[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 19 (Wednesday, January 30, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Pages S766-S769]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               VERMONT STATE OF THE UNION ESSAY FINALISTS

 Mr. SANDERS. Mr. President, I ask to have printed in the 
Record some of the finalist essays written by Vermont High School 
students as part of the ninth annual State of the Union essay contest 
conducted by my office.
  The essays follow, in alphabetical order according to the finalists' 
names.
  The material follows:

  Megan Benway, Missisquoi Valley Union High School, Junior, Finalist

       A problem that is growing rapidly in our world would be the 
     increase in children entering foster care due to the opioid 
     crisis. The White House stated that ``in 2016, more than two 
     million Americans had an addiction to prescription or illicit 
     opioids.'' This shows that there is a huge climb in the 
     amount of people getting addicted. Emily Birnbaum and Maya 
     Lora, writing for The Hill, reported that ``the population of 
     children in foster care had risen by 15 percent to 30 percent 
     in just the last four years.'' This shows that due to opioid 
     crisis, the foster care system is filling up, and they don't 
     have enough homes for the children.
       The first solution that could help would be to get more 
     funding for the state to use on children and treatments. 
     There has been funding given due to President Trump taking 
     office; ``more than $1 billion in funding has been allocated 
     or spent directly addressing the drug addiction and opioid 
     crisis'' (The White House). A couple ways the funding could 
     be used for would be for hiring more social workers. A lot of 
     the children don't get the attention they need because there 
     are so many cases of children for one person to do.
       The second solution would be to make getting treatment 
     easier, not only getting more

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     treatment homes but also making them more affordable. It 
     could go from anywhere from $650 to $250 a day (American 
     Addiction Centers). That's a lot of money for someone who is 
     struggling with an addition and could be almost impossible to 
     get. With the funding they can invest ``in residential 
     substance treatment program[s] that keeps families together 
     while a parent gets help'' (The Hill). By doing this the 
     treatment center is giving the parents an incentive to get 
     better and follow through with the treatment.
       The third solution that could help would be keeping the 
     families together. In the paragraph above The Hill mentioned 
     a center where addicts can get help but still be with their 
     families. One thing that would be good about keeping family 
     together is ``once [they finish their] treatment and are 
     stable, [they] can reintegrate [the people] into [their] old 
     work and apartment and things that will keep [them] clean and 
     not create unsafe circumstances for [their] children to be 
     taken away''(The Hill). This treatment center could 
     potentially decrease the number of children entering foster 
     care by a lot.
       All of the above solutions could help drop the number of 
     children in foster care. This is an important issue because 
     many American children and adults are being affected by this 
     problem. I know from experience that it hurts to be a child 
     who watches their parents rely on drugs, and then one day 
     some random person comes and takes the child away. There 
     needs to be a change, and it must happen fast. If it doesn't 
     I'm afraid that many children and adults will be stuck in a 
     solution that could kill them all.

