“as mayor, i will pursue both local and national efforts to make...

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Boston Mayoral Candidate Questionnaire – 2009 The following questionnaire was distributed to all candidates for Mayor in July 2009 to raise their awareness of three peace issues with local implications and to record their positions on each issue. The complete responses returned by each of the candidates are compiled pasted below (by name, in alphabetical order). For a one-page (.pdf) chart comparing key excerpts of each candidates response, visit: http://www.masspeaceaction.org/pdfs/masspeaceaction_mayorsguide_bosgen09.pdf This guide was produced for educational purposes and is not meant to be construed as an endorsement of any candidate or political party. 1. Mayors for Peace: Led by the Mayor of Hiroshima, Japan, Mayors for Peace is an international network of municipal leaders who have pledged support for cooperative global efforts to rid the world of nuclear weapons, recognizing the devastating threat that nuclear accidents or attacks pose to our cities and towns. Boston became a member city of Mayors for Peace in 2005, joining the more than 3,000 municipalities from 134 countries and regions that now comprise the network; the organization currently maintains Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations and has been a respected leader in promoting nuclear weapons abolition at UN conferences, such as the Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference, which will next meet in New York City in May 2010. The work of Mayors for Peace has recently been amplified by the U.S. Conference of Mayors, which voted unanimously in 2008 to urge the global elimination of nuclear weapons by the year 2020. The U.S. Conference of Mayors and Mayors for Peace are currently urging the president to negotiate for a verifiable treaty to fully abolish nuclear weapons, recognizing that there is no adequate municipal response to a nuclear attack. At the U.S. Conference of Mayors’ most recent meeting in June 2009, municipal leaders from across the country were addressed by Mayor Akiba of Hiroshima, who briefed delegates on what city leaders can do to seize President Obama’s vision of a nuclear weapons free world; the Conference renewed its commitment advocate for the United States to make clear and concrete progress toward this goal in advance of the 2010 NPT Conference. Do you support the U.S. Conference of Mayors call to abolish nuclear weapons? What will you do to ensure Boston’s leadership on this issue? For further information: http://www.mayorsforpeace.org/english/index.html http://usmayors.org/resolutions/76th_conference/international_04.asp Michael Flaherty: “As Mayor, I will pursue both local and national efforts to make Boston and the entire country safer by both supporting the U.S. Conference of Mayors’ efforts to eliminate nuclear weapons by the year 2020 and by leading the local effort to develop a comprehensive evacuation plan. Regrettably, the current administration has failed to

Peace Voter Guide – Boston Mayoral Race 2009 – Complete Questionnaire

develop such a plan and, consequently, has made the city of Boston particularly vulnerable to any type of terrorist or nuclear attack. As Mayor, I will address this dangerous gap in our security plans by creating an evacuation plan that is all-encompassing and – perhaps most importantly – is effectively communicated to residents, academic and health care institutions and businesses so as to ensure its swift and seamless implementation, if necessary.” Kevin McCrea: “I support the U.S. Conference of Mayors call to abolish nuclear weapons by the year 2020 and will pro-actively represent Boston in these efforts. I do not believe that the United States or any other nation should use nuclear weapons to address its foreign policy or security issues. As Mayor, I would ensure Boston’s leadership on this issue by voicing my anti-nuclear weapon position at conference meetings. In addition, I would support any level of anti-nuclear weapons and pro-peace legislation. I believe in peace through dialogue. I have visited many of the “dangerous” countries in the world, from Pakistan and India, to Colombia, to China, Turkey and Indonesia. I have found that people in these countries do not hate Americans, and do not hate other people. They want the freedom to live life on their own terms. Respecting other peoples and cultures will be a guiding philosophy in my administration.” Thomas Menino (incumbent): “I support the U.S. Conference of Mayors call to abolish nuclear weapons by the year 2020 and will pro-actively represent Boston in these efforts. While I support the elimination of nuclear weapons as per the U.S. Conference of Mayors, my priority as Mayor is peace in our neighborhoods. Hence, Mayor Bloomberg and I are co-founders of Mayor’s Against Illegal Guns – a coalition of over 400 mayors representing 50 million people advocating for common sense gun laws. Whether by partnering with other mayors or with neighborhoods groups, the best way that Mayors can fight for a more peaceful world is block by block, neighborhood by neighborhood.” Sam Yoon: “Yes. I fully support the US Conference of Mayors call to abolish nuclear weapons by 2020.

