Helena Buonanno Foulkes, one of five major Democratic candidates for governor, is the guest this week on Political Roundtable.
Topics include the economy, education, the race for governor, and much more.
This is Buonanno Foulkes’ second appearance on Political Roundtable. You can listen to the first here.
Here is a transcript of this week’s interview:
Ian Donnis: We are now less than 10 weeks away from the September 13 primary election. Voters do not seem sold on incumbent Governor Dan McKee. That creates a potential opening for yourself and fellow Democrat Nelly Gorbea. What is it that makes you different and better than Nellie Gorbea?
Helena Buonanno Foulkes: First of all, thanks for having me, we’re feeling really energized by this. I think what I’m hearing from voters is, I have a real focus on getting things done, on holding myself accountable and delivering results for Rhode Islanders. So, focused on education, getting our kids’ learning scores back up above where they were before COVID is a big deal to voters. Another topic that’s really important to me is choice. Given what happened with Roe v. Wade, we are lucky that we have a state where we codified Roe v. Wade.
But in this state, we still have a third of the women who do not get abortion care coverage, because they get their health insurance through Medicaid or the state. So this is something I would have put in my plan and made sure that got covered before the [legislative] session was over. I think that’s a really important point versus the governor. And then another topic that’s really near and dear to me is the economy. Making sure that we’re thriving, that we’re building great jobs for people’s future. Recently, Nellie Gorbea came out with a proposal to raise taxes on small businesses, 1000s of small businesses. And I think as we head into an economy that could be shaky, we really need to be thinking about having a governor at the helm, who understands how to navigate and get things done for the people of Rhode Island.
Donnis: A recent Boston Globe poll showed you have very low support among people of color. What is your explanation for that?
Buonanno Foulkes: I think we are going to do very well among people with color. The obvious issue for me at the moment is they don’t know me. They look at the elected officials who they’ve known for eight years, and they understand who those people are. I am finding when I get in the communities, people are really reacting well. And the reason is, I’m the person who is going to fight for them. And I’m the person who can get things done for these communities. And so I think it’s going to take a little longer, but I’m really feeling confident. We just started advertising on Latina radio, and I’m getting — I’m really energized when I’m out in the community with people. I’m meeting people and shaking hands everywhere. And I’m finding that they have really good questions. Everyone who doesn’t know me, no matter what community they’re from. So this is the moment over the summer for me to introduce myself and tell my story personally, and also what I care about.
Donnis: We’re in a jittery time in America. People are anxious about the economy, gas prices, the war in Ukraine, the Supreme Court, the possible return of former President Trump, any number of things. What is your message to average Rhode Islanders, in light of all these anxieties?
Buonanno Foulkes: Yeah, I think that we are hearing a lot that people are tired of politicians who just talk. What they’re looking for is results. They’re looking for a person who can come in, and really get things done and lead in every single way possible. Which is why, when I talk about my education platform, it’s not just that people are excited about really taking that issue head on and making sure that we help our kids perform. It’s also that they’re not used to hearing from someone who says, if I don’t get our scores back up, I won’t run again. And I think that’s really resonating.
The other issue I hear a lot about is the economy, to your point. People are feeling squeezed. The gas pump is just an enormous issue. And, you know, my specific proposal has been around a middle class tax cut. I think that we should be putting more of our state money back in the hands of the people of Rhode Island. We had a $900 million surplus. So I want to make sure that we are thinking carefully about how we spend money and setting ourselves up for a really strong economy. One where businesses can thrive so that people can have great careers and futures. And so, what I mostly notice and hear from people as I meet them is politicians tend to talk a lot about issues, but they don’t get into specific action plans, and they don’t get focused on results.
Donnis: Let me ask you about the economy. What would your approach be to trying to grow more good jobs in Rhode Island?
Buonanno Foulkes: Yes, I have several ideas. They’re all on my website, if anyone wants to go to HelenaFoulkes.com, but to give you two specific examples: I am proposing that we lean into the biggest strength we have, which is we’re the ocean state.
We have 400 miles of beautiful ocean and we should be winning in the blue economy. We have URI’s School of Oceanography, which is one of the best in the country. We’ve got the Naval War College, where the US government spends an enormous amount of money on underwater sea research. And so we have started to produce really exciting startups who are emerging in this world. But just like Boston a decade ago, did a billion dollar bond to make sure that the life sciences category could thrive. I’m proposing that we do a $250 million bond.
And what that really will allow us to do is take advantage of our great schools, the business community and the state government together, those three forces working together to build a thriving blue economy, and one where people can have great jobs. The other benefit of that is it really helps us lean into making sure we take care of our environment. You know, we were the first in the country to have an offshore wind farm. So I want to make sure that we take all of that advantage and lean into it so that around the country, we’re known as being the best as it relates to the blue economy.
Another example, is a very different idea, but incredibly important to our state’s economy. And that’s to make sure that small businesses can thrive. So I have met with hundreds of small business owners. And I’m really inspired because I know I can help and I’ll tell you what I mostly hear from them. It’s actually encapsulated in one story. I met a person who owns three restaurants, two in Pawtucket, one in Worcester. And he said to me Helena, when I opened my second restaurant in Pawtucket, I had to go to 13 different websites and locations to get all the paperwork and registration forms. When I went to Worcester, it was a one stop shop concierge service. One person who got that all done for me. This is the kind of help that small businesses are looking for: help me get rid of the red tape and bureaucracy. So I can focus on running my own business. It’s, I think, where I really bring great expertise, having a 25-year career in business, where I understand process and getting in the shoes of the customers we’re serving.
