Author Archives for Herb Weiss

Voters 50+ most powerful, election deciders; true for all Rhode Island cities, towns

Published in RINewsToday on October 24, 2022

Every political pundit knows that seniors are the most reliable voters. AARP Rhode Island’s latest analysis of voter records from the office of the Rhode Island Secretary of State clearly confirms this observation. Age 50 and over voters accounted for more than 70% of Rhode Island voters who turned up in the September 13th primary election, says Rhode Island’s largest aging advocacy group.

“This year’s 50+ numbers increased over the last midterm election in 2018, when Rhode Islanders aged 50 and over accounted for 67% of those who voted,” says AARP Rhode Island. 

“In this year’s primary, 72% of voters statewide were 50 years old or older. This held true in analysis of the Congressional District 2 voters, where 72% of CD2 primary voters also were 50 or older,” says AARP Rhode Island, noting that municipal percentages ranged from 59% (Providence), 69% (Pawtucket and Cranston), 74 % (Warwick), 79% (Bristol) to 87% (Narragansett).  

“Voters 50+ consistently show up at the polls in much greater numbers than their younger counterparts – and then some,” said AARP Rhode Island State Director Catherine Taylor in an Oct. 18 statement announcing the voting analysis.

“This extremely powerful voting bloc has made it clear that key issues such as protecting and strengthening Social Security and Medicare, improving nursing home safety, achieving retirement security, and providing means for people to live in their own homes with independence and dignity as long as possible are powerful motivators when they vote. It is undeniable that Rhode Island candidates who want to win must pay attention to issues that matter to 50+ voters,” says Taylor.

“The 50+ are our most powerful voters – and they will be the deciders in the 2022 elections,” Taylor added.

AARP Rhode Island’s “Voters 50+: Our Voices Decide” campaign has provided tens of thousands of Rhode Islanders information on how, when and where to vote at www.aarp.org/RIVotes. Here they also can view videos of gubernatorial and CD2candidates answering questions that reflect older voters’ top concerns as determined by AARP’s most recent statewide Vital Voices Survey.  

AARP Rhode Island captured some 50,000 views of the eight Video Voter Guide videos posted on Facebook and on its Web page for the Primary and General Elections.

According to Maureen Maigret, Policy Advisor for the Senior Agenda Coalition of RI, the AARP data shows the continued importance older voters have in election outcomes. “This will surely carry over to the November 8th election. Older adults are motivated to vote  because they see it as a civic duty and understand how government decisions made by elected officials impact not just their lives, but that of their family members and their community,” says Maigret.

“After the election, protecting Social Security and Medicare must be a major focus of advocacy at the federal level. Seniors also care about strengthening programs to promote independent living in the community and caregiver supports which are both national and state issues,” adds Maigret.  “And they care that our children and grandchildren have access to quality educational opportunities as they represent the future of our state, country and the world,” she says.

Disabilities won’t keep older voters from voting

The second “State of Voters with Disabilities Survey”,  released by Easterseals in partnership with AARP, found that 92 percent of Americans with disabilities age 50+ plan to vote in the 2022 midterm election. The majority say they will use early voting methods and/or require specific accommodations to vote. 

“Tens of millions of Americans with disabilities plan to vote in the 2022 midterm election, but nearly half (43 percent) require specific accommodations to vote, and 62 percent are concerned that changes to voting laws could negatively impact their ability to cast a ballot,” said Kendra Davenport, Easterseals president and CEO in an Oct. 4, 2022, statement announcing the survey findings. “This bipartisan population is highly motivated to participate in the democratic process, but they are very concerned about the barriers in their way to fully exercise their right to vote,” she says.

According to Easterseals, the survey was conducted among a nationally representative sample of people with disabilities, and an oversample of adults with disabilities 50+, from August 23-29, 2022, by Pathfinder Opinion Research. Combined with Census estimates for this population, the survey results show there are an estimated 33 million registered voters with disabilities with nearly 30 million planning to vote in the 2022 U.S. midterm election.

“Recent changes in election laws are impacting voters’ ability to successfully cast their ballots this year. That’s why AARP is dedicated to providing all voters 50+ with trusted information on when, where and how to vote during this election cycle,” said AARP’s director of Advocacy Engagement and Inclusion, Lisa Simpson in a statement. “It’s more important now than ever for all voters 50+ to use their voice and power to vote,” she said.

