Economy

The devastating effects of the Bush Administration's failed economic policy are now appearing in the form of a weak economy, rising prices, and a volatile stock market. The next Congress should act to restore our long-term economic health by investing in education and the country's infrastructure.

Much of our economic difficulty can be traced back to Iraq and the healthcare crisis. The $500 billion that has been squandered in Iraq could have been used to make investments that would contribute to our country's growth. Healthcare expenses, meanwhile, continue to be a tremendous burden for businesses and consumers alike. Not only are healthcare expenses a leading cause of personal bankruptcy, they also hamper our efforts to be competitive in a world economy.

Education

As a mother and former school board member, I understand firsthand the problems associated with adequately funding our education system. And, as a business owner and co-chair of the Maine Economic Growth Council, I know how critically important good education is to economic development.

Education funding is one area where the federal government is not meeting its obligation to a rural state like Maine; I support full funding of mandates like special education. By funding those programs adequately, Washington can help ease the burden of local property tax.

Maine has one of the best high school graduation rates in the country but one of the lowest percentages of students heading off to college -- and the biggest reason is the cost of higher education. I support increased funding and support for our institutions of higher education, better oversight of student loan practices and tax credits for college tuition. We must also do something to help ease the debt burden that students have to carry when they leave college.

No Child Left Behind (NCLB) has been a failure and has overwhelmed schools with testing that often leaves little time for teaching. Maine has had a standard of evaluation that was appropriate for us and allowed realistic assessment of school performance. Maine should be allowed to create our own standards and test and not be required to adopt the NCLB standards.

Energy

Because Maine is a rural state and because our winters can be long and cold, high energy prices have hit us particularly hard. At the same time, Maine is becoming a leader in the development of renewable energy sources. That combination of factors makes it particularly important for us to move quickly to end our dependence on fossil fuel and embrace clean energy.

In Congress I would work to repeal the massive subsidies that the oil, gas and coal industry have been enjoying and invest some of that money in renewable energy research and development -- investments that could equal good jobs here in Maine. I support making the Production Tax Credit for renewable power permanent, as well as a national Renewable Portfolio Standard, requiring utilities to buy a portion of the electricity from clean energy sources.

Even though they are earning record profits on the highest energy prices in our history, oil and gas companies still enjoy massive subsidies. I oppose those subsidies and believe that at least some of the money should go to encourage alternative energy development.

Environment and Climate Change

I went to the College of the Atlantic in the 1970s when America was making bold steps toward clean and renewable energy. Entrenched interests got us off that track, but now more than ever we need to stand up, protect our environment, and meet the challenges we face because of the climate crisis.

Our dependence on fossil fuel has created a whole range of problems, starting with global warming but also including conflict in the Middle East and adverse economic impacts.

I support a cap-and-trade system for greenhouse gas pollution, which would encourage more rapid development of clean energy sources. I support the renewal of the production tax credit and a renewable portfolio standard, both of which would help increase our commitment to renewable energy.

Equal Rights

I support the passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which would prohibit discrimination in the workplace on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity (I support the version of ENDA that includes gender identity). I also support the rights of same-sex couples to obtain all the rights and benefits of marriage -- there should not be a two-tiered system of marriage in our country.

I have a long record of fighting for civil rights for all people, consistently supporting gay rights legislation in the Maine legislature. In 1993, I was one of the few legislators willing to stand up and speak out against the Defense of Marriage Act and continued to fight for equal rights for all throughout my career in the Maine Senate, including co-sponsoring legislation in 1997 that was passed by the legislature and signed by the governor.

Ethics and Campaign Finance Reform

Statement by Chellie Pingree on Campaign Finance Reform and Ethics

Too many people have lost faith in our elected leaders because of the way Washington does business. We need serious ethics and campaign finance reform to begin to restore Americans' belief that government can work for them.

Reducing the role of money in elections is a critically important reform. I'm very proud that the people of Maine were leaders with the Clean Elections law. Public financing of campaigns is the only real solution to changing how we run elections in this country. We've seen how well the 'Clean Elections' system works here. Now it's time to establish a public financing system for Congressional elections. I know how much of candidates' time fundraising takes. That's time that could be spent talking with voters and listening to their concerns. Public financing removes the burden of nonstop fundraising.

As President of Common Cause, I worked closely with Senator Dick Durbin and his staff to introduce the Fair Elections Now Act, which is largely modeled on Maine's Clean Elections law. I was thrilled when Senator Durbin agreed to sponsor this bill, knowing what a difference it has made in Maine.

I hope that voting for public financing in the House -- and convincing my colleagues to do the same -- is one of the first things I do if I am elected to Congress. We have waited long enough for this change.

