Statement
STATEMENT OF KRISTIN ROWE-FINKBEINER, Executive Director of MomsRising, in Response to President Obama's State of the Union Address
February 12, 2013
Lisa Lederer, 202-371-1996
MomsRising Responds to President Obama’s State of the Union
Reaction of Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, executive director and co-founder of MomsRising to President Obama’s State of the Union Speech tonight:
On the Threat of Sequestration:
“Moms across America are terrified by the looming threats of massive across-the-board cuts that would cost millions of jobs and hurt health care, education, aid to state and local governments, and vital programs that kids and families depend on, such as Head Start, child care, and food safety.
We cannot allow cuts to safety ladder programs like Medicaid, which covers 1 in 3 children in our nation. Women and mothers are urging leaders not to throw America’s families overboard in the sequestration debate.”
On Fair Pay:
“America’s moms strongly support President Obama in calling for the passage of the reintroduced Paycheck Fairness Act which would penalize employers for violation of equal pay laws, prohibit retaliation against employees who ask about wage practices, empower women to negotiate for equal pay, and strengthen equal pay laws. This bill is crucial to family economic security, as well as to our national economy. Women are half of the entire paid labor force for the first time in history, and three-quarters of moms are in the labor force, yet wage and hiring discrimination is still the norm. It's time for our nation to catch up to modern realities. When women, who make more than half of all purchasing decisions, don't have funds in their pockets to spend, it hurts us all.”
On Early Childhood Education:
"Childcare now costs more than college in most states in our nation. Moms across the nation applauded to hear President Obama speak to the importance of investing in early learning for all children. These early investments in our youngest and smallest save taxpayer dollars in the long run and help fuel our future economy."
On Immigration:
“America’s moms are ready for legislation that would strengthen our families, our communities, and our national economy, and that includes a roadmap to citizenship for aspiring citizens. We need immigration reform that is inclusive and aligns with the values of our nation. These reforms are especially important to immigrant mothers who work hard to contribute to our communities and care for their families, but who live in fear that any day they could be separated from their children. Congress must come together to develop policies that are good for all our families.”
On Gun Safety:
“America’s moms stand with the President in calling for common sense approaches to protect our families from gun violence. Universal background checks, restrictions on military-style assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, a crackdown on gun trafficking, and federal funding for research into gun violence are all reasonable and much-needed responses to a problem that harms our children and our communities.”