Defeating the Green New Deal and defending Houston’s Energy Jobs

Houston is the energy capital of America. The energy industry employs hundreds of thousands in Texas. These jobs that are the heart and soul of Houston’s economy are under threat from extreme liberals in Washington.

Now more than ever we need a strong energy sector to drive Houston’s economic engine. I won’t be afraid to stand up for those jobs and lead the fight against the extreme anti-energy policies of Washington special interests and the radical Green New Deal to keep Houston’s economy running strong.

Lowering Taxes

The American people are overtaxed, especially the middle class.  I supported the 2017 Tax Reform bill, which lowered Texans’ average tax bill by more than $2,500 per year.  That’s almost $200 more each month that Texas families can spend on groceries, bills or savings for college. Lizzie Fletcher and Nancy Pelosi are fighting to repeal the tax bill and raise taxes on middle class families.

In Congress, I’ll vote to make these individual tax cuts permanent. I’ll also look for other opportunities to lower taxes for middle class Americans and eliminate the special interest tax breaks and loopholes that make the tax system less fair.

Securing our Southern Border

Illegal immigration is an issue of national security, and it’s resulting in a humanitarian crisis. We are a generous country, but we also believe in the rule of law, securing our borders and protecting American workers. I support enforcing our immigration laws while increasing funding for border security to ensure that we know who is coming in and out of our nation.

I don’t support any effort for amnesty to those here already.  There are thousands of immigrants waiting in line to enter our country legally. Giving amnesty to those who have broken the law sends the wrong message and unfairly punishes those who are going through the process legally.

Preventing Future Flooding

Two years ago, Hurricane Harvey struck Houston, devastating our city. We need to work together to make sure that those who still have not recovered from past storms get the resources they were promised.  Congress allocated funding but it is taking too long for that funding to get to Houstonians in need. I promise to work across the aisle and establish relationships with the departments in charge to speed up funding to those who still need help.

We also need to prioritize future funding. That means fighting for research to study underground tunnel mitigation to make sure that water can flow freely into the Gulf, and to widen the existing tunnels and bayous.  I’ll make sure that funding allocated to Houston actually gets here.  On my first day in office, I’ll sponsor a bill that states that any infrastructure funding related to flood mitigation in Houston will have a single point of contact with the federal government and will require only one signoff.

Reducing the Cost of Health Care

The rising cost of health care impacts middle class families in the 7th District and across the nation. After Obamacare was passed, premiums increased by 48%.  I believe that there are free-market solutions that will lower the cost of care while protecting those with pre-existing conditions. I support:

• Permanently removing the individual mandate.
• Allowing insurance to be sold across state lines to increase competition and lower prices. If an Oklahoma company can provide a better price to Texans, then they should be allowed to do so.
• Allowing generic pharmaceuticals to compete on the market to lower the price of back-breaking name brand products.

Millions of Americans receive their insurance from their place of work. I will protect employer-sponsored health insurance from attempts by the extreme liberals to ban it in favor of a government run, single-payer system.

Preventing Future Spending

The United States has a spending problem.  Right now, our reckless spending is saddling future generations with a crippling debt.  If we’re going to continue being the leading world power in the 21st century, we need to get our fiscal house in order.  That’s why I support the Balanced Budget Amendment, which would force the government to live within our means.  We can’t continue putting our children at risk with our lack of fiscal restraint.