Citizen-Legislators
There is one element of American politics where there’s almost no division, where we are all entirely clear and united – that we can’t rely on politicians to do what needs to be done. As Gandhi famously said, we need to “Be the change you want to see in the world.” We, all of us, know that no one is coming to save us; that it’s up to us to make it happen.
That’s why we see, all over the nation, non-politicians like me are running for office for the first time, following the tradition of our founders to be citizen-legislators. Leaders like Washington, Jefferson, Adams, and Madison all served for a time in government then went home to their farms or businesses. It was assumed that we, the people, meant those who didn’t make a career in politics. It’s gotten worse in recent decades so that almost all politicians are so busy keeping their jobs that they never get around to doing their job.
What I look forward to finding in the 120th Congress is a new class of citizen-legislators like me who aren’t bound by the same old arguments, who are eager to join me in new solutions.
I grew up in upstate New York, in a gorgeous, friendly, thriving area of the country, where I saw one town after another wither and die. I’m not about to let that happen in Eastern and Southern Oregon, not when there is so much untapped potential here.
When I go to Washington to work on your behalf, I’ll roll up my sleeves and help jumpstart the projects and public private partnerships that can put to rest the myth of scarcity and transform eastern in southern Oregon to the abundance we all know that we possess.
Iran war
Democrats complain that we entered the Iran War without clear objectives.
This complaint is, ironically, unclear. This is how I understand it:
All wars must end which means that all wars are fought for the peace that follows.
If there’s any way to get to that peace without going through the misery, death, pain, massive dislocations, and prodigious spending of a war, that MUST be sought with all the strength that’s in you. If the goal was to prevent Iran from having nuclear weapons, the 2013 JPOA treaty (according to every credible expert with first-hand knowledge) accomplished that. It was abandoned for no good reason other than because it was negotiated by Barack Obama. It could have been turned to a positive when Iran reportedly offered even greater concessions than the JPOA in recent negotiation – which were abandoned to launch an attack. I suspect the President was informed of the fleeting chance to kill the Ayatollah and many other top officials in a swift attack. He seems to have confused war with chess and assumed (incorrectly) that capturing the king won the game. Given that assumption, why plan for the Strait of Hormuz closing, Iranian resistance and counterattacks, or the alienation of our allies?
Even had they been right, would it have ended there? Wars often last far after the fighting is done. Who won the American Civil War? The North, right? Or are the ripples still spreading? 160 years after it “ended” SCOTUS is being asked to nullify the 14th amendment that was a tangible part of the victory.
Wars almost always have ripples that may extend decades or even centuries beyond. Every claim of victory or defeat is premature. Who lost the Vietnam War? Did we lose it? Yet, look at the peace that has followed with Vietnam becoming an avid trading partner. They encourage U.S. Vietnam War veterans to return as tourists. The USA and Britain won a huge “victory” when they deposed Mosaddegh as Iranian president in 1953. But it sent ripples that turned into the 1979 Iranian Revolution and continued to spread until they turned into the current war between America, Israel, and Iran.
The ripples and shock waves that spread from a war are impossible for any mere mortal to navigate or understand. That’s why it’s vital to follow the founding principles of our nation: to only engage in wars as a last resort and only when we are directly threatened, attacked or under imminent threat of attack. We are no wiser and, in fact, far or less wise than our founders. People of faith, like me, recognize that seeking temporary advantages that require violating your principles is wrong. That’s why we rely on our faith, to give us wisdom we might otherwise forget.
The objective of every war is to achieve the peace that follows. We entered this War because there was an opportunity to capture the king. That defeated any likelihood of achieving our desired peace, at least for now and maybe for decades to come. Had we clearly understood this, we never would have entered the War in the way we did.
And we’d recognize why it needs to end.
Integrity
I’m running for this office to restore integrity in government and to work for a return to the honorable principles on which our country was founded.
I am guided by my faith, the traditions of my people, and the ethical precepts to act with honor, integrity, and conscience. My sole desire is to work for all the good people of this district, Republicans, Democratic, Non-Affiliated and those who choose to stay home.
