U.S. House District 2 Election (NH): Ann Kuster on the Issues

MEDICARE:

Kuster believes wasteful government spending needs to be cut. She believes in making cuts in the billions of subsidies for oil companies, the corporate tax breaks for shipping jobs overseas, and the billions more spent on redundant weapons systems that military leaders have identified as wasteful and not needed. But Kuster does not agree with ending Medicare as we know it in order to make room for corporate tax breaks and says that’s not the America she want to pass on to her kids.

EDUCATION:

Kuster firmly believes the United States became the wealthiest nation on earth primarily because Americans were the best educated. She supports investment in schools and public higher education, including community colleges and vocational schools. America is part of a global economy, and therefore the American workforce must be trained to win on the global stage.

JOBS/ECONOMY:

Kuster wants to strip away decades of corporate subsidies, tax breaks, and sweetheart deals in order to make room for investments. She believes the economy will grow again if America invests in the future by letting the tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans expire and use those funds to cut payroll taxes for every working American and every business that employs a worker.

WOMEN’S ISSUES:

Kuster believes that contraception saves lives, prevents unplanned pregnancies, improves outcomes for children and reduces the number of abortions. As an adoption attorney, she knows firsthand how difficult and how private these choices are for New Hampshire women. Now, thanks to health care reform, women across the country with private health insurance have access to family planning, including birth control, without additional expense to their family budget. Women will make their own private decisions about when and whether to raise a child and children will be raised in loving, supportive families.

Kuster said Congressman Bass and Speaker O’Brien partnering up to repeal the birth control coverage benefit will roll back one of the biggest advancements for women’s health under the guise of respecting religious freedom. Kuster believes no one should be able to pick and choose the health care women in New Hampshire can access under their private health insurance coverage.

EQUAL PAY FOR EQUAL WORK:

In New Hampshire women earn only 78 cents for every dollar earned by a man, and women are increasingly carrying the financial burden to support their families. Most families rely on two incomes to make ends meet, and when a woman earns less, working families are at a huge disadvantage. Despite this, politicians and pundits on the right refuse to come out publicly in support of equal pay for women. Here in New Hampshire, Republicans are saying that the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act is nothing more than a “handout to trial lawyers.” Kuster believes in equal pay for equal work and says standing up for women right now could not be more important.

FOREIGN POLICY:

Kuster believes we must look for the quickest way to decrease America’s military involvement in Afghanistan, consistent with protecting our national security. Kuster says withdrawing 33,000 troops in this coming year is a welcome start, and the President’s commitment to end our overall combat operations on a clear timeline is equally important – just as it was in Iraq.

Kuster has been a consistent voice against escalating American combat involvement in Afghanistan.