DEBATE: Lt Governor - Matos/Loughlin

WEBVTT
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This is the Bartholomew Town and WPRO, Rhode Island Lieutenant Gubernatorial Forum.
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Here's your moderator, Bill Bartholomew.
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This is the Bartholomew Town WPRO debate for Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island.
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I'm Bill Bartholomew, our candidates, incumbent Lieutenant Governor's Democrat Sabina Matos, and Challenger, Republican John Laughlin, will begin with this will give you guys a chance to introduce yourselves as well.
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And the Lieutenant Governor, let's talk about this from the standpoint of the reality is you can become governor.
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So with that in mind, John Laughlin, are you ready to be governor?
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Absolutely.
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I know I've got the experience, I've got the leadership capabilities.
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I worked for the space program.
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I understand how to solve complex problems and to do them efficiently, transparently, and openly.
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And I also was a state representative for three terms, the last of which in leadership.
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So I understand state government.
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I have the leadership capabilities and traits necessary to be able to lead on day one.
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Lieutenant Governor Mantos, are you ready to be governor?
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Yes, I'm ready.
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I have the experience of being serving in the Providence City Council for over 10 years, working on budgets that had millions, millions of dollars as part of the budget, working in deals uh with private um investors, bro working with the labor movement, so I understand what it takes to get things done.
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I have that experience of being in the local government, but also I have been serving in the in the role of lieutenant governor for over five five years.
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I have had the opportunity to work with the different directors of different agencies, so I'm ready to take on.
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Alright, sticking with you, Lieutenant Governor, your opponent, John Laughlin, is he qualified to be governor?
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I believe that he's qualified.
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I just don't believe that he's who we need right now.
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Right now, at this moment, with everything that is coming down from Washington, all of the policies that Donald Trump is is sending and affecting our in our community when when it comes to immigration, when it comes to the cuts that he's doing to the different departments, to the uh DHS, to uh SNAP.
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So right now we don't need anyone that is gonna be uh uh apologist for Donald Trump in government here in the state of Rhode Island.
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We'll get to that in just a moment.
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Mr.
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Laughlin, uh Lieutenant Governor Matos, is she ready to serve as governor?
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She has been serving as Lieutenant Governor for the last five years.
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I think I'm imminently more qualified.
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I'm imminently more ready to lead.
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And I have uh the the case of having actually led in very, very difficult circumstances.
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Uh you know, it's easy to blame the administration in Washington, uh, but our problems are homegrown.
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We've had the worst roads and bridges for ten years.
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We had a computer program.
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Remember UHIP?
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$35 million ended up costing us half a billion because of state incompetence.
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And we still couldn't get the W-2s right.
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Uh we've had the worst business climate from CNBC for as long as I can remember, and the worst place to start a new business.
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Those problems didn't come from some campaign rally.
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And if you're you know if you're that interested and that concerned about stopping the administration, perhaps you should run for federal office.
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Well, let me ask you this in terms of just the the question of is Ms.
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Matos already she would be qualified to serve as governor.
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Absolutely.
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Okay.
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Sticking with you, Mr.
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Laughlin, which challenge, there's so many that we could talk about, but which challenge that Rhode Island faces, are you uniquely qualified to solve as Lieutenant Governor?
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That's a great question.
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And you know, I think uh and I've said this many times on the campaign trail and uh and obviously in previous forums, uh we've got to get our energy costs under control because it's foundational to everything we try to do as a state.
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Uh whether it's developing new business, whether it's it's helping homeowners pay for their electric bills, whether it's you know, we're seeing record shutoffs because of the high rates.
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And so energy has been foundational.
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Uh, and there are two main thrusts or two points of effort, as I like to call it, uh, on the energy front.
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One of them is our electric utilities, the other is our gas utilities.
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On the electric front, we can literally cut almost 50% off of our electric bills tomorrow.
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Right now, there are five programs that are inside our electric bill that have nothing to do, no nothing, zero, to do with the production and distribution of electricity.
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If those programs are deemed worthy, then they need to be packaged as separate bills, run through the committee process in the House and Senate, debated on the floor, and either passed or signed or vetoed by the governor.
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They don't belong on the electric bill.
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It's that simple.
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And then if you want to talk about gas, uh right now we have literally two Saudi Arabias sitting 300 miles away from us in the Marcella Shale basin.
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We get our gas in times of peak difficulty from Trinidad and Tobago in the form of liquefied natural gas.
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We are paying$10.30 or$10.50 a decatherm.
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Domestic energy costs$3.10 a decatherm.
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So we could cut gas bills by literally two-thirds by just some common sense uh policies.
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Mora Healy has proposed the RARE pipeline.
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Don't ask me what the acronym stands for.
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It's like reliability, excess, I don't know what it is.
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But the RARE pipeline would literally cut$40 million off of our electric.
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And she was someone who was an opponent of gas pipelines for a very, very long time.
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So if we get our house in order, the other thing, too, oh, one more thing, and you talked about federal issues.
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I think we need to lobby our federal government to either repeal or significantly modify the Jones Act so that at least if we're going to be reliant on liquefied natural gas, we can get it from domestic sources.
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So as Lieutenant Governor, and certainly we'll get to you in just a moment, uh, Lieutenant Governor Matos, but as Lieutenant Governor, how within your purview, if elected, how would you be able to enact that vision?
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Aaron Powell The same way that we were able after a May 12th press conference to go to the General Assembly after 20 years of thinking about it in providing Rhode Island with an inspector general through the power of communication, through the power of rhetoric, and frankly through the power of facts.
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These are facts.
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You know, the electric grid runs on physics, not politics.
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It's time to get the politics out of the electric grid.
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Ms.
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Matos, to that end, which issue or uh priority are you uniquely qualified to address as Lieutenant Governor?
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Well, I have proven that I can use the office effectively to defend the people of the state of Rhode Island.
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I have taken on the challenges of greedy corporations that have been taking advantage of the residents of Rhode Island, leaving communities without access to fresh food and just because they want to uh put more money in their pocket.
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They leave a community that they believe is not good enough for them, but they're not letting anybody else go in there and open a grocery store and bring those resources that that community needs.
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I have proven that the office of lieutenant governor can be used effectively to fight a big corporation, not back down.
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When I started this conversation and this fight, people told me, You're crazy.
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You're not gonna take on the fight of um fighting a big corporation like that and you're not gonna win.
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But guess what?
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We did.
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We fought and we won that battle.
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And beyond that, I'm working to ensure that capitalism works for more people.
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Here in the state of Rhode Island, we see people suffering, we see people complaining and we talk a lot about socialism.
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Let me tell you what happened.
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People are frustrated because they feel that they don't they cannot get ahead.
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They cannot get ahead because right now capitalism has been the same thing as monopoly.
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And we have to make sure that capitalism works for more people so people feel that there's hope for them.
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My opponent and I have very different views on how we see things with the energy.
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I believe that the energy bills are so expensive because Donald Trump has us right now in this war with Iran.
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This those are the reasons why.
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And also, I believe that we should have a plan, like a percentage of income payment, which other states already have.
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This is not a socialism uh thing.
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This is something that other states already had.
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Some purple states like Illinois had this program already, and this is the way how we can help alleviate uh those people that are in a low income that are having a hard time right now trying to pay their bills.
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So just to be clear, if I could, you're you're not in favor of reducing electric bills at all, and you want to add three to ten percent more with percentage of income payment plans.
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Is that what is that what you're saying?
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What I'm telling you is if Donald Trump will stop the war right now It has nothing to do with domestic energy.
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Zero.
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It does have zero.
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It does have I can prove it.
