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News
Dem state rep. candidate met with Bush : News : Oswego Ledger-Sentinel : Hometown Newspaper for Oswego and Montgomery, IllinoisDem state rep. candidate met with Bush
| President vetoed stem cell bill moments after talking with Schneider
| by Matt Schury
| 9/13/2007
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A year ago, Mary Schneider found herself in an unusual situation.
The current Democratic candidate for state representative from the 50th distrtict came face to face with President George W. Bush.
Schneider attended a photo-op at the White House with Bush and she said she had only a second to speak to him about her three-year old son who was one of the first people in the nation, to receive his own cord blood to treat his cerebral palsy.
“His results afterward were phenomenal, he’s expected to enter kindergarten next year without any special needs issues whatsoever,” she said.
Five minutes later, the President vetoed a bill related to stem cell research.
“I was saddened…my heart broke,” she said. “I explained briefly what it was that we did with my son…to let him know to rethink this veto because not everyone has access to their own cord blood,” she said. “I’m sure he wasn’t expecting someone to say that to him.”
Back in Illinois, Schneider said that she worked as an adviser on Senate Bill 19, legislation that would establish a statewide network of cord blood stem cell banks. The bill is currently sitting on Governor Rod Blagojevich’s desk.
Schneider said that that her meeting with the President was the catalyst, though not the reason for her decision to run for state representative in the Democratic primary in February.
“It’s certainly not something that I want to ride my whole campaign on. That’s something that’s extremely important to me, ethically, that I’m not using my child for this,” she said.
The district is currently represented by long-time Republican incumbent, Patricia Reid Lindner of Sugar Grove. Lindner announced earlier this year she will retire when her current term expires following next year’s general election.
Schneider said that she wants to represent her district in Springfield to make sure the best decisions are made for the area.
“And that means infrastructure, water supply, transportation and education,” she said.
Fixing these problems, Schneider said, requires minor but important changes.
“I don’t want to come in and make a major overhaul, but what we do need to do is to take a fresh look at what our problems are,” she said.
Schneider said that her fresh start in politics could bring a new voice and set of eyes to local politics
“Many times people get mired in politics and they stop listening and they don’t actually hear what is going on,” she said.
However, Schneider is not a complete stranger to the negotiating and compromising that must go on in politics, she said. She is currently serving her second term as president of the Parent-Teacher Organization at Alice Gustafson Elementary School in Batavia. She is also a member of the Batavia Interschool Council.
Schneider said that her experience raising over $20,000 as co-chair for three years of Gustafson’s major fundraiser has drawn her to realize that creative ways are needed to fund schools.
“I think parental involvement is extremely important with the organizations that exists within each individual school, be it PTO or PTA to make sure that some of the funding is alleviated,” she said.
Schneider commented that she wants to bring more money for schools to fund computer labs and stipends to reimburse teachers for supplies that they pay for out of their own pocket.
“In spite of our huge tax bills and most of it going to our school systems, our libraries and our schools are lacking current reading materials and periodicals,” she aid.
Schneider, a native of Chicago, moved to Batavia two years ago from Elmhurst. She said that many of the issues that her district faces stem from unchecked growth that needs to be tempered.
Schneider said that she is specifically exploring ways to address the strain the growth is putting on the local water supply.
“We need to make sure that we have the water to support the population growth,” she said.
Schneider added that she would also work to keep tax rates reasonable.
“Many times the citizens that are already here could very well be taxed out of their homes,” she said.
In the two years she has lived in Batavia, Schneider said that she has seen the property tax rise by 25 percent.
“If we have more building going on and more growth, then the people who are already here are going to end up paying for some of that as well,” she said.
Other issues stemming from growth that Schneider would like to address are road improvements and public transportation.
“Our roads are in desperate need of repair especially Route 31 and 47,” she said.
Schneider, who said she uses both of those state highways on a regular basis, would work to bring funding back to the district to repair the thoroughfares.
“If you’ve ever been on Route 31 going through Batavia, its terrible—it’s a major thoroughfare fair and the road is just in awful condition,” she said. “I think we need some Democratic representation to get the matching federally funded dollars to bring that money back to this district.”
Another solution for public intrastate improvements, Schneider said, is increasing public transportation to alleviate congestion on roads.
“At this point, for many of the residents out here to travel to Springfield or other regions, they have to take a train ride all the way into Chicago and then turn around and come back out,” she said.
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