AZ-08: Help Me Support Gabby

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Thursday October 20, 2011 · 11:30 AM PDT

2011/10/20 · 11:30

I’ve been lucky to know Gabby Giffords for almost 5 years now. We entered Congress at the same time in 2007 and we became fast friends. I saw in her an intelligence, an empathy and a fire that I always admired and still do. Her dedication to public service is unparalleled and I’m proud to call her my friend.

When Gabby was shot earlier this year, it was truly one of the darkest days of my life but even as reports came in saying she didn’t make it, I never believed them. I knew Gabby was a fighter and I knew that if anyone could make it through this, Gabby could. And amazingly she did.

Gabby’s courageous fight to survive the tragic shooting in Tucson has been an inspiration to all of us. In just 10 months, Gabby has made incredible progress and every time I see her now, she’s stronger than the time before. I am more confident than ever that she will return to Washington to serve Arizona’s 8th district again next term, but I need your help to get her there.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

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Sunday September 11, 2011 · 11:29 AM PDT

2011/09/11 · 11:29

Like all Americans, I will never forget where I was the morning of the 9/11 attacks. I was traveling with my husband when I received the call from my mother that would change my life. I was living in New York City at the time, so when I heard the news, I was overwhelmed with horror and extreme anxiety for friends and loved ones in harm's way.

Now, as I reflect on that terrible day 10 years later, the overwhelming image that stays with me is the amazing acts of heroism we saw from ordinary Americans who didn't need to be asked to commit extraordinary acts. They ran up those towers as everyone else was running down to search for survivors, spending countless hours on the pile of rubble in the days that followed recovering those we had lost.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

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Wednesday August 03, 2011 · 11:38 AM PDT

2011/08/03 · 11:38

Here are some sad statistics:

- I am one of just 17 women in the US Senate.
- Just 17% of all of Congress is made up of women.
- There are currently only 6 women governors in the US today.
- Less than 25% of state legislature seats are filled by women.

And, as if those numbers weren't bad enough, this year, for the first time in decades, the number of women in Congress actually declined at the start of this Congress.

This is a trend we absolutely must reverse.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

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Wednesday July 20, 2011 · 9:29 AM PDT

2011/07/20 · 09:29

This year, we have seen historic progress for LGBT rights, in particular on marriage equality, at both the state and federal levels.

Most recently, of course, I was thrilled when my home state of New York passed marriage equality. The law goes into effect on Sunday and I can't wait to see the images of so many loving couples lining up for marriage licenses. I also look forward to attending some of my good friends' weddings this year!

In addition to New York's historic victory, we're making significant progress at the federal level as well. Back in March, you'll recall the Obama Administration took the unprecedented step of announcing it would cease to defend the constitutionality of The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA.) This discriminatory law prohibits the federal recognition of legal same-sex marriages all over the country and prevents loving same-sex couples from enjoying over 1,100 rights and privileges afforded to married straight couples by the federal government.

Then, this past April, I was proud to join Senator Feinstein, Senator Leahy and several other of my colleagues in introducing the Respect For Marriage Act. This bill will repeal DOMA and require the US government to treat all legally married couples equally under the law.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

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Saturday June 25, 2011 · 7:38 AM PDT

2011/06/25 · 07:38

What a historic day!

I couldn’t be more thrilled that, thanks to extraordinary grassroots activism and the hard work of Governor Cuomo and so many committed organizations and elected officials, New York has once again led the way on equality.

Last night's vote for marriage equality in NY was a true bipartisan effort with Democratic and Republican State Senators coming together to forge a pro-equality majority in support of the simple proposition that every New Yorker should be able to marry the person they love.

But our work is not done.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

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Wednesday May 25, 2011 · 10:59 AM PDT

2011/05/25 · 10:59

In the coming weeks, New York State has a historic opportunity to pass marriage equality. We’ve tried before, as recently as 2009, but we came up just short. But this time, the wind is at our backs and every day it feels like momentum is building.

The timing couldn’t be better for passage of marriage equality in New York. Polls consistently show majority support among New Yorkers for marriage. And Governor Cuomo, who is working hard to build a coalition of support and lobby lawmakers, has called for a vote in the state legislature before the current term ends at the end of June.

But we’re not there yet. As we learned from the experience in 2009, as well as what happened in California and Maine, you can never take anything for granted and we must never underestimate our opposition. So I need your help. So many of my constituents -- straight and LGBT alike -- are counting on you.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

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Sunday May 22, 2011 · 9:54 AM PDT

2011/05/22 · 09:54

Yesterday, I was proud to campaign with our outstanding candidate in NY-26, Kathy Hochul. As Erie County Clerk, Kathy works hard every day to fight for the families of Erie County, put people back to work and make sure small businesses thrive.

