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To the Editor:
I am writing to you in support of the candidate running for Congress in the 22nd Congressional District, Dan Lamb. I urge voters to reject Richard Hanna, the current congressman. I am a senior citizen who is extremely distressed by the position Hanna has taken on Medicare and Social Security.
Hanna has repeatedly voted to decimate the benefits seniors require. He voted for the Ryan budget, which would put Social Security benefit cuts in place. We worked tirelessly to retire, and for many of us, the ''Great Recession'' depleted our savings and home values and we must rely on Social Security to survive. Lamb will not vote for privatization, which Richard Hanna has said he is open to. Lamb wants to strengthen our Social Security, not put it under duress in a privatization scheme which would only benefit Wall Street and literally threaten our survival.
On Medicare, Hanna voted to give us vouchers and force us to seek out medical insurance in the private market. If Romney/Ryan and Hanna are elected, their Medicare voucher plan will likely make us incur over $6,000 in additional expenses. I can't afford to have Hanna sent to Congress.
Medicaid provides long-term care for many of this country's seniors and disabled. At least two-thirds of Medicaid expenditures are used for that purpose. Hanna voted to reduce its funding by half. Lamb will protect Medicaid and wants a federal tax credit for elder care expenses which would help elderly and disabled as well as those burdened with the financial care of their parents.
Hanna voted to cut education funding by $700 million for the most needy public schools. I am a grandparent of nine. There are six teachers in my family. I want a congressman who is concerned about public education, and will support our local schools and teachers.
Bring Lamb to Washington. We must have a person in Congress who we will feel assured will represent our interests.
Mona Sherry
Hamilton
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Letter in Support of Dan Lamb
I am an active member of the Hamilton Community and I support Dan Lamb for our newly formed 22nd congressional district. I believe Dan Lamb will protect the rights of the citizens in our district.
For many years, Dan worked as a top advisor to Congressman Maurice Hinchey. Through this work, Dan developed a deep understanding of the issues that are crucial to our region, ranging from job creation and economic growth, to education and energy development. His positions on education, jobs and the environment are sensible, reasoned and informed by long experience as part of the Hinchey team.
Dan is a friend of the middle class. Unlike his opponent, Richard Hanna, Dan supports tax code reform that would eliminate tax breaks to America’s most wealthy citizens. Dan opposes the proposed voucher plan for Medicare, which Hanna supported. Dan also opposes the privatization of Social Security. His positions will clearly protect the working class and may be essential to ensure the continuation of these important programs for generations to come.
Dan understands the need to carefully approach our energy concerns. He plans to work with local, state and federal governments in putting together policies that will protect our health and the health of our environment, while preserving the rights of property owners.
Vote for a new voice to represent our needs in Congress – vote for Dan Lamb.
Chris Rossi
Hubbardsville, NY
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A Vote for Hanna Perpetuates Gridlock
Independent women voters may perpetuate gridlock in Washington by re-electing President Obama and first-term incumbent Richard Hanna who runs to represent the new 22nd congressional district, which also includes Madison County. Hanna is a moderate on a woman’s right to choose, but his voting record on environmental, economic and fiscal issues parallels that of extremist Republicans like Tea Party supported Ann Marie Buerkle.
Hanna, one of the wealthiest members of Congress, takes pride in his politically prudent refusal to sign the Norquist pledge against any form of revenue enhancement. But he has not pledged to abstain from his most important first vote: to leave control of Congress in the hands of an obstructionist majority that took the Norquist pledge.
Should Obama lose and the Republicans dominate Congress, the nation will be returned to the Gilded Age and a new appointee to the Supreme Court will overturn Roe vs. Wade. A century of progress since Republican Teddy Roosevelt and Democrat FDR, a privileged man with a social conscience who saved the American capitalist system, will not be conserved but unraveled. Social Security will be privatized, Medicare abolished and the social safety net for the poor and disadvantaged shredded as promised by the Ryan budget for which Hanna voted.
Don’t be fooled by Hanna’s meaningless promise to be a voice of moderation. Vote for well qualified, experienced Dan Lamb. He is an advocate for women and supports Obama’s prudent, forward looking agenda.
Charlie Naef
Hamilton
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Dan Lamb - The Clear Choice
Voters in NY’s new 22nd Congressional District have a clear choice that can influence how the USA copes with its problems. Electing Dan Lamb to Congress will help to undo the gridlock that has plagued our government.
Dan is from a military family, so has lived many places, but settled in Central New York and is familiar with many parts of the district. He studied science at Ithaca College and has a master’s degree in public affairs and environmental science from the Maxwell School at Syracuse University. He knows how Congress works, since he for fourteen years has worked in Binghamton as a senior aide to retiring Congressman Maurice Hinchey.
Lamb does not hold investments in oil and gas industries and would vote without conflict of interest in ways that would create jobs by rebuilding our infrastructure while protecting our clean air and water. He has asked that New York wait until all the necessary scientific evidence is in with regard to hydrofracking; if we move forward with fracking, he would support liability standards that would protect property owners and local governments.
Lamb thinks long-term work on the budget must cut any wasteful spending as well as reform the tax code, so that working families do not pay a higher effective tax rate than billionaires. He opposes any efforts to substitute a voucher system for Medicare and Social Security. He aims to expand federal college aid and supports efforts to strengthen public education by increasing training and hiring of teachers.
Choose the kind of country you know is best for all: vote for Dan Lamb!
Wanda Warren Berry
Hamilton, NY 13346
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