Pressure grows on state Rep. Daniel Gordon to step down
September 20th, 2011 at 12:09 pm by Ted Nesi under Nesi's Notes
The drumbeat of calls for state Rep. Daniel Gordon to resign his seat is rising despite his defiant pledge this morning to remain in office.
Giovanni Cicione, who was chairman of the Rhode Island Republican Party until earlier this year, said unequivocally on Tuesday that the freshman lawmaker should step down.
Asked whether he thought Gordon should stand aside, Cicione told WPRI.com: “Yes. Just resign.”
“My impression is that it’s a broad consensus at this point, except for Dan,” Cicione added. “I hate to see any reduction in the size of the Republican caucus, but I’m more concerned with demeaning the legislature, so I think that that’s appropriate.”
Keith Hamilton, a councilman in Gordon’s hometown of Portsmouth who is first vice chairman of its Republican Town Committee, said while the local GOP does not have an official position on what Gordon should do, he and a number of others there think the legislator should vacate his seat.
“I don’t think that the constituents of Tiverton, Portsmouth and Little Compton are best served by somebody who has so much controversy,” Hamilton told WPRI.com.
On Monday, House Speaker Gordon Fox suggested Gordon should step down and House Minority Leader Brian Newberry – whose Republican caucus recently expelled Gordon – called for him to leave office if the charges against him are true.
The speaker would need to talk with other House members before he decides whether to consider a vote to expel Gordon, House spokesman Larry Berman said Tuesday.
Rhode Island GOP Chairman Ken McKay has not explicitly asked Gordon to resign, but on Monday he described the lawmaker’s criminal record as “extremely troubling.”
Despite his pledge to continue to serve, Gordon told The Associated Press he won’t be attending a House briefing on the pension issue from Treasurer Gina Raimondo that’s scheduled for Wednesday afternoon.
• Related: What happens if state Rep. Daniel Gordon resigns from office? (Sept. 19)
(photo: General Assembly)
Tags: daniel gordon, general assembly, giovanni cicione, keith hamilton, law enforcement, republicans, state government
Nesi's Notes covers politics and the economy in and around Rhode Island for WPRI.com. (Twitter: 
[...] Related: Pressure grows on state Rep. Daniel Gordon to step down (Sept. 20) Tags: daniel gordon, general assembly, house of representatives, law enforcement, [...]
He keeps saying he’s paid his debts, he had a problematic past and is being honest about it now (after being found out), his service is part of his recovery, blah blah. But he was just arrested for driving with a suspended license in Rhode Island and still has the “eluding an officer” charge in Massachusetts. Don’t let him continue to weave this tale of redemption, it is not true.
I completely agree. I knew him when he was younger,and even worked for him. He as always been a ticking time bomb. Its just a matter of time before it happens again.
[...] In an interview earlier Tuesday, Gordon said he plans to remain in office as a symbol to other troubled veterans and because he believes he can continue to be effective. He said he was not worried about suggestions from House Speaker Gordon Fox and Minority Leader Brian Newberry that he should step down. [...]
[...] from WPRI.com Share this:TwitterFacebookStumbleUponRedditDiggLinkedInEmailLike this:LikeBe the first to like this [...]