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Would you like me to prove it?
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It does imp if you want to prove it, your argument but I can tell you.
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Let me finish my thought.
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When you go to the um pumps right now and you're trying to um and you go to to pump gas in your car, you see those prices going up every day more.
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And that is a direct correlation to Donald Trump's work.
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Well, Lieutenant Governor, with all due respect, the price at the gas pump has nothing to do with the production and distribution of electricity or natural gas.
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Natural gas and gasoline are completely different things.
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And as far as the war, I can prove that the war has had no effect on natural gas prices.
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PPL, the parent company of Rhode Island Energy, it's Pennsylvania Power and Light, operates a national gas plant in eastern Kentucky.
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At the outbreak of the war, they were paying$3 a decatherm for domestic natural gas.
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Now they're paying$3.10 for domestic natural gas.
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Gasoline and natural gas are two completely different things.
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So with that, but that we put it in the past.
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I don't understand why my opponent is so uh defendant of Rhode Island Energy and the their patent company.
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You seem to be an advocate for them.
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I know you had them in your um ad talking about how they are a good company, but you have to talk about also how they're affecting right now the Rhode Islanders at this moment.
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Because of the policies of your party and the General Assembly that have packed electric bills with fees that have nothing to do with it.
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And I can prove that as well.
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Look at Clear River Energy, which serves PASCO.
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Clear River Energy was exempted from all the all of the General Assembly mandates.
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As a result, we're talking about act on climate mandates here.
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As a result, their electric prices are half of what Rhode Island Energy is charging.
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But Block Island is is using all the natural renewable energy, and their fee is not as high as you are trying to do.
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Block Island pays 40 cents a kilowatt hour.
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That's the highest in the state, maybe even the highest in the nation.
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Barrowville, served by Clear River, pays 17 cents.
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That's a clear example of how your renewables are not going to bring down prices.
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And if you implement my policies and you compel Rhode Island Energy to purchase the cheapest energy available, then what you will find is we'll be buying a lot of wind and solar, won't we?
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Because that'll be the cheapest energy available.
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But it's a part-time resource.
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It's not full-time continuous duty baseload power and never will be.
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Bill, as long as we're depending on the energy that is coming from other sources and we're not building energy locally here, renewable energy, the prices are going to continue to go up.
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This is a decision that we have to make to stick to our commitment to climate change renewable energies, because eventually this is how we're gonna free ourselves from the prices going up whenever Donald Trump wants to start an another war.
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And I think we demonstrated that they're not.
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Well, let's stand thread of the greedy corporations though for a second.
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That's an extra I want to go to.
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It does sound like we have a uh an agreement on affordability here, no doubt.
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But but how that's packaged up?
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I mean, you're you're calling out Rhode Island Energy.
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What structural changes need to happen for affordability to be something that is once again shared by most Rhode Islanders?
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As I said, it's very simple.
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Remove the General Assembly mandates from Rhode Island Energy the same way that you exempted Clear River, you cut your energy bills in half.
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It's that simple.
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How would you do that as Lieutenant Governor?
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You propose legislation, you use the power of the bully pulpit, and you force the issue, just like we did to get the inspector general.
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So my question, he used to be in the General Assembly.
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How come he didn't get it done when he was in the General Assembly?
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Because we weren't paying the outrageous amounts of electricity that we're paying now.
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Sorry, but they weren't that high.
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I disagree with that.
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Okay.
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So again, so so energy is no doubt it's a it's a major tenant of affordability.
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And it sounds like you both have different ideas here, but it just in terms of the purview of the office, for people who are hearing this right now, day one of either your continuation as Lieutenant Governor or a new lieutenant governorship under you, Mr.
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Laughlin.
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What can you do right now to bring down the price of electricity day one if you were sworn in 60 seconds each, Ms.
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Matos?
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What we have been doing is to make sure that we continue our commitment to renewable energy locally, local source of energy here in the state of Rhode Island.
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Continue to provide those programs that are helping individuals that are having a big challenge paying their bills.
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In putting a plan for uh to so people can pay an increment of their income for their energy bills.
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This is a plan that other states already have, and that could help lower the energy bills for those individuals that have a hard time right now paying for it.
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And the only problem with the PIPP program she's suggesting is that it crushes middle middle class families.
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Because if you're not below the poverty level and you're not below the income level, you're paying 10 to 20 percent more now for your electricity to pay for somebody else's electric bill.
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The best way to do it is to reduce everybody's bill by 50 percent.
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I have a solid plan to get that done, and I will articulate that.
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But I do want to get back to something else.
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Ms.
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Major's direct response to the body.
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To somebody else's electric bill.
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Somebody else's electric bills are the seniors in fixed income with Social Security that have no way to pay for the increase.
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That's why we reduce the bills.
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Well, but that's not right that Rhode Island Energy keeps raising the prices on them.
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Rhode Island Energy is responding to General Assembly mandates.
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And if we remove those mandates, we cut the electric bill by 50 percent.
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I can't be more clear about that.
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So day day one, it's in the advocacy be as Lieutenant Governor remove those mandates.
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That's your answer in that?
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And then you're gonna put it in where are you gonna put it?
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Well, in another part of the budget.
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Yes.
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How is so you're gonna make it's just a gimmick.
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You're just gonna pick from someplace else.
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The bill, the light heat being in the electric bill, along with the other programs, your green renewable programs, your green energy growth programs, those are the most regressive taxes you can possibly have.
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And you made my point.
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When you basically said it's seniors on fixed incomes, it's single moms that can't afford their electric bill, it's because of those mandates.
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You remove those mandates, you allow Rhode Island Energy to purchase the cheapest electrical available, electrical power available on the ISO spot market, you cut the bill by 50 percent.
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So you're going to be able to do that.
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Even your program is not gonna cut anybody's bill by 50 percent.
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This actually will.
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You're gonna create another bill.
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You're gonna create another fee and put it into the General Assembly.
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Yeah, in the General Assembly where it belongs.
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But you're just moving.
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You're just moving.
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You can people are gonna continue to be paying for it.
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You're just moving from one place to the other.
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You're not solving any problem.
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Yes, I am actually, because it's the General Assembly and the state income tax are progressive, which means those who make less pay less, those who make more pay more.
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So you've now taken a regressive tax that everybody has to pay out of the electric bill and made it progressive.
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Where would that fund it would be distributed into just general taxation?
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So that way you created a progressive tax rather than the aggressive taxes.
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So that means you will have to tax people more in order to pay for the yeah.
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So you're gonna put you're willing to increase taxes on people, that's what you're saying.
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That's not what I'm saying.
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What I'm saying is we've got$15 billion of budget, we can easily find the money to be able to pay for those things.
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They don't belong on the electric bill.
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They simply don't.
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So just to be clear here, this is a differentiation.
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So you're$15.2 billion budget.
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You would say hold that budget within that budget, you're not going to be able to do that.
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Those monies are there.
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Are those monies in the$15.2 billion, or do they have to be a part of the electric bills?
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Our budget, we already have so many other programs that have been waiting for funding to be able to pay.
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So you'd raise the marketing.
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So you're okay with No, you're okay with raising tax.
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You just said so.
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I said keep the budget, reduce the budget.
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Just find the savings in the budget.
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You just said that you're okay with raising taxes.
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I did not say that.
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Don't put words in my mouth.
00:16:04.399 --> 00:16:05.600
That's what you just said.
00:16:06.000 --> 00:16:08.320
I said you and I heard the same thing.
00:16:08.559 --> 00:16:11.360
Well, it's a it's a distribution model.
