The special election to elect a new RIGOP Chair will be held this Wednesday evening.

Source: RIGOP Nominations Commmitee

We have been informed that the Special Election to elect the new Chair of the Rhode Island Republican Party will be held on Wednesday, December 21st, 2011.

The special election meeting will be held at the RI Shriners, One Rhodes Place, in Cranston, where the prior two RIGOP meetings have been held — and where the upcoming RIRA 7th Annual Christmas Dinner Party will also be held (on Saturday, December 17th… register online at http://ri-ra.org/christmasparty/).

As usual, only RIGOP Delegates or their Designated Alternates may vote in this election, but anyone can attend to observe the fun. Questions concerning the meeting can be referred to the RIGOP office at (401) 732-8282.

Additional dates: The RIGOP Executive Committee will meet on Wednesday, December 7th. The RIGOP Nominations Committee will meet on Sunday, December 18th. Members of those committees will be notified of the meeting times and locations.

Kenneth McKay resigned as Chairman of the Rhode Island Republican Party late last week in order to pursue a substantial job offer. We wish him all the best. Therefore, First Vice-Chair Steve Frias is now Acting Chairman of the RIGOP.

Chairman Frias notified the members of the RI Republican State Central Committee that pursuant to the RIGOP bylaws Rule 2.3, he will be convening the state committee for a special election to elect a new RIGOP Chairman, to be held within the next 30 days. This should put the date of the next RI Republican State Central Committee meeting very close to Christmas.

We will notify you of any additional developments as they occur.

Herman Cain joins Rick Santorum, Ron Paul, Newt Gingrich, and Anita Perry at the 2011 NFRA Presidential Preference Convention.

Registration for convention (which includes the Prayer Breakfast) is still open.

Click Here to Register Now

Two more candidates may still come. If your favorite isn’t on the list – give them a call!

Only 6 days left!

We’ll see You in Des Moines!

Press Release: National Federation of Republican Assemblies

(The NFRA is the national parent organization of the RIRA.)

Chairman – Kenneth McKay of North Kingstown

First Vice Chairman – Steve Frias of Cranston

Second Vice Chairman – Brian Buongiovanni of Cranston

Secretary – Ryan Neil Lund of Providence

Treasurer – Barbara Holmes of Barrington

Apparently, Patrick Lynch has finally acknowledged the political reality which virtually everyone else out there already knew months ago — he can’t win.

While this certainly frees up Frank Caprio in so far as the Democratic primary is concerned, it probably will benefit ex-RINO Linc Chafee more in the long run, as it should help Linc to solidify support among the left-of-center and so-called “progressive” voters in the general election. Caprio will no longer be under any pressure to appease the left-wing “Myrth Yorke” part of his party, and will turn his focus and his public speaking towards the general election. Those lefty voters who usually vote Democrat may very well turn elsewhere, such as to liberal independent candidate Linc Chafee or the (not so) Moderate Party’s Ken Block.

This would be in sharp contrast in both style and substance to Frank Caprio, who has a reputation — whether deserved or not — of being a relatively more conservative and disciplined candidate (and he can even form complete sentences, too!). Expect Caprio and Chafee to spend more time (and a lot more money) attacking each other directly. This may also end up affecting the race in the First Congressional District race as well. I think it could very well end up helping the other Lynch brother and hurt Cicilline.

While on the surface, this may not look good for either of the Republican candidates in the short term, it may actually be good news for John Robitaille and the others, as they will be able to focus on their own positives, and leave Caprio and Chafee to draw blood from each other. However, the Republicans and the Moderate in the race will have to do a lot more to get noticed, and to raise a lot more money to make the race at least competitive.

Please join us on Wednesday night at the Westin Hotel, as we take a stand against the Democrats’ hostility toward free-market capitalism. Once and for all, let’s get the government out of private business, and bring jobs back to Rhode Island.

RI Young Republicans
Board of Directors

Rhode Island Republicans Boycott the Boycott, and Support Procaccianti Group by Hosting Two Events at Westin Hotel This Week!

For several weeks, union activists and elected Democrats have been orchestrating a boycott of the Westin Hotel in downtown Providence. Progressive activists and the hotel workers union, Unite Here Local 217, have cited pay cuts and increases to healthcare co-pays as the reason for the boycott.

The boycott has garnered a lot of media attention, and has been supported by Brown University activists and Netroots Nation, a high profile progressive organization currently threatening to suspend its plans to hold their 2011 convention in Providence unless the Procaccianti Group caves to union demands.

In response, members of the RIGOP and the RI Young Republicans will be making a statement of opposition to the boycott by hosting two events at the Westin Hotel this Wednesday night: The RIGOP State Central Committee meeting, and a Young Republican Night Out at the Westin. Hundreds of RIGOP members will be in attendance for the State Central Committee meeting Wednesday evening. When the meeting is adjourned, they will join the RI Young Republicans as they visit several restaurants and bars located throughout the hotel.

“As usual, there’s a whole other side to the story that nobody is hearing,” says RIGOP Chairman Giovanni Cicione. “The Procaccianti Group is a world class employer. If Democrats continue to torture every local business with threats of strikes and boycotts, especially in the midst of this recession, Rhode Island will soon find itself with no employers left.”

“We hope the Procaccianti Group will come to understand that there are many Rhode Islanders who realize the horrible business climate Democrats have created for them, and that they can count on the RIGOP to fight for more of a free market economy here in Rhode Island,” said chairman of the RI Young Republicans Travis Rowley. “And we hope that the Westin employees come to understand that the policies initiated by Democrats and their labor bosses will ultimately result in the loss of their jobs. They are the same policies that have caused Rhode Island to have one of the highest unemployment rates in the country right now.”

The two Republican spokesmen also have a lot to say regarding the Providence City Council’s recent moves to impose its will on private companies, particularly the hospitality and tourism industries. Regarding the City Council’s recent ordinance, that forces new hotel employers to retain employees for at least six months, Rowley stated, “Democrats will never learn to keep their hands out of people’s private affairs, and put their faith in the free market. They’re just not comfortable unless they’re controlling every facet of the economy.”

Chairman Cicione said, “What’s going on at the Westin right now, including the ordinances that the City Council continues to levy, are exactly the types of things that have delivered Rhode Island to the brink of economic collapse. This is why Rhode Island ranks at the bottom of every business ranking in the country.”

“The worst possible scenario for Rhode Island workers is for their jobs to disappear. We’re trying to prevent that from happening. That’s the message we’re trying to get across,” Rowley added.

Press Release: Rhode Island Young Republicans

RNC chief of staff Ken McKay has resigned from the national committee a week after improper expenditures came to light, a top GOP source tells Hotline OnCall…

McKay fired the staffer who made the expense. Still, RNC chair Michael Steele, who has faced a week of criticism for the incident, felt more had to be done.

“The chairman felt it was critical to make a move swiftly to ensure that no improper expenses happen in the future,” RNC spokesman Doug Heye told Hotline OnCall.

Read More: Hotline on Call

Bill McCollum will join Attorneys General from South Carolina, Nebraska, Texas, Utah, Pennsylvania, Washington, North Dakota and South Dakota to file a lawsuit against the federal government.

“The health care reform legislation passed by the U. S. House of Representatives this evening clearly violates the U.S. Constitution and infringes on each state’s sovereignty,” McCollum said in a statement distributed late Sunday night.

“If the President signs this bill into law, we will file a lawsuit to protect the rights and the interests of American citizens.”

McCollum will hold a press conference at his Orlando office Monday morning to discuss his plans…

Read More: ABC News