Extremely Informative AFT Candidate questionnaire: Martin O'Malley (links to Bernie's and Hillary's)

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excerpts:


Q. What are your priorities for revitalizing the economy, strengthening the middle class, creating jobs, and ensuring fair taxation? How would your plan help restore funding for education, healthcare, transportation, public safety, and many other services provided to our citizens?

MO'M: My administration would focus first and foremost on raising wages: by increasing the minimum wage and the salary threshold for overtime pay; restoring and strengthening collective bargaining power; and supporting families by expanding access to paid leave and safe and affordable childcare. My administration would also restore investments in the common good and future of our nation, including in infrastructure and innovation, and most of all in education. We cannot revitalize our economy without creating an education system that empowers each and every child to reach their full potential, starting with pre-k and all the way through college.

We can restore funding for these better choices and investments by rebalancing our tax system so that the wealthiest Americans – not just middle class families – pay their fair share. This includes setting higher marginal rates, taxing capital gains and income at the same rate, corporate tax reform, and other long-overdue reforms. We must also restore accountability to our financial markets, to reverse the failed policies of deregulation and wealth accumulation that gutted funding for key priorities while costing millions of Americans their jobs, homes, and retirements. That’s why I have called for real structural and accountability reforms, including reinstating Glass-Steagall, charging regulators with holding law-breakers accountable, and breaking up big banks before they break us. These steps must be an explicit part of any agenda to revitalize the economy and make it work for all families.

Q. Current federal laws and policies encourage and promote collective bargaining through the National Labor Relations Act. What are your views on collective bargaining for the private and public sectors? What is your view regarding agency fee and so-called right-to-work laws?

MO'M: I believe that we must make it easier, not harder, for workers to organize – by tearing down barriers to collective bargaining, while embracing new and expanded organizing models, and reversing the nearly unprecedented consolidation of corporate power. As Governor, I expanded public sector collective bargaining rights to thousands of additional state workers, and to home health aides and child care workers whose pay is subsidized by the state. I signed a Fair Share Act so that unions can do their job representing the voices of their members. And I created a Public School Labor Relations Board, as well as legislation requiring prevailing wages to be paid on public school projects.

There is no question that the decline of unionization over the last 30 years has fueled growing inequality and stagnating wages, and that the steps states are taking to wipe out unions—especially those attacking teachers’ unions—are failed choices. I reject right-to-work laws that weaken the bargaining power of workers and drive down wages, as well as misguided efforts to roll back public sector bargaining rights. Chasing cheaper labor will not grow our economy or more it more competitive.

Q. As president, what would you do to: (a) prevent employers from intimidating and harassing workers who support union representation, (b) ensure that workers are free to organize and bargain the workplace, and (c) protect the rights of American workers?

MO'M: My administration would do everything in its power to protect and strengthen the rights of American workers. I would support efforts to make it easier to join a union by streamlining the process and reducing employers’ ability to interfere with elections. This includes the rule NLRB has moved forward to speed up union elections, which I believe is an important first step. I also support the board’s efforts to hold companies jointly responsible when their franchisees violate labor laws. We’ve allowed large corporations to largely shed their responsibilities for managing their employees and to consolidate power over markets, and we’ve seen poorer working conditions and stagnating wages as a result. I would aggressively enforce our nation’s anti-trust laws to reverse this concentration of corporate power and give workers a louder voice. Finally, I would strongly support efforts to expand collective bargaining rights to more people, including home care workers, as we did in Maryland – and to continue upgrading these jobs by fighting for higher wages and better working conditions. I applaud labor’s efforts continue organizing and engaging new and existing members even in light of what I agree was a bad decision in Harris v. Quinn. We have to use every tool at our disposal to continue making progress.

Q. What do you think this nation’s priorities should be during the next decade? How would your presidency advance those priorities?

MO'M: The most important thing that we as a people need to get done is to restore the truth of the American dream: that when people work hard, they should be able to get ahead. That dream is in danger of becoming a lie for the vast majority of Americans who see their families slipping further behind. Making it true again will require us to return to the better choices we long made as a country – and to fundamentally rebalance our economy so that it works for everyone, not just the wealthy few. My administration would focus first and foremost on raising wages, not only by increasing the minimum wage, but by strengthening collective bargaining and securing comprehensive immigration reform. At the same time, my administration would hold Wall Street accountable, ending the decades of deregulation that wrecked our economy and accumulated wealth at the top like almost never before. By asking the wealthiest Americans to pay their fair share, I would restore investments in the future of our country – most especially in our students, teachers, and schools.

These choices require better leadership and the ability to get things done. I have 15 years of executive experience, and I have never backed down from a fight. I fought to make these better choices in Maryland, where we put the goal of a stronger middle class at the center of every decision we made. And as a result, we made Maryland one of the top states for upward mobility for families, with the highest median income in the nation, and – since the depths of the recession – a faster rate of job creation than our neighbors in Virginia or Maryland who were mostly trying to cut their way to prosperity. These are the goals we should be setting for our nation, and I believe that with will and leadership we can achieve them.

read more: http://www.aft.org/election2016/candidate-questionnaire-martin-omalley

..this is a very challenging questionnaire and Gov. O'Malley provided extremely detailed and extensive answers which included expansive views on education and other priorities of the AFT. It's a fascinating read and I'd encourage anyone interested in Martin O'Malley's positions in this campaign related to education and a host of other issues take the time to read this detailed and informative survey.



view your own candidate's and post excerpts!

Candidate questionnaire: Hillary Rodham Clinton

Candidate questionnaire: Bernie Sanders

[elleng]

1. Terrific, and GREAT DETAIL,

missing, I suspect, in other's responses and 'plans' if they have any.

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2. good reminder

...included links to Bernie's and Hillary's in the op

[elleng]

3. Thanks

[FSogol]

4. K & R. n/t

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5. kick