00:16:12.960 --> 00:16:17.519
It's whether or not it is it is an increase or a decrease is something we I couldn't determine right here on this in this moment.
00:16:18.080 --> 00:16:25.200
You just want to move it from the electric bill into the General Assembly to give people another tax in the General Assembly to go.
00:16:32.639 --> 00:16:37.600
It's not fair to seniors, it's not fair to people on fixed income, it's not fair to the very people you're talking about.
00:16:37.759 --> 00:16:41.200
And your plan would actually raise electric bills by three to ten percent.
00:16:41.360 --> 00:16:41.440
Okay.
00:16:42.960 --> 00:16:45.759
We already have the second highest electric rates in the country.
00:16:45.919 --> 00:16:47.440
Would you like us to have the first highest?
00:16:47.759 --> 00:16:50.720
The problem that I have is when you say find a way, find a way how.
00:16:51.120 --> 00:16:52.559
That's what lawmakers do.
00:16:52.720 --> 00:16:53.360
Find a way.
00:16:53.679 --> 00:16:55.440
Find a way to pay for it.
00:16:55.600 --> 00:17:00.480
You just think you're gonna take it out of the electric bill, put it somewhere, and then magically the money is gonna appear.
00:17:00.720 --> 00:17:00.799
No.
00:17:01.039 --> 00:17:03.360
So you said you were familiar with the budget process.
00:17:03.840 --> 00:17:04.720
Budgets are give and take.
00:17:04.960 --> 00:17:05.759
Budgets are about priorities.
00:17:06.240 --> 00:17:08.160
You have to show us where the money is gonna come out.
00:17:08.319 --> 00:17:10.480
There's so many depend demands already in our budget.
00:17:10.640 --> 00:17:14.640
So you're saying that we have absolutely no waste at all in$15 billion.
00:17:14.960 --> 00:17:17.119
That every penny of that we need and probably more.
00:17:17.279 --> 00:17:17.839
Is that what you're saying?
00:17:18.160 --> 00:17:20.640
No, what I'm saying is, so then we have the money to be able to pay that.
00:17:20.960 --> 00:17:23.440
That you have to tell the voters where you're gonna find that money.
00:17:23.759 --> 00:17:24.160
I just did.
00:17:24.559 --> 00:17:33.279
Is there a specific area that you believe within the$15.2 billion could be cut right now and could serve as a backstop if that funding was removed from electricity?
00:17:33.599 --> 00:17:37.039
We would have to go to the discretionary portion of the general fund to be able to find those savings.
00:17:37.279 --> 00:17:37.839
And we can find it.
00:17:38.000 --> 00:17:39.119
We've got fifteen billion dollars.
00:17:39.200 --> 00:17:43.759
We've got one of the highest tax or highest spending per capita of state of any state in the country.
00:17:43.839 --> 00:17:44.960
I think we can find the money.
00:17:45.279 --> 00:17:47.039
So you disagree with that fundamentally?
00:17:47.279 --> 00:17:48.000
I disagree with it.
00:17:48.480 --> 00:18:01.839
Moving on to a broader topic here in terms of affordability, and that would be just in general right now, attitude and the reality on the ground for so many Rhode Islanders when it comes to housing, when it comes to groceries, cost of living in general.
00:18:01.920 --> 00:18:05.279
Right now, Rhode Island is obviously on just about every list.
00:18:05.359 --> 00:18:11.119
We can go through them all or just anecdotally say we're on the bottom of too many lists when it comes to affordability.
00:18:11.359 --> 00:18:23.440
What can you do on day one as Lieutenant Governor, either of the continuation of your term or your first term, to alleviate the burden that so many Rhode Islanders are feeling right now across the board, Lieutenant Governor Matos?
00:18:23.839 --> 00:18:29.279
Well, uh you know, I have been working on the housing arena since before I was elected to office.
00:18:29.440 --> 00:18:37.599
I believe that the solution for the uh high prices of housing is that we have to build more affordable housing and build housing at all income levels.
00:18:37.839 --> 00:18:42.880
I remember when I started doing this work and I was a board member of Onlybuild Housing.
00:18:43.119 --> 00:18:48.000
When we talk about housing and affordable housing, we were not finding the support out there.
00:18:48.240 --> 00:19:11.440
I want to thank honestly uh Speaker Shakashi because he made this a priority here in the state of Rhode Island to make sure that we solve the problems of building more housing throughout the state of Rhode Island and introduce a package of legislation that had made it easier for developers and for um those developers that develop affordable housing to be able to do this throughout the state of Rhode Island.
00:19:11.599 --> 00:19:24.000
In order to alleviate the the prices of housing, we have to be committed to building more housing and going through communities that don't want housing and explain to them who are those individuals that need the housing.
00:19:24.400 --> 00:19:26.079
So which communities would you force to put a house?
00:19:27.759 --> 00:19:32.640
So I I will I will have the conversation with those communities to let them know this is the question.
00:19:32.720 --> 00:19:34.000
I've been going to those communities.
00:19:34.319 --> 00:19:37.599
I've been going to those communities and communities are you gonna force to build housing?
00:19:37.920 --> 00:19:39.039
I'm not forcing them.
00:19:39.119 --> 00:19:43.279
I'm to I'm making the case and and explaining to them why they need affordable housing.
00:19:43.680 --> 00:19:44.319
Which communities specifically?
00:19:56.240 --> 00:20:07.119
The communities that would like to have teachers living in their community, or that would like to have healthcare workers who have been, remember during the pandemic, we were clapping and and thanking them for the service.
00:20:07.279 --> 00:20:13.599
Right now, those individuals are not able to afford to buy in any community here in the state of Rhode Island.
00:20:13.680 --> 00:20:23.279
So we have to make sure that we build affordable housing and we build housing at all income levels so we can have uh housing available for the workforce of the state.
00:20:23.519 --> 00:20:27.920
Let me ask you this, Lieutenant Governor, how would you compel or incentivize perhaps a municipality?
00:20:28.079 --> 00:20:37.200
For example, Johnston, the George Waterman Highway project where there was set to be 280 some odd affordable units, the city ostensible ostensibly squashed that project.
00:20:37.920 --> 00:20:44.799
How do you compel incentivize a municipality that doesn't want to comply with the development of workforce housing to participate?
00:20:45.200 --> 00:20:48.640
With the data, showing what is the need right in their community.
00:20:48.880 --> 00:20:57.599
Because what happened is when you talk about affordable housing or housing, right away people think that oh, who's coming from outside to live in here?
00:20:57.759 --> 00:21:02.960
And the reality is that it's people right in their community that cannot afford to stay in there.
00:21:03.200 --> 00:21:09.680
So I will make the case by bringing the data directly from that community that shows the need that they have in that community.
00:21:09.920 --> 00:21:11.200
And if they say we don't care.
00:21:16.400 --> 00:21:16.559
Mr.
00:21:16.640 --> 00:21:17.039
Laughlin.
00:21:17.359 --> 00:21:18.960
Did you do that with Mayor Paulicina?
00:21:19.039 --> 00:21:27.519
When you were in office as sitting Lieutenant Governor, did you go to Mayor Policena and did you explain to him the need and did you compel him to get affordable housing units in Johnston?
00:21:27.759 --> 00:21:30.240
I haven't had a conversation with Mayor Policina about this yet.
00:21:30.720 --> 00:21:32.079
I haven't had a conversation with him yet.
00:21:32.480 --> 00:21:33.119
It's only been five years.
00:21:33.440 --> 00:21:37.599
But I have been working with um the advocates that bill affordable housing.
00:21:37.759 --> 00:21:41.920
I've been met actually with developers that want to bill the air in Johnston.