Sixty one percent of American voters with disabilities 50+ rely on early voting methods to participate in the election by using absentee main-in voting, ballot box drop or early voting in person prior to Election Day. Only 39 % will vote in person.

Additionally, the researchers say that a significant number of voters with disabilities, 43%, require at least one accommodation in order to vote, such as transportation assistance to a voting location, in-person voting assistance from a voting official, a wheelchair at their voting site, and a braille ballot or sign-language interpreter.

“If people with disabilities voted at the same rate as other Americans, there would have been 1.75 million more voters in 2020,” said Lisa Schur, professor and co-director of the Rutgers Program for Disability Research. “Part of the disability gap is due to inaccessible voting systems, which not only make it physically difficult to vote but also send a psychological message that people with disabilities are not welcome in the political sphere,” she says.

Voters with disabilities demonstrate broad, bipartisan support for various policy reforms that would make it easier to vote.  Ninety percent support allowing voters who are older and/or have disabilities to receive assistance from people they trust to request, fill out and return their absentee ballots while 82 % support expanding the use of absentee ballot drop boxes. Finally, 70% support allowing any registered voter to vote by mail with an absentee ballot with no reason given (available in RI).

Be an educated voter

For updates on the upcoming 2022 midterm election, go to AARP.org/elections. Follow local events sponsored by AARP Rhode Island and its advocacy efforts, go to states.aarp.org/rhode-island. You can also text RIVOTES to 22777 to receive a one-time text message with a link to Rhode Island voter information. (Message and data rates may apply.)

Women 50+ may well control who wins in midterm election, polls say 

Published on in RINewsToday on October 17, 2022

Almost three weeks away, and Democrats are scrambling to gear up their get-out-the-vote efforts before the upcoming midterm elections. Can the Democratic party that fights to financially strengthen and expand Social Security, and avoid cuts to funding for Medicare, and put the brakes on skyrocketing prescription costs, count on older woman voters to support their candidates to keep control of Congress?

Maybe not a sure bet, says a newly released AARP poll, “She’s the Difference – Survey of Likely Voters Aged 50 plus,” that finds that while woman aged 50 and older are energized to vote, they are still weighing their options on which party to support.  

AARP’s poll findings should cause a  concern to Democratic candidates. According to voter file and census data, older woman voters are one of the largest, most reliable group of voters. They make up a little more and then one-quarter (27 percent) of registered voters and cast nearly a third (30 percent) of all ballots in both the 2020 and 2018 elections. In 2020, 83 percent of registered women voters in this age group turned and in 2018, the last midterm election, they were 15 percent more likely to vote than the population at large. 

 “As the largest bloc of swing voters heading into the midterms, women voters 50+ can make the difference in 2022 and decide the balance of power in Congress and state houses across the country,” said Nancy LeaMond, AARP Executive Vice President and Chief Advocacy and Engagement Officer, in a statement releasing the 18-page poll results Oct. 4, 2022.

AARP commissioned the bipartisan polling team of Lake Research Partners, GBAO Strategies, Echelon Insights and Bellwether Research & Consulting to conduct a national survey of voters aged 50 and over. 

“The biggest bloc of swing voters for both parties is women over 50 who are still undecided, frustrated that candidates are not in touch with their lives, and looking to hear that elected officials will protect Social Security from cuts,” said Celinda Lake, founder and president, Lake Research Partners. 

“Increasingly, it isn’t just that voters of different parties that want different solutions to problems – they don’t even agree on what the biggest problem is. But a few issues, like concerns about political division and the future of Social Security and Medicare, do cross party lines with women over 50,” added Kristin Soltis Anderson, founding partner, Echelon Insights.

“Neither party can say they have “won” the votes of women over 50 yet. Older women are evenly divided on the generic ballot and two-in-five say they will make their final decision in the remaining weeks. They will be watching messaging on Social Security, and many will be focused on threats to democracy and gun violence, while others will more closely track inflation and rising prices,” says Christine Matthews, president, Bellwether Research.

