I Just Don't Think It Interests Him (On President Bush's SOTU Address)

Annette Scurry is a family child care provider and leader in SEIU Local 500 Kids First Maryland. Ms. Scurry has been a provider for 7 years and cares for up to 8 children ages six weeks to 12 years. Annette is a proud parent of 2 children and 4 grandchildren, all of whom were cared for in her center.

Here Annette responds to what she heard in the president’s last State of the Union address:

My whole life is about children. I raised two of my own, and now I care for my four grandchildren. Last night the president didn’t even really mention kids.

He talked about making healthcare more “affordable”—whatever that means—for everyone. But he didn’t talk about the SCHIP bill he vetoed last year. He didn’t talk about healthcare for kids at all. I just don’t think it interests him.

He didn’t talk about the gas prices. I need the gas to heat my child care center. It needs to stay warm enough for the kids, and if it’s not warm enough, they’ll come in and shut down my facility. But I don’t get extra money to pay for the more expensive gas. Already it takes my income and my husband’s both to heat the house. I don’t know what I’ll do if the prices keep going up.

There are poor families in this country that can’t keep up with the energy prices, and so they’re using candles at home. There are kids who have died in fires that started because they were trying to do their homework by candlelight. And last night, the president didn’t talk about the gas prices.