March 17, 2019 - Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand(D-NY) Announces Candidacy

March 24, 2019 - Launch Event in Front of Trump International Hotel in New York City

• Gillibrand has been an exploratory candidate since Jan. 15, 2019.
• She officially announced her candidacy via video and a week of events.  The campaign has a new website, new logo and new slogan ("Brave wins").
• Gillibrand is delivering her campaign kick-off speech outside the Trump International Hotel in New York City.

"Brave Wins" (2:31 video)
[Music]

Gillibrand (mostly voiceover and a little bit to camera): Our anthem calls America “the home of the brave.” But we don’t realize that the lyrics first pose it as a question.

O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

It asks, “will brave win?” Well, it hasn’t always. And it isn’t right now.

Brave doesn’t pit people against each other. Brave doesn’t put money over lives. Brave doesn’t spread hate. Cloud truth. Build a wall. That’s what fear does.

We need to remember what if feels like to be brave. We launched ourselves into space and landed on the moon.

If we can do that, we can definitely achieve universal health care. We can provide paid family leave for all, end gun violence, pass a Green New Deal, get money out of politics and take back our democracy. None of this is impossible.

Americans are brave, everyday: The father risking his job to fight for his family. The mom taking on 6am shifts and 6pm classes. The formerly well-behaved women speaking up. The neighbors linking arms.

They’re making a choice. And it’s these brave choices that inspire me to take on the fights others won’t.

When I voted against the Wall Street bailout while both parties threw billions at the banks, when I took on the Pentagon to end to sexual assault in the military, when I turned a red district blue against all odds, when I challenged Congress by making my meetings, finances and taxes public. So people could see I was working for them.

I took your lead. I chose brave too.

We need a leader who makes big, bold, brave choices. Someone who isn’t afraid of progress.

That’s why I’m running for president. And it’s why I’m asking you for your support.

Our anthem asks a question, forcing every generation to make a choice. Will brave win?

Let’s answer for ours.

SUPER:
Meet me at Trump International in New York City – Next Sunday, March 24.
Brave wins. Gillibrand 2020.


Gillibrand 2020
March 17, 2019

WATCH: KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND OFFICIALLY ANNOUNCES CAMPAIGN FOR PRESIDENT OF UNITED STATES

Today, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand officially launched her campaign for President of the United States with a video called “Brave Wins.” At the end of the video, she announced that her first major speech will be in front of Trump International Hotel in New York City, next Sunday, March 24th.

This concludes a two-month exploratory phase of the campaign, during which Gillibrand began introducing herself to voters in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, California and Texas. During the exploratory campaign, Gillibrand earned strong reviews on the ground as she traveled to early states, connecting with voters one-on-one in living rooms, coffee shops, local breweries and women-owned businesses. From day one, she ventured to rural communities and listened to voters who don’t see national Democrats often -- kicking off her first trip in rural western Iowa and being the first to visit the North Country of New Hampshire.

Brave Wins” uses the Star Spangled Banner to highlight that bravery in our country has not always been certain and is constantly a choice. To that point, “Brave Wins” directly takes on President Trump for his agenda of cowardice, hate and fear. Gillibrand highlights the choices that so many Americans have made to be brave - today and in our nation’s history - that have inspired her career in public service and now her run for President of the United States.   


Official Launch Week Overview:

Following her third trip to New Hampshire, Gillibrand will officially kick off her campaign as the first candidate to hold a major event in the must-win state of Michigan. From a suburban swing district that flipped from red to blue in 2018, Gillibrand will join Chris Hayes for MSNBC’s first 2020 candidate town hall, airing Monday night at 8 pm EST. She will also be the first to join Governor Gretchen Whitmer on the 2020 trail that evening.

Gillibrand will then make her third visit to Iowa, where she’s been praised locally for giving“possibly the best rally speech of the field,” and the candidate “having the most fun on the trail.” Gillibrand was the first to announce a four-stop Mississippi River tour through key parts of Southeast Iowa that are critical to winning statewide. Next she’ll visit Nevada for her first trip of the campaign, meeting caucus goers and key local leaders.
 
On Thursday night, in a return appearance, tune in to Showtime’s Desus & Mero recorded with Gillibrand in Troy, New York earlier this year. Gillibrand was the first U.S. Senator to appear on Desus & Mero’s previous show, and she will be the first 2020 presidential candidate on their new late night program.
 