Corruption
Every action taken by our government must be solely for the betterment of our nation. For good reason, the Constitution lists bribery alongside treason as grounds for impeachment. Any hint that an action is impacted by potential individual gain must be opposed and reformed so that it is directed to the common good.
For that reason, I oppose and will work to reform the current role of money in politics. Citizens United was poorly decided and has unleashed some of the most toxic politics in a century, but that decision also invited Congress to act. Congress has not answered the call to forge election funding that unfailingly honors free speech while protecting the interests of the people to have clean, honest government. I will join with others in Congress to restore sensible, constitutionally-sound financing for political campaigns.
Department of Justice
I oppose and will work to reform partisanship in the US Department of Justice. The Department has lost many of its best people when they rebelled at being a tool of politics. Americans universally oppose using the power of the DOJ with prejudice toward those out of favor whose only crime (for example) is opposing the current administration while favoring the well-connected, whether they conspired with Jeffrey Epstein or conspired with other businesses to fix prices or to invade our privacy.
The Justice Department has lost many of its best people who rebelled at being used as a tool of politics. I will work to restore a professional DOJ, insulated from politics, enforcing the law equally for all, which includes accountability for those who conspired in the outrageous crimes of Jeffrey Esptein and who has since conspired to protect them from legal and professional consequences.
Foreign Policy & Faith in Our Shared Goals
Russia’s attacks on Ukraine must end. We have as great an obligation to the well-being and security of Gaza residents as we do to Israel. We are stronger and safer when we are admired as a nation, when we support the aspirations of all peoples for democracy and liberty, and when we justify the faith and trust of our many allies throughout the world, especially in NATO. It isn’t being virtuous, it’s being smart. We double, triple, and quadruple our strength by bonding it to the efforts of other nations.
I will work to restore America’s special role in the world. We must collaborate with our allies to restore the essential programs we criminally cut off without warning when Elon Musk defunded USAID. That horrifying act is predicted (in the medical journal Lancet) to result in 9.4 million deaths by the end of the decade, a tragedy we helped create and which none of us want to see.
Finally, as a Jewish Member of Congress, I’ll be able to forcefully advocate for an enlightened US policy toward Israel, Gaza and the West Bank, and the Arab neighboring countries. There is strong bipartisan desire to find a way forward and I’ll take on a central role in helping to make that happen.
My faith is why I’m running for this office. My faith in the goodness of the people of CD2. I rely on our shared faith that the greatest law is to love our neighbors as ourselves; that this faith unites all the people of the Second Congressional District more than any ugly attempt to divide us ever can.
Election Security
The US Constitution grants to Oregon and the other states all powers not specifically assigned to Congress and the Executive Branch.
Oregonians rightly take pride in how we run our elections. Hundreds of citizen volunteers, people just like you and me, both Republicans and Democrats and some unaligned to any party, observe testing of voting machines before elections and observe the ballot counting process. The mandatory hand recount after every statewide election is also open to these observers. Our fellow Oregonians work with integrity and professionalism when verifying signatures, ensuring every verified ballot is counted fairly, and behaving ethically just as you or I would do in their place.
No outsider can tell Oregonians that we are anything but fair. Oregonians have always and will always run our elections the way we want to, the way that every other state wishes they could, featuring the goodness of our average citizen in every step of the process. Anyone who says otherwise just doesn’t know Oregon.
Political Division & Diversity
Enough! I, like many Americans, am exhausted.
There are only two standards most of us think appropriate: do we treat others as we would want to be treated and do our actions hurt anyone in a way that could or should have been avoided? Diversity is simply a biproduct of doing the right thing. That’s why America is the most diverse country in the world – and the best.
So, let’s just do the right thing and get on with it.
Democracy
I can’t say it any better than Justice Neil Gorsuch, a conservative Trump SCOTUS appointee, who wrote in his February 2026 tariff ruling that “it can be tempting to bypass Congress when some pressing problem arises. But the deliberative nature of the legislative process was the whole point of its design. Through that process, the nation can tap the combined wisdom of the people’s elected representatives, not just that of one faction or man…[And] if history is any guide, the tables will turn and the day will come when those disappointed by today’s result will appreciate the legislative process for the bulwark of liberty it is.”