It is the job of the mayor to protect the safety of the residents in his or her city. However, as we all know, there is no municipal response to a nuclear attack. As mayor, I would urge and lobby our federal delegation – as well as the President – to work to make this achievable goal a reality.

I believe that the mayor of a city like Boston can also play another role in this – that of an advocate. Because of Boston’s reputation and stature, and the strong links that we have to other cities around the globe through our diverse population, a mayor of Boston who takes the lead on this has the ability to reach a large audience globally.


Additionally, our colleges and universities are home to some of the world’s greatest minds and influential people. I plan to work closely with our colleges and universities around public education issues – and I would also urge them to speak out against nuclear weapons. Eliminating nuclear weapons by 2020 will require a global effort – and Boston can be a leader in that.” 2. The 25% Solution Campaign: As the United States faces severe economic and environmental crisis, creating dire public needs ranging from education to housing to health care, Representative Barney Frank has called for a shift in the government’s budget priorities. With military spending at a staggering $700 billion a year, and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan costing more than $1 trillion, Rep. Frank has proposed a 25% reduction in military spending so that more federal funds may be reallocated to community programs and meeting urgent domestic needs. Do you support this proposed cut in federal military spending? How will you advocate for federal budget priorities that free up more resources for state and local aid to benefit cities such as Boston? For further information: http://www.25percentsolution.org/ http://www.justicewithpeace.org/25-percent-solution http://www.thenation.com/doc/20090302/frank http://thehill.com/business--lobby/defense-budget-under-tighter-scrutiny-2009-02-24.html Michael Flaherty: “One of the best ways to ensure that our nation is strong, secure and prosperous is by educating our next generation of leaders, maintaining healthy local economies and ending the senseless violence that is terrorizing our streets and killing our youth. Achieving these goals requires committed financial investments in education, public safety, job training and our local business communities. Freeing up federal funding for reinvestment in these areas is paramount to strengthening our nation’s cities and towns. As Mayor, I will be a voice for responsible allocation of our federal funding and proactively advocate for the city of Boston to receive its fair share of federal dollars. However, what is equally as important is making sure that our city’s own funds are appropriately managed and allocated to programs that are achieving results, and that inefficient government spending is eliminated from our city’s budget. My administration will conduct sweeping annual performance reviews of each city department and program to identify wasteful spending and reallocate those dollars to the areas where they are most needed – education, crime and job creation. In addition, I will implement the CitiStat program in Boston, which is effectively used in many U.S. cities to improve the efficiency and quality of city services, to reduce unnecessary spending, and to help city officials make data-driven spending and policy decisions.” Kevin McCrea: “I support Rep. Barney Frank’s proposed 25% reduction of the military budget and will advocate for a redirection of federal resources from excessive spending on weapons and war toward investments in community programs and infrastructure.


While I disagree with the Mayor’s statements that the City is in an economic crisis, I believe that the war we are fighting in Iraq was waged unjustly. Further, I believe that reducing the military budget to invest more into our City’s community programs and infrastructure would be a more sensible use of our country’s funds.” Thomas Menino: “I support Rep. Barney Frank’s proposed 25% reduction of the military budget and will advocate for a redirection of federal resources from excessive spending on weapons and war toward investments in community programs and infrastructure. Given our looming budget deficit and our country’s overwhelming domestic needs, I support the principles of Congressman Frank’s proposal and hope that we can reduce military spending relative to domestic needs, while preserving a strong America. Sam Yoon: “Yes. I support the 25% Solution Campaign. As Mayor, I will use my office everyday to fight for Federal money for Boston. I will lobby our federal delegation – and the President – to ensure that our military spending is not out of control.

Recently, a grassroots effort was responsible for Congress voting to eliminate the orders of F-22 jets that the military did not need or even want. My background is in grassroots community organizing, and I know the power that we can exercise when we act together like in this instance.

One of the reasons that I am running for mayor is to change the whole political culture in our city government. And that is the same culture in Washington DC that is responsible for much of the excess military spending – when certain legislators put the interests of their districts ahead of national interests. I am hopeful that with a community organizer in the White House, we can begin the fight to reduce this wasteful spending and keep our military strong – but not bloated.