00:21:42.000 --> 00:21:45.200
So I'm looking forward to sitting down with Major Policino when he's ready.
00:21:45.599 --> 00:21:45.920
Pardon me, Ms.
00:21:46.000 --> 00:21:46.400
Matzus.
00:21:46.480 --> 00:21:46.559
Mr.
00:21:46.640 --> 00:21:49.440
Lawton, what do you what do we do about a housing regular workforce?
00:21:49.839 --> 00:21:50.960
Let's put this into some perspective.
00:21:51.039 --> 00:21:59.839
Here, one of the reasons we have a bloated fifteen billion dollar budget is in the state of Rhode Island, our policymakers treat spending money as if that's the virtue in and of itself.
00:22:00.559 --> 00:22:04.880
For affordable housing, we've spent$644 million and it's still a mess.
00:22:05.119 --> 00:22:07.920
We also want another$120 million bond.
00:22:08.079 --> 00:22:25.920
What we have to do, and what I will do on day one as Lieutenant Governor, is I will convene a subcommittee of the Small Business Advisory Council made up of builders and building officials and suppliers to find out where the roadblocks are, to get real data, to find out what's causing builders to not be able to meet our goals on affordable housing.
00:22:26.079 --> 00:22:33.200
Once that data is there, I'll present it to the governor and I'll spend it to present it to the speaker so that we can change the laws to make it easier for developers to develop.
00:22:33.359 --> 00:22:35.359
You don't ask a dentist how to fix your car.
00:22:35.519 --> 00:22:38.000
We got time we started asking builders how to build.
00:22:38.240 --> 00:22:44.960
What's your experience with working with builders and developers as you've been lieutenant governor and and working on affordable housing and workforce housing?
00:22:45.279 --> 00:22:50.160
Well, I have the advantage that I've been working on with builders since I was in the Providence City Council.
00:22:50.319 --> 00:22:58.319
I work with several of them to build housing in my community in Owenville and to build housing throughout the city of Providence.
00:22:58.640 --> 00:23:13.359
So and let me tell you, one of the things that the developers tell me sometimes is that they um and don't feel that when the city is trying to give a tax stabilization to one group, uh good at give a disadvantage to the others.
00:23:13.440 --> 00:23:14.640
They want us to be fair.
00:23:14.799 --> 00:23:19.519
They want the number one thing that I have learned from the builders is they want predictability.
00:23:19.680 --> 00:23:27.759
They want to be able to um develop a project and understand what is gonna be the expenses that they're gonna have and that they're gonna be able to afford it.
00:23:28.079 --> 00:23:30.559
Now, my question is you've been in office five years.
00:23:30.720 --> 00:23:34.400
What legislation have you proposed to implement the very things you're talking about?
00:23:34.640 --> 00:23:42.000
Well, when it comes to housing, I have proposed legislation to actually advocate for the for the residents and for the tenants of the units.
00:23:42.559 --> 00:23:43.680
But nothing to do with developing.
00:23:44.000 --> 00:23:47.680
With developing I I work on development when I was in the city of Providence.
00:23:48.160 --> 00:23:49.680
But you've been lieutenant governor for five years.
00:23:50.000 --> 00:23:55.200
But John, I'd like to know concretely what legislation have you proposed to remove the roadblocks that you say you uncovered.
00:23:55.440 --> 00:23:58.880
Well, I for in this five years I've been advocating for affordable housing.
00:23:59.039 --> 00:24:01.680
I have advocated for funding for affordable housing.
00:24:01.839 --> 00:24:08.880
I have advocated for resources to be um put from the uh funding that we got from the ARPA funding.
00:24:09.039 --> 00:24:13.920
We have a quarter of a billion uh dollars that was allocated for housing, and I advocated for this.
00:24:14.079 --> 00:24:18.880
I advocated also for the bonds that were passed uh to get more money for affordable housing.
00:24:22.480 --> 00:24:26.960
I believe what John doesn't understand is what the office of the lieutenant governors do.
00:24:27.039 --> 00:24:28.799
So maybe I should explain that to you.
00:24:28.960 --> 00:24:42.799
The office of lieutenant governor has the functions that are the regular functions, working in the long-term care coordinated council, emergency management, the um working with the military and the military families and the veterans, and also the small business advocacy council.
00:24:42.960 --> 00:24:48.559
Throughout those councils, we did a different type of work and a different type of uh initiative.
00:24:48.799 --> 00:24:56.400
And housing has been a passion of mine since before I was an elected office, and that's why I advocated for housing as part of the work that I've been doing.
00:24:56.720 --> 00:24:56.880
Mr.
00:24:56.960 --> 00:25:05.440
Lawton, and once again, you had the opportunity because one of the duties you left out is Lieutenant Governor has the ability to have legislation drafted, go to the House and Senate and have it introduced.
00:25:05.599 --> 00:25:10.480
Where is the legislative package that you've been working on in housing to remove the roadblocks and to create the fairness?
00:25:10.559 --> 00:25:11.279
You've had five years.
00:25:11.680 --> 00:25:12.400
Where's that legislation?
00:25:12.640 --> 00:25:13.839
My legislation advocating is fine.
00:25:14.000 --> 00:25:14.559
Yeah, I have the legislature.
00:25:14.960 --> 00:25:17.119
Where's the actual legislation to remove those roadblocks?
00:25:17.519 --> 00:25:28.880
I can tell you my legislation when it comes to housing, um, one of them I can tell you is making sure that individuals that have been um whose credit score has been damaged because of student loans are not.
00:25:29.359 --> 00:25:30.480
What does that have to do with builders?
00:25:30.880 --> 00:25:35.119
Are not stopped from having access to renting at property.
00:25:35.359 --> 00:25:48.160
A lot of individuals get denied the opportunity to rent a property even though they're making enough money just because this there's their um credit score has been damaged, and most of the time it's because of the student loans.
00:25:48.319 --> 00:26:01.279
And something that people don't realize is not just the young people that are suffering with the student loans' credits being damaged, in many cases are the patterns that co-sign those loans that have been affected also, and we don't talk enough about that.
00:26:01.599 --> 00:26:10.400
This is the WPROB Town Lieutenant Governor's debate on Bill Bartholomew, Republican John Laughlin, Lieutenant Governor's being a Matos Democrat, here in studio with us today.
00:26:10.640 --> 00:26:14.160
Let's let's tighten this housing conversation a little bit.
00:26:14.240 --> 00:26:30.559
Uh movement in Providence in our in the primary, likely to be in the general election, where David Morales is likely to be the next mayor of Providence and the Providence City Council likely to be controlled by a more left uh aspect of the Democratic Party, perhaps, than is currently in play.
00:26:30.720 --> 00:26:34.000
One of the things that's likely to come on board is rent stabilization.
00:26:34.160 --> 00:26:45.440
As Lieutenant Governor, either using the bully pulpit or any other vehicle, so to speak, would you try to stop rent stabilization or stand in the way of the impl implementation of rent stabilization in Providence?
00:26:45.759 --> 00:26:48.799
I believe this is a decision that has to be made community by community.
00:26:49.039 --> 00:26:56.799
Providence looks like it's moving towards um implementing rent stabilization, um, uh but I would not force any community to have it.
00:26:56.880 --> 00:26:58.240
I don't think it should be a statewide issue.
00:26:58.319 --> 00:26:59.039
Aaron Powell And Mr.
00:26:59.119 --> 00:26:59.519
Laughlin.
