Traditional American values are the bedrock of the American Dream. Our country is tied together by our love of God and the strength of our families.
I will be unwavering in my defense of these basic freedoms upheld by the First Amendment.
Religious liberty is being threatened by weak politicians and lawyers who buy into the politically correct agenda. Religious freedom and the freedom of expression is not only our right but an American tradition. We must invoke the same strength and conviction the Founding Fathers practiced to stand against religious persecution.
The American family is under assault and must be defended. I am 100% pro-life. Persecution of the unborn must stop; we must offer a future and hope through adoption. By sharing the adoption tax credit with the birth mother and the adopting parents we can encourage life and better equip families for success.
Hurricane Harvey left a trail of destruction in our area. Like thousands in the greater Houston area, my family and I are still rebuilding our home left damaged by the floodwaters. Dishonest contractors, predatory trial lawyers, insurance companies and slow government agencies are causing unnecessary pain and ongoing hardships in our communities.
I will fight for families, taxpayers, and seniors to get relief and improve flood mitigation.
Along with the $15 billion in aid authorized in September, we must learn from our failures and adjust. We will pressure the state to fix the San Jacinto River Authority to save Kingwood, Atascocita and Humble from flooding.
Additionally, dredging both the Addicks and Barker reservoirs, while adding a third reservoir in the Cypress Creek watershed, will save Braeswood, Bellaire, Meyerland, West University, Rice Village, Tanglewood, the Memorial Drive area, The Heights and other core areas of Houston from future flooding.
I will be your voice in Washington, to help protect our homes from future flooding and devastation.
We must fight to keep jobs in America. Great paying jobs are critical to stable, successful families. For decades we have steadily encouraged businesses to leave the United States through burdensome regulations, robbing Americans of opportunity for their families. This must stop. It is essential that we are competitive in a global economy. Regulatory burdens need to be eased for exporters and job creators so they actually want to create jobs here instead of overseas. We cannot continue strapping the hands of our job-creating businesses behind their backs.
Furthermore, we must make Houston the site of choice for major capital and employment efforts. We need to continue to compete with the other major US and global markets to promote our city as the best place to raise families, build commercial real estate projects and grow the next generation of bioscience, technological and educational leaders.
Our safety from threats both foreign and domestic must be the primary concern of the United States. A robust defense starts by securing our borders, continues through an unwavering support for our troops and ends with a no-nonsense approach to foreign policy.
We cannot incentivize illegal immigration through sanctuary cities and states. This disregards our nation’s laws and sends the wrong message to those who wish to enter our country legally. We must foster a more efficient immigration system to encourage only legal immigration and penalize those who disrespect our laws.
Obamacare is an unmitigated disaster that has left many of us frustrated. The quality of medical care has not improved, doctors are discouraged and most importantly, we the people are frustrated. We must improve healthcare by removing state-by-state restrictions and encouraging competition. Free market solutions along with tort reform and improved healthcare savings accounts are the meaningful changes that will improve our broken system.
I will join efforts to bring safe, affordable prescription drugs to every American. We should not allow the Federal Government’s burdensome regulations to cause our seniors and families to pay more than anyone else in the world for common prescription drugs.
The national debt has risen above $20 trillion and continues to rise. We can’t keep going on like this. As Ronald Reagan said, “Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.” This needs to stop.
With record tax revenues in 2016 and an ever-growing national debt, it is clear that more taxes are not the answer. As a successful business owner, I understand how to budget and promote growth. Our nation has not passed a balanced budget in 16 years. We must produce a balanced budget, lower taxes, simplify the tax code and slash away out-of-control government programs to reduce our national debt. Instead of passing more taxes, I will fight to stop the government from wasting our hard-earned money.
We will create jobs and lower energy prices. While we allow other countries to take advantage of our wallets, the United States sits on large amounts of oil and the largest natural gas reserves in the world.
We must ease regulations on energy producers, open domestic drilling and encourage an expanded network of pipelines. This would lower gas prices, save you money and create thousands of jobs. These common-sense solutions can remain while we continue to explore new sources of renewable energy.
Our right to bear arms is a sacred right in our Constitution. All Americans should have the ability to protect their families through responsible and comprehensive gun ownership, just as I protect my family by owning firearms. I believe broader responsible gun ownership, along with proper training, could save countless lives here in Texas.
Social Security is a crucial support system for our Seniors who have paid into this system their entire lives, but there are many things wrong with the way it works now. Social Security is a train headed for a dead end with no brakes. It is Congress’s responsibility to ensure Social Security switches tracks before it is too late.
Our armed forces and veterans have risked everything to fight for family and country. These brave men and women deserve all the respect and gratitude we can afford instead of the mistreatment and neglect they are often shown today. Our military men and women should not have to travel hours and wait months for medical treatment. Our nation’s heroes deserve easily accessible care of the highest quality. Additionally, we need to provide the resources necessary to assist our heroes in dealing with PTSD and suicide prevention.
As a dad of children currently thriving in the public school system, I am a believer in an educational system where the schools and parents work together as a team. I believe the out of control teachers unions should work for the parents.
An investment in our children’s education is an investment in our country’s future. Parents, teachers and local school districts should be the driving force behind our children’s education, not federal government bureaucrats. Higher standards and increased parental involvement are absolutely key to success in the classroom, but we can go further. By significantly limiting the scope of the Department of Education to administering population-based funding to states, we will give power back to states, independent school districts and parents.