Clinton appeared Friday afternoon at the Rhode Island College Rec Center.

“Gina has a plan to put people to work, she knows how to do it, and has done it in the past,” said the former first lady. “The future of Rhode Island’s middle class depends on who is elected as your next governor, you have one of the best choices in the country.”

“It’s great to be back in Rhode Island,” Clinton said. She smiled and added, “ Rhode Island has been good to me and to my husband over the years, you’ve always stood with me.” She also made reference to her many trips to Rhode Island when she spoke of friend and Democratic candidate for treasurer Seth Magaziner.

Prior to Clinton’s 22-minute speech, Raimondo told the audience, “I will be the governor that turns the economy in Rhode Island around.”

When introducing Clinton, Raimondo said, “She’s done it all – although not everything, yet.” The room exploded into cheers for Hillary. In her speech Raimondo committed to raising the minimum wage in Rhode Island to $10.10 an hour, and promoted her jobs plan.

Michael Sabitoni, president of the Rhode Island Building and Construction Trades Council, kicked off the rally. “We supported Gina in the primary, and we will support her as our next governor.” The Rhode Island Building and Construction Trades Council is a union made up of 8,500 tradesman and women in Rhode Island.

Senator Jack Reed, who is running for reelection, introduced candidate Raimondo. He told the crowd that “If you work hard and play by the rules you should have a shot at the American dream.” He said Raimondo was a proven leader and the best choice for Governor.

It is estimated that 1,100 people attended the rally to see Clinton. Before the event, a high dollar meet-and-greet with noted democratic donors took place, in support of Raimondo.

Political endorsements ain’t what they used to be. If Donald Trump can issue endorsements and have people take them seriously, I figured…what the heck?

Herewith, my endorsements (i.e., people for whom I will vote) for select state-wide and GA races. I also add some one-liners at the end for GA candidates in districts other than my own. Unsurprisingly, virtually all endorsements are for the Democratic primary on September 9, 2014, which everybody knows is far more important than the general election in November.

Note: These endorsements solely represent my own opinion. They in no way represent the opinion of RI Future or its owners, editors and other contributors.

Angel Taveras for Governor

Typically, that right there is empty political blather, but if you’ve been around Providence over the past four years, you know it’s 100% real.Unlike the Providence mayoral primary, there is a real upside to getting the right Democratic candidate here, and a real downside to getting the wrong one. As mayor, Angel Taveras has proven himself a strong leader who can make the hard decisions.

Taveras inherited an absolute financial disaster, far worse than anybody in the campaign expected. The $110mm structural deficit stunned everybody. But Taveras made several crucial moves that let him and the city council craft a path back to stability. Specifically, he negotiated tough pension and union contract reforms by putting himself in the position of being the first to sacrifice.

That is, HE AND HIS OFFICE were first in line for the haircuts. There was not a lot that the other departments could do except take their hats off and sit down in the barber’s chair. As a result, the deal stuck, and the city could move on to other important issues.

Gina Raimondo, by contrast, has proven a disaster as treasurer. Her pension reform, so wildly applauded by the Wall Street Journal and other business allies, has spun out of control. It was so badly constructed that multiple rounds of mediation could not stop aggrieved pensioners from litigating.

It is the height of hypocrisy to claim that Raimondo created a pension deal. THERE IS NO DEAL.

This is what happens when a person accustomed to giving orders needs to work with others as co-equals (as Taveras did). Business people—that is, BOSSES—make for poor public servants. A good executive in the private sector makes a bad executive in the public sector.

In the nightmare scenario of a Raimondo administration, we should brace ourselves for ongoing class warfare. And because the state will remain mired in this conflict, we will not be able to address the actual issues facing us, like healing the economy and the ecology.

That connection between economy and ecology was front-and-center at Greg Gerritt‘s 60th birthday party / one-day conference last October. Somewhere around 100 practitioners, educators and activists that work in the “econo-logical industries,” if you will, convened at the Pawtucket Armory to learn and share.

Both Raimondo and Taveras dropped by, even though neither was a declared candidate. Later, I asked around about Raimondo…”Why is a venture capitalist speaking to a bunch of socialists? Does she have roots in this community?”

The answer I got was basically unanimous:

She’s laying down Astro-turf. She’s a 1-percenter. I don’t trust her.

Now she’s claiming herself to be a progressive. I ain’t buying’ it.

