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Maine

Maine U.S. House of Represenatives, District 1

Charlie Summers (R)

107 Exchange Street
Portland, ME 04101

Visit Candidate's Website
(207) 883-5105
ruth@summersforcongress.org

BIOGRAPHY

Charlie Summers has a wealth of experience that he will bring with him to Congress. He is a small business owner, State Director for Senator Olympia Snowe, Regional Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration, Navy Reserve veteran of the Iraq war, and he has raised his children in Maine.

Q1: While the U.S. has made improvements in the number of children who have health insurance, many children remain uninsured. In addition, federal funding for the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) will expire unless the program is reauthorized by March 2009. What priority do you place on SCHIP reauthorization? What can be done, if anything, to increase the number of children who have access to health insurance?

SCHIP is a critical program, and the next Congress must reauthorize it without delay. The most important thing in attempting to expand the number of children who benefit from SCHIP is to make sure the program insures those it is supposed to – children. We cannot accept an SCHIP program that gives insurance to adults at the expense of children, as was an often heard concern in this latest attempt at reauthorization.

Q2: While the federal government has supported many initiatives to improve health care quality, these efforts often focus on adults and Medicare recipients. What steps, if any, would you support to enhance the quality of children's health care?

I believe that by enhancing the parents' choices in selecting health care plans, children can have better access to more comprehensive health care. Health care policies should be encouraged to include dental, among other components. A frequent health concern among parents is obesity, and local government and school districts can also improve the number of healthy meal options available to children during the school day.

Q3: Senator Menendez introduced S. 3277, the "Children's Budget Act," which would add a requirement to future federal budgets to list the different sources of federal funding for children's programs, thereby illustrating how the federal government prioritizes and allocates resources affecting children. What importance, if any, do you place on creating a Children's Budget and why?

While I certainly believe that we need to focus our efforts on expanding the number of children who have health insurance, I am not convinced that we need to add this particular responsibility to future budgets. Organizations like First Focus do a great job of detailing the levels that we are spending on our children, and its "Children's Budget" is a critical tool that lawmakers should use when crafting policy.

Q4: Health care reform may be a big topic for Congressional debate in 2009. What initiatives, if any, would you proactively support? How do you see children's healthcare fitting into this larger debate?

SCHIP is vital to children's health care, and we must reauthorize it. Two other concrete steps we can take to increase affordability and accessibility are passing small business health plan legislation, which would allow firms to pool together across state lines so that their employees may select the best health insurance plan for them and their family at a lower cost; and also making the cost of health care 100% tax deductible for all Americans.

Q5: Today, many American families are comprised of either a working single parent or two working parents who need to use child care services in order to work - which can be a significant financial burden for those trying to make ends meet. What, if anything, can be done to make it easier for working families to obtain child care assistance?

Government can encourage the use of both Head Start and private day care centers in a number ways. But most importantly, the Congress should revitalize the Head Start program by modernizing it, as well as increasing funding for it. In Maine, regrettably, only 32 percent of 3- and 4-year olds who are eligible for Head Start actually participate due to a lack of funding. That needs to change.

Q6: Three million incidences of child abuse are reported in the U.S. each year, with millions of additional cases going unreported. What, if anything, can be done to prevent abuse, neglect, and violence toward children?

In Congress, we can pass H.R. 2343, the Education Begins At Home Act, so that a broader number of families can participate in safe home visitation programs like Healthy Families America. Organizations like Fight Crime: Invest in Kids are wonderful resources that make a difference in children's lives, and we need to do more to promote their work.

Q7: According to recent figures from the U.S. Census Bureau, the economic cycle spanning from 2000 to 2007 was one of the weakest on record for working families: median incomes fell for working-age households and the overall poverty rate increased from 11.3 percent to 12.5 percent. What, if anything, will you do to help families adequately provide for their children's needs while remaining or working toward economic self-sufficiency?

I would remove the economic disincentives out of our system that has been created to aid those in need. Parents should have the opportunity to earn money and save for their families' future, and adjusting the income cap would be one specific step the Congress could take toward helping families provide for their children's needs.

Q8: Given that children's school days are often considerably shorter than adults' full-time workdays, parents must work to find appropriate after-school arrangements for their children. What, if anything, can be done to help ensure that children are safe and supervised during afternoon and early evening hours?

I believe that families must choose after-school arrangement that best suit their needs. Local after-school programs, like the ones that my children took advantage of at the Black Point Congregational Church, are critical. I believe that decisions regarding those kinds of programs are best left to local and state governments and organizations that have a better understanding of the unique circumstances of each community.

