Accelerating Sustainable Energy and Environmental Protection
For the last decade, I have been involved in the clean energy industry as an attorney and non-profit founder and director, and I will be a champion in Washington on issues of sustainability and climate change and their impact on our economy, health, and security. I want to put our district at the forefront of clean energy economic growth. I am honored that our campaign has been endorsed by the Sierra Club and the California League of Conservation Voters.
I feel that a transition to a sustainable energy future is imperative, due to both our depleting natural resources and the environmental impact of fossil fuel use and extraction. The question is whether Americans will be using clean energy technologies developed and manufactured in Asia and Europe, or whether our federal government will spur clean energy innovation to help America lead in this rapidly-growing industry.
I believe strongly in the overwhelming scientific consensus that climate change is driven by human activity. I will be an outspoken opponent of any and all efforts by the Trump Administration to undermine our global leadership on climate and sustainable energy policy issues. I already have been greatly disturbed by Trump’s efforts to undermine environmental protections to aid the fossil fuel industry.
In order to reduce carbon emissions, I believe we must consider several ideas, including a “revenue-neutral carbon tax” that would impose a price on carbon dioxide, which would be matched dollar for dollar with corresponding cuts of existing taxes. We must also continue to explore cap-and-trade policies to reduce emissions, which have been proven to be largely effective when implemented in California and at the federal level.
We must ensure a long-term solution to securely move and store hazardous waste at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station. I believe that we must address the short-term issues related to canister safety and explore federal legislation to allow states like California to set stricter nuclear waste safety standards than those mandated by the federal government. We must also get nuclear waste off the California coast as quickly and safely as possible, which means exploration of interim and permanent storage sites. I will work with community leaders to help solve this problem and won’t need on-the-job training to make it happen.
I believe that we must transition from fossil-fuel based power production to sustainable, renewable alternatives, particularly in our district. In the December 22, 2016 San Diego Union-Tribune, I criticized the proposed Carlsbad Energy Center, noting that it “runs counter to the energy-use practices that Californians are adopting in terms of clean distributed power generation combined with investments in energy efficiency.” Accordingly, I believe that we must empower our local communities to choose their own clean energy procurement and production decisions.
Finally, we must end subsidies to oil and fossil fuel companies, including any direct funding or tax giveaways that rig the game in favor of fossil fuels compared to more sustainable energy sources.
Holding Washington Accountable
When President Trump tweets about “fake news” or his staff talks about “alternative facts,” I believe that it’s more important than ever to hold Washington accountable, protect the truth, and put country over party. We are living in unprecedented times that require accountability, transparency, and a free press.
I support efforts at the state level – including in California – to require Trump to make his tax returns public or be kept off the 2020 ballot. I also believe Trump must fully divest from his businesses and enter into a blind trust with an independent trustee. Finally, we must get to the bottom of the Trump campaign’s ties to Russia – before, during, and after the 2016 presidential election.
I also will fight for fundamental campaign finance reform to reduce the corrupting influence of money in politics. We must explore all reform alternatives, including a Constitutional amendment, to curtail and reverse the damage done by the 2010 Citizens United and 2014 McCutcheon Supreme Court decisions. I also strongly support efforts that would allow states to enact their own public financing laws, as well as other measures to improve the transparency and accountability of the campaign finance system.
Providing Affordable Healthcare Coverage for All
If elected to Congress, I would strongly advocate for Medicare for All and join those supporting H.R. 676. According to Physicians for a National Health Program, 95 percent of all households would save money under such a program. Patients would no longer face financial barriers to care such as co-pays and deductibles, and would regain free choice of doctor and hospital, and doctors would regain autonomy over patient care.
In the near term, I believe we must work to repair and strengthen the Affordable Care Act (ACA). I believe that President Trump’s wanton neglect of the ACA is unconscionable. Many ideas to improve the ACA must be explored, including the implementation of “public option” early Medicare coverage within health insurance marketplaces, and the hiring of new full-time federal enrollment assisters to help Americans enroll.
I will defend Medicare and Medicaid, ensure young people can stay on their family health insurance plan, prevent discrimination against Americans with pre-existing conditions, and ensure veterans swiftly get the care and benefits they have earned.
