Politics & Government

Could Third Time Be the Charm for Winograd?

Public high school teacher Marcy Winograd is running on a jobs with peace platform for a congressional position that has eluded her twice.

Editor's Note: This is one of a series of profiles of candidates running for the 36th Congressional District seat. Come back to Patch for more profiles and campaign coverage.

Marcy Winograd is hoping that it’s a case of third time’s the charm in her bid to win the 36th Congressional District race. She ran against and lost to Jane Harman for the seat in 2006 and 2010.

Running her last two congressional campaigns as a self-confessed “peace candidate,” Winograd says her modus operandi has not changed in 2011. During our interview at the Venice Grind cafe, after a campaign stint at the Mar Vista Farmers’ Market, she sports a ruby bejeweled peace symbol brooch on the lapel of her black jacket. However, she says she’s genuinely concerned that one of her Democratic opponents “is mimicking my brand and platform.

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“It’s very important to distinguish the difference between myself and the other candidates,” the Crenshaw High teacher says, tucking into a piece of quiche. “[In 2010] I ran on the 'jobs not war' campaign and this time I’m running on the platform 'jobs with peace.' [Janice] Hahn’s campaign is almost identical. But how can you be a candidate for peace and not be committed to ending funding for these wars?”

Winograd’s peace platform is no campaign gimmick; it’s part of her raison d’être.

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“I came from a family of liberal Democrats,” she says by way of explanation. “I came of age in the 1960s. My brother Barry was a leader of an anti-war movement and I revered him. My father was vehemently anti-war and questioned the fundamental premise of going into Vietnam.”

Winograd remembers at 17 marching alongside her mother in a campaign to end the Vietnam War, and volunteered one summer with Daniel Ellsberg on the Pentagon Papers trial. “I’ve always been interested in political and social change,” she says. “And I volunteered with Cesar Chavez. I was raised with a fundamental sense of fairness and justice.”

Not afraid to speak her mind, Winograd—who last year generated controversy by stating that the time for a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians had passed due to Israeli intransigence—admits that a not-so-subtle challenge by Hahn had a lot to do with her decision to run again this year. Hahn created a pro-Israel pledge last month and had fellow Democratic contender Debra Bowen sign it as well.

“I was really appalled that they had both signed this pledge because it had a chilling effect,” Winograd says. “It said to me they did not want to hold open dialogue on the Middle East. I think the people of this district deserve more,” she states. “They deserve a representative that embraces democratic values.”

Winograd was more than willing to talk about how she plans to put those values into action should she be elected to Congress.

Mar Vista Patch: What do you think is the biggest issue facing our district?

Marcy Winograd: Certainly job creation. I’ve been involved in job preservation for a long time. I’m a schoolteacher and when thousands of teachers were losing jobs I went to the school board and implored the members not to lay off the teachers.

I’m involved in both job preservation and job creation for our district, and education is at the top of the list. We should be working to deliver world-class education, not dismantling public education.

Patch: What do you think is the biggest challenge to our nation’s economy and what do you think the federal government should do to facilitate economic recovery?

Winograd: A lot of people are losing their homes. We need to create a loan modification program whereby there is far greater assistance for those threatened with the loss of their homes to readjust their mortgages. 

Patch: How will you specifically encourage job growth in Southern California?

Winograd: I support [Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s] 30/10 initiative,* which predicts that over 100,000 jobs will be created and 12 new rail systems will be built.

I believe in direct job creation on the part of the government [similar to] President Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration that employed local writers and artists to tell stories and people to plant trees and build buildings. I believe there are a multitude of opportunities to help put America back to work, but we need investment from the government.

Patch: Standard and Poor’s recently predicted the U.S. credit rating would be downgraded if the federal government could not work together to balance the budget. What budget items do you think should be cut, and what needs to have continued or even increased funding?

Winograd: Deficit reduction is actually my second priority. I’d cut one third of the military budget. We don’t need to spend money on new nuclear weapons development. How many times do we need to destroy the Earth? We don’t need to spend hundreds of billions of dollars on never-ending wars. I’d cut corporate welfare for big oil. We should also re-examine our commitment to our Star Wars missile defense program.

