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Ian Donnis

One of the state’s top political reporters, Ian Donnis joined The Public’s Radio in 2009. Ian has reported on Rhode Island politics since 1999, arriving in the state just two weeks before the FBI raided City Hall and Buddy Cianci’s East Side home. Ian covers breaking news, develops in-depth features and investigative reports, and welcomes a range of newsmakers to “Political Roundtable” each week. He also writes our Friday political newsletter and maintains a strong social media presence.

For many years, Ian was a panelist on WPRI-TV’s Sunday morning public affairs show, Newsmakers, and he’s a regular guest on A Lively Experiment on Rhode Island PBS. His previous experience includes serving as news editor of The Providence Phoenix and as a reporter for the Associated Press and the Worcester Telegram & Gazette. He has a BS in journalism from Boston University.

Outside of work, Ian enjoys baseball, cooking, and exploring Rhode Island.

idonnis@ripr.org
Posted inEconomy, Local, Politics

McKee rejects call for higher taxes on RI’s richest

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State revenue in Rhode Island is running about $80 million ahead of expectations for the fiscal year starting July first. Does that make it less likely that state leaders will support a broad-based tax increase, or how about a tax increase for the wealthiest Rhode Islanders? The Public’s Radio political reporter Ian Donnis sat down […]

Posted inPolitical Roundtable, Politics

Steven Brown of the RI ACLU on civil liberties in the age of Donald Trump

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Standing up for civil liberties tends to be a busy job. That’s even more true with President Trump pushing the bounds of executive power on a variety of fronts. Trump has raised the focus on deportations, cut funding for elite universities and targeted his opponents. A series of court battles will decide the outcome of some of these conflicts. For now, it’s unclear how Trump’s second tenure in the White House will change America and if the president and his allies can succeed in moving the country to the right. One group involved in responding is the American Civil Liberties Union. In Rhode Island, the local ACLU chapter has kept a close eye on the General Assembly for years. So can the civil liberties group still do that while standing up to the Trump administration? And how is the outlook for safeguarding civil liberties and small-d democracy? This week on Political Roundtable, I’m going in depth with executive director of the Rhode Island ACLU Steven Brown.

Posted inHealth, Local

Neronha co-leads lawsuit aimed at federal health cuts

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Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha is among 20 attorneys general backing a lawsuit to stop the Trump administration from making sweeping changes to the federal Health and Human Services Department and to restore cuts. The complaint in U.S. District Court in Providence targets what Neronha called the Trump administration’s dismantling of HHS. “A quarter […]

Posted inPolitical Roundtable, Politics

RI Young Republicans’ Ken Naylor + Young Democrats of RI’s Autumn Guillotte on organizing, young voters’ concerns + our aging political leaders

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About 47 percent of registered voters ages 18 to 29 cast ballots in the U.S. presidential election last year. That’s less than the overall voting participation of 64 percent, but it shows how young people are playing a bigger role in national elections. At the same time, a recent Harvard Youth Poll found that more than 4 in 10 Americans under age 30 say they’re barely getting by financially, and just 15 percent believe the country is headed in the right direction. Fewer than one-third of these young people approve of President Trump or either party in Congress. Here in Rhode Island, organizing by young political activists has waxed and waned over time. So what role can youth groups play in influencing the direction of politics in the state? And what do activists have to say about the dissatisfaction of young people with both major parties? This week on Political Roundtable, I’m going in depth with chairman of the Rhode Island Young Republicans Ken Naylor and board member of the Young Democrats of Rhode Island Autumn Guillotte.

Posted inLabor, Local, Politics

Lawson wins R.I. Senate presidency while retaining prominent union role

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After Rhode Island Senate Majority Leader Val Lawson won a lopsided vote Tuesday to lead the chamber following the recent death of Dominick Ruggerio, she downplayed potential conflicts stemming from her work as the president of one of the state’s largest teachers’ unions. Lawson (D-East Providence) easily outpaced rival Sen. Ryan W. Pearson (D-Cumberland) on […]

Posted inHousing, Political Roundtable, Politics

RI Housing Secretary Deborah Goddard on what’s next with the new state housing plan

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The median price of a home in Rhode Island is now the once unimaginable sum of almost $500,000. State leaders have tried for a few years to address the housing crisis, and tens of millions of dollars have been directed against the problem. But progress has been slow. The housing crisis began a long time ago, so it’s understandable that moving forward takes time. But that offers little solace for people hurt by the high cost and lack of housing they can afford, and the situation restricts efforts to grow Rhode Island’s economy. This week, the state unveiled a new plan for adding 15,000 new housing units over the next five years. But some communities have resisted attempts to add more housing. So does the new state plan have the right stuff, and what will it take to make more progress? This week on Political Roundtable, I’m going in depth with Rhode Island Housing Secretary Deborah Goddard.

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