A Warning to Congressional Candidates 

Researchers found that an overwhelming majority of older women voters say they will vote on Nov. 8th, (94 percent), however 51 percent of this swing voter group has still not made up their mind as to which candidates to support. Among these voters in a generic congressional ballot, Republican and Democrat candidates are tied, notes the poll’s findings.

The poll findings indicate that Latinas and Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) women voters 50 and over are more undecided on who they will vote cast their vote for, with 77 percent of Latinas and 68 percent of AAPI women saying they have not made up their minds yet.

Reflecting other polls on senior support of Social Security, AARP’s poll found that women voters 50 and over are unified in their support for protecting Social Security from budgetary cuts, with three-quarters saying that this would personally help them a lot. However, half of the respondents think that the economy is not working for them. 

Additionally, two-thirds (66 percent) of women aged 50 and over say they are cutting down on non-essential purchases, four in 10 (41 percent) have cut back on essentials and 40 percent are saving less as ways to financially survive the increased costs of living.

The poll findings report that specific actions that would help older women the most financially include lowering the cost of food (66 percent), lowering the cost of gas (58percent), lowering the cost of health care (57 percent), and expanding Medicare to cover dental and vision (57percent). 

Over 80 percent of women voters rate their motivation to vote on Nov. 8th at a 10 on a 0 to10 scale, with economic and social issues being key issues for them. The tops issues for Republican women aged 50 and over include: inflation and rising prices (60 percent); crime (51 percent); immigration (49 percent); and election security (49 percent). On the other hand, Democratic women aged 50 and over say voting rights (63 percent) and threats to democracy (62 percent) are their top concerns, followed by gun violence (54 percent) and abortion (54 percent).

Independent women aged 50 and over rank division in the country (46 percent), voting rights (43 percent), threats to democracy (42percent), and inflation and rising prices (41 percent) as their biggest concerns.

AARP’s survey also found that older women voters are unimpressed with the job elected officials have done on “understanding the everyday challenges of people like me,” with three-quarters (75 percent) saying they have done just a fair (32 percent) or poor (43 percent) job.

“Social Security may be a consensus issue with women 50+, yet among Democrats, threats to democracy and voting rights are very much top tier. And across all groups of women 50+, “jobs” are bottom tier. That’s not surprising given not many women have said they have gone back to work or taken on extra shifts in order to make ends meet,” said Margie Omero, principal at GBAO.

A Final Note…

As early voting begins, “Roll Call” notes that there are 81 House races listed as competitive, meaning they are rated as Toss-up, Tilt, Lean, or Likely. Ten Senate seats are considered Leaning or Toss-Up, says the Cook Political Report. With these numbers Democrat and Republican candidates should heed the results of AARP’s poll reporting the older woman voters remain uncommitted to supporting candidates before the upcoming mid-term elections. With weeks to go, how do you bring them back into the fold?

Whoever takes control of Congress on Nov. 8th, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has scheduled 17 days between the election until Dec. 15, 2022, to finish business before the closing of the 117th Congressional session. During this time frame, if the House Democrats lose control Pelosi has an opportunity to set a Democratic policy agenda before the next Congress.  She might consider allowing markup and a floor vote on Congressman Larson’s H.R. 5723, Social Security 2100: A Sacred Trust Act.  This landmark legislation would strengthen and expand Social Security.  Even with President Joe Biden and 202 Democratic House lawmakers calling for a House vote, it was pulled from markup, reportedly over cost concerns. Passage of this bill would set the stage for the Democrats becoming the protectors of Social Security if the GOP considers making cuts to the program, raising the eligibility age or privatizing the program. 

At press time, the Democratic House Speaker has also not allowed a vote in the House Rules Committee on Rhode Island Congressman David Cicilline’s H.R. 583, Reestablishing the House Select Committee on Aging (HSCoA) in the House Rules Committee. Passage in this Committee would almost ensure passage on the House floor with Pelosi’s support.  Cicilline’s resolution would bring back this investigative committee that put the spotlight on House aging policies over 30 years ago, but was eliminated in 1994. It’s a winning policy issue for America’s seniors and this group has traditionally been the highest turnout age group in previous elections.  