Tariffs & Other Taxes
I will work for Congress to BE the people’s representatives and set taxes and tariffs in a sensible, well-designed manner and put an end to the chaos that has cost us all so much and gotten us nothing in return.
It’s not an accident that there were only two months of job losses from 2021-2024 but as of March 2026 already five months where the U.S. lost jobs.
Just to clarify, foreign countries don’t pay tariffs. The NY Fed found that U.S. consumers pay over 90% of the cost. Oregon farmers, ranchers and businesses spent $7.4 billion in 2025 on the tariff increases imposed by this administration. That amounts to $1,720 for every child, adult, or senior citizen in the Second Congressional District – nearly $7,000 for a family of four, which is over 10% of average household income in CD2. If I was your representative and I came to you and said that, in addition to the taxes you’re paying now, I’m going to lay a 10% tax on CD2, you’d kick me out of office. Just to make it worse, it’s only an 8% tax for folks in Portland, and it’s structured so that you pay a lower tax at higher incomes and a higher one at lower incomes. What that means is that. for the 1 in 7 people in Malheur County (1 in 9 for the rest of Eastern Oregon) who live at or below the poverty line, the tariff/tax increase is over 20%. In practice, they’ll need to do without a lot of what they used to buy, causing lower sales and impoverishing all of us.
There are smart tariffs and dumb ones. Smart tariffs require study, analysis, and a consistent, measured, targeted application followed by careful assessment to see if they need modification. What we have now is mostly dumb tariffs that hurt the people of CD2, particularly the farmers and ranchers and anyone who buys groceries, appliances, or any other product with imported elements. It’s a tax, pure and simple, that directly punishes all Americans and has been a disaster for the people of Southern and Eastern Oregon.
The principal rationale for recent tariff increases was to repair our trade deficit.
It’s virtually unchanged (tiny decrease). Tariffs failed in their stated goal.
The principal rationale for recent tariff increases was to repair our trade deficit.
It’s virtually unchanged (tiny decrease). Tariffs failed in their stated goal.
Crime & Public Safety
Public safety is a civil right. I support evidence-based policing, accountability for misconduct, and adequate staffing to protect communities from violent crime.
We also have to address homelessness and the related mental health crisis that is impacting so many of our veterans and those in their teens and twenties. Mental health teams can coordinate with police so that those who need services and not prison are respectfully treated and the entire community is protected from harm. Innovative solutions that can help accomplish these goals are happening in Eugene Oregon and elsewhere, such as supported clusters of tiny homes for the homeless. When solutions work, they need to be adopted and adapted wherever they’re needed.
Education
Our school system was designed for the industrial revolution. Factories need workers who show up on time and follow procedures, so school starts at 8 am sharp, we sit in rows, and bells tell us when to move to the next workstation.
We need schools judged by how effectively our young people are prepared for the tasks of today and tomorrow. George W. Bush’s No Child Left Behind made a start on this – schools getting report cards on how they’re educating. Teams that focus on how each student meets standards, holding them to that standard, and intervening when they appear headed for failure. Oregon’s own Nick Kristof has written several articles about what the innovations of school systems in Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana can show us about shedding the “soft prejudice of low expectations” and holding students to hard and fast standards without which they will be unable to prosper and thrive in the economy of the future.
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
The bottom line is that we need Artificial Intelligence that works for the citizens of the United States, and not the other way around.
As Sam Altman said in 2015, shortly before helping found OpenAI, “I think that A.I. will probably, most likely, sort of lead to the end of the world.”
The problem isn’t only the changes but how quickly they’re happening; a fierce and nimble proactive response is needed. This chart shows how rapidly one possible AI application has been adopted compared to the adoption rates of cellphones and the internet. Congress seems in a fog, ignorant and unconcerned. The good people of Oregon Congressional District 2 are concerned. We’re terrified, in fact, that tens of thousands of us will be “obsoleted” by AI, unable to support ourselves and our families almost before we know it’s happening.
