Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate-AZ, John Dougherty
SEDONA AZ–John Dougherty, Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate-Arizona believes that the most important issue facing our state and the country is to get the economy back on track. “Here in Arizona the only way we are going to do that is to not rely on the housing market, which has been our mainstay in the past. We need to convert Arizona to the world leader in renewable energy. One of the key things that we need to do is reduce the subsidies that are going to the fossil fuel industry. They get 80% of federal energy dollars. We should move that over to renewable energy resources. The price of fossil would go up as price for renewable energy goes down, making the renewable relatively more affordable.”
Dougherty continued, ‘There are three potential areas for renewable energy, right here solar would be most important and another that will play a role in Arizona is wind technology. There are a lot of wind facilities going up in various parts of the state and finally, geothermal processes could provide renewable energy sources.”
He also wants to see accountability in Washington. Candidate Dougherty believes that an assortment of economic decisions have led to a diminishment of the middle class, salaries have failed to rise and keep pace with inflation and that while productivity has increased an average of 4% on average, every year for the past 30 years salaries and wages have not increased at all resulting in a great transfer of wealth from the many citizens of the country to a small minority with power and influence. “This needs to be reversed,” John Dougherty said. “I am not aligned with any special interests, I am not going to rely on lobbyists that pay the bills for elections. I am not playing the legalized bribery game.”
On issues of the day, Democratic candidate Dougherty is broadly in favor of the healthcare bill but wants to see if it will reduce premiums and costs otherwise it must be re-written. Both Iraq and Afghanistan are quagmires but Dougherty is not in favor of an immediate withdrawal as he said, “We went in irresponsibly. After what we have done to those countries we need to leave responsibly.”
“SB1070 was a huge mistake for the state of Arizona,” Dougherty added. “Not only has it damaged our social structure and pitted neighbors against neighbors, it is delivering a massive economic blow to the state at a time when our economy is at a near standstill and the housing market is collapsing. Comprehensive reform is an obligation of the Federal government and John McCain failed to act while in office.”
If successful in his bid for U.S. Senate-Arizona Democrat John Dougherty intends to provide a seat at the table for middle class guys like himself. A lot of our trade and tax policy, says Dougherty, benefits only large corporations and multi-nationals at the expense of the American middle-class. Trade policy needs to promote economic growth and protect the livelihoods of American citizens. Too much of what is done today, merely diverts money and wealth into the pockets of a few at the expense of the middle class.
To find out more about John Dougherty, go to www.johndougherty2010.com.
Article by Joni Dahlstrom, sedonaeye.com Staff Writer JoniD@eSedona.net Sedona Times Publishing Election Central c2010
