Telegram - Serving Metropolitan Detroit Since 1944

rophet Cedric Banks:

We have a great show for you today. We have a young lady here, she is the Chief of Staff for the Detroit City Council. She is running for State Representative, District #2 and she is doing some great things out here in the Community. Tell the audience your name and what you have going on.

Carol Banks:

My name is Carol Banks. I am running for State Representative District 2. I am running because I feel we need to elect people who are Community oriented. People who are not going to be afraid to work for the district. When you call my office or my cell phone, I respond and will get issues resolved. I am your former School Board Member 2009 - 2013 DPS. I am your former Ombudsman woman for the City of Detroit, and I am currently working with the Senior Task Force for the City of Detroit. Not just Councilman Benson but all 9 City Council Members.

We have the Senior Task Force where we are actually working with the Ramp program right now. How we started with this, we had a Senior who was homebound for about a year and coul!d not get out of her house. She called our office and we were able to work with a couple of companies Home Depot and Lowe's. They gave us all the materials free. We got a Construction Company who built a ramp at no charge. We got all the supplies and now we are working with Lowe's and Home Depot and we are going to build about 14 more ramps on the East Side of Detroit.

Prophet Cedric Banks:

Well Carol it definitely looks like you have won some support. There are definitely some people who are behind you and want to push you. They believe in what you are saying.

Carol Banks:

I am solution driven. In my heart I feel we have to do a better job when we get elected and we have to service the people.

Prophet Cedric Banks:

When you get into office, what are your top 3 primary goals that you are going to be working on for the people that you will be servicing?

Carol Banks:

Well, what I plan to do is piggy back from where I am now. Because right now I have the resources and I can extend that across the State Of Michigan. This one piece that I have is with the children. I am a strong believer in Education and that we have to make sure that Public Education receives the dollars so that we can educate the children. However, in that piece, I want to reach out to the parents of the children who are in school. It is very hard to educate a child if the environment surrounding them is not conducive to learning. So that is going to be one piece Public Education and working with Parents and young people.

My second piece is Health. Not just physical health or affordable health but mental health. In our Community, people are afraid to get help when they have a mental issue or when they are feeling suicidal, or when they are feeling depressed. So for me, I want to really work with the system to help in that area.

My third piece is really going to be a tough one because everybody is talking about it. That is insurance. Car insurance. Property insurance.

Prophet Cedric Banks:

Car insurance is sky high

Carol Banks:

Yes. How do we fix that? I had a meeting the other day with a group of health providers and their concerns over Medicaid paying for injuries in car accidents and hospitals sucking up the cost, and injuries in car accidents who win law suits which drives up the cost. So we have to have meetings with the lawyers, insurance companies, and health providers and figure out how we can cut these costs. I do not have a solution.

Prophet Cedric Banks:

Is there a realistic chance to lower car insurance?

Carol Banks:

Republicans and Democrats have to come together and fix the problem. Not just looking to help their constituents but both sides have to come together to get a solution for the better good of the public as a whole.