Stephen Laffey on Government Reform

	Stephen Laffey on Government Reform Republican Senate Challenger

Stop officials from conflict of interest investments

1 in 5 officials invested in stocks of the very firms lobbying their agencies!
Some officials traded just ahead of regulatory actions, were significant big tech investors, or made large & risky trades.
Ethics lawyer at the U.S. agency that oversees conflict-of-interest rules states, "[these stock trades] clearly violate the spirit behind the law, which is to maintain the public's confidence in the integrity of the government."
Laffey will stop these conflicts of interest.

Source: 2024 Presidential campaign website SteveLaffey.com , Aug 6, 2023

Close primaries to registered party members only

Reflecting on both his time as a Republican mayor in Rhode Island and looking at how things have gone since, Laffey has one major piece of advice for the state GOP: To close its primaries, meaning only registered Republicans can vote in them. Currently, any unaffiliated voter in Rhode Island can choose to vote in a party's primary of their choosing during the September primaries. Source: The Anchor on 2023 Presidential hopefuls , Mar 20, 2023

Term limits for House and Senate

Laffey says if he won, he would come into office with a list of people to fire - and one of those people he thinks should leave is McConnell, the longtime Republican senator and minority leader in the upper chamber. Laffey argues for term-limits and thinks McConnell has stayed past his time. 'These people stick around way too long. Obviously I'm for term limits,' he said. 'But what's their plan to help the American people now?' Source: Daily Mail (UK) on 2023 Presidential hopefuls , Feb 7, 2023

Supported Sam Alito nomination to Supreme Court

Q: Your views on Samuel Alito?s Supreme Court nomination?

LAFFEY: Alito served for 15 years at the federal bench and did a great job. After looking at his record and watching him testify, I certainly would have approved him. The difference between Chafee and I on this issue is: 1) he has a litmus test for Supreme Court justices. I look at their character. I'll look at their independence. I'll look at their law school.. And 2) Chafee made himself completely irrelevant in the process. He was the 99th senator to make up his mind.

CHAFEE: I carefully followed the judiciary committee hearings to see how Alito answered some of these questions important to me and to the country, and then conferred with many experts of the interpretation of those answers in that committee. I think I've been vindicated. In the last vote on executive powers, Alito was in the expansion of those powers and on the commerce clause as it relates to the Clean Water Act and a Michigan case heard by the Supreme Court.

Source: 2006 R.I. Republican Senate Primary debate on WPRI , Aug 24, 2006

Endorses the Pork-Barrel Reduction Act

Laffey enthusiastically endorsed the Pork-Barrel Reduction Act, a bipartisan bill introduced in the US Senate to drastically reduce the level of pork barrel legislation. The bill's key feature allows Senators to object to specific earmarks stuffed into an appropriations bill or conference report without the need to vote against the entire bill. Unless there are 60 votes in favor of the earmark, the objection will stand. Mayor Laffey lauded the above initiative and encouraged the bill's speedy passage. Source: Press release, "Endorses Pork-Barrel Reduction Act" , Feb 14, 2006