If the GOP takes control of the House and Senate, it sets the legislative agenda for these two legislative chambers during 118th Congress. For the next two years Democrats will not be able to move legislation to the House and Senate floors that improve the financial health and expansion of Social Security benefits or to bring back the HSCoA.  Congressional Democrats, the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, Social Security Works, and other aging advocacy groups, would be put in the defensive position to defend Social Security, Medicare, and other federal programs that enhance the quality of life of America’s seniors. 

According to AARP, the national survey (“She’s the Difference…”) was fielded by phone and online between Sept. 6 and Sept. 13, 2022, using landline, cell and text to web data collection. The final survey included interviews with 800 women voters aged 50 and over who are likely to vote in 2022, with oversamples of 100 Black, 100 Hispanic/Latina English speaking, 100 Hispanic/Latina Spanish speaking, and 100 Asian American and Pacific Islander women voters aged 50 and over. Weighting resulted in an effective sample size of 800 likely women voters aged 50 and over with a margin of error of +/- 3.5percent. 

To view the full poll findings, go to https://www.aarp.org/content/dam/aarp/research/surveys_statistics/politics/2022/shes-the-difference-likely-voters-50-plus-survey-october-2022-polling-memo.doi.10.26419-2Fres.00570.003.pdf.

For further information, contact Rachelle L. Cummins, Research Director at AARP, go to  Research at rcummins@aarp.com, research@aarp.org. 

Herb Weiss, LRI’12, a Pawtucket writer covering aging, health care and medical issues. To purchase his books, Taking Charge: Collected Stories on Aging Boldly, and a sequel, go to herbweiss.com

Nat’l Committee to Preserve Social Security & Medicare in RI for Magaziner

Published on October 10, 2022 in RINewsToday

With just 28 days before the mid-term elections, Seth Magaziner, the Democratic candidate for the 2nd Congressional District seat struggles to keep Democratic and Independent voters from voting Republican Alan Fung into office, who express frustration with high gas prices, rising inflation and a slow economy.  

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the Rhode Island Democratic Party, knowing that the last Republican to hold this seat was former Congresswoman Claudine Schneider in 1991, understand the importance to them of keeping this seat in the Democratic fold. Losing this seat, made vacant by the retirement of 57-year old Congressman James Langevin, in a solidly Blue state, would move the GOP one step closer to taking control of the House in the next Congress, controlling the lower chamber’s legislative agenda.

Like the strategy of many Democratic candidates facing Republicans in swing states across the nation, Magaziner has attacked positions on Social Security, Medicare, and abortion. He has also tied the former Cranston Mayor, in his  negative campaign ads, to House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, who could become Speaker of the House if the House turned majority Republican. McCarthy has previously supported legislation privatizing the Social Security program, and called for the cutting of Social Security and Medicare benefits. “Watch out, Fung’s no moderate Republican”, say the Democratic attack ads.

Magaziner supporters point to Allan Fung wearing a red “Make America Great Again” baseball cap – and – bringing McCarthy, a diehard Trump supporter, to Rhode Island in August to raise money for his campaign. But Fung’s campaign is aware that there were and are Trump supporters in his Congressional District, and that Democrats and Independents are disappointed with President Biden’s policy initiatives.

Magaziner Pledges to Protect Social Security and Medicare

While Magaziner has 29 Labor, Health Care, Democratic and Educational groups endorsing his campaign, last week he picked up a significant endorsement from the Washington, DC-based National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare (NCPSSM). Since 1982, NCPSSM’s mission is to protect benefits of Social Security and Medicare beneficiaries. The Democratic House candidate, who has served as the state’s General Treasurer since 2015, got this endorsement with his pledge, if elected, to fight for strengthening and expanding Social Security and Medicare. 

Last week, at the Johnston Senior Center, Mayor Joseph Polisena, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, Magaziner, and dozens of senior supporters, welcomed NCPSSM’s Max Richtman, CEO and President, who came to give his blessings to Magaziner in his bid to win Rhode Island’s 2nd Congressional District seat, and to “warn” older voters what could happen to Social Security and Medicare if the Republicans take control of the House.

The location for the event, Johnston, was no casual selection for the event, as, when the dust settled after the 2020 Presidential election, the majority of the town’s voters had voted for Donald and the Republican agenda. Johnston’s Mayor showed his support for Magaziner, and a clear message to residents to keep a Democrat in the House from the District. 