00:26:59.839 --> 00:27:15.759
I think we need to advocate against rates uh rent stabilization and rent control in particular because as costs go up, it discourages landlords from building, it discourages new invest new investment in housing, uh, and it's been proven to put the brakes on a lot of very valuable programs to actually make sure people have affordable housing.
00:27:16.160 --> 00:27:18.160
Who do you plan to vote for for governor, Mr.
00:27:18.240 --> 00:27:18.720
Laughlin?
00:27:19.039 --> 00:27:19.839
I have not committed.
00:27:19.920 --> 00:27:21.279
I am I am completely wide open.
00:27:21.359 --> 00:27:22.400
I have not committed for governor.
00:27:22.480 --> 00:27:30.480
I'm laser focused on running for the office of lieutenant governor, and uh and I'm not gonna endorse, nor will I uh endorse any candidate for governor.
00:27:30.640 --> 00:27:30.720
Ms.
00:27:30.880 --> 00:27:32.079
Matos, who do you plan to vote for for governor?
00:27:32.319 --> 00:27:34.960
I'd like to vote for my party nominee, Helena Folks.
00:27:35.440 --> 00:27:35.599
Ms.
00:27:35.839 --> 00:27:46.240
Matos, as Lieutenant Governor, what can, if anything, could or would you do about concerns about ICE and federal immigration authorities in Rhode Island?
00:27:46.720 --> 00:27:52.799
Well, I have talked I have used my office to provide information and resources to the community.
00:27:52.960 --> 00:28:01.119
I have used the office to have forums to discuss the the um consequences of ICE coming into our community.
00:28:01.359 --> 00:28:04.559
And this is something that I'm gonna continue to advocate for.
00:28:04.799 --> 00:28:18.160
I believe that now more than ever, our communities need to know that the leaders in place, the leaders representing them, are gonna have their back, that they're not gonna allow ICE to come into our communities and terrorize our neighbors.
00:28:18.319 --> 00:28:24.559
So I'm gonna always have a strong voice in opposition to ICE coming into our communities and terrorizing our neighbors.
00:28:24.880 --> 00:28:30.240
Would you personally intervene if you saw ICE taking action and arresting somebody?
00:28:30.319 --> 00:28:32.799
Or would you in any way, shape, would you film them?
00:28:32.880 --> 00:28:34.799
Would you engage with ICE just as a citizen?
00:28:35.039 --> 00:28:38.240
If they if I see that they're doing something illegal, I will always intervene.
00:28:38.640 --> 00:28:38.720
Mr.
00:28:38.799 --> 00:28:42.240
Laughlin, what would as lieutenant governor, what would your position be on ICE in federal administration?
00:28:42.559 --> 00:28:45.759
First of all, I want to clarify my my opponent, my lieutenant governor's position.
00:28:45.839 --> 00:28:48.400
With all due respect, you call for the abolition of ICE.
00:28:48.640 --> 00:28:51.599
Not once, but twice on Channel 12 on April 17th of this year.
00:28:51.759 --> 00:28:51.839
Ms.
00:28:52.000 --> 00:28:54.079
Matos, do you believe uh ICE should be abolished?
00:28:54.400 --> 00:28:56.559
Yes, because they're terrorizing our community.
00:28:56.720 --> 00:29:03.200
There are an untrained group of individuals that are destroying years of work.
00:29:03.440 --> 00:29:08.480
I work really hard to build trust between the police department in Providence and the community.
00:29:08.640 --> 00:29:18.480
It took many years of many months of meetings with the police union, with the community to build that trust among the police and uh and the community.
00:29:18.559 --> 00:29:26.559
And then ICE comes in and just destroyed all those many months of work and hours of work between the police and the community.
00:29:26.720 --> 00:29:30.880
They are giving a bad word, a bad name to to a law enforcement.
00:29:31.039 --> 00:29:35.039
They don't represent the well-trained law enforcement that are in our community.
00:29:35.200 --> 00:29:37.599
They don't know how to work with with crowd control.
00:29:37.920 --> 00:29:39.759
They have not have not been trained on that.
00:29:39.839 --> 00:29:42.720
They have no experience on how to deal with crowd control.
00:29:42.880 --> 00:29:48.160
So those are things that the local police uh officers are trained for and prepared for.
00:29:48.559 --> 00:29:57.759
Which is exactly I had a very in-depth conversation with uh Colonel Stephen O'Donnell, who is a former uh colonel of the Rhode Island State Police, and that's almost exactly what he said.
00:29:57.920 --> 00:30:16.160
He said we need to have ICE work with our local authorities, because the local authorities understand the community, they have de-escalation skills, and anytime ICE comes into a community, they should have state and local police with them, not to make arrests of immigration crimes, but to provide the the resources to be able to de-escalate situations, to de-conflict.
00:30:16.319 --> 00:30:25.440
One of the things Stephen O'Donnell told me he's so concerned about is if we have this policy that you've you've supported that basically says local authorities are not allowed to work with ice.
00:30:25.759 --> 00:30:29.200
ICE comes into a community, a gun is seen, 911 is called.
00:30:29.279 --> 00:30:38.640
Now you've got police officers responding to a gun, and they don't know who the good guys are and who the bad guys are because we've prohibited state and local police from working with ice.
00:30:39.039 --> 00:30:46.079
ICE were uh state and local police work with the DEA, they work with the uh ATF every day, uh, and there's never any problems.
00:30:46.240 --> 00:30:54.720
We need to make sure that the ICE resources that come in here that have made over 300 arrests in Rhode Island, including the molestation of a minor.
00:30:54.880 --> 00:31:04.000
Uh my opponent would abolish the agency that made that arrest, or the scamming of$300,000 on ATM skimmer cards by foreign nationals in Johnston and in Warwick.
00:31:04.160 --> 00:31:06.720
She would want to abolish the agency that made those arrests.
00:31:06.880 --> 00:31:12.880
We need to make sure that ICE works in cooperation with the local police and the state police because they understand the community.
00:31:13.039 --> 00:31:15.440
And that was the key point that Colonel Stephen O'Donnell made to the Mr.
00:31:15.920 --> 00:31:16.799
To that and two questions.
00:31:16.880 --> 00:31:17.200
Is Mr.
00:31:17.279 --> 00:31:19.200
O'Donnell endorsing your campaign in a formal way?
00:31:19.440 --> 00:31:20.880
No, no, no, no, no, no, no, way, no.
00:31:21.200 --> 00:31:22.400
And so I take it.
00:31:22.799 --> 00:31:23.839
I don't understand how that's relevant.
00:31:24.000 --> 00:31:26.960
I had a conversation, I have conversations with policy experts all the time.
00:31:27.119 --> 00:31:28.079
I don't ask for an endorsement.
00:31:28.400 --> 00:31:28.559
Okay.
00:31:29.119 --> 00:31:32.559
It would be relevant if he was part of your own, so to speak.
00:31:32.799 --> 00:31:33.680
Okay, fair point.
00:31:34.799 --> 00:31:39.599
In terms of so it's fair to say you do not want to see abolished ICE abolished based on the case.
00:31:39.759 --> 00:31:47.599
I want to see our state and local police cooperate with ICE because they have the training, they have the knowledge of the community, they had they have knowledge of pursuit policies, they have de-escalation.
00:31:48.000 --> 00:31:48.960
So do you agree with that training?
00:31:49.279 --> 00:31:50.720
No, we have 27 weeks of training.
00:31:50.880 --> 00:32:00.079
They are trained, they get 15 weeks of Common Core law enforcement training, plus they get additional follow-on for a total of 27, plus they work with mentors in the field before they're allowed to make a single arrest.
00:32:00.240 --> 00:32:04.720
However, they don't necessarily know the communities the way state and local police do.
