Marie,

I know on the campaign trail you will get asked a bunch of hot button issues over and over again. I will ask some of them too but if I don't ask a question it isn't because I don't think it is important but because our time is limited and I am sure others will ask you.

What magazines, news stations, and blogs do you read to follow national politics?

I'm a fan of NPR, listening to All Things Considered when I can. Marketplace is a great show to get info on what's happening with the economy. If I can't listen in, I get their daily emails, so I can see what's doing.

I get the LA Times and the VC Star. LA Times for world news and VC Star for local news.

Then, as a science educator I regularly read various periodicals and magazines for education and science content and policy.

Marie,

What are your thoughts on our long term mission in Afghanistan?

Would you support increasing the troop levels as many are proposing? What foreign policy experience or understanding do you have to help you understand the stakes in this war?

Marie,

Congressional campaigns take money. Oftentimes it takes a large sum to show that a candidate is a credible contender. Once that happens money from across the nation and from the party starts to come in. How are you going to show party activists, interest groups, and the DCCC that you are a credible challenger? Do you have plans to invest a large sum in your own campaign?

Afghanistan has been a no-win situation for any other national power that has been in there. The mission is unclear, the enemy is unclear, and the there are no clearly defined goals. I am not optimistic about our long term mission. My fear is that we will get sucked further and further in; it will cost more and more American lives; and we won't have achieved much.

The purpose of increasing troop levels is to be more effective and better safeguard our troops. But, without a clear mission with clearly defined goals, it is hard to determine how to assess better effectiveness. I only support increased troop levels with clearly defined goals and specific objectives that are achievable within a specific time frame.

I served in the U.S. Peace Corps in Ghana, West Africa two years after their pro-Marxist coup and in the midst of one of the worst droughts that country had seen in many years. It was an interesting time in the country from a sociological, economic, and political perspective.
I also lived in England for a year during college giving me a continental and British perspective on American foreign affairs.

Marie,

Many in America are debating what precautions they should take against the swine flu. Because of your science background I am interested in your thoughts. Are you going to get a swine flu shot?

Do you suggest others get a swine flu shot?

Marie,

The US Supreme Court is currently reviewing the animal cruelty law that Rep. Gallegly supported. Some free speech advocates have argued that the law is too broad and could punish people for distributing videos of bull fights and other subjects that aren't as shocking as the problem the law was attempting to address.

If you were in congress would you have voted for the law? If you are elected would you fight to make sure the law meets the criteria set forth by the courts?

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=113548704&ft=1&f=1001

Campaigns take money to appeal to voters. It isn't the money per se, but the number of votes that a candidate can bring in. I don't think that the contest with Gallegly can be based solely on money. Gallegly's Republican base will likely be able to outstrip any Democratic contender in the amount of money raised. Whoever the Democratic candidate is, the campaign against Gallegly will have to be based on issues that are important to voters in this county. That will be the basis of my campaign.

No, I do not plan to invest large sums of money in my own campaign. I am a college professor. One doesn't go into education for the money.

Marie,

Do you remember the first election you voted in? Do you recall ever voting for a Republican for a national office?

The swine flu scare is being overblown. The most important protections are simple ones that everyone can practice: hand-washing regularly with soap and water, covering the mouth when coughing or sneezing, and staying home when sick. The CDC recommends that older persons and the young get flu shots annually because their immune systems are not as resilient or developed as young and middle-aged adults.

Because young adults have not seen the H1N1 variant of flu virus, they are more susceptible to this virus than other strains of virus circulating in society. Getting a flu shot will help to reduce the circulation of the virus in society, thus reducing the impact that the virus will have on the public health of the nation. Because of the severity of flu often associated with the H1N1 virus, I do recommend that people be vaccinated. I plan to get the vaccination.

Marie,

Do you believe that climate change is influenced by human behavior? What have you done in your own life because of your thoughts on climate change?

What plan of action would you support at the national level to combat climate change?

Marie,

Currently the US Military, following policies set by elected officials, are firing highly trained and critical members of our armed services because they are gay. Israel and the UK both allow gay service members to serve openly.