Standing at a podium surrounded by signs with messages such as “Protect our Social Security Benefits” and “No Cuts – Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid,” Mayor Polisena, 68, a Social Security and Medicare beneficiary said, “Medicare and Social Security are for the people like us, the middle class, who are hard-working people. You paid into Social Security and Medicare, and you are entitled to get benefits,” he pointed out. 

 Over the years, Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse has been a staunch advocate of the Social Security program by serving on the Defending Social Security Caucus to improve the method for calculating Social Security’s CPI. He now is active in the Senate’s Expand Social Security Caucus.

In 2006, Whitehouse remembered NCPSSM’s Richman coming to the Ocean State “to check him out” to determine if he was a solid supporter on Social Security and Medicare. Ultimately, the Social Security advocacy group would endorse Whitehouse, Jack Reed and Patrick Kennedy in their successful bids to become Congressman from the state of Rhode Island.

“Guess what, if you raise or eliminate the cap on wages that are subject to Social Security taxes it would raise a lot of money for the program”, says Whitehouse, noting it would be fairer and a smart thing to do so. “Instead, Republicans are talking about privatizing Social Security, even making cuts to the program,” he charged, noting that at the highest levels, Republicans want to damage Social Security and Medicare through formal groups like their policy committees.

“Rhode Island has to be the place where this nonsense stops,” says Whitehouse. “If Seth Magaziner is the deciding vote about who becomes Speaker of the House, you know where he will be. You also know where the opponent will be. Once you open that gate, all the monsters come cascading thru whether it be reproductive rights, Medicare, and Social Security. They’re going after it,” he warns.   

Whitehouse said:  “It is really important for our own sake that we send someone to Washington, DC to protect Social Security and Medicare, and to ultimately expand these programs.”

“I am here to endorse Seth Magaziner and send him to the U.S. House of Representatives, says Richtman, stressing that it is a “very  close and competitive race.” This election will determine the future of Social Security and Medicare, he predicted.

Historically in the House when the GOP was in the majority [when Paul Ryan was Speaker of the House] they wanted to cut Social Security, decrease COLAs,  increasing Social Security’s full retirement age, and privatizing the Social Security program,” he said.

According to Richtman, Senator Rick Scott (R-FL), chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, recently presented a plan that called for “all federal legislation to sunset after five years,” including Social Security. That means every five years Congress will have to recreate Social Security from scratch. “We don’t need that,” he said.

Concluding the Johnston event, Magaziner noted that Fung’s campaign ads attempt to portray his higher-income parents as out of touch with the needs of Social Security beneficiaries. The Democratic candidate clearly remembered how the program helped his blue collar grandparents. “Those checks coming every month enabled them to put food on the table, to afford prescription drugs, and to even purchase an occasional birthday present or Christmas gifts for the kids,” he said.

Magaziner said Social Security is as important as ever.  “People are having a hard time to keep up with the rising cost of living.  So, this is the right time to not just protect Social Security but to expand the program to make it easier for seniors to keep up with the cost of living,” he says.

The GOP’s recently released Blueprint to Save America raises Social Security’s full retirement age and eliminates benefits to high income,” says Magaziner. “How much longer do they want people to work? We have to hold the line and not let this happen,” he says.

Concluding the press event, Magaziner stated: “My pledge is that if you elect me to the 2nd Congressional District, I will fight any one from any party who would attempt to cut and privatized the Social Security program and advocate for the expansion of the program to help seniors keep up with the rising cost of living.”

“My opponent has already pledged that his very first vote that he is going to take is to make Kevin McCarthy the Speaker of the House. The same Kevin McCarthy who was coauthor of a proposal to cut Medicare and to put Social Security on the stock market,” says Magaziner. “I want the Speaker of the House to defend Social Security and to not make cuts to the program,” he said.

Allen Fung Comes Out Swinging

“Seth is lying because he is losing,” notes Allan Fung, noting that is own mother relies on her Social Security check. “Do you think I would ever do anything to hurt my own mother?  It’s absurd,” he says.

Fung claims that the nation’s high inflation rate “is essentially cutting out an entire month’s Social Security check for seniors this year, hurting people who rely on every single penny.”

