Thoughts from the Nation with Matt Allen Matt's opinion on major news headlines with a dash of his Philosophical Friday topics mixed in.

Thoughts from the Nation | The Company You Keep

Posted: 4/3/2012 10:04:24 AM
Updated: 4/3/2012 10:12:25 AM

Every Tuesday, Thoughts from the Nation brings you Matt Allen's thoughts and observations about the biggest topics in the news.

Tune in to the Matt Allen Show every week night from 6:00-9:00 PM.

My mother used to warn me about some of the more questionable friends I would  sometimes make as a child. She would warn me: “You’re judged by the company you keep.” She was right about that fact in life but it’s even more true to the political world. Which is why the group of politicians who have come out in support of Representative David Cicilline and the most recent endorsement of the representative by Governor Chafee will have to answer for the actions of the former Mayor of Providence as they are now endorsing the lies that he told.

Current Mayor Angel Taveras and General Treasurer Gina Raimondo have received criticism from many in the public as well as from my microphone for their support and fundraising for Cicilline. These two new-comers to the political scene have gotten much hard earned support for their common sense approaches and the big tasks they have taken on. That kind of equity built with the constituents is not easily won and is valuable currency in the political sphere. Why would they waste it on a guy who would do more to poison them than they would do to help him? Do Raimondo and Taveras not see the public perception of Cicilline and what he did while running the Capital City? How could they not?

Then there is the more recent endorsement of Rep. Cicilline by Governor Chafee.  This past weekend on Channel 12’s “Newsmakers” program the Governor endorsed the representative and justified it by saying that the former mayor was unfairly blamed for what happened in the city. Chafee blamed the cuts in state aid as the cause of Providence’s problems. The Governor was reminded that people weren’t blaming Cicilline for the conditions of the city but for the fact that he hid truth from the public. That Cicilline did so to expedite his run for congress doesn’t seem to matter to Governor. It doesn’t seem to matter to the Governor that the city’s auditor was locked out of his computer access to city records in an effort to keep the truth quiet!! According to Governor Chafee I guess Cicilline can get a little flack for those facts but overall he tried his best. The Governor will support a liar as long as he tries hard. The same man who ran against cronyism and corruption is supporting the same old Rhode Island.

Matt Allen | WPRO