       Thomas Buckley, Colchester High School, Freshman, Finalist

       Abraham Lincoln reminded us that ``a house divided against 
     itself cannot stand.'' Today, America feels almost as divided 
     as it was before the Civil War. Partisan news channels and a 
     primary system that favors playing to the base have produced 
     election cycles lacking in civility and meaningful 
     discussion. However, the erosion of respectful political 
     discourse and the increased polarization of the electorate 
     are not entirely the fault of politicians nor the voters who 
     elect them. They are instead inevitable consequences of the 
     First Past the Post (FPTP) voting system we use to elect our 
     representatives.
       First Past the Post (or plurality voting) is a voting 
     system where each voter has one vote and the candidate with 
     the most votes wins. While this system is intuitive and 
     simple, it is fatally flawed. Because plurality voting has 
     only one winner, and one vote per person, it is impossible 
     for elections to have more than two viable candidates. Any 
     additional strong candidates will result in the winner 
     earning less than half of the vote. To illustrate my point, 
     imagine a scenario in which there are three candidates: a 
     center-right candidate, a center-left candidate, and a more 
     liberal candidate. If half of the voters are right-leaning 
     and half are left-leaning, the two left-leaning candidates 
     will inevitably split the liberal vote and lead to an easy 
     conservative victory, whether or not more people would have 
     preferred either one of the two left-leaning options. 
     Therefore, to avoid the negative effects of splitting the 
     vote, voters must vote strategically by voting against the 
     candidate they most prefer to avoid electing the candidate 
     they most dislike. Because voters must vote strategically, 
     elections in FPTP systems produce two major parties defined 
     by their opposition to each other. Campaigns become 
     increasingly negative as the parties compete in a ``race to 
     the bottom'' to vilify the other party's candidate instead of 
     promoting their own positive ideas. This is exacerbated by a 
     primary process that favors the most uncompromising 
     candidates.
       Attempts to address the problems with FPTP voting are being 
     made. For example, Maine recently transitioned to Ranked 
     Choice Voting, a system where voters can rank their favorite 
     candidates rather than choosing only one option. This 
     improves political discourse and favors moderation because 
     politicians must compete for second place votes as well as 
     first choice votes. Ranked Choice Voting eliminates the 
     incentive for politicians to run negative campaigns. It 
     doesn't make sense to dismiss the opposition if you want 
     their voters to support you.
       Consequently, campaigns under a Ranked Choice system tend 
     to be more civil, with less polarized electorates. When 
     politicians spend all of their time playing to their base, 
     they have no incentive to compromise with the other side, 
     weakening democracy. Because Ranked Choice Voting encourages 
     civil discussion, politicians are more likely to work with 
     each other on issues that are important to the American 
     people. American democracy is broken. We should fix it by 
     changing how we elect our civil servants.

          Brendany Byrne, Essex High School, Junior, Finalist

       The greatest problem our country faces is not just a 
     national problem, but a problem that affects the entire 
     world--climate change. Climate change will impact all of the 
     people of the world regardless of race, gender, or social 
     class. If our country does not address this problem, the 
     world will be destroyed. In October, the Intergovernmental 
     Panel on Climate Change released a report warning that unless 
     humanity drastically reduces CO2 emissions, the 
     change to the world's climate will become irreversible. 
     Arctic sea ice will disappear. Sea levels will rise to the 
     point where coastal cities will become completely submerged. 
     Extreme weather will become more frequent. Potable water and 
     food will become more scarce. Yet many people in the United 
     States still deny that climate change exists, or they believe 
     that there is nothing they can do to change the outcome. This 
     ignorance and sense of powerlessness is dangerous at this 
     critical point in time because the solution to climate change 
     requires the people of the world to come together and act as 
     one.
       Under the Trump administration, the United States has 
     stopped participating in the global effort to stop climate 
     change. Mr. Trump has stated that the United States will 
     withdraw from the Paris Agreement as soon as possible. This 
     is a rash decision considering the consequences of ignoring 
     climate change. Instead of running away from reality, the 
     United States should accept the responsibility of being a 
     global power and rise to the challenge of saving the world 
     from climate change.
       To solve the problem of climate change, it will take a 
     large scale effort. Similar to the American war effort during 
     the Second World War, every American will need to get behind 
     the movement to stop climate change, and it is the 
     government's responsibility to lead the people in this 
     struggle. The government needs to issue stricter regulations 
     on the emissions produced by large businesses. Instead of 
     spending an enormous amount of money on the military, the 
     government needs to invest money for scientific research to 
     stop climate change. The government must offer incentives for 
     people to live sustainably or impose a gas tax to reduce 
     emissions. The United States needs to work with other nations 
     to share ideas and solutions. Jobs can also be created from 
     the work that will be required to clean the environment, on 
     the federal, state, and local level. The public education 
     system has already started educating people about climate 
     change and its dangers. Hopefully, this education will help 
     change the culture so that the American people actively want 
     to address climate change.
       In the past, America has proven that it can unify as a 
     nation and tackle global problems. It is simply a matter of 
     Americans seeing the dangers of climate change and realizing 
     that it must be our top priority. We must lead the rest of 
     the world and become a role model for the world. We need to 
     engage the government so that we change ourselves instead of 
     the climate.

