Brunner News
American Veterans Rally Behind Jennifer Brunner
by on 04.29.2010
The VETERANS' VISION publication today announced its endorsement of Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, currently running for US Senate in Ohio. Citing an ongoing commitment to veterans, Secretary Brunner was commended for her expansive knowledge of issues facing military veterans and her detailed plans to improve health care inadequacies and unemployment among veterans.
"We asked Lee Fisher to stand up for American veterans and he would not clearly state his position. We need to sack the slackers for veterans and we are here to say that we unequivocally stand behind Jennifer Brunner in her US Senate run," said Maj. Brian Hampton, Publisher of the VETERANS' VISION, making it clear which Senate candidate veterans can trust.
Secretary Brunner recently joined with 50 current Members of Congress to affirm her support for the Veterans' Bill of Rights sponsored by the VETERANS' VISION, a veterans' rights advocacy publication. Her primary opponent, Lee Fisher, despite receiving numerous chances, declined to acknowledge his support for the initiative.
The Veterans' Bill of Rights would require that every Veterans Administration Medical Center in the country offer Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) counseling, increase the funding provided to non-profit transitional facilities that get homeless veterans off the street and make veterans a top priority for Members of Congress.
Source: Press release
Brunner Vows to Bring More Opportunities to Young Americans and Ohioans
by on 04.27.2010
Today, U.S. Senate Democratic candidate Jennifer Brunner offered plans to improve opportunities for young Ohioans and Americans to complete college and post-college education and to obtain good paying jobs for their future.
"Our next Senator from Ohio must offer a bold federal policy agenda aimed at creating and keeping good jobs in both the private and public sectors," said Brunner. "We must recognize that exploitation of our work force hurts all of us. Growing local companies and social service organizations that can partner with universities and groom young workers keeps our young people in Ohio, gives them an edge in a competitive job market and rewards Ohio companies for doing so."
Brunner proposed tax credits for businesses that offer internships to university students that allow them to gain college credit and for tuition assistance they provide to their employees. In her proposal, she also offers tax credits to insurance companies that provide comprehensive health care plans to universities for students and graduate students that matches the quality of the insurance pool to be created by the new federal health reform act.
"Health care is often a major determinant in job decisions for many Ohians and Americans, especially young people," said Brunner. "People want to be able to make choices for themselves," she said. "Young people stand before many crossroads. We want to see them achieve their full potential, and this will help them do that."
Source: Media Release
Media Release: Fisher Abandoned Job Creation for Campaign Cash & Wall Street Money
by on 04.22.2010
Lee Fisher, who stepped down last year as Ohio's economic development director to run for the U.S. Senate, says he'll create jobs as a U.S. Senator, but questions remain about why he quit Ohio's chief job creation post in the first place.
As reported in the Dayton Daily News, Fisher collected campaign cash from business leaders whose companies received millions from the state. The newspaper said Fisher "received nearly $20,000 from eight business leaders whose companies collectively received $12.9 million in state loans, tax credits or grants."
Source: Media Release
Media Release: DFA’s Jim Dean to Join Internet-Aided Brunner Bus Tour Tuesday
by on 04.19.2010
James H. "Jim" Dean, Chair of Democracy for America and brother of former DNC Chair Gov. Howard Dean, will join Ohio Secretary of State and U.S. Senate Candidate Jennifer Brunner aboard "The Courage Express," a refurbished 1991 International Harvester school bus, for bus tour stops in Madison, Clark, Miami, Auglaize, and Mercer Counties.
In a sign of her surging momentum as the May 4th primary election approaches, last week Jennifer Brunner received the endorsement of Democracy for America, a powerful voice for progressives and the largest political action committee in the country. In his national email message announcing the endorsement, Jim Dean praised Brunner's people-powered grassroots campaign and said that it is "time to shake up the U.S. Senate":
Progressives have watched good legislation passed by the House die in the Senate -- the public option, the climate change bill, financial reform -- you name it, they killed it. Why? Because big banks, insurance companies and Wall Street fund too many Democratic Senators' campaigns. On May 4, we'll have our first chance to strike back and elect a leader who will stand up for us in the Senate.
Jennifer Brunner is the progressive running for U.S. Senate in the Ohio Democratic primary. She's running a grassroots campaign powered by people and small donations, not Wall Street and corporate cash. That's why 57% of Ohio DFA members support Brunner, while only 14% support Lee Fisher, her Democratic opponent.
. . .
