Choosing our next governor will determine the steps going forward in our future. Jay Gonzalez will provide the leadership we need to move us forward. He has a deep understanding of issues that concern us across our state. He is not afraid to talk about raising taxes on those who can pay their fair share, instead of always looking to our communities. He understands our issues and is ready to tackle them and not just talk about or further study them. We do not need four more years of that.
I commend Gov. Baker for standing up to the Trump administration representing our values in this state. For that I am grateful. However, Gov. Baker has demonstrated his lack of commitment to public education by attempting to increase charter schools that are robbing our public schools of funds. In ballot Question 2 in 2016, 62 percent of the Commonwealth voted against this proposal and mandated that public funds be used to help schools. A Fair Share Amendment was proposed to be on the ballot this November. This amendment would have placed a tax on residents who make over $1 million dollars to pay their fair share of taxes for education and transportation. However, a coalition of Massachusetts business groups took the ballot question to court after it was approved to be on the ballot by Maura Healey. It was thrown out on a technicality with a vote of 5 to 2 by our state Supreme Judicial Court. Gov. Baker has appointed five justices to the court during his current term.
People feel Gov. Baker is OK, but don’t we want more then just OK? I feel Jay Gonzalez is committed to hearing us and helping us.
For more information, watch the debates between the candidates on YouTube. Search for “Gonzalez-Baker debate WGBH Gubernatorial race.” Go to the Jay Gonzalez website jay4ma.com. The more I find out about Jay Gonzalez, the more I support him for our governor.
Annette Pfannebecker
South Deerfield