I believe that the American Health Care Act (AHCA), passed last year by Republicans in the House of Representatives and fully supported by Darrell Issa (who cast the winning vote), was a dangerous tax cut for the very wealthy masquerading as healthcare reform. Independent analysis suggests that 36,400 residents in the 49th Congressional District would have lost coverage under the AHCA, including 3,800 children.
Achieving World-Class Education
We must work to ensure that every child in the 49th Congressional District can achieve their full potential. Our education system must prepare students well for the jobs of the future. I believe our teachers are heroes and should be at the core of any plan to improve public schools. I am also very honored that the California Teachers Association has endorsed our campaign.
I will fight the Trump Administration’s desire to privatize public education. Instead, I will advocate for our local public schools to get the resources they need to hire and keep excellent teachers, reduce class sizes, and invest in Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math (STEAM) programs. We need to focus on training and retraining teachers, especially in STEAM, special education, and bilingual instruction. We must address an increasingly dire teacher shortage by improving college loan forgiveness programs, addressing housing accessibility, and making it easier for retired teachers to return to the classroom and provide mentorship.
I believe that any student who qualifies to attend college must be able to do so affordably, and that our community colleges must serve as increasingly important centers for job training and placement. Towards those ends, I will advocate for solutions like the College for All Act, which aims to eliminate tuition and fees at public four-year colleges and universities for students from families that make up to $125,000 per year, and would make community college tuition-free for all income levels.
Finally, I will hold President Trump accountable for his campaign promise of capping annual student-loan payments at 12.5% of income, and forgiving any outstanding loan amount after 15 years.
Creating Jobs for the Future
Our district has vibrant biotechnology, information technology, and clean energy industries and we must advocate for federal policies that support their continued growth.
I will be a vocal advocate for increasing funding for basic scientific research through the National Institutes of Health (NIH). President Trump’s budget outline would have cut $6 billion from the NIH, a direct hit to our district that undermines a longstanding commitment to biomedical science.
Because no full-time American worker should ever live in poverty, I support a gradual increase in the federal minimum wage to $15, implemented at a pace that allows employers to adapt their business plans. Exhaustive research over the past few decades suggests raising the minimum wage produces better outcomes not only for workers, but also for their children and families.
Finally, I believe we must fight for additional Wall Street reform and prevent corporations from sending jobs and profits overseas. We also must guard against the sort of risky business and lending practices that led to our last financial collapse.
Fighting for Women’s Rights
I am honored that our campaign was one of the first in the nation to be endorsed by the National Organization for Women. I will always stand for women’s health issues, including access to contraception and the right to make one’s own reproductive choices. I will fight any legislation or executive action that allows insurance companies to discriminate against women. I believe that only a woman, her family, and her doctor should be able to decide what is best for her health.
I will defend Planned Parenthood, which provides essential preventative and reproductive health care services like cancer screenings, STD testing and low-cost birth control to millions of American women. I will defend equal pay for equal work and fight any effort to allow wage discrimination against women. It is unconscionable that women and men would earn different wages for the same work.
I will fight for federal legislation that specifically bans sexual harassment. Current enforcement is based on a 1977 Supreme Court ruling that makes harassment illegal under the 1964 Civil Rights Act. This gives a conservative judiciary too much leeway in determining constitutes sexual harassment, including allowing federal judges to rely on outdated precedents in order to dismiss claims. This statute should include treble damages, hold harassers personally liable, and extend the statute of limitations to protect victims.
I believe the federal definition of domestic violence must be updated to include stalking and dating violence. Among other things, this would help prohibit stalkers and violent dating partners from having access to firearms. I will also advocate for active GPS tracking of violent offenders, which provides real‐time location information.
Finally, I will make ending military sexual assault a priority of my service in Congress.
Defending our Seniors
Our great nation cannot allow its seniors to go without healthcare or fall into poverty and homelessness. I will fight to ensure that we never forget or neglect our seniors.
We must fight to preserve Medicare and Social Security, essential programs that reflect our shared commitment to support seniors. Darrell Issa once called Social Security a “Ponzi scheme” and threatened to raise the retirement age. I believe that we must oppose Republican efforts to privatize Social Security or raise the retirement age — an unfair idea that will hurt seniors who have worked the hardest.
The American Health Care Act, promoted by President Trump and supported by Republicans in the House of Representatives, would have allowed insurance companies to charge people age 50-64 up to five times as much as younger adults for the same coverage. This age tax on older Americans is unacceptable and would have undermined the prosperity of an entire generation.
