Progress Report: Langevin Moves Left; Legislative Grants; Quid Pro Quo or Campaign Finance Law; POTUS debate

Jim Langevin may not be the most progressive member of Congress, but he could be a whole lot less liberal too. John Mulligan, the Providence Journal’s Washington corresponden,t sums up Langevin’s place on the political spectrum well in this graph:

“…he has built a voting record that makes him solidly liberal on most issues by national standards, though somewhat to the right of such Rhode Island Democrats as Rep. David N. Cicilline and former Rep. Kennedy. That is due in part to his positions on abortion and other social issues. He has made news during the current Congress, however, by moving to support gay marriage.”

I’m pretty satisfied with Langevin’s record on economic issues – watch his new ad here to hear him defend the middle class and castigate Mike Riley for being a Wall Street hedge fund manager. On social issues, I’m very impressed with his willingness to evolve. It shows he has an open mind, perhaps the most important characteristic for a politician to possess.

That’s not to say I’ll be voting for Langevin over Abel Collins, a progressive to the bone who is a very long shot to win the seat. I still haven’t made that decision, but promise to keep you informed of my thinking…

“’Tis the season when state lawmakers running for reelection get to hand out checks to their local senior centers, American Legion Posts and Little League teams, courtesy of the state taxpayer,” says the ProJo Political Scene team. Nobody confuses legislative grants with good government, but they sure make for effective politics…

Romnesia: when you can’t remember what was previously on the Etch-A-Sketch.

In WPRI’s debate between Mark Binder and Gordon Fox, Tim White asks an interesting question of Binder, who accuses the Speaker of the House of shady politics: “Can you back up your charges of quid pro quo with evidence, or is your real issue here with how this country’s campaign finance system works?”

Of course, quid pro quo politics and our campaign finance laws aren’t in any way mutually exclusive of each other. Quite the opposite, in fact! It’s interesting to note that pointing out the way the system works has become a strategy for running against an incumbent.

A beautiful picture of a Providence student painting a mural at a local elementary school.

No reason you can’t take in the ProJo’s third and final Publick Occurances panel on the local economy tonight and still be home by 9 in time to watch the third and final Obama/Romney debate.

Speaking of the POTUS debate tonight … Romney will focus on Benghazi, while Obama can pretty much parade out a litany of other victories: he ended the war in Iraq and killed Osama bin Laden. The president will also likely point out what a disastrous dope Mitt has been on foreign affairs during the campaign.

And speaking of foreign policy, today in 1962 President Kennedy announces to America that he has ordered a blockade of Cuba after learning the Russians were moving some nuclear weapons there.

And speaking of Cuba, The New York Times reports it seems as if the infamous revolutionary is still alive after all.