Although "The Courage Express" is a nineteen-year-old school bus with the distinctly low-tech feel of worn shock absorbers and plain work tables installed between sets of the original school bus seats, the bus tour includes a high-tech internet-based dimension.
Purchased on EBay, The Courage Express features an adapter that enables campaign staffers to power their laptops and recharge their mobile phone and other devices, and it has a mobile wifi "hotspot" to allow broadband internet access on the road. The bus is paired with an internet presence at http://www.TheCourageExpress.com, a stand-alone web page that features an introduction and schedule of tour stops, "video blogs" hosted on YouTube (click the images below to view), photographs from the road, and an interactive live-blogging feature for the candidate and staffers to post stories from the tour and for members of the public to submit comments and questions.
Source: Read more
Media Release: Brunner Statement on Fisher Fund Raising Problems
by on 04.16.2010
The following statement may be attributed to Democratic U.S. Senate Candidate Jennifer Brunner:
With millions of Americans paying taxes yesterday on April 15th and Tea Party protestors circling their wagons at the Ohio Statehouse, Ohioans should be troubled about the campaign fund raising problems of my primary election opponent, Lee Fisher, who vowed at a Cleveland City Club debate Tuesday that he would work to curb Wall Street abuses that have hurt Ohioans.
Our current severe and prolonged economic recession was ignited when the practices of "banks too big to fail" left America's financial sector in peril of collapsing. Big banks and Wall Street financial institutions were bailed out with massive infusions of hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars. Their careless and greedy financial strategies had left them insufficiently capitalized to withstand historically high mortgage home foreclosure rates. The real estate bubble burst in no small part because of insufficient regulation and lax oversight of the financial services industry by Congress. Many of the members of Congress in both the House and Senate have fared handsomely with large contributions and excessive amounts spent on lobbying them for favorable regulation of the banking industry that fed and rewarded this corporate greed.
Over the last ten years, financial firms spent $3.4 billion dollars lobbying the Washington--both the Administration and Congress. These firms spent $114 million on lobbying in 2008 alone, the year of the collapse. Some firms failed; others merged; others sold additional shares of stock to stay afloat. Of those that have survived, the vast majority were handed over taxpayer funds with little requirement for the kinds of sacrifices and concessions everyday Ohioans now face with job losses, credit freezes, skyrocketing interest rates and penalties, loss of their homes and going without medical care. And to the anger of so many Americans, their CEOs and highest level employees continued to receive eye-popping bonuses as part of compensation packages that continue to encourage the culture that put us here.
Banking reforms loom large in the minds of the American public. Congress will be called on to make the hard decisions that will keep Americans and their families safe from the peril that they saved the banks from. Candidates and members of Congress must stop asking for and taking funds from the financial firms they regulate and give money to. If Lee Fisher is really as serious about curbing Wall Street abuses as he says he is, he should confront his fund raising problems: he should stop asking for and taking money from the very financial firms he would regulate as a member of the U.S. Senate. Soliciting and taking money from PACs and executives of financial institutions saved by the American public with hard-earned tax dollars is irresponsible and guts trust in our government officials.
My opponent, Lee Fisher, said as recently as last week that his performance in office is not affected by whom he solicits and receives money from, citing his days in the Attorney General's office. Obviously, he believes that he, unlike so many others, can do the difficult work of reforming banking regulation even if he asks for and takes money from Wall Street's top officials and banking PACs. The American public watched as Congress was paralyzed during the health care reform debate by the competing and conflicting demands of the many interests that have given its members massive sums of money. We need a new kind of leader that elevates people and their real concerns over the paternalistic interests of institutions that have failed time and again to restore prosperity and the American dream to Ohio and American families.
It's disappointing that Lt. Gov. Fisher, who resigned his position as Ohio's chief job creation officer in February 2009, has without apology solicited and taken tens of thousands of dollars from PACs and executives tied directly to TARP funds, all the while saying, "Trust me." He's solicited and received contributions that include $20,000 from the PACS of financial institutions receiving billions of TARP dollars and nearly $20,000 in large contributions from senior financial firm executives.
Source: Read more
Brunner Senate Campaign Video Calls Out Fisher Hypocrisy on Negative Campaigning
by on 04.13.2010
U.S. Senate hopeful Jennifer Brunner released a campaign video today that calls out her Democratic Party rival on his pledge that he "hasn't" and he "won't" engage in negative campaigning - despite his long history of engaging in it.
