A major problem is the availability of good jobs that reflect their talents and skills.

National health care would allow many young people to use their entrepreneurial skills to start their own businesses, create their own jobs, without having to worry about insurance coverage for themselves or their young families.

Also, getting our country out of unfair trade agreements such as NAFTA would shift the employment dynamic considerably.

This is a state issue, not a federal issue.

However, on the federal level, I support full funding of public education through the college level. In the interim, Pell Grant increases that keep pace with the rise in tuition costs are essential.

NA - State issue

I am strongly pro-choice, and have written extensively on the issue over the years. I fully support Roe v. Wade, as the sensible common ground upon which this issue is based. Roe specifically excludes theology from its discussion, which is appropriate under our Constitutional separation of church and state. Government restrictions that are religious in origin have no place in law.

I will work to keep Roe v. Wade in force at the federal level.

The federal Equal Pay law has been on the books since 1963, but is not always or evenly enforced, as it should be. As a woman in the workforce for many years, I was keenly aware of discrepancies when they existed.

Beyond equal pay for equal work, I support equal pay for comparable work, since some disparities in pay are based on issues other than skills and talents required to fulfill certain job requirements, particularly when comparing jobs that are traditionally held by either men or women (nurses aide vs. orderly, for instance).

1. Is the legislative minimum wage that was passed during the last legislative session sufficient? (The minimum wage will be increased to $6.75 in October and to $7.00 next year.)
   
   Yes_____     No__X__
   
   
2. What do you think the minimum wage should be? $8.57
   
   
3. How should the minimum wage be determined?

   The minimum wage should be a living wage for a single adult, which in Maine, according to recent MECEP reports, range between $8.57 and $10 across Maine.

4. Should minimum wage be tied to inflation?   Yes__X__     No_____
   
   
5. What initiatives will you support or have you supported to ensure a living wage for all Maine workers?

   When I get to the U.S. Senate, I will be pushing for a federal minimum wage that is a living wage, one that will be adjusted for inflation as other government programs are.
   
   

Dirigo Health is a state plan, which I support as a Maine citizen.

As a U.S. Senate candidate, I support national single-payer health care, Medicare for all. We are the last industrialized nation without national health care. It is long past time for us to implement this. National health care is one of my main campaign themes, and one I will work hard to implement when I get to the U. S. Senate.

I am a strong advocate for gay rights.

I am a strong advocate for stable, long-term committed relationships by consenting adults.

I have been an organic gardener all of my adult life (I'm 58), and for many of those years I've run commercial organic farms, selling produce and berries to the public. Here on our farm in Dixmont, we have chosen not to use any pesticides, even organically-approved ones. A decades-long member of MOFGA (Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association), I served on the board of MOFGA for a term in the late 1980s.

We have solar panels for our farm electric fencing, and we are in the process of installing a solar water pump for our farm irrigation system. We are also looking into installing a windmill on our property, for water pumping and/or electricity generation.

I drive a 1993 Saturn, which has gotten 35-40 miles per gallon all these years. I had a solar collector for heating hot water on the roof of my farmhouse in Blue Hill.

I've also been an environmental activist, working to stop a coal-fired power plant planned for Bucksport in the early 1990s, and adding my voice to the Holter-Chem mercury clean-up effort in Orrington, among other issues.

At the federal level, we need to restore the balance in our progressive income tax system. We start by rescinding the obscene tax cuts for the rich, and then look to see if the top rates are high enough to cover necessary government expenses. We DO NOT repeal the estate tax. We eliminate loopholes for corporations, making them pay their fair share for the privilege of doing business in this great country. We tax UNEARNED income (stocks, bonds, etc.) at the same rate as EARNED income (paid to workers for their time and labor).

Sales and property taxes are state, not federal, issues.

My position on immigration has many components:

1. Enforce existing labor laws on American employers who willingly hire undocumented workers. This law is already on the books, and if enforced, could well stem the tide of illegal immigrants by removing the guarantee of a job once they make their way across the border.
   
   
2. Make the minimum wage a living wage, so Americans and legal immigrants can afford to take those jobs now held by undocumented workers.
   
   
3. Implement national health care, so people who have family members with medical needs being supplied by the government under programs such as Medicaid can go to work and not risk losing government medical benefits because their income is too high.
   
   
4. Tackle the nuts and bolts of the existing immigration policy, making changes to reflect the reality on the ground, paying particular attention to reuniting families, and speeding up the process.
   
   
5. Get our country out of trade agreements that have wrecked not only our own national economy, but also the economies of nations to our south, fueling the push to emigrate to other countries to find work. Those agreements include NAFTA, CAFTA, and the WTO.

As a U.S. Senator, I would have offices across the state, where people could work with staffers to resolve problems pertaining to federal programs or issues.

The federal franking privilege will allow me to communicate by mail with my constituency, particularly in response to questions or concerns. Also, we will use the internet, web pages, email, and the media, via press releases and interviews when appropriate.

Family?

My husband and I have four grown children, no grandchildren yet. We have sisters, a brother, nieces and nephews all across the country. My mother is in her mid-80s, but is still active and lives in her own apartment in Ohio, a situation which we recognize could change at any moment. We cherish our times with each of our family members.

Other profession?

I am a writer with three books under my belt, and an organic farmer with a 30-acre certified organic farm growing raspberries and high-bush blueberries. Both career fields have been scaled back to concentrate on this U.S. Senate race ­ and the succeeding six years in office after the November election.

Interests?

Vast and varied, too numerous to list. (Major things such as world peace, global warming, health care, fair trade, healthy communities, human rights ­ all of which a U.S. Senator can actually have an impact on. But also lesser things such as enjoying the bird population on our farm, the changes of the seasons.)

Organizations in which you are involved?

MOFGA
Peace and Justice Center of Northern Maine
Peace Action Maine
Veterans for Peace
Maine Peoples Alliance
National Organization for Women
ACLU / MCLU

What is your favorite place to visit in Maine?

The woods and fields on our farm. Working and walking the land keeps me grounded.