Pictured: Delaney (left) speaks with constituents during a campaign stop in Denison earlier this week. Delaney posted the photo to Twitter on Thursday.
John Delaney, the first Democrat to declare his candidacy for the 2020 presidential election, visited western Iowa this week and hosted town hall meetings to share his views on a variety of issues. Delaney has worked in the private sector, founding two businesses that provided capital to small businesses and health care providers, and also spent six years in Congress as representative for Maryland’s Sixth Congressional District. Delaney, also a practicing Catholic, says his policies are generally guided by a simple concept: equality.
Delaney says this applies to many of the issues Iowans find important, healthcare being the most prominent. He proposes a mixed system that would provide healthcare for all but still allows for a private marketplace.
Delaney has concerns beyond the country’s healthcare system. According to him, people born in 1950 had a 90 percent chance of earning more than their parents. That was down to 50 percent for people born in 1980, and current estimates for people born in 2020 are only 20 percent. Delaney believes there are several reasons why this is happening.
He adds that worker compensation is something legislators will need to address. Delaney says the cost of living has far outpaced wage growth, and he has two methods in mind that he believes will correct this.
One issue that has been featured prominently in headlines recently is abortion. Delaney says he is a firmly pro-choice candidate.
The debate over abortion sparked following the news that New York, Virginia and several other states have passed or are considering bills that would remove some restrictions on late-term abortions. Delaney says he has not yet had a chance to read those bills and did not want to comment before doing so.
