David's Democratic Convention Speech 31 May 2024 ​ Hello Maine Democrats! ​ It’s great to be back in Bangor. The city of my birth and the “big” city of my childhood and teen years. For those of you who don’t know me – I was raised in nearby Old Town – the proud son of an Army veteran and labor organizer and grandson of French and Irish American shoe, textile, and railroad workers. ​ And, like you, my commitment to the Democratic Party and our Party’s values didn’t begin with this election year. It was instilled in me as I participated on picket lines in Bangor and Old Town as a boy and has grown stronger ever since – as I’ve worked alongside party and environmental activists, union members, and Democratic office holders to better the lives of people here in Maine and elsewhere as an adult. ​ I fully recognize that if it were not for such Democratic Party initiatives as the minimum wage, Social Security, Pell Grants, and guaranteed student loans – I would not have been able to put myself through college and I would not be speaking to you today as a proud life-long Democrat running for the United States Senate. ​ I decided to run for the Senate now, because, like many of you, I’m very concerned about the health of our environment and democracy and the performance of our government. ​ For decades, we Democrats have labored to establish a more just, secure, and prosperous nation. One in which everyone is treated fairly, and all are provided with the opportunity to excel. And while we’ve made considerable progress over the years, we’ve yet to establish the kind of more perfect union envisioned by our most thoughtful founders and descendants. ​ We’ve fallen short, in large part, because our nation’s governing infrastructure is as outdated as many of our roads, ports, and bridges. Republican imposed gridlock and dysfunction abounds, and our imperfect democracy is in danger of becoming even more flawed. ​ To fix this, to fix Washington, we need to do more than simply change whom we elect every two to six years. We need to substantially reform our governing practices and institutions, and we need to eliminate the excessive and corrupting influence that money, wealth, and disinformation have over our politics and government. ​ I am running because I want to help in advancing long-overdue legislative and constitutional reforms that will not only aid in strengthening our democracy and government, but also help in better protecting our rights and freedoms – including women’s reproductive rights and LGBTQ freedoms – and more effectively assist in addressing such critical issues as climate change, escalating gun violence, economic inequality, unaffordable housing and health care, and insufficient retirement security… ​ As examples, in the near-term, I want to help in: banning gerrymandering and eliminating Senate “holds” and filibusters – requiring social media companies to adhere to reasonable public interest rules – and ratifying the “For Our Freedom Amendment” to better regulate campaign contributions and spending. ​ And, over the longer-term, I want to help in: abolishing the Electoral College – imposing sensible term limits and retirement age requirements on legislators and judges – including Supreme Court justices – and, restructuring the U.S. House and Senate so that their allocation of power and policy decisions are more in-line with the American people’s interests, and not primarily the interests of the powerful few. ​ While enacting these and the other reforms won’t be easy, none is especially radical, and given that most Americans are crying out for meaningful change, many could be realized if sufficient attention, reason, and effort are applied. What clearly isn’t working in Washington, is doing more of the same. Fighting over a half-dozen House and Senate seats, when substantive systems reform is what is really needed. ​ To succeed, we need to elect senators and representatives whose policy ambitions are greater than their own personal political aspirations. Senators and representatives who are more apt to listen to doctors, scientists, and economists, than they are to consultants, lobbyists, and wealthy donors. And senators and representatives who’ve grown impatient with the lack of sufficient change and progress, and who possess the courage to back bold, justifiably innovative solutions. It’s no longer best practice to simply choose politicians who, like senators King and Collins, because of their don’t-rock-the-boat centrist personas are considered the most electable, but who generally fail to deliver any significant benefits beyond their own election. ​ We also need to do a better job of pushing back against the false narrative that both political parties are responsible for Washington’s dysfunction. For too long too many politicians, including Maine’s two U.S. senators, have benefited politically from this misleading narrative. ​ While we Democrats bear some responsibility for Washington’s failures, it’s nothing in comparison to that of the Republican Party. Which for over thirty years, has increasingly been unwilling to compromise and instead has chosen to employ extreme gerrymanders, government shutdowns, debt default threats, voter suppression laws, and other means to deceitfully win elections and prevent the enactment of sound, broadly popular government policies and reforms. And it’s only getting worse! ​ Only by pushing back harder and electing senators and representatives who are willing to fight for the reforms needed to fix Washington are we likely to succeed in adequately: - ensuring