The views expressed do not represent the Department of Defense. 

Reproductive rights are an extremely important part of my campaign. I am a pro-choice candidate. I also believe we need to make health care more accessible and affordable for people considering having children. Indiana has one of the highest rates of maternal mortality in the country, double the national average, and there are 33 counties in our state that do not have access to OB GYN care. We are a desert when it comes to reproductive healthcare and with an Indiana abortion ban on the horizon we will likely lose even more providers.

To combat this we must start by restoring our Hoosier women’s rights and codifying stronger reproductive rights protection laws. Secondly, we must fully fund existing state based programs that help support people in their reproductive care. Finally, we must be sure that we are doing whatever is needed to improve access to reproductive care, including access outside of traditional medicine, for example, access to doulas, midwives, and other members of the reproductive health profession.

I first got involved in politics in Hamilton County because I wanted to work to support our great public schools. Our kids deserve a strong education system that will prepare them for the jobs of tomorrow. However, decades of cuts to education funding and roll backs of teachers’ union rights have made Indiana an undesirable place for teachers to work. At the start of the 2022 school year, we had more than 3000 teaching positions open state wide and few options on how to fill them.

Fixing our education problems starts with supporting our teachers. Our state had a $6 billion dollar surplus. Using just $700 million of that surplus on teacher salaries would bring us into pay parity with surrounding states, like Ohio, Illinois and Kentucky. Additionally, I support policies that help restore teachers’ bargaining rights, including the ability to have their union bargain on working conditions like classroom size, working hours, and responsibilities outside the classroom. We must make these changes in order to ensure that our schools are strong and able to meet the needs of ALL Hoosier kids.

Not only am I a veteran of Afghanistan but I am the son of a Vietnam Vet. As a Vote Vets endorsed candidate veteran issues will always be a priority of mine. In the last two years Veteran homelessness in Indiana has increased by 16%. While the Federal government has recently passed legislation to help better connect our veterans with health care and other supportive services, our state must step in to solve the problem of veteran homelessness.

When elected I will introduce legislation to create a statewide veterans’ homelessness commission that will use the best practices learned from other states to identify all homeless Hoosier veterans and connect them with the housing services they need. We know that this model will work in our state because the city of Kokomo has already done it. In 2020  the mayor of Kokomo declared that they had reached their goal of a community with zero homeless veterans. We have the tools we need to house all our Hoosier veterans and I am committed to being sure it gets done.

As a gun owner, I am very proud to be a Gun Sense candidate from Mom’s Demand Action. I was trained on how to safely use and store a firearm both in the military and as a deputized federal law enforcement officer in my civilian aviation career. Gun safety and training is a necessary part of responsible gun ownership.

Indiana needs to adopt gun safety laws that follow the advice of the experts in our state. Permitless carry is a very dangerous regulation that should never have been passed. Law enforcement across the state, including the Indiana State Police, all believe permitless carry makes communities and our police officers less safe. Additionally, I support safe storage laws and expanding background checks to include all private sales. Responsible gun ownership must mean that gun owners are required to store and sell their firearms safely.

Clean air and clean water are rights that that everyone deserves no matter where they live. Environmental justice means ensuring that right, regardless of economic status, race, or religion. It also means restoring the wrongs committed from policies such as redlining and zoning that negatively affected socio-economic groups in urban and rural areas.

To accomplish this, we must first restore strong wetlands regulations in this state to keep our ecosystems healthy for generations to come. We must also have much stricter air and water regulations and have clear consequences for violating those regulations, consequences that hold companies accountable for irresponsible practices. Finally, we must be sure we are incentivizing green energy solutions for both homes and businesses to speed the adoption of clean and sustainable energy sources. As a state legislator I will fight to pass policies that meet all these goals.

It is undeniable that our global climate is changing and that we are experiencing more extreme climate events. Our Hoosier state could be doing more to combat climate change and reverse its effects. First, we must reverse no-net metering legislation as a critical way to continue to incentivize the adoption of solar power. Additionally, I would propose a state tax credit, on top of any existing federal tax credit, for individuals who adopt home solar power, geothermal power, or other renewable energy sources.

Next, I believe the legislature should create a statewide goal for reducing emissions. I believe policymakers should work to incentivize companies, individuals, and cities/towns to help the state achieve that goal. Finally, I believe the state should be more aggressive about promoting and incentivizing electric vehicle adoption.