Rhode Island Politics - Discussion

[Blue3]

My fellow Rhode Islanders, and anyone who knows about RI politics, what do you think about RI politics right now? Not election-specific, but general discussion.

I was out of the state (in California) from September 2014 to July 2015, came back to a new Governor in Gina Raimondo... I know she had a very competitive election and lots of big promises... and I don't know a single thing that was done in the last legislative session and don't know what they have planned this session. And I've been *trying* to find out. Just a bunch of debate over a single toll bridge, and Pawsox Stadium... didn't the new Governor (and new Speaker too, for that matter) promise a lot of changes to help the economy and education? Has really nothing changed? Is there no one ambitious left (policy-wise, not in corruption, which we still apparently have plenty of)?

I have no idea who else to talk about this with, so I'm hoping for a good thread here.

[Blue3]

teeny tiny state in the NE that was governed by CHAFEE not being corrupt? LOL

But Chafee had no scandals.

Except that time talk radio turned him into the Grinch because he said "holiday tree" despite the two previous Republican governors saying the same thing.

That remains one of the most stupid "scandals" EVER.

Especially in the state founded by Roger Williams.



But anyways, what has Gina Raimonda and Speaker Mattiello actually done so far?

Disagree with Chafee and feel awkwardly bad for him all you want, but at least he had goals and tried to get them done, like passing gay marriage and changing policies to become more immigrant-friendly, and ideas on tax reform.

I remember Raimondo making big promises, especially on the affordability of college, but what has she even tried to do in her first year? When Mattiello became Speaker around the same time, he promised a lot of new economic development priorities. So what has been done on that? Etc.

[Blue3]

I wonder how the politicians will react to Cianci's death...

[Blue3]

Why does Rhode Island get made fun of for its size? Why don't they make fun of Connecticut, New Hampshire, or Vermont (which has an even smaller population) for being small?

If they are going to make fun of a state for being small, it should be Delaware. At least Rhode Island has its own distinct culture.

They're the geographically smallest state.

Thank you, Ric Olie.

[Blue3]

Chafee was a pretty trash Governor, ended extremely unpopular and did not run for re-election for that reason.

But I don't think it was really Chafee's fault. He was elected in a 4-way race, and RI was usually the #2 worst state in the country with its economy, and improving to now be around #10.

It could be a lot better, but the Governor of RI is pretty much powerless. He had an agenda but managed to get most of it done, including gay marriage and immigration reform. Which is more than Raimondo so far, who hasn't even proposed anything after a year.

It was that damn "Holiday Tree" "scandal" that hurt him the most. That and, as the 2016 primary debate showed, he's not the best PR spokesperson.

[Blue3]

RI House just passed Raimondo's Truck Toll plan.

http://m.providencejournal.com/news/20160210/ri-house-passes-raimondos-truck-toll-plan

What do you think about it?

I'm kind of indifferent, lean negative, but understand there's budget concerns. Very meh.



Anyone watch her State of the State?

[Blue3]

So... that new damn logo... huh? Ew? Wha...?





Or rather...




Also, Raimondo said she's open to legalizing marijuana, either on the ballot of by legislation.

[Blue3]

So, interesting primary results...

Is this the beginning of RI Democrats finally turning on the RI Democratic establishment?

Trump also has his biggest victory so far here, and probably his biggest margin of victory of the year.

[Blue3]

Yeah, it wasn't as big of a wave as I wanted... but change is finally happening.

[Blue3]

Rhode Island is a microcosm of the country this election... our coastal/educated/urban areas went for Hillary, and the rest for Trump.



As a RI Democrat, it's not surprising.

We're almost like a Rust-Belt state in the main cities, with lots of Catholic White Blue-Collar Workers (and some Hispanics), surrounded by suburban and rural Republican-leaning WASPs, and overall have an aging population with a lot of young adults of my generation moving out.

We have never really had progressive Democrats in charge... but the party machine is strong, with lots of DINOs, which is one of the only reasons why we're probably still so Democratic.

[Blue3]

Governor Gina Raimondo is proposing 2 years of free college for in-state students of good academic standing at any state college/university (which in RI means the 6 CCRI community college campuses, Rhode Island College, University of Rhode Island at its 3 campuses).

Finally a bold initiative with vision! That's been sorely missing from Raimondo so far. The cost of college was one of her big campaign issues too, so finally seeing some action, it's the biggest reason why I've been disappointed with her so far. Looking forward to seeing the details soon. I don't agree with her on everything, but I've gotten to meet her or see her at different things about a dozen times over the last seven years, and she's very intelligent, she just needs to focus on some bold initiatives and it's great to see her finally doing that and making RI one of the states leading the charge on an important issue in a good way, instead of lagging behind like usually.

http://www.providencejournal.com/news/20170115/ri-students-to-get-free-tuition-for-2-years-at-state-colleges-under-raimondo-budget--poll