reproductive freedom. - addressing climate change. - passing Medicare for all who want and need it. - reducing gun violence. - protecting social security. - enacting comprehensive immigration reform. - providing universal pre-K and after-care. - reducing economy-stifling wealth inequality. - bolstering our nation’s security by strengthening diplomacy, nuclear arms controls, and strategic alliances; and - raising sufficient revenues to balance our budgets and fund further investments in public education, infrastructure, and scientific research and development. ​ Now… regarding the small matter of my chances of winning in November and working alongside Maine’s two excellent representatives: Chellie Pingree and Jared Golden. ​ I am well aware of my underdog status. ​ However, having grown up in a working-class family in Maine and having served for more than 25 years in senior level government positions – managing complex, multi-million-dollar programs and operations, including initiatives to combat climate change, revitalize communities, protect public health and the environment, and advance peaceful democratic change in such conflict-torn countries as Cambodia, Haiti, Bosnia, and Kosovo – I believe that I have the broadest and most fitting experience of all the candidates competing to represent Maine in the United States Senate and the soundest ideas for tackling our most pressing problems. ​ I do not believe the Republican Party’s nominee, given her lack of governing experience and MAGA conspiracies disseminations, is a serious candidate. ​ And, while I appreciate that Senator King caucuses with Senate Democrats and that he’s a safe bet, he’s been too reticent to pursue the kind of reforms needed to truly fix Washington, and he’s unlikely to alter his overly cautious approach going forward. ​ Moreover, I believe that independent candidates have, on balance, undermined and continue to undermine our Party’s efforts to grow and succeed and should, therefore, not be supported. At least – they should not be our Party’s first choice on Maine’s ranked choice ballot in November. ​ So, if you are as committed as I am, to taking on MAGA disinformation and intimidation and fighting for the reforms and policies needed to better protect our rights and environment - and significantly strengthen our democracy, government, and economy. ​ Join me at costelloforsenate.com and together we can fix what’s broken in Washington and ensure that all Americans, are provided with the security, education, job skills, healthcare, and other life enriching opportunities to thrive! Together we can do this! Thank you.

JOIN US In Fighting For Real Change and Progress DONATE SUBSCRIBE VOLUNTEER To Substantially Strengthen our Democracy, Government, and Economy We Need to Think Bigger and Act Boldly LATEST NEWS OPINION: IT'S TIME FOR A MAINE SENATOR FOCUSED ON POLICY, NOT PR I don't believe Sen. Angus King’s years-long approach of “reaching across the aisle” is working in today’s Washington. Our federal government is failing us. Extreme gerrymandering and single-member districts silence the voices of thousands. Senate filibusters derail important legislation. Our Electoral College results in election winners becoming losers, and our existing campaign finance system furthers the interests of the wealthy over everyone else. In many respects, Washington is broken. WHY I'M RUNNING FOR THE US SENATE September 10, 2024 My first taste of politics was on picket lines as a boy as my father, an Army veteran, and grandparents struck for better wages and benefits at a grocery store in Bangor and a shoe mill in Old Town. DEMOCRATIC U.S. SENATE CANDIDATE DAVID COSTELLO URGES SUPPORT FOR LONG-OVERDUE REFORMS TO END CONGRESSIONAL DYSFUNCTION AND TACKLE OUR NATION'S MOST PRESSING PROBLEMS BANGOR, Maine – (On Friday, May 31st, at 7 pm. ET) In an address to Maine Democrats, U.S. Senate candidate David Costello urged fellow Democrats to back “long-overdue” legislative and constitutional reforms to better protect personal rights and freedoms and more effectively tackle such pressing problems as climate change, escalating gun violence, economic inequality, unaffordable housing and healthcare, and insufficient retirement security. Costello said “What clearly isn’t working in Washington, is doing more of the same. Fighting over a half-dozen House and Senate seats, when substantive systems reform is what is really needed.” Costello’s speech hit on a lot of points such as: his formative years, his qualifications and experience, and how he would strive to advance sound reforms and policies to end dysfunction in Washington and ensure that all Americans are provided with the security, education, job skills, and other life enriching to thrive. DEMOCRATIC U.S. SENATE CANDIDATE DAVID COSTELLO ISSUES STATEMENT ON GAZA Brunswick, ME – Democratic U.S. Senate Candidate David Costello issued a statement today in support of efforts to press the Netanyahu government to comply more fully with the Biden Administration’s humanitarian aid, cease-fire, and political settlement requests. Costello stated that “Hamas’s horrific assault on October 7 was wholly unjustified and Israel had every right, and indeed an obligation, to respond forcefully. No terrorist action, nor attacks from allied parties, like Hezbollah and Iran, should ever go unanswered. However, from the beginning, Israel’s military response in Gaza has been excessive and much of it indefensible. Instead of strategically and precisely focusing on the return of hostages and the eradication of Hamas as a military and