Gillibrand will close the week with an outdoor speech and rally in front of Trump International Hotel in New York City—taking her positive, brave vision of restoring America’s moral integrity straight to President Trump’s doorstep. Inside and outside the halls of Congress, Gillibrand has repeatedly proven she is not afraid of taking on the big fights to change systems of power and take on greed, corruption and lies in Washington. With the strongest anti-Trump voting record in the U.S. Senate, she is committed to fighting for what’s right, even when it’s hard.





March 23, 2019

GILLIBRAND TO DELIVER CAMPAIGN KICK OFF SPEECH OUTSIDE TRUMP INTERNATIONAL HOTEL

Tomorrow, Sunday, March 24, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand will deliver a campaign kick-off speech outside the Trump International Hotel. The speech puts an exclamation point on the end of a whirlwind week, in which Gillibrand officially launched her campaign with the video, "Brave Wins," participated in a MSNBC town hall in Michigan, returned to Iowa for the third time, and made her first visit to Nevada.

Senator Gillibrand's speech will touch on key moments in her life and career, and lay out her vision for an America where everyone has health care, work is rewarded with policies like paid family leave, our economy is booming with green jobs, families are safe from gun violence, the corrupting influence of money has been expunged from our politics, and more. 

The event will also include a brief speaking program, featuring speakers and activists who display the fierce bravery that has inspired Senator Gillibrand's candidacy. Speakers will include a mother who founded an organization to combat gun violence, DREAMers fighting for immigration reform, young women standing up for women's rights and against sexual assault, champions for LGBTQ rights, and more. 

When: Sunday, March 24th. Doors open for press at 10:30AM EST. Speaking program begins at 12:30PM EST and should conclude by 1:30PM EST.

Where: The intersection of 61st St. and Central Park West, just north of Columbus Circle—directly across from Trump International Hotel. Press entrance will be from 61st St.

March 23, 2019

GILLIBRAND CAMPAIGN ANNOUNCES SPEAKERS FOR KICKOFF SPEECH OUTSIDE TRUMP INTERNATIONAL

Today, the Gillibrand campaign released its list of speakers for its campaign kick-off speech outside Trump International Hotel on Sunday, March 24.

“I am honored to have the support of these inspiring brave men and women,” said Senator Gillibrand. “This campaign is driven by people who display bravery every day, whether it’s mothers combating gun violence, DREAMers fighting for immigration reform, young women standing up for women's rights and against sexual assault, champions for LGBTQ rights, and activists fighting for gender equality and women empowerment.”

The speakers include:

Connie Britton - Actress & Activist
 
Connie Britton is an actress and activist. An Emmy and Golden Globe nominated actress, Connie has appeared in critically-acclaimed programs such as Friday Night Lights, Nashville, American Horror Story, Spin City, and more. Connie is an activist who has worked on issues related to poverty, women empowerment and gender equality, and has served as a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Development Programme since 2014. Connie’s friendship with Senator Gillibrand goes back to their college years at Dartmouth College, where they were roommates during a semester abroad in Beijing, China.
 
Monica Sibri - DREAMer & Immigration Advocate
Monica Sibri is a DREAMEer and advocate working to strengthen the New York immigrant movement by helping undocumented immigrants to access resources, services, and the support they need to succeed. Monica worked for the National Program Coordinator for IGNITE, a national nonpartisan nonprofit organization founded by Dr. Anne Moses that seeks to empower college-aged women to become the next generation of political leaders. She also serves as a close adviser to CUNY DREAMers, an undocumented student-led organization she founded in 2013 to help advance equal access to higher education and build a network of support for thousands of undocumented students at the City University of New York, the largest urban university in the United States.
Monica has been featured in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Guardian, Huffington Post, the Voice of America, New York Daily News, and many other local and international newspapers. Monica earned her BA degree in American Politics, Policy, and Advocacy from the Baccalaureate For Unique and Interdisciplinary Studies at the City University of New York.
 
