By Elizabeth Roberts on
12/18/2009 1:42 PM
We heard today that Rhode Island’s unemployment rate dropped to 12.7
percent in November, though our economy still lost jobs. While it’s
good news the rate dropped, clearly we have a way to go to a recovery.
What
struck me most this week were two different polls released that really
brought home the very human toll behind these numbers.
A New
York Times/CBS News poll indicated that half of those who had lost a
job had suffered from depression and/or anxiety. Job loss had an impact
beyond the jobholder: about 40 percent noticed behavior changes in
their children after the job loss. More than half borrowed money from friends or relatives to help them get by. More than half have cut back on medical treatment to save money.
Closer to home, a Brown poll showed that 75 percent of respondents had a friend or family member recently lose a job ...
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By Elizabeth Roberts on
12/8/2009 4:27 PM
I’m happy to report that Operation Holiday Cheer appears to have succeeded in its aim to spread good tidings to troops from Rhode Island serving overseas. My office has been hearing from a number of Rhode Islanders who’ve received the care packages that we collected donations for and shipped in mid-November.
Here’s an excerpt from one letter: “A huge THANK YOU for all of those excellent care packages!! They were filled with lots of great stuff, and really put some big smiles on a lot of faces out here! It really means a lot and we just can't thank you enough, or put into words how good it feels to be thought of, especially around the holidays when many of us are missing home the most. … GO PATRIOTS!”
It’s clear from the words and the photos they sent that it does mean so much that we are thinking of our troops who are serving their country at the holidays.
You can still show your support by ...
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By Elizabeth Roberts on
12/2/2009 5:18 PM
Last night we had a great campaign event in Edgewood, my neighborhood in Cranston, with about 150 in attendance. It was a wonderful way to cap several months of campaign house parties around the state, bringing together neighbors and friends all over Rhode Island. It’s great to be in the Edgewood/Pawtuxet Village area for an event near the holidays—a coming home of sorts for me. These are the people who have supported me since I first ran for State Senate back in 1996, and I wouldn’t be lieutenant governor today without them. They have helped form the backbone of my political support. It’s also a reminder of how close we all are as neighbors in Rhode Island, with our ...
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By Elizabeth Roberts on
11/24/2009 12:53 PM
This morning I began preparing for Thanksgiving. Like families
throughout Rhode Island, I am looking forward to my family gathering
around the dining room table, enjoying a meal and pausing to
acknowledge all that we have to be so thankful for.
I have spent a lot of this past year traveling around Rhode
Island and meeting small business people who are committed to our state
as part of Buy Local RI. Many of them are farmers, and I'm extending my thanks to them by serving my family a truly Rhode Island Thanksgiving.
My
turkey was raised at Pat's Pastured in Saunderstown; my potatoes,
courtesy of DEM director Mike Sullivan, who brought me potatoes grown
on his land; squash from Barden Farms in North Scituate and brussels
sprouts from Wishing Stone Farm in Little Compton; and finally, apples
for my pie from Hill Orchards in Johnston ...
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By Elizabeth Roberts on
11/19/2009 12:05 PM
On Friday, November 20, from 8 to 9:30 a.m., I will bring together members of the RI Office of Economic Recovery and Reinvestment and small business owners with the goal of making the federal stimulus easier to understand and access for our state’s small businesses.
As I’ve conducted Main Street tours in the past few months as part of my Buy Local RI initiative, I’ve talked with many small business owners who have questions about the federal stimulus package and how they can best take advantage of stimulus money available here in Rhode Island. This meeting will give them an opportunity to pose their questions about the stimulus directly to the state office charged with having the answers.
Businesses can find out about available stimulus funds for energy and transporation initiatives as well as ...
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By Elizabeth Roberts on
11/18/2009 10:47 AM
In under two weeks, on December 1, a federal subsidy that helps
unemployed Rhode Islanders keep their health insurance will expire. I
believe it’s incredibly important, at this time of high unemployment in
Rhode Island, for these residents to maintain their insurance, and
yesterday I sent a letter to our federal Congressional delegation
asking for their help in seeking an extension for these COBRA benefits.
From the letter:
I write to
encourage action on the expiring benefit for the continuation of
benefit coverage for the unemployed. Enacted as part of the American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the federal subsidy for COBRA coverage
has helped thousands of Rhode Islanders maintain their health coverage
during these very difficult economic times. As November draws to a close, hundreds of Rhode Islanders face the reality of losing their coverage as the nine months of subsidy is ending. For these ...
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By Elizabeth Roberts on
11/16/2009 10:50 AM
On Friday, I sent a letter to RI House and Senate leadership asking
them to override Gov. Carcieri’s veto of the bills that would allow a
domestic partner to make funeral arrangements for their partner. From
the letter:
It is a fundamental right in our society to
grieve for the loss of a loved one in a way that matches personal
beliefs and honors the deceased. Respect for rites of passage
surrounding death is one of the few instances in which there is
virtually universal acceptance of the principle that comfort and
compassion should be paramount. Nearly every facet of society, whether
governmental, commercial, or social, embraces and supports the need for
human beings to have self-determination in their expressions of
grieving. We now know that the laws of the State of Rhode Island are
out of sync with this societal need at least as it relates to domestic partners' ability to fulfill ...
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By Elizabeth Roberts on
11/12/2009 11:41 AM
In this week when we remember the service and sacrifice of our
country’s veterans, we have an opportunity to show our gratitude to
those from Rhode Island currently serving overseas in the form of
Operation Holiday Cheer. The annual program sends care packages to
troops from our state serving in other countries during the holidays.
This Saturday, November 14, is donation drop-off, and we’ll have
volunteers there from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the North Main Street Armory
(1051 N. Main St.) to take and sort your donations.
Items with a uniquely Rhode Island flavor are always big hits with the
troops, such as Del’s Lemonade mix, or coffee syrup to make our famous
coffee milk.
Other requested donations are: ground coffee, beef jerky, packaged
cookies, trail mix, nuts, hard candy, chewing gum, shaving cream (no
aerosol), dental hygiene products, foot powder, sunscreen, deodorant,
hand sanitizer ...
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By Elizabeth Roberts on
11/10/2009 2:02 PM
Yesterday morning I sat on a health care reform panel with Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse here in Rhode Island, and we both reflected on the momentous passage of the House health care reform bill over the weekend.
A major hurdle has been cleared—and although I hope the final version of health care reform that passes does not include the anti-choice amendment, Congress has now proven we are serious about making sure every American has access to health care coverage.
...
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By Elizabeth Roberts on
11/3/2009 10:40 AM
I’m excited to be launching a newly redesigned reelection campaign website today, a year before Election Day 2010. The site offers a bright, easy-to-navigate format, more photos, ways to share information with your friends and with me, and more opportunities to follow my campaign for reelection as lieutenant governor.
My campaign will be grassroots-focused, with captains from each of the state’s 39 cities and towns helping to lead my effort. The Web makes open, grassroots...
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