On Clay Pell…who is this guy? I personally find it insulting that some scion of the power class who married a minor celebrity feels he can waltz in from the federal structure and instantly be an effective governor. How about you put in a term in the GA and let people get to know you a little?

Jorge Elorza for Mayor of Providence

Where the governor’s race could have catastrophic consequences should the forces of light and goodness not prevail, the race for mayor of Providence fills me with hope for the future. Each of the three major candidates brings strong credentials and will likely make a good mayor.

I endorse Jorge Elorza for two reasons. First, I believe that more newcomers in office is exactly what Providence needs. (Although, it may prove unfortunate to lose Michael Solomon’s experience and leadership on the city council.) And while he’s new to elected office, he is not a newcomer to the city or the state. He has built a strong campaign team, attracting the kind of young leaders that can continue the work that Taveras has started.

More importantly, I endorse Elorza because his life experience better prepares him to deal with a troubling increase in violence, particularly on the South Side. Elorza grew up in a tough place going through tough times, and he prevailed where many of his peers did not. His performance at the Institute for the Study and Practice of Nonviolence candidate’s forum drove this home.

As a native of this city’s West End neighborhood who speaks fluent, near-native Spanish but also holds a law degree and has worked within the justice apparatus, Elorza is best-positioned to work with law enforcement and community groups to bring down the level of tension and violence.

Aaron Regunberg for RI House of Reps, District 4

This is my district, and it has seen some very difficult days, at least politically. The growing distrust in Gordon Fox exploded after his stunning failures in the 2010 and 2011 sessions, enabling Mark Binder to nearly beat him in 2012.

The FBI were nice enough to prove out our distrust by raiding then-Speaker Fox’s home and offices. Well, you know the story.

This race for the open seat illustrates the important choice Rhode Islanders face. Do we want true progressive reform or do we want yet more half-hearted and easily co-opted alleged liberals? Readers know my answer to that and should rightly expected this endorsement. Aaron Regunberg, it the tradition of David Segal and Chris Blazejewski, is bright, young, eager and committed.

Unlike the other two candidates, he has built strong connections with young people and communities of color. As a founder of the Providence Student Union, he has helped students at Hope High fend off the worst of the corporatist educational “reforms” touted by the other two candidates.

Miriam Ross seems a female version of Gordon Fox: a business-oriented lawyer ready to cater to the already powerful at the expense of the less-fortunate.

Heather Tow-Yick isa product of Teach for America, the epitome of wrong-headed educational reform. TfA works from the assumption that poor performance in inner-city schools comes from poorly-trained teachers and not from the OBVIOUS, GLARING INEQUITIES opportunity and support that burden the students that struggle the most.

If you’re a progressive, this one is a no-brainer.

Gayle Goldin for RI Senate, District 3

Again, my district, and again, a no-brainer. Goldin is a US immigrant, who learned English as a second language. She has worked her entire career in social service non-profits, primarily in the areas of health and wellness for children, women and the disadvantaged.

Her opponent, Chris Wall, is among the power elites. A former TV news talker, he’s worked as press secretary for a state cabinet officer and sells real estate in a major way. He’s all about the business and comes off like a jock.

I’m sure that TPV would prefer dude-bro in her chamber rather than Ms. Goldin. For that reason alone, it must be Gayle in Senate 3.

One-Line Endorsements

Each person listed below is a first-time candidate at the state level. I can’t cast a ballot for any of these folks, but if I could, I’d elect:

David Fasteson, Senate 22—Good guy and hardest-working first time candidate EVAH vs. ex-cop and political repeat offender. (Sierra Club got this one wrong!)

Jennifer Siciliano, House 22—Woonsocket city planner with genuine progressive cred vs. scion of the power elite who’s only ever worked for the GA.

Doris De los Santos, Senate 7—Latina policy wonk vs. old, white lawyer who’s run unopposed more than he’s faced challengers in his six terms.

Margaux Morisseau, Senate 21—Woonsocket non-profit leader with genuine progressive cred vs. A REPUBLICAN!

Shelby Maldonado, House 56—New CF vs old CF…’nuff said.

Carlos Tobon, House 58—Not the most progressive Democrat vs. incumbent that often fails to vote and voted against marriage equality

Note: The second and third paragraphs in the section on Jorge Elorza were inverted in the original version. The author corrected the error approximately 6pm on the day of publication.

Perhaps the surprise story of the campaign so far has been the amount of union support Raimondo has garnered. She’s been endorsed by 9 labor unions and Taveras only 3.

