Ms. Raimondo’s critics say her use of tax incentives — about $130 million so far, according to the Rhode<br />Island Commerce Corporation — amounts to corporate welfare for some of the nation’s richest companies.<br />“We’re not hiring cousin Vinny anymore,” Ms. Moakley said, “and that doesn’t go down well here.”<br />A version of this article appears in print on March 14, 2017, on Page A10 of the New York edition<br />with the headline: Hiring ‘Hit Parade’ Comes to Rhode Island After Years of Decline.<br />But Rhode Island reached a milestone in January when unemployment fell to 4.7 percent<br />— the first time it had dipped below the national average in almost 12 years.<br />Maureen Moakley, a political scientist at the University of Rhode Island, said Ms. Raimondo<br />also faced “latent resentment” rooted in sexism in this culturally conservative state.<br />Indeed, after Boston won the sweepstakes last year for General Electric’s headquarters (Boston and the state of Massachusetts gave G. E.<br />$145 million in incentives), the company acknowledged that Rhode Island had been a strong competitor.<br />As of September, when the most recent poll was taken — before much of the business influx — Rhode<br />Islanders gave her an approval rating of 38 percent and a disapproval rating of 55 percent.
