Perry's Politics

Rhode Island's Leadership Crisis

• Dan Perry • Season 1 • Episode 3

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Is Rhode Island's current leadership failing to address critical issues head-on? Join us as we dissect the tensions between local leaders and federal immigration policies, spotlighting the defiance shown by Governor Dan McKee, Providence Mayor Brett Smiley, and Representative Enrique Sanchez against ICE actions. We also tackle the deteriorating infrastructure, focusing on the Washington Bridge's dire condition and the urgent need for a sustainable solution to ease traffic woes. The state's infrastructure challenges are symptomatic of broader systemic issues, demanding a reevaluation of leadership and policy effectiveness.

We'll also expose systemic governmental shortcomings, from the RI Bridges portal cybersecurity breach to the controversial and insufficient response to the housing crisis. Despite federal funding and legislative attempts, the situation remains dire, prompting calls for homelessness to be recognized as a public health emergency. As we explore these pressing topics, we emphasize the importance of active civic engagement and the potential impact of fresh leadership. Consider stepping up by running for office or volunteering to drive meaningful change in Rhode Island. Stay connected through Perry's Politics on social media for updates and opportunities to engage.

Speaker 1:

Welcome back to Perry's Politics. I am your host, dan Perry. Today we are going to be talking about the mass deportations happening throughout our country, in Rhode Island's response, the homelessness issues in Rhode Island and circling back with updates on the Washington Bridge and the cybersecurity breach that happened with Deloitte and RI Bridges. Let's dive right into it today with the ICE deportations happening under President Trump and what Rhode Island leadership has to say about it. Since President Donald Trump resumed office, his administration has enacted significant changes to US immigration and enforcement policies. A series of executive orders have expanded the authority of immigration officers, leading to a substantial increase in arrests and deportations. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers now operate with expanded authority after the Trump admin took off the handcuffs placed on them by the soft-on-crime Biden administration. This shift has led to increased enforcement actions in various communities. Some are having a hard time with law and order being restored in our country, specifically the Democrats, including those in our state, but they better get over it. Since Trump won in November 2024, rhode Island Governor Dan McKee and Providence Mayor Brett Smiley announced that neither state nor city police would participate in federal mass deportation efforts. Now Governor McKee's spokeswoman did clarify that the Rhode Island State Police will continue cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement when it comes to detaining violent criminals, but let's be clear they are still refusing to allocate resources towards mass deportations. Mayor Smiley echoed this sentiment, stating that the Providence Police Department is not in the business of acting as immigration officers. Instead, he says they'll approach any new immigration enforcement directives from President Donald Trump's administration cautiously, evaluating policies as they come. So, essentially, rhode Island leadership is doubling down on their so-called welcoming approach to immigrants regardless of status.

Speaker 1:

But wait, there's more. Providence Representative Enrique Sanchez took it a step farther. He posted on social media bleep ICE. He went on to say I am ready to be politically prosecuted and arrested by federal authorities if ICE performs raids and arrests residents in Rhode. Well, representative Sanchez, they are going to be performing raids and I hope they do come arrest you if this is how you decide you want to take on the federal government. This is what the overwhelming majority of our country voted for, and you are no longer making it a political debate or a policy debate. It's all full-blown theatrics. So let's get this straight Anyone in this country illegally should be deported. Period, end of story.

Speaker 1:

But, like the current administration is doing, let's start with the worst of the worst Violent criminals, the rapists, the abusers, the murderers. Deport them first. Once we've cleared out all of those who pose a direct threat to our communities, then we address the broader issue of illegal immigration, and Caroline Levitt said it in her first conference as press secretary. She said if you cross the border illegally, you are a criminal, you are in this country illegally and you will get deported, and that should happen, and I'll tell you why this matters. When people come here illegally, they are cutting in line ahead of those who are trying to do it the right way, the legal way, and that's not just unfair but it's unsustainable. We need to have a system that vets every single person who comes into this country.