As president of Common Cause, I fought for serious and significant ethics reform in Congress, especially in the wake of the Jack Abramoff scandal. I testified before Congress on the need for an independent ethics commission and fought for the ethics reform bill that Congress eventually passed and I believe that, although it's a good start, it still doesn't go far enough.
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Health Care

When my brother Bob was diagnosed with cancer at age 39, he had to fight two battles - the cancer and the insurance companies. He died 14 months later with the guilt that his illness brought financial ruin to his young family. Unfortunately, my family wasn't unique and this shouldn't happen to anyone.

Today, 20 years later, it's just plain wrong that 47 million Americans and nearly 130,000 Mainers are uninsured, and that millions more are underinsured and facing skyrocketing healthcare costs.

Back then I saw first-hand how broken the system really is. And that's why, as a Maine Senator I stood up to the big drug and insurance companies to lower costs here in Maine and why no one will work harder to fix this broken system.

Make no mistake - our health care problems do not result from a lack of good policy ideas. In fact, both Democratic candidates for President have strong and creative options on the table. Our health care problems exist because Washington has lacked the political will to take on the insurance industry, the pharmaceutical companies, and the other special interests that are profiting from the current inefficient and ineffective system. There's no time left for small tweaks and incremental adjustments to this broken system that is bankrupting people and businesses all over the country. It's time for a wholesale revision of our health care system. That's going to take strong leadership and a willingness to fight powerful industry interests. I have a record of success in taking bold ideas and turning them into practical solutions - especially on the issue of health care. When I'm in Congress I intend to use my skills and experience to get the job done and protect the health of our citizens and our economy.

Chellie on Health Care

Introduction
Health Insurance for Everyone
Health Insurance Without the Profit
Health Insurance Under One Roof
Health Care When and Where You Need It
Health Care of the Highest Quality
Preventing Chronic Disease and Promoting Healthy Lifestyles
Health and the Environment
Prescription Drug Costs and Coverage
Health Care as a Top Priority
Chellie's Record on Health Care and Public Health
Entries about Health Care on Chellie's Campaign Blog
Video Clips
News Clips

Iraq

We must end the war now. Congress must stop funding the war and rescind its authorization if the administration refuses to make plans for immediate withdrawal. We can't continue to squander our resources on the worst foreign policy mistake in our country's history. Leaving will be complicated, but staying only continues the tragic loss of our soldiers, Iraqi citizens, and almost unthinkable amounts of money.

I also believe that while Congress and the President debate whether we can "win" the war instead of how best to withdraw our forces form Iraq with the least amount of damage, they are irresponsibly prolonging this disaster. Instead, they should be tackling the hard debate of what needs to be done next.

America must no longer be seen as an aggressor in the world. We need to embrace a new foreign policy to restore our reputation. In the future we must work cooperatively with other nations, acting multilaterally first and unilaterally only if necessary.

Chellie on Iraq

The Responsible Plan to End the War in Iraq
Endorse the Responsible Plan
Entries on Iraq from Chellie's campaign blog
Video clips of Chellie speaking on Iraq
Recent news clips about Chellie and Iraq

Media Reform

The health of our democracy rests upon the foundation of a free and independent press.

Without these values, the public's access to the information that people need to govern themselves is at risk. That puts democracy at risk.

Unfortunately, in recent years, our sources of information have come under increasing pressures from administration officials wishing to block information and from media owners who are willing to subvert media independence to serve corporate interests.

Regulation is a key tool in ensuring that media serves the interests of our democracy. Industry-funded studies and the predictions of all the great benefits of new technology as an argument for less regulation are as bogus today as they were nearly a decade ago. Consumers face increasingly higher prices, more concentration, and less diversity.

As president of Common Cause, I promoted the Bill of Media Rights, to which one hundred sixteen groups from across the country, representing 20 million individuals, signed on. The Bill of Media Rights provides a vision of a mass media that truly serves the public, not corporations.

In Congress, I will engage my fellow representatives and my constituents to promote media policy for the 21st century that truly provides diversity of viewpoints and ownership, competition, and innovation and that ensures our access to a free and unfettered marketplace of ideas. I will fight to keep the Internet free of gatekeepers, I will advocate for adequate funding of our public broadcasting system, and I will insist that Congress provide oversight of the Federal Communications Commission to ensure that they make decisions in the best interest of the people and the country.

Chellie on Media Reform

Chellie's Statement on Media Reform
Campaign Journal blogposts mentioning media reform
Video clips
Press clips
Common Cause reports and statements on media reform

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The Middle East

For seven years, the Bush Administration has ignored the peace process and abandoned our commitment to a fair, just, and lasting resolution to conflict in the region. The invasion and occupation of Iraq has only served to further damage U.S. standing in the area.

We must once again dedicate ourselves to the goals of peace, prosperity, stability, and security for all the inhabitants of the Middle East.

