Editorial

RI’s moment on the big stage

Posted 4/28/16

As we write this week, voters are going to the polls. By the time of publication, the results of the Rhode Island presidential primary – barring a razor-thin margin or other unexpected issue – …

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Editorial

RI’s moment on the big stage

Posted

As we write this week, voters are going to the polls. By the time of publication, the results of the Rhode Island presidential primary – barring a razor-thin margin or other unexpected issue – will finally be known.

The excitement of the campaign has swept the Ocean State in a way few would have predicted just weeks ago. Ahead of the vote, all but on the five remaining major party candidates made local stops – clear evidence of the outsized importance of the union’s smallest state to both the Democratic and Republican hopefuls.

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made stops in Central Falls and Johnston, while her husband, former president and aspiring first gentleman Bill Clinton, stopped in Warwick, Cranston, Woonsocket, and Providence over two separate visits. U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders drew more than 7,000 for an event at Roger Williams Park’s Temple to Music.

After much speculation about a possible visit, businessman and television personality Donald Trump spoke before hundreds at Warwick’s Crowne Plaza just a day before the voting. Ohio Gov. John Kasich held a town hall at Bryant University in Smithfield, drawing a smaller audience for a more intimate question-and-answer session. U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz – who with Kasich late Sunday jointly announced a stunning détente aimed at stopping Trump – was the sole hopeful to skip a Rhode Island stop.

On both sides of the race, the late-stage primaries suddenly loom very large. The Ocean state joined Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Maryland, and Delaware in casting ballots on Tuesday.

Following a major victory last week in her adopted home state of New York, Clinton was hoping to further tighten her grasp on the Democratic nomination. Sanders, meanwhile, looked to Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania to provide fresh momentum for his upstart bid.

On the Republican side, it’s all about math – specifically, delegate counts. Trump, who was expected to win Rhode Island handily, hoped to maximize his delegate haul as he works to obtain a majority before this summer’s GOP convention. Kasich and Cruz, meanwhile, are on a mission to deny Trump the delegate majority and send the nomination to multiple votes.

Beyond a Trump victory, the likely outcome of the Rhode Island voted was fairly uncertain. A Brown University poll released over the weekend – which was delayed after a low response rate attributed to “voter fatigue” – found Clinton topping Sanders and Trump ahead of Kasich and Cruz, with sizable percentages on both sides undecided. A Public Policy Polling (PPP) survey released Monday, however, found Sanders besting Clinton by a narrow margin, and Trump dominating his opponents with more than 60 percent support.

This election cycle has seen expectations upended at every turn. Until fairly recently, it seemed exceedingly unlikely Rhode Island would have drawn anything approaching the attention it has received over the last two weeks. Indeed, some lamented the state had made itself irrelevant in the presidential contest by holding its primary so late in the season.

We were watching to see whether the decision to open only a third of the state’s polling places for the primary created issues. We hoped the “voter fatigue” cited by Brown would not translate into low turnout, and that as many Rhode Islanders as possible cast ballots. We hoped for a smooth and inclusive process that fully reflects the will of the people.

Rarely does our state have an opportunity to so influence the presidential contest, and a moment of such prominence on the national stage. We hope the final numbers show that together, we seized it.

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  • ronruggieri

    Rhode Island voters should be proud of themselves for honoring " socialist " Democrat Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont with a strong, " surprise " victory in the Democrat primary late in April. I was at the Sanders rally in Roger Williams Park on that beautiful " Democracy Spring " Sunday before primary day. With those 7000 or more people I too was " feeling the Bern ". Bernie Sanders recent " surprise " victory in Indiana makes it clear to the political establishment that the " political revolution " is not fading away.

    President Bill Clinton showed up at the CCRI campus in Warwick to campaign for his wife," Wall St. Hillary ". Oddly enough I just read that the CCRI Day Care Center there will be shut down in order to give office space to that magical job creator Goldman Sachs. Hillary is great friend of Goldman Sachs and Governor Gina Raimondo is a great friend of Hillary Clinton.

    To be sure, these neo- Democrats are not great friends of the American working class.No wonder fed up white working class people are listening to - and sad to say, supporting- the right wing demagogue Donald Trump.

    In front of that Temple to Music, by that sparkling lake in Roger Williams Park, Bernie Sanders, speaking about a " future to believe in ", seemed much like a Normal Rockwell " American Scene " painting.

    [ http://radicalrons.blogspot.com ]

    Friday, May 6, 2016 Report this