I've got a cover story in this week's Phoenix on Colonel Brendan Doherty's nascent Congressional campaign. What struck me in reporting this piece - and I've touched on it some on the blog over the last couple of weeks - is the wildcard that is the GOP primary.

Doherty seems, on paper, to be the strongest candidate the Republican Party could nominate to take on Democratic Congressman David Cicilline.

Fascinating to watch the tone of the Providence Journal's coverage of the Providence fiscal crisis the last couple of days - and in particular its gloves-off treatment of former Providence Mayor-turned-Congressman David Cicilline, who is taking a beating over his past handling of city finances.

There were a couple of tough-minded pieces in yesterday's paper - one that had several officials essentially alleging a cover-up.

Conspicuously absent from today's ProJo coverage of John Simmons's ascension to the top job at the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council is any mention of the recent Fund for Providence issue. Buddy Cianci and Dan Yorke, who have used this topic to deem Simmons unfit for the RIPEC job, will no doubt focus more criticism on this development today.

The scene above is the Buddy stakeout last Friday outside the Old Canteen on Federal Hill. I use this as the jumping off point for my look at the Rhode Island icon's return to the local limelight.

Buddy Cianci was already making the media wait.

Last Friday, as he lunched with friends and family at Joe Marzilli’s Old Canteen on Federal Hill, Rhode Island’s rascal king still had another 11 hours or so under the jurisdiction of the US Bureau of Prisons, his keeper for the last four-plus years.