By RUSSELL J. MOORE

The Rhode Island Republican Party, historically known for its high number of moderate members, has embraced its more conservative wing under chairman Giovanni Cicione’s leadership.

The state party has always advocated a big tent, but, ironically, the party shunned some of its more conservative members in the process.

Since being appointed in January, Cicione has become most well known for his “bomb throwing,” a political term for making outlandish, hyperbolic statements (Cicione said teacher’s union leaders should be prosecuted under RICO statutes and also said Governor Carcieri’s plan to reduce the state workforce by 1,000 workers was a “good start”). But he has also quietly smoothed tensions with the GOP’s more conservative factions and brought them back into the party.   

Under his leadership, the party changed its bylaws to include and allow groups like the Rhode Island Republican Assembly (RIRA), a Warwick-based group known for its strict adherence to conservative principles (God, lower taxes, gun rights) to identify themselves under the umbrella of the state party. For years, the group wasn’t allowed to identify itself as Republican due to state law and the party’s bylaws. The change became official at a meeting last week.

Donna Perry, the spokesperson for the state party, said the move is another example of Cicione’s attempt to create a bigger tent for all groups.

“The chairman has felt that some of these groups within the party are active, energetic and take the time to attend the party’s events. They should have a voice in the party,” said Perry.

Perry said the bylaw changes are strictly in line with the big tent philosophy. 

“The changes to the party’s bylaws give a voice to broader groups within the party. It doesn’t give, and wasn’t intended to give, a disproportionate amount of influence to any one particular group,” said Perry.

The state party, which often quarreled with RIRA in the past over issues such as party building and strategy to ideology, has also placed members of RIRA in prominent positions in the state party, such as the executive board.

RIRA is a group with members who are conservative in every political sense of the word. They aren’t interested in political correctness. They don’t fear using the word “God” in their literature, and are strictly pro-life. The group basically shares the whole platform and belief set Ronald Reagan used to secure the presidency in 1980, which the national party has moved away from.

Ray McKay, the president of the group, is now a member of the state party’s executive board. Dave Talan, a stalwart and founding member of RIRA who ran for mayor of Providence in 2002 and 2006, was appointed recording secretary of the party by Cicione last January. Other RIRA members – Lester Olson, the Pawtucket city chairman, Diane Allen, the Exeter town chairwoman, and Jim Archer, the Smithfield town chairman – are also new appointees to the state party’s executive board. 

In July, Cicione actually called on the party’s members to vote to decrease the power of the chairman, by allowing the vast majority of the party’s delegates to the national convention to be elected by popular vote of the members, instead of by appointment by the chairman. The move pleased the party’s more conservative members because in 2004 then-Party Chairwoman Patricia Morgan appointed politically moderate delegates to the convention who had received less votes than their more conservative counterparts.

Though Cicione has taken criticism for his hyperbolic statements by some conservative pundits and party members, RIRA’s leaders refer to Cicione as “a breath of fresh air.”

Talan said Cicione is wise to give the conservative wing of the party a larger presence.

“Most Republicans, contrary to popular belief, are fairly conservative. The only reason Lincoln Chafee won last year’s Republican primary was because the national party bused in about 5,000 people who weren’t even Republicans to vote for Chafee,” said Talan.

Shortly after the election, Talan said he placed everyone on the Republican voting list onto his e-mail list. He began sending them e-mails about issues that would interest Republicans. He got about 300-400 e-mails from people saying they weren’t Republicans but Democrats who merely voted in the Republican Primary to support Chafee.

Talan said that is evidence that most Republicans are actually more conservative than not. To abandon conservative ideals merely to fashion a big tent is a recipe for failure, he said. Talan said the party should use the big tent philosophy, but it should focus more on its conservative ideals than anything else.

“We’re certainly not saying that our party shouldn’t include moderates. That would be as ridiculous as the people who say the Rhode Island Republican Party shouldn’t include the conservatives,” said Talan.

McKay, like Talan, said Cicione’s embrace of the more conservative members is a very wise move.

“The Rhode Island GOP has always been Democrats with a different suit on,” said McKay. “For an independent, which is what the majority of Rhode Islanders are, to say they’re looking for change, what were we offering them? Nothing.”