It is remarkable to see the obfuscation that covers political moves. The most recent notable examples come from the governor. Here are just a few incidences.

Earlier this month, Governor Raimondo slipped out of town to the west coast at a taxpayer cost of $4000 (her office’s figure) allegedly to lobby for companies to come to Rhode Island. Mind you, her staff won’t tell us who those companies were. She no sooner kissed the ground in California when she was spirited off to a fundraiser to pump up her already $1 million plus war chest. She probably told attendees who might have been business people at her event that Rhode Island is a heck of a place to do business, no doubt, due to her efforts, but is this the “outreach to companies” she is using to justify the public’s picking up her tab? It isn’t exactly top secret information so there is no reason why her office hasn’t released the schedule of her visits. That is, unless, there were no such appointments.

She already has a shadow over her use of taxpayers’ monies for essentially political exposure given her attempted raid of the URI Foundation, inter alia, to underwrite her attendance at the Davos conference. The only way to dispel the notion that this is one more political gambit is to release the names and companies with whom she says she met. It’s far past time to come clean.

Then, there are her disingenuous remarks about legislative grants. Governor Gina Raimondo is a lawyer. The issue of the constitutionality of the grants has been raised and she is the only person besides the legislature who has standing to ask the Supreme Court to rule. There’s a fat chance that the solons will refer the matter to the state’s highest court. Former gubernatorial candidate Ken Block has argued for the Governor to get this advisory opinion. Instead, the Governor opted to "work with the legislature to fix it" (the process). What is there to fix? It’s either constitutional or it’s not. Her oath of office requires her to uphold the state constitution so why doesn’t she just find out?

The fact is that she doesn’t want to cross the legislative poohbahs or the 15 lawmakers who have ties to the grants. Nothing is more appalling than to hear the rationalization that these grants go to organizations that are doing excellent work. The fact is that there are plenty of groups feeding the homeless and taking care of the most vulnerable but they just don’t have the political clout to opportune a legislator. The reality is that legislators use the taxpayers’ money to curry favor with these groups so they can be reelected. The proper course should be for them to spend their own money on causes they deem worthy. The Governor seems to have a blind spot in this regard due to her attempts to pass the check for payment to taxpayers instead of her own campaign kitty. By asking for an opinion she can redeem herself.

In any event, let the Governor and the legislators stop with the platitudes. Nobody believes them. It’s insulting to be served a steady diet of nonsensical rationalizations. Can’t the governor and the legislature just do the right thing?

Arlene Violet is an attorney and former Rhode Island Attorney General.