political entity, Israel’s disproportionate actions have resulted in the wholesale and counterproductive destruction of much of Gaza and the deaths and deprivation of untold thousands of innocent Palestinians. President Biden, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and many others are correct to question the motives and detrimental decisions of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his right-wing allies. Decisions that have not contributed effectively to the release of Israeli and American hostages and have resulted in growing animosity toward Israelis and in making Israel less secure. Criticizing Israel’s recent actions and leadership does not excuse the decades of counterproductive, undemocratic, and often deplorable actions of Palestinian and neighboring Arab leaders but is meant to reinforce the contention that the most constructive if not the only sensible way forward is to establish a durable cease-fire and peace settlement based on a credible two-state, Israel-Palestine solution. To that end, I support, and urge Senators King and Collins to support, efforts to convince the Biden Administration – which has increasingly urged Israel to protect civilians and aid in the provision of critical humanitarian assistance – to pause the transfer of offensive weapons to Israel until the Netanyahu government complies more fully with the Administration’s humanitarian aid, cease-fire, and political settlement requests. Having worked overseas in conflict-torn, authoritarian-ruled countries, I’ve witnessed first-hand the horrors of war and dictatorial rule, and I understand that armed conflict is sometimes necessary to end the harm caused by malevolent actors like Hamas, Al Qaida, ISIS, Balkan nationalists, and Vladimir Putin. Yet, I also appreciate that in almost all instances of armed conflict, innocents are harmed and given this, and the accompanying risk of stoking further extremism and violence, nations must always err on the side of protecting innocent non-combatants.” U.S. SENATE CANDIDATE DAVID COSTELLO SUBMITS NOMINATION PETITIONS TO QUALIFY FOR MAINE'S JUNE 11 PRIMARY BALLOT March 12, 2024 Brunswick, ME – Democratic U.S. Senate Candidate David Costello today submitted 195 petitions containing the signatures of 2,500 registered Maine Democrats, the maximum admissible, to qualify for Maine’s June 11 Democratic primary ballot. Costello said that he decided to run for the U.S. Senate because, “like many in Maine,” he’s “very concerned about the health of our democracy and the performance of our government.” Costello contends that “Washington is broken” and that to fix it “we need to do more than simply change who we elect every two to six years. We need to substantially reform our governing practices and institutions, and eliminate the excessive and corrupting influence that money, wealth, and disinformation have over our politics and government.” Costello said that he is "committed to advancing long overdue legislative and constitutional reforms that will not only aid in strengthening our democracy and government, but also help in better protecting our rights and freedoms, including reproductive rights and freedoms, and assist in more actively and effectively addressing such pressing problems as climate change, escalating gun violence, unaffordable housing and health care, economic inequality, shoddy infrastructure, underperforming schools, and insufficient retirement security." Costello added, "What clearly isn’t working in Washington, is doing more of the same. Fighting over a half-dozen or slightly more U.S. House or Senate seats, when substantive systems change, is what is really needed.” Having grown up in a working-class family in Old Town and having worked for more than 25 years in senior level state, local, and federal government positions, including in Maine and abroad, Costello believes that he has the broadest and most germane and hands-on experience of all the candidates competing to represent Maine in the U.S. Senate. With respect to Senator King, Costello said that “while he appreciates the Senator’s service, he believes that Senator King has been too reticent to pursue the kind of reforms needed to truly fix Washington and that he is unlikely to alter his overly cautious approach during what is likely to be his last term.” IT'S TIME TO FIX WASHINGTON January 17, 2024 We need wholesale change in Congress and constitutional reforms to really create a government representative of and responsive to its citizenry. MAINE VOICES: TOO HOT TO IGNORE – MUCH MORE ACTION IS NEEDED TO FIGHT CLIMATE CHANGE August 17, 2023 We need to immediately develop and implement an aggressive national, science-based climate plan, including a panel that evaluates and reports on our progress and recommends needed adjustments. DEMOCRATIC SENATE CANDIDATE DAVID COSTELLO SAYS AN ALL THE ABOVE APPROACH WOULD LIKELY WORK BEST TO TACKLE GUN VIOLENCE IN THE UNITED STATES June 26, 2023 Like many Mainers, I grew up learning to hunt and shoot and to handle guns safely and responsibly. I took gun safety very seriously then and, given the long-standing rise in gun violence, I take it even more seriously today.When people talk of gun safety today, hunting, target shooting, and gun ownership are seldom, if ever, really at issue. At issue, is the proliferation in the sale and violent misuse of non-hunting guns and magazines and the counterproductive weakening and rejection of laws designed to reduce gun violence. While I would never support denying responsible, law-abiding citizens their right to own