“We need to look at options that have bipartisan support – like “Scrapping the Cap” that can actually pass and will strengthen the Social Security system. In regards to Medicare, Seth is lying again – no shock to anyone. I actually want to strengthen Medicare benefits to expand coverage for dental work, vision care, and hearing aids,” he says. 

“I obviously have a long history as a moderate of taking a balanced approach and working across the aisle to get things done,” says Fung, noting that he did this during his four terms serving as Mayor of Cranston. “In Congress, I’ll take a keen look at the bills that are introduced, and have no issue with cosponsoring legislation on a bipartisan basis when it helps our families here in Rhode Island,” he says.  

US Chamber of commerce Director Nick Vaugh weighs in about Fung’s Congressional race. “The son of immigrants, Allan understands the challenges facing job creators, workers, and families in Rhode Island. Allan’s commitment to free enterprise and pro-growth solutions critical to moving Rhode Island and our nation forward has earned him the endorsement of the U.S. Chamber. We are proud to endorse Allan Fung in his election for Congress,” says Vaugh. 

Fung views himself as a likeable person who can be an effective moderate lawmaker to represent Rhode Island’s interests in a Republican-controlled House. “I’m more of a [Massachusetts Gov.] Charlie Baker type of individual. I like the work Chris Sununu is doing in New Hampshire, Gov. [Phil] Scott in Vermont, those are Republicans I model myself after,” says Fung, reported by the AXIOS, a news website based in Arlington, Virginia.  

Watching from the Sidelines

Dawson Hodgson, who served two terms as a Republican State Senator and disaffiliated from the party in 2016, came to see Magaziner get his latest endorsement from the NCPSSM and expressed his observations about this Congressional race.

“When Congressman Langevin retired, I committed to support the Democratic nominee because I believe Republican control of Congress, in today’s environment, will undermine American values,” said Hodgson, stressing that Seth Magaziner will uphold them. “He is an earnest, hardworking individual who feels a calling to serve out state and nation. While I expect to disagree with his policy views from time to time, it is clear to me that sending Seth to Congress will balance out some of the more extreme positions in the Democratic caucus,” he adds.

“I don’t think Allan Fung, or any Republican can do the same in the current environment. The past 5 years show us “moderate” Republicans must either go along, or get gone,” observes Hodgson.

While he believes Fung is a serious man and a dedicated public servant, Hodgson also views him as a talented politician who will work hard to get elected in a state that doesn’t like a lot of his party’s politics. “He’s implied that Kevin McCarthy promised him the best committees, and also gave him permission to vote against the party on certain issues (but not which ones). That’s the same game Democrats used to play at the RI General Assembly!” he says.

“GOP control of the house means a return to chaos. Expect Benghazi-style hearings attacking all things Biden,” predicts Hodgson. “Allan is a former prosecutor, so I’d expect to see him on those committees working underneath MAGA extremists like Jim Jordan of Ohio or Marjorie Taylor Green of Georgia,” he says.

While Fung says he will be an effective moderate lawmaker to represent Rhode Island’s interests in a Republican-controlled House, Hodgson expresses his concerns about this statement.  “There is no appetite for moderation in today’s GOP, says Hodson. “Allan Fung is making promises he can’t keep,” he says.

It’s coming down to the wire.  According to a new WPPRI-TV and Roger Williams University poll released last Thursday, if the 2nd Congressional District election were held today, 46% of poll respondents stated that they would vote for Fung – 40% for Magaziner – and 4% for Moderate candidate, William Gilbert. The pollsters say that 9% of those polled said they are undecided.  

This election cycle, Rhode Island’s Congressional election could have a major impact as to who controls the House and it’s legislative agenda. It’s important that YOU vote.

More resources to review on issues of concern to seniors:

The AARP RI has done a series of interviews with candidates Fung and Magaziner on issues relevant to seniors – you can view them, below:

Social Security – https://www.facebook.com/AARPRI/videos/3041377066153394/  

High cost of prescription drugs —https://www.facebook.com/AARPRI/videos/426190556280841

Medicare –  https://www.facebook.com/AARPRI/videos/662982298733782/

Caregiving – Go to https://www.facebook.com/AARPRI/videos/1233466400806542