Win

Political Note #123 Abby Finkenauer IA CD 01

After college graduation, Abby Finkenauer spent nearly two years running for the state legislature. She cherishes the conversations she had with people as she went door to door campaigning for herself. The campaign itself, she thinks, was a right of passage, a process of becoming a genuine grown up taking on adult work. As a legislator in her twenties, Abby Finkenauer did the work. She sought relief for people with college loans, urged that people be able to testify about legislative proposals via the internet, and fought to protect women's right to control their bodies.

Continue ReadingPolitical Note #123 Abby Finkenauer IA CD 01

Political Note #121 Angie Craig MN CD 02

Angie Craig has been head of human resources for a large corporation. Her most recent non-political job was head of communications for St. Judes (a familiar name to those who give to medical charities). The divide in the Democratic Party has largely to do with economic issues, how to work with corporations. Angie Craig, like others who share her perspective, is comfortable with large corporations. She lost a close race in 2016 and is trying to unseat the freshman incumbent who defeated her.

Continue ReadingPolitical Note #121 Angie Craig MN CD 02

Political Note #119 Lauren Underwood IL CD 14

Lauren Underwood was a nurse. She became interested in health care policy, earned a degree from Johns Hopkins, and served in the Health and Human Services Department of the Obama administration implementing the Affordable Care Act (the health care part, not the computer part). She grew up in her congressional district, overcame serious illness, stood out as a diligent and agreeable student. People in the district know her, like her, and she knows them. They know her as a courageous, even an audacious young woman. Her run for Congress, as a young, black woman counts as audacious.

Continue ReadingPolitical Note #119 Lauren Underwood IL CD 14

Political Note #116 Zellnor Myrie NY SD 20

Zelmore Myrie's mother was an immigrant from Costa Rica. She raised him mostly alone, focusing on ensuring that he get the best possible education -- Brooklyn Tech. Fordham, Cornell Law School. He got a job is a large, New York firm, but his interest was politics.

Continue ReadingPolitical Note #116 Zellnor Myrie NY SD 20

Political Note #115 Tina Smith MN US Senate

Tina Smith has been involved in Minnesota politics for a long time. She came to Minnesota from Arizona to take a marketing job at General Mills. She later worked on her own as a marketing consultant. She also worked for the Planned Parenthood office serving Minnesota and the Dakotas. She worked as chief of staff for mayors and governors, ran political campaigns for governors. Now she is running for the US Senate, seeking to get elected on her own.

Continue ReadingPolitical Note #115 Tina Smith MN US Senate

Political Note #113 Sean Casten IL CD 06

Sean Casten went to Middlebury College in Vermont. With his science degree, he worked at Tufts medical school outside of Boston in a cancer study. From there he went to Dartmouth in New Hampshire where he got two Master's Degrees related to engineering. For three years,Sean Casten worked as a consultant for Arthur D. Little on clean energy. Then he bought a business -- Turbostream Corp. He was President and CEO of a business that custom built fuel efficient heat and power plant. He sold the business, started a new one in Illinois Recycled Energy Development, and created an advocacy organization on behalf of energy companies like his.

Continue ReadingPolitical Note #113 Sean Casten IL CD 06

Political Note #112 TJ Cox CA CD 21

TJ Cox had a career in international project management and construction. After he returned home to the Central Valley of California, he founded Central Valley NMTC Fund (CVNF). That is a certified community development entity which uses a federal New Markets Tax Credit program to encourage economic development in disadvantaged communities and neighborhoods.

Continue ReadingPolitical Note #112 TJ Cox CA CD 21

Political Note #111 Shelley Mayer NY SD 37

Republicans complain that Shelley Mayer is an insider. Shelley Mayer is an insider. She worked in Robert Abram's Attorney General office, was senior counsel for the National State Attorney General Program at Columbia, was vice president of government and community affairs for Continuum Health Partners, and served as chief counsel to the senate Democrats -- all before being elected to the Assembly. She is a state representative. She promises, in the Senate, a cleaner political atmosphere in Albany, stronger ethics requirements, more effective ways to address sexual harassment.

Continue ReadingPolitical Note #111 Shelley Mayer NY SD 37

Political Note #110 Gretchen Whitmer MI Governor

Forty six years old, Gretchen Whitmer spent fifteen of those years in the Michigan legislature representing East Lansing, She was five years in the House, then filled a vacancy to move to the Senate. During her final four years, until she was term limited out, she was Senate Minority Leader. She was a forceful leader in difficult times.

Continue ReadingPolitical Note #110 Gretchen Whitmer MI Governor

Political Note #107 Greg Stanton AZ CD 09

Greg Stanton is the Mayor of Phoenix. Greg Stanton is a Phi Beta Kappa Graduate from Marquette, a graduate of University of Michigan Law School. He worked in education law in Phoenix, was elected to the city council, and then was elected mayor. Greg Stanton was named a public official of the year in 2015. He distinguished himself by expanding light rail, bike lanes, and sidewalks. The city's greenhouse gas emissions were reduced.

Continue ReadingPolitical Note #107 Greg Stanton AZ CD 09
Newer Posts
Older Posts