Have you done your part today to help elect a Democrat in Massachusetts? If you're in Massachusetts, there's still time to phonebank. And if you're out-of-state, check out OFA's phonebank from home tool here.
There's still time to help get out the vote.
While we won't know the outcome for several more hours, we do know that this is a tight race, and that Republicans have once again proven that they'll do anything or say anything to chip away at our Democratic majority.
While we wait for the polls to close and the results to start streaming in, I wanted to draw your attention to another highly-competitive race -- this one for President Barack Obama's old seat in the United States Senate.
Republican Congressman Mark Kirk (IL-10) is the presumptive GOP nominee. Polls show that I'm the only Democratic candidate that can beat him -- but it's already a tight race, 42-39.
We have a primary on February 2nd here in Illinois, and we don't take any election for granted. I wanted to take a chance while we're waiting for numbers from Massachusetts to introduce my position on the issues. I'll stick around in the comments for as long as I can and answer any questions you may have.
In case you're wondering what my candidacy is about, here's my closing statement from our latest televised debate. You can read about where I stand on all the issues in detail at my website, www.alexiforillinois.com/issues.
Update [2010-1-19 18:11:24 by Alexi Giannoulias]:: This post focuses on domestic issues. I will be back online to discuss foreign policy at length next week. Thank you.
Jobs and the Economy
As I travel the state, I hear one concern raised time and time again – how can we get our economy moving again and ensure that every Illinoisan can find a good job?
This is the most important issue in this campaign. It is why I’m running for the United States Senate.
I have introduced a comprehensive economic plan which includes provisions aimed at getting people back to work, such as a payroll tax holiday for low- and middle-income workers and a new jobs tax credit for small businesses. I would also extend the college tuition deduction.
These initiatives, which I would pay for by closing the tax loophole that incentivizes companies to move jobs overseas, would put more money in the pockets of those most likely to spend it, and would support the types of small businesses that are responsible for most new job growth.
As we invest in jobs, we need to also focus on the jobs of tomorrow – good paying positions that can’t be outsourced. Studies have shown that manufacturing jobs created by a focus on renewable energy – specifically wind and solar in the case of one study – have had an approximately 80 percent overlap in areas where jobs have been lost due to outsourcing. It's why I want to go to the Senate and make sure Congress makes every effort to capitalize on American ingenuity and spur a new generation of good-paying jobs that can’t be outsourced.
Illinois is home to more than 2,500 companies that have created more than 28,000 such "clean energy jobs", like building wind turbines, weatherizing homes, manufacturing highly efficient lighting fixtures, and producing energy from waste. The road to America’s energy independence runs right through the prairies of Illinois. As a Senator, I'll work to build on this foundation with the right kind of government incentives so that we can grow businesses focused on clean energy and double this number in the next few years.
Financial Reform
Last year we saw the result of lax regulation and minimal oversight. I do not believe the system is any better today than it was before the crash. In fact, the country’s four largest banks have only gotten larger and now account for nearly 40 percent of total banking deposits and issue half of the country’s mortgages. If one were to fail again in the future, the resulting economic storm would be even more severe than the last. As part of my comprehensive Future Works economic plan, I outlined the steps that I would take to avoid this crisis from recurring:
- First, we must proactively address the threat of "too big to fail" institutions rather than waiting for the next crisis to strike.
- Second, we must regulate the non-bank mortgage lending industry by making them abide by the same oversight rules that govern banks. Third, we must reign in the unregulated multitrillion-dollar derivatives market that helped create the financial crisis by creating an exchange on which all over-the-counter derivative transactions would be required to take place.
- Finally, we must empower consumers to protect against deceptive banking and lending practices by creating a Consumer Financial Protection Agency that protects consumers from predatory home loans, credit card fees, payday loans and other forms of consumer finance that hide costs and push more Americans into an unending cycle of debt.
This is an issue I have worked on throughout my term as Illinois Treasurer. I fought the deceptive practices of corporations and financial institutions, kept predatory credit card companies off college campuses, and stood up with workers of Hartmarx when Wells Fargo threatened to eliminate good paying jobs.
I also capped the fees that for-profit companies can charge to find unclaimed property, a process that people can typically do themselves for free. Just last month I proposed legislation that would regulate debt settlement companies operating in Illinois for the first time. Debt settlers advertise widely on radio, television and the Internet, promising to help distressed borrowers avoid bankruptcy by negotiating to pay off their debt for pennies on the dollar. Very few borrowers see this result, and most wind up further in debt and with lousy credit ratings.