a gun, I do support markedly strengthening our nation’s gun safety laws and regulations. Gun violence is on the rise throughout the United States, and appallingly, since 2020, it has surpassed car accidents as the leading cause of death for American children. The fact that the U.S. House and Senate have done little over the last 30 years to address gun violence is unconscionable. Everything that can be done - from expanded mental health services, stricter gun crime sentencing, and increased community policing to waiting periods, universal background checks, and assault weapons bans – should be done to reduce gun related deaths, injuries, and crime in the United States. To continue to do less is unacceptable. DEMOCRATIC U.S. SENATE CANDIDATE DAVID COSTELLO URGES SUPPORT FOR TRIBAL SOVEREIGNTY FOR MAINE'S FOUR INDIGENOUS TRIBES June 26, 2023 Brunswick – Democratic Senate Candidate David Costello today released a statement urging support for tribal sovereignty for Maine’s four indigenous tribes. Costello stated, “unlike the Nation’s other 570 federally recognized tribes, Maine’s Penobscot, Maliseet, Mi’kmaq, and Passamaquoddy tribes are unnecessarily and detrimentally excluded from automatically receiving a range of federal health care, economic development, environmental protection, emergency response assistance, and other benefits.” Costello noted that a recent Harvard University study concluded that tribal self-determination and government has contributed to significant economic growth and other benefits for the vast majority of other indigenous tribes in the United States. Additionally, and importantly for many rural towns and villages in Maine, the study also concluded that there were significant spill-over benefits for neighboring non-tribal communities. Costello added that the study found: “Unique to Maine, the federal Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act of 1980 (MICSA) empowers the state government to block the applicability of federal Indian policy in Maine. As a result, the development of the Wabanaki Nations’ economies and governmental capacities have been stunted. Today, all four of the tribes in Maine—Maliseet, Mi’kmaq, Passamaquoddy, and Penobscot—are stark economic underperformers relative to the other tribes in the Lower 48 states. The subjugation of the Wabanaki Nation’s self-governing capacities is blocking economic development to the detriment of both tribal and non- tribal citizens, alike. For the tribal citizens of Maine held down by MICSA’s restrictions, loosening or removing those restrictions offers them little in the way of downside risks and but much in the way of upside payoffs. Importantly, we find in this study that “nowhere to go but up” also applies to the Maine state government and Maine’s non-tribal citizens. From case after case, the pattern that has emerged under federal policies of tribal self-determination through self-government is one in which tribal economic development spills over positively into neighboring non-tribal communities and improves the abilities of state and local governments to serve their citizens.” Costello concluded, “As the study emphasizes, there is ‘nowhere to go but up’ for Maine and Maine communities and thus there is unlikely to be any substantial downside to granting tribal sovereignty to Maine’s four tribes. Moreover, granting Maine's tribes sovereignty is long overdue and the right thing to do both morally and ethically.” U.S. SENATE CANDIDATE DAVID COSTELLO'S OP-ED June 13, 2023 To Truly Fix Washington, We Must Substantially Overhaul Our Governing Practices and Institutions For generations, we Americans have labored to establish a more just, secure, and prosperous nation. One in which all are treated fairly and all are provided with the opportunity to excel. And while we have made considerable progress over the years, we have yet to establish the kind of more perfect union envisioned by our most thoughtful founders and descendants. We have fallen short, in large part, because our governing infrastructure is as deficient and outdated as many of our roads, ports, and bridges. Partisan gridlock abounds, and our imperfect democracy is in danger of becoming even more flawed. The latest example being Washington’s current battle over the Nation’s debt limit. To fix Washington, we need to do more than simply change who we elect every two to six years. We need to substantially reform our governing practices and institutions, and we need to eliminate the excessive and corrupting influence that money, wealth, and disinformation have over our politics and government. Specifically, we should, in the near term: · Pass the Freedom to Vote Act. · Ban gerrymandering and eliminate the Senate’s filibuster.​​ · ​Establish an independent Government Accountability and Performance Commission. · Impose term limits and retirement age requirements on federal judges, including Supreme Court justices. ​ · Increase funding for non-partisan public news broadcasting. · Require social media platforms to adhere to reasonable public interest rules. · Ratify the “For Our Freedom Amendment” to better regulate campaign contributions and spending. ​​And, over the longer term: · Abolish the Electoral College and establish a system of directly electing presidents and include ranked choice voting (RCV) when there are more than two candidates. · Restructure the U.S. Senate so that its allocation of power is more in-line with a state’s population. · Overhaul the U.S. House so that it is comprised of non-gerrymandered, multi-winner districts. · Revise the terms