Providence Mayor
Disinvited From Clinton Event

Providence, R.I., mayor David Cicilline told reporters that Sen. Hillary Clinton has asked him to stay away from an upcoming Rhode Island campaign stop this Sunday. The mayor, who is a superdelegate to the Democratic National Convention this summer, is currently involved in an ongoing contract dispute with a local firefighters union, whose members have said they will protest the Clinton event if the mayor is there.

While he has not said whether his long-standing support for Clinton has wavered, he told USA Today on Thursday that he was disappointed by the campaign's decision to exclude him. He was named as cochair of Clinton's Rhode Island campaign in June 2007 but resigned in September due to the union dispute, the Providence Journal reported.

"My decision is not the consequence of fearing the disruption of the event," he said after stepping down from his post and pledging not to attend a fund-raiser on September 27. "I've had them protest my events. There are signs across the city. I'm used to that." (The Advocate)