Given the candidates’ very different reputations on pension reforms one may expect this skew to be the other way around. But the things to keep in mind here is that all of Raimondo’s backing comes from private sector unions and two of Taveras’ endorsements come from public sector unions. While this might not be a clear referendum on pension policy, it goes a long way to refuting the myth of the unified labor movement in the Ocean State.

Here’s a comparison of the city and town committees who have endorsed either Raimondo or Taveras so far:

Raimondo has captured more city and town Democratic committees than Taveras. But there’s also something interesting about where the endorsements are coming from: Raimondo, who has 8* town committees so far (no cities) seems to be attracting the suburban endorsements while Taveras is attracting more urban support, with 7 cities and towns. There’s a practical difference here: the 9 towns (no cities yet) in the Raimondo column only have a combined population of 102,329. The seven city and town committees that gave their support to Taveras have a total population of 362,468.

On the other hand, a municipal committee endorsement certainly does not guarantee the support of party members. For example, the East Greenwich Dems have about as much political juice as the local animal protection league. And while Taveras may have won the endorsement of the Providence Democratic Committee, three Democrats on the City Council are supporting Raimondo: Davian Sanchez, Louis Aponte and Sabina Matos.

When it comes from endorsements of state legislators, it isn’t even close. With endorsements from 9 of 32 Senate Democrats and 24 of the 69 House Dems, Taveras already has significant chunks of both chambers on lock down. Raimondo only has three legislative endorsements so far.

Another interesting comparison of former politicians who have endorsed so far. Make of this what you will:

* This post has been updated to reflect new information from the Raimondo campaign, namely that the Cumberland Democratic Party has also endorsed her.

“For the past three and a half years our committee has been witness to the Mayor’s tireless efforts on behalf of our city,” said state Senator said Maryellen Goodwin, the committee chairwoman. Goodwin works in City Hall for the planning department and served as Taveras’ acting chief of staff after Matt Jerzyk and Arianne Lynch left his administration.

“He has been honest, straightforward and has worked to bring people together and build consensus in order to put Providence on the right path. Providence’s Road Improvement Project which began last year and invests $40 million to pave over 60 miles of road in our Capital City is a tangible example of this,” she said. “We know these are values he will bring with him to the State House and could not be happier to offer him our endorsement in the race for Governor.”

Providence is the sixth town/city Democratic committee to endorse Taveras. Previously, he was backed by the Democratic town committees from Pawtucket, Smithfield, North Kingstown, Coventry and Hopkinton. He has also won the endorsement of 9 state senators and 24 House members, listed below.

• Senator Elizabeth Crowley,
• Senator Daniel Da Ponte,
• Senator James E. Doyle II,
• Senator Gayle Goldin,
• Senator Maryellen Goodwin,
• Senator Roger Picard,
• Senator Juan Pichardo,
• Senator Leonidas Raptakis,
• Senator Adam Satchell,
• Representative Marvin Abney,
• Representative Joseph Almeida,
• Representative Gregg Amore,
• Representative David Bennett,
• Representative Stephen Casey,
• Representative Robert Craven Sr.,
• Representative John DeSimone,
• Representative John Edwards,
• Representative Deborah Fellela,
• Representative Frank Ferri,
• Representative Scott Guthrie,
• Representative Ray Johnston,
• Representative Katherine Kazarian,
• Representative James McLaughlin,
• Representative Helio Melo,
• Representative Mary Messier,
• Representative Michael Morin,
• Representative Tom Palangio,
• Representative Patricia Serpa,
• Representative Agostinho Silva,
• Representative Scott Slater,
• Representative Lisa Tomasso,
• Representative Larry Valencia,
• Representative Donna Walsh,

“This represents a watershed moment in Rhode Island politics,” Marion said in a press release, “and we are proud to have facilitated this historic agreement and want to thank the campaigns of the three major Democratic candidates for working together to get this agreement done.”

The agreement signed by Clay Pell, Gina Raimondo and Angel Taveras applies only to the Democratic primary and says a candidate will pay the cost of a third-party negative advertising about an opponent, or third-party positive advertising about themselves. It does not cover direct mail or canvassing, as Raimondo’s team had suggested.

You can rad the full agreement here: Rhode Island People’s Pledge. And learn more on Common Cause RI’s website. Also, check out our full coverage of this issue, going back to September 2013, when contributor Sam Howard suggested it in a post titled “Blood primary or People’s Pledge.”