Respond to Candidate

Chellie Pingree (D)

P.O. Box 17613
Portland, ME 04112

Visit Candidate's Website
(207) 773-0155
campaign@pingreeforcongress.com

BIOGRAPHY

Chellie lives on the island of North Haven, where she raised her three children, worked as an organic farmer, and has owned two successful small businesses providing jobs in her community. She served in the Maine Senate for eight years, and spent four years as the president of Common Cause.

Q1: While the U.S. has made improvements in the number of children who have health insurance, many children remain uninsured. In addition, federal funding for the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) will expire unless the program is reauthorized by March 2009. What priority do you place on SCHIP reauthorization? What can be done, if anything, to increase the number of children who have access to health insurance?

It is crucial that we reauthorize SCHIP so we can cover the millions of children that are currently uninsured. I was appalled at President Bush's veto last fall - and Congress' failure to override that veto - for a program that has proven effective and necessary. We must reauthorize SCHIP as soon as possible, but I also believe it's time to finally overhaul our broken system, and ensure universal access to quality, affordable care for all Americans.

Q2: While the federal government has supported many initiatives to improve health care quality, these efforts often focus on adults and Medicare recipients. What steps, if any, would you support to enhance the quality of children's health care?

We need to focus on preventive care. Maine has been a leader in reducing tobacco use among kids, and the Fund for a Healthy Maine - which I helped establish - has made strides in promoting nutrition, physical activity, and oral health, and reducing substance abuse. In order to protect our kids and lower health care costs, we must stand up to the tobacco, soda, junk food, and alcohol companies and make them stop targeting our kids.

Q3: Senator Menendez introduced S. 3277, the "Children's Budget Act," which would add a requirement to future federal budgets to list the different sources of federal funding for children's programs, thereby illustrating how the federal government prioritizes and allocates resources affecting children. What importance, if any, do you place on creating a Children's Budget and why?

I think this could be a very effective way to gauge how we are fulfilling our commitment to our children in a variety of key ways, like health care, education, and environmental quality.

Q4: Health care reform may be a big topic for Congressional debate in 2009. What initiatives, if any, would you proactively support? How do you see children's healthcare fitting into this larger debate?

I believe that the time has come for universal health care in this country. I would support a single-payer system, as well as other proposals that would get us to universal access to quality, affordable care for all Americans. The debate around fixing our broken health care system must address the issue of children's health care, preventive care, and encouraging healthy lifestyles from a young age.

Q5: Today, many American families are comprised of either a working single parent or two working parents who need to use child care services in order to work - which can be a significant financial burden for those trying to make ends meet. What, if anything, can be done to make it easier for working families to obtain child care assistance?

I think measures such as universal pre-K education, and tax credits for child care would go a long way towards alleviating the burden of child care on working families. In the Maine Senate, I co-sponsored legislation to increase funding for early education.

Q6: Three million incidences of child abuse are reported in the U.S. each year, with millions of additional cases going unreported. What, if anything, can be done to prevent abuse, neglect, and violence toward children?

It is unconscionable that there is such a high level of child abuse prevailing in this country - it is our duty to ensure the safety and wellbeing of our children, and I would stand up in defense of our children in Congress. In the Maine Senate, I sponsored a bill to mandate minimum sentences for repeat child abusers, and fought to toughen laws for sex offenders.

Q7: According to recent figures from the U.S. Census Bureau, the economic cycle spanning from 2000 to 2007 was one of the weakest on record for working families: median incomes fell for working-age households and the overall poverty rate increased from 11.3 percent to 12.5 percent. What, if anything, will you do to help families adequately provide for their children's needs while remaining or working toward economic self-sufficiency?

There is no doubt that the Bush Administration's economic policies - as well as the disastrous war in Iraq, and the skyrocketing costs of our failed health care system - have had disastrous effects on families in Maine and across the country. I believe the next Congress must repeal the Bush tax cuts for the super-wealthy, and act to restore our long-term economic health by investing in education and the country's infrastructure.

Q8: Given that children's school days are often considerably shorter than adults' full-time workdays, parents must work to find appropriate after-school arrangements for their children. What, if anything, can be done to help ensure that children are safe and supervised during afternoon and early evening hours?

I would support expanding funding for after-school programs for children and teenagers to help ensure that kids have access to safe and healthy environments while their parents are at work.