It took 12-13 years for the internet and cellphones to reach the usage ChatGPT has gained in 2 years
We can’t stop the future from coming but we can be smart and proactive so that it benefits us all.
There are innovative ideas such as workweeks being shared by more than one worker, with the enhanced productivity provided by AI used to pay each worker as much as they earned full-time.
Another possible approach is UBC (Universal Basic Capital). Once adopted, every qualified citizen would be given part-ownership of the AI economy through national investment accounts or public wealth funds that hold shares in AI companies, platforms, and infrastructure. Our current administration took a 10% stake in Intel, a share of the profits of Nividia AI chips sold to China and numerous other similar arrangements. Why should the government have a stake instead of We the People?
Funding the Arts
An essential part of our transition to an AI-based is making the Arts a more stable and worthwhile career for our young people.
At a minimum, AI must be banned from creative endeavors – which are fueled by wholesale thievery of the past creations of innumerable people who are not asked or compensated for their contributions. That ends now. Our current Congress seems clueless in the face of this looming challenge. Oregon won’t stand still for it.
Oregon has always led America into the future. We were the first to have bottle deposits, curbside recycling, and legalized marijuana. We are the inheritors of those who braved the Oregon Trail. That legacy will face and overcome today’s challenges and lead the rest of the world in finding a better way.
Evidence-Based Solutions
Affordability
We, the people, can restore affordability.
We lack power as individuals to make it happen, but united and working through our elected representatives, we can end impediments to building more affordable housing and tackle affordability at its source. I will work to end profiteering in necessities such as food, medicine, insurance, and housing. We can improve the supply chain and lower energy prices, creating abundance in foods and other products so that prices naturally come down.
But first, I’ll ensure Congress reclaims the power of taxation, especially for tariffs. That would reduce the price of fruits and vegetables grown by our neighbors to the south and reduce the prices of Canadian lumber and petroleum, of European medicines, wine and cheese, and thousands of other products.
We won’t get there by telling Americans not to believe their own eyes and bank balances. The previous administration tried that. The current administration is trying that. We all know better and we can and WILL do better. Few issues are more pressing. Immediate and persistent action by Congress is needed.
The Economy
The free market has an unmatched ability to create, innovate, and spread well-being in ever-widening circles. I don’t want it shackled by government and I don’t want it shackled by those who want it to work only for the few. We can end impediments to creating abundance, wherever they originate, and extend the benefits of our incredible free market system to everyone who has helped it come to be.
At the same time, Congress is central to creating opportunities within the free market for folks under 40 and give them a chance for the same stake in the economy those of us a bit older got at their age. Before World War II, home ownership was uncommon. Mortgages lasted 5-10 years and a 50% down payment was customary. Congress decided to change that. The FHA insured mortgage loans and allowed down payments of 5% or less and 20 or 30-year mortgages. They created the GI Bill and vastly expanded who could get an advance degree. That’s how the middle class became as American as apple pie. We’ve let that slip. The same answers won’t work but there ARE answers and there’s no time to waste. I’ll help Congress recover its role in giving opportunities to own a home and to support your family and to contribute to economic activity that will help everyone across the nation.
The Free Market
The free market is an unparalleled engine of innovation and well-being. It works best when there’s a productive balance between its two main components: Investment and Labor (family farmers, ranchers, and most workers).
Studying economics taught me that when push comes to shove, bargaining position is everything. Our economy takes shape in a million daily negotiations for pay, products, benefits, and time.
We can reverse the actions that have put average folks in a weaker bargaining position. Insurance of all kinds has soared in price and costs for housing, food, and everything else is forcing us to put up with whatever we’re offered. When I’m in Congress, you’ll know I have your back. Direct government payments aren’t nearly as powerful as buttressing your bargaining position so that you can say ‘no’ until your needs and demands are met.