Marion said he initially invited Republican candidates for governor to sign the pledge too, but he did not hear back from them. He hopes a similar agreement can be made for the general election between both parties.

On Saturday night, at the Rosario Society in Providence, close to 200 people packed the hall to support NAMI RI at the non-profit, community-based mental health support organization’s first annual “Pasta Gala” fundraiser. As NAMI RI’s newly recruited, pro-bono government relations coordinator and communications consultant, I did my best to spread the word and, with a fantastic collaborative effort amongst members of the Board, the event hall was overbooked. And thank goodness for that. NAMI RI was recently written out of the Governor’s FY 15 budget proposal. Without the funding from BHDDH, this vital education, outreach, counseling and crisis response organization would not be able to survive.

The event was well publicized through social media, press release, letters and emails of invitation and word of mouth. It was packed. Senator Frank Ciccone, a stalwart ally from the beginning, was in attendance. Candidate for General Treasurer, Seth Magaziner, was there too. Representative John Carnevale, who has been a strong supporter of the organization’s efforts to secure necessary appropriations, was only unable to attend because he was forced to ride the train back from Boston due to the car in which he was supposed to ride being (it’s funny, but it’s not) stolen.

However, it was Clay Pell, along with his effervescent wife, Michelle Kwan, who were truly present in their support of NAMI RI.

I had contacted Clay when seeking a public figure to say a few words during the speaking program portion of the evening. There had, unfortunately, been some miscommunication as to who would be securing a person of political influence to fill that slot. At an organizational meeting on the Monday prior to the event all eyes fell on me and the question was asked, much to my surprise, “So, who will be speaking?” Rather than stumble through an argument or make an excuse, I did what any good consultant would and diverted by smiling and  confidently saying, “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it.”

And I shuffled furiously through my i-rolodex. And I reached out to Clay Pell.

Within hours I heard back from the man himself, saying he would very much like to attend but, given the Easter holiday as well as other family obligations (the passing of his grandmother, Nuala Pell) he would have to check with his scheduler. And, yet, in spite of these very valid and personal concerns, Clay followed up by asking what time he should appear, how long he should speak and how many people were expected to attend?

Having worked with a number of candidates for political office, I know the routine all too well: make an appearance, shake as many hands as possible, pose for some photo ops, hand out business cards and then make a quick exit to repeat the process at the next event. But not Clay and Michelle. They spent time at the door, engaging anyone who wished to speak with them. They perused the silent auction and the raffle. When he was called, Clay spoke briefly about the organization and it’s importance and made mention of a close friend who had struggled with mental illness. Instead of making a beeline for the exit after the applause had dwindled, he sat back down next to Michelle and took his wife’s hand while they both  listened to the stories told by those affected by mental illness. Given the amount of time I spend with candidates and elected officials, such a moment felt surreal in its humanity. Clay wasn’t there for himself. He wasn’t there for his campaign. Clay and Michelle were there for the cause. There was selflessness, vulnerability and a depth of humanity to Clay Pell that, if it was only for show, deserves an Academy Award for a brilliant performance. But I, for one, think it was absolutely genuine.

And, in all likelihood, it is this very same depth of character and level of humanity that is the gubernatorial candidate’s Achilles’ heel. Clay has taken a bit of a beating with the press. Due to his reluctance to pander to local media’s overwhelming appetite for a never ending feast of content, those in media have seen fit to punish him by tongue-in-cheek coverage of his stolen Prius. They have filled the void of no controversy with speculation and fluff. One local, political opinion surmised that Pell had a very short time to introduce himself to Rhode Island’s voters and earn their trust. I beg to differ. I see Pell only having to avoid earning their distrust.

He and Michelle stayed to the very end. On a holiday weekend, in the midst of the Pell family  (and the state) mourning the passing of his grandmother, Nuala, he took the time to support and learn from a few hundred people fighting to raise a few thousand dollars to keep from closing the doors of an organization that saved their lives and gave them hope. The Pells spoke with anyone who approached them and Clay didn’t just glad hand the crowd. Rather, he listened – truly listened – to each and every guest with whom he engaged. Some just wanted a photo with the man. Others just wanted a photo with his gold medal Olympian wife. But both stayed, even after the last balloons had been handed off to willing takers, and listened to the concerns of the non-profit, mental health community.

There were no members of the press present.