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| Click image to watch video |
The Brunner campaign launched the video after Fisher pushed Democratic voters in an email to sign a petition about a directive she issued as Secretary of State and falsely accused her of requiring "loyalty oaths" from primary voters who change between the two major political parties.
Fisher's attack mimics Republican attacks on Brunner for issuing a directive requiring primary voters who switch parties between the two major political parties to sign a form required by law that they support the principles of their new party. The directive offers guidance to county elections officials about how to implement a law that has been on the books for almost 60 years and used by many boards of elections throughout the state.
Brunner said the directive is needed to instruct counties that the law must be applied uniformly, especially in light of the increasing number of absentee ballots being cast in Ohio.
Fisher's campaign has been funded largely from high-dollar contributions from wealthy and special-interest contributors. Yet, he remains virtually tied with Brunner's scrappy, grassroots campaign that raises large numbers of small dollar donations. His latest attack picks up the mantle of the GOP, even adopting their characterization of the forms as a "loyalty oath," in attacking Brunner's actions as Secretary of State.
In the new video, Brunner uses recent footage of Fisher condemning negative campaigning:
"I hate negative campaigning," Fisher says during a Feb. 28 appearance before the Northeast Ohio Democratic Women's Caucus. "I will not run a negative campaign in the primary. I haven't and I won't."
Source: Press Release
Democratic U.S. Senate Candidate Jennifer Brunner Unveils Worker Training Plan; Collects Endorsement
by on 02.04.2010
U.S. Senate candidate Jennifer Brunner called today for federal legislation to support the development of specialized workforce training programs that link two-year colleges and regional trades programs to local needs.
"This program is tailor-made to help the Mahoning Valley,'' Brunner told a news conference. "The work ethic in the Valley is unrivaled. Better workforce development will bring better jobs, and the training must be tailored to reflect regional strengths and needs as they differ throughout the state.''
Brunner's trip to the Mahoning Valley included a tour of the Electrical Trades Institute of Northeast Ohio, a facility that would benefit from her proposal. One of the unique features of the center is the training of electricians for assembling and installing wind turbines and solar panels, which she called "jobs of the 21st century.''
. . .
"Despite the region's high unemployment rate, clean energy jobs, often dubbed 'green' jobs, are emerging as a way to transition from traditional manufacturing and construction for skilled trades workers," she said. Training programs like the Electrical Trades Institute of Northeast Ohio are well positioned to provide the training needed for jobs that require specialized trade skills with education of more than a high school diploma.
Brunner's plan calls for using money repaid from the Troubled Asset Relief Program to provide training grants to regional stakeholders who collaborate to create sustainable jobs for developing regional industries. Stakeholders would include businesses, unions, two-year colleges, regional trades programs, and local workforce development programs. The stakeholders would develop specialized programs to train or re-train workers for jobs with a sustainable future that may be specific to the region.
The grant program would be administered by five regional task forces comprised of retired business and nonprofit executives and retired members of the state's building trades and manufacturing labor organizations. Task force members would be compensated for travel and expenses, select task force co-chairs, one from business and one from labor, operate for a finite period of time and be subject to deadlines for program startup, issuance of requests for proposals and grant awards, oversight and reporting.
. . .
While in the Valley, Brunner accepted the endorsement of Niles Mayor Ralph A. Infante.
"Jennifer Brunner is the candidate of ideas,'' Mayor Infante said. "She has a unique understanding of Ohio's economic challenges and has a series of thoughtful proposals to improve our economy.''
Source: Media Release
Brunner Wants Unspent Bank Bailout Money Used for Roads, Bridges
by on 12.03.2009
Today U.S. Senate candidate Jennifer Brunner called on the federal government to use unspent bank bailout money to create jobs building roads, bridges, sewers and needed public works.
"Let's put our money to work, so we can put Ohioans back to work," she said.
Brunner cited Treasury Department reports showing that $210 billion of the $700 billion bank bailout fund known as the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) was not spent. The figure includes $72.5 billion repaid by banks that weathered the crisis, and an additional $50 billion in repayments is expected over the next 12 to 18 months. The future of the funds has not been decided.
"Instead of borrowing more money and digging our deficit hole deeper to fund nation-building activities in Iraq and Afghanistan, Congress should invest a substantial portion of the unspent TARP funding on nation-building here at home," Brunner said.
Her call for the public works program came just days after she called for a timetable to withdraw from Afghanistan and opposed the deployment of additional troops. Her comments marked a rare public disagreement with President Obama who wants 30,000 more troops sent to Afghanistan with a definite timetable to begin withdrawal, starting in July of 2011.
