Projo Politics Blog

Within the next two weeks, state Republicans and Democrats will begin doling out their congressional endorsements with a major unanswered question still burning as Political Scene went to press: Will the GOP be able to muster anyone to run against Rep. Patrick Kennedy and Sen. Jack Reed?

Or will two members of Rhode Island’s all-Democrat congressional delegation slide to reelection unchallenged by a Republican candidate?

Late last week, Federal Hill clothing store owner Joseph Zuccolo, 51, of North Providence, confirmed that he is once again thinking about mounting a Republican challenge to Kennedy, having taken out candidacy papers two years ago and then had second thoughts.

On March 12, the owner of Zuccolo’s Fine Men’s Clothing filed notice with the Federal Election Commission of the formation of his Joe Zuccolo For Congress Committee.

In 2006, Zuccolo said, he backed away because “organizationally and financially it wasn’t right for us.” Asked what has changed since then to make him a more viable candidate, he said: “Now we feel we want to and God willing, we will.”

While he did not elaborate, Zuccolo said he hasn’t raised any money yet for a race against Kennedy, who had $617,182 in his campaign account at the March 31 end of the last reporting period. But Zuccolo said he believes that he and his unpaid campaign manager, Dana Peloso, 25 — whom he identified as a candidate for state representative in Warren — have the time to pull together the necessary money and campaign organization to give the 1st Representative District race a good shot.

(If Peloso’s name sounds familiar, he was one of the organizers of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee’s Rhode Island campaign, a former chairman of Roger Williams University’s College Republicans, and one of two conservative talk show hosts bounced from Roger Williams’ student-run radio station in April 2007 for repeating more than 30 times the phrase that led to national shock jock Don Imus’ firing: “nappy-headed hos.” In his own defense at the time, Peloso said they used the words appropriately in the context of a discussion about Imus.)

Zuccolo’s campaign platform? He said a congressman needs to be “more proactive” on the big issues of the day, such as education and energy. His only campaign promise at this point is to “meet with the people of Rhode Island … address their needs … and keep them informed.”

In an interview on Friday, state GOP Chairman Giovanni Cicione said two other possible Kennedy challengers were still weighing the possibility.

Before the day was over, however, one had pulled his name out of the speculation field: Republican Rep. John Loughlin, of Tiverton.

While tempted, Loughlin said, a run for Congress would not be “economically feasible” at this point, “and besides, I really like my job as a member of the loyal opposition in the Rhode Island House of Representatives.” (Cicione would not identify the third potential candidate on his scouting roster.)

Cicione was less optimistic about the chances of lining up a Republican to challenge Reed, saying: “I am not as convinced. That’s a 50-50.”

He was more optimistic about GOP chances of picking up seats in the General Assembly during what he believes may be a watershed year, with more Democratic incumbents voluntarily relinquishing their seats than Rhode Island has seen in many years.

By Katherine Gregg
Journal State House Bureau

---