       Caroline Cassell, Hartford High School, Freshman, Finalist

       Xenophobia is one of America's greatest debacles. Defined 
     as the fear of foreigners, xenophobia has unnecessarily 
     increased over the past few years due to numerous factors. 
     America was founded by immigrants, yet we now prosecute those 
     flocking here in search of better lives.
       American immigration has always fluctuated due to the 
     extent of xenophobia in the country at the time. During World 
     War II numerous Jewish refugees flocked to America seeking 
     safety from the Nazis. Among these people was Albert 
     Einstein, now seen as one of America's greatest minds. We 
     have seen this occurring recently with the immigration ban on 
     Syrian immigrants. In the modern day, war torn Syrian asylum 
     seekers are denied entrance to America and are left living in 
     overcrowded refugee camps in Lebanon and Jordan. America's 
     policy: keep them out, they may be terrorists.
       Immigrants living inside U.S. borders are being denied the 
     right to naturalize. Children of illegal immigrants who used 
     to be protected under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals 
     (DACA) are now unsure of their safety after DACA was 
     suspended by President Trump. These harmless people whose 
     parents wanted a better life for their children are denied 
     citizenship due to xenophobia. The act of separating families 
     or deporting innocent children to countries where they are 
     unfamiliar with the language and culture is unjust.
       My family lived in Saudi Arabia for six years. Living 
     internationally taught me to be open-minded towards everyone; 
     I attended an international school with students from over 
     100 nations. Every student was like me, and deserved the same 
     rights. When I returned to the America I was alienated by 
     classmates who posed ridiculously ignorant questions such as 
     ``Are you Muslim?'' ``Are you going to bomb the school?''
       The issue at hand is fear. Americans need to open their 
     eyes and educate themselves about the world, not just their 
     country. Only 36% of all Americans have passports, and 
     organizations such as the U.S. Peace Corps, which encourage 
     world connections are struggling to find volunteers. We must 
     eliminate our fear is through education. By educating 
     citizens about the outside world, whether it be by inviting 
     more refugees into our country, sending more Americans abroad 
     to do service work, or having immigrants talk about their 
     experiences, we will be able to reduce hatred and fear. We 
     don't need a wall, we need to tear down our own walls of 
     ignorance and hatred.
       Without immigrants, America would not be the extraordinary 
     country it is today. Through history, we have looked down on 
     immigrants, and have created ``nativist'' groups who yearned 
     to exclude immigrants from their society. Everyone deserves 
     the rights that all Americans have; many do not have the 
     access to such rights in their home countries. By excluding 
     those willing to become citizens, we not only deny them 
     opportunities in this country, but we deny them of

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     their rights. Let's ``Make America Great Again'': let's 
     educate each other about the world around us and share our 
     rights with those in search of better lives.

     Collin Chutter-Casey, Burlington High School, Senior, Finalist

       Where do you imagine the human race being in 20 years? 50 
     years? The effects of climate change should be front and 
     center in our minds when fantasizing about a space age world. 
     The human desire for technology and cheap cost of living 
     negates responsibility to the environment. Climate change 
     means more than a rise of a few seemingly insignificant 
     degrees over centuries of human innovation and 
     industrialization; however, the rising oceans and 
     temperatures, animal extinction, and increased natural 
     disasters are the real world effects that cost us an 
     increasing amount of money, resources, and even human lives 
     to sweep under the rug.
       One of the main effects of climate change is the rise of 
     ocean height and temperature. According to NASA, a federally 
     funded organization, the sea level will rise 1-4 feet by the 
     year 2100. This is in addition to the eight inch rise in sea 
     levels since 1880. A rise of 1-4 feet in sea levels is 
     comparable to the shallow end of a swimming pool, but in the 
     real world means millions of homes and businesses destroyed 
     on the vulnerable coastline, which cannot be restored as we 
     do with hurricanes and tornadoes. Climate change by itself 
     may not seem to be a huge issue, but the ripple effect it 
     creates causes colossal damage.
       When solving these problems, we cannot think of our own 
     lives, but rather future generations. Humans do not have the 
     power to predict the future, but we can shape the future. 
     There are two parts to the solution of climate change: 
     Mitigation and Adaptation. Adaptation is adjusting to the 
     effects of climate change. This plan does not deal with the 
     issue of slowing and preventing climate change, but with 
     preventing the effects of global warming from changing the 
     way people live, even if it does change where they live. 
     Mitigation is reducing the amount of greenhouse gases that 
     are released into the atmosphere. For mitigation to be a 
     viable solution to solve the earth's warming, we need a 
     global plan for a global problem. This means that, as a 
     global community, we need laws to promote and enforce 
     renewable energy (solar, wind, hydro, and geothermal), 
     sustainable houses and buildings, eliminate litter, cut down 
     on trash, cut down on resource use, the list goes on. This 
     intensive process requires a change in mindset, and support 
     and participation from all people in all nations.
       Let the U.S. stand where the world knows it to be, one step 
     ahead of others, and carry all nations to the solution of 
     global warming. We know the mass destruction that global 
     warming can cause, and the best solution to counter it. So 
     now let the question we ask not be what we imagine the world 
     to be in 20 years, but what is necessary to get there.

