On Politics

TGIF: 12 Things to Know About RI Politics + Media

Ian Donnis — Fri, 17 May 2013 21:10:13 +0000

Welcome back to my Friday column. Your thoughts and tips are always welcome at idonnis (at) ripr (org), and don't forget to follow me on Twitter. Here we go:

Seth Magaziner Considering a Run for Treasurer in 2014

Ian Donnis — Thu, 16 May 2013 19:45:25 +0000

Seth Magaziner, who would add an unabashedly progressive profile to the 2014 campaign season, is considering running for treasurer next year.

UPDATE: Via email, Magaziner confirms that he's looking at the race, adding that he's still early in the process:

Over the past few days, a number of people have encouraged me to run for General Treasurer should the position become open. I haven't made any decisions yet, but am considering the possibility.

Filling the Dynamo Building with a museum?

Scott MacKay — Thu, 16 May 2013 19:42:26 +0000

The Dynamo House, the century-old onetime Narragansett Electric power station, now sits as a forlorn reminder of what once thrived along Providence’s downtown waterfront. And as Rhode Island Public Radio political analyst Scott MacKay notes, it now stands as a guard to the old Jewelry District that state and city officials are trying to rebrand as a Knowledge District.

Almonte Shifts Gears to Run for Treasurer, not Governor

Ian Donnis — Thu, 16 May 2013 13:44:18 +0000

Former state auditor Ernest Almonte has made it official -- after announcing for governor last year and vowing to stay in the race, he's decided to run instead for state treasurer as a Democrat:

Richard Walton: The Red Bandana Concert

Scott MacKay — Tue, 14 May 2013 16:40:22 +0000

Richard Walton was an unforgettable presence for decades in our cozy state. An activist, he was in the forefront of so many campaigns for social justice and peace during his 84 years on this earth that even his friends couldn’t do a full accounting. A graduate of Brown in the 1950s, at a time when most of his WASP classmates went into banking, law or joined the CIA, Richard took the path less traveled. He became a reporter for the Providence Journal, then worked in New York newspapering during the Golden Age of print journalism.

Solomon, Capellan up with Campaign Web Sites for 2014

Ian Donnis — Tue, 14 May 2013 13:46:19 +0000

Two of the candidates hoping to succeed Angel Taveras as mayor of Providence have posted Web sites to offer visibility, attract supporters, and raise money.

Council President Michael Solomon's site is called Mike for Providence.

Capellan, an educator in Central Falls and veteran of Providence politics, is a bit more oblique with his eponymous site (although not so much with a background shot of the Providence skyline, including the now-vacant Superman Building).

Rhode Island's big 350th charter celebration

Scott MacKay — Sun, 12 May 2013 15:41:18 +0000

Rhode Island hasn’t had enough to celebrate lately. RIPR political analyst Scott MacKay brings us an anniversary all Rhode Islanders can take pride in next month.

Three hundred and fifty years ago, Rhode Island struck a blow that would reverberate around the globe when England granted the colony a charter that for the first time in the modern world put in place a government that granted absolute religious freedom to its people.

Montalbano Nominated for Superior Court; Chafee Hands the Senate two Magistrate Vacancies

Ian Donnis — Fri, 10 May 2013 18:02:04 +0000

In a move that will be interpreted as a kiss to the leadership of the state Senate, Governor Lincoln Chafee on Friday unveiled his nomination of former Senate president Joseph Montalbano as a Superior Court judge. Chafee is also nominating Patricia Asquith as associate justice of the Family Court.

Via statement:

de Ramel Formally Announces Run for Secretary of State

Ian Donnis — Thu, 09 May 2013 13:36:39 +0000

Guillaume de Ramel, who ran a competitive race for secretary of state in 2006 and whose interest in taking another shot was reported here last July, on Thursday formally announced plans for another campaign for secretary of state.

Via news release:

RWU kicks off 350th RI Colonial Charter Celebration

Scott MacKay — Wed, 08 May 2013 21:13:46 +0000

Roger Williams University kicks off the state celebration of the 350^th anniversary of the Rhode Island Colonial Charter tomorrow with a panel discussion about the 1663 charter on campus.

Five members of Governor Lincoln Chafee’s Rhode Island 1663 Charter Commission will bring their perspectives to a discussion of the landmark document and how the ideas of Roger Williams influenced American constitutional development and indeed, resonate to the 21^st century.