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Thursday, April 2, 2026
Charlestown Democrats announce April events
Son of long-time Charlestown Assistant Solicitor Bob Craven declares candidacy to replace his father
Robert Craven Jr. is running for House District 32
Steve Ahlquist: I don’t want to start on a
negative note, but in this state, we oftentimes have what I think of as
“inherited” seats. That is, the child of a politician taking over an elected
position from their parent. Your father is the current State Representative
from District 32, so what do you bring to this position that makes it earned
rather than inherited?
Robert Craven: Two things. One, I’m running not
because I have his name; I’m running despite having his name. I’m running in
North Kingstown because it’s where I grew up and where I know the state and the
country best. I’m running because I have the specific experience to deliver
meaningful results for North Kingstown. My father represented well. He had his
own experience to rely on. I have some of the same skills, but a different
skill set and perspective on much of it, which will let me either expand on or
add to what he accomplished.
Steve Ahlquist: You do have an impressive resume. Do
you want to talk about that?
Robert Craven: I’m glad to. For the past three
years, I’ve been the policy director for Rhode Island’s Treasurer. In that
capacity, I’ve helped champion legislation that expanded wealth opportunities
for low-income Rhode Islanders, helped towns like North Kingstown protect
themselves from the threats of climate change, helped survivors of sexual
assault access the funds and support systems they need, and pushed Rhode Island
forward in financial well-being. Before that, I ran the Treasurer’s campaign,
as you know...
Steve Ahlquist: Which is when I got to know you
a little bit.
Robert Craven: Exactly. And before I got into
the politics and policy side of things, I practiced law for a few years at a
litigation firm in Downtown Providence, where I practiced banking law, complex
commercial disputes, and class action lawsuits.
Steve Ahlquist: That put you in the position to
be in the Treasurer’s office
Robert Craven: Yeah. It was a good foundation
for understanding the issues the office usually deals with. And I dealt with a
lot of land use and Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC)
law when I was practicing law, which gave me the CRMC’s perspective on things
and where some of these communities and their zoning boards are in terms of
being able to construct (or not construct) what they’re comfortable with, and
what’s environmentally sound.
Steve Ahlquist: Land use and the CRMC are two
hot topics at the State House right now. We’re dealing with land use issues and
possibly reorganizing the CRMC or folding it into the Department of
Environmental Management (DEM).
Robert Craven: I think CRMC needs a revisit.
That organization has served the state well enough since its creation, but the
policies surrounding it are changing. The needs of the state have shifted, and
there’s going to be a lot more urgency in what they do as we head towards an
era where we might see a dramatic change in what’s happening on our shoreline.
Steve Ahlquist: I think we’re already seeing dramatic
changes. We’re looking at parts of Newport going underwater...
Robert Craven: ... and Warren, North Kingstown,
Westerly...
Steve Ahlquist: Yeah. Whole sections of the state -
land, houses, businesses, whatever - are going to be flooded if we can’t figure
out something.
Growing up in a political household, what was that like?
Mine is a firefighter family, so we were somewhat political, union politics...
Robert Craven: My mom was a union president in
Narragansett. I grew up hearing about the Department of Education and
how it was not funding teachers. When I was in middle school, I remember
hearing about pension reform from my mom, who was one of the people affected by
it. Growing up in that kind of household with a father always interested in
policy and politics shows you that the system is accessible, right? I went
to George Washington University down in DC, but I came back to
intern in health and housing policy for Governor Lincoln Chafee.
That experience, along with what I had growing up, showed me
how accessible the system can be. And then, if you learn how the system works,
you can really accomplish something through it. There’s this impression that
politicians are inaccessible or that they’re in it for malicious intent, but
that’s not the case. You have a lot of good people out there who are trying to
accomplish something - trying to do the right thing. That’s kind of the lesson
that I learned growing up around it.
Scientists solved the mystery of missing ocean plastic—and the answer is alarming
The plastic didn’t disappear—it went invisible and spread everywhere.
Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research
Scientists have uncovered something surprising in the Atlantic Ocean. The majority of plastic pollution may no longer be visible at all. Instead, it exists as nanoplastics, particles so small they are measured in billionths of a meter.
"This estimate shows that there is more plastic in the
form of nanoparticles floating in this part of the ocean than there is in
larger micro- or macroplastics floating in the Atlantic or even all the world's
oceans!" said Helge Niemann, researcher at NIOZ and professor of
geochemistry at Utrecht University. In mid-June, he received a 3.5 million euro
grant to further investigate nanoplastics and what ultimately happens to them.
Ocean Expedition Reveals Tiny Plastic Particles
To gather data, Utrecht master's student Sophie ten
Hietbrink spent four weeks aboard the research vessel RV Pelagia. The ship
traveled from the Azores to the European continental shelf, where she collected
water samples at 12 different locations.
Each sample was carefully filtered to remove anything larger
than one micrometer. What remained contained the smallest particles. "By
drying and heating the remaining material, we were able to measure the
characteristic molecules of different types of plastics in the Utrecht
laboratory, using mass spectrometry," Ten Hietbrink explains.
First Real Estimate of Ocean Nanoplastics
Previous studies had confirmed that nanoplastics existed in
ocean water, but no one had been able to calculate how much was actually there.
This research marks the first time scientists have produced a meaningful
estimate.
