By Bob Plain in
RIFuture.org
As I’ve argued here, outside of being a member of a major political
party, there’s no good reason why WPRI would include Mike Riley in its CD2
debate and not Abel Collins.
Unlike the
ultra-conservative Riley, Collins espouses some pretty mainstream ideas. The
independent wants citizens more involved in their government and corporations
to be less involved. He wants to shift away from an economic policy that caters
to the 1 percent to one that caters more toward the middle class.
Mike Riley, on the
other hand, thinks people who believe in such policies are communists.
Tom Sgouros detailed
as much in a post showing Riley’s correspondences with him when he was writing for the
Narragansett Times.
But berating Sgouros
isn’t the only time Riley has confused being progressive with being a
communist. In July Ian Donnis quoted him as equating progressive political positions
to “time-release communism.”
Calling progressives
communists is as narrow-minded as it is mean-spirited. And it doesn’t bode very
well for Riley’s potential to work across the aisle.
But don’t expect much
bipartisanship from the former Wall Street hedge fund manager. He once wrote in GoLocal, “Government exists to protect
and preserve our individual freedoms and property rights so that we may pursue
our dreams and our happiness. Real leaders will accept this limited role of
government and seek to constrain its growth and influence over our lives.”
If this reads like
creepy Ayn Rand weirdness that’s because it is. Riley is the worst kind of
conservative: he espouses to be a libertarian but he’s really a tool for the
corporate interests.
He won’t comment to RI
Future, but here’s how Congressman Jim Langevin described him.
“Michael Riley clearly
plans to go to Washington to fight for the wealthiest one percent of
Americans,” said the incumbent. “He’s going to Washington clearly to fight for
tax advantages for major corps and oil and gas companies. He’s going down there
to support the Ryan budget. and he’s going down there to turn medicare into a
voucher system.”
And here’s a comment
from Abel Collin’s new campaign manager Dave Fisher:
“The fact that Mike
Riley has not supported the inclusion of Abel in the WPRI debate is indicative
of his hardline right-wing policies that would squelch free speech and many of
our other rapidly eroding freedoms in the U.S. There is only one candidate in
the race that offers a real option to the baton passing between the two major
parties that goes on in Washington, and that is Abel Collins. I’ve said it
before, and I’ll say it again; the only difference between Democrats and
Republicans is this: Republicans want to drive the bus toward Armageddon with
the gas pedal on the floor. Democrats are willing to obey the speed limit.”
Related post:
Bob Plain is the editor/publisher of
Rhode Island's Future. Previously, he's worked as a reporter for several
different news organizations both in Rhode Island and across the country.
