Is Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee planning to change the name of the state’s capital city?

Chafee is in the news for insisting that the Christmas tree in the state capitol be renamed a “holiday tree,” apparently doing the Politically Correct Thing in the War on Christmas and trying not to offend with the Christian nature of the title.

But the tree renaming decision opens the door to another problem.

The capital city of Rhode Island, named by Founder Roger Williams is… ahhhh…”Providence.”

Providence? Yes. “Providence”… as in the description, found in any biographical sketch of Roger Williams, that says he “named his settlement Providence in thanks to God.” (Like this bio supplied by the Roger Williams Family Association)

Uh-oh.

Are there no Muslims in Providence or all of Rhode Island? No Buddhists? No Hindus? No Atheists? To have a state capital named Providence as a daily reminder of giving thanks to the Christian God is a tad more of a problem than that of an annual tree in the state capital, no?

So we have contacted Governor Chafee to see when he plans to support renaming Providence and what his choices might be. “Williams”? Or maybe “RogerThat”? We received a polite automatic thank you, but no word on the scandalous fact that the state capital is named quite specifically to thank the Father of Jesus Christ.

On the other hand, what would Lincoln Chafee do if he were Governor of Minnesota and worked in St. Paul?