Cicilline, Gemma differ on taxes, mail

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) - Congressman David Cicilline and his Democratic primary opponent Anthony Gemma disagree vehemently about Cicilline's record in Providence and Gemma's claims of widespread voter fraud in Rhode Island.

What do they agree on? Just about everything else, judging by the two candidates' comments Tuesday night during a 90-minute, frequently raucous debate sponsored by WPRI 12 and The Providence Journal that marked their first televised encounter this year.

While Gemma offered fierce criticism of Cicilline personally, the businessman and two-time candidate acknowledged under questioning that he actually didn't disagree with his opponent on the substance of most bills that come before Congress.

"Mr. Cicilline has voted along the Democratic ticket, the majority of which I would have actually supported," Gemma said. He declined to name any votes Cicilline has taken that he couldn't support, saying: "David and I are very similar."

There were two policy issues that came up during the debate where the candidates took clearly different positions. The first was taxes.

Both candidates say the Bush tax cuts should be allowed to expire for wealthier Americans, but they would set the cutoff at different levels. Cicilline said he supports President Obama's push to keep the tax cuts for families who make less than $250,000, while Gemma said they should expire for anyone who makes more than $100,000.

The other was on the U.S. Postal Service, which is under severe financial strain. Gemma said he would support ending Saturday mail delivery, saying he supports efforts to streamline government. Cicilline said Saturday service should continue and suggested instead Congress should repeal a mandate that the post office pre-fund health benefits.

A new  WPRI 12 poll released Monday showed Cicilline with a 12-point lead among likely Democratic primary voters. Cicilline had 43% of the vote and Gemma had 31%, with 17% of voters unsure and 4% backing perennial candidate Chris Young. The primary is Sept. 11.

Ted Nesi ( tnesi@wpri.com ) covers politics and the economy for WPRI.com and writes the Nesi's Notes blog. Follow him on Twitter: @tednesi

Tim White ( twhite@wpri.com ) is the Target 12 investigative reporter for WPRI 12 and Fox Providence. Follow him on Twitter: @white_tim