U.S. HOUSE QUESTIONS 2016 – Jason Lewis
Top priority: If elected, what is your top priority for the 2017 Congress? Why are you running for office? I understand the economic pressures that families are facing in this very subpar recovery which has yet to hit 3% growth—a post WWII low. I understand the burden of a far too complicated and unfair tax code with loopholes for the politically powerful. And as someone who’s been purchasing private insurance for my family I am keenly aware of the devastating effects that the Affordable Care Act has had on family finances and job creation. That’s why my proposals seek to create real growth not through government directed crony-capitalism but by restoring capital investment and incentives in the private economy so that everyone can prosper through a rising tide of economic activity.
Foreign affairs: Is the United States tough enough in its foreign policy with regard to its response to terrorism? Are additional measures warranted? Be specific. At the outset, this means controlling our borders and putting a moratorium on dangerous refugee admissions--starting with Syria. Unfortunately, the Obama administration has already accepted 10,000 new refugees and is set to admit 110,000 next year. I have also been the only candidate in this race demanding an end to the financing of Sunni terrorist groups—whether Al Qaeda, Al Nusra or ISIS—by our so-called allies in the Arab world, especially Saudi Arabia. Last year we sold $33 billion in weapons to Gulf countries while many them have known ties to terrorists groups. It’s tempting to talk tough on just Syria, Iran or even Russia...and then go about supporting the status quo in the ‘war on terror’ which has failed to secure our borders or eliminate foreign aid and military hardware to those countries who are chiefly responsible for the tragedies in Brussels, Paris, San Bernardino, Orlando, Nice--and, at least indirectly, St. Cloud.
Health care: Health care costs have increased under the Affordable Care Act, and it remains unpopular with many Americans. Would you vote to abolish the Act? Barring that, are there specific reforms you would support? Obamacare promised to reduce health insurance premiums by as much as $2,500 per family. Today, however, premiums are $4,865 higher, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation report. Because the Affordable Care Act mandated the most expensive coverage for everyone, young people, as well as smaller insurers, have been priced out of the market. Right here in Minnesota we’ve seen the system collapse under MNSure, and this year’s 50% plus increase in premiums is simply unsustainable for a growing number of families. The net result is a health care system bursting at the seams as employers drop costly coverage and dump part-timers onto bureaucratic ‘exchanges’ while providers refuse new patients due to government price controls. Obamacare even reduced the amount of out-of-pocket health expenses families could deduct. Let’s empower healthcare consumers by undoing the costly ACA ‘mandates,’ allowing individuals to buy policies across state lines, and enacting true portability by changing the tax code.
Education: What role should the federal government play in ensuring that U.S. graduates can compete in the global economy? Are there specific measures that you advocate? Ideally federal officeholders would not interject in what should be a local concern. But three decades and $70 billion (annually) later, the federal Department of Education continues to micromanage our schools with a litany of unfunded mandates. Even the recently enacted ESSA law, meant to reform Common Core, allows states to take over local districts if they fail to perform. We need real changes–such as merit pay, collective-bargaining reform, seniority rules changes, and school choice–in order to best serve our children.
Energy: Do you support current restrictions on domestic oil and natural gas production, or would you like to see them reduced or increased? Minnesota’s largest refinery is in the 2nd district and I do not support efforts to hamstring its productive capacity or reduce employment there. The administration’s Clean Power Plan would do just that and I do not support it. Moreover, I do not support the EPA’s attempt to implement these onerous regulations without congressional input.
Debt: Federal entitlements are the main drivers of rising U.S. debt. What specific steps can be taken to keep programs such as Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid solvent and still serve those individuals in need? The federal budget has doubled since 2002 and now totals an astonishing $4.1 trillion dollars. It remains the single biggest drag on economic growth and job creation, because wasteful government spending crowds out productive private investment. An unsustainable debt of $19 trillion is putting America on the road to Athens. Net interest on the debt will be nearly $800 billion in a decade, according to the CBO. Yet Washington insiders cut another back room deal last year, undoing the 2011 budget caps and adding another $112 billion to domestic discretionary spending. And though the federal government collected a record $3.25 trillion in 2015, we have a 2016 deficit of $600 billion. We need across-the-board budget reductions and bipartisan entitlement reform because no matter how you finance big government spending–whether taxes, borrowing, or printing money–it all comes out of your pocket.
Transportation: What role should the federal government play in funding state and local transportation infrastructure? Be specific. Twin Cities’ traffic is getting worse. According to a new MNDOT report congestion is set to jump again in 2015 by 2% with highways now clogged nearly a quarter of the time in rush hour. Believe it or not, some area roadways are congested 5 hours per day. But before we rush to raise gas taxes, shouldn’t we first stop diverting up to $6 billion or 17% from the federal highway trust fund away from roads and bridges? Prioritizing federal highway spending on where 95% of commuter trips occur–instead of on the $1.9 billion light trail scheme, hiking trails, and urban planning–would be a good first start towards solvency. Yet federal spending on such projects has increased 38% since 2008, according to the Wall Street Journal. We need to solve our infrastructure problems and new revenue streams should be found, but we have to be serious about our priorities.
