OntheWilderSide

Green candidates’s views on main topics broken down
Daily Illini

Cynthia McKinney (Green) – McKinney is no longer a member of the House of Representatives, so she has not proposed a plan for economic stimulus. However, in the past she has been in favor of eliminating tax cuts for the wealthy. McKinney was formerly a member of the Democratic Party before leaving for the Green Party in 2007. McKinney supports full funding of the No Child Left Behind Act and says she would reduce classroom sizes to allow for better individual attention for students. She is opposed to school vouchers. McKinney is in favor of benefits for same-sex partnerships and has voted against bans on same-sex adoptions. She has been in favor of plans to create a national system for universal access to health care but has not proposed a plan yet. McKinney voted against the Iraq war and has opposed continued funding for the war. At an anti-war rally in 2005, she called the war “immoral” and “illegal.”

< Kent Messley [Mesplay] (Green) – Messley [Mesplay] has said that the country is now in a recession and that he would take $40 billion in fossil fuel subsidies and create 5 million “green collar jobs.” He also has supported creating more jobs for people living in inner cities and veterans. He has said that he does not think teachers should have to “teach to the test” as is often the case under the No Child Left Behind Act. Messley would cut the military budget back to its levels in 1999 in order to give more funding to art and music programs and make college tuition more affordable. He believes that his green values support a liberal view on personal choices such as homosexuality and civil unions for same sex couples. Messley has said that he believes health care is a human right, yet has not proposed an individual universal plan. Messley is also against the war in Iraq and supports peaceful, diplomatic solutions to such conflicts.

Howie Hawkins (Green) – Hawkins is currently a place holder candidate within the green party for Ralph Nader, who has not yet announced if he will be running for President in 2008, but many in the party are attempting to persuade him to announce a candidacy. Hawkins has not put forth a plan for helping stimulate the national economy, but is in favor of a progressive tax and making wealthier people pay a fair tax. Hawkins believes all children deserve an equal opportunity to get a “quality” education and that teachers should be paid better to keep them in the profession. He is a supporter of legalizing same sex marriages, which goes one step beyond the simple civil unions that many candidates favor. Hawkins has not developed his own plan for universal health care, but has said he would be in favor of such a program. Hawkins is against the war in Iraq and says we need immediate withdrawal of troops. He has frequently called for peace in the Middle East rather than war and military occupation.

Who dropped out: Jared Ball (Green) pledged his support for Cynthia McKinney.

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