To the editor:

Last week, Richard Silva, the chairman of the Warren Democratic Committee, wrote to the Barrington Times to say that I had not requested an interview from the committee and that is why they did not consider my candidacy in their endorsement process. Mr. Silva suggested that I did not care about the citizens of Warren.

On the same page, John Jannitto, also of Warren, and the chairman of the District 67 Democratic Committee, wrote to say that I never requested a meeting with that committee. Consequently, the committee chose to overlook my candidacy.

For the record, I did not request a meeting with the Warren committee. They met long before the declaration period and made their choice. By the time I started making endorsement inquires, I found that Warren had already completed their process.

Regarding Mr. Jannitto's letter, I did reach out to a member of the district committee to request an invitation to the endorsement process. That call was not returned.

The bottom line is that these two committees were never interested in holding an open process. And the insinuation that I don't care about voters in Warren is a perfect example of the old school style of politics that has been the source of so many problems in Rhode Island over the years.

Fortunately, the voters of both towns have the opportunity to reject the politics of backroom deals and the "I know a guy" culture that has given us a string of disgraced politicians and failed policies. This year, the voters can change the way business is done in our great state.

My opponent calls himself a Democrat but he has policy positions that show he is a conservative of the highest order. Over the years he has attacked women’s reproductive health rights by sponsoring anti-choice "fetal protection" and "fetal heartbeat" legislation. He has worked to deny the LGBTQ community full and equal rights by voting against marriage equality. And he has sponsored anti-immigrant legislation designed to add immigration enforcement to the duties of local police.

I offer a different kind of representation. If elected, I will work hard to ensure that our state government works well and works for everyone. 

The politics of Mr. Malik, Mr. Silva, and Mr. Jannitto are the old way. If you're interested in the new way, then come out and vote on Sept. 13. In the meantime, I'll be out on the streets talking to voters. If you want to talk to me, please contact me jason.p.knight@gmail.com any time.

Sincerely, 

Jason Knight

Barrington

Mr. Knight is a Democrat running for the District 67 seat in the RI House.