Republican candidate for Rhode Island lieutenant governor John Loughlin said Monday he wants to give the office greater relevance by transforming it into an independent watchdog for government accountability and taxpayer protection.
Attempts to create a state office of inspector general to expose waste and fraud have languished for years in Rhode Island, getting little love from the Democrats who control the General Assembly.
During a news conference at his Warwick campaign office, Loughlin said political will is the only thing preventing the state from converting an office whose value is doubted by some Rhode Islanders into an advocate for citizens.
If he wins the November election, Loughlin said, “The lieutenant governor’s office will aggressively investigate waste, expose failures and shine a bright light on how state government spends our money.”
The Tiverton Republican, 67, said the lieutenant governor’s office has the capacity to pursue his vision without legislative approval and can do so on its current funding of about $1.4 million a year.
Invoking the late Robert “Cool Moose” Healey, who gained attention for running for lieutenant governor, starting in 2002, with the goal of eliminating the office, Loughlin said Rhode Islanders should expect more from their government.
“Instead of treating this office like a ceremonial stop on some political resume, we’ll put it to work for the people of Rhode Island,” he said. “We will aggressively use Rhode Island’s public records laws and open meeting laws to uncover documents, data, contracts and financial records from state agencies and taxpayer funded programs.”
Loughlin said, “We will recruit experienced certified auditors, investigators, compliance experts and financial professionals who know how to follow the money and identify abuse. And we will make sure the public sees everything,” through an initiative called Rhode Island Report.
A veteran, former state representative, VA spokesman and helicopter pilot, Loughlin got 45% of the vote when he ran against Democrat David Cicilline for an open seat in the 1st Congressional District in 2010.
Loughin is generally considered perhaps the best GOP prospect in this year’s election, offering hope for becoming the first Republican to win a statewide post in Rhode Island since Gov. Don Carcieri won re-election in 2006.
He pointed to how Democrat Jim Langevin, during his time as secretary of state, used the existing powers of his office to expose transparency failures within state government, particularly the legislature.
But John Marion, executive director of the nonpartisan good government group Common Cause of Rhode Island, said Loughlin’s vision would be harder to accomplish than the particular policy approaches of various lieutenant governors.
“The lieutenant governor’s office is elected on a partisan basis, and any inquiry it conducts would be colored by that,” Marion said. “The lieutenant governor’s office does not have the ability to force government agencies to comply with any type of inquiry, including enjoying subpoena power. It’s hard to imagine the office could get the information it needs to function effectively without those powers.”
Current Lt. Gov. Sabina Matos, who first won election in 2022, is trying to battle back after a signature-gathered controversy damaged her 2023 campaign in CD1. She faces a primary race with a number of Democrats, including Providence City Councilor Sue AnderBois, former state Sen. Cynthia Coyne and Newport City Councilor Xaykham Khamsyvoravong.
Loughlin declined to specify which Democrat he considers the most difficult general election opponent.
