Yeakel urges change at ICA fundraiser

In her standard stump speech, Lynn Yeakel recounts her family's reaction to her decision to run for the United States Senate: Nobody knows you. Yeakel, the Democratic candidate for Senate from Pennsylvania, now retorts with a smile, "They do now." Last night, approximately 150 supporters paid at least $50 to attend a cocktail hour at the Institute of Contemporary Art in order to get to know Yeakel better. Remarking that, "1992 is a turning point," Yeakel said that this year is an opportunity to "change from the predictable to the possible. From a government of crisis to a government of courage and consensus." Yeakel then called for an economic recovery plan stressing education and job retraining as well as affordable healthcare which she believes with the election of a Democratic President could happen within a year. After blasting her opponent, incumbent Republican Senator Arlen Specter, Yeakel appealed for contributions stressing the large amounts of money Specter has collected and is willing to spend on the race. "He [Specter] has been in Washington for 12 years, and by every standard of measure I can find the quality of life in tis life is worse off," Yeakel said. Yeakel later added that Specter has not made inroads in core Democratic groups such as labor, blacks, and Jews, adding that Specter's questioning of her ties to an allegedly anti-Israel church was "very much a smokecreen." After her speech, Yeakel said that she supports the National Service Trust Fund concept -- which will enable students to pay back college loans through national service or a percentage of their future income -- to revamp the way students pay for higher education. In addition, Yeakel said she favors an increase in funding for Pell grants, the current federal grant program. On urban problems, Yeakel, who released her position paper on the topic this Saturday, said she favors a program in which local residents will help allocate funds targeted for their neighborhoods. Yeakel added that she favors tax breaks for companies that invest long-term capital gains into retooling plants and investing in the inner cities. Vermont Governor Madeline Kunin first introduced Yeakel to the crowd welcoming her to a "very small club [of female politicians] that is rapidly acquiring new members." "We all sort of stand on one another's shoulders," she said after Yeakel's speech. Kunin stressed the different perspective a woman gives on issues such as Family and Medical Leave, and the importance of electing a woman like Yeakel. "I believe . . . that she will make a significant and meaningful contribution to the political life of this country," Kunin said. College senior Melanie Hirschfelder, a volunteer at the event, said she decided to work at the fundraiser due to the other choice in the race. "She is a very, very big improvement over Arlen Specter," Hirschfelder said. And Powelton Village resident Robin Larsen said that she supports Yeakel since "she took a negative reaction [to the Clarence Thomas hearings] and turned it into a very positive moment in Pennsylvania history."

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