Gina Raimondo stood alone in saying Rhode Island’s remarkably successful healthcare exchange should be scaled back, specifically saying the consumer services built in may have to be scaled back:

Angel Taveras said funding the exchange would be a top budget priority of his, if he is elected governor:

Clay Pell said he would be “absolutely committed to funding it.”

And Todd Giroux said we should start paying for the exchange by not paying the 38 Studios loan.

When Ian Donnis reported on this, he suggested Raimondo “was a little more specific” than the other candidates. Or maybe she’s just the only one who wants to scale it down?

Below is the full six minute segment on the health exchange and you can watch the entire Economic Progress Institute governor’s forum here.

Providence Mayor Angel Taveras said he wants Rhode Island to have the best schools in the nation and make the Ocean State and “example for opportunity.” General Treasurer Gina Raimondo called income inequality “biggest problem facing our state” and said the social safety net is “an investment in our future” rather than an act of charity. Todd Giroux said he’d create a $1 billion commerce fund and wants to make workers’ comp available to day laborers.

But arguably the best line of the evening belonged to Clay Pell, who brought down the house when he said: “I’m a Democrat. I believe people who earn more should pay more.”

Pell was also the only one to pledge to fully fund the Open Doors plan to end homelessness in Rhode Island. He may have laid out the most progressive messaging of the evening, but also drew sharp attention to his privileged upbringing when he said, “for too long in Rhode Island it’s been who you know not what you know.” Minutes earlier in his opening remarks, he name dropped his grandfather and namesake’s signature college aid grant program.

Taveras leaned heavily on his biography, at least twice recalling his formative years living in affordable housing and being a “Headstart baby.” Substantively, he said Rhode Island could boast the best education system in the country, and that he wants to make Rhode Island a national “example for opportunity.”

If any news was made at the Economic Progress Institute’s governor’s candidate forum, it was that Raimondo said she would dismantle the parts of Rhode Island’s health care exchange that link people with other social services to help offset the cost when federal funding runs out. She also said “income inequality is the single biggest problem facing our state and in fact our country.”  Here’s how she said she would address income inequality:

Todd Giroux plays the part of the everyman political outsider. He was the only candidate on stage who didn’t got to Harvard and who has actually worked in the Rhode Island economy – they both sounds like nice attributes in a candidate but neither will likely garner him any political support.

Gina Raimondo’s campaign manager, Eric Hyers, tells Phil Marcelo of the Providence Journal:

“This $60 million figure we’re talking about? To put it in context, we’re talking about 0.7 percent of the budget. What is more important than building schools that are new, safe, modern and help kids learn?”

Eric’s experience is in federal campaigns, so we can excuse the fact that he is obviously unfamiliar with the ferocity of fights at the State House over far less money than this. So here is a helpful list for him to consider of things that people might consider to be as important as building new schools:

Again, Eric’s strong suit is not the state budget, so here are some suggestions he could recommend for paying for this new expense. Some people would even consider items in this list to represent waste. Maybe he’ll mention them to Gina.

• Establishing combined reporting would raise about the right amount of money from big corporations doing business in Rhode Island. And
• According to last fall’s report, we pay $45 million to only 18 hedge funds to manage pension funds, out of $70 million in fees annually.
• According to my calculations, going back to the income tax rates of, say, 1996 would raise around $100 million per year.
• State tax credits (film and historic) waste tens of millions of dollars each year, money that goes to cutting the taxes of a rich person or corporation without any public benefit.

The last one there deserves special attention. When the historic tax credit program was ended a few years ago, our state borrowed money to repay those credits. The total amount borrowed was $150 million. Given the way the tax credits work, around $30-40 million of that was borrowed only to lower the taxes of people who had bought tax credits. That is, we borrowed to make a tax cut. If that’s not waste worth cutting out of state government, what is?

However Angel Taveras, Clay Pell and Gina Raimondo all have different ideas on how to do that. Click on each candidates name in the previous sentence to read their proposals.

“With all three major Democratic candidates having submitted draft Pledges, now is time to get them to agree on the details,” said Common Cause RI Executive Director John Marion, who first suggested the idea and brought the three candidates to the table (and not even figuratively!). “All sides agree they want to conclude this process soon so that they can shift their focus to the campaigns, so I’m optimistic we’ll see progress at tomorrow’s meeting.”

Here’s the Providence Journal article from earlier today.

And click here to check out RI Future’s full coverage of the RI People’s Pledge.