Getting to know the candidates: Mary Hoeft
https://youtu.be/zUNaJKPbEF8
Part of an ongoing series highlighting November election candidates
By Kris Leonhardt
MARSHFIELD — Mary Hoeft is the Democratic candidate running against incumbent Republican Sean Duffy in the 7th Congressional District.
Hoeft is a newcomer to politics, having taught a total of 45 years in the UW system.
On her role as an educator
I teach communication arts and French. I teach a course called “Finding your Political Voice.” I teach another course called “Creativity and Problem Solving,” so when Democratic leaders came to me and said, “Mary, it’s time. We need you in Congress.” I thought, “Well, the coursework that I teach certainly has prepared me for Congress.”
On the future of education
What we have to do as a society is extend the borders of what we consider a public education, and we have to include at least two years of technical school or two years in the UW Colleges. We need to include that as part of public education, so when you talk about jobs in welding, that young people — by the time they finish — they choose their path.
They either go the technical school route or the UW Colleges route. If they go the technical school route, those two years, they’ll come out ready to take that welding job, ready to take that law enforcement job, ready to take that nursing job.
On cross-partisan communication
I’m a great listener. I’ve written three workbooks on interpersonal communications. I listen well, and the ideas I especially enjoy listening to are people who oppose my position. I enjoy that. I need to know why they oppose, because that’s how I am going to find a way to come up with a solution that is going to address their concerns as well as mine.
On the Affordable Care Act
A lot of people thought that the Affordable Care Act was wrong because it was going to be too expensive with all of the private insurance companies. My attitude was, “But it’s a starting place.” … It’s too darn expensive, so now we need to make it healthier. We need to make it better.
All candidates are invited to sit down with the Hub City Times prior to the Nov. 8 election.
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