Column by Joe Gallenstein

I am proud to write here as what Rep. Robert Wexler of Florida would call a “fire-breathing liberal.” I write every week in an attempt not just to promote the Democratic Party, but also to promote policies from the government that will ensure we all are protected by the law. I write here because I support candidates who I know will do all they can to ensure that we all have equal opportunity to succeed in this country.

I am proud and fortunate to live in a district that will soon be represented by the likes of both Kelly Flood and Kathy Stein in the state legislature, and also fortunate to be helping lead the UK College Democrats this year when we have the opportunity to elect leaders, who understand value and live the American dream, from the Kentucky House of Representatives to the presidency.

The Democratic ticket, from top to bottom, is fighting to keep that dream a reality. The candidates nominated this year have all-American stories to tell. From being raised by a single parent, to being a parent raising a child alone; from working to rebuild your community from the ground up, to taking the risk to create a start-up company. The candidates on the Democratic slate have fought for their community throughout their lives, ensuring that their friends were protected from discrimination, and that every worker has a right to equal pay for equal work.

The cornerstone of that dream is that all Americans have equal opportunity for success, and that opportunity begins with education. Here in Lexington, both of the Democratic nominees who will represent UK in our state legislature support education. They are committed to making affordable preschool available for all of Kentucky’s children.

Flood and Stein understand that the commitment to funding higher education is crucial for our state’s success, and to ensure that success, our state must meet the funding goals for UK that the legislature has prescribed to it. It does not make sense for the legislature to mandate our university to achieve a goal, but then refuse to help provide the means to achieve that goal.

It is hard to build upon the cornerstone of the American dream when the foundation of our economy is not stable. This is something our nominee for the U.S. Senate, Bruce Lunsford, understands, and he has created many jobs in our state already. His platform in this race includes targeted tax credits to the Americans that need it most. He will fight for trade agreements that will protect, not endanger, American jobs.

Further, Lunsford understands that each worker deserves the right to both a living wage and safe working conditions. With Lunsford in the U.S. Senate, Kentuckians will be able to count on someone who will vote for the interests of working men and women of this country. Lunsford understands that our economy’s foundation needs working people who cannot just depend on their jobs, but believe that they can provide for themselves from their jobs.

The American dream is alive, but it is endangered in this current environment. It must be preserved for all Americans, regardless of their gender, their wealth, their heritage, their religion or their sexuality. The leaders who will safeguard that dream are those coming from the Democratic Party, for they are the ones fighting for higher education standards for all Americans.

The Democratic Party is the party that continues to fight to preserve a worker’s ability to provide for themselves and his or her family. It is the Democratic Party that celebrates our community by fighting to honor the diversity within it. We understand that we are all Americans, and that every American, no matter where they are from, how or whether they worship, or even who they care for, loves this country, and the dream that represents it.