In case you were wondering just how Little Rhody got so lucky as to snag the former Big Dig director, Michael Lewis, to take over the trouble-plaugued DOT, this should reassure you about due diligence in the Carcieri administration:

Michael P. Lewis didn't retire from his longtime post as the head of the Big Dig project as the state previously said, but was actually fired last year by the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority.

But for Lewis, the news wasn't bad.

The move allowed him to more than triple his state pension, from $23,000 to $72,578 a year, according to state records. Last month, Lewis, 46, received the first of the Massachusetts pension checks that he will receive until he dies. As with other turnpike retirees, the state will also pay 80 percent of his health insurance for life.

Lewis also landed on his feet with a new job. He began working last month in his new position as Rhode Island's transportation secretary, earning $130,000 a year.
— Via Boston.com

Yeah, according to the Globe story, if he had really retired, his pension would have been two-thirds less. Not that we have anything to worry about. At least we know he ain't coming here for the pension.

h/t Not for Nothing