Walker wants to graduate from college to Congress
By BERRY CRAIG
AFT Local 1360
Paul Walker of Murray likes the “professor” handle. But he’d prefer “congressman.”
Walker and guitarist Alonzo Pennington of Princeton are battling for their party’s nod in the May 22 Democratic primary. The winner will take on Rep. James Comer, R-Tompkinsville, who is seeking a second term. He has no primary opposition.
An associate professor of English at Murray State University, Walker, a Utah native, earned a Ph.D. at Arizona State University. He is also co-director of the Purchase Area Writing Project, a program that “is dedicated to helping primary and secondary school teachers in the western Kentucky area build student success in writing.”
Walker has taught at MSU since 2007. He is an author and an award-winning educator and an author, too.
On his university webpage, Walker says, "I try to help students recognize writing as not just a skill, but a method of inquiry that leads to a richer understanding of the world and its complexities. Writing to inquire allows us to explore how our perspectives connect with the ideas of others, while making us more adept at communicating those ideas in various situations."
On “PaulWalker Congress,” his campaign website, he explains, “I’m running because the concerns and interests of working people can be better addressed in Congress. I believe every person living in America deserves opportunities for financial security and affordable access to education and healthcare. As your representative, I will listen to you with respect and make decisions that benefit everyone’s quality of life. Even if we disagree on some things, I will hear and acknowledge your concerns, and will be a positive and productive presence in Washington.”
We thank Walker for taking time to answer our questions. (More information about the candidate is available via email at paulwalkerky@gmail.com and on his campaign website, http://www.votepaulwalker.com/
CRAIG: Rep. James Comer is a well-entrenched and well-financed incumbent. You can bet the Republicans will spend whatever they think it will take to keep him in office. The First District seat has been in Republican hands since 1994. So given what seems to be pretty steep odds for any Democrat, why did you decide to run?
WALKER:Like many others, I felt like I could do more to change the direction that this country is suddenly heading, especially toward more policies that favored working people. Seeing the worried and anxious faces of my students every day also motivated me to do more to help expand their opportunities and especially reduce their growing burden of student-loan debt. In short, I wanted to serve Kentuckians in ways beyond teaching in the classroom, so I decided to run.
CRAIG: Name recognition is critical in any election. Comer has it. How do you get it?
WALKER:We live in a time where connections can be made through social media in ways that are almost unbelievable. In the short time since I announced my candidacy, many people already recognize my name and face when I’m out and about in the district. As I continue my social media efforts and put signs up in the counties, my name and personality will be more and more known, and I look forward to speaking with people so they can know who I am and what I stand for.
CRAIG: Do you or your family have a union background? If so, explain what the union has meant to you or your family.
WALKER:My father was a school administrator and my mother was a teacher who chose to stay at home. My father belonged to the Utah Education Association (similar to the KEA), and I recognized by his membership in it that a collective organization had power to provide good working conditions and policies that benefited workers, their families and local communities. As a university professor, I have been part of active efforts to unionize our campus, but unfortunately these efforts have so far been ineffective.
CRAIG: As you know, the Republican-majority General Assembly, egged on by Gov. Bevin, passed a "right to work law" and abolished the prevailing wage a year ago this month. When Comer and Bevin ran against each other in the 2015 GOP primary, both said passing a RTW law was their top priority. Both, too, pledged to try to abolish the prevailing wage. On the campaign trail, Trump said he preferred RTW states to non-RTW states. Sen. Rand Paul has proposed a national RTW law. Sen. Jeff Flake has proposed a bill that would suspend Davis-Bacon prevailing wage rules on any construction projects under any infrastructure bill that Congress might pass. Please explain your views on RTW and PW repeal.
WALKER:The myth of right to work is that workers benefit. Simply wrong. More and more organizations are finding out the hard way that hiring non-union workers or using independent contractors undercuts the quality of the project and erodes the healthy tax base for the community. When labor does well, everyone does well. Any local business, from restaurant to bike shop to clothing store will fail if the local families are barely scraping by because of non-prevailing wage bids. If there is any money saved by right-to-work projects or not paying the prevailing wage, ten times that money is lost by the community.
CRAIG: I live in Mayfield. In recent years, we have lost a large tire plant and an air compressor factory. We used to have three clothing factories, too. Plants are closing all over the district and the country. What would you do to help bring good paying union industrial jobs back to the district?
