Issues

We are clearly going through an unprecedented era of challenges that calls for new answers and solutions designed to bring jobs and economic growth back to Massachusetts. There has been no net new job creation in the US in almost ten years and no expansion of the workforce in Massachusetts in over twelve years.

Not only do we have to get people back to work, but we also need to have financial regulations that ensure we don’t put people’s jobs at risk in the future.

Creating Jobs
The way to bring jobs back to Massachusetts and to keep them here is through strategic investment in our state’s leading industries: life sciences, “green” technology, hi-tech, tourism, manufacturing, and education.

Wars in Afghanistan & Iraq

Ending the Iraq War

I’ve been a vocal critic of ever going into the war in Iraq. President Bush rushed us into an ill-advised war without a plan to win the peace or a comprehensive exit strategy. I don’t believe that the United States can solve other countries’ historical internecine conflicts through full scale military engagement. I opposed the war in Iraq because I believed that our military efforts should have been focused on finding Osama bin Laden and destroying the al Qaeda terror network in Afghanistan.

Reviewing Afghanistan Strategy

I support President Obama’s efforts to gather all the facts before making his final decision on the strategy for Afghanistan. However, I am wary of sending more troops to Afghanistan without a compelling strategy that outlines how they will be used and the strategic goals their deployment will support.

My bias would be to bring our troops home as safely and as judiciously as possible. It is due time that we stop spending hundreds of billions of dollars on wars overseas while Americans are struggling with their mortgages, credit card bills, and health insurance expenses.

Pursuing a Strategy of Counter-Terrorism

I am a firm believer in counter-terrorism, as opposed to counter-insurgency. If our goal is to deny terrorist networks the ability to organize and attack our interests, then we need to understand that many of these terrorists are no longer in Afghanistan – they have moved to Pakistan, Kashmir, and Somalia.

In order to fight terrorists effectively we need to maintain the agility and resources to combat them wherever they arise. By increasing our commitment to Afghanistan I worry that we are putting our brave men and women in danger without a definable and achievable purpose. I need to talk to the commanders on the ground before making final determinations, but I don't think that the war in Afghanistan is necessarily accomplishing our objective of ending international terrorism.

Preserving the internet as an open resource for free speech, innovation, and job creation

Since its creation, the internet has been a transformational force in the United States and an engine for job creation across a vast cross-section of the information economy. In Massachusetts, thousands of high tech and service firms rely on access to the internet for their businesses to succeed and grow through online innovation. For years, the internet has driven economic growth and creativity nationwide. But the enduring principles that have made the internet open to innovation and widely accessible are now under threat in Washington, DC.