In Her Own Words: Rhode Island Dem Gov Gina Raimondo’s College Tuition Plan “Isn’t Really Free”

She herself said it “isn’t really free."

Last week, after a nearly month-long impasse, Rhode Island Democrats passed a budget funding what the media referred to as a “face-saving slice” of Democrat Governor Gina Raimondo’s signature college tuition proposal. They gutted her original plan to a third of its intended funding while offering it only at the community college level, not at any of the state’s public four-year universities as Raimondo proposed. Nevertheless, Raimondo has tried to tout her setback as a victory, hailing the passage of “free” community college in Rhode Island. The only problem: she herself said it “isn’t really free."

In June, while speaking at an event with the New York Times, Raimondo admitted her proposal “isn’t really free,” and said that she was “convinced to go for that because – to capture people’s attention.” But that wasn’t the only time Raimondo pushed back on the idea that her own plan was free. Video of Raimondo describing her tuition plan at an event with DNC Chair Tom Perez in April shows her saying “the people of Rhode Island don’t want something for free,” and “nobody wants a handout:”

GINA RAIMONDO: “This Rhode Island Promise program, this isn’t about giving anything away for free. This is about making sure every Rhode Islander has the job training or education they need to get a job, it’s about leveling the playing field, that’s what it’s about. Nobody wants a handout, the people of Rhode Island don’t want something for free, they just want a chance.”

This raises one question for Raimondo: if her tuition plan “isn’t really free,” why is she trying to present it that way to the public?

1 year, 9 months ago

Governors in Iowa, North Dakota and Alabama join GOP colleagues in banning TikTok for state employees

The Republican governors of three more states have joined the growing number of GOP governors who are banning TikTok among state government employees amid security concerns about the Chinese-owned social media platform

1 year, 10 months ago

Arizona Governor Creates Shipping Container Border Wall

Arizona Governor Doug Ducey has had hundreds of double-stacked shipping containers topped with razor wire placed on the state’s border with Mexico

1 year, 10 months ago

Stacey Abrams’s Georgia Nonprofit Could Face Criminal Investigations for Unlicensed Fundraising

New Georgia Project's charity license has lapsed in at least nine states

1 year, 10 months ago

Biden says ‘more important things’ than border visit, despite 59 trips to Delaware, 8 stops for ice cream

Biden has yet to visit southern border despite historic crisis under his watch

1 year, 10 months ago

Governor Kristi Noem delivers annual Budget Address, says the state can afford grocery tax cut

In about thirty minutes of remarks, Governor Kristi Noem laid out her administration would like to see nearly $2.2 billion spent over the course of the next fiscal year and a half.

1 year, 10 months ago

‘A Clear And Present Danger To Its Users:’ South Carolina Gov. Bans State Employees From Using TikTok Amid National Security Concerns

South Carolina became the second state in the union Monday to permanently ban state employees’ electronic devices from using TikTok amid federal officials sounding the alarm that the Chinese-based social media app threatens national security