Cathy Hilliard 143 District Candidate Reports From Cape Girardeau

Local Democrat Candidate Visits Cape Girardeau, Attends Obama Event May 14, 2008 CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO – Cathy Hilliard, State Representative candidate for Missouri's 143rd District, accompanied Joe Allen, the Democrat nominee for the 8th Congressional District, to Cape Girardeau where both candidates toured the downtown business district, met with local business owners, and visited the flood-swollen Mississippi River. Cape Girardeau is located on the eastern edge of Missouri's 8th Congressional District, along the Illinois border. Before speaking to local business owners, Hilliard listened as many voiced their concerns about rising fuel prices and overhead costs and a shrinking labor force. "Although Cape is not in my district, once elected my votes will affect every Missouri citizen, and I promise you that I will never vote against the working families of Missouri," she said before speaking about health care and insurance for small business owners and employees and downtown revitalization and economic development opportunities. Hilliard, a Branson area Realtor, also discussed rising foreclosures in the state, affordable housing shortages, and home ownership opportunities with ladies in a downtown salon called The Shop. With campaign volunteers also on hand to register voters throughout the day, Hilliard joined with other Democrats across the state to blast Missouri's Republican lawmakers for trying to thwart democracy and make it more difficult for Missouri residents to vote, citing the Indiana fiasco where twelve nuns in their 80s and 90s were prevented from voting because they lacked acceptable identification. "Missouri already has a common sense voter identification law that ensures eligible voters are who they say they are on Election Day. Not only will this legislation change Missouri's Constitution, it will waste six million in tax payer dollars and prohibit over 240,000 currently registered voters from voting because they do not have state issued identification, many of whom are elderly and were never issued a birth certificate." Allen and Hilliard finished their day by attending a private town hall meeting, Tuesday evening, at the Cape Girardeau factory, Thorngate Ltd., where Presidential hopeful, Barack Obama addressed issues ranging from healthcare to the Iraq War to economic concerns. "I was pleased that Senator Obama directly addressed issues and concerns facing rural communities and working families," said Hilliard after the event. "Every rural community in Missouri is struggling to build and maintain infrastructure, bring in higher paying jobs, address affordable housing, and keep the existing family farms and business from leaving or going under." Cathy Hilliard is currently serving on the Forsyth RIII School Board. -- http://www.bransonedge.com http://www.bransonmissouri.blogspot.com