the NFL over rights to the NFL Network, is driving him. Also, the Pats have had success in recent years over the league’s two Pennsylvania-based teams, the Eagles and the Steelers.

Specter was initially scheduled to hold a press conference yesterday.

U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, a member of the Senate Aging Committee, is scheduled to attend a hearing this morning on Alzheimer’s disease, during which former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor is expected to speak publicly for the first time about her husband’s struggles with the disease, according to the senator's office.

Witnesses are expected to provide an update on research and treatments, issues on early-onset diagnoses and the need for a comprehensive strategy as more Americans are diagnosed with the disease, according to the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging.

The disease currently affects 5 million Americans, according to a committee press release.

Whitehouse is expected to testify but it's unclear when.
C-Span-3 plans to carry the hearing live.