Speaker 1:

It's not about hate. It's about safety, law and order and fairness. Let's not forget this was the number one issue in the 2024 election. Over 75% of Americans that's Republicans, democrats and Independents support mass deportations, starting with violent offenders. That's a mandate if I've ever seen one. So Governor Dan McKee, mayor Brett Smiley, representative Sanchez and all the other local Democrats need to get in line with the overwhelmingly majority of Americans. This is what we voted for.

Speaker 1:

Your grandstanding and theatrics aren't winning hearts and minds. In fact, it's making your arguments weaker. The American people and Rhode Islanders are tired of this nonsense. We want solutions, not political posturing. Whether or not the Rhode Island leadership likes it, trump's administration and ICE will continue to come into our state and clean our streets up. This will lead to safer streets for children and families. It's about our people and keeping them safe. If Rhode Island leadership can't see that and isn't willing to help, that says a lot about how they feel about protecting people. This is definitely a situation that I will be keeping my eye on, and I know many others in our state will keep a close watch on their comments and actions in the coming months. While the Democrats are politically posturing when it comes to immigration, let's not forget about their lackluster leadership when it comes to infrastructure. We discussed this disaster in our first episode. You can check back there for the full story, but for today, let's review it and discuss where it's at currently. We need to understand how we got here.

Speaker 1:

The Washington Bridge has been under scrutiny for years, but things escalated in December of 2023 when Rydot had to close the westbound side of the bridge due to critical failures and original components from its 1968 construction, specifically failing anchor rods essential to the bridge's structural integrity were discovered during rehabilitation work. Bridge's structural integrity were discovered during rehabilitation work. Initially, ridot thought repairs could handle the problem, but by March 2024, it became clear that the damage was too severe. That's when they pivoted to a full replacement plan for the westbound span. This isn't just a cosmetic update. The new bridge needs to be designed to last 100 years and support roughly 90,000 vehicles that cross it daily. The replacement will also need to include a five-lane expansion and new ramps to address previous traffic issues. However, we're not out of the woods yet. Temporary solutions like opening two westbound lanes on the eastbound structure and adding ferry services haven't fully solved the congestion. Drivers are still dealing with significant delays. We've known this for months, so let's fast forward to today. Rideout has narrowed down the finalists for the construction contract and demolition of the old bridge is expected to continue through late 2025. The overall project is estimated to cost $368 million, but let's be real, that's probably going to increase.

Speaker 1:

And here's where things get political. In January 2025, rhode Island's congressional delegation, including Senators Jack Reed, sheldon Whitehouse Representative Seth Magaziner and Gabe Ammo, called on President Trump's administration to release over $600 million in federal infrastructure grants. Of that, $220 million is supposed to go towards the Washington Bridge replacement. These grants were competitively awarded, but a recent directive from Trump has paused billions of dollars in funding nationwide. Rhode Island's leaders are worried this could delay critical projects like the Washington Bridge, as well as repairs to 15 other bridges along the I-95 corridor. Director Avaletti, if I'm right, has said he's confident Rhode Island will get the money, claiming only Green New Deal projects would be affected by this pause. But here's the issue Mixed messaging from Rhode Island's leadership is once again making things murky, because while you have Avaletti saying we're getting the money, you have our delegation and our governor saying we're not, and then you have the deputy chief of staff to the president, stephen Miller, that only NGOs, foreign governments and large discretionary funds are on pause.

Speaker 1:

The executive order specifically excluded aid and benefit programs, and they have later come out to say that again. It only applies to NGOs, foreign governments and large discretionary funds. There's no evidence to suggest that we are going to not have the funding for Washington Bridge. This is just the Democrats blowing it out of proportion and trying to scare the public and start off 2025 with a nice big hoax. So, like I said, we're going to get this money when the dust settles and Rhode Island's funding for the Washington Bridge won't be impacted.

