Senator Patty Murray got inspired to enter politics when a male state legislator derided her efforts to fight budget cuts to early education programs, calling her “just a mom in tennis shoes” — a remark she would proudly adopt as her campaign slogan.
Tucked into the $1.2 trillion spending law Congress cleared last week was an additional $1 billion for a single year for child care and early education programs.
Ms. Murray accomplished that feat against substantial political headwinds.
Their agreement effectively froze expenditures on everything except the military, translating into deep cuts to social programs.
But Ms. Murray, together with Representative Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut, her Democratic counterpart in the House, pushed Republicans to accept a 9 percent increase in spending for child care subsidies for low-income families, and a $275 million increase in spending for Head Start, the federal program for low-income preschool children.
Persons:
Patty Murray, Murray, Biden, Kevin McCarthy, Rosa DeLauro
Organizations:
Democratic
Locations:
Connecticut