According to AARP, over 3 million low- to moderate-income older adults ages 50-64 currently rely on tax credits under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to purchase health insurance coverage. Proposals to replace the current-law tax credits with new “flat” tax credits adjusted for age would substantially reduce their value by as much as $5,900 for an individual and would put health insurance and care out of reach for many.
Social Security benefits are a lifeline for many Americans, keeping them and their families out of poverty. In 2013, Social Security kept over 22 million Americans out of poverty, including over a million children (under age 18), over 6 million adults (between the ages of 18 and 64), and nearly 15 million people ages 65 and older. More than 10 million older Americans depend on Social Security for the majority of their income.
Our seniors have paid into these programs for decades and we cannot let them down.
Keeping America Secure
America has been the greatest force for freedom and security that the world has ever known – in no small part because we have invested in the best-trained, best-led, and best-equipped military in history.
In the heart of our district, we are fortunate to have Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, the West Coast’s premier expeditionary training base, which serves our warfighters, regional installations and commands. Camp Pendleton provides the infrastructure to enable our Navy-Marine Corps team to prepare for deployments and sustain operational readiness for global contingencies. We must continue to provide these brave men and women with the resources they need to accomplish their mission when our nation sends them into harm’s way.
In addition to always prioritizing the readiness and preparation of our military, I will seek to use our Congressional office to be part of the working team of veterans service organizations, community leaders, and business groups to address various local and regional concerns. I will hire a full-time liaison with local military experience as part of my district staff to ensure that we are tied into and supporting issues from all our service personnel and families to include reservists, military retirees, civilians that are employed in support of our military mission, and our large veteran population.
We must always protect America, defend our interests and values, support human rights, and be resolute against terrorism. To achieve these ends, I believe we must always attempt to exhaust diplomatic solutions before military engagement. I will oppose unnecessary military intervention overseas and believe we should prioritize the use of force where our own national security is at stake. I strongly believe that war must be a last resort.
I will also strongly advocate for a new Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF). The current AUMF is too broad and we cannot give President Trump a blank check to get us into unnecessary conflict without Congressional authorization.
I will support efforts to fight international and domestic terrorism without sacrificing our privacy rights or human rights, and I will oppose torture of all forms for detainees and prisoners of war in our custody.
Honoring our Veterans
My grandfather, Ted Levin, served in WWII for the U.S. Army Air Forces as a gunner with the 867th Bomb Squadron. After fighting in the Pacific air offensive, he returned home and started a small business with my grandmother. Grandpa Ted was a true patriot who earned the programs and benefits he received by virtue of his service.
Our veterans need to know their Congressional representative will fight to protect this assistance. While our region has outstanding organizations and programs to assist veterans, we are still allowing too many in need to fall through the cracks.
We must protect the V.A. against privatization efforts. The V.A. is a world-class health care provider that is set up and designed specifically to meet the needs of veterans, and we must invest in its continued improvement, and continue to fund research specifically targeted to better understand the medical issues of veterans.
We must provide more veterans with affordable housing and homeless assistance programs, including expanded HUD-VASH vouchers. No veteran should not have a place to call home, or the support of the community.
We must close the “G.I. Bill loophole,” which allows for-profit colleges to count military tuition assistance and G.I. Bill payments as private sources of funding, rather than as the government funds they actually are. By eliminating this financial motivation for recruiting those using the G.I. Bill, educational institutions would have to focus on the quality of their educational offerings and the outcomes, to include on-time graduation rates and graduates’ employability.
Finally, I believe we need a renewed federal effort to prioritize the hiring and training of veterans in the building and construction trades particularly as we consider large-scale improvements to our nation’s infrastructure.
I know my priorities, and taking care of those that sacrificed so much to serve their country and protect our freedoms can never be forgotten.
Standing for LGBTQ Rights
I will be persistent in the fight for marriage equality and protection against discrimination until it is the law in all 50 states. This includes passage of the Equality Act and equal treatment of LGBTQ couples who hope to adopt a foster child.
I believe that no one should face discrimination or harassment based on their gender identity or sexual orientation, and that no child should face hostility in school because of their sexuality.
I also believe that our country has a role to play to help protect the rights of LGBTQ people around the world, and will use my voice in Congress to stand for LGBTQ rights.
