A crowd of about 35 people welcomed U.S. Senate hopeful Michelle Nunn on Tuesday to Hinesville’s Bryant Commons, where they listened to the candidate talk about her platform, specifically veterans’ issues.
The Liberty County Democratic Committee coordinated the event.
Committee Chairman Charles Frasier, a Hinesville City Councilman, told the crowd, “Well, I’m supposed to introduce her, but like any good politician, she has already worked the room and met you. I saw her three months ago in Savannah, I asked her to come to Liberty County, and here she is.”
Nunn comes with a family heritage of public service. Her grandfather was a mayor; her grandmother was a teacher; and her father, Sam Nunn, was a U.S. senator representing Georgia for nearly 25 years.
She said Georgia’s state motto, “Wisdom, justice and moderation,” is a good summary of her campaign.
“Many people have told (me) stories of how my dad impacted their lives. They have said that he was a real statesman for Georgia and America. That’s the kind of leadership I’d like to bring back to Washington,” Nunn said.
Liberty County Democratic Committee Vice Chairman Ralph Dixon stood up and handed Nunn some yellowed envelopes.
“I want to give you these three letters that your father wrote to me back 1986,” he said. “Washington was dealing with the same issues that we have today.”
Nunn said that jobs, long-term debt, education and veterans are her focus. She said that there will be 1 million soldiers transitioning out of the military during the next five years, and in January, there were 56,000 homeless veterans, 2,000 of whom lived in Georgia.
“Veterans deserve a seamless shift to civilian life in a way that they can be contributing members of our economy. These men and women have an enormous capacity to still be of service and to give back to local communities. Veterans should not have to wait in long lines for services,” she said.
Nunn also said she feels strongly that minimum wage should increase and continue to rise as the nation experiences inflation. She said extending unemployment benefits would encourage unemployed and under-employed people to continue looking for work.
She also said that the country’s debt must be dealt with for the sake of voters’ children and grandchildren.
When asked about the Affordable Care Act, Nunn said that people with pre-existing health conditions should not go bankrupt from medical costs, but the act’s intent to offer more health-care coverage choices at lower costs isn’t quite there yet.
However, two men in the room gave their testimony that the ACA has made it possible for them and their families to afford medical insurance.
Nunn has spent the past 25 years in the nonprofit sector, leading Hands on Atlanta and the Points of Light Foundation. She said more than
4 million volunteers were mobilized last year for projects throughout the country.
“We demonstrated that people can work together to get thing done,” she said.
Nunn said that she and her team are working to mobilize voters through grassroots efforts. She has name recognition and is listed in news sources as a top fundraiser in the pack of candidates.
“It appears that she has momentum,” Frasier said.
Nunn announced that polls show she has an edge on each of the Republican hopefuls.
“I’m behind her 125 percent!” Dixon said.
“I really believe that we had our next U.S. senator with us today,” said Sandy Burch, secretary of the Liberty County Democratic Committee.