The governor and Sisyphus: Can Raimondo roll the state’s boulder up the hill for good?

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Christopher Curran
Posted 1/15/15

In Greek mythology, Sisyphus, the King of Ephyra (Cornith), was punished by the god Zeus for making false promises to the subjects of his kingdom. As Sisyphus amassed wealth and spent little on the …

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The governor and Sisyphus: Can Raimondo roll the state’s boulder up the hill for good?

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In Greek mythology, Sisyphus, the King of Ephyra (Cornith), was punished by the god Zeus for making false promises to the subjects of his kingdom. As Sisyphus amassed wealth and spent little on the welfare of his citizens, he continued in his deceit of assuring a better quality of life for all was on the horizon.

Punitively, Zeus applied the most fitting punishment. He condemned King Sisyphus to roll a boulder up a hill repeatedly, and imbued the rock with a spirit so as soon as it almost reached the precipice at the top of the hill it would rollback down to the bottom.

Throughout history, philosophers have theorized different morals to this famous myth. Perhaps most notably, French philosopher Albert Camus postulated that leaders should assume they will reap an eventual comeuppance for exaggerated promises, and furthermore that reaching a precipice of power upon false promises when the ulterior motive is avarice or hubris will inevitably become an exercise in futility.

Our new governor, Gina Raimondo, is faced with finding remedies to chronic and seemingly insurmountable problems. Whether her efforts to address these difficulties will be rendered “Sisyphean” will be determined in time. The question is, can the new governor bring to fruition the campaign promises she has made? Since those assurances to the voters may have propelled her to become Rhode Island’s chief executive, what does it mean to the citizens if campaign words do not develop into successful actions?

After more than a year on the campaign trail heralding the need for making more jobs available, now she has to create an environment that is attractive for businesses to flourish in. Raimondo has talked incessantly about education/industry partnerships. However, first the state needs the manufacturers who would employ these prospectively trained workers. The most apt way of inducing new companies to come here is to make Rhode Island a “right to work” state, which allows employees to choose whether or not they wish to join a union. This status would negate the closed shop rule and spur manufacturing. “Right to work” has resulted in a boon in states like Texas and Oklahoma and has decreased overall unemployment by an average of 1.5 percent. Considering the fact that Rhode Island has been in the top three states with the highest unemployment rate in the nation for the last five years, pushing for “right to work” is a necessary first step to battling the jobless problem. Raimondo’s stated progressive Democrat ideology would make her unlikely to carry the banner for this needed constructive change.

Add excessive and costly regulation, astronomical taxation, and outrageously high energy costs to that equation, and creating more job opportunities for Ocean State citizens most likely will be a rock that will roll back down the hill.

Equally daunting is the upcoming budget deficit shortfall, which is estimated to be around $200 million. This cyclical deficit, or temporary deficit, is certainly an immediate crisis to be reckoned with. More importantly, the structural deficit, or permanent deficit, is a much more foreboding economic horizon. The new governor has insisted often that she will be intensely focused on taking steps to reduce or eliminate the structural deficit over time. However, the remedies for the permanent deficit is to reduce state borrowing, lessen expenditures, or raise tax revenue. Raimondo has said that we have to grow our way out our economic predicament. She has expressed her reluctance to cut government. Additionally, the new governor has suggested incepting new social programs and revising the Department of Children, Youth, and Families. Both initiatives would be costly in the short and long terms. Without a nascent comprehensive program of austerity, reduction in the size and scope of government, regionalization to eliminate duplicative costs and an overall lessening in expenditures, this particular boulder will roll back on Gina Raimondo as well.

Also, another ongoing concern for the new governor is the embroiled legal contest regarding the pension reform law. During the campaign, candidate Raimondo often referred to her accomplishments as general treasurer. She cited her courage in taking on the issue of pension reform in the first place. She boasted her talent in coordinating with then Speaker Gordon Fox and Senate President M. Teresa Paiva Weed, and seeing the effort through its passage in the legislature. Her success gained widespread national attention and arguably resulted in her receiving the contributions needed for her gubernatorial run.

However, the law’s fate might very well lie in the hands of a jury soon. Should the law be overturned, the judicial override would result in an immediate increase in the cyclical deficit of around $400 million, and would be much more going forward. This possibility would be not only devastating to the state, but also to any chance of the new governor realizing any degree of success. If this rock rolls backward, it just may crush the new chief executive’s political hopes in the future.

Also foreboding on the economic horizon is the development action of our neighboring state, Massachusetts, building three gambling casinos. When these gaming establishments are operating full throttle, local economists believe revenue from Rhode Island’s cash cow Twin River Casino may be reduced by more than 50 percent. This will have a crippling effect on our budgetary woes. If the governor does not find a way to replace this revenue, that ominous rock will roll back down the slope.

Perhaps contrary to the promises made during the political season, Gina Raimondo’s inaugural speech was vague in specifics and lukewarm in assertions. With her words crafted in a lawyerly fashion, nuanced with references to a utilitarian deity, the speech was adroitly written to imply a substantial rallying cry while in essence being vacuous of any perceptible plans.

Her oratory was more reminiscent of a pep rally at a high school assembly rather than the galvanizing words of someone who had just assumed the burdens of power. With descriptions like “this will be a marathon, not a sprint” and achievements of positive change “may take two, five or 10 years,” her objective was undoubtedly to lessen expectations.

She did convey some general themes of needed cooperation and the importance of new paradigms, working together in a cohesive manner, being bold in action and stating a sense of urgency requiring immediate steps to counteract imminent difficulties. Along with those generalities, she did cite some sorrowful realities such as Rhode Island being rated 49th in business viability and dead last in many national business barometers. The new governor also mentioned building workers’ skills, attracting investors and entrepreneurs, preparing winners and fostering innovation. Those are nice ideas that are simplistic in statement yet seemingly unreachable in actuality given our current state of financial indebtedness, hostile business regulatory environment and high business overheads.

Similarly, Raimondo spoke of the idealistic and ethical comportment by our state’s elected leaders. As one of her first official acts, the new governor signed an executive order commanding ethical execution of elected officials’ duties. In a state which has always been incestuous in nature, this might be the most naively hopeful of proclamations. The strange aristocracy of the General Assembly, where most of the Ocean State’s political power resides, is unlikely to change by anything the constitutionally stifled governor might proffer. The General Assembly has always policed itself and has been reluctant to supplicate to the scrutiny of the executive branch of government. If the governor attempts to raise this effort of oversight beyond mere words, she may lose that cooperation of key members of the legislative body that will be essential in effectuating any plans she may offer.

Whether or not the newly minted governor will succeed in fulfilling her campaign promises or be rolled over by her unrealized ambitions is yet to be determined. What we know is that our state’s problems are varied and daunting. We also know that Gina has the intellect and capaciousness to effect positive change. If she remains focused on actually bettering the lot of our citizens rather than examining every move and word for future political palatability, she might eventually place that boulder on the summit of accomplishment. If she concerns herself too much with political optics and political expediency, like poor Sisyphus, that proverbial rock will roll back over her.

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