Federal Spending and War Powers
Look at the red line in the chart below. Interest paid on the federal debt is at ruinous levels and getting worse. Both parties got us here. This year, 2026, is the first time in our lifetimes that the interest paid on the federal debt was scheduled to be greater than defense spending (see the chart below). The second chart shows how the federal debt measures up to ALL money earned by everyone in the US (GDP) – for the first time since World War II, debt equals GDP and the projections are dire. This was all before we entered a War paid for with deficit spending, which will increase both the debt and the interest rate. This madness has got to end.
Once again, both parties got us here. Military spending increased under Democrats and Republicans. We need massive reductions in military spending so that the next President who wants to go to war has to come to Congress to ask for the funding. The power to declare war rests on the power of the purse, which must be reclaimed by Congress.
Even before the Iran War, U.S. defense spending was $850 billion, about 12% of all federal spending. Britain, in contrast, spends $80 billion. If we reduced our spending to the same as Britain’s per capita (4½ times as much), you get $400 billion, giving us about a half trillion dollars to pay for needed programs and start to pay down the debt.
We also need a wealth tax to be applied only until we can restore spending on vital programs and set a path to fiscal solvency. The top 10% of Americans own 2/3 of the total wealth of our country, or about $114 trillion. If we just tax the earnings on that wealth with a 25% surtax, that would bring in $3.4 trillion a year [12% return on $114 trillion = close to $14 trillion; a 25% surtax = $3.4 trillion. Since only the earnings would be taxed (unlike the wealth tax proposed by Senator Warren) they’d keep their wealth and probably continue to get richer. If you add the savings in military spending to the surtax income, we can pay off the debt in 10 years.
Don’t forget, we currently pay $1 trillion a year in interest on the debt. Paying off the debt would save us $4.5 trillion over ten years, enough to pay the entire cost of Obamacare subsidies and SNAP benefits (at their current levels of about $100 billion each) and have $2.5 trillion left over. Instead, I’d phase out the wealth surtax by 2½% a year, to have it end after 10 years, which would decrease the amount brought in by LESS than the amount saved in interest costs. That means we’d still have our $4 trillion to pay down the debt in ten years and a little left on the side.
We can tame the budget and still fund all the government services we’ve come to treasure; improve those services and pay for the common defense, but it will take a clear-eyed bipartisan approach where fiscal sanity is at the center.
Immigration
The US population is aging. Social Security, Medicare, and the effective functioning of our economy need an injection of younger people. Until recently, that came from immigration. A conservative think tank Cato Institute Feb 2026 study calculated $14.5 trillion paid into Social Security, Medicare, and the general fund by immigrants (both legal and undocumented) from 1994-2023 above what that group received in benefits, which kept Social Security and Medicare solvent and trimmed about 1/3 off our national debt. The recent $75 billion crackdown treats people like tokens in a perverse game and will only make our average population older, jeopardizing Social Security and Medicare. I refuse to spend our precious public funds to make our lives worse!
We are a nation of laws and a nation of immigrants. We can have both. We all want a secure border, and we all want a welcoming nation. Unrestrained immigration is not an answer. We need to find the “sweet spot” where our nation and its citizens benefit and new residents become productive members of society.
There may be better ideas than I can propose to get there. I suggest an independent Board of Immigration modeled on the Federal Reserve that can assess the impacts in each of 12 regions so that all of society can benefit from an appropriate level of immigration. Preference should be given to the millions of long-settled, law-abiding undocumented immigrants who can be provided a conditional path to legal status, while employers who exploit unauthorized labor and gain an unfair competitive advantage over ethical employers are prevented from continuing to do so and required to make amends for the wrongs they’ve perpetrated.
I celebrate the courage it takes to come to terms with a complicated gender identity and honor their choice of names, dress, and pronouns. I don’t understand public figures who care so intensely about how someone refers to themselves. Grow up!
At the same time, we need to be willing to accept new credible and substantial evidence on medical gender treatment. For years, the American Medical Association and American Academy of Pediatrics made overly broad assertions about gender dysphoria interventions for minor children. The assertions were not,as it turned out, founded on well-developed, peer-reviewed science as much as on well-intentioned advocacy. During the same period, European countries with equally egalitarian intentions disputed the claims that hormonal and even surgical approaches to gender dysphoria in children was “lifesaving”. Most Americans viewed these assertions as nonsensical and began to doubt other far more well-founded positions on gender-affirming treatment for adults.