Donnis: On education, we’ve heard for a long time that this is a vital economic issue for Rhode Island (certainly COVID has been disruptive.) But what do you think had been the chief obstacles to improving public education in Rhode Island pre-COVID? And what would you do about that?
Buonanno Foulkes” I think education is both a moral responsibility we have, and a huge economic one. So on the moral side, just to set the foundation, only 33% of our kids pass their reading grade level tests and 20% in math. It’s an economic issue, because over my time at CVS, I recruited hundreds of families to come work at CVS. Most of them ended up buying homes in Massachusetts, for one reason, public schools.
But back to what what has gotten in the way, I think it’s a consistency of focus from everyone involved in the system. We — if you just compare where we were to Massachusetts, 25 years ago, we were in a very similar spot. And Massachusetts focused on their kids’ scores, they had consistency of leadership and direction. They thrived in an environment where teachers were part of unions and they were able to create a situation where their kids are really prospering. We, on the other hand, have flip flopped, we move every couple of years and we haven’t been consistent. So, I don’t think there’s one simple answer. But I do think this is a place where no politician, quite frankly, has really put him or herself on the line and said, If I don’t improve the scores, I won’t run again. And that’s what I’m doing.
Donnis: You were for many years, a senior executive at CVS Health. There’s a lot of attention on opioids now. Did CVS play too great a role in facilitating the popularization of opioids?
Buonanno Foulkes: Look, this is a really — has been a devastating situation for every family involved in the opioid crisis. And I am particularly struck by an angry by the Sackler family and Purdue Pharma, who knew exactly what they were doing. Everyone in the system was late in seeing what was going on. But I can assure you that as soon as we saw what was happening, we took real action. I personally got involved by pulling together the other leaders of every pharmacy chain, and working on legislation across the country, to make sure that, for example, we limited the number of pills that someone could receive after minor surgery. We pass that obviously the legislators passed that and 2016 here in Rhode Island. So there are actions we took to really make a difference. And I’m proud of that. But there’s a lot of work to be done. And I do think that my experience on this issue would allow me to help more people in the state as we march forward.
Donnis: When you were at CVS, you contributed 10s of thousands of dollars to a political action committee that supported former President Trump and Senate Republicans. We know it’s not unusual for corporate executives to give to both Democrats and Republicans. But given how former President Trump is kind of off the charts as not a typical politician. and who critics say had a very adverse effect on the country, was was that a mistake in hindsight?
Buonanno Foulkes: Oh, yeah, there’s nothing — there’s nothing good about former President Trump. And all I could say is that I wasn’t involved in where the PAC was making those choices at that time. So I wasn’t looking at that. But we did have to work with both sides of the aisle. I think that it’s it’s a reality of making sure that we could get good things done for the company, for the state, for the country. And it’s part of the system, I’d love to be able to change the system.
Donnis: For many people in America, President Trump eroded trust in journalism, he eroded trust in elections, he made three appointments to the US Supreme Court. If you think those are bad things, how do we as a country come back from that?
Buonanno Foulkes: They’re terrible things. And I think what people are looking for right now are leaders who will take action. So specifically, as an example, as it relates to choice at the moment, we have to take action, we have to make things happen. So I have specifically proposed, the first thing I would do in my new budget is make sure that women, regardless of their insurance, get access to reproductive care. And that means that women who currently get their health insurance from Medicaid and the state. So that’s one specific action I’d be taking. The other thing I propose is creating a coalition of northeastern states, where we are the shining example across the country of all the things that we could do to take care of women and doctors who are serving them. So I think more than ever, what we’re seeing is governors matter. And it’s really important, as people think about, you know, voting in this next primary election, that they identify the person that they really believe will get things done for them. And I do think that’s where I stand out.
Donnis: Well, speaking of governors, how many times a week do you talk to former governor Gina Raimondo?
Buonanno Foulkes: I don’t speak that often to Governor Raimondo, and I certainly wouldn’t get into the frequency.
Donnis: Governor Raimondo had her accomplishments during her time here. She also had some pratfalls, the PawSox left Rhode Island during her time as governor, UHIP, the state benefit program, was plagued by problems. If you were elected governor, how would you avoid some of the pratfalls that befell Governor Raimondo?
Buonanno Foulkes: I come to this position with an experience set of leading 200,000 people in an $80 billion budget. So it’s a very different experience set from a management perspective.
This is a hard job. I think the most important thing that I would do and I would contrast this, with Governor McKee. is have the best talent possible in every position reporting to me. If you look at Governor McKee, today, there are their interim or open positions. It’s a very, very high number, and you specially look at the Department of Health, we still have an interim director in the Department of Health. So you’ve got to be the person who attracts the best talent. Rhode Island, as an example, was one of the only states in the country where SNAP benefits were reduced during COVID. And the reason they went down is that people couldn’t get access to SNAP benefits because they had to stay on the phone for 90 minutes. So that to me is an example of ownership, leadership, accountability, and that’s the experience that I bring.
Donnis: Speaking of leadership, there’s a lot of concern among Democrats about the 2024 presidential election. Not a lot of confidence in President Biden. Do you think he’s the guy who would give Democrats the best chance of retaining the White House in 2024?
Buonanno Foulkes: I really don’t know. I think the election’s a couple years away and not something that I’m spending a lot of time focused on. I’m really focused right now on Rhode Island and what I can do to help the people here.
Ian Donnis can be reached at idonnis@ripr.org
