PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND (August 17, 2018)  — Today is a bittersweet day in Rhode Island. With the announcement that the Pawtucket Red Sox baseball club plans to leave McCoy Stadium and the state, Rhode Island has lost a part of its history.

In announcing the deal, however, owners made it clear that this has always been about the money. In spite of relentless attempts to manipulate public and political sentiment by team owners and affiliated stakeholders during months of hearings, claims of owners’ loyalty and affection have given way to the bottom line: the unmet demand for taxpayer funding of what is ultimately a private business.

Taxpayer funds have absolutely no place in private markets. The notion that taxpayer resources should be diverted to support a private enterprise under the auspices of promoting economic growth has been – and always will be – fiction.

It is time for the state of Rhode Island to allow the principles of free markets and limited taxation to generate legitimate, organic economic growth. In this moment, Rhode Islanders see the lie of “this is how things are done.”

I wish to acknowledge the efforts of activists, legislators, and members of the Libertarian Party of Rhode Island for their tenacity in preserving the integrity of free market principles, and for mobilizing to change the way business is done in this state. Let this mark the next phase of Rhode Island’s evolution.