      Felicia Daigle, Rice Memorial High School, Junior, Finalist

       The world today revolves around our dependency on 
     convenience. We live in a society that works to make our 
     lives easier through inventions like drive-thrus and one-use 
     items. Ignoring the effects of this dependency has resulted 
     in an environmental crisis that seems to be too great to fix. 
     The fact that 18 million pounds of plastic enters our oceans 
     annually should shock our generation and instill a sense of 
     ownership about this issue (Howard). Realizing that plastic 
     dominates most of our consumerism and convenience needs 
     should prioritized reducing its production. The way to treat 
     this issue would be by placing a ban on unnecessary plastic 
     goods and an emphasis on teaching students about our oceans 
     and environment instead of ignoring the problem.
       By banning plastic accommodations like straw, bags, and 
     bottles, over 14 billion tons of plastic waste could be 
     prevented (Howard). The United States would be joining other 
     nations like the United Kingdom and India in an effort to 
     reduce plastic waste. The European Commission proposed, ``a 
     ban on 10 common items that it says make up about 70 percent 
     of the litter in EU waters. This includes plastic straws, 
     drink stirrers, plates, and more'' (Howard). All these items 
     seem to make life easier but they have become the reason for 
     the world's struggles with plastic pollution.
       When we share the knowledge about how harmful plastic has 
     become, then we take responsibility about choosing a plastic 
     water bottle because it's easy. I only learned about the dire 
     state of our oceans a few years ago when I walked on the 
     beaches in Santa Barbara and saw plastic Starbucks cups and 
     straws intertwined with the seaweed that had washed up onto 
     shore. From that moment I realized that plastic does not go 
     anywhere but into landfills and if we keep producing more and 
     more, none of our beaches will have no plastic debris. If 
     schools took action and speak about plastic waste, there 
     would be no excuse for our ignorance regarding the planet's 
     environmental state.
       Taking plastic pollution seriously, starting by a national 
     ban on straws, bags, and water bottles, would be the first 
     step in the right direction. We cannot undo the past, but the 
     future lies in the decisions we start making today. Plastic, 
     a man-made product, cannot keep killing thousands of sea 
     creatures without our government trying to enforce some kind 
     of change. If the United States does not understand its dire 
     need for plastic reduction, our future generations will never 
     know the ocean with plastic filling them.

       Paige Dean, South Burlington High School, Senior, Finalist

       Members of Congress, I come before you today to speak about 
     something that is near to my heart. I spend my summers 
     sailing on beautiful Lake Champlain in my home state of 
     Vermont, and every Fourth of July my family and I kayak out 
     into Burlington Bay and watch the fireworks. The lake is part 
     of many Vermonters' lives; from childhood jokes about Champ, 
     our local lake monster, to walks along the shore and trips 
     across on the ferry, our Lake Champlain has been an integral 
     part of the Vermont experience.
       But today, Lake Champlain is suffering, just as the rest of 
     America is. Devastating hurricanes in the South are 
     displacing us and flooding our homes and businesses. Droughts 
     and wildfires in the West raze the ground, destroy our 
     property, prevent our crops from growing and force us to 
     flee. Our shining seas are encroaching on our plentiful 
     shores, the water lapping ever closer, year by year, to our 
     front stoop. Summers are getting hotter, and storms wilder. 
     We all know the cause, and what it means for us. Climate 
     change is real. We are experiencing it right here, right now. 
     Science does not lie, and all around our nation we are seeing 
     it firsthand. The homeowners in Louisiana who can't sell 
     because their house is in a flood zone, the farmers in 
     Arizona whose crops are withering from drought, the 
     schoolchildren in Flint, Michigan, whose tap water is unsafe 
     to drink, and those Vermont who can't utilize their lake due 
     to dangerous algae blooms.
       Every single thing I have listed has its roots in our own 
     actions. However we twist it, the facts remain: we are 
     responsible for climate change.
       There is still hope. If we act now, we can lessen the 
     effects of climate change on our homes and livelihoods. I 
     call now on Congress to pass and support strong and direct 
     legislation to help our environment and economy. Strengthen 
     the EPA! Ensure that this vital agency has the resources and 
     leadership necessary to protect our lands and create real 
     change. Pass legislation tightening regulations, taxing and 
     limiting the production and spread of pollutants, give 
     incentives to alternative clean and sustainable energy 
     companies, move to limit our reliance on oil and gas, and 
     make America energy independent and sustainable. We have 
     thousands of capable scientists, business leaders, policy 
     experts and engaged citizens ready to work on solutions 
     and save our planet. Let them! Work with our allies and 
     neighbors to mitigate climate change worldwide. Rejoin and 
     support the Paris Climate Agreement! Climate change 
     affects our whole planet, and only global solutions and 
     partnership will solve it. Let's work on fostering the 
     clean energy and environmental protection programs of 
     other countries through incentives and aid, especially to 
     developing countries while promoting energy independence.
       Solutions are in our grasp, we only have to believe in 
     them, reach out, and grab them. Otherwise, we are doing 
     ourselves, the people of America, and indeed the whole world 
     a great disservice. The world's future, America's future, our 
     future is at stake. Act now.

