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Democratic Presidential hopeful and Massachusetts Senator, Elizabeth Warren, paid a visit to Chillicothe Friday, addressing a crowd of around a couple hundred attendees at the Chillicothe Amvets Post #4.
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Senator Warren addressed the nation’s ongoing opioid crisis, pushing for more accountability from the drug manufacturers that helped to spawn the crisis, and more assistance for those struggling with addiction.
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Senator Warren, along with democratic Maryland Representative, Elijah E. Cummings, recently introduced the Comprehensive Addiction Resources Emergency (CARE) Act, which would provide billions to the states hardest hit by the epidemic.
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Senator Warren is proposing to spend $100-billion over a ten year period to battle addiction. She and Representative Cummings' plan is for a 2-percent tax on personal income above $50-million.
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She has said the tax would raise $2.75 trillion over a decade, which would be used to fund treatment, support and research.
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During an audience question and answer segment, Senator Warren also addressed the nation’s student loan crisis.
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So far, Senator Warren is the only presidential candidate to offer a detailed plan on student debt forgiveness. Her plan is to allow borrowers with household incomes under $100,000 to have $50,000 of their student debt canceled, and those who earn $100,000 to $250,000 would be offered relief on a sliding scale. It would offer no relief to borrowers with an annual income of more than $250,000
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“Imagine telling 43-million young people that they don’t have to worry about their student debt,” said Senator Warren. “What do they do with that money? They put it back into the economy."
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She added that fewer students struggling with extreme debt also means they can live in smaller communities because they don’t have to seek higher wages in larger cities to pay back their loans. She said it would also allow younger Americans to start a small business.
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Senator Warren pointed to studies from the Fed and the Treasury Department that show younger Americans are purchasing homes at a lower rate than seen in past generations and are starting fewer small businesses due to the heavy burden of student loan debt, which often takes a decade or more to pay off.
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She said young Americans are borrowing more money than ever to get to college, borrowing more money while they’re in college, and having a harder time paying the money back once they graduate.
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Warren's plan appears popular among voters. According to a recent Politico/Morning Consult survey, 56-percent of registered voters support her debt forgiveness plan. According to Morning Consult, the poll surveyed 1,990 registered voter from May 3rd to May 6th. They report the survey carries a 2-point margin of error.
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Senator Warren also spoke on the importance of an investment into national infrastructure, saying “if we want to build a future for the mid-west, a strong infrastructure is vital.”