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Gillibrand draws full house to coffeehouse

By Casey Junkins - City Editor | Feb 2, 2019

NASHUA — After enjoying some beer with New Hampshire Young Democrats in Manchester Friday evening, Kirsten Gillibrand got up bright and early Saturday morning for some caffeine at jajaBelle’s Pastry and Coffee Shop.

Gillibrand, who represents New York in the U.S. Senate, drew a large crowd of reporters, photographers, Greater Nashua Democratic Party leaders, elected officials and potential supporters to the Main Street coffee shop.

After the event that lasted more than an hour, Gillibrand discussed her support for a universal health care plan.

“No matter where I go, red places, blue places, purple places, the No. 1 issue for Americans is basic access. They just want to make sure they have health care. They want quality, affordable health care because they are worried about surviving,” she said.

“The quickest way to affordable, universal coverage is letting people buy into Medicare,” Gillibrand added. “It’s how you get to single-payer.”

Gillibrand’s position on health care seems broadly aligned with those taken by fellow Democratic presidential candidates Kamala Harris of California, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Cory Booker of New Jersey, as well as potential candidate Bernie Sanders of Vermont.

“The goals aren’t aligned,” Gillibrand said of insurance companies and patients. “They don’t want that second day in the hospital for you because it’s going to cost them money and they’ll have less profits.”

Gillibrand also addressed a question about a somewhat controversial post she made on Twitter in December. The tweet stated:

“Our future is female, intersectional, powered by our belief in one another. And we’re just getting started.”

The Telegraph asked Gillibrand to provide some explanation of this comment.

“It’s important to make sure we have diversity, to allow women to be part of the decision making of this country,” she said Saturday. “Let’s make sure that we have 51 percent of women in Congress and leadership, someday.”

Gillibrand, 52, is a 1988 graduate of Dartmouth College and a 1991 graduate of the UCLA School of Law. She was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2006 from a district in Upstate New York.

She has been a member of the U.S. Senate since January 2009 after being appointed to fill the seat vacated by Hillary Clinton when she resigned to become President Barack Obama’s secretary of state.

Gillibrand currently ranks seventh on The Telegraph’s list of 2020 Democratic presidential contenders.

See the Sunday edition of The Telegraph for more details.

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