Do you support repealing DADT as soon as possible?

The Animal Cruelty law - this is a tough one. I love animals; we have a dog and two cockatiels, and have had various other animals over time. I have a hard time with inflicting pain of any sort on animal. And, as a biologist I have an appreciation for all life forms. I am one who carefully catches the spiders in the house and releases them outdoors. On the other hand, we need to be very careful with what the government controls in terms of what we view. It is a slippery slope to censorship.

That being said, because children are very susceptible to what they see and because of the way that videos can be shown and distributed to people of all ages today, I would likely have voted for the law.

If I was elected, I would work to make sure that the law meets the criteria set forth by the courts.

I don't remember the first election that I voted in per se, I remember being very excited that I could vote. This was shortly after 18-year olds were given the right to vote. I registered as soon as I turned 18. And, I have voted in every election that I have been in-country for since. Our democracy is based on people exercising their right to vote. We have a responsibility to protect our democracy and we do that each time we vote.

I don't recall having voted for a Republican for national office.

An examination of the data leads to the conclusion that human activities are a major contributor to global climate change. I believe that we are at a point where it is almost too late to make changes fast enough to ward off climate change that will affect life on this planet for decades to come. The U.S. has dragged our feet on this issue, because it is easier to ignore than to make the changes. Fran Pavley's bill is a big step in the right direction. I think that we need to be doing more.

In my own life, reduce waste, reduce electricity usage, reduce vehicle use, and vote for public transportation every time it is on the ballot.

Plans of action at the national level to reduce the impact of climate change - continue to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, investment in science and technology to develop alternative energy sources, invest in the development of public transportation systems. Effective,regular, accessible public transportation systems are absolutely essential for this country, not only for environmental reasons, but for sociological reasons. Good public transportation systems are an investment in the development of strong communities. And, community development is an area that we need to examine and plan for for the future of this district and state.

Marie,

Do you support expanding domestic oil and natural gas production?

Would you support increased taxes on fossil fuels to pay for the subsidies and research you want to pay for? How do you want to pay for the investments in clean energy?

I fully support equal rights for gays and lesbians under the law. Discrimination of any sort is unacceptable. Yes, I think that the "Don't ask, don't tell" policy should be repealed and one's sexual orientation should make no difference to one's service in the military or elsewhere. I applaud Sen. Gillibrand for aggressively pursuing this issue in Congress.

(Note: I also support equal rights for women and this should be part of the constitution!)

Marie,

If you were in congress would you have voted in favor of the stimulus bill? If you could have voted for amendments to modify it what changes would you have liked to see?

I do not support expanding domestic oil or natural gas production. The only condition under which I would even consider it, is if it replaced what we are currently importing.

The California taxpayer has already demonstrated a willingness to pay higher prices at the pump in return for improvements in the transportation system. While now is not the time to be increasing taxes at the pump, at some point in the near future we are going to have to invest more heavily in the development of effective public transportation systems.

I think that less money than one would think is needed for research and development of clean energy. One, it will lead to economic development and job growth, which will contribute to the economy. And, two, we need to prioritize our spending, something that we are notoriously bad at. We need to prioritize the services we want as a society and then allocate money accordingly. This is where it is especially important to have adequate numbers of women contributing to the decision-making. The priorities that women have are often different than those of men. More than 50% of this country is female. The priorities of women need to be adequately championed in the discussions.

Marie,

Do you support investigations of the Bush Adminstration to find out if there were criminal acts committed when they approved torture, enhanced interrogation techniques, or whatever you would like to call it?

If high ranking political appointees are found to have broken any laws would you favor criminal prosecutions?

Marie,

Would you be an advocate for equality, including marriage, for gay people on the federal level? Do you support the federal government recognizing marriages between gay people if they are recognized by their home states?

Yes, I would have voted for the Stimulus package. As a school board member and member of the board of Ventura County Community Action, I have seen the difference that this money has made to programming and our ability to serve the public.

