Some letters in the Sun Journal say Democrats always “want stuff.” The “stuff” Democrats really want is to strengthen Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.

Democrats want working women to have fair pay and all women to have the right to plan their families without government interference.

We believe in a strong military. We do not believe in starting wars.

Protecting the environment and dealing with climate change are important priorities. We believe in “stuff” like science and facts.

Our tax code favors the rich and the government spends more on corporate welfare subsidies than on the poor. According to www.glassdoor.com, the CEO of McDonald’s is paid $9,247 per hour while McDonald’s workers on average make $7.73. Democrats think that extreme disparity is wrong. We suggest closing tax loopholes that help only the rich.

Everyone needs “stuff,” such as bridges, roads, jobs, schools, libraries, disaster aid and other services, so we believe government is necessary and paying taxes is the price for those services.

We don’t want to cut all government regulations because without them we would have filthy air, land and water, crumbled roads, spoiled food and unsafe working conditions.

We believe strongly in cutting government waste but believe that cutting programs that provide needed food, shelter and health care is morally wrong. If all workers got adequate pay, they wouldn’t need welfare.

We want government to be run in a cost-effective but humane manner according to the wishes of the voters, not the wishes of Walmart and ExxonMobil.

Ellen Field, New Gloucester

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