and impose 24-year term limits on U.S. senators and representatives. · Streamline the U.S. Constitution’s amendment process so that it is no longer virtually impossible to update our national charter. Specifically, modify the amendment process to require no more than 60% approval from both houses of Congress and ratifying support from states representing 62% or more of the nation’s population. While pursuing and achieving these reforms will not be easy, the potential benefits of doing so — including better-protected rights and freedoms and more adequately addressed problems like climate change, economic inequality, inadequate health care, shoddy infrastructure, underperforming schools, and insufficient retirement security — make attempting to pursue and achieve them well worth the effort. By David Costello Democratic Candidate for the U.S. Senate www.costelloforsenate.com GOVERNMENT REFORM ADVOCATE ENTERS RACE FOR THE UNITED STATES SENATE April 12, 2023 Brunswick – Government reform advocate and Brunswick resident, David Costello, announced today that he is entering the race for the United States Senate. A native of Old Town, Costello returned to Maine in 2019 after having served as a senior aide to the mayor of Baltimore and governor of Maryland and having helped to manage Maryland’s environmental protection agency (MDE). Prior to working in Maryland, Costello worked largely overseas for the U.S. Government, responding to political, economic, and humanitarian crises in Cambodia, Haiti, Bosnia, Croatia, Serbia, and Kosovo. Costello said that he has decided to run for the U.S. Senate because, “like many Mainers, he’s grown tired of the level of acrimony and dysfunction in Washington and Congress’s inability to act and to act in ways that serve the best interests of all Americans.” “For generations,” Costello added, “we Americans have labored to establish a more just, secure, and prosperous nation. And while we’ve made considerable progress over the years, we have yet to establish the kind of more perfect union envisioned by our most thoughtful founders and descendants.” Costello contends that “we have fallen short, in large part, because our governing infrastructure is as outdated as many of our roads, ports, and bridges. Partisan gridlock, government ineffectiveness, and political disinformation abound, and our imperfect democracy is in danger of becoming even more flawed.” “To fix Washington,” Costello argues “we need to do more than simply changing who we elect every two to six years. We need to think bigger and act boldly to substantially reform our governing practices and institutions, and eliminate the excessive and corrupting influence that money, wealth, and misinformation have over our politics and government.” Costello further added that he is running because he wants “to help in advancing long overdue legislative and constitutional reforms. Reforms that will not only aid in strengthening our democracy, government, and economy, but also help in protecting our rights and freedoms, and assist in addressing such pressing problems as climate change, uneven economic prosperity, inadequate health insurance, shoddy infrastructure, underperforming schools, and insufficient retirement security.” Costello, a democrat, attended the University of Maine in Orono and is a graduate of the George Washington University and London School of Economics and Political Science. For more detail on Costello’s ambitious reform agenda and policy priorities visit www.costelloforsenate.com. DAVID COSTELLO ANNOUNCES BID FOR U.S. SENATE Friends: For generations, we Americans have labored to establish a more just, secure, and prosperous nation. One in which everyone is treated fairly, and all are provided with the opportunity to excel. FOLLOW DAVID ON SOCIAL MEDIA Subscribe

In the Media Primary Ballot Qualification Announcement Press Release Gun Safety Gaza Statement Climate Action Tribal Statement

Expanding Economic Prosperity David will help in fostering a thriving economy and broader prosperity by supporting efforts to: Provide universal pre-kindergarten and aftercare. Expand workforce training and apprenticeships. Increase performance-aligned resources for our schools, colleges, students, and teachers. Boost investments in transportation, energy, and communications infrastructure. Spur scientific research and development (R&D). Raise the federal minimum wage and increase federal Child and Earned Income Tax Credits. Expand sustainable community and affordable housing development assistance. Increase personal investment and savings incentives – retirement and non-retirement. Reallocate large agri-business and fossil fuel subsidies to rural economic development and clean energy initiatives. Raise adequate revenue and ensure tax fairness via the enactment of progressive tax reforms. Establish a global minimum corporate tax and enhanced labor and environment protections. ​