I’d also re-examine our tax structure. One percent of Americans own 40 percent of the wealth. I want to take a look at returning to progressive taxes and taxing capital gains as ordinary income. I’m the one who is talking really clearly about taxing the rich. We’re at a crisis point in our history and we need people who are going to go to Washington to change the status quo.  I would not make any cuts to Social Security and Medicare.

Patch: Where do you stand on No Child Left Behind? What would you do to improve the state of education in this country and in California?

Winograd: No Child Left Behind needs to be repealed. Instead of focusing on test taking and “drill and kill” we should be giving schools resources.

We also need to reduce class sizes and support small learning communities and prepare our youth for careers. Little has changed [in our education system] in 100 years except that we’re now somewhat obsessed with test scores and standards that result in districtwide failures.

Patch: Where do you stand on federal environmental policy? The Supreme Court is now considering the merit of a nuisance lawsuit against electric companies over their greenhouse gas emissions. Do you think the courts should get involved in climate change policy or is this a role better suited for Congress?

Winograd: Sometimes it takes more than one branch of government to limit greenhouse gas emissions. There will be times when I think the court will need to weigh in.

We also need a green team to transition our aerospace industry from a weapons manufacturing industry to one that promises energy independence. There are companies in Canada working on wind turbine and we may need federal subsidies to pay for that initially in the South Bay. Our water treatment facilities need to be upgraded and our ports maintained. This should be the role of the federal government.

Patch: Federal energy regulators have approved the test phase of a wave farm off the coast of San Onofre. Do you approve of that project, specifically, and what are your thoughts on the development of wave energy in Southern California, generally?

Winograd: I have not heard of that specific project, but the Pacific Ocean is a great resource for wave energy, but it’s going to take money and tax incentives.

Patch: Do you think that the nuclear energy plants in California need additional safety regulation? Do you think we should move away from nuclear energy? What would you say to people who are worried that what happened in Japan will happen here?

Winograd: We’re currently committed to spending $50 billion for a new generation of nuclear power plants and this comes at a time when half a million people are on the run in Japan. We need to shut down nuclear power plants here in California. They are located along earthquake faults and are dangerous and vulnerable. In the event of an accident they also produce waste they don’t know what to do with. It’s a polluting industry. I’m the only candidate that is calling for the shutting down of these plants.

Patch: As a member of Congress, which health care legislation would you support or oppose?

Winograd: I support the health insurance reform President Obama advanced in Congress. However, I will introduce legislation to include a public option. Ultimately, I believe the most economical approach is a single payer system, together with Medicare for all. I will work hard to protect the rights of states to pursue a single payer system.

 Patch: Do you think same-sex marriage should be legalized? Do you think it is a federal or state issue? Why?

Winograd: Same-sex marriage is a federal issue and should be legalized. It’s a civil right and should be protected under our Constitution. I don’t know what business the government has in the bedroom. It’s OK to take the country to war capriciously, but it’s not OK to allow people who love each other to marry?

Patch: What is your position on America’s involvement in Iraq, Afghanistan and now Libya?

Winograd: I would not support sending troops into Libya. From what I’ve heard it’s virtually impossible to provide rebels there with arms without sending in troops on the ground.

We have to lose this narrow thinking that military intervention will solve our problems. Our policies of pre-emption are almost knee jerk now. What if we didn’t have weapons, how would we solve this problem? Is there someone to negotiate with? I never give up hope. Hugo Chavez has offered to mediate [with Libya]. Our government may hold him in low regard but we should exhaust every opportunity before raining down missiles. If there’s economic pressure that can be applied, by all means we should do so.

We have to stop arming the Middle East. The Vietnam War ended because we stopped funding it, because Congress finally found its spine, not because of stump speeches. To hear my opponents say they will continue funding the wars because soldiers need protective gear is disingenuous.

Patch: Do you intend to continue Jane Harman's endeavors to ease traffic congestion in the district? If so, how?

Winograd: I will continue to support mass transit and a national plan to promote alternative transportation, such as bicycle use and pedestrian walkways. I support the Westside Subway to Santa Monica and would support additional federal funding for it. I also support the Green Line South Bay extension to Torrance. I am also particularly excited about the 30/10 initiative.

*Editor’s Note: 30/10 would use the long-term revenue from the Measure R sales tax as collateral for long-term bonds and a federal loan that will allow Metro to build 12 key mass transit projects in 10 years, rather than 30.


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