It was appropriate that we held the rally in the United Auto Workers Union Hall in Amherst, surrounded by our great friends in Labor. As you know, this election is not just a choice between candidates or parties, it is a choice between visions for the future of our country. And the choice couldn’t be clearer.

This election is about protecting and saving the middle class. It’s about fighting for working people who are struggling versus millionaires and billionaires who are doing just fine. And it’s about making sure our seniors aren’t left out in the cold by a radical budget plan that will end Medicare as we know it and increase costs to all seniors.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

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Tuesday May 03, 2011 · 8:12 AM PDT

2011/05/03 · 08:12

In 2006, the netroots was instrumental in my unlikely victory in NY-20 and today, I’m asking for your help in another red upstate NY seat.

On May 24th, there’s a special election in NY’s 26th district, which is east of Buffalo in beautiful Western NY. Much like NY-20, Republicans hold a strong registration advantage here but just as we did in 2006, Democrats have a real chance to pick up this seat this year.

Our candidate in this race is Erie County clerk Kathy Hochul, a dedicated public servant who won re-election last year with 79% of the vote. She is an extremely strong candidate and according to a new Siena poll, is only 5 points behind the Republican.

Today I’m proud to endorse Kathy and I hope you’ll join me in supporting her campaign so we can begin to eat away at the extremist GOP majority in the House.

I need Kathy Hochul as a partner in Washington so please contribute what you can to her campaign.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

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Tuesday April 12, 2011 · 11:46 AM PDT

2011/04/12 · 11:46

As we continue to mourn the passing of Geraldine Ferraro, women today must not forget the words she spoke in her 1984 convention speech: "The issue is not what America can do for women, but what women can do for America." These words should serve as a clarion call for this generation of women to take action in advancing women's progress.

So, as we mark yet another Equal Pay Day today, we also remember that in that same inspiring speech Geraldine Ferraro said, "It isn't right that a woman should get paid 59 cents on the dollar for the same work as a man." She fought her entire life to end this inequality, yet we are still fighting that wage gap today.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

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Tuesday March 01, 2011 · 11:15 AM PST

2011/03/01 · 11:15

The past year truly has been a landmark year in the fight for equality for LGBT Americans. Not only did Congress finally repeal the corrosive and immoral "Don't Ask Don't Tell" policy, but we won some important battles in the fight to allow every loving couple the opportunity to marry.

First, New Hampshire and Washington, DC began issuing marriage licenses to same sex couples; then a federal court found provisions of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act (or DOMA) unconstitutional; and now, just last week, President Obama and the Justice Department announced that they would no longer defend Section 3 of DOMA in court.

Prior to this announcement, I was working with colleagues and advocates to encourage this move and I applaud the President's decision, but the fact is that DOMA will continue to be enforced until Congress repeals it legislatively. Achieving marriage equality is a top priority of mine and I believe that repeal of DOMA is a crucial step toward that goal.

I hope you'll join me in this fight at repealDOMA.com.

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America Made Their Voices Heard For Our 9/11 Heroes

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

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Wednesday December 22, 2010 · 12:52 PM PST

2010/12/22 · 12:52

Today we saw a true Christmas miracle take place in the US Senate.

Two weeks ago, the James Zadroga 9/11 Health & Compensation Act was defeated on a procedural vote, the casualty of political gamesmanship so common in Washington. Because we didn't have the votes to overcome a Republican filibuster, this crucial piece of legislation to provide critical health care for our brave 9/11 heroes, could not proceed to an up or down vote.

But that vote two weeks ago was a turning point. It made people sit up and say, wait a minute, this isn't right, we owe these brave men and women. Who are we as Americans if we don't take care of our heroes? Well, it's been nine long years since these brave men and women answered the call on 9/11 and I'm so proud that today the US Senate has now answered theirs.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

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Sunday December 19, 2010 · 10:46 AM PST

2010/12/19 · 10:46

On September 11, 2001 and in the days and weeks that followed, thousands of patriotic Americans reported to the site of the World Trade Center to help in whatever way they could. On the day of the attacks, many ran up the buildings as most were running down; some joined the rescue mission at the pile in the days that followed; and still later, people came day in and day out to search for the remains of the fallen.

These heroes did not let us down 9 years ago, but on December 9th, the US Senate let them down.

Republicans successfully filibustered the James Zadroga 9/11 Health & Compensation Act, which will provide $7.4 billion for health care and monitoring for the heroes and community survivors who've suffered health ailments as a result of breathing in toxic air after the towers fell. Unfortunately, taking care of these heroes got caught up in political wrangling over tax cuts and spending bills and we were unable to gain the Republican votes to break the logjam.

But now I'm happy to report that momentum is building and it's my hope that we'll be able to deliver a Christmas miracle for our 9/11 heroes.

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