Editor’s note: these are the candidate’s responses to questions provided by RIPR. The views expressed are the candidate’s alone, edited only in cases of inappropriate or libelous language. No changes have been made to correct errors of fact, spelling or grammar.
Do you support trucking tolls for tractor trailers on Rhode Island highways?
I do support the recent trucking tolls. These tolls can raise funds for critically needed infrastructure repair, and it is only fair that the large trucks that are most damaging to our roads contribute to the cost of building and maintaining them.
Would you support a state-mandated health insurance program?
Our system of providing health care is broken. Earlier this month, in Boston, the story of a woman who was gravely injured but pleaded with onlookers *not* to call an ambulance because of the cost brought national attention to the crisis. Many people are living in fear of the moment they will actually need medical care. Many are going without the care they need.
There is some good news: Rhode Island residents are twice as likely to be insured as are those living in the rest of the country. At the same time, we have serious inequity at play here. In Rhode Island, people of color are three times more likely to be uninsured than white people, and women are twice as likely to be uninsured as men.
So, it’s an issue that has to be addressed. I believe that a state-mandated health insurance program could help to close this gap. Luckily, we have both the original Massachusetts model and also the Affordable Care Act as experiments from which we can learn as we try to craft legislation that actually works. Especially in Rhode Island, where we have an unusually large number of small businesses, we have to take them into consideration. This is the kind of complex issue that will require very thoughtful efforts, and mandated health coverage will ultimately succeed when it is combined with efforts to streamline our system of healthcare and bring down costs.
As I’ve noted, one of my particular concerns is mental health. There, as in healthcare more broadly, we know that when people have ready access to care, including preventative care, they have better outcomes and long-term costs are actually reduced.
Are you in favor of expanding protections against sexual harassment to include domestic workers (such as nannies) and volunteers (such as interns)?
It is imperative that these protections be expanded to populations such as domestic workers and volunteers. Workers in these vulnerable positions–and in fact all those in vulnerable positions–are naturally extremely hesitant to report harassment. We have to stand with them both to prevent such incidents from occurring, and to deal with them appropriately when they happen.
If given the opportunity, would you codify the right to have an abortion in state law?
I, like most Americans, believe that every pregnancy involves two human lives and that we have to navigate this complex issue in a way that respects that reality. If “the right to have an abortion” means “the right to have an abortion under any conditions and at any stage of pregnancy,” then my answer is no.
I offer a detailed statement on my campaign website, including specific opinions on specific legislation. (I would have opposed, for example, both RI-S2137, described as a “pro-life” bill, and also RI-H5343, described as a “pro-choice” bill.)
I would strongly support a “Pregnant Woman Support Act,” modeled on the one introduced in Congress in 2006 that would include a number of proposals: providing free home visits by registered nurses for teenage or first-time mothers, supporting pregnant and parenting college students, banning the discriminatory practice against pregnant women in the health insurance industry by removing pregnancy from all “pre-existing condition” lists in health care, banning discrimination against pregnant women in health care by banning description of pregnancy as a “pre-existing condition,” and more.
Is the state doing enough to help people who have been left behind by the economy? If not, what additional steps should be taken?
We are not. Addressing economic inequity is a serious challenge, and should be a top priority for all of us. Nowhere is this clearer than in Providence, where my own district is located.
According to recently released studies, among all U.S. cities, Providence has the third-highest rate of income inequality among its residents. The wealthiest residents in Providence make almost 17 times as much as those at the other end of the spectrum, with the poorest households earning only $12,000 annually.
There are a number of steps we can take to address this situation. We need a fair minimum wage, in combination with tax initiatives like an increase in the earned income tax credit. We also have to think about the long-term, working for greater access to post-secondary education and to home ownership.
Does primary education need to be improved statewide? If so, how?
Yes. Education is at the top of my own list of priorities, and we know that early education in particular is important for a number of reasons. Among other initiatives, I would seek to promote greater recognition of teachers, more integrated support for student needs, and empowerment of parents as partners in early childhood education, and particularly in early literacy.
Do you support RI’s designation as a sanctuary state? Why or why not?
I think we could use more precision here, since “sanctuary state” is a term that actually has no clear legal definition.
Of course, we always have to hold individuals responsible for criminal activity, especially when it endangers others. We know, though, that undocumented immigrants are considerably less likely to commit crime than native-born citizens.
At this moment, when immigrants are increasingly subject to suspicion and xenophobia, it is crucial that we make clear what a valued part of our community they are.