Niemann notes that this breakthrough was made possible by
combining ocean research with expertise from atmospheric science, including
contributions from Utrecht University scientist Dusân Materic.
27 Million Tons of Invisible Plastic
When the team scaled their measurements across the North
Atlantic, the results were striking. They estimate that about 27 million tons
of nanoplastics are floating in this region alone.
"A shocking amount," Ten Hietbrink says. The
finding may finally explain a long-standing mystery. Scientists have struggled
to account for all the plastic ever produced. Much of it appeared to be
missing. This study suggests that a large share has broken down into tiny
particles that are now suspended throughout the ocean.
Wow! Trump’s Justice Department Dropped 23,000 Criminal Cases in Shift to Immigration
To pander to Trump's obsession with immigrants, thousands of real criminals go free
- ICE Detention Statistics: As of early 2026, about 73.6% of people in ICE detention had no criminal convictions.
- Conviction Types: Among those detained, only about 5% have convictions for violent crimes, while the majority of those with convictions have nonviolent, minor offenses like traffic violations.
The cases included an investigation into a Virginia nursing home with a recent record of patient abuse; probes of fraud involving several New Jersey labor unions, including one opened after a top official of a national union was accused of embezzlement; and an investigation into a cryptocurrency company suspected of cheating investors.
In total, the DOJ quietly closed more than 23,000 criminal cases in the first six months of President Donald Trump’s administration, abandoning hundreds of investigations into terrorism, white-collar crime, drugs and other offenses as it shifted resources to pursue immigration cases, according to an analysis by ProPublica.
The bulk of these cases, which were closed without prosecution and known as declinations, had been referred to the DOJ by law enforcement agencies under prior administrations that believed a federal crime may have been committed. The DOJ routinely declines to prosecute cases for any number of reasons, including insufficient evidence or because a case is not a priority for enforcement.
But the number of declinations under Bondi marks a striking departure not only from the Biden administration but also the first Trump term, according to the ProPublica analysis, which examined two decades of DOJ data, including the first six months of Trump’s second term. ProPublica determined the increase is not the result of inheriting a larger caseload or more referrals from law enforcement.
In February 2025 alone, which included the first weeks of Bondi’s tenure, nearly 11,000 cases were declined, the most in a month since at least 2004. The previous high was just over 6,500 cases in September 2019, during Trump’s first administration.
Some of the cases shut down were the result of yearslong investigations by federal agencies such as the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Administration. For complex cases, the DOJ can take years before deciding whether to bring charges.
The shift comes as the DOJ has undergone an extraordinary overhaul under the Trump administration, with entire units shuttered, directives to abandon pursuit of certain crimes and thousands of lawyers quitting or, in some cases, being forced out of the agency.
In doing so, the DOJ is retreating from its mission to impartially uphold the rule of law, keep the country safe and protect civil rights, according to interviews with a dozen prosecutors and an open letter from nearly 300 DOJ employees who have left the department under Trump. The Trump DOJ, the employees wrote, is “taking a sledgehammer” to long-standing work to “protect communities and the rule of law.”
The change in priorities was outlined in a series of memos sent to attorneys early last year. Trump’s DOJ has said it is “turning a new page on white-collar and corporate enforcement” and emphasizing the pursuit of drug cartels, illegal immigrants and institutions that promote “divisive DEI policies.” Trump, in an address last March at the department, said the changes were necessary after a “surrender to violent criminals” during the past administration and would result in a restoration of “fair, equal and impartial justice under the constitutional rule of law.”
The department prosecuted 32,000 new immigration cases in the first six months of the administration, which was nearly triple the number under the Biden administration and a 15% increase from the first Trump term. It has pursued fewer prosecutions of nearly every other type of crime — from drug offenses to corruption — than new administrations in their first six months dating back to 2009.
Wednesday, April 1, 2026
Bobby Jr. has become a political threat to Republicans
Republicans Fret Over RFK Jr.’s Anti-Vaccine Policies While MAHA Moms Stew
The tensions risk fraying Kennedy’s dynamic MAHA coalition, potentially driving away critical supporters who helped fuel President Donald Trump’s 2024 election win.
The movement’s grassroots membership includes suburbanites, women, and independents who are generally newer entrants to the GOP and laser-focused on achieving certain results around the nation’s food supply and vaccines.
Promoting healthy foods tops their list and will be at the center of the White House’s pitch to voters during the midterm election cycle.
“President Trump’s mass appeal partly lies in his willingness to question our country’s broken status quo,” White House spokesperson Kush Desai said in a statement. “That includes food standards and nutrition guidelines that have helped fuel America’s chronic disease epidemic. Overhauling our food supply and nutrition standards to deliver on the MAHA agenda remains a key priority for both the President and his administration.”
At the same time, with most Americans opposing efforts to undermine vaccines, the White House has cooled on Kennedy’s aggressive policies to curb vaccines and MAHA’s interest in tamping down environmental chemicals that are linked to disease.
The result: Republicans are realizing just how demanding the MAHA vote can be. Moms Across America leader Zen Honeycutt warned that Republicans are facing their biggest setback yet with the MAHA movement, after Trump signed an executive order to support production of glyphosate, a herbicide the World Health Organization has linked to cancer.
“It has caused the biggest uproar in MAHA,” Honeycutt said during a CNN interview in late February.
New hand's-on education program from Wood-Pawcatuck Watershed Association
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