"Christine Cegelis : Hitting Her Stride"

From your Windy City Times:

Windy City Times: In 2004, you earned an unprecedented 44.2 percent of the vote against Henry Hyde. Now you are up against Tammy Duckworth and Lindy Scott. What do you feel are your chances?

Christine Cegelis: Well, we’re feeling really good because obviously over 21,000 people voted for me twice last time. And, of course, our primaries are very small out here. We don’t think it will be more than 30-35,000 voters. So, we’re feeling very good. We have a lot of ground support. A lot of people are out canvassing voters and making phone calls. Things are looking good.

WCT: What do you feel sets you apart from the other candidates?

CC: Well, I think it’s my business background. One of the big issues out here right now is the loss of jobs, particularly to off-shoring—just the companies moving out of the area. Because I’ve been in IT and I’ve been in this business for over 30 years, I’ve worked with companies across the country as well as in Canada, Mexico and the U.K. I think people understand that I have a real handle on what’s going on globally, and we need to create better jobs here in Illinois that can’t be so easily off-shored. ***

WCT: What is your position on funding for HIV/AIDS treatment and education?

CC: Well, this is absolutely critical. Education is a very important piece that should be federally funded because obviously prevention is worth something, pending a cure. I don’t believe we are educating our young people well enough on this. But I do feel we should be funding the medication, not just for a cure, but also in Africa and other places to stop this global epidemic.

WCT: And what other healthcare issues are you concerned about?

CC: Obviously for everyone, healthcare is an issue. Many people have lost their jobs here in the 6th District, and when they lose their jobs, they lose their healthcare. Many companies are finding that they cannot afford to offer healthcare as a benefit anymore. We need to move towards a single payer or—a better way to put it—an enhanced and expanded Medicare for all. That is economically the right choice for our country. It helps us be more competitive in the global economy, and it also provides healthcare at a lesser cost than we are paying right now. ***

WCT: Anything else you’d like to add about what you stand for and why people should vote for you?

CC: Because I am from this district and I spent the last two and a half years getting to know the issues of all the people of district—people raising children, people that are retired—that I would be the strongest voice for the people of my district in Washington because I live their life.

The rest is here.