Opinion: Illegal Narragansett casino proposal

Wednesday, July 5, 2006  

"A recent Brown University poll finds that the public thinks there is something very wrong with changing our sacred Rhode Island Constitution for a single casino entity. The people are correct. The proposed constitutional amendment is unprecedented in American government, is nothing short of outrageous public policy -- and to top it off -- itself violates the state constitution.

The Rhode Island Supreme Court has properly held that the Rhode Island Constitution is our sacred governing document, passed by the people to establish our three-branch system of government. Any law that is inconsistent with our constitution is void -- as is any constitutional amendment that violates its provisions.

The proposed amendment violates the Constitution in at least two ways -- one substance, the other process:

-- It grants a constitutional right to a single business entity and municipality, while excluding all others for all time.

-- It lets a single town veto the amendment itself, even if passed by the people as a whole."

Get the Story:
Joseph S. Larisa Jr.: Casino's constitutional catastrophe (The Providence Journal 7/5)
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