Economy: What steps do you support to stimulate the growth of jobs? Today’s IRS code–filled with loopholes and tax credits for every conceivable special interest–has over four million words. All these exemptions do is place a much higher tax burden on the rest of us, especially the majority of America’s businesses who can’t afford lobbyists in Washington. In fact, the top 50% of income earners (even households earning just $37,000) now pay 97% of all income taxes. We need a flatter and fairer tax code that not only treats everyone the same, but encourages work, savings, and investment. The last thing we should be doing is adding more brackets and exemptions to an already complicated tax system. That’s why I support the Tax Code Termination Act, introduced last year in the House, which would actually sunset the federal tax code in three years, forcing Congress to embrace real tax reform once and for all.
Agriculture: agricultural leaders fear that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will use perceived authority under the Clean Water Act provision Waters of the United States to invoke practices and requirements on private farm land, which could alter future crop production practices and livestock grazing. Do you support the provision? Why or why not? Government regulations are strangling agriculture. First, The EPA and Army Corps’ ‘water of the USA’ rule or WOTUS is recklessly diminishing property rights by including very small streams, rivers and ‘wetlands’ that may flow seasonally for federal jurisdiction. In some cases, ordinary plowing has been seen as a violation of the Clean Water Act. This must stop. Second, as the third-largest exporting state in the nation, we need trade deals that remove barriers to Minnesota agribusiness exports – giving our farmers access to the international marketplace and unlocking every existing avenue that will result in economic growth right here at home. Finally, I am committed to true tax reform that includes helping hardworking farmers – who have spent their lives building their business and paying taxes every step of the way – pass on the family company without burdensome regulations and taxes.
Immigration: Do America’s immigration laws need to be changed?What should be the tenets of any immigration reform legislation?It was Ronald Reagan who once said, ‘A nation that cannot control its borders is not a nation at all.’ The best way to keep our homeland safe–along with slowing the influx of criminals and drugs––is to enforce the laws on the books, secure the border and control who gets in this country and who does not. German officials now admit that ISIS terrorists have infiltrated the Syrian refugee community and that’s why I believe we should not be putting more of them in America’s neighborhoods. As the recent attack in St. Cloud reminds us, we already have a terrorist recruitment problem in Minnesota. Furthermore, the fiscal cost of unlawful immigration is simply unsustainable. The Center for Immigration Studies estimates that when you include public education, health care, corrections, and government benefits, the total comes to $113 billion per year–most of it borne by the states. We may be able to find common ground to the nonimmigrant work visa issue, skilled & otherwise, but not until we secure the border.
Foreign trade: Should theTrans-Pacific Partnership be ratified? Be specific in your reasons. Because I am a supporter of free trade–and especially making sure Minnesota agricultural exports have access to overseas markets–I do not support the TPP in its current form. It appears much less a free trade agreement and much more a complicated multilateral carve out for special interests–not unlike our loophole ridden tax code. Real free trade lowers tariffs for all and and contains special favors for none. That is why the Obama Administration secretly negotiated the deal for years. For example, one foreign car company gets favored treatment in the TPP over other automakers and is permitted to import parts from countries that don’t comply with the deal. There is also no real remedy in the agreement that addresses currency manipulation for trade advantage. I look forward to helping craft a better trade deal that protects American interests while expanding vital export markets for Minnesota producers.
Other issues: Are there other issues you want to address? Our monetary policy continues to punish the saver and reward the debtor. Everyday workers are forced to ‘chase yields’ with risky investments while politicians continue to finance our massive deficits with a near zero interest rate policy. But monetary policy cannot cover for bad fiscal policy forever and it has already resulted in a dollar worth less than half its 1970s counterpart. One reason the Fed is monetizing the debt is due to their misguided mission to promote ‘maximum employment’ through easy money–thus creating economic cycles of boom and bust. They say inflation is tame, but try telling that to the first time homebuyer, the college student, or health insurance customers. The Fed’s mission should be ensuring a stable dollar and not creating asset bubbles that eventually burst.
Another issue that is very concerning is the fact that President Obama has issued more ‘presidential memoranda’ than any executive in history. He has circumvented Congress and the will of the people by unilaterally legalizing millions of illegal immigrants, rewriting the Affordable Care Act, making unconstitutional recess appointments, violating the War Powers Act, and refusing to defend our laws. He has also claimed executive privilege to thwart congressional investigations into Benghazi, Fast & Furious, and the IRS abuse scandal. Regardless of who becomes next President, it will be up to Congress and the courts to make certain the constitutional separation of powers is restored and the Obama legacy isn’t repeated.
Briefly summarize your personal background and qualifications. My experience in private business--in a small, family owned company as well as nationally syndicated broadcaster and author analyzing the most complex of public policy issues--uniquely prepares me to serve in the United States Congress. My academic background, including a Master’s Degree in Political Science, also provides a strong foundation for public service. Knowing the state, understanding the private sector as well as the public, and talking to hard working citizens every day for the better part of two and half decades will help me to become the most effective representative for Minnesota’s 2nd district. My candidacy has been honored to be endorsed by Gov. Tim Pawlenty, Rep. John Kline and Tom Emmer as well as U.S. Senator Rand Paul and most of the Republican state legislators in the 2nd district.