Tennessee Congressional Election 2018 Political Courage Test

Abortion

1. Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation?
- Pro-choice

2. Other or expanded principles
- As a Roman Catholic, I adhere to the R.C. Church's De Fide Doctrine in my personal life. However, as an American, it is not my right to impose my beliefs on those of others, and therefore, I will do no such thing. The law was decided in 1973 after Roe v. Wade, and I am not looking to be appointed a Supreme Court Justice. The decision is up to the pregnant woman in question, alongside her family, her physician, and ultimately- her faith.

Budget

1. In order to balance the budget, do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket?
- Yes

2. In order to balance the budget, do you support reducing defense spending?
- Yes

3. Other or expanded principles
- Depending on the areas of expenditure reduction, yes.

Campaign Finance

1. Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions?
- Yes

2. Other or expanded principles
- Regulation of indirect contributions and/or unions could never be a bad thing.

Economy

1. Do you support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth?
- Yes

2. Do you support lowering corporate taxes as a means of promoting economic growth?
- No

3. Other or expanded principles
- Corporate taxes have been decreased enough.

Education

1. Do you support requiring states to adopt federal education standards?
- Yes

2. Other or expanded principles
- Continuity among each State's respective education system is what we should strive towards.

Energy & Environment

1. Do you support government funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, thermal)?
- Yes

2. Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions?
- Yes

3. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer

Guns

1. Do you generally support gun-control legislation?
- Yes

2. Other or expanded principles
- I enjoy exercising my second amendment rights. I am a member of Ducks Unlimited and possessor of a Tennessee Handgun Permit. While I exercise my authority and right to the second amendment, I am a proponent of a "well regulated" group of citizens who desire to exercise their second amendment rights.

Health Care

1. Do you support repealing the 2010 Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare")?
- No

2. Other or expanded principles
- While the Affordable Care Act is not perfect, a repeal of the law would be devastating. Alternative avenues must be considered (e.g. reducing the buy-in age for Medicare to 55).

Immigration

1. Do you support the construction of a wall along the Mexican border?
- No

2. Do you support requiring immigrants who are unlawfully present to return to their country of origin before they are eligible for citizenship?
- No

3. Other or expanded principles
- I support offering conditional permits for residency to those who arrive to the border seeking an opportunity to work for a better life.

Marijuana

1. Do you support the legalization of marijuana for recreational purposes?
- Yes

2. Other or expanded principles
- I would work with the current administration to end the federal prohibition on marijuana. I believe States should be the ones making this decision. By removing federal prohibitions, the people of each state will be empowered to have the freedom to set their own laws, because each State knows what?s best its own community.

National Security

1. Should the United States use military force in order to prevent governments hostile to the U.S. from possessing a nuclear weapon?
- Yes

2. Do you support increased American intervention in Middle Eastern conflicts beyond air support?
- No

3. Other or expanded principles
- Our current level of support/intervention is sufficient.

Administrative Priorities

Please explain in a total of 100 words or less, your top two or three priorities if elected. If they require additional funding for implementation, please explain how you would obtain this funding.
- Our top three priorities are to address the deficits in 1) Healthcare, 2) Education, and 3) Infrastructure/Jobs. Healthcare is a mess, and I think we can all agree on that. I vow to work towards enhancing our public healthcare options. Strong communities begin with well funded public education systems. West Tennessee schools deserve better, and I vow to relentlessly fight for public education funding for the elementary systems up to secondary educational systems that promote vocational/STEM options. West TN jobs can arrive with the completion of the I-69 corridor and additional transportation projects that would benefit the region.