The most recent studies validate what most people knew instinctively – that children with gender dysphoria often do well when their emotional issues are addressed for what they are – emotional issues – and that even children can understand the wisdom of needing to wait for adulthood before more permanent options become available.
Sex and Gender
Discrimination against transgender Americans in employment, education, housing, or public life is un-American and unacceptable. If we take our eyes off this truth, accepted by most Americans, and say that it’s somehow analogous to participation in women’s athletics for those born male, we bring into question the more important issue of discrimination. Personally, I’m a fan of women’s sports and want it limited to those born female; like most people, it seems apparent that there are biological differences that make this unfair. I support federal legislation that would enforce restrictions in settings where physical differences materially affect fairness, safety, or privacy and which set a minimum age at which permanent gender reassignment can be initiated. The legislation should also include protections that clarify anti-discrimination in employment, housing, and public services.
American Know-How
Rare Earth Mining
A “rare earth bonanza” more lucrative than the gold rush is coming. The largest deposits of lithium are thought to be in Malheur County in the Second Congressional District of Oregon. Gallium of a higher grade than anywhere else in the world has been found in southern Jackson and Josephine County. Alluvial deposits east of the Cascades from K Falls to Bend are promising locations to explore for a wide range of rare earth minerals.
We need to be on top of it, to make sure it’s done right, to make sure it means employment and wealth for the surrounding region, including giving locals a fair chance at an ownership stake even for those who are typically excluded. I don’t know about you, but I’d rather we find that wealth in Baker City and Klamath Falls than in Greenland!
Green Jobs
It was assumed a decade ago that renewable power generation would cost more than fossil fuel for decades. Faster than anyone thought possible, American innovation has changed all that. Even as subsidies subside, renewables rule. Renewables make up roughly 90% of all new power capacity in the U.S. for a simple reason – it’s cheaper. Solar power’s booming in Texas. Australia’s commitment to clean energy has resulted in 30% drops in electricity prices and “cost-free” parts of the day. My MAGA-voting good buddy in West Virginia tells me that his rooftop solar has cut his electric bill down to near zero in some months and sometimes the power company pays HIM.
And – guess what – green energy needs FAR more workers and has MASSIVELY more owners. It needs installers, someone to clean solar panels regularly. It’s decentralized and can be on thousands of rooftops or open areas. and uses wide-open wind-swept areas for wind power – which we have in abundance in the 2nd district.
Oregon is and always was a leader in renewables. A century of turbines turning have harnessed the Columbia as a primary source of Oregon electricity. Today, Pacific Northwest universities are collaborating to perfect nano-technology solar cells to replace inefficient, heavy silicone, making shipping and installation potentially much easier and cutting the break-even point in half. It would also jumpstart demand for home and business-based battery systems. The 2nd District is a perfect location for new battery factories.
Green energy means a green economic boom to whoever gets there first. Don’t you think Americans and Oregonians will do as we’ve always done and lead the way, with all the economic benefits that come with it?
Innovation
Innovation is a fundamental pillar of my campaign.
Any regulation or barriers to innovation must be eliminated unless needed to protect health and safety.
Innovation means applying solutions that have been successful elsewhere to solve problems here in CD2.
Water Rights
Water rights are a life and death issue in much of CD2. Water scarcity threatens the livelihood and blunts the profitability of farmers, ranchers, and manufacturers and limits the home building that can make housing more affordable.
Truth to tell: there IS no water shortage. There’s roughly the same amount of water on the planet as there’s ever been. The problem is it’s not all usable and it’s unevenly distributed. Some places have too much; others too little. What we need is water reclamation and improved distribution but that requires effort, organization, and (most of all) electricity to power those solutions.
Instead of continuing the fights predicated on scarcity, we need to engineer abundance. Congress in collaboration with the private sector can create and fund expanded power generation from ocean waves off the Oregon Coast, lighter and more efficient and affordable solar panels, and expanded wind generation technology that can power water reclamation and distribution. Americans and Oregonians are problem-solvers. The solutions are well within our reach. I will work for you to make that happen.
