Distrito 50 — Cámara de Representantes del los Estados Unidos

America's oldest tradition has been to welcome people from all walks of life to contribute fully and fairly to our nation's economy and way of life. As a nation that is built on the principles of equal opportunity, compassion, and strong family values, it would be counter to our country's character to divide any family that calls America home.

We are a nation of immigrants and laws, that is why I believe Congress must pass comprehensive immigration reform that creates a pathway to earned citizenship for Dreamers, encourages and eases legal immigration, and gives undocumented residents the protections they need to report dangerous criminals, domestic abusers, and other threats to our society without fear of deportation

San Diego already has a wall, and that has reduced apprehensions and crossing by 95%. Spending an additional $35 Billion of taxpayer money on something San Diego Residents already have is fiscally irresponsible. Not only is it irresponsible it takes away critical domestic funding from services such as education, healthcare, and public safety.

During my multiple inspections of the border, the border patrol has asked me for updated equipment and technology like sensors that cost less and prove more effective. Beyond the security benefits, modernizing our border would also expideite commerce with California's number one export market, Mexico, which purchased $5.5 billion in U.S. goods last year according to the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce.

First and foremost, we should lift the NRA's ban on the CDC to conduct gun violence research.

Beyond that, I believe that we should implement the same protocol the military has successfully implemented when it comes to firearm safety.

• Universal background checks
• Required training for gun owners
• Mental health screening and bans on gun ownership for domestic abusers and individuals on the terrorist watch list

Lastly, if the military has decided to ban the use of carrying private firearms on a military base, then it conversely stands to reason that we should ban military style weapons in civilian life. As Americans we have all agreed that banning civilian access to tanks and rocket launchers is not an assault on our Second Amendment rights. I believe that we can protect our rights while banning other weapons of war.

When I worked at the U.S. Department of Labor, I saw funding for Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) increase exponentially as American workers were being displaced due to unfair trade. That is why I believe that we must improve NAFTA while preserving our critical commercial ties with our allies around the world and ensure that we have a more equitable relationship with our partners, which means addressing our current trade deficits with those nations.

I do not support a regressive tax, such as a gas tax, that passes the cost onto the consumer. The way I would fund infrastructure projects would be to simply end the most costly welfare program in America that has burdened taxpayers for decades: Corporate subsidies to the oil and gas industry. It's time that we de-burden the middle class by asking the wealthiest among us to also pay their fair share to the very country that made their success possible.

Congress must fix the ACA, but even with fixes, the only real solution is Medicare for all. Medicare for all can be funded by billionaires paying their fair share, and by ensuring that we allocate the resources to fulfill our commitment to the American taxpayer.

Here's how we can fix the ACA: 

• (1) Lower the cost of prescription drugs by having Medicare negotiate prices.
• (2) Provide a public option to compete with the private sector based on who provides lower costs and higher quality service.
• (3) As a short-term solution, allow individuals ages 50-64 years old to buy into medicare.
• (4) Descheduling cannabis and funding research to examine it as an alternative to often fatal prescription drugs such as opioids, depressants, and amphetamines. Medical cannabis has shown to help wounded warriors, cancer patients, and nonetheless help heal the human brain after years of opioid abuse.

It is reasonable to expect that if a person is allowed to immigrate to the US, their spouse and children would be allowed to follow.  Chain migration practices however have allowed for bringing parents and siblings along as well.  These persons are allowed to enter the US without consideration of their ability to be employed or their financial status.  This invariably puts the U.S. taxpayers at risk of significantly increasing the burden on the entitlement system. It may be that there are circumstances such as political persecution or war when these family members may need to be brought to the U.S.,  it should not be systematic.  Extended family members should be granted immigration status based upon the merits of their own individual cases whenever possible.  It is prudent for any government to protect its borders, language and culture.  We should be diligent in protecting the soverignty of our borders.  We should be diligent in vetting potential immigrants to ensure that they are willing and able to assimilate into American culture.  We should be as sure as we can be that we are not admitting people who show propensity for violence or crminal acts.  

The border wall here in San Diego has been successful. It has significantly decreased crime and the porousness of the border.  Israel also has a border wall and attributes a significant decrease in suicide bombings to its existence. The U.S. government has an obligation to keep the border safe and to stop criminal activity such as drug smuggling, human trafficking and illegal immigration.  Though it has been politically demonized, the wall is a logical tool for helping to achieve this goal.  Other technologies can also be employed, along with law enforcement officers to even further work towards this end.  The result will be increased safety for our officers, people attempting to cross the border and the public as a whole. 

 Any additional regulations on gun ownership should be considered only through the lens of the necessity to protect the Second Amendment and by extension the Constitution as a whole.  This is vital and not negotiable, except through the amendment process.  There are situations however when it is reasonable to restrict certain persons from purchasing or possessing a firearm.  Convicted felons should not be allowed to possess guns.  I also believe that persons who have had to be committed to a psychiatric hospital should not be allowed to possess firearms and that they should be subject to a background check.  

Though NAFTA has flaws and needs to be modernized, especially in regards to energy policy, I do think that the U.S. should remain in it.  Statistically those nations which we have trade agreements with have a significantly lower trade deficit than our trading partners with no set agreement.  Like smart businesses, the U.S. should regularly seek to better their trading situation if possible through modernization and renegotiation. It is the governments responsibility to put the needs of U.S. citizens and businesses above those of foreign governments or businesses.  However, the U.S. is a world leader and we should always act in ways that honor the law and justice.  