Speaker 1:

But here's the real question Does Rhode Island deserve this bailout? Our residents absolutely do, but does our government? They don't. And let's be honest this isn't a problem created by the federal government. It's a problem created right here on Smith Street by local leaders who ignored the warnings for over a decade. Vidot knew about these structural issues as far back as 2013, and the Democrats in charge did nothing to take swift action. Instead, they kicked the can down the road until it became a full-blown crisis. Rhode Island could rebuild this bridge on our own if the government didn't have a massive spending problem. So while I sympathize with the Rhode Islanders who need this bridge fixed, I wouldn't be mad if the federal government did put some strings on this funding. Maybe President Trump and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy should say sure, we'll give you the money, but only if you clean up your act. This state needs a wake-up call, and maybe this is it. Finally, to my fellow Rhode Islanders, this mess is also a reminder that we need to vote better. Our leadership isn't cutting it, and it's time to demand more from the people we elect. We deserve better, and it starts at the ballot box.

Speaker 1:

Today we also have another update on a previous story we talked about in episode one. Remember last month when Rhode Island's RI Bridges system our state's portal for managing social services and health programs was hit by a massive cyber attack. The breach was first detected on December 5th by Deloitte, the state's vendor in charge of the system. By December 13th, the system was taken offline to mitigate the threat. Now the culprits A cyber criminal group called BrainCypher. They didn't just breach the system, they demanded a $23 million ransom to keep sensitive data from being leaked. But, as we all feared, they leaked it anyways Names, addresses, social security numbers, banking information all of it out on the dark web, exposing hundreds of thousands of Rhode Islanders for fraud and identity theft. Over 60% of our population was affected by this. Governor McKee's administration scrambled to respond. As always. They launched a statewide outreach campaign to assist those affected, offering resources like credit monitoring services, fraud alerts and tips on enabling multi-factor authentication to protect personal data.

Speaker 1:

After weeks of supposedly comprehensive security assessments and upgrades, the RI Bridges portal was reactivated last Thursday. The relaunch is being phased in, with officials claiming that robust security measures are now in place to prevent this from happening again. Meanwhile, state officials are still working with Deloitte and law enforcement to investigate the breach and provide ongoing support to residents. But here's the kicker Deloitte is still under contract with Rhode Island and if you've ever applied for or received benefits through RI Bridges or a family member that listed you, you are being told to remain vigilant because, let's be real, who knows if this system is actually secure now and your information could still be at large? So this has me thinking how can Rhode Islanders ever trust their government to protect their personal information?

Speaker 1:

Again, this breach isn't just a one-off incident. Information, again. This breach isn't just a one-off incident. It's a systematic failure. And let's talk about Deloitte. Why on earth are they still under contract with us? This company has failed us time and time again. We had this hack and if you go look at the disastrous UHIP launch, the fact that they are still running the show and working in our state is beyond comprehensible. Governor McKee says that switching vendors would be too expensive to be worth it right now. I'm sorry, governor, but the protection of Rhode Islanders' sensitive information is absolutely worth it.

Speaker 1:

Let's not forget Deloitte was never qualified to handle this project in the first place. Deloitte was never qualified to handle this project in the first place. House Minority Leader Mike Chippendale said it best At a national conference he attended. Rhode Island and Deloitte were literally used as the examples of what not to do for a project like this. This is just another chapter in Rhode Island's long history of incompetent leadership, incapable people getting elected and then they hire other incapable people to manage critical systems. The result Disaster after disaster. Deloitte needs to be fired, governor McKee needs to be held accountable and the Democrats who have been running this state into the ground need to go. This is yet another wake-up call for Rhode Islanders. We have to stop accepting this level of incompetence from our government. It's time to demand better, and that starts in 2026. We need strong, capable candidates to step up, and then we need to get them elected. Enough is enough. These preventable problems are costing us hundreds of millions of dollars and putting our residents at risk.

Speaker 1:

Speaking of failed leadership and Rhode Islanders at risk, rhode Island is facing a serious housing crisis risk. Rhode Island is facing a serious housing crisis. Rhode Island is facing a significant increase in homelessness, with a nearly 35% rise from 2023 to 2024. State lawmakers claim they are working on solutions. House Speaker Joe Sicacci has introduced legislation to speed up the development of temporary housing to address the immediate need for shelter. On top of that, rhode Island has secured $17 million in federal grants to combat homelessness, with the funds intended to support housing programs and services for those in need. But here's the problem Even with all this funding and supposed effort, the state is still failing. Advocacy groups are now calling on the government to declare homelessness as a public health emergency, just to get a more robust response.

