Nurses Call on President, Congress to Honor Electoral Mandate with Pledge To Protect Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid

National Nurses United, the nation’s largest union and professional association of registered nurses said today that the national election delivered an unmistakable message Tuesday:

“From the Presidential race to Senate races to local ballot measures, American voters Tuesday delivered a strong message to Wall Street, billionaires and secretive corporate funded political committees – America is not for sale,” said NNU Executive Director Rose Ann DeMoro.

“Working people and unions played an essential role in re-electing President Obama, bringing populist candidates like Elizabeth Warren and Tammy Baldwin to the U.S. Senate, and defeating a major attack on unions in California, Proposition 32.”

“The power of working people overcame the efforts to overwhelm our political process with massive spending by the 1 percent, and to prevent people from voting through disgraceful voter suppression efforts. The votes of women are a direct repudiation of attacks on women’s health and rights. The alliance of workers and communities of color in this election is an affirmation of the future for our diverse nation,” said DeMoro.

“We celebrate the election results, and offer our congratulations to President Obama and the other NNU-endorsed candidates who won on Tuesday. But it is also time to send another message,” said DeMoro.

“Wall Street can not win this vote through the back door. We must be a nation that honors humanity, not austerity, and that rejects the attacks on workers and efforts to roll back the rights of working people,” DeMoro continued.

“Main Street communities are still hurting. We still have too many people who are jobless, facing un-payable medical bills and the loss of their homes, and worried about their retirement security and economic future.

“The President and Congress should stand with the people who elected them and reject any cuts in Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid, strengthen Medicare by expanding it to cover everyone, and insist that Wall Street begin to repay our nation for the damage it caused our economy with a small tax on Wall Street speculation, the Robin Hood tax.”

“Nurses across America are standing together today with a renewed commitment to work for a more humane, caring society. Our nation deserves no less,” DeMoro said.

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Massachusetts Nurses Association members with Senator-elect Elizabeth Warren.

Winning NNU-endorsed candidates included:

US President

• Barack Obama    

 US Senate

• Elizabeth Warren (MA)  
• Bernie Sanders (VT)  
• Tammy Baldwin (WI)   

 US House

• Raul Grijalva (AZ-3)  
• Jared Huffman (CA-2)  
• John Garamendi (CA-3)  
• Dr. Ami Bera (CA-7) Leading, results not final
• George Miller (CA-11)  
• Barbara Lee (CA-13)  
• Julia Brownley (CA-26) Leading, results not final
• Judy Chu (CA-27)                                 
• Xavier Bercerra (CA-34)  
• Joe Baca (CA-35)  
• Mark Takano (CA-41)  
• Janice Hahn (CA-44)  
• Scott Peters (CA-52) Leading, results not final  
• Jim McGovern   (MA-3)                     
• Joe Kennedy III (MA-4)                      
• Stephen Lynch  (MA-9)  
• Bill Keating  (MA-10)  
• Keith Ellison (MN-5)  
• Rick Nolan (MN-8)  
• Steven Horsford (NV-4)  
• Jim McDermott (WA-7)  
• Mark Pocan (WI-2)  

 Washington City Council

• Phil Mendelson  
• Vincent Orange  
• Yvette Alexander  
• Jack Evans  

  NNU- backed victories on ballot measures 

• California Prop 30 (tax increase on wealthy for education, healthcare – passed  
• California Prop 32 (limiting voice of nurses, unions in public policy – defeated
• Maine marriage equality – passed
• Minnesota Amendment ban on same sex marriage – defeated
• Minnesota Amendment on voter suppression – defeated

Check the voting scorecards of your Congress members on key issues >>