Taxes
Tax cuts should go to those who most need them and who will put the extra income to use. The Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans were unnecessary and created some of the largest deficits in U.S. history, and I would allow them to expire. Any new tax cuts should be geared toward middle-class Americans and small businesses, which is why my economic plan includes tax cuts and credits that support such small businesses and that will put more money in the pockets of those most likely to spend it. |
Healthcare
Healthcare reform is something I care deeply about, and have been here, on Daily Kos, expressing my view of what should guide negotiations on the health insurance reform bill, through out the process. I want to take this opportunity to express a few thoughts on the legislation that has passed the House and Senate. There are several areas of difference that present opportunities to significantly improve the bill in conference committee so that it increases coverage and lowers costs.
First and foremost, the most effective way to bring down costs is through increased competition, and there is no better way to increase competition than with a public option as is included in the House bill. I hope that such a non-profit public health insurance plan is part of the compromise legislation.
The final bill should also require that insurance companies immediately stop discriminating against Americans with preexisting conditions, rather than allowing a three-year grace period before they must comply.
I am also strongly opposed to the abortion language included in both bills. What should be a health care bill has suddenly become a sweeping abortion bill that denies women the right to use their own personal funds to purchase an insurance plan with coverage for a legal medical procedure. The House bill in particular goes far beyond the principle held in the Hyde amendment and has the effect of virtually preventing private insurance companies that participate in the new system from offering abortion coverage. |
Reforming Washington
The last decade has demonstrated how the influence of corporate special interests bankrupts American families. From the pharmaceutical lobby to the big banks on Wall Street, narrow corporate interests have spent billions of dollars preserving a status quo that works only for them. Now more than ever, Illinois needs leaders in D.C. who will stand up against corporate special interests. That's why I'm proud to be the first U.S. Senate candidate in Illinois history to refuse contributions from corporate PACs and federal lobbyists. It's why I strongly support campaign finance reform. I strongly support and will co-sponsor The Fair Elections Now Act, introduced by U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, which alters the campaign finance system for federal candidates and allows ordinary citizens who do not have massive wealth or connections to play a bigger role in the electoral process. I will also work to pass legislation that will make the process more transparent, creating a "contracts and influences database" and dramatically increasing lobbyist disclosure requirements. |
Education
As we climb out from this economic crisis, we must prepare Americans for the jobs of the future. Quality education is, and must continue to be, the foundation of the American economy. This strategy is about more than just recovery — it is about how we will emerge stronger than before. America will only continue to lead if our children can compete in the global economy.
My plan begins before our children enter kindergarten with increased investment in Head Start, Early Head Start, and other early childhood education programs. For every dollar we invest in our children before they are five years of age, we save up to $17 in the future because they are likely to earn more and less likely to drop out of school, be incarcerated, or seek welfare.
Additionally, I believe that the federal government should ensure minimum levels of achievement for schools, but should allow states and localities the flexibility to experiment with new education techniques.
We must also invest in higher education and advanced job training opportunities. In the Senate, I'll work to make higher education more affordable by supporting an expansion of Pell Grants and proposing new financial incentives and tax credits to make sure any young person who works hard can afford to attend school. |
Energy and the Environment
I come from a financial background that focuses on numbers and the bottom line, and it is through this lens that I approach most problems. I see environmental protection as not only a moral imperative, but an economic imperative as well. When we address global warming, we are spurring the industries of tomorrow, creating good jobs that can’t be outsourced, and restoring America’s place as the innovation leader. When we set strong market signals that cap air and water pollutants, we are establishing a level playing field that allows the most innovative companies to reduce costs for consumers, reduce the damage to our environment, and become industry leaders. I want to focus on articulating that argument in a Senate that is increasingly guided by narrow special interests rather than common sense.
I support efforts to create a comprehensive, market-based system that puts a price on global warming pollution and spurs investment in renewable energy and new clean energy jobs. This transition can occur with minimal cost to consumers, and help make America more competitive in today’s global economy. I hope that the Senate quickly passes legislation that employs free market principles to cut emissions of heat-trapping gasses by 80 percent by 2050. |
Immigration
My parents left Greece because they believed in the promise of America. That promise is slipping away from immigrant families today.
