We Want to Hear From You!
Over the past few months, we have been attending candidate forums, asking questions, and documenting how this year’s candidates plan to address the growing rate of poverty in the District. We’ve posed a variety of questions both through our questionnaire and at various forums about how to make work pay, make work possible, and make basic needs affordable for all DC residents. We, like so many of you, have a strong desire to hear more specifics on how these individuals will chart a path towards defeating poverty in our city if elected. We know many of you have great ideas and questions you would like answers to. We are heading into the final days before the primary – it is time to make our voices heard!
We want to hear from you!
- What are your top concerns going into the election?
- What questions would you like to ask the candidates?
- What issues do you feel haven’t been adequately addressed this campaign season?
Post a comment on this open blog and share your thoughts!
We will compile all of your responses and repost them in the town hall section of our website — we’ll be sharing them with all the candidates as well as using them to build our big pre-election event. Speaking of which…
Save the Date: Over the next two weeks, Defeat Poverty DC will use your responses in crafting the DC Speaks: The People’s Forum event we are co-hosting with ProgressDC on September 13th at Busboys and Poets (5th & K location). If you’d like to weigh in on the planning, please comment on the post or email either Jessie at Posilkin@cbpp.org or Liz at Kendig@cbpp.org. Otherwise, further details will be sent next week.
10 Responses to “We Want to Hear From You!”
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The question I have is not just for the mayoral candidates, but also for the city council. The question is: What are you doing or what will you do or what have you done to protect D.C. residents from preditorial development?
I am impressed that Chairman Gray says that his administration will expand education opportunities, will increase affordable housing and do more to promote jobs.
My question is, with tax revenues down, how is he going to fund these new initiatives.
I am also concerned with who Chairman Gray will appoint to his cabinet. The Post stated that he looks to the likes of HR Crawford, Fred Cooke, Barry etc. These are folks from times past. In my judgment, he needs to be willing to put togther a team of folk within and without the government to run national searchs so that we get the best people possible.
What do the candidates for mayor and council chair plan to do to reinvest in the public benefits that have been cut so drastically in the last few years? How do they plan to protect these services in case of future budget shortfalls, and begin reinvest in them so we have vibrant city services?
In light of the news about the $34 million budget gap, I am deeply disappointed that neither Fenty nor Gray seem willing to raise income taxes on the top 5% of income earners. All the talk about commitment to the issues mean nothing if we cannot fund programs that help people get out of poverty. Where is the kind of bold, courageous leadership our city needs during this difficult economic time?
Access to safe, stable and affordable housing is a huge issue for most District residents, especially people with low incomes. What will candidates do to make good housing a right, not privilege?
Ok,my question is specifically for Gray. How are you going to bring quality jobs that are in Ward 3 and 4 and extend them to many of the residents in Ward 7 8 without providing the training and education they will need to qualify for those jobs?
The city doesn’t have much funding to provide enough education and training programs. WHERE IS THE MONEY COMING FROM??
I want to know if either Mayor Fenty or Chairman Gray will make a commitment to do what is right and reform the income tax system.
We live in a progressive city, it makes no sense that the top income tax bracket is set at $40,000 and above. There is a $34 million budget shortfall, we can fix that without cutting vital city services simply by having an income tax structure that makes sense.
Why don’t any of the candidates have a poverty platform when one out of five residents lives in poverty?
The most pressing issue in our city is that 20% of the population is living in poverty. Why aren’t our leaders talking about it?
For the mayoral candidates: If you win, what will be your first act in office that will help people who live below the poverty line?