Levitt AMP Woonsocket Wins RI Monthly's Best Outdoor Music Festival in Rhode Island Award!

Funded by a grant from the Levitt Foundation, the Levitt AMP Woonsocket Music Series combines the best of the summer concert experience in one riverside venu - food trucks, vendor pop-ups, an onsite bar and high-energy shows featuring local and national acts like Steve Smith and the Nakeds and Nashville-based rock outfit the New Respects. Bring your blanket and head up to Woonsocket for this free, Friday-night series that runs all summer long. River Island Art Park, 95 Bernon St., Woonsocket, levittamp.org/woonsocket

-printed in RI Monthly, August 2022

 

  
Former President Trump is complaining that he can't be on the campaign trail because of what he calls a ridiculous trial in New York City. Speaking right after the 12 jurors were selected on Thursday, Trump said the "whole world is watching this scam" and went on to read news articles criticizing the case. Trump is accused of falsifying business records in order to cover up payments allegedly made to an adult film star just prior to the 2016 election.        Conservatives are warning Republican Mike Johnson against raising the threshold required to trigger the procedure to oust the House speaker. Johnson was involved in a tense exchange on the House floor today with a group of conservatives calling on him to assure them he would not raise the threshold on the motion to vacate. Johnson refused to commit, frustrating lawmakers like Florida Republican Matt Gaetz, who later told reporters doing so would likely kick off an effort to remove Johnson.        Republican Mike Johnson is setting up some high-stakes votes that might end his short term as House Speaker. Defying the conservative wing of his party, Johnson plans for House votes on aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, and a separate bill for the border. The conservative flank argues the border should be tied to Ukraine to force Democrats to vote for its passage.        The White House is clarifying that President Biden's uncle wasn't eaten by cannibals. During two campaign stops in Pennsylvania yesterday, Biden said his uncle Ambrose Finnegan got shot down during World War Two in New Guinea, and they never found the body because there were a lot of cannibals in the area. On Thursday, the White House press secretary told reporters aboard Air Force One Biden was only expressing how "incredibly proud" he was of Finnegan and he was not eaten by New Guinea natives in 1944.       President Biden is receiving a major endorsement from more than a dozen members of the iconic Kennedy family. The Kennedy family appeared alongside the president during a campaign event in Philadelphia today. Kerry Kennedy, the daughter of assassinated Senator and presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, praised Biden's accomplishments during his first term and sharply criticized Republican frontrunner Donald Trump.        Virginia is making it illegal for the NCAA to punish schools for paying athletes directly for their name, image and likeness rights. The law will go into effect July 1st after being signed by Governor Glenn Youngkin on Thursday. NCAA rules currently prohibit schools from signing NIL deals with their own players.