Rep. Cicilline Says GOP 'Hijacked' by 'Extreme Right'

Breaking from his of East Providence for lunch at last Thursday, U.S. Rep. David Cicilline’ opened up to East Providence Patch about his view of the present state of the Republican Party, as well as the political divide in American politics.

In a candid sit-down interview, Democrat Cicilline made no attempt to hide his estimations regarding the “far-right” political tenor coming from the GOP. The congressman’s time in Washington has left him certain of who within the GOP is calling the shots, at least where policy is concerned. It's here where the Tea Party enters the conversation. Cicilline said that even with the Tea Party being in the minority, "they are really setting the agenda for the Republican Caucus in the House," something he is less than thrilled about.

Cicilline was quick to couple his views with examples of how the paradigm within the GOP has shifted. He cited the newly elected congressional majority's first budget document, which proposed cuts to Head Start, Pell Grants and nutrition programs for the elderly, along with the abolition of Medicare as a federally managed program. He also criticized the same budget document fo adding an additional tax break for "millionaires and billionaires," subsidies for oil companies, all on top of the extension of the Bush Tax Cuts.

While Cicilline asserts the GOP has been “hijacked” by members of the far-right, he adds the disclaimer that such a constituency is fractional, stating that the Tea Party caucus in the House of Representatives "don't represent the majority [of the GOP] in number."

Even with such a caveat, much of the congressman’s assessment of the nation’s economy was connected to his party of opposition. To Cicilline, ideological battle lines are not simply contained within America's legislature. With a presidential and midterm election looming next year, the congressman hinted at a call to action on behalf of the American people as a way to embrace his party's agenda over that of the GOP.

"We put forth a very comprehensive “Make It in America” agenda that deals with issues like Chinese currency manipulation and incentivizing making things in this country and helping rebuild manufacturing, rebuilding the infrastructure," Cicilline said. "Those bills we can't get brought to the floor, because we don't have the ability in the minority to force those things. So we're trying some new techniques like discharge petitions and other things; but the reality is that [the Republicans are] in the majority. I think fundamentally the American people are going to have to make a choice in the 2012 elections as to whether or not they agree with the agenda set by the far-right and the vision for America that they put forth."   

Roughly seven months into his two-year term in the House of Representatives, Cicilline's call to action on behalf of the electorate in 2012 encompasses his own political future, too. When asked if his 6 percent victory over John Loughlin in 2010, an eyebrow-raiser considering Rhode Island's historic loyalty to the Democratic Party, caused him concern, the congressman chuckled and responded with a soft "no."

"I am certain that whoever the Republican nominee is, the choice between what I believe in, what Rhode Islanders believe, what I think this country reflects and what is likely to be the Republican version of that, are going to be different, very different, and it will be a clear choice," Cicilline said. 

For all of his efforts in drawing philosophical distinctions between himself and the Republican Party, Cicilline retains hope that a working relationship between the two parties is possible.

"I'm hoping that now that the debt ceiling issue is resolved that there is a willingness on the other side of the aisle to focus on jobs," he said. "Even though I have strongly held beliefs that are different from the Republicans, we've got to find a way to work together to get the American people back to work."

When asked what such a working relationship would look like, Cicilline cited reestablishing a manufacturing base in the U.S. as something that "ought not be a Republican or Democrat [issue]." He later added that infrastructure is an issue that "we should agree on," saying that "we all should agree on the value of infrastructure in this country."