Despite the President's assertion that more troops will lead to a speedier end to the war, Brunner said she would rather have our soldiers building bridges and schools in Ohio than in Afghanistan.
"We have so much rebuilding to do at home, and there are so many who cannot find work, especially in Ohio," she said.
Source: Press release
Brunner Calls for Timetable to Bring Troops Home from Afghanistan
by on 11.30.2009
U.S. Senate candidate Jennifer Brunner today called for America to set a timetable for "bringing our troops home from Afghanistan as soon as possible" and she questioned the cost and course of an expanded war.
Her comments come on the eve of President Obama's scheduled address to the nation in which he is expected to call for deployment of 30,000 or more additional U.S. troops to Afghanistan.
While praising the performance of America's all-volunteer military and acknowledging the complexity of the task facing the President, Brunner said the impact of continuing the status quo is simply unacceptable.
"As the cost to American and Ohioans' lives increases, billions are spent each month on the conflict in Afghanistan, ballooning our national debt and diverting resources we desperately need here at home," she wrote in a posting today at Huffington Post and DailyKos.
"So far, of the 4,367 military deaths in Iraq and 928 military deaths in Afghanistan, Ohio has sacrificed more than 200 lives in military deaths and $33 billion to fund wars on these fronts--priceless loss to Ohio's future and $33 billion from a state with unemployment exceeding 10 percent. Looking just at the dollars, had we invested these funds, Ohio could have funded roughly 6 million Pell Grants, or hired a half million elementary school teachers or provided completely free health care for one year for every woman, man and child in the state."
Source: Press release
Brunner Assails Anti-Choice Amendment to House Health Bill
by on 11.09.2009
Ohio Secretary of State and U.S. Senate candidate Jennifer Brunner today called the House passage of a last-minute anti-choice amendment to health reform an insult to Ohio women and an assault on the right to privacy -- and strongly urged the Senate to protect a woman's right to choose. Brunner said that while passage of the health care reform bill is on balance a positive step, it is critically important that America not allow the anti-choice forces to achieve through Congressional statute what the courts have repeatedly refused - the elimination of a woman's right to choose.
The amendment, offered by anti-choice Reps. Bart Stupak (D-MI) and Joe Pitts (R-PA), was adopted late Saturday by a vote of 240-194. The Stupak-Pitts amendment makes it virtually impossible for private insurance companies that participate in the new system to offer abortion coverage to women - even if they pay for it with their own funds. The Stupak-Pitts amendment would leave Ohio women worse off than they are today by denying them the right to use their own money to purchase an insurance plan with abortion coverage in the new health system - a policy far more far-reaching than the Hyde Amendment, which has prohibited public funding of abortions since 1977. Presently, more than 85 percent of private-insurance plans cover abortion services.
"By voting yesterday to block women from essential reproductive health care services, the anti-choice obstructionists in Congress have abandoned Ohio women and would legislate a woman's constitutional right to choose ineffective at best," Brunner said. "The final health care bill must not only guarantee each Ohioan's right to the health care they need when they need it, it also must also provide access to reproductive health services for all, regardless of income level and regardless of whether or not they receive government subsidized care," Brunner added. "Universal health care is based on the principle that health care should be equally accessible to all citizens. Universal health care does not allow income to determine who gets care and services, and who does not. The Stupak-Pitts amendment violates this basic tenet."
Source: Press Release
Brunner Releases Addtitional Endorsements; Campaign Shows Diverse Support from Across Ohio
by on 10.15.2009
Ohio Secretary of State and U.S. Senate candidate Jennifer Brunner today released a partial list of recent elected official endorsements that includes State Senator Teresa Fedor (D-Toledo) and State Senator Eric Kearney (D-Cincinnati) and state representatives from across northeast Ohio. The state representatives, State Reps. Mike Foley, Matt Patten, Lorraine Fende, and Kathleen Chandler, show Brunner with political support to further her heavily grassroots efforts in solid, Democratic areas of the state. At the same time, Cuyahoga County Commissioner Tim Hagan, Franklin County Commissioner Marilyn Brown, and Franklin County Municipal Court Clerk of Courts Laurie Tyack came forward to support Brunner's candidacy. Columbus City Councilman Andrew Ginther and Mayor Georgine Welo of South Euclid, both impressive and emerging leaders in Franklin and Cuyahoga Counties respectively, also stand with Brunner, endorsing her in this key national race.
