Jarren Duran continues to struggle for the surging Sox, but rest assured he will suddenly hit like a beast if dealt to another team, right? Thanks for stopping by. You can follow me through the week on Bluesky, Threads and X. Here we go.
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1. STORY OF THE WEEK
All eyes are on Gov. Dan McKee to see which finalist he picks for a coveted vacancy on the Rhode Island Supreme Court. The state Judicial Nominating Commission this week decided to send all five nominees, including former House Speaker Joe Shekarchi, for McKee’s consideration. According to state law, “The governor shall fill any vacancy within twenty-one (21) days of the public submission by the commission.” But McKee and other governors have slow-walked the selection process, raising the question of whether the governor might even wait until after the Sept. 9 primary to make his pick. “As we always have, we will take the time necessary to thoroughly vet candidates for this important position on our state’s highest court,” McKee’s comms director, Andrea Palagi, wrote via email. Regardless, with a difficult re-election fight staring McKee in the face, the choice of the next Supreme Court justice has grown more tangled.
Shekarchi is known for instilling an era of good feeling in the House during his time as speaker. The headline on a Rhode Island Monthly profile – “The Mediator” – epitomized the deliberative, consensus-oriented style that boosters say would make him a good justice. Shekarchi appears to have prevailed in arguing that his attempt to land on the court does not violate the revolving-door law; he called it a victory for the rule of law when Superior Court Judge Richard Licht agreed that the provision does not apply for positions created by the state Constitution. Opponents argued that elevating the former speaker could undermine public confidence in the judiciary. “It is hard to disappoint a powerful politician, but that is why the Judicial Nominating Commission was designed to be independent and nonpartisan,” Cranston Republican Steve Frias wrote in opposing Shekarchi’s selection by the JNC. (The Ethics Commission may decide in executive session on Tuesday whether to appeal the decision.) And then came the revelation – through publicly available information on the state Board of Elections’ website – that Shekarchi got more than $30,000 in campaign contributions from the commission members who supported his candidacy. Now, the perceptual fallout raises the question of whether McKee will try to weaponize the judicial-selection process as part of his attempt to retain power. When the governor will move forward with his decision – and which decision he makes – is anyone’s guess.
2. DISASTER AID
Politico reports that President Trump overruled his own agencies when he denied federal disaster aid earlier this month for Rhode Island and three other Democratic-led states. Excerpt: “Presidents retain sole authority over granting federal disaster aid to states, but it’s highly unusual to deny a governor’s request after FEMA field offices have verified that damage estimates exceeded preestablished levels, according to a former agency official who worked under Republican and Democratic administrations.” In a statement, U.S. Sen. Jack Reed called the findings alarming: “The Politico report uncovered proof that President Trump is playing politics with disaster relief. And this story is backed up by statistics that demonstrate President Trump is disproportionately denying aid to states that did not vote for him. It’s sad that President Trump’s fragile ego and spitefulness have created this situation. And we’re going to need to build a strong, bipartisan coalition to solve it. Because look, extreme weather and natural disasters don’t care about politics or borders. This is supposed to be a merit-based process where states aid each other based upon the facts.”
3. HEALTHCARE EMERGENCY
While lawmakers and the state Senate in particular have focused more attention on Rhode Island’s health crisis in recent years, there are some serious storm clouds on the near-horizon: 1) About 30,000 Rhode Islanders are facing the loss of Medicaid due to changes at the federal level; 2) In a new report, the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council found the Ocean State ranks 10th-highest nationally for the percentage of residents enrolled in Medicaid, and state spending is expected to outpace the growth of state revenue by an almost three-to-one ratio over the next few years; 3) The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation offers this warning: “Hospitals and health systems may soon struggle to provide adequate patient care, as recent federal policy changes are expected to increase the number of people without health insurance, raise uncompensated care costs, limit state payment and financing options, and intensify healthcare workforce shortages.”
4. FOLLOW THE MONEY I
The November election ballot in Providence, as a result of a citizen-led effort, will ask whether the city should divest from nations responsible for human-rights violations and “complicit” companies. It’s worth remembering, though, that divestment efforts don’t always work as planned. Back in 2013, there was a lot of hype about an effort led by then-Attorney General Peter Kilmartin to divest Rhode Island from investments in Iran. As I reported two years later, the effort failed to have any tangible effect since the state’s holdings were in commingled funds and because indirect investments were not subject to the divestment law.
5. FOLLOW THE MONEY II
If sunlight is the best disinfectant, Tim White and Eli Sherman have done a public service by revealing some of the previously secret investors in the Pawtucket soccer stadium. Questions about the financing of the arena – and its $132 million+ cost for taxpayers – have lingered since Gov. Dan McKee cast a deciding vote for the project. McKee, however, told me in a previous interview that he expects the cost to be significantly reduced by refinancing the debt for the home of Rhode Island FC.
6. GETTING WINDED
Vineyard Wind, the first large-scale offshore wind farm in the U.S., was completed in March, but a pipeline of expected follow-up projects is now in jeopardy, according to New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell. The Trump administration’s oppositional stance against wind power has cut jobs and investment, casting the industry’s future in uncertainty, Mitchell told me during an interview on One On One this week. Looking to 2028, he said, “I think that the presidential election will have some significant consequences for New Bedford. If a Democrat is elected, I think it's probably safe to say that offshore wind will go forward.” But some companies may be reluctant to roll the dice on the vagaries of U.S. politics. Mitchell, who sounded more hopeful, pointed to Avangrid’s massive New England Wind Project: “From a regulatory standpoint (they’re) on the goal line. And so I think they're just going to wait and see how things shake out in 2028. And if it turns out that there is a more favorable federal policy environment than our federal disposition to offshore wind in general, I think they'll go forward.”
