Ocean State Anointed - Meet Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee: Former Republican, current...

American Spectator ^ | February 2013 | Ethan Epstein

[neverdem]

Meet Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee: Former Republican, current Independent, future Democrat?

In late December, Rhode Island’s six Republican state representatives (out of a total chamber of 75 members—no, that’s not a typo) announced an intriguing initiative. The state’s house minority leader declared that in the new year, his party would pursue an audacious plan to eliminate the Ocean State’s sales tax, which stands at 7 percent, among the nation’s highest. The elimination of the sales tax had been suggested by the Rhode Island Center for Freedom and Prosperity, the state’s premier (well, just about only) free-market think tank. The moral case for eliminating the levy is clear: Sales taxes are deeply regressive and punish citizens for the simple act of basic consumption. The economic benefits of such a move are obvious too; any Rhode Island native can attest to the numerous trips he’s made to Attleboro or Seekonk, Massachusetts, just over the border from East Providence, to stock up on booze, home goods, and big-ticket items like televisions. (Amazingly, “Taxachusetts” has a lower sales tax rate than Rhode Island!) The Rhode Island Center for Freedom and Prosperity, for its part, has predicted that eliminating the tax will create about 20,000 new private-sector jobs.

The plan, alas, faces some very high hurdles: powerful public employee unions and an entrenched mindset among the state’s leaders that privileges “revenue” over all other considerations, not to mention the fact that Democrats outnumber Republicans in the general assembly 69 to six. But perhaps no obstacle is greater than Rhode Island’s governor, “Independent” Lincoln “Linc” Chafee.

Indeed, Lincoln Davenport Chafee, scion of the Chafee political dynasty, governor of Rhode Island since January 2011, and former United States senator, mayor, and farrier (he made horseshoes before entering politics), has shown an unusual affection for the sales...

[Gay State Conservative]

Particularly over the last few years I’ve made a conscious decision to avoid the Gay State’s oppressive sales tax whenever possible.Shopping on Amazon,one or two NYC electronics stores and in New Hampshire has resulted in the expenditure of $6K (plus) for non-essentials (electronics,etc)...and not a penny paid in sales tax.And *no*...I do *not* report these purchases on my state tax return and never will.And *yes*,I sleep like a baby every single night.

[Impy]

Missing Linc is lower than dog crap stuck on your shoe.