00:32:04.799 --> 00:32:07.440
And that's why we need state and local police working with ICE.
00:32:07.680 --> 00:32:08.480
So we agree on that.
00:32:08.559 --> 00:32:09.440
They don't know our community.
00:32:14.880 --> 00:32:21.200
So they're coming into our communities trying to do a job that is what all they're doing is terrorizing our presidents.
00:32:26.400 --> 00:32:28.319
I think it's my time uh to answer now.
00:32:28.480 --> 00:32:34.720
What we need to do is those same resources that have been put into ICE should be put into the local communities.
00:32:34.960 --> 00:32:40.880
Local uh police officers are part of the budget of the local community, the local municipalities.
00:32:41.119 --> 00:32:48.640
So why should our local municipality use our resources to supplement the terrorism that ICE is doing in our to our neighbors?
00:32:48.799 --> 00:32:50.160
That shouldn't be happening.
00:32:50.559 --> 00:32:53.680
Those ICE agents, they get a bonus to sign up.
00:32:53.920 --> 00:32:57.519
I believe it's like$50,000 that they get as a bonus to sign up.
00:32:58.319 --> 00:32:58.880
So you know what?
00:32:59.039 --> 00:33:04.319
Let's give those bonus to the teachers and the police officers in our communities instead of giving it to ICE.
00:33:04.559 --> 00:33:08.079
We need to bring resources to the local community right here.
00:33:08.240 --> 00:33:17.359
We cannot continue to use our limited resources that we have in our municipalities to supplement the terrorism that ICE is doing in our neighborhoods.
00:33:17.759 --> 00:33:17.839
Mr.
00:33:17.920 --> 00:33:20.880
Laughlin, in fairness, nobody is talking about supplementing terrorism.
00:33:20.960 --> 00:33:22.480
What we're talking about is exactly the opposite.
00:33:22.559 --> 00:33:24.480
And that's what Colonel O'Donnell stressed to me.
00:33:24.640 --> 00:33:33.119
If you have local, state, and local police working with ICE, ICE, by the way, if you eliminate ICE, they are charged with responding to and enforcing federal law.
00:33:33.279 --> 00:33:34.880
State and local officials do not.
00:33:35.279 --> 00:33:36.799
They're focused on the community.
00:33:36.960 --> 00:33:54.640
Now you have officers right next to the ICE agents that understand the community, they understand the pursuit policies, they have de-escalation skills, they have all of the skills that would supplement ICE, which by the way receives 27 weeks of specific academy training along with field work before they're allowed onto the street.
00:33:54.960 --> 00:33:59.839
So just a reminder that ICE didn't exist until about 20 something years ago.
00:34:00.000 --> 00:34:06.000
Before that, the Department of Justice was responsible for implementing immigration and naturalization laws.
00:34:06.160 --> 00:34:12.559
We can go back to that model that was safer for our community, that was not killing people in our neighborhoods.
00:37:20.820 --> 00:37:26.659
Moving to a similar lane here, just in terms of working with the federal government right now, Mr.
00:37:26.740 --> 00:37:30.019
Laughlin, you're a Republican, obviously the president is a Republican.
00:37:32.179 --> 00:37:36.900
Are you in favor of the policies of the Trump administration by and large right now?
00:37:37.059 --> 00:37:37.619
Is that fair to say?
00:37:38.019 --> 00:37:40.500
First of all, as I've said, most of our problems here in Rhode Island are homegrown.
00:37:40.659 --> 00:37:50.179
When the Trump administration or when any administration in Washington puts$76 billion with a B dollars into electric boat that provides jobs for Rhode Islanders, I'm all for it.
00:37:50.340 --> 00:37:55.059
When they stand in the way of getting uh federal disaster assistance that we need, I will fight it.
00:37:55.220 --> 00:38:03.619
I'll fight any administration that uh that hurts Rhode Islanders, and I will support and defend any administration that helps Rhode Islanders on those specific issues.
00:38:04.019 --> 00:38:04.900
I've been very clear about that.
00:38:05.139 --> 00:38:05.220
Ms.
00:38:05.300 --> 00:38:05.699
Matos.
00:38:06.260 --> 00:38:18.179
I disagree with the Trump administration on the policies that they've been um put in in and it's a shame that they don't want to reimburse Rhode Island for the um the blizzard and and the expenses that we got.
00:38:18.340 --> 00:38:28.740
So this is an example of how they're using their power just to punish communities and the state that they believe are blue on their nap, uh they they're most um in agreement with with them.
00:38:28.980 --> 00:38:33.619
So they're just using their abusing their power in and I disagree with with what they're doing.
00:38:33.940 --> 00:38:35.539
And I will call them out when they do.
00:38:35.860 --> 00:38:37.059
Well you should call them out right now.
00:38:37.220 --> 00:38:37.780
Tell them tell them.
00:38:38.420 --> 00:38:39.220
I'm on the record for doing that.
00:38:39.380 --> 00:38:40.820
Tell them to send us the money that they we're gonna do.
00:38:41.139 --> 00:38:42.260
Thank you for reinforcing my display.
00:38:43.460 --> 00:38:46.740
Because they need the reimburses for all of the emergency that we went through.
00:38:48.340 --> 00:39:00.420
Speaking with a round public health institute, the nonprofit, about just general issues of health care in the state, obviously, primary care physician and attracting them to Rhode Island is a number one top of mind issue.
00:39:00.659 --> 00:39:03.059
Lieutenant Governor, uh, 60 seconds.
00:39:03.220 --> 00:39:10.260
What's the number one thing the Lieutenant Governor's office could do to increase the number of primary care physicians practicing in Rhode Island?
00:39:10.659 --> 00:39:29.780
So right now, some of the conversations that I had with doctors that are struggling to actually recruit in um uh new um doctors to work in the practices, the number one thing that the state can do is put more funding into a grant program that the governor had that had only six million dollars to it.
00:39:29.860 --> 00:39:39.139
We need to put more funding into that grant that allows a practice to be able to pay for the expenses of of bringing a new doctor on board.
00:39:39.300 --> 00:39:46.900
It's very expensive for a practice to be able to bring new doctors into the practice, very costly, so the state can help on putting more resources into them.
00:39:47.220 --> 00:39:47.300
Mr.
00:39:47.380 --> 00:39:48.500
Laughlin, same question.
00:39:48.820 --> 00:39:49.300
Same question.
00:39:49.380 --> 00:39:54.659
Well, first thing we need to do is we need to have parity in our reimbursement rates for primary care physicians throughout the state.
00:39:54.820 --> 00:40:04.820
Uh that means we have to match or exceed Connecticut or Massachusetts so that doctors are compelled to stay in the smallest state, which they can very easily move out of, and often keep the same patient base in another state.
00:40:05.059 --> 00:40:11.860
Secondly, uh one of the things that we need to do is we need to use the the state model of what we call the StRAP program in the military.
00:40:12.019 --> 00:40:16.500
StRAP was strategic training for um for personnel.
00:40:16.659 --> 00:40:27.539
And what StRAP does is it basically pays the student loans for board certified physicians that are already board certified with a they uh promise to stay practicing in Rhode Island for six years.
00:40:27.699 --> 00:40:28.740
We could fund that program.
00:40:28.980 --> 00:40:31.940
Program in its loose form still already exists in Rhode Island.
00:40:32.099 --> 00:40:44.579
We could fully fund that program and we could have a hundred primary care doctors on the streets tomorrow, already board certified, for the cost of just the feasibility study for a new medical school, which my opponent uh definitely supports.