Source: Read more
Brunner Urges State Officials to Embrace Plan for Auto Suppliers
by on 10.07.2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 7, 2009
Contact: David Dettman, Campaign Manager, 614-255-4255
Brunner Urges State Officials to Embrace Plan for Auto Suppliers:
Imminent Layoffs In Toledo Show Why Ohio Must Act Now
COLUMBUS -- U.S. Senate candidate and Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner yesterday urged action on her proposal to shore up Ohio's vital automotive supply chain, saying that announced layoffs at Toledo's Jeep plant show why action is needed now.
In August of this year Secretary Brunner unveiled an urban agenda for Ohio as part of her U.S. Senate campaign, and called for the use of federal stimulus money to launch a loan guarantee fund for auto parts suppliers. She pointed out that today's credit crunch is making it hard for even viable suppliers to get the necessary loans they need to survive.
In the same proposal, Secretary Brunner had urged the use of HUD funds for brownfield cleanup, and this week, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown announced the award of $4.8 million for brownfield cleanup, including $1.8 million to a revolving loan fund in the Ohio Department of Development and $1.9 million to a revolving loan fund for Cuyahoga County cleanup efforts. (See: http://brown.senate.gov/newsroom/press_releases/release/?id=26ac3623-e9e9-4fc5-afa6-bce8d3187758) Lt. Gov. Fisher resigned his position as Director of the Ohio Department of Development in February 2009.
Secretary Brunner expressed concern that the auto parts supply chain loan guarantee proposal, a critical part of her urban agenda proposal, may have fallen on deaf ears. "Imminent layoffs at the Toledo Jeep Assembly complex show why Ohio must immediately address the state's critical auto supply chain's needs," Brunner said today.
Yesterday, in an October 6, 2009 letter to state officials tasked with promoting support of Ohio's key auto industry and the state's economic growth, she noted that the Chrysler Group's Jeep Wrangler plant announced plans for a temporary shut down this week at the Toledo Jeep Assembly complex because of what officials called "a parts shortage from an external supplier." The shutdown will idle about 500 Chrysler workers on two shifts and 500 to 700 supplier workers in the complex.
"I request that you give this loan guarantee proposal your full and immediate consideration," Brunner wrote. "Ohio's automakers and automotive suppliers can no longer afford to wait, nor can their employees and their families."
Secretary Brunner's letter went to Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher, who heads the Ohio Economic Growth Cabinet, created by executive order of the Governor last fall, and who is also seeking the Democratic Party's nomination for the U.S. Senate. The letter also went to key officials of the state's Ohio Auto Industry Support Council--Dennis Wojtanowski, President, and a senior advisor to Lt. Gov. Fisher's Senate campaign, and to the Council's co-chairs Eric Burkland, president of the Ohio Manufacturers' Association, and Ken Lortz, director of Ohio's United Auto Workers Region 2B. This council was created in August this year, prior to Brunner's supply chain loan guarantee proposal.
Automotive News is reporting at least 20 U.S. suppliers have filed for bankruptcy protection in U.S. courts so far this year. The figure does not include smaller suppliers or companies that have gone out of business without filing for bankruptcy.
State Sen. Teresa Fedor, a Toledo Democrat, said the Jeep assembly complex is vital to northwest Ohio's economy, and she joined Brunner in calling on state officials to immediately address auto suppliers' critical needs.
"The loan guarantee is a viable and necessary plan," Fedor said. "Auto makers can't survive without auto parts. If Ohio does not move quickly, Ohio workers and their families will endure more unnecessary layoffs."
Ohio is America's No. 2 automaker and its No. 2 manufacturer of auto parts.
Rather than treat all suppliers the same, Brunner's plan calls for giving priority to those like the suppliers who have existing orders to supply the Jeep Wrangler plant or to those that will supply newer, more fuel efficient vehicles.
If elected Brunner would become the first woman to hold a U.S. Senate Seat in Ohio. She is currently the Ohio Secretary of State. Brunner became the first woman elected to this office in 2006.
Source: Read more
Brunner Demands Reforms to Safeguard Retiree Pensions; Renews Calls for Passage of EFCA
by on 09.04.2009
U.S. Senate candidate Jennifer Brunner plans to spend Labor Day weekend traveling through Ohio, promoting reforms designed to ensure the security of working and retired union and salaried employees' pensions and urging congressional leaders to pass the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA). "The men and women of the labor movement are the foundation of the middle class," Brunner said. "It is critical that Congress pass legislation that would give labor and management trustees the tools they need to protect pension funds and weather the severe economic downturn we have experienced."