I do not support raising the federal gas tax to improve transportation infrastructure.  The current taxes should currently be more than enough to achieve this goal but most government programs focus on non car related projects such as bike lanes, mass transit and high speed rail, even though very few Americans are interested in using these types of transportation options.  This is done in response to the political decision to try and force Americans out of their cars.  Raising taxes even higher than they already are is an example of this tactic.  Americans want to drive cars and governments should not engage in social engineering attempts to force a way of life on people that they do not want.  

The Affordable Care Act was a massive overreach by the federal government that created instability and uncertantity in the American health care system.  It also inadvertently created a redistribution of wealth by providing supplements for low income and non working persons and significantly increasing the costs for the working.  To make the system work, the free market must be allowed to shape the system.  Though there should be provisions for those who can not pay, there should also be some limitations on what is and is not covered. Consumers should not be allowed to game the pre-existing condition clauses so that they only have to purchase health care coverage when they become ill.  Young healthy people should be allowed to purchase catastrophic event coverage with high deductibles if they choose to. Also, any system that punishes the middle class in an artificial scheme to redistribute wealth should be avoided.  

Limiting NO. Enabling Yes, It's best done with an I-864 Affidavit of Support. If a Permanent Resident here, has the ability to vouch for a family member to come to the US, I say expedite the petition. Good Constituent Services is the Hallmark of a great Locally based Representative in Congress. I will have a para-legal on staff who is bi-lingual (Arabic and Spanish at least) to help people correctly fill out their applications (I-130 Family Based Applications) etc. I'm very familiar with the process. 

NO. The wall is merely a symbol. and an Expensive one at that. Many Democrats running for office fail to recognize Compromise with the Republicans as the solution we are tasked with. I see the E-Verify system as one of the culprits. We make it too hard to get a rare work visa (35,000 H2B's for seasonal employment and 130,000 H2A's for Migrant Farm workers) for what is deemed low-skilled labor. We need to offer a Temporary Amnesty Program, for Undocumented Immigrants who want to make it right with the system, and simultaneously streamline the application process for doing it the right way, and remove the ease with which an undocumented person can obtain a Drivers license, open a bank account, use a fictitious name, with E-Verify and stay here indefinately. The wall fixes nothing. We need to Offer Amnesty now for those who want to come forward and make it right, or make payments to make it right, then let Law Enforcement do it's job.

Yes. I believe in States Rights, and I believe that my Gun Safety Proposal honors the 2nd Amendment whilst putting the burden of Safety on the Registered owner. I lived in NYC  during September 11th. I saw first hand how a lack of Coordination between Federal, State and Local Authorities enabled that tragedy. And then again in Parkland. 

If we can register and insure 263 million cars in the US and swiftly determine who's licensed to operate them, and take the privledge away if it is abused, then we can do the same with Guns. Let the Individual States set their own criteria for Permits and Licenses with a written and a field test. Let the Insurance companies set risk analysis models and mandate insurance accordingly. I'm a safe driver, my car is locked. I wouldn't let just anyone borrow it. Let's show some common sense and let the Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms regulate a Federal Database with shared coordination with State and Local Authorities. 

Driving is a priviledge, one that can be easily taken away. My Gun Safety Proposal honors that sentiment, and allows for a Local Officer of the Law to obtain a Warrant to impound, and let Due Process of the Law work in our communities to keep us safe. 

It was never meant to be Permanent. At this time Unemployment in the US is low. We need to wean off of NAFTA and get those manufacturing jobs back Stateside, over a steady period of time. 

I support improvements on Infrastructure, but the Gas Tax is very unpopular here in our District, and as a Representative I would be against it. I'd like to see the roads, train tracks, and especially the fire-hazardous wooden telephone poles in our rural areas and cities improved. We give the Defence budget 53% of your Federal tax dollars. They need to do more with less. and that excess is where I propose we fund Infrastructure jobs from, and subsidize Universal Healthcare. Isreal, Japan, Australia, Sweden, etc. etc. Everyone has Universal Healthcare but us, why? because we spend all your taxes overseas on other peoples problems, when we have problems to solve right here. We could have Medicare for all this year and a healthier-wealthier middle class. The Gas Tax is nothing compared to the bloated Defense budget. 

Single Payer Healthcare for all. or Universal Healthcare. 

1) Employers are more competative in the marketplace when they don't have to kick in for employees health care. 

2) Employees are free to move on to another job, and keep their healthcare without worrying about losing their benefits. 

3) America is one of the only developed nations that does not offer Universal Healthcare, Canada offers it at $35/mo. if they can do it we can do it. It's hard for Americans to save up for a downpayment on a home, kids tuition, and retirement when the insurace companies fleece us out of $600+ a month. Medicare for all puts that money back in your pocket.

4) Vet's are not limited to the VA. 

5) No Bills. Just pay your taxes, and if the doctor advises a course of action, your more likely to take it, when $ isn't in the way. 

Yes.

Congress and the President need to make a deal.

A reasonable compromise would authorize lawful permanent residency (a green card) to the roughly 800,000 who qualify for Delayed Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) AND appropriate $5 billion ($1 billion per year for 5 years) for construction on the border. 

Yes.

Congress and the President need to make a deal.

A reasonable compromise would authorize lawful permanent residency (a green card) to the roughly 800,000 who qualify for Delayed Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) AND appropriate $5 billion ($1 billion per year for 5 years) for construction on the border. 

Yes.

I support background checks for every transfer of a firearm.  

Yes.

No. 

The federal government already generates over $40 billion a year from gas tax revenue.  Those funds, which we already have, need to be allocated and prioritized.