***New Bedford is also dealing with a difficult budget situation, marked by property tax increases and the need to eliminate 100 positions. Mitchell, who first won election in 2011, remained characteristically guarded in discussing his political future and how long he hopes to remain as mayor. On the plus side, he cited a significant drop in violent crime, improvements in education, plans to unveil a Herman Melville statue on Aug. 14, and of course, the Feast of the Blessed Sacrament taking place in New Bedford this weekend.
***Fun Fact: If you go to Melville’s former home in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, the view of Mount Greylock to the north resembles … a whale!
7. THE RACE FOR GOVERNOR
New TV commercials from the McKee and Foulkes campaigns out this week featured decidedly different focal points. McKee knocked Foulkes over campaign contributions made by CVS during her tenure, while her ad vouched for Foulkes as a good friend. The difference suggests McKee is still trying to gain ground, while Foulkes is more comfortable with her standing. Foulkes’ campaign also fired a shot across the bow, revealing Thursday – a day ahead of the deadline – that it brought in $900,000+ in Q2, with $3.3M on hand. As of TGIF’s deadline, McKee (who reported a $1.3M balance at the end of Q1) had not yet filed his Q2 report. In related news, McKee picked up endorsements this week from groups including the National Education Association Rhode Island, the RI State Association of Fire Fighters and the RI Building and Construction Trade Council. Foulkes won backing from Central Falls Mayor Maria Rivera, the Newport Democratic City Committee and Italian American Democrats.
***I’ll be moderating a gubernatorial conversation at 8:30 am on Thursday, Aug. 6 at Children’s Friend, focusing on issues pertinent to children and families.
8. THE RACE FOR ATTORNEY GENERAL
The thick of the political season is upon us, demonstrated by more candidates taking to the air ahead of the Sept. 9 end of the primary season. In the four-way Democratic field for AG, Kim Ahern posted her first commercial this week, joining Keith Hoffmann. In related news, Jason Knight won an endorsement from the Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence and Joe Solomon has the support of groups including the Rhode Island State Fraternal Order of Police.
9. CHARGED UP
As Rhode Island Energy seeks a 15% cost increase, thousands of Rhode Islanders already face shutoffs, as my colleague David Wright reports. Excerpt: “Rhode Island Energy disconnected 2,210 customers in the first half of this year, according to the latest figures reported to the state Department of Public Utilities. ‘We’re hearing from a lot of folks who are disabled, or who are elderly, who need protection and should never have to face the conditions of a shut-off,’ said Eleanora Rowe, a volunteer at the Wiley Center, a local non-profit that has fought for ‘Utility Justice’ for more than 30 years. ‘I had a client who was disabled and homebound, and she was telling me she was using ice to cool off because there was no other option,’ Rowe said.”
10. RI-POLI MEDIA PEOPLE ON THE MOVE
Gina Raimondo yaks about AI with Kara Swisher (who apparently didn’t get the memo that GMR is *not* running for president). Short version: “We’re not ready” for AI …. Congrats to talented photographer Ryan Conaty on joining the staff of the ProJo …. Trevor J. Griffin has been appointed as an assistant U.S attorney in the civil division in Rhode Island. He previously worked for Morrissey, Hawkins & Lynch in Boston …. U.S. Rep. Gabe Amo is the beneficiary of a Narragansett fundraiser on Saturday, Aug. 1 headlined by former U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. Protesters plan to demonstrate nearby to protest Amo’s support for Israel …. Paul Pinto has been named head of People at Ocean State Job Lot. Via OSJL: “He most recently served as principal and founder of CultureSync LLC, a strategic human resources consulting firm.”
11. CAR CULTURE
You’ve heard of Cadillac Ranch and art cars. You might have watched Count’s Kustoms. Now comes my colleague Isabella Jibilian with the story of 72-year-old Scotty Kilmer of Portsmouth, who got billions of views and made millions by helping motorists to avoid bad cars, repairs they didn’t need and shifty mechanics. Give her video a watch.
12: IN MEMORIAM
The passing of Isadore “Izzy” Ramos, who died this week at age 89, is being mourned in East Providence and well beyond. A standout in football, baseball, wrestling at EP High School, Ramos became the first African-American teacher at the school, according to Mayor Roberto DaSilva’s office. He took on a number of related roles, including assistant school superintendent and EP’s first mayor of Cape Verdean descent, assuming that office in 2006 as president of the City Council. “Dr. Ramos will be deeply missed, but he will forever remain a part of the fabric that makes East Providence the best place to live, learn, work and play,” DaSilva’s office said in a statement.
13. BUG OFF
When a top official in India compared the country’s jobless youths to cockroaches, they embraced the name, making the powerful government of Narendra Modi buckle under the power of the insurgent Cockroach Janta Party, or CJP – a play on Modi’s own BJP. Watch the video version of this story, via PBS NewsHour, for a powerful tale of young people using grassroots organizing to shake the political status quo.
14: KICKER
Ever hear about the pitcher who was traded for 60 cases of beer?