        Aynsa Denby, St. Johnsbury Academy, Sophomore, Finalist


                Fighting for Women's Reproductive Rights

       In America, woman are still continually fighting for 
     women's reproductive rights 70 years after Roe vs. Wade was 
     passed. While many people agree that women have a right to 
     their own body, many politicians still engage in an 
     unrelenting and increasingly aggressive attacks on women's 
     reproductive health care. They do this by introducing and 
     passing unconstitutional bills that would restrict women's 
     rights, for example by stifling access to essential health 
     care and endangering women's lives. To put this into 
     perspective, this, that means hundreds of women's rights are 
     being taken away with each restriction passed, according to 
     the National Reproductive Rights Organization. A possible 
     solution is the Women's Health Protection Act which would 
     prevent states from passing these dangerous legislations and 
     would prohibit state and federal politicians from imposing a 
     range of dangerous anti-choice provisions that take away 
     women's rights and choice over their own body.
       In his first year in office, Trump and his administration 
     have brought an aggressive campaign against women's sexual 
     and reproductive rights to the White House, by limiting 
     women's access to birth control and his anti-abortion 
     advocacy. To understand the administration's emphasis on 
     rolling back birth control access and abortion rights, it's 
     important to remember the administration is filled with 
     people who have a track record of anti-abortion legislation 
     and advocacy throughout the years such as Vice President Mike 
     Pence and Trump's top healthcare advisor Katy Talento. Trump 
     administration's 2018-'22 draft plan for Health and Human 
     Services, for the first time ever suggested the federal 
     health agency will now be ``serving and protecting Americans 
     at every stage of life, beginning at conception.'' this 
     language about conception and unborn children signals a shift 
     toward faith-based decision-making in American health care. 
     But women's rights are not based on the faith or beliefs of 
     the government officials but rather each woman's individual 
     choice, therefore the decision should be up the person whose

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     body is being affected and not a single groups beliefs.
       The Women's Health Protection Act would prevent states from 
     passing these dangerous legislations and would prohibit state 
     and federal politicians from imposing a range of dangerous 
     anti-choice provisions. Senator Sanders needs to expand and 
     protect the reproductive rights of women by continuing to 
     fight and support for The Women's Health Protection Act, and 
     by bringing attention to this continuing struggle for 
     equality and individual choice over one's own body. Senator 
     Sanders also can fight to keep Planned Parenthood funded and 
     covered by Medicaid, as attacking Planned Parenthood remains 
     a priority for social conservatives in our Congress today. As 
     of right now 2.5 million people rely on Planned Parenthood 
     for a range of health care services, like birth control and 
     cancer screenings, and defunding it would change the health 
     of millions of Americans as found in the article ``How 
     Women's reproductive rights stalled under Trump'' by Julia 
     Belluz. So therefore I am not only asking for continuing 
     support for women's reproductive rights but also the health 
     of millions of Americans.

                          ____________________