Issues

Ending the War In Iraq
The War in Iraq is perhaps the most urgent moral issue confronting our nation today. Now entering its 6th year, the War continues to extract a devastating human and financial toll that is neither justifiable nor sustainable. Citizens in America and around the world are growing weary of politicians who discuss the U.S. invasion of Iraq, and the ongoing war and occupation, in strategic and intellectual terms.

Affordable Health Care For All
Providing universal health care coverage is one of my top priorities. Every half hour a person dies in the United States because he or she does not have health insurance. I believe we have a moral responsibility to provide access to health care for the 48 million Americans who are now without coverage.

Expanding Access to Education
The single most important opportunity in my life that allowed me to get to where I am today was the opportunity to attend college. I worked summers in construction, and full-time jobs throughout the school year, in order to pay my way through college.

Renewable Energy For a Green Future
We need to generate more energy from clean renewable sources, develop more efficient transportation systems, invest in energy efficiency, and produce home grown fuels. These solutions will not only reduce global warming but make our country more energy independent and less reliant on fossil fuels from politically unstable regions.

Building Maine’s Creative Economy
Expanding Federal activities in support of the arts and culture will improve the education our children receive in public schools, increase the range and character of Maine’s artistic and cultural activities and programs, build Maine’s physical and economic infrastructure, trigger new investments in high value/high return business activity, and stimulate Maine tourism. The funding, supporting and understanding of cultural and artistic interests is essential in a competitive and prosperous Maine.

Every Child Deserves a Home
An effective child and family policy addresses the physical, social, emotional, intellectual and spiritual health of our children and our families. In an effort to promote national progress, my policy advocates for the best interests of our children and families through the provision of health care, child care, educational opportunities and family support services.

Returning to a Rational Foreign Policy
I believe that the world is ready — indeed eager — for the United States to return to its traditional pursuit of a foreign policy that is coherent, pragmatic, respectful and idealistic. Following 9/11, a broad coalition of nations — including many Muslim countries — joined the United States against Al Qaeda, and the Taliban in Afghanistan who harbored them. It was a promising moment. Five years later American foreign policy is in tatters.

Housing is a Human Right
“Like universal health care, universal access to adequate housing is both the right thing to do and also makes sense economically. Employers in high-cost housing markets have a hard time recruiting people to work for them. Employees who find their paychecks eaten away by rent or mortgage payments often take on energy-draining second jobs or look for higher paying new ones. “

Protecting Reproductive Freedom
Thirty-five years ago, the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision affirmed a woman’s right to privacy and moral authority when making childbearing decisions. Since that time, reproductive rights debates have focused almost singularly on the narrow question of whether someone is “pro-choice” or “pro-life.”

Rights and Opportunities for Maine’s Working People
“Opportunity, equity, the right to dignity in our working lives are core American and Maine values. Those who work hard, take risks, and play by the rules deserve equal opportunities, economic security, and fairness on the job.”

Equal Rights for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender People
Regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity, everyone deserves certain fundamental rights including freedom from discrimination, protection from hate-motivated violence, and the right to legally establish partnerships through marriage. Marriage is a fundamental right that heterosexual people take for granted.