00:40:46.420 --> 00:40:52.179
Let's move to you you both have been discussing the the purview of the lieutenant governor, right?
00:40:52.579 --> 00:41:07.699
Um what's a committee, what's a purview right now that should be in st implemented from a statutory standpoint that would become a responsibility of the lieutenant governor that doesn't exist at this point that would meet the moment right now, uniquely for this particular moment.
00:41:08.019 --> 00:41:13.139
So, as you know, the office of lieutenant governor and the governor don't run together here in the state of Rhode Island.
00:41:13.300 --> 00:41:17.220
I have said many times that we have to change the way how we elect the office of lieutenant governor.
00:41:17.460 --> 00:41:34.260
As of right now, based on how the office is being um elected in the how the uh the office works with the governor, I believe that it would make a huge impact and difference if the lieutenant governor had a seat on the Commerce Corporation and a seat on the airport corporation.
00:41:34.420 --> 00:41:43.380
That would have a real impact right away in the abilities of and the work that that I've been doing, trying to bring new businesses to the state of Rhode Island.
00:41:43.539 --> 00:41:54.980
I think it's just a lost opportunity that we're not using the office of Lieutenant Governor uh more proactively to help um in bringing more businesses to the state of Rhode Island and more tourists to the state of Rhode Island.
00:41:55.139 --> 00:42:02.019
I have seen my colleagues throughout the country who have this under their purview and it makes that uh makes sense and they're doing great work with their state.
00:42:02.340 --> 00:42:02.579
And Mr.
00:42:02.659 --> 00:42:05.300
Laughlin, Sam, I I would actually largely tend to agree with that.
00:42:05.380 --> 00:42:17.780
I think uh the lieutenant governor should have be more plugged in uh to state government in a way that the office can be used effectively as a harbinger or an emissary to bring big businesses to Rhode Island, not the greedy corporations.
00:42:17.940 --> 00:42:31.940
I'm talking about businesses like CVS that employs 9,000 Rhode Islanders, uh Citizens Financial Group, which employs 4,200 Rhode Islanders and contributes about$80 million a year in tax revenue, electric boat, uh Amica insurance.
00:42:32.019 --> 00:42:33.940
I could go on and on about the businesses.
00:42:34.099 --> 00:42:38.260
You seem to lump everybody into the category of uh greedy corporations.
00:42:38.420 --> 00:42:42.980
These are corporations that employ Rhode Islanders and pay a tremendous amount of Rhode Island taxes.
00:42:43.220 --> 00:42:53.539
And so uh sometimes I think the demonization that you continually push forward uh may even have been a contributing factor in Hasbro deciding, you know what, this isn't a place that that appreciates us.
00:42:53.699 --> 00:42:54.579
Let's get to Boston.
00:42:55.220 --> 00:42:59.139
Hashbro left because of your remarks in in this race?
00:42:59.539 --> 00:43:00.740
I I never knew that.
00:43:00.900 --> 00:43:08.420
I believe that Hasbro left because um they wanted to be in this seaport in in Boston.
00:43:10.179 --> 00:43:11.380
I never said it was the sole reason.
00:43:11.539 --> 00:43:12.340
It's a contributing reason.
00:43:12.500 --> 00:43:19.380
You don't want to be in a place that doesn't appreciate business, that doesn't understand that businesses employ Rhode Islanders and pay the bulk of our uh state and local taxes.
00:43:19.539 --> 00:43:24.340
And and you know, the the constant demonization of corporations is certainly a contributing factor.
00:43:24.659 --> 00:43:29.139
So uh it just to be clear, those companies that you mentioned there, I love those companies.
00:43:29.220 --> 00:43:31.220
Those companies have been doing a great job here in the Rhode Island.
00:43:32.179 --> 00:43:32.900
They are not the greedy ones.
00:43:32.980 --> 00:43:35.780
The greedy ones are kind of the stop and shop that have been blocking buildings.
00:43:37.300 --> 00:43:39.220
Blocking buildings in our communities.
00:43:39.619 --> 00:43:41.940
Which your legislation doesn't affect until the next decade.
00:43:42.420 --> 00:43:43.460
It does affect it.
00:43:43.539 --> 00:43:47.860
Um I already explained the legislation to you, but I can explain it once again, right?
00:43:48.260 --> 00:43:56.420
The legislation right now stopped them from adding more 30 years restricted covenants to any building.
00:43:56.579 --> 00:43:58.019
They cannot do that.
00:43:58.260 --> 00:44:01.780
That already was stopped as soon as the legislation was signed.
00:44:02.019 --> 00:44:02.740
It's done.
00:44:02.900 --> 00:44:04.099
That is not allowed.
00:44:04.179 --> 00:44:08.179
They cannot add any more blocks for 30 years in any building.
00:44:08.340 --> 00:44:09.139
So that's the legislation.
00:44:09.380 --> 00:44:11.139
And that affects 2% of gross resources.
00:44:11.300 --> 00:44:11.380
2%.
00:44:11.940 --> 00:44:27.059
That's affects um that affects any any grocery store that was planning on closing a uh store in our community and leaving that building empty for uh for and then how is it that you can take credit for the daily stop market, which is a quarter mile away in a completely different plaza?
00:44:27.220 --> 00:44:34.260
That when the legislation that you you so uh eloquently champion doesn't provide any tangible effects until 2034?
00:44:34.740 --> 00:44:38.500
Because the work that I've been doing on grocery is not just one area.
00:44:38.659 --> 00:44:41.059
I've been working in different areas when it comes to grocery.
00:44:41.139 --> 00:44:47.699
One has been to ensure that now more buildings get blocked, but also in attracting new investors to our community.
00:44:47.940 --> 00:44:56.980
I've been work I have been working with the National Supermarket Association, the NSA, and I have been working with other independent supermarkets asking them to come to Rhode Island.
00:44:57.139 --> 00:45:07.539
So, yes, I work with the Delhi stuff because I introduced them to the leadership in one socket and I told them that the leadership in one socket has been looking for quite some time to add another supermarket.
00:45:07.780 --> 00:45:09.460
But you're listening to that.
00:45:09.780 --> 00:45:11.619
The legislation is part of the work.
00:45:11.699 --> 00:45:13.220
There's two different things.
00:45:13.460 --> 00:45:13.699
Yes.
00:45:14.900 --> 00:45:15.539
Yes, there are.
00:45:24.260 --> 00:45:25.300
And this is what I did.
00:45:25.539 --> 00:45:28.740
The grocery stuff, the grocery work is very vast.
00:45:28.980 --> 00:45:30.659
There's so much that needs to be done.
00:45:30.980 --> 00:45:39.220
So it's not the same thing as the legislation as bringing new investors to uh to the state and to our local communities.
00:45:39.300 --> 00:45:40.579
It's two different things.
00:45:40.900 --> 00:45:43.699
Related because they're related to groceries, but it's two different things.
00:45:44.260 --> 00:45:57.860
Well, certainly uh more to come on this general topic, I suppose, in another format, because we could spend, I don't know, an hour and a half going down grocery store covenants, but uh the issue is no doubt one that you have staked uh as as a piece of at least this portion of your lieutenant governorship.
00:45:58.260 --> 00:46:06.260
Before we get to closing, uh I can tell you how just doing this work has had an impact.
00:46:06.579 --> 00:46:08.420
A developer reached out to me.
00:46:09.139 --> 00:46:13.059
This is the developer that owns a site in Richmond.
00:46:13.539 --> 00:46:19.860
He had that site for years closed because Steppenhoff was holding the lease on that property.
00:46:20.179 --> 00:46:25.460
He called me and told me that I'm not talking enough about the impact that the legislation is already having.
