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Despite our nation’s differences, Sen. Klobuchar believes that we have been inspired by events in Ukraine.
“I’ve always believed that we need to cross the river of our divides, and that there is more that unites us than divides us. If it takes something that has happened thousands of miles away with a despot in Vladimir Putin, so be it. We stand for democracy. So let’s stand for what matters.”
In an interview with WGIR’s Chris Ryan, Senator Amy Klobuchar, the Senator from Minnesota who finished third in the New Hampshire Democratic Presidential Primary in 2020, discusses why she is in the Granite State in March of 2022; reflects on her experiences in the 2020 First in the Nation Presidential Primary; talks about how to solve supply chain issues; lists what legislative matters might be settled in the short term; and shares her thoughts about where we are as a nation.
Senator Klobuchar claims to be in New Hampshire only to campaign for her good friends, and fellow Democrats, Maggie Hassan, Chris Pappas, and Annie Kuster who are all running for reelection in 2024. The Senator from Minnesota was the keynote speaker at a Democratic Party fundraising dinner and birthday party for State Senator Martha Fuller.
When she was pressed about running for President in 2024, Senator Klobuchar insisted that she takes Joe Biden at his word that he intends to run for reelection and that she is committed to her work in the Senate. She is focused on Ukraine, the end of COVID, the voting rights bill, and antitrust legislation aimed at the tech companies.
In the 2020 New Hampshire Presidential Primary, Senator Klobuchar finished third behind Bernie Sanders and Pete Buttigieg and well ahead of Joe Biden. She reflected about her time campaigning in the Granite State in 2020. She discussed the advantages of a primary over a caucus. She liked how the people of New Hampshire have a great interest in politics, ask tough questions, and made her a better candidate.
With war raging in Europe, energy prices soaring, and inflation rising, Senator Klobuchar believes that COVID related issues are in the background of our current economic problems, such as our supply chain disruptions and labor shortages.
Shipping companies made huge windfall profits during the pandemic, so the Senator is cosponsoring legislation to force them to ship US products out and to charge fair rates. She is hopeful that the infrastructure bill which was passed will improve our ports and highway system.
Senator Klobuchar believes that the cure for our labor shortage problem is to train people for the jobs which are available; making childcare and eldercare more available, so that more people can work; and looking at visa caps to provide more foreign workers.
In addition, the Senator calls for developing a domestic semiconductor or chip industry; lowering prescription drug costs; switching to hybrid or all electric vehicles in the future; and finding reliable, friendly nations to supply oil which we have been purchasing from Russia.
The Senator is hopeful that the following issues will soon be resolved, either with or without bi-partisan support: lowering the cost of prescription drugs; the federal budget, which will include aid for Ukraine; and approval of Supreme Court Nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson.