Mike Germain: Be The Change 2010!

Veterans

mikegermain — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 17:29:21 +0000

Education

admin — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 20:08:10 +0000

Investment in education is the most critical way we can ensure a strong and vibrant community and state for the future, where all of our citizens have the opportunity to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment. A well educated, high performing work force will give our state the competitive edge in the global market place. Strong public education leads us to a strong economy, good jobs, and quality health care. It is time to make Minnesota the brain power state once again.

My opponent has repeatedly cast votes cutting public education and forcing local communities to bear an increasingly disproportionate share of the cost. This is wrong.

As your state senator I will not support smoke and mirror efforts to undermine our educational system. As your state senator I will work to:

Ensure the resources our schools need are available to control class size, buy materials, lower participation fees, and maintain a safe and healthy learning environment

Provide staff development opportunities and reward teachers who do a good job

Fund all-day kindergarten programs for our school districts

Close the achievement gap by implementing programs with demonstrable results

Promote flexibility to make the imposed federal mandates of No Child Left Behind work for our kids, not against them

Help make college prep classes available to ALL high school students

Work to strengthen the state commitment to the University of Minnesota, and the MnScu system to lower tuition costs so that a college education is affordable for all our citizens

Healthcare

admin — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 23:53:04 +0000

I believe that affordable, high quality health care should be available to all the citizens of our community and state. Health care costs continue to escalate, and even the most basic health insurance plans are becoming more difficult for hard working Minnesotans to afford.

As your State Senator I will work to make our state a national leader in health care management. The hidden costs of uninsured citizens, plus uncontrolled, runaway insurance company overhead, are the two primary causes of our current crisis. Here are some things I will go to work on immediately:

Provide universal coverage to all citizens through a single payer system modeled after MnCare and Medicare.

All citizens buy into the plan with a basic level of coverage

All citizens will be guaranteed issuance

People unable to afford to buy into the system will be subsidized as they are currently through MnCare

Coverage will be completely portable within the state and will allow each individual to select the provider of their choosing

Drastic cost reductions for small business’, individuals, and the state of Minnesota.

Reduce drug costs by negotiating with manufactures for volume discounts the way the Veterans Administration and Medicare do now

Reduce the percentage of premium money going to marketing and other hidden administrative costs

Create the Small Business Freedom Act, allowing our business and family farmers enrollment options for employees and individuals

Pool resources to allow more effective purchasing power to control costs

Provide long term support to a high quality health care system.

Develop education incentives to support our nurses and prevent a long term shortage of nurses

Re-invigorate investment in the elite medical research and care institutions that Minnesota used to be known for

Provide incentives for students to enroll in our medical schools and nursing schools

Jobs & the Economy

admin — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 23:09:30 +0000

A strong economy should benefit all of our citizens. We need to make our state a place that invests in its workforce and attracts new and promising businesses.

A well educated work force is the primary cornerstone in our ability to stimulate and grow our economy and vital to our state’s ability to compete in the global economy. The University of Minnesota is the single most important engine that drives our economy. We need to support the U of M so it can remain at the forefront of our drive to make our economy stronger.

Working together, we can create jobs by making the most of the work ethic, creativity, and high level of education of our citizens by:

Creating a world class public education system
Retraining opportunities for workers in industries hit hard by economic changes
Promoting community development
Investing in our businesses by directing state investment money into promising start ups and local businesses
Identifying international business opportunities
Promoting business recruitment, retention and growth
Providing workers legal protection to organize and form unions without interference or intimidation from management

Transportation

admin — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 23:08:41 +0000

A real multi-modal, comprehensive transportation system is absolutely vital to the long term strength of our economy and our state. We no longer have the luxury of inaction. My opponent has repeatedly cast votes blocking mass transit development and cannot think of any other solution than continuing to rely on the automobile as the primary commuting vehicle. As oil moves steadily toward $100 dollars a barrel we need to think differently than we have.

As your state senator I will support:

Funding for roads and highways to eliminate bottlenecks and expand capacity
Light rail and commuter rail to serve high traffic corridors in and through our major cities
Highway safety improvements
Guaranteed services for those with special needs
Expansion of biking and walking options to encourage the idea of alternative transportation