00:46:25.699 --> 00:46:32.340
Will have because of this work, Steppenhop decided that they were not gonna renew the lease on that property.
00:46:32.579 --> 00:46:40.659
That already is having a great impact because that community is gonna be able to have a development going there that's gonna have an impact in the whole area.
00:46:40.820 --> 00:46:43.619
So the work that I've been doing is already having an impact.
00:46:44.019 --> 00:46:48.019
All right, before we get to our closing statements right here, 30 seconds each.
00:46:48.179 --> 00:46:53.940
Imagine on the other side of this microphone right now is the so called average Rhode Islander in 2026.
00:46:54.179 --> 00:46:54.340
Okay.
00:46:55.059 --> 00:46:56.659
Imagine who you think that person is.
00:46:56.820 --> 00:47:04.019
Speak to them and tell them why you're their champion, so to speak, and why you would remain their champion as Lieutenant Governor, beginning with Mr.
00:47:04.099 --> 00:47:04.740
Laughlin.
00:47:06.340 --> 00:47:07.220
I would simply tell them.
00:47:07.699 --> 00:47:12.420
That uh Rhode Island right now is in a situation where electric bills are crushing Rhode Islanders.
00:47:12.579 --> 00:47:26.099
And I would ask the average Rhode Islander to stand with me because it's only the only way the lieutenant governor can do this is with everybody involved, with everybody making the case, that we can take the politics out of our electric bills and we can cut our electric bills by up to 50%.
00:47:26.579 --> 00:47:27.940
It's so important that we do this.
00:47:28.099 --> 00:47:36.579
That's going to develop business, that's going to make Rhode Island more affordable, and energy is one of the underriding factors that influence economic development.
00:47:36.659 --> 00:47:42.740
So it's it's vital that you all join me uh and that you help me in this crusade to make sure that we take the politics off your electricity.
00:47:42.820 --> 00:47:46.340
Okay, and Miss Matos, the average Rhode Islander, who whoever that person might be, what do you say to them?
00:47:46.659 --> 00:47:54.820
To the average Rhode Islander, you have seen me right there in your communities with you, listening to you and hearing what are the things that are affecting you and taking action.
00:47:54.980 --> 00:47:59.059
Every time that you have called my office with an issue, we responds.
00:47:59.220 --> 00:48:04.579
I'm the person that is there advocating for you and it's with you in the trenches fighting.
00:48:04.740 --> 00:48:06.820
I have the similar experience as you.
00:48:07.059 --> 00:48:14.099
I show up and I advocate with you when you're fighting the corporations that are raising the prices on your on your rent.
00:48:14.260 --> 00:48:24.019
When the tenants are trying to organize and fighting the corporations that are not investing on those buildings and that has at an elevator that had been damaged for weeks.
00:48:24.260 --> 00:48:29.380
I'm sure I show up and I fight with you and for you every day in this office.
00:48:29.780 --> 00:48:30.500
Alright, thank you both.
00:48:30.659 --> 00:48:32.420
Quickly here before we get to closing statements.
00:48:32.500 --> 00:48:33.059
Is this fun?
00:48:33.220 --> 00:48:34.740
Oh God, yes, this is fun, right?
00:48:34.980 --> 00:48:36.260
Like running for office is fun.
00:48:36.340 --> 00:48:38.740
It's like if it's not fun, you're not doing it right.
00:48:39.059 --> 00:48:39.220
Right.
00:48:39.300 --> 00:48:40.740
Isn't that it seems like a good sentence?
00:48:40.900 --> 00:48:43.300
Let's save that sound bite for anybody in the future.
00:48:43.460 --> 00:48:44.740
Um let's get to closing statements.
00:48:44.980 --> 00:48:45.539
60 seconds.
00:48:45.699 --> 00:48:49.619
This is the Bartholomew Town WPRO Lieutenant Governor's debate on Bill Bartholomew.
00:48:49.780 --> 00:48:52.740
Thank you both for being here today and uh giving the voters this opportunity.
00:48:52.900 --> 00:48:55.860
Our closing statements beginning with Lieutenant Governor Sabina Matos.
00:48:56.340 --> 00:48:56.740
Thank you.
00:48:56.900 --> 00:48:58.900
Um Thank you for this opportunity.
00:48:59.059 --> 00:49:05.300
As Lieutenant Governor, I've been fighting the corporations that have been so greedy taking advantage of our community.
00:49:05.539 --> 00:49:08.579
I was told we couldn't win that battle and we won.
00:49:08.900 --> 00:49:16.099
But more than my record working on this area, it's my own life experience that has prepared me for this work.
00:49:16.500 --> 00:49:20.900
I immigrated to this country as a 20-year-old, not speaking the language.
00:49:21.059 --> 00:49:24.579
I work in a jewelry factory here, like many of you.
00:49:24.740 --> 00:49:30.820
Yes, I do have an accent like many of your family and relatives that you that you um have listened to.
00:49:31.059 --> 00:49:35.059
I have lived the experiences that you live or your family have lived.
00:49:35.220 --> 00:49:38.820
I'm here fighting for you every day.
00:49:39.139 --> 00:49:40.659
I love the state.
00:49:40.900 --> 00:49:42.099
I love this country.
00:49:42.260 --> 00:49:46.099
I'm proud of the opportunities that this country and this state has given me.
00:49:46.179 --> 00:49:50.740
And it's the honor of my life lifetime to serve as your Lieutenant Governor.
00:49:50.900 --> 00:49:58.900
I'm looking forward to continue doing this work, to continue showing up for you and responding and fighting for you every single day.
00:49:59.220 --> 00:50:00.179
Thank you, Miss Matos.
00:50:00.420 --> 00:50:01.860
John Laughlin, your closing remarks.
00:50:02.099 --> 00:50:10.900
Well, first of all, I want to again reiterate that your story, an immigrant coming to this country, uh putting yourself through college, paying your student loans, that's really an American story.
00:50:11.059 --> 00:50:14.980
That's what made America great, and I'm immensely proud of what you've accomplished.
00:50:15.139 --> 00:50:24.500
Uh, but I believe that the Lieutenant Governor's office should focus on service, not spin, not managing headlines and not taking credit for work thinner than a press release.
00:50:24.740 --> 00:50:27.780
I have the real world experience to lead on day one.
00:50:27.940 --> 00:50:30.099
I led soldiers in Bosnia and Iraq.
00:50:30.260 --> 00:50:33.220
I went in the military as a private and I retired as a lieutenant colonel.
00:50:33.300 --> 00:50:36.579
I worked for NASA and I served three terms in the General Assembly.
00:50:36.659 --> 00:50:45.780
And what those jobs taught me is that when something breaks, whether it's a process or a bridge, you find out why, you tell the people the truth, and then you fix it.
00:50:46.019 --> 00:50:48.420
Accountability, transparency, and competence.
00:50:48.579 --> 00:50:49.539
That's the standard.
00:50:49.699 --> 00:50:54.260
That's the difference between a government that answers to taxpayers and one that talks past them.
00:50:54.340 --> 00:50:57.699
I'm John Laughlin, and I humbly and respectfully ask for your vote.
00:50:58.019 --> 00:50:58.260
Mr.
00:50:58.340 --> 00:51:00.820
Laughlin, Miss Matos, thank you both for being here today.
00:51:00.900 --> 00:51:03.699
This is the Bartholomew Town WPRO debate series.
00:51:03.860 --> 00:51:06.260
Debate for a lieutenant governor of Rhode Island.
00:51:06.340 --> 00:51:07.699
I'm Bill Bartholomew.