Democratic Senate Candidate David Costello Says an All the Above Approach Would Likely Work Best to Tackle Gun Violence in the United States June 26, 2023 ​ Like many Mainers, I grew up learning to hunt and shoot and to handle guns safely and responsibly. I took gun safety very seriously then and, given the long-standing rise in gun violence, I take it even more seriously today. When people talk of gun safety today, hunting, target shooting, and gun ownership are seldom, if ever, really at issue. At issue is the proliferation in the sale and violent misuse of non-hunting guns and magazines and the counterproductive weakening and rejection of laws designed to reduce gun violence. While I would never support denying responsible, law-abiding citizens their right to own a gun, I do support markedly strengthening our nation’s gun safety laws and regulations. Gun violence is on the rise throughout the United States, and appallingly, since 2020, it has surpassed car accidents as the leading cause of death for American children. The fact that the U.S. House and Senate have done little over the last 30 years to address gun violence is unconscionable. Everything that can be done - from expanded mental health services, stricter gun crime sentencing, and increased community policing to waiting periods, universal background checks, and assault weapons bans – should be done to reduce gun-related deaths, injuries, and crime in the United States. Most Americans agree. To continue to do less is unacceptable. Document

Democratic U.S. Senate Candidate David Costello Issues Statement on Gaza May 2, 2024 Brunswick, ME – Democratic U.S. Senate Candidate David Costello issued a statement today in support of efforts to press the Netanyahu government to comply more fully with the Biden Administration’s humanitarian aid, cease-fire, and political settlement requests. Costello stated that “Hamas’s horrific assault on October 7 was wholly unjustified and Israel had every right, and indeed an obligation, to respond forcefully. No terrorist action, nor attacks from allied parties, like Hezbollah and Iran, should ever go unanswered. However, from the beginning, Israel’s military response in Gaza has been excessive and much of it indefensible. Instead of strategically and precisely focusing on the return of hostages and the eradication of Hamas as a military and political entity, Israel’s disproportionate actions have resulted in the wholesale and counterproductive destruction of much of Gaza and the deaths and deprivation of untold thousands of innocent Palestinians. President Biden, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and many others are correct to question the motives and detrimental decisions of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his right-wing allies. Decisions that have not contributed effectively to the release of Israeli and American hostages and have resulted in growing animosity toward Israelis and in making Israel less secure. Criticizing Israel’s recent actions and leadership does not excuse the decades of counterproductive, undemocratic, and often deplorable actions of Palestinian and neighboring Arab leaders but is meant to reinforce the contention that the most constructive if not the only sensible way forward is to establish a durable cease-fire and peace settlement based on a credible two-state, Israel-Palestine solution. To that end, I urge Senators King and Collins to support ongoing efforts to convince the Biden Administration – which has increasingly urged Israel to protect civilians and aid in the provision of critical humanitarian assistance – to pause the transfer of offensive weapons to Israel until the Netanyahu government complies more fully with the Administration’s humanitarian aid, cease-fire, and political settlement requests. Having worked overseas in conflict-torn, authoritarian-ruled countries, I’ve witnessed first-hand the horrors of war and dictatorial rule, and I understand that armed conflict is sometimes necessary to end the harm caused by malevolent actors like Hamas, Al Qaida, ISIS, Balkan nationalists, and Vladimir Putin. Yet, I also appreciate that in almost all instances of armed conflict, innocents are harmed and given this, and the accompanying risk of stoking further extremism and violence, nations must always err on the side of protecting innocent non- combatants.”

Enhancing Retirement Security ​ David will help in strengthening Social Security and overall retirement security by supporting efforts to: Raise the FICA payroll tax cap. Provide increased benefits to low-income retirees. Establish a sovereign wealth fund to help in funding Social Security and Medicare. Back the expansion of government incentivized retirement savings and investment accounts for working- and middle-class Americans to supplement Social Security. ​ ​

GOVERNMENT REFORM ADVOCATE TO ENTER RACE FOR THE UNITED STATES SENATE April 12, 2023 ​ Brunswick – Government reform advocate and Brunswick resident, David Costello, announced today that he is entering the race for the United States Senate. A native of Old Town, Costello returned to Maine in 2019 after having served as a senior aide to the mayor of Baltimore and governor of Maryland and having helped to manage Maryland’s environmental protection agency (MDE). Prior to working in Maryland, Costello worked largely overseas for the U.S. Government, responding to political, economic, and humanitarian crises in Cambodia, Haiti, Bosnia, Croatia, Serbia, and Kosovo. Costello said that he has decided to run for the U.S. Senate because, “like many Mainers, he’s grown tired of the level of acrimony and dysfunction in Washington and Congress’s inability to act and to act in ways that serve the best interests of all Americans.” “For generations,” Costello added, “we Americans have labored to establish a more just, secure, and prosperous nation. And while we’ve made considerable progress over the years, we have yet to establish the kind of more perfect union envisioned by our most thoughtful founders and descendants.” Costello contends that “we have fallen short, in large part, because our governing infrastructure is as outdated as many of our roads, ports, and bridges. Partisan