Taxes: 

The federal government has consistently worked to increase the tax burden on families, individuals and businesses. Our way of life, and the liberty to control our own future is at stake. Enough is enough. I support a balanced budget capable of long term sustainability, and a government that respects the pocketbooks and the freedoms promised to its citizens in our constitution.

Water:

Water is a vital, and extremely limited resource. While there is a finite supply of water, we can increase the available supply through developing and constructing more water storage both above ground and below. For too long in northern California we have sacrificed our water rights to extremists who have no regard for the human cost of severely limited water access. Our families, agriculture and the many varied businesses who call the 11th congressional district home deserve the water they need to survive and thrive.

Federal Budget:

I am fundamentally opposed to government running a deficit. For too long Washington DC has ignored the fundamental principles of money management that families and businesses like mine live and breathe; we cannot spend more than we make. Furthermore, we cannot continue to mortgage our children and grandchildren's futures for the sake of political expediency in the present. We must be principled and disciplined so that future generations are not denied an opportunity for success because our current political leaders have abandoned their principles. As your congressman I will fight to stop run away government spending.

Education:

Our children deserve a quality education, that education is necessary for the continued prosperity of our country. The constitution is clear, however, the federal government has no right to create education mandates, this is a right maintained solely for the states. I will call for government to allow states to do what is best for their students and work to increase accountability and decrease the miles of federal red tape that currently restrict states like California from addressing the root issues of their public and higher education systems. A one size fits all federal approach to education will never work better than states addressing the issues that they face.

Health Care:

I am a firm believer that if government involves itself in the business of guaranteeing, providing, and overseeing health care for all of its citizens that the only outcome will be a system which denies care to the elderly and creates a huge new bureaucracy whose job will be to ration out care as it sees fit. This is no solution. I support measures designed to cut costs and increase data availability in order to reduce costs.  Government health care is not the answer.

Government Bailouts:

I will not support federal spending policies which are literally guaranteed to bankrupt our nation. The free market cannot work if government decides what enterprises are too big to fail. If that happens then the mechanisms of self-preservation that usually apply to keep businesses in line no longer hold any sway and the kind of rampant abuse the financial sector perpetrated becomes a viable business plan. I call for a return to free market principles.

Offshore Drilling:

Many experts agree that drilling can take place in a reasonable and environmentally friendly fashion. Therefore I firmly believe that we must remove the restrictions on environmentally responsible offshore drilling as well as Alaskan oil drilling. This is a matter not only of lowering energy costs, but also of national security. We must reduce our reliance on foreign oil while encouraging the development of new technologies. We cannot convert to new technologies overnight and America must work to limit our dependency on foreign oil while new systems come online. 

Immigration: 

The immigration system is broken, but it can be fixed. Strong border control is the key to making any solution to immigration work. There must be strict control of the border. Next, we cannot allow a general amnesty. Past experience has taught us that this is not a viable solution to the problem of illegal immigration. It is unfair for illegal immigrants to bypass those who are following the letter of the law to enter this country legally. My family entered this nation legally through Ellis Island. We must create and enforce a system where the needs of this nation are balanced with the long and honorable tradition of legal immigration. We cannot continue to spend massive amounts of money on social services for illegal immigrants. The current system is broken, and we can no longer afford to put off this issue.