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Chafee shakes up communications team after early defeats

WPRI.COM

Ted Nesi

Updated: Aug 5, 2011 3:42 PM

Christine Hunsinger

Governor Chafee made some key changes to his team this morning, in a sign the administration is rejiggering its approach to outreach after a sometimes difficult first eight months.

The big news is the departure of Mike Trainor, who became Chafee’s director of communications and top spokesman after serving as his campaign manager last fall. Trainor, who has been on vacation since last week, is moving over to the Office of Higher Education’s communications shop.

It’s no secret Chafee’s team has sometimes struggled with messaging in its early months, starting with the talk-radio ban. At times the governor was MIA during major policy debates this spring, and his hallmark sales tax proposal went down in flames in the face of nearly unanimous opposition led by the Projo. The independent is often overshadowed by Treasurer Gina Raimondo and Providence Mayor Angel Taveras, two new faces.

At the same time, it would be unfair to pin the blame for all that on Trainor alone. The governor’s vaunted candor doesn’t always make his job easier, and there’s only so much a communications team can do in support of an unpopular policy. But in politics, somebody has to take the fall.

Christine Hunsinger, who was the Moderate Party’s executive director and a key aide to its gubernatorial candidate Ken Block last year, is taking over Trainor’s job. She had been Chafee’s director of legislative affairs, and has a bachelor’s from Saint Anselm and a master’s from Brown.

Christian Vareika, who had been Trainor’s deputy, will play the same role with Hunsinger, while Brian Daniels, Chafee’s smart director of policy, will add Hunsinger’s old legislative affairs job to his portfolio.

“We’re about six months into the administration, post-legislative session, and did a standard customary staff review,” Pat Rogers, the governor’s chief of staff, told WPRI.com. “The governor thought we’d make some adjustments heading into the fall.”

No other major changes to Chafee’s staff are planned at this time, Rogers said.

Rogers said Chafee is confident with his remaining staff, which also includes adviser Stephen Hourahan, a communications specialist himself. ”The governor is pleased with his communications department and thinks that adding Christine to it is going to be good and is going to position him well for the fall,” he said.

Update: I reached Trainor by phone and asked if he was upset or felt he had been pushed out, and he said: “Not at all. No.”

“I’m looking forward to working with the Board of Governors and I’m very delighted at the transition,” he said.

(photo: Facebook)

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