Preventing Gun Violence
I was honored when Moms Demand Action honored our campaign with the Gun Sense Candidate distinction. We need to solve the epidemic of gun violence in this country. As former Congressmember Gabrielle Giffords said, “In the absence of a Congress ready to act to reduce gun violence, we will keep working to create a different Congress.”
After recent mass shootings, we worry about being accused of “politicizing a tragedy.” We consider window-dressing “reforms” that don’t get to the root of the problem. We let time go by. We fall selfishly back into the smallness of our daily lives as soon as it’s socially acceptable to do so.
In the end, we do nothing. We go through this routine time after time because there’s a leadership vacuum in this country. Those in charge are bought and paid for by the National Rifle Association to rigidly enforce the status quo, and enforce it they do. Then innocent Americans pay the ultimate price for it.
I support an assault weapons ban and expanding Brady background checks to all gun sales, including those made over the Internet and at gun shows.
I also believe that we must ban bump stocks, while acknowledging that doing so is not a substitute for other gun violence measures. We must also fund research into gun violence from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and fight concealed carry reciprocity.
It’s clear that nothing will change until we empower actual leaders to effect meaningful policy reforms in Washington. It’s past time to put people in charge who will actually do something to preempt future tragedies.
Treating Immigrants with Dignity
I am the grandson of Mexican immigrants on my mother’s side. Having not graduated high school themselves, my mom’s parents sent all five of their daughters to college. At age 50, my grandpa, Rosendo Bringas, became an American citizen, and it was among the proudest days of his life.
I want to preserve the values and aspirations of so many immigrants like my grandparents, who dream of the uniquely American opportunity for self-improvement.
I will be a strong advocate for comprehensive immigration reform and a path to citizenship for law-abiding undocumented immigrants. I believe we must reduce our immigration backlog and allow our country to attract the world’s brightest and highest-skilled workers to help us better compete in a global market.
At the same time, I believe we must strengthen the security of our borders (but not with Trump’s misguided “Wall”), and require undocumented immigrants to pay back taxes and study English.
I also supported the executive action taken by President Obama in 2014 to protect certain undocumented immigrants with strong ties to the community and U.S. citizen family members from deportation. President Obama’s order prioritized the removal of undocumented felons, gang members, and others, while protecting those who have worked hard and contributed positively in our communities and neighborhoods.
Protecting Animal Welfare
I believe that the way we treat animals reflects the values that we hold, and I will be a strong advocate for the protection of wild and domestic animals, and to protect the habitats of threatened and endangered species.
I have been deeply troubled by recent actions by President Trump and Darrell Issa to undermine animal welfare. These actions include a resolution overturning the ability of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to prevent the shooting or trapping wolves while at their dens with cubs, using airplanes to scout for grizzly bears to shoot, trapping bears with cruel steel-jawed leghold traps and wire snares and luring grizzly bears with food to get a point blank kill. Moreover, the U.S. Department of Agriculture recently removed public access to tens of thousands of reports that document the numbers of animals kept by research labs, companies, zoos, circuses, and animal transporters—and whether those animals are being treated humanely under the Animal Welfare Act.
Supporting Safe, Ethical, and Responsible Addiction Treatment
Addiction treatment can transform lives, with an enormous positive impact on society. Towards that end, I believe that Congress must work with state and local stakeholders to ensure addiction treatment is ethical, responsible, and respectful of local residential communities. Recovery businesses should be expected to act as good neighbors, operating in a safe, transparent, legal, and humane manner.
Unscrupulous owners should not be permitted to abuse the intent of the Fair Housing Act in order to circumnavigate the proper zoning and regulatory authority of a municipality.
Specifically, I will advocate for federal legislation to clarify the appropriate state and local roles in ensuring that residential recovery facilities are properly licensed to operate for the safety and benefit of residents. This includes reasonable protections for residents and communities from those who have prior convictions for assault, domestic violence, or active restraining orders. I will seek to allow local jurisdictions to place reasonable limits on businesses operating in residential-zoned neighborhoods in order to:
- protect tenants from over-institutionalization,
- to ensure the residential character of neighborhoods for the benefit of all who reside there, and
- to preserve the city’s supply of long-term, permanent residential housing, which is essential for the health of all communities.
I will also support efforts by Congress to crack down on patient brokering and addiction treatment fraud, as well as eliminating deceptive search advertising for addiction treatment. I will advocate that all business-operated residences providing services to those in treatment be licensed, and will support measures to ensure resident and community safety.