Candidate for
United States Representative; District 2; Republican Party

My philosophy of government is built upon a strong belief in the following core, conservative values:

• liberty, individual responsibility, and the ability of people to make decisions for themselves;
• limited government, fiscal responsibility, and the importance of allowing the marketplace to operate without undue regulation; and
• the need to protect America's sovereignty and promote her interests in the world.

• EDUCATION: I strongly believe that ALL American children deserve access to a first-class education. Inadequate education cripples children, denies them full participation as adults in the opportunities of America, and contributes to a range of social problems such as crime, drug abuse, and unwanted pregnancies. The solution is not simply pumping more money into our schools. We already spend more money per student than almost any other country, yet we get average or below average results when compared to other developed nations! That ought to be unacceptable to every one of us; we ought to be outraged! Yet, as a country, we are not. As a culture, we do not sufficiently value education; too many of us are willing to accpet mediocrity in education. We must all work to change the culture of this country to one that places top priority on the education of our children. One concrete way government can promote excellence in education is by promoting the use of educational vouchers. Children should not be trapped in underperforming schools; parents must be empowered to move their children to the best available school. Parental choice and competition will help promote educational excellence. As Ohio's 2nd District representative in Congress, I will work to make a first-class education available to ALL Americans, and to promote a culture that truly values and exalts education as the crucial building block of America's future. I want nothing less for my family, and I will accept nothing less for your family.

• SOCIAL SECURITY: The Social Security system faces substantial financial problems, and it is irresponsible to pretend that it does not. If we do nothing, in a few short decades Social Security will not be able to pay the benefits it is promising to hard-working Americans. It is crucial, for the sake of our children and grandchildren, that we address this solvency problem and put the Social Security system on a firmer financial foundation. Regardless of the reforms we settle on, one thing must be clear: we must ensure that no changes are made to the benefits of current retirees and near retirees; we have a moral obligation to those folks, as they have little or not time to make alternative retirement arrangements. But for younger workers, we must fundamentally revise the Social Security system. The two principal options for addressing the solvency crisis are to raise taxes or cut benefits. Raising taxes is the wrong answer for two reasons. First, higher taxes constrict the economy, choking prosperity and productivity. Second, the government has demonstrated an inability to preserve Social Security tax revenues for Social Security purposes: the government routinely spends on other programs every penny of Social Security revenue that exceeds the cost of current benefits! Simply put, we cannot trust the government with additional tax money for Social Security; they will spend it on other programs leaving us even deeper in the hole. The surest solution to Social Security's solvency problem is to lower promised benefits for younger workers. We can offset the impact of those lowered benefits by allowing younger workers to divert all or a portion of their Social Security taxes into personalize accounts. Even if invested in the safest investments possible -- United States Treasury securities-- personalized accounts offer younger workers, especially low wage workers, the chance to accumulate more money for retirement and the chance to create a nest egg they can pass on to their heirs. As Ohio's 2nd District representative in Congress, I will work to protect the benefits of current retirees and near retirees, while strengthening and improving the system of retirement benefits available to younger Americans.

• TAXES AND THE ECONOMY: We must ensure economic liberty and strong economic growth for the benefit of all Americans by limiting Washington's temptation to micromanage our economy. The government should concentrate on fostering a climate favorable to economic growth by, among other things, reducing and simplifying taxes, and reducing red tape. Our tax system must encourage rather than discourage saving, investment, and productivity; the President's tax relief plans are sensible steps toward such a system and ought to be made permanent. Another sensible step is the elimination of the Alternative Minimum Tax. As Ohio's 2nd District representative in Congress, I will work to support a pro-growth economic policy.

• DEFICIT: Our national debt is far too big. We must place legally enforceable limits on spending in order to force the government to set spending priorities; Congress should trade off spending for priority programs with cuts in lower-priority programs. National defense and homeland security should be priorities, because they are core constitutional functions of the national government. Middle-class entitlement programs -- such as Medicare -- are growing at unsustainable rates and need to be restrained and reformed. As Ohio's 2nd District representative in Congress, I will work to promote fiscal responsibility.

• ENERGY: We cannot continue to rely on fossil fuels as our principal source of energy -- even if we make sensible use of untapped domestic sources, we will eventually run out. We must encourage the development and use of dependable, affordable, and environmentally responsible alternative energy sources. As Ohio's 2nd District representative in Congress, I will work to encourage development of a sensible national energy policy.

• NATIONAL SECURITY: We must vigilantly protect our national security against external and internal threats. The world is changing, and the nature of threats we face is changing, too. Terrorism is a reality. To fight the threat of terror, we must not only actively oppose terrorist groups and the countries that support them but we must also actively work to discredit the propaganda and hostile ideology spread by such groups. We must wage a global war of ideas demonstrating our commitment to freedom, democracy, and economic opportunity for people around the world. At home, we must ensure that our first responders + police, fire, and other emergency services + have the resources they need to protect us against terrorism. But effective homeland security must provide for liberty as well as security; intrusions upon our fundamental rights must be justified by a demonstration of their effectiveness in diminishing security threats. As Ohio's 2nd District representative in Congress, I will work to protect our nation from external as well as internal threats.