Candidate for U.S. House of Representatives - New York 23rd Congressional District in 2020 New York General Election.
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Get StartedWe must strengthen our public schools. Federal funds are needed to level the playing field, beginning with making sure that all of our schools have good teachers. Let’s pay teachers what they deserve. Competitive wages reflect the incredibly important work that they do, and we want to keep talented teachers in the classroom. Learn more
Our economy relies on graduates with a two-year degree or its equivalent of workforce readiness in the trades as well as for training, certification, and apprenticeship programs for 21st century jobs and advanced manufacturing. I therefore will fight for federal support to be added to state and local resources to be dedicated to making a two-year degree, or its equivalent, a part of our public educational system. Learn more
Students motivated to do a four year degree, professional or graduate school should be able to go to the institution of their choosing and abilities without crippling student debt. I therefore support setting interest rates on federal student loans at administrative rates (for example 2.5%) and private loans at a reasonable rate of no more than 4%. For those already suffering under the burden of student debt, I support refinancing. Victims of predatory for-profit colleges (as adjudicated by the Department of Education) should have their loans forgiven. Learn more
Education begins with our youngest: I support the expansion of universal Pre-K education and the Head Start program, so that children can come to kindergarten with similar advantages and opportunities to learn. Learn more
Our schools must be supported by paying teachers what they deserve and their curriculum must evolve and adapt to ensure we are preparing our children for the jobs of tomorrow, not yesterday. This continued education includes vocation and certificate programs that lead right to jobs that are available today, such as those in healthcare. This education should not lead to a life of debt, as that keeps our next generation of entrepreneurs and business owners from taking risks and thinking big. Learn more
Funding for climate change research to both reduce our contributions to the changing climate as well as to support our businesses, especially our farmers, as they adapt to increasingly unpredictable weather patterns. Learn more
Funding for research and the development of solutions to fossil fuel dependency, including research and development of renewable energies. Federal and state alignment to address water quality and ongoing monitoring to combat harmful algae blooms. Learn more
Federal oversight of hydraulic-fracturing. Learn more
Federal funding for the final cleanup and removal of low-level radioactive waste at West Valley. Learn more
In this beautiful region, our soil, lakes, and rivers are crucial to our agricultural and tourism industries. In addition to protecting them for environmental reasons, we must also acknowledge their incredible value to our economy and maintain them through water quality monitoring, maintaining the NY moratorium on hydraulic-fracturing, investing in clean energy and continuing to fund climate change research. Learn more
As your Congressional representative, I will work to protect the Second Amendment rights of responsible gun owners. Still, there must be a balance between our right to bear arms and public safety. We must implement safeguards, not to inhibit the rights of responsible gun owners, but for public health and safety. Learn more
Healthcare in the United States should be affordable, available and efficient. Our goal is making sure that every single American has affordable health care coverage that includes vision, hearing, dental and prescription coverage. This country needs to start putting people over profit in healthcare in order to resolve decades of dissension and debate. It is time to settle healthcare policy, so we can get on a path toward productivity for all of us. Learn more
Expanding select visas will help bring in the influx of legal workers that our farmers and technology companies need to keep up with demand. Our broken immigration system should not be yet another obstacle for our businesses to overcome. Learn more
As global economic, climate and other changes drive immigration, we must modernize our laws through comprehensive reform. Unimaginable violence and corruption in areas like Central America have pushed whole families to seek not just a better life but the basics of human safety. Some immigrants come for better jobs or education, bringing much-needed skills, labor and ideas with them. We have always been a nation of immigrants, but we have neglected our immigration laws for more than a half century. Both Democrats and Republicans can agree that we’ve created an administrative, political and humanitarian crisis as a result. Learn more
Our roads, bridges and railways must be properly maintained to make our towns and businesses easily reachable; additionally, we need transportation systems that support working-class people and their families getting to work and school easily and quickly. Learn more
I pledge to work to improve public transportation throughout the district and to build and/or repair our road, bridges, highway and rail systems as needed, and most immediately: expand rural broadband. Learn more
Broadband should be helping more families see doctors online, educate children, and grow businesses, including family farms. Families parked outside of fast-food restaurants to get Wi-Fi access for their children to do homework is not fair nor does it provide a competitive advantage for our children and families. Facing worldwide competition, farmers lose out when they can not operate with safe barns or are unable to react quickly to adjust feed to fluctuating commodity prices. Learn more
Instead of undermining programs like Social Security and Medicare, we should celebrate, strengthen and expand them so Americans receive the benefits they have paid for and deserve, In Medicare, for example, we must lower eligibility to include people who are 60 and up. The program can also be run more efficiently as we negotiate for lower or free prescription drug prices and improve communication and infrastructure that both lessens duplication across programs and closes gaps in coverage for the most vulnerable. Learn more
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