Lisdy Contreras-Giron - DREAMer & Immigration Advocate
Lisdy Contreras-Giron is a DREAMer who was five-years-old when she moved from Guatemala to the United States with her mother to join her father. Despite the fact that when she started kindergarten at Katonah Elementary, she did not speak English, she went on to serve as vice president to the student body and class president of her high school. In 2014, she was one of the two female students to represent New York at the 2014 Girls Nation in Washington D.C., where she met President Barack Obama.
Lisdy knew from an early age that she wanted to become a lawyer. As a non-citizen given deferred action status under the Obama administration program, therefore ineligible for financial aid, finding a way to pay for college was a challenge. Her parents supported her endeavors by working long hours and making her goals their priority. She is currently in a six-year program that culminates in a law degree at Pace University. Lisdy served as an intern in Senator Gillibrand’s New York City office, and was the senator’s State of the Union guest in 2017.
 
Annie Clark - Co-Founder of End Rape on Campus
Annie Clark is a co-founder of End Rape on Campus, and a lead complainant in the Title IX and Clery complaints against the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a B.A. in Political Science. She has a certificate in business, and is a former administrator at the University of Oregon. She is a contributing writer to the Huffington Post, MSNBC, and The Chronicle Vitae. After directly working with New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, she helped write the Bi-Partisan Campus Safety and Accountability Act. In 2013, she was listed alongside President Barack Obama as one of the most influential forces in higher education, and she is featured in the campus sexual assault documentary “The Hunting Ground.” Annie is a co-author of the book, We Believe You, a collection of 36 stories of campus sexual assault.
 
Jackie Rowe-Adams - Mother of Gun Violence Victims & Activist
After losing two sons to gun violence, Jackie Rowe-Adams co-founded Harlem Mothers S.A.V.E., an organization dedicated to ending gun violence in her community. She has received numerous awards for her social activism. Jackie has been involved in community activism since an early age, and has served her community in a broad array of positions, such as the boards of Addicts Rehabilitation Center (A.R.C.), Harlem Week, Inc., and Project Harmony, and she is a member of the Mid-Manhattan NAACP. Jackie has worked tirelessly with youth and seniors as a music specialist with Parks and Recreation since 1986, and, in 1996, started the non-profit organization Talented Seniors and Youth On the Move, Inc., which provides performance opportunities for youth and seniors and college scholarships.  
She is a life-long resident of Harlem, New York and is married to William L. Adams. They now have two sons, Eric and Bryant, who are her greatest motivations. She is also a passionate singer who has performed the national anthem at Shea Stadium.
 
Gabriel Blau - LGBTQ Rights Advocate
Gabriel Blau is a nationally acclaimed advocate for LGBTQ families and their communities. For more than 15 years his work has focused on LGBTQ rights, faith, and equality. He served as the Executive Director of Family Equality Council where he and his team pursued a strategy to reframe the very notion of family values through policy, community engagement, and public education to expand the national conversation about children, parents, and what it means to support families in America.
In 1998 he founded the God & Sexuality Conference at Bard College where he and his colleagues gathered scholars to write and present on religion, sexuality, and gender. He is currently a member of the board of advisors of the LGBT Religious Archives Network. He was named one of The Advocate’s 40 Under 40 in 2014, and honored by the Stonewall Democratic Club of New York City. He lives with his husband and their son in New York.
 
Tanya Asapansa-Johnson Walker - Leading Advocate for Transgender Rights
Tanya Asapansa-Johnson Walker is the policy liaison for the New York Transgender Advocacy Group. She is honorably discharged U.S Army veteran with 28 years of experience as an LGBTQ activist. Prior to joining NYTAG, she worked for seven years as a case manager in a transgender transitional housing program.  She is a feminist who has fought tirelessly for the rights of women, and continues to fight for the rights of all transgender and cisgender documented and undocumented individuals. She is a member of the Stonewall Democrats, the Black & Latino Coalition, and the GENDA Advocates Coalition with Governor Cuomo’s Staff.
 
Andrea Pino - Co-Founder of End Rape on Campus
The daughter of Cuban refugees,  Andrea Pino is a digital strategist, author, and survivor activist. She attended The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as a first generation college student, and is is co-author of “We Believe You: Survivors of Campus Sexual Assault Speak Out." She is co-founder of the national survivor advocacy organization End Rape on Campus, where she worked for over five years to support students in learning their rights and in changing their campus sexual assault and harassment policies. Her activism and advocacy has been featured in the New York Times, Vogue, CNN, Good Morning America, as well as many other media outlets. Her work and personal journey was prominently featured in the film The Hunting Ground, which premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival, and in 2016 she appeared alongside Lady Gaga and 50 other survivors at the Academy Awards.
 
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