Among the pension fund changes she called for:
* Extend the amortization period to repay liabilities of the pension fund from 15 to 30 years. The option to extend the repayment time would give benefit plans more time to recover from recent investment losses in the nation's stock market.
* Allow distressed plans a temporary exemption, reduction or delay from paying insurance premiums to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) if they take meaningful steps to rescind future or unpaid increases in retiree benefits and increase current contributions to their plans. This is intended to prevent existing plans from folding or being terminated and placed in trusteeship by the PBGC, easing the stress on the PBGC and improving individual worker retirement income security.
* Clarify and specifically adopt the right to rescind unpaid post-retirement benefit increases. When the stock market inflated in the late 1990's and into the year 2000, many plans significantly increased retiree benefits in line with the earnings on investments. Under existing law, a retiree's benefits cannot be decreased after the date of retirement. Congress should clarify that benefits that would or do increase after the date of retirement can be rescinded before they are paid or accrued. The change would not alter benefits or payments being currently received by retirees, but would give pension plans the flexibility to adjust future benefits when there is an economic downturn.
Brunner also plans to spend Labor Day weekend continuing her push for Congress to adopt the Employee Free Choice Act. Although Sen. Ted Kennedy's goal of winning passage of meaningful health care reform has dominated the news lately, Brunner noted that Kennedy also served as the main Senate sponsor of the Employee Free Choice Act.
"The surest path to economic recovery is a strong middle class, and the surest path to a strong middle class is passage of the Employee Free Choice Act,'' Brunner said. "The Act will allow employees to collectively bargain with their employers in a meaningful way without delay promoting long-term benefits for our communities. Unions of the 21st century ‘get it' that they can effectively work with employers to maintain and improve profitability while strengthening the quality of life for their members and their families. Unions have shown themselves to be effective partners with business in getting our economy back on track, and the Employee Free Choice Act fosters this collaborative and worthwhile partnership," said Brunner.
Source: Read more
Brunner Supports Student Loan Reform Legislation Efforts in Congress
by on 08.06.2009
U.S. Senate Candidate Jennifer Brunner, a well-known advocate of consumer financial protections and banking industry reform, is calling on members of Congress to support Senator Sherrod Brown's recent legislation that is designed to lower student loan payments at no cost to taxpayers. Brown's "debt swap" bill would allow college graduates with private student loans to refinance them into federal loans. "President Obama has been working with Congress to streamline the student loan process, making more dollars available to students and their parents by cutting out the boondoggle enjoyed by private lenders who make money on federally guaranteed student loans with little or no risk when defaults happen. Senator Brown's bill takes student loan reform one step further to help those Americans already carrying expensive private loans for higher education from banks like Citigroup, Bank of America and J.P. Morgan Chase, that are recipients of bailout funds and still pay exorbitant sums to upper management," said Brunner.
Citigroup, Bank of America and JP Morgan Chase all received government bailout money this year. "These financial institutions have been irresponsibly permitted to damage our country's economy. This affects all of us. While unemployment continues to rise, many college graduates cannot find jobs. If the government can give JP Morgan Chase $25 billion, and Citigroup and Bank of America $45 billion apiece in taxpayer dollars, then it can certainly allow for the refinancing of private student loans under the terms of Senator Brown's legislation."
Source: Read more
Jennifer Brunner Continues to Campaign for President Obama’s Health Care Plan
by on 07.22.2009
U.S. Senate candidate Jennifer Brunner will be participating in President Barack Obama's town hall meeting on health care reform in Shaker Heights on Thursday. Brunner has been waging a month-long effort to urge congressional members on both sides of the aisle to stay focused, cooperate and pass health care reform legislation that includes a public option as soon as possible. Today she continued her campaign in the Huffington Post, where her blog on the issue is being featured.
"President Obama pragmatically recognizes that people should have a choice of a public option or private insurance for health care. There are 50 million people without any health insurance, many of whom are ready to accept and embrace a public option for health insurance. Health care is a basic human right. Giving them a choice and making the federal government directly accountable for that choice is what the public option means," Brunner said.
House and Senate Democrats have been working with the President to pass health care reform by August. Those waging war against reform have turned the attack on President Obama, even going so far as calling it his "Waterloo." They have used public advertising and private lobbying at near unprecedented levels to stall the legislation's passage.
Brunner urged everyday Americans to get involved. "This is a time for Americans from all walks of life to come together and insist that change happen now," said Brunner.
Source: Read more