This campaign is about giving the residents of the 55th District a voice in Charleston, but before I speak for you, I want to listen to you…to hear your concerns and, just as important, your ideas about how to address the challenges that we face. Working together, we will create the policies and programs that I will take to Charleston. Politicians often make empty promises about the results they hope to achieve; Leaders work with you to identify how to effect meaningful change — I intend to be a Leader.
As a starting point, here is an overview of some issues and beliefs that are important to me. Please contact me, via e-mail or telephone, and tell me about what’s important to you, and your ideas to move us forward. I offer you the commitment to work with you turn your ideas into a vision, and that vision into reality.
Check back in the future to see The Marshall Plan — the proposals, policies, and programs that will change our District for the better.
I. Economic Opportunity
Over the short term, we should be able to eliminate wasteful spending to create millions of dollars in small business loans. Over the long term, we should be creating the conditions — a competitive corporate tax, a highly educated workforce, and a strong internet infrastructure — to attract high-paying, high-tech jobs to the County and the State.
II. Education
Locality Pay, Locality Pay, Locality Pay! We need to be able to hire qualified and experienced teachers, and we need to be able to keep them on the job long enough to make a difference for our kids and our families. We also need to ensure that our children graduate from pre-school with the pre-literacy skills they need to thrive in elementary school and beyond.
III. Emergency Services
We need to explore creative, budget-neutral ways of fully funding our police, firefighters, and ambulance services and keeping our community safe. We need to address the drug threat by targeting spending on programs that work — like drug treatment for addicts — rather than wasting tax dollars testing people who’ve never used drugs.
IV. Healthcare Reform
We should all have access to quality and affordable healthcare, and Doctors should be making healthcare decisions based on need, not insurance requirements or fear of malpractice lawsuits. While the Federal government struggles with healthcare reform, we can take budget-neutral steps in West Virginia to lower the cost of healthcare and make it more accessible.
V. Effective Government
We need to reform our judicial system by adding an intermediate court and creating a system whereby Supreme Court Justices are appointed by the Governor, approved by the State Senate, and subject to an “up-or-down” non-partisan election after four years on the bench. In the aftermath of the 2010 census, we will need a strong voice in the Legislature to protect the interests of the 55th District during the political redistricting that will follow.
DonnEMarshall@gmail.com | 304.270.0572 | PO Box 2675 Martinsburg, WV 25402
