1. What is the most important issue in the city you would address if elected?

Education is clearly one of the most pressing issues of this City – securing a quality education is the key to our children’s future, and the key to our City’s future. Right now half of New York City schoolchildren are being failed by New York City schools. That’s a crisis. Our children cannot be told they must wait for a better education – because after years of waiting, it’s simply too late. And fixing this problem is simply not as complicated as others might have you believe. We know what works: lower class size and attracting and retaining the best teachers.

2. What other important issues would you address if elected?

As Mayor, I will fight for New York to get its fair share – each year we send $24 billion more to Albany and Washington than we get back, and until that is addressed, all our other concerns will continue to be shortchanged. As Mayor, I will create more affordable housing, as I have done on the City Council, through increased funding and incentives for builders. I have a specific plan to fix the subways, repair and modernize existing lines, and pay for needed expansion like the 2nd Avenue Subway. And as Mayor I have a plan to grow our economy by bringing quality, high-paying jobs to the city, through tax credits for growth sectors and a strong focus on training.

3. What makes you the best candidate for this office?

As Speaker of the City Council, I have taken strong stands on progressive issues and gotten results. I stood up to Mayor Bloomberg to protect New Yorkers and Democratic priorities in the City budget – restoring hundreds of millions for health care, child care, college scholarships, programs for seniors, and HIV/AIDS prevention. And I haven’t just talked about these things, but I have delivered for the people of New York: creating New York City’s first Earned Income Tax Credit to help lift thousands of families out of poverty; protecting children from the dangers of lead paint; requiring hospitals to provide emergency contraception to sexual assault victims; and bringing a living wage to 50,000 New Yorkers.

(Reprinted as supplied by the candidate.)

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