Patrick made a late entrance into the race in November 2019 after initially passing on a presidential bid. The former two-term Massachusetts governor is pitching himself as a leader who can bring people together.

Harvard College, B.A., 1978; Harvard Law School, J.D., 1982

July 31, 1956

Diane Bemus

Presbyterian

Sarah and Katherine

Managing director, Bain Capital, 2015-2019;
Governor of Massachusetts, 2007-2015;
Board of directors, ACC Capitol holdings, 2004-2006;
Executive vice president and general counsel, Coca Cola 2001-2004;
Vice president and general counsel, Texaco, 1999-2001;
Lawyer, law firm Day, Berry &
HowardAssistant US attorney general for civil rights, 1994-1997;
Lawyer and later partner, law firm Hill &
Barlow, 1986-1994;
Lawyer at NAACP Legal Defense Fund, 1983-1986

PATRICK IN THE NEWS

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STANCES ON THE ISSUES

climate crisis

After announcing his campaign in November 2019, Patrick named climate change as a priority.“We’re already late to climate change. The question is whether we are too late and if we continue to delay we will be too late,” he said in Iowa, The Gazette reported. In 2014, Patrick unveiled a $50 million plan while governor to assess and address vulnerabilities in Massachusetts surrounding climate preparedness. In 2014, Patrick called for Massachusetts to end all reliance on conventional coal generation by 2018 and move to natural gas. He said the state should migrate away from fossil fuels and double down on solar, wind and hydropower.

economy

Patrick told CBS News in November 2019 he believes taxes should go up on the most wealthy. He said he envisions a “much, much simpler tax system for everyone where we eliminate all or most of the deductions and we smooth out and simplify the system we have.” He said he thinks greed is the problem, not wealth.

education

Patrick told CBS News in November 2019 that he would support eliminating or vastly reducing student debt. In 2007, Patrick unveiled a plan to make community college free in Massachusetts within 10 years. The plan also called for universal prekindergarten, full-day kindergarten and extending the school day and school year. In 2010, Patrick signed a bill to increase the number of charter schools in the state, give administrators the power to overhaul failing districts and make Massachusetts eligible for up to $250 million in federal dollars.

gun violence

Patrick in 2014 signed into law an overhaul of Massachusetts’ gun laws. The legislation added the state to a national database for background checks, and allowed police chiefs to go to court to block individuals they deemed dangerous from acquiring shotguns and rifles.

healthcare

Patrick told CBS News in November 2019 he did not support “Medicare for All” “in the terms we’ve been talking about,” and that he backs a public option. “If Medicare is that public option, I think it’s a great idea,” he said. Patrick last year called Medicare for All a “terrific idea” but said he would support keeping private options under the Affordable Care Act.

immigration

In 2018, Patrick called for overhauling immigration and was critical of the Trump administration’s immigration policy, including the actions from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement. “The sadistic policies and practices of ICE today have got to go, separating families, the walking away from DACA, the deportation of spouses of immigrants who serve in the military today. Really?” Patrick told CNN’s Jake Tapper. “We are better than that. And the opportunity to have comprehensive immigration reform has been on the table before. There is bipartisan support for it. It needs to come back. We need to be serious about it.”

LATEST POLITICAL NEWS

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