In tough economic times, we all need to cut back – and the military should be no exception. By cutting waste in military spending, we can direct that money to areas in our budget that are under-funded and worthy of more resources.” 3. Military Recruitment in Public Schools: One outcome of President Bush’s 2001 “No Child Left Behind Act” has been that the personal contact information of public school students has been made more readily available to the military, although many students and families are unaware of their right to “opt out” of having their personal data accessible to military recruiters. As the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have created an increased need for enlistment, military recruiting has become increasingly aggressive to the extent that the military itself has had to order “Stand Down” days in which military recruiting was ceased to examine unethical, coercive, and dishonest recruiting practices targeted especially at urban and low income youth.


In 2006, the city of Cambridge, MA adopted a military recruiting policy which gives more protection to public school students privacy and better ensures that they are well aware of what information is being shared with the military as well as the range of options they have outside of the military such as college, vocational schools, apprenticeships, public and community service corps, etc. Do you support a similar policy being implemented within the Boston Public Schools wherein students would be presented with a wider range of options for their future, made aware of their right to “opt out” of sharing personal information with the military, and would have exposure to more comprehensive, balanced, and realistic information about the realities of military enlistment? What will you do to ensure students’ and families’ privacy is protected and that young people in Boston can access a range of opportunities after high school? The Cambridge school district’s policy can be reviewed at: http://www.cpsd.us/web/PubInfo/CPS_Recruiter_Policy06.pdf Michael Flaherty: “Giving our city’s youth the skills and opportunities necessary to pursue a wide range of career paths will be a priority of my administration. I realize that part of helping students determine their post-graduate plans also requires informing them of their rights when it comes to being contacted by potential employers or organizations, including our country's armed services. As Mayor, I would support the adoption of a policy similar to the one passed in Cambridge, Mass., that would create effective outreach mechanisms for informing families and students about how to opt-out, and also implement standardized school procedures for maintaining opt-out forms and regulating recruiters’ access to schools. In the past, the Boston Public Schools has issued public announcements and sent home letters regarding the right to opt-out, but our schools need to formulate and implement mechanisms for contacting families and students that are more effective, reliable and culturally-appropriate, given the diverse student population of the Boston Public Schools.” Kevin McCrea: “I support a policy similar to the Cambridge Public Schools Policy on military recruitment, in that all students are presented with a range of options for their future and are made conscious of their right to protect their information from the military. When I ran for City Council At-Large in 2005 and in my current bid for Mayor of Boston, I propose to visit every Boston Public School every two years. My goal would be to listen to the concerns of teachers, parents and students to determine which policies have been effective in helping our students succeed and which policies have been ineffective. Finally, I would work to find solutions for any concerns among these three groups of people. As Mayor, I believe that this type of involvement and interaction with our school system would enable me to learn about policies, such as military solicitations. With this information, I could develop a strategy alongside the support and input of teachers and parents to educate our students about the risks associated with enlisting in the military.”


Thomas Menino: “I will ask the Boston School Department to review the specifics of Cambridge’s policy and give me recommendations relative to military recruitment. The Boston Public Schools has provided an opt-out provision for students and parents not interested in having their information released to the U.S. Military. Certainly, I want to support anyone who chooses to serve their country; I also want to expand our young people’s knowledge of their options, which is why we have expanded and diversified summer job opportunities, established new high schools with career tracks in public service, technology and health care, and we are reinstituting civics courses.” Sam Yoon: “I am a big proponent of transparency in government – and everywhere else. Students at the Boston Public Schools should have all the information available to them regarding future opportunities. And they should be made fully aware of their rights when it comes to protecting their information from military recruiters. During this campaign, I have spoken consistently about new opportunities for children in our city – especially opportunities for less-privileged youth. And while joining the military can often be a good fit for many High School students, it cannot be their only option. I plan to work closely with our universities and colleges to ensure that they play their part in giving back to the city. Not only should there be more scholarships and opportunities at these colleges fro BPS kids, but these colleges need to take an active part in mentoring and working with our school aged children. We educate a quarter of the world’s leaders in Boston, yet we can’t provide a top-class education to our 60,000 children in public schools across the City. I also plan to work with labor unions and trades to ensure that Boston kids get their fair shake when it comes to getting jobs in trades. In addition, we need to ensure that we make Boston a truly Green City – and that our children are prepared and trained for 21st Century Green-collar jobs. These are the jobs of the future, and we have a responsibility to ensure that our children are not left behind.”

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