On Politics

Searching for waste and fraud in government would seem to be a win-win for a governor. Yet Lincoln Chafee has received the brunt of a critical backlash by declining to make public Ken Block's report on that subject. In an effort to explain himself, Chafee has released this statement:

Rhode Island’s older population is on the rise, and in 20 years a quarter of the state’s population will be older than 60. All this week, we’re looking at the state’s older residents in a series we’re calling “The Silver Boom: Aging in Rhode Island.” RIPR political analyst Scott MacKay helps us kick off our series with a look at what this growing older population means for younger residents.

Welcome back to my weekly column. As always, your tips and thoughts are welcome at idonnis (at) ripr (dot) org. Let's get to the list.

Educator Victor Capellan, a veteran of Latino politics in Rhode Island, says he plans to run for mayor of Providence in 2014 if Angel Taveras seeks a different office.

Taveras, like state Treasurer Gina Raimondo, is widely expected to run for governor. Independent Governor Lincoln Chafee plans to seek re-election; the only other declared candidate at this point is former state auditor Ernest Almonte, a Democrat.