Rather than focusing on amendments to modify this bill, I would have advocated for governmental monies to pay for certain unfunded mandates. A case in point is special education. Federal law directs that all children are entitled to a free and appropriate education. I agree with the law. However, this mandate is funded less than 20% by the federal government. And, with state funds the funding is only brought up to about 40%. With the average special education case costing in the tens of thousands of dollar and districts only being paid about $6,000 per child, school districts are going broke trying to serve these children. Unfunded mandates are a significant issue for most civic entities.

I support investigations of anyone where there is substantive evidence to warrant the investigation. We need to beware of witch hunts. But, high official or common citizen, no one is above the law. And, anyone who breaks the law should suffer the consequences. So, yes, I would support criminal prosecutions where warranted. To not do so sets a double standard. The unethical and criminal behavior by those in power of the last several years has resulted in monumental crises. We need to reset our moral compass as a nation and hold those in power to the same standard as the lowest citizen in this country.

Absolutely. Without question. I would advocate for equality, including marriage, for gays and lesbians on the federal level. Yes, I think that the federal government should recognize the marriages of gays and lesbians, if the marriages are recognized by their home state.

Thanks, Brian, for the opportunity to expound on my views. I appreciate it. Great questions.

Marie,

Because you are a school board member I have a few questions you might have insight to share.

1. Do you think it is too hard to fire a poor performing teacher? Can you remember the last time a teacher in your district has been fired for reasons related to job performance?

I am not asking for examples of personal issues, just job performance.

2. What provisions of NCLB do you support?

Marie,

Would you like the final healthcare insurance reform bill to include some version of a public option? Would you like the final version to include a mandate on people to buy healthcare insurance?

It is indeed difficult to fire a poor performing teacher. However, after a probationary period, firing anyone for reasons beyond criminal or egregious behavior should take some effort. In the case of teachers, at least part of the problem can be traced to the system. Administrators are required to evaluate teacher performance. School administration is a very tough job, especially these days. What we expect of our school administrators is almost equivalent to God walking on water. The result is burn-out and a constant shuffling of administrators, so that consistency and follow-through from year-to-year is difficult, at best.

The purpose of an evaluation is to look at how one can improve their work. In the case of a poor performing teacher, there needs to be mentoring, follow-up, and re-evaluation. Few administrators have the time for this; it is easier to hope that the problem gets better, which it rarely does.

Rather than focusing on how hard it is to fire a poor performing teacher, let's ask what we can do to improve the situation. 1. Adequate funding for schools so that administrators have the time to do the job we are asking them to do. 2. Adequate support for professional development for teachers so that they remain current in and excited about their profession.

We shouldn't be taking the easy way out here. It is too easy to focus on a few hot button issues rather than tackle the fundamental problem, our unwillingness to give schools the resources to do their jobs right.

2. NCLB - the bain of schools today. It focused attention on teacher quality. That is good. But, it just says teachers have to have the right pieces of paper. It doesn't go far enough. We need to provide for good and appropriate professional and staff development for teachers. Teachers need time to collaborate and share ideas, to work together within and across grade levels. In industry, it is a no-brainer. In education, it is too expensive.

Another aspect of what is good in NCLB is the idea of accountability. However, this has taken on a life of its own and gotten WAY out of hand. There is incessant testing in the name of accountability. Where has it gotten us, except that there is less teaching as everyone spends an entire year, every year preparing for a test? We need to review what we want here, - What information, for what purpose, and how best to get the desired information.

A last example of something positive in NCLB is the requirement that schools breakdown their data into various sub-categories, so that they can evaluate how special populations are doing. It would be nice if schools were then given adequate resources to do something with what they learn from the data. Instead, we insist that they improve with fewer resources than before.

Yes, I would like the final version of the healthcare bill to include some version of a public option. I think that this is part of the fundamental reform that needs to happen.

I am far less keen on mandating that people buy healthcare insurance. This is too much governmental regulation.

Everyone should have access to basic healthcare. If we put more of our resources (money) into prevention, we would likely save enough where making basic healthcare available to all wouldn't cost any more.