Senator Gillibrand had a very busy week when she returned to Capitol Hill after summer recess. She introduced a bill in the Senate to improve food safety for consumers. This bill will require all meat and poultry to be checked by the US Department of Agriculture before it is sent out to stores. Also, this bill would make sure all meat and poultry plants are following proper sanitation rules and might require plants to be shut down that are known on numerous occasions to sell products to consumers that are tainted with food related illnesses such as salmonella. Senator Gillibrand when interviewed by the Washington Post stated “As I cook dinner for my family most nights, I want to know what I am serving is safe for my children to eat.” This is an issue that is important to Senator Gillibrand as a mother of two young boys. The hope of this bill is to reduce food related illness in the United States and to hold meat and poultry plants more accountable for what they provide their consumers. This bill has the potential to have trouble passing in the House and Senate according to the Washington Post because it involves many government agencies working together and people who are against big government and who want less regulations might not support her bill. (Http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2013/09/12/gillibrand-introduces-legislation-to-preserve-staffing-levels-for-usda-inspectors/).
More close to her home state of New York, Senator Gillibrand is also sponsoring a grant called Say Yes to Education. This grant provides funding for students living in Syracuse, New York whose families earn a household income of under 75,000 dollars free college tuition at all of the New York SUNY schools and over 40 private colleges. Five new colleges were just added to the list: Harvard, Northwestern, Duke, Notre Dame and Georgetown. In a news conference next week, Senator Gillibrand is supposed to announce expansions of this program for it to include students in Buffalo and Harlem, as well, and expand to include more colleges. According to this article, President Obama praised this program because it provides educational opportunities for student who otherwise could not afford higher education. (http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2013/09/say_yes_to_education_set_to_announce_new_colleges_grant.html)
Now to the big issue in Congress this week, Syria. Kirsten Gillibrand is still on the fence about what to do with Syria. Senator Gillibrand stated that she is opened to a diplomatic solution to Syria instead of military intervention. She said in quote “she believes a credible diplomatic solution is the best possible outcome to the United States and world community.” She is still undecided and does not feel she has enough knowledge of the issue to make a final decision yet. She plans on attending more conferences on Syria next week and listening to the intelligence committee and then she will state her stance on the issue. Senator Gillibrand would rather avoid military action if possible. Senator Schumer, the other New York Senator, takes a similar viewpoint on the issue as well. It should be interesting to see where things go with Syria in Congress next week and what position Senator Gillibrand takes in the end. It is interesting to note that, although Senator Gillibrand is in the same party as President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry, she appears to be taking a more diplomatic approach than the Obama Administration. This could be because she is attempting to match the views of her constituents. (http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/politics/2013/09/8533659/gillibrand-backs-credible-diplomatic-solution-schumer-crafts-syria-).
1 comment:
The comment about her caring about the quality of her meat because she is a mother is a smart way to relate to constituents. As one of the few women on the hill, there is a lot of stigma that comes with the job such as not keeping her family as a priority. Pushing a bill like this is sending the message that she is using her position to help improve her home and keep her children safe just like any mother would want to do.
Post a Comment