gridlock, government ineffectiveness, and political disinformation abound, and our imperfect democracy is in danger of becoming even more flawed.” “To fix Washington,” Costello argues “we need to do more than simply changing who we elect every two to six years. We need to think bigger and act boldly to substantially reform our governing practices and institutions, and eliminate the excessive and corrupting influence that money, wealth, and misinformation have over our politics and government.” Costello further added that he is running because he wants “to help in advancing long overdue legislative and constitutional reforms. Reforms that will not only aid in strengthening our democracy, government, and economy, but also help in protecting our rights and freedoms, and assist in addressing such pressing problems as climate change, uneven economic prosperity, inadequate health insurance, shoddy infrastructure, underperforming schools, and insufficient retirement security.” Costello, a democrat, attended the University of Maine in Orono and is a graduate of the George Washington University and London School of Economics and Political Science. For more detail on Costello’s ambitious reform agenda and policy priorities visit www.costelloforsenate.com . Document

A Summary of David's Key Public Policy Priorities As Maine's Senator, David will work to help in advancing a number of very important administrative reform s and legislative initiatives, many of which are summarized below. Economy Environment National Security Health Care Civil Rights and Equality Public Safety Climate Change Retirement Security Immigration

About David Growing Up in Old Town David was born in Bangor and raised in Old Town by his mother Gail and maternal grandparents, Alfred and Pauline Pelletier B aillargeon. David’s father John, an Army veteran and AFL-CIO organizer, died in 1968 at the age of thirty-one. ​ David is t he grandson of French and Irish American shoe, textile, and railroad workers. And like many in Maine, he was the first in his family to attend a four year college and to earn a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree – having worked his way through the University of Maine, George Washington University, and London School of Economics and Political Science. A Career of Service David has more than twenty-five years of senior-leve l state, local, and federal go vernment experience. Inspired by participating in picket lines as a boy, David became active in politics in his late teens. Leaving college at the age of nineteen, David served on Senator Ted Kennedy’s national field staff in 1980. He subsequently worked on two additional national presidential campaigns and locally on U.S. Senate, U.S. House, and Maine gubernatorial campaigns into the early 1990s. David visiting a village in northeastern Haiti to assess a community water project (1995). David with Senator Ted Kennedy, Senator William Hathaway, and Boston Bruins Wayne Cashman and Johny Bucyk (1980). David served as a top aide to Maine Secretary of State Bill Diamond in the early 1990s, helping to develop and implement elections, campaign finance, and motor vehicle administration and safety reforms. Between 1993 and 2001, David worked prim arily abroad for the U.S. government, responding to political, humanitarian, and economic crises in conflict-torn Cambodia, Haiti, Bosnia, Croatia, Serbia, and Kosovo. David being sworn in as a Deputy Secretary of State by Maine Secretary of State Bill Diamond (1989). David, Serbia's Deputy Prime Minister, U.S. Ambassador to Yugoslavia, and local Serbian and Albanian leaders sign community improvement grants in Serbia's conflict-ridden Presevo Valley (2001). David crossing the Mekong River in Cambodia following an election coordination meeting in Kampong Cham (1993). David inspecting a Kosovar Albanian home that had been destroyed by Serbian nationalists in western Kosovo (1998). In the early to middle 2000s, David served as a top aide to the Mayor of Baltimore directing collaborative efforts to improve the City’s schools and address the needs of Baltimore’s at-risk children, youth, and families. Between 2007 and 2011, David worked as a senior aide to the Governor of Maryland, managing state efforts to devise and implement cross-agency plans and programs to achieve ambitious job creation, crime reduction, workforce development, student achievement, substance abuse treatment, environmental protection, clean energy, and sustainable development goals. David, Mayor Martin O'Malley, and public works staff participate in a Baltimore City school improvement project (2004). David and Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley discussing agenda items at an economic transition event (2011). David with Delaware Senator Chris Coons and EPA and Delaware officials highlighting upgrades to a sewage treatment plant in Delmar, Delaware/Maryland (2014). From 2011 - 2015, David served as a Deputy and Acting Secretary of the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) helping to manage MDE’s 1,000+ employees, various programs, and $380 million annual budget. In addition to his government work, David more recently directed two non-governmental climate action projects in Maryland and served as an interim climate and clean energy program director at the Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM). David participating with senior Maryland officials at a Chesapeake Bay restoration status meeting in Annapolis, Maryland (2010). Family David resides in Brunswick with his wife, children, and beagle Stella.

