Blog

After a week of touring 11 farmers’ markets around the state as part of my Buy Local RI initiative (www.buylocalri.org), I can say I’m duly impressed by the vast array of fruits and vegetables, dairy products, meat and seafood harvested here in Rhode Island.

Farmer’s markets across the state are succeeding at sustaining Rhode Island’s working farms and improving our quality of life. Farmers are now growing a greater...

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I’m happy to report another Buy Local RI (www.buylocalri.org) success story: Modulus Furniture in Pawtucket has entered into an agreement with Cardi’s Furniture, which plans to begin carrying Modulus products in all their stores by mid-September.

Last May as part of my Main Street tours of area small businesses, I visited the manufacturing site and showroom of Modulus—which specializes in stylish upholstered...

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As another element of my Buy Local RI (www.buylocalri.org) initiative, I’m kicking off a weeklong tour of Rhode Island farmers’ markets today at the Aquidneck Growers’ Market in Newport, the first of 10 markets I’ll visit.

We have an especially vibrant local market scene here in the summer, and farmers’ markets are a great way to sample our state’s harvest and support our independent farmers, whose numbers continue to grow—plus ensure that you’re getting the freshest products available. For a complete list of Rhode Island farmers markets and area restaurants using locally grown food, visit www.farmfresh.org.

I’m really looking forward to this—my family certainly will enjoy eating a lot of fresh corn and homemade pie with the peaches I plan to buy. My schedule is below, and I hope to see you at one of my stops. Buy Local RI!

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Today I’m thrilled to be launching an exciting new chapter in my Buy Local RI initiative to bolster our small businesses, the backbone of the state’s economy. We’re launching the Buy Local RI website and logo during a reception in the State House from 5 to 7 p.m., complete with food and drink from a wonderful array of local sponsors.

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I have been taking a few days off this week and, as I do every summer, enjoying Rhode Island as a vacation destination. We are so lucky to live here year-round, but it is summer most especially when Rhode Island’s natural beauty and all the activities right at our doorstep remind me how special our state is.

A hike with my friends Marlene and Maya in the Trustom Pond Wildlife Refuge, watching fledgling ospreys and monarch butterflies. Sitting down at Monahan’s Dock watching the sun come up in Narragansett. Taking Nora and her friend Rachel to Aunt Carrie’s for a lobster dinner (Rachel’s first time eating lobster!) and taking in Tom’s performances of "You Can’t Take it With You" at 2nd Story Theatre. It has been a delightful few days.

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Last week I chaired a panel on health care reform at the National Lieutenant Governors Association conference that featured Howard Dean, former DNC chair and governor of Vermont, and Douglas Holtz-Eakin, a Congressional Budget Office director and economic advisor to former President Bush.

As you might expect given their backgrounds, Dean and Holtz-Eakin had differing opinions on what national health care reform should look like.

Howard Dean passionately advocated for the Obama plan and making sure a public option is available; Holtz-Eakin does not believe a public option is the right way to go. Dean feels that expanding coverage needs to happen as a first step of reform; Holtz-Eakin thinks expanded coverage won’t matter if we don’t deal with cost controls first...

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I met with Office of Health and Human Services Secretary Gary Alexander and his staff yesterday for an update on the global Medicaid waiver, which is aimed at limiting spending on public health programs and adding flexibility in services through reform.

It’s clear the implementation of the global waiver will require focused and coordinated efforts on behalf of all the groups who rely on Medicaid for medical coverage, including children, adults with disabilities and those needing long-term care—Rhode Island’s most vulnerable populations...

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It was me! Last night I had the distinct honor of throwing out the first pitch at the Pawtucket Red Sox game. While I may not have been throwing 90-plus mph as PawSox pitcher Kristofer Johnson would later in the actual game, I did get it across home plate (the photo...

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