Steve Warner
Green Party
41, Solomons
Current occupation: Finance manager for development firm
Link to state Board of Elections campaign finance database
Should there be a timetable for the withdrawal of American troops from Iraq? If so, what should that timetable be? If not, what strategy do you suggest for the conduct of the war?
I firmly believe that we need an immediate strategy. ... [In] somewhere between six and nine months we should be pulling out of there. ... I think we are seen very much as an aggressor.
With as much as $2 billion a week of military spending going to Iraq and Afghanistan, how can you ensure adequate funding for the research, development, test and evaluation activities at your district’s military installations in the coming years?
I’m not sure anyone can guarantee those funds in the upcoming years. ... [Money going to Iraq] really needs to be going elsewhere.
State and local officials often grumble about unfounded mandates such as the No Child Left Behind Act, which many consider a good way of establishing accountability for academic performance whose goals are unattainable. What measures do you propose to ease the financial burden on state and local entities? Should the law be thrown out the window or slightly altered? If the latter, what would your proposal include?
It was developed with very good intentions. It does need to be fully funded. ... We really need to be looking at other ways of funding those programs. Let’s start doing things smartly [such as green buildings to cut school energy costs].
What qualities should the next president possess and what should his or her administration’s top priorities be? Are there any particular candidates you think would serve the office well at this time?
There’s nobody on either side of the table that I think will serve this country well, period. ... We really need a vision [such as energy independence] coming from our president. ... We’ve had no vision coming from our government. ... I don’t think we’ve had it basically since Reagan left office.
What strategies do you advocate to reduce the nation’s dependence on foreign oil?
Let’s change what we grow [to reduce nitrate pollution and produce ethanol made from grasses rather than corn]. ... We need the political will to do it. We need somebody to get behind it and drive it.
What is your position on the establishment of a universal health-care system in America? What are the pros and cons to such a proposal?
You have to be real careful when you say universal health care. ... The only one I want to talk about is single payer, single provider. ... We’ve put our health care in the hands of insurance specialists. ... We need to put the power back in the hands of the [health-care] specialists.
Are we better prepared for a terrorist incident than we were before 9⁄11?
I don’t think we’re any more prepared. Last year we saw [Hurricane] Katrina ó the first responders couldn’t talk to each other. ... No, we’re not doing a good job.
How much of a concern is the economic divide between wealthy and poor Americans? Should more affluent citizens pay higher taxes? Are there other strategies for giving more people opportunities to make a better living for themselves?
It’s a very big concern, because it seems to be growing quite steadily. ... We do need to come up with a better balance on the taxes. ... [We also must] make sure we ... do not let the corporations take over the Internet.
Commuters in the 5th District face ever-increasing traffic congestion. Can the federal government offer assistance, and on what projects?
We really need to be looking at our mass transit systems. ... We need to be looking at things more globally. ... But I don’t have an answer today on how we pay for light rail systems.