Our immigration system is broken. The number of undocumented workers continues to grow by about 500,000 per year, the system that oversees the immigration process is weighed down by bureaucracy and lack of funding, and businesses using illegal hiring practices are not being held accountable. I agree with Congressman Luis Gutierrez, who has endorsed my campaign for the United States Senate, when he says we need to have a responsible path to citizenship. The United States needs common sense and comprehensive immigration reform that secures our borders, protects the rights of all workers and modernizes our legal immigration programs. It is important that we place the nation’s 12 million undocumented immigrants on a responsible path to citizenship. |
Equal Rights
Americans in same-sex relationships are denied inheritance rights, hospital visitation rights, equal pension and health care benefits, and all of the other legal protections that the government grants married couples. I believe that all Americans, regardless of sexual orientation, are part of the American family, and that the federal government should extend the same rights and responsibilities to all of its citizens. All Americans in committed, long-term relationships should enjoy inheritance rights, hospital visitation rights, equal pension and health care benefits, and all of the other legal protections government affords married couples. I support the right of individual states to give same-sex couples the right to marry. As a U.S. Senator, I would work to ensure that the federal government recognizes these marriages by supporting the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act. I also support the repeal of "Don’t Ask Don’t Tell" and efforts, modeled after existing civil rights and disabilities legislation, to prohibit workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. As State Treasurer, I ended years of a misguided policy in that office by extending health coverage to domestic partners and as a U.S. Senator, I will also work to end the double taxation of couples. |
Veterans
After serving on the front lines to protect America, too many of our veterans are treated as second-class citizens when they return home. A third of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans are experiencing symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, but only half of soldiers suffering from PTSD or major depression have seen a physician or mental health provider. One-third of homeless Americans are veterans, and more than 75 percent of veterans describe "an inability to effectively translate their military skills to civilian terms," while 61 percent of employers report they don’t have "a complete understanding of the qualifications ex-service members offer." It is our responsibility to ensure that our troops have the best resources while in active duty and the best support and care when they return home. I will work to expand the VA loan programs so that veterans have the opportunity to open a small business or buy a home, crack down on employers who commit job discrimination against returning veterans and push for the proper implementation of the Post-9/11 GI Bill, which will allow every eligible veteran, serviceman and woman, Reservist and National Guard member to attend a public college or university for free for four years. We must make sure our service members receive first class health care when they return home. I will fight for full funding for the VA and will work to make sure that veterans have improved mental health care at every stage of military service, from providing improved pre-deployment screenings to working with the VA to provide more support for families and enhanced mental health treatment upon return home. |
Women’s Rights Despite decades of progress, women working full time make only 78 cents for every one dollar earned by men for the same job, while working mothers earn just 69 cents to that dollar. Women make less money than men, but have to pay more for health care. More than 20 million women currently lack health care, and two-thirds of uninsured women fail to get the care they need because of high costs. Women pay significantly more in out-of-pocket expenses than men.
I support narrowing the pay disparity to benefit the record number of women in the workforce and improve the economic security of families. I supported passage of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which further protects women's rights to take action against unfair pay practices, and will also work to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would empower women to negotiate for equal pay, create incentives for employers to follow the Equal Pay Act and protect workers from retaliation if they disclose or question their pay. I am deeply committed to protecting a woman’s right to choose under Roe v. Wade, and opposes any constitutional amendment that would override that right. I support more funding for preventive initiatives aimed at reducing the number of unwanted pregnancies, including greater access to contraceptives that curb the spread of sexually transmitted diseases, and comprehensive sex education programs that teach safe sex methods. Preventing unwanted pregnancies would reduce the number of abortions and result in fewer unwanted births and their long-term consequences. |
Rural America
Rural America forms the character of our heartland and is the backbone of our food and energy supply. Yet the recession has taken its toll on family farms and rural communities. Illinois is a large and diverse state and the Senator from Illinois must be able to represent all of Illinois. My comprehensive economic plan includes provisions aimed at protecting the family farmer and spurring economic development in rural communities, such as giving farmers and small business access to credit, building infrastructure to extend high-speed internet to underserved areas and taping the full potential of wind and bio-fuel technology. My plan gives families the stability needed to navigate the highs and lows of a seasonal business, while ensuring that safeguards are in place to keep corporations from squeezing family farms. |
Promoting Culture and the Arts
The arts play a role in the quality of our lives, in the effectiveness of our education system, and even in how we are viewed around the world. Cultural opportunities in cities and towns across America help build strong social centers and diversity that allow us to reflect on ourselves and our society. I want to ensure that cultural institutions, individual artists and arts organizations receive the funding they deserve, and that artists can access quality, affordable health care and are treated fairly under the tax code. |
Thank you for taking the time to read about where I stand on the issues.