Hard to Tell Who Knew of 38 Studios
Deal
It seems as if
both liberals and conservatives opposed the deal as it was being rushed through
at the tail end of the Carcieri Administration. Colleen Conley, of local Tea
Party fame, told me she opposed it and told the governor as much. And certainly
Rhode Island
progressives didn’t like the idea of providing such a giant corporate welfare
check to just one company.
So who supported
it, other than the former governor? It’s hard to tell.
Funding for the
program that granted Schilling his loan was rushed through the State House in a
supplemental budget proposal submitted by the governor in April of 2010.
Legislators say they asked if the money was wired for a specific recipient and
were told it wasn’t, though some doubt that now. In the House, all but six
voted for the expenditure. They were Reps. Driver, Ehrhardt, Jacquard, Lima ,
Newberry and Watson.
One person who
sure did is Chafee and Carcieri’s economic development director Keith Stokes.
In a letter to the local
business community dated August 2010, Stokes wrote:
“Many
community leaders, like you, have inquired about why the RIEDC would offer so
much credit enhancement to one company. Simply put, our extensive due diligence
revealed that while 38 Studios could raise venture equity and stay in their
current location, its investors and management team are willing to relocate the
company and the related opportunities for Rhode Island if we provide an
alternative to their equity dilution.
The RIEDC
board is comprised of Rhode Island ’s
top CEOs, university, hospital and industry executives, heads of small
businesses and labor. Members used their considerable business expertise to
thoroughly assess the opportunities and risks associated with this transaction.
They asked all the hard questions the media and the public have asked, and
more.”