Speaker 1:

And let's talk about the pallet shelter project in Providence. This was supposed to provide temporary housing but has been a complete disaster. Delays, fire code issues, lack of oversight and budget overruns have pushed the project way off schedule. The cost is 40% over budget. These are supposed to be tiny huts with just a bed and they are costing taxpayers millions, and they are costing taxpayers millions.

Speaker 1:

Once again, another Rhode Island problem with no solution in sight. These pallet homes are costing $4.6 million for just 45 units and nine other buildings. Meanwhile, House Minority Leader Mike Chippendale pointed out how the Amish built similar homes for hurricane relief, but for a fraction of the cost. They built 12 homes in two days for $25,000 each. That's a total of $300,000 compared to Rhode Island's $85,000 per building, or a total of $4.6 million. Disaster Senator Jessica Daley Cruz also brought up how a local contractor built small cottages on his property for $50,000, each complete with a bathroom, kitchen and bedroom basically a small apartment, each complete with a bathroom, kitchen and bedroom basically a small apartment.

Speaker 1:

Local solutions cheaper, faster and better exist, but our government isn't looking in that direction and it begs the question where is all the access money going? Why is everything always delayed and over budget in Rhode Island? Why can't this government get a single project done efficiently? Let's also address that this is not even how we solve our homelessness crisis. According to a public library of science study, 76.2% of our rise homelessness population suffer from mental health or addiction disorders. So if we want to combat this crisis, we need to address those two areas. These huts are great, but we need to find a way to rehabilitate the homelessness population because the government cannot be responsible for them forever.

Speaker 1:

This disaster happened on the Democrats' watch and the only solution they've come up with is failing miserably Rhode Islanders. This is yet another example of why we need change. Our government cannot get a single thing right and we are the ones paying the price. It's time to demand accountability and better leadership. Accountability and better leadership. Before we wrap up this episode, I want to explain why we reviewed the Washington Bridge disaster, the Lloyd hack, again and why we covered the failed leadership of the homelessness crisis. We are seeing fail after fail at epic proportions that are greatly impacting each of our residents in some way, yet it feels like there is no one bringing the continued lack of leadership or obvious failures to the spotlight.

Speaker 1:

I plan on doing that, not to sound redundant, but to drive home the point. We need change. We cannot continue down the path we are currently on. It is leading to disaster after disaster and driving our state into the ground. The only way we can start to correct this path is by changing our policies. However, democrats continue to double down on their radical policies that prove not to work. So what does that mean? It means we need to vote for new ideas and new policies. We need Republican policies. I understand we are a blue state, but what we have been doing has not been working. We need fresh ideas. So it's not 14 out of 113. We need to significantly increase our representation.

Speaker 1:

The last 14 years in Rhode Island have seen a Democrat governor. Since 1937, one of our US Senate seats has continually been held by a Democrat. The other has been held by a Democrat since 2007. Since 1995, both House seats in the US House of Representatives have been Democrat-held Since as far back as I could find. Since 1992, democrats have largely very largely dominated the General Assembly. So Democrats have heavily controlled Rhode Island and it has gotten us nowhere.

Speaker 1:

That brings me to my real point. We seriously need to elect Republican at all levels for representation. This state is desperate for change. We may not see the majority. We may not even turn Rhode Island into Florida, even though that would be great. But we have to fight like hell. We need the party to get its act together and put out good, viable candidates and to be organized. So please consider running for office and reach out if you want to. The party provides training and there are great resources to get you ready to serve. We need to all come together and work our butts off to change the course of Rhode Island.

Speaker 1:

I urge everyone to get involved with our local Republican committees and parties. I urge you to consider running, volunteering for candidates and parties and to start helping us fix Rhode Island. Follow along on our social media at Perry's Politics to stay updated for new episode releases, ways to get involved and updates. I appreciate you tuning in today and I will see you next time. Today's Bible verse is Philippians, chapter 4, verses 6-7. Don't worry about anything. Instead, pray about everything, tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. You.