Democratic U.S. Senate Candidate David Costello Urges Support for Tribal Sovereignty for Maine’s Four Indigenous Tribes June 26, 2023 Brunswick – Democratic Senate Candidate David Costello today released a statement urging support for tribal sovereignty for Maine’s four indigenous tribes. Costello stated, “unlike the Nation’s other 570 federally recognized tribes, Maine’s Penobscot, Maliseet, Mi’kmaq, and Passamaquoddy tribes are unnecessarily and detrimentally excluded from automatically receiving a range of federal health care, economic development, environmental protection, emergency response assistance and other benefits.” Costello noted that a recent Harvard University study concluded that tribal self-determination and government has contributed to significant economic growth and other benefits for the vast majority of other indigenous tribes in the United States. Additionally, and importantly for many rural towns and villages in Maine, the study also concluded that there were considerable spill-over benefits for neighboring non-tribal communities. Costello added that the study found: ​ “Unique to Maine, the federal Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act of 1980 (MICSA) empowers the state government to block the applicability of federal Indian policy in Maine. As a result, the development of the Wabanaki Nations’ economies and governmental capacities have been stunted. Today, all four of the tribes in Maine—Maliseet, Mi’kmaq, Passamaquoddy, and Penobscot—are stark economic underperformers relative to the other tribes in the Lower 48 states. ​ The subjugation of the Wabanaki Nation’s self-governing capacities is blocking economic development to the detriment of both tribal and non-tribal citizens, alike. For the tribal citizens of Maine held down by MICSA’s restrictions, loosening or removing those restrictions offers them little in the way of downside risks and but much in the way of upside payoffs. ​ Importantly, we find in this study that “nowhere to go but up” also applies to the Maine state government and Maine’s non-tribal citizens. From case after case, the pattern that has emerged under federal policies of tribal self-determination through self-government is one in which tribal economic development spills over positively into neighboring non-tribal communities and improves the abilities of state and local governments to serve their citizens.” Costello concluded, “As the study emphasizes, there is ‘nowhere to go but up’ for Maine and Maine communities and thus there is unlikely to be any downside to granting tribal sovereignty to Maine’s four tribes. Moreover, granting sovereignty to Maine's tribes is long overdue and is the right thing to do both morally and ethically.”

Maine Voices: Too hot to ignore – much more action is needed to fight climate change. We need to immediately develop and implement an aggressive national, science-based climate plan, including a panel that evaluates and reports on our progress and recommends needed adjustments. BY DAVID COSTELLO SPECIAL TO THE PRESS HERALD August 17, 2023 With this summer’s unprecedented heat, wildfires and extreme storms, more Americans than ever before understand what scientists concluded decades ago: that climate change is real and that for many communities, farms, and businesses, it is a growing existential threat. And if we fail to move quickly enough to reduce global carbon emissions, the impacts of climate change on our environment and many of our planet’s inhabitants are likely to be devastating. According to the World Bank, more than 100 million additional people, for instance, are projected to become impoverished by 2030 because of global warming impacts on agriculture, food prices, income losses, adverse health impacts and population displacement – and up to 3 billion people are projected to experience chronic water scarcity, according to the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. ABOUT THE AUTHOR David Costello is a candidate for the 2024 Democratic U.S. Senate nomination. He lives in Brunswick. President Biden, Gov. Mills and many state and federal legislators “get it” and are working diligently to address climate change. The Biden administration’s recent Inflation Reduction Act, bipartisan infrastructure law and enhanced greenhouse-gas emissions regulations, and the Mills administration’s corresponding “Maine Won’t Wait” climate plan and actions are helping families, communities and corporations lower their consumption of increasingly expensive and dirty fossil fuels and aid in accelerating Maine’s and the nation’s transition to a healthier, more prosperous and resilient clean energy-fueled future. However, to adequately tackle climate change, we need to do more – a lot more than we have done to date. Specifically, we need to employ stronger regulations and incentives to ensure that we come very close to zeroing out our greenhouse-gas emissions by 2050, and we need to draw down significant amounts of carbon from our atmosphere for many, many years thereafter. Additionally, we need to ensure that our communities, farms and businesses have effectively planned and prepared for the risks and costs associated with extreme weather, flooding, sea-level rise, wildfire and other detrimental impacts of climate change. To accomplish this, we need to immediately develop and implement an aggressive national, science-based climate action plan. This ambitious and comprehensive plan would include, among other elements: initiatives to progressively price and limit greenhouse-gas emissions; substantial carbon sequestration and land conservation targets and actions; expanded clean energy, clean transportation and energy-efficiency goals and incentives; smarter, more sustainable development rules and land use regulations; greener appliance standards and building construction codes; markedly increased funding for extreme weather-resilient infrastructure, and the establishment of an independent Climate Action Commission to regularly evaluate, grade and report on the status of our nation’s climate progress and recommend policy and program adjustments and additions when warranted. We must always bear in mind that actions that are effectively planned and objectively tracked and measured are more apt to succeed, and that politicians and elected legislatures and administration-led agencies are generally incapable of impartially assessing their own work and level of progress. The cumulative results of such a plan and actions are likely to be extraordinary: millions of new, U.S.-based jobs in clean energy, energy efficiency, clean transportation, resilient infrastructure and sustainable agriculture and forestry; markedly cleaner air, land, and water; healthier, more prosperous and livable communities, and lower energy costs. Now is the time to fully heed the advice of nearly all the world’s scientists and economists and redouble our efforts to combat climate change and capture the far-reaching economic, public health and environmental benefits that bolder climate action will surely deliver.