On the Issues: Fighting for the Middle Class

Katrina Swett’s parents came to this country in search of a better life and the American Dream – they worked hard and achieved it. Today, that dream is falling out of reach for many hardworking families.

Everyday Americans are doing their part. Our government needs to do theirs.

Getting Americans Back to Work

  • Katrina is focused on three things: jobs, jobs and jobs. She is committed to putting Americans back to work. To do so, we must aggressively promote a clean, green economy and invest in rebuilding our crumbling roads and bridges.
  • Katrina will advocate for the federal government to partner with state programs, like our New Hampshire Working initiative. This effort helps businesses keep employees on the payroll with reduced hours. The worker can receive unemployment benefits to make up the difference and can keep their job.

Protecting & Improving Health Care Reform

  • The health care reform bill that the President signed into law isn’t perfect, but Katrina knows it is a very important step in widening access to health care for every citizen. For example, insurance companies can no longer deny you coverage when you get sick or limit the amount of care your health care plan will cover in a lifetime.
  • Katrina will continue improving our health care system by working to bring real competition to the health insurance market.

Protecting the Environment

  • Katrina is outraged at the disaster in the Gulf. We cannot drill our way to prosperity or national security, and we cannot destroy our natural heritage. We need effective regulation of the oil industry, and BP must be held financially responsible for the environmental and economic harm they have caused.
  • Katrina will fight to create new job opportunities by investing in new clean green energies like wind, solar, and geothermal. Not only do these energies help protect the environment we all share, but expanded investments will create jobs and strengthen our national security.

Upholding Our Seniors’ Dignity

  • Katrina is committed to protecting Medicare and Social Security. She is pleased that health care reform is closing the “donut hole” into which so many seniors have fallen. Katrina will fight any effort to privatize Social Security or weaken Medicare.

Reforming Wall Street

  • Katrina will fight for Wall Street reform that holds banks accountable and ensures they pay back every penny of the bailout they were given by taxpayers.
  • Katrina supports efforts to provide strong consumer protections to end predatory lending and other abuses.
  • Katrina supports strong Wall Street reform that will rein in the irresponsible behavior of mega banks and other institutions whose actions brought us to the brink of another Great Depression. She also supports measures that will empower shareholders to limit outrageous CEO pay and bonuses.
  • Katrina is angered by the insurance, pharmaceutical, and financial industry lobbyists who fought tooth-and-nail to kill both health care and Wall Street reform. She strongly supports President Obama’s efforts to place new restrictions on lobbyists.

Promoting Education

  • Katrina is a firm believer in public schools. Both of her parents were teachers, and her children attended Bow public schools. Public schools are charged with the critical task of educating the next generation of workers, innovators, and leaders; Katrina will fight to make sure that public schools have the resources and support to fulfill this essential mission, not just adequately but excellently.
  • Katrina will work to make sure the federal government lives up to its obligations to help fund special education.
  • Katrina will fight to make college more affordable. Currently college students can serve their community through AmeriCorps and earn over $5,000 to lower their college tuition bill. Katrina wants to open up this program to grandparents to allow them to serve their community and pass along the college savings to their grandchildren.

Ensuring Choice for Women

  • Katrina is strongly pro-choice and will fight to pass the Freedom of Choice Act, which codifies Roe v. Wade.
  • Katrina opposed the Stupak amendment that was proposed during debate of the health care reform bill.

Standing for Equality

  • Katrina will fight to repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and the Defense of Marriage Act.
  • Katrina will support the Employee Non-Discrimination Act.
  • Katrina would fight for federal legislation that would extend the full range of federal benefits and legal protections to all families in our country.