Service
It’s said that “Where you stand depends on where you sit.” That means that people generally see only what benefits them personally and may not see the best solution for society.
Of the five principles on which my campaign is founded, the one that stands above them all is service. That means seeking the best solutions for all of CD2.
It also means providing robust and active constituent service. I’ll help you out when a government agency isn’t doing what it should for you. I’ll carry your voices to Congress and have them heard.
Bringing Power to Oregon Congressional District 2
I’ll be a champion for public and private investment in Eastern & Southern Oregon. We’ve been overlooked for too long.
When we flip CD2, the national parties will flip out. It will give our district the bargaining position it’s lacked for decades. We aren’t getting our fair share in the investments that fund our national efforts at innovation, growth, and diversification. When we flip CD2, we’ll have a megaphone for a change. Our water needs, infrastructure needs, and development needs will be heard – your voices will be heard.
Small and Family Farms
Small and family farms deserve a fair deal.
Large commercial farms have their role, but they also create hazardous monoculture farms that reduce consumer choice while being more prone to disease or blights. Family farms foster more varied horticulture but can’t compete with commercial farms. Meanwhile, land values for farms skyrocket, in part because some developers want to turn them into residential or commercial properties.
The state has an interest in maintaining family or other small farms and in making it possible for young people who want to buy farms to do so. Subsidies or low-cost loans are often proposed but rarely come through and don’t address the underlying problem. Legislation can make sure that those who wish to farm have priority in buying existing farms by barring sales for other purposes for a minimum time span. Enforcing safety, work conditions, and pay standards for farm workers on large commercial farms will also reduce some unfair competitive disadvantages suffered by small farms, but that’s not enough.
I think small and family farms can survive and thrive on their own if there are cooperative structures, organized through a government-funded program, that will allow those farms to band together to get cheaper prices on feed, seed, fertilizer and equipment. It’s an adaptation of a model that worked well for decades and still operates in some locations. The traditional model can be adapted for current conditions by providing guidance on what to plant based on market conditions, mentor those who wish to use organic methods, broker with stores to make sure there are markets, work out logistics on how to get the product to market, and provide interest-free bridge loans. Finally, the cooperative can monitor the health of farms and intercede with counsel or other forms of aid to increase the chances of continued earnings sufficient to continue.
The government should create and fund the cooperatives but give them significant independence and have the staff include interns and young people doing national service along with established experts.
Fiscal Responsibility
Oregonians want a no-nonsense approach to rein in our dysfunctional federal budget, secure our future, and handle the issues that make life better for all of us.
Our current fiscal course is unsustainable and, if left uncorrected, will lead to long-term erosion in our standard of living. Interest payments on the federal debt are already the largest single item in the federal budget aside from Social Security and Medicare. This debt level makes spending on vital services impossible and squeezes out public investment.
Before anything else, we must secure the solvency of Social Security and Medicare, whose trust funds are projected to be exhausted by 2032. We can make sensible changes to the tax code and modernize collection and verification to enhance the funds available to bring down the debt while still meeting our obligations. We need to end an irrational, hyper-expensive campaign against immigrants. Overspending on priorities that don’t make our lives safer or better must be curtailed.
I’ll work to return the focus of Congress to laws and programs that widen opportunities to own a home, start a business, have a secure income, and allow each new generation to rise above where they began. Congress has worked in the past to make all our lives better and I will help Congress return to that vital task.
Tikkun Olam
My inspiration that leads me to public service is Tikkun Olam, often translated as “Heal the World”. It’s a vital element in Judaism that I embrace with all my heart. It tells us to do what is within our reach to do. What’s within our reach to make better. I need all of you to help me in this. If you and I and all those of goodwill within CD2 realize that we have the power to heal what’s within our reach to heal, we will heal the world. That’s where I need the help of each and every one of you and where I will lend my hand, within my ability and reach, to do what’s best for those of us who live here and love this land.