I support a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that would allow an independent, democratic, and economically viable Palestine to peacefully coexist alongside a secure and democratic Israel.

Terrorism by anyone for any reason must always be condemned; I strongly support Israel's right to defend itself against all attacks.

National Security

True national security requires that we accurately evaluate the threats facing us and the true consequences of our actions.

Too often our foreign policy and national security decisions have been motivated by ideology, executed by private contractors who lack accountability. This has resulted in us becoming less secure, not more.

To begin making sensible choices, we should adopt an integrated security budget that covers all of our national security efforts in the Pentagon, the Department of Homeland Security, and the State Department. For example, under our current system, the Pentagon spends tens of billions of dollars on a missile defense system of questionable value while the Department of Homeland Security struggles to find the necessary funds to adequately secure our ports. By unifying the national security budgets we can take a rational approach toward setting our priorities.

We also must stop overextending the military, and we need begin rebuilding the Navy and Air Force. We cannot do any of that while we remain in Iraq, spending $25 billion a year.

Reproductive Choice

Women's reproductive decisions should be left to them and their doctors.

In Congress, I would fight for increases in Title X funding for low income women, as well as funding for international programs to support family planning. Anti-family planning lawmakers have targeted these programs and have succeeded in cutting the budget for the United Nations Population Fund and other programs.

Not only am I strongly pro-choice, but as a state senator I fought for contraceptive equality, to improve access to women's health care and to make Roe v. Wade a permanent part of Maine law. I've also worked to stop any effort to limit women's access to reproductive services.

Restoring Our Democracy

Our democratic system depends on a few fundamental principals: a free, open, and accessible media, and free and fair elections. No matter what issue you care about, if those principles aren't preserved and protected, the system won't work, and the public will never win. Under the Bush Administration, those principles have come under attack.

As president of Common Cause, I fought for a free and open Internet through Net Neutrality and worked hard to stem the tide of media consolidation -- work I would continue in Congress. Maine is a leader in election policy: a voter verified paper trail, no fault absentee voting, and same day voter registration. Congress should follow Maine's lead, and I'll work to make sure it does.

Retirement Security

One of our country's greatest accomplishments in the 20th Century was the establishment of the social security system. Until Social Security and Medicare came along, over half of all seniors lived in poverty. In Congress, I would vigorously oppose any effort to weaken or privatize these vital programs.

The Bush Administration's prescription drug benefit is designed to reward the drug companies and does not provide the easy access to affordable prescription drugs that seniors deserve, and it specifically prohibits the government from negotiating for lower prices -- it badly needs to be fixed.

Increasingly, private pensions are also at risk. Congress should act to ensure that working people do not lose the retirement income that they worked hard for and has been promised to them.

Tax Policy

When it comes to tax policy, I am not sure I can say it any better than John Edwards does: "Our tax code is the perfect example of the Two Americas -- one for the wealthiest Americans and Washington insiders, and the other for everyone else."

There is a lot that needs to be done -- including a repeal of the Bush tax cuts for the highest income Americans, higher capital gains taxes on investment income, and closing tax loopholes for private equity and hedge funds. We should restrict government contracts to American-based corporations and clarify rules on tax shelters so they cannot be used strictly for tax avoidance.

At the same time, our tax cuts should be focused on areas that will help working families -- with credits that support access to higher education, child care costs, and tax policies that do not punish wage earners.

Tax policy is a place to support broader policy objectives, level the playing field, and tie requirements for concrete results to government support of business and community ventures that strengthen our society.

Veterans

Maine has over 140,000 veterans -- one of the highest percentages of veterans in the country. Nearly 90 percent of the Maine National Guard has been sent into combat in Iraq. We have an obligation to take care of these veterans -- an obligation that all too often has not been fulfilled.

The VA provides excellent care -- some of the best in the world -- but limited resources and a difficult-to-navigate bureaucracy can put that care out of reach for many vets. In addition, the budget for the VA is making planning difficult and often leads to cutbacks in services.

As a member of Congress, I would support making the VA's budget mandatory, streamlining the application process for services and disability ratings, and fight to improve access, especially in rural areas of Maine.

Women's Issues

As a mother and public servant, I've always fought to make life better for Maine's women and children.

Not only am I strongly pro-choice, while I was a state senator I fought for contraceptive equality, to improve access to women's health care, and to make Roe v. Wade a permanent part of Maine law. I've also worked to stop any effort to limit women's access to reproductive services.

From my work as the co-owner of a small inn and restaurant called Nebo Lodge, and as the former owner of a predominantly female-staffed mail-order catalog business, I know how hard it can be to meet a payroll and run a small business. But I also know that the hard work women do is worth every bit as much to the bottom line as the work of male employees. That's why I support measures such as the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, and will work for their passage if elected to Congress.