WALKER: On a large scale, I would eliminate tax breaks and incentives for companies whose profits leave the region and state. Incentives would be provided for local entrepreneurs and existing businesses to expand. This would provide a level playing field for local companies to grow and create union industrial jobs. I would also encourage universities in this part of the state to partner their business incubators to help businesses grow into profitable companies that keep their profits in Kentucky’s local communities. Further, I would ensure that infrastructure developments such as fiber-optic cables and transportation improvements make this region ready for major local investment.
CRAIG: On the campaign trail, Trump claimed he would stop outsourcing and keep jobs in the country. According to Chuck Jones, the former USW president at Carrier in Indianapolis, a record 93,000 jobs have gone overseas since he was elected. Trump and his daughter still make a ton of money off products made overseas.
We knew Trump was full of beans (or something else) on trade (and everything else) all along. What would you do to promote meaningful legislation to stop outsourcing and save jobs?
WALKER: As consumers, we look for inexpensive goods, but as community members, we want successful businesses. We have to individually make the choice to support our community, and collectively we have to make it easier to do so. This can be done by providing incentives for small and mid-size businesses that pay fair and prevailing wages and punishing large companies that take jobs offshore to lower wages. No one likes to speak with an automated or outsourced customer service rep from another country – but our choices are limited when so many companies do it. The incentives for these companies that do not invest locally need to change on a national level.
CRAIG: You live in Murray. The western Kentucky coal fields are to the east of you. Market forces--primarily a shift to natural gas--have shut down a lot of coal mines. Do you think a lot of coal jobs can be brought back? If not, what can be done to help jobless coal miners?
WALKER:The reality is that industries shift, but it is irresponsible to leave trained workers without opportunities to shift with those technological changes. The solar and wind-power industries in Kentucky are growing quickly, and as they expand there are and will be opportunities for coal miners and other workers to transition to an industry that also produces cleaner energy for the increasing needs of communities. Energy sources such as natural gas extraction can provide transitional jobs as well, but heavy investment into renewable sources is safer and in the long run, better for our communities.
CRAIG: The Kentucky State AFL-CIO and hundreds of unions across the country have endorsed a single-payer health insurance program. Do you support single payer?
WALKER:I support single-payer health insurance, and I would work hard to make it happen sooner than later by helping all the involved groups sit down and discuss the ways to make it work for individuals, families, and healthcare providers.
CRAIG: The AFL-CIO endorsed Hillary Clinton. We voted for her. From the start, Trump's entire program has been geared to make the rich richer and shaft those of us in the working class. Chuck Jones calls the president a "con man" and a "liar." Trump carried the First District in a landslide. What can you to convince working class voters that Trump is their enemy, not their friend?
WALKER:Trump has appealed to many people because he gives the impression that he “tells it like it is.” But we know that his blunt and self-inflating statements don’t fit with reality. I understand that many voters are frustrated by politicians and politics-as-usual, which is why I intend to represent Kentucky workers and their families with integrity and honesty -- not selling out to political party agendas and lobbyists.
CRAIG: Based on the polls, there seems to be quite a bit of buyer's remorse over Trump nationwide. Do you detect it in the district? If so, what can you do to turn that into Democratic votes in November?
WALKER:Working people everywhere, including here, are frustrated by what they see as clear evidence that Trump and other politicians are ignoring them. I believe voters are thinking hard about what they want in the next few years, and there are plenty of them who will consider fresh faces like me who want to truly serve the public good.
CRAIG: Do you support raising the minimum wage? Explain.
WALKER: Yes, the minimum wage needs to be the lowest wage that provides a worker with adequate food, shelter, and health in the community, and also gives the opportunity for raises. The current minimum wage keeps many people in working poverty. Many people have said that $15/hour is the right amount, and I support that figure along with efforts to make such a change profitable for businesses so that they can keep their employees.
CRAIG: In 2014, Alison Lundergan Grimes refused to say who she voted for in 2012. Who did you vote for in 2016?
WALKER:I voted for Hillary Clinton.
CRAIG: Would you agree to a debate--or debates--with Alonzo Pennington?
WALKER:Yes, I would debate Mr. Pennington. There’s no way I can play guitar as well as he can, but my knowledge and experience as a public university professor (and ex-forest firefighter) has prepared me for the difficult work ahead in Washington, and I believe I offer voters the best and most viable opposition to James Comer in November.