Issue Position: The Issues

Issue Position

We live in a part of the state blessed with natural beauty and remarkable economic potential. But the median family income here is $33,000. We have record unemployment, overcrowded classrooms, and a disturbing disconnect between the jobs available and people seeking work. The economy, schools, health care, and the justice system all need help!

For more than 20 years, Susan and I have lived here, built a successful business, created jobs, and worked to make our community better. I'm ready to use my experience and my enthusiasm to help create a brighter economic future.

I'm running because I want to see a return to prosperity here on the Oregon Coast and in the Coastal Range. The focus of this campaign and the coming legislative session has to be jobs. I want to put my experience to work for this district. I want to be an advocate for our small businesses and for middle-class families.

Putting Kids First: Susan and I don't have children. But we have never voted against a local tax measure to support schools. Declining revenues have required cuts in many state services. I will work hard to ensure that schools do not bear the brunt of those cuts. Especially in tough economic times, we need to protect funding for K-12 and expand healthcare for children. We need tougher penalties for sexual predators. And we need to protect funding for our universities and community colleges. Heathy high schools and proactive community colleges are our best resources for preparing or re-training people for new jobs.

Create Good Jobs: I believe hard work should pay off with a secure income, affordable health care and a sustainable, healthy future. By investing in Oregon we encourage businesses to excel and communities to thrive. My focus will be on creating an environment for small businesses to succeed, provide re-training opportunities to get people back in the workforce, and investing in local infrastructure that creates encourages new businesses. This is a small-business district and I am a small businessman. I want to be an advocate for employees and owners that are taking risks and making the effort to put people back to work.

Protect Middle Class Families: In these tough economic times, we need to stand up for the middle class Oregonians hit hardest by the national recession, helping them keep their homes, find secure jobs and get back to prosperity. I'll hold insurance companies accountable, make sure banks work with families whose homes are under-water or facing foreclosure, and protect our schools and our seniors.

Prioritize Critical Services: Citizens deserve to know how our tax dollars are being spent. Oregon State government works best when it is open, transparent and efficient, giving Oregonians the information and resources they need. I'll work to streamline services, reduce unnecessary bureaucracy and layers of management, and hold private contractors accountable in order to prioritize services Oregonians rely on such as schools, protecting seniors, and public safety.

Promote Affordable Health Care: Everyone should have access to affordable health care. But out-of-control costs have made health insurance unaffordable to hundreds of thousands of Oregonians. And for many who have insurance, high deductibles make it too expensive to use. I am encouraged by ongoing discussions to consolidate care, reduce costs, and promote wellness. Keeping people healthy is more cost effective than treating illness. I will be working hard on health care reform.

Protect the Environment: We have a solemn responsibility to protect the remarkable place in which we are privileged to live. I will work hard to protect and preserve Oregon's unique environment. I see this not only as an ecological imperative, but also as basic economic good sense. On our beaches, our headlands, our forests and our lakes, a welcoming environment means jobs.

Oregon has almost 4 million residents. They don't agree on everything, so it's no surprise that their elected representatives don't either.

But Oregonians are tired of politicians who see everything through a partisan filter. We all know that no person, group, or political party has a monopoly on the truth. Oregonians have a right to expect their elected officials to work together, even when they disagree, to achieve meaningful results. And twenty-five years of marriage has taught me that compromising isn't losing...

I am asking for the honor to serve as your State Representative. I respect those with opposing views and will actively seek out common ground wherever I can find it. I believe that working together, we can make things better.

In order to protect the middle class and get our economy back on track, I need your involvement, your support, and your vote.

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