New Leaders Needed on the City Council
Party Doesn’t Matter. Platform Matters!
Recently, a candidate for City Council identified their political party in a post on this page. One commenter responded that the candidate had “lost my vote” based solely on that party affiliation.
It got me thinking about how we evaluate candidates for local office.
At the local level, I believe voters are better served by looking beyond party labels and asking a different question: What is this candidate’s platform? What specific ideas do they have to make our city more efficient, more transparent, and more affordable?
I will support anyone—Republican, Democrat, or Independent—who is willing to work toward reducing spending where possible, keeping property taxes under control, improving government efficiency, and making City Hall more transparent.
Warwick doesn’t have Republican potholes or Democratic tax bills. It has taxpayer issues that require practical solutions.
The City Council needs new leadership that is willing to pull back the curtain on how taxpayer dollars are being spent. Too much information is difficult for residents to obtain, making it harder for taxpayers to understand the true cost of operating our city and school system.
Before we ask taxpayers to pay more, we should first understand where every taxpayer dollar is going.
That means analyzing salaries, benefits, overtime, healthcare costs, staffing levels, departmental operations, and the actual cost of delivering police, fire, municipal, and school services. Good public policy starts with good information—not assumptions.
We also need better public access to that information.
Taxpayers deserve to know what services cost, how efficiently they are being delivered, and where opportunities exist to eliminate waste and improve operations. Only then can we have honest discussions about spending priorities, identify inefficiencies, and make informed decisions that protect taxpayers while maintaining the quality services our community depends on.
One of my goals is to establish a City Council Financial Review and Performance Audit Committee that will focus on long-term financial planning, evaluate departmental performance, and make recommendations to improve efficiency and accountability.
We cannot continue making one-year budget decisions without understanding their long-term impact on taxpayers.
As an Independent candidate, I’ll work with anyone who shares those goals because taxpayers deserve results—not political labels.
The question isn’t whether someone has an R, D, or I next to their name. The question is whether they’re willing to put taxpayers first.
Bob Cushman
Independent candidate
Ward 1 - Warwick City Council
