1) What is the No. 1 issue in your district and how would you address it?
Unemployment and the lack of good jobs is the number one issue for my constituents and the country as a whole. To create jobs, I believe we should invest in public infrastructure, strengthen American manufacturing, and improve education while investing in innovation. These actions are all part of the five-point jobs plan I released last year.
Passing a robust, long-term surface transportation infrastructure funding bill – which is more than 2 years overdue – would put hundreds of thousands of people to work in the short-term building a more efficient transportation system that will decrease congestion and increase job growth in the long term. Transportation infrastructure investment creates an estimated 28,000 jobs for every $1 billion invested, while reducing congestion and delays that cost our country more than $100 billion annually. A long-term reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration must also be passed to improve airports and hasten deployment of the NextGen satellite-based air traffic control system, which will reduce delays that cost an estimated $9.4 billion annually. A long-term bill – which is almost 5 years overdue – is vital for maintaining northeastern Illinois’ competitive position as a leading global passenger and air freight hub, with O’Hare and Midway generating $45 billion in economic activity and supporting 540,000 jobs.
Funding I have secured for local transportation projects has created and continues to create jobs. I have secured more than $126 million for local transportation improvements, including $100 million for the CREATE rail modernization program to ease rail and road congestion. After obtaining this funding for CREATE, I worked with stakeholders from the city, state, Metra, and the freight railroads to reach a three-year, $330 million agreement to begin Phase 1 of the program. In addition, I was proud to work with state leaders for the inclusion of $300 million for CREATE in the 2009 state capital bill. I also helped lead the Chicagoland Congressional delegation in successfully lobbying for a $100 million federal grant for CREATE that includes substantial funding for several key projects. Among these is the $27 million 71st Street underpass in Bridgeview near Toyota Park, which is now under construction. Separately, I was a strong supporter of the $133 million Englewood Flyover, working both to obtain the funding for the project from the federal government and to keep it on track when disagreements threatened it. Ground has been broken on this rail bridge, which will create 1,450 jobs, reduce delays immediately on the Rock Island Metra line, and enable future delay reductions on the Southwest Service Metra line, both of which serve the Third District.
One-third of American manufacturing jobs have been eliminated in the last decade. This not only harms workers and families now, it threatens our national security and our ability to innovate and develop the next generation of products. To strengthen American manufacturing and create jobs I have reintroduced the National Manufacturing Strategy Act, H.R. 1366. This bill, which passed the House 379-38 in 2010, is designed to forge broad, bipartisan support for an actionable plan to revitalize American manufacturing. I also believe it is critical that we level the playing field for American manufacturers hurt by unfair competition from abroad. I continue to advocate for legislation to combat China’s currency manipulation, which, if halted, could create between 500,000 and 2.25 million jobs. In addition, I have repeatedly urged direct action to halt unfair trade practices by foreign countries under existing laws.
I have also been active in working to ensure that, whenever practicable, the federal government “buys American” when purchasing goods and services. I have been able to add “Buy American” language to bills in the House and I have introduced bipartisan legislation to strengthen the Buy American Act. Recently, when the Pentagon failed to abide by the Buy American Act, I stepped in on behalf of a local company, forcing the Defense Department to rebid a forklift contract that had been incorrectly awarded to a South Korean company. As a result, Hoist Liftruck of Bedford Park was able to win the contract in October. This contract is supporting 40 jobs at the company, contributing to the demand that has allowed Hoist to hire new workers, and is also supporting jobs at numerous Midwest companies that are part of Hoist’s supply chain. Another recent example of my efforts at the local level to contribute to job creation is the Job Fair that I held in October. This event brought hundreds of job seekers together with dozens of companies that are currently hiring. In the months since, I have heard from a number of constituents who obtained jobs through this fair.
While working to promote job creation in the short term, we must also lay the groundwork for long-term job creation. That is why I am working to improve education, especially science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education, and invest in innovative, high-tech research. Both are critical for ensuring that America remains the world’s leading source of new, job-creating technologies. I helped author and pass into law the America COMPETES Act, which takes numerous steps to improve STEM education while putting us on a path to double investment in high-tech research and speed the commercialization of researchers’ discoveries to create jobs. I have also been a leading supporter of R&D in areas such as nanotechnology, which has extraordinary potential to create jobs and transform industries ranging from medicine to clean energy. To help small businesses innovate, I have helped provide $12 billion in tax relief and increased access to credit, and successfully worked to reauthorize the Small Business Innovation Research program to support R&D done by small businesses.
2) How would you promote job growth in your district?
See answer to #1.
3) Should the federal government cut spending and where?
Yes, it should. America’s surging national debt threatens our future. In June, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated that our debt could damage economic growth to such an extent that the economy would be almost one-fifth smaller in 2035 than would be the case otherwise. I have repeatedly supported bipartisan compromises to avoid such an outcome. I voted for the bipartisan budget deal that prevented a government shutdown in April and cut spending in FY11 by $38 billion, as well as the short-term extensions that enabled us to reach that compromise. As the debate over the debt ceiling got underway last year, I voted against a bill that would have increased the debt limit without addressing future deficits. I then voted for the Budget Control Act in August to reduce the deficit by at least $2.1 trillion over 10 years, thus beginning the process of bringing the national debt down to sustainable levels. I was also one of the 100 House members who signed a bipartisan letter in October in support of a comprehensive, $4 trillion deficit-reduction plan. Last month, I voted for the bipartisan agreement that sets federal government spending for fiscal year 2012 and adheres to the deficit-reduction compromise passed in August. I also voted for the balanced budget amendment to force fiscal discipline on Washington before the national debt reaches completely unsustainable levels. I continue to urge my colleagues to put aside their differences and come together to provide the deficit reduction that we need in order to avoid a fiscal crisis.
I have supported an “all options on the table” approach to resolving our federal budget challenges because I believe this is essential if we want to forge a genuinely bipartisan and long-term solution to our deficit challenge. I believe there are many opportunities to reduce spending. These include cutting subsidy payments to wealthy agribusinesses; ending public subsidies for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac; terminating unnecessary, over-budget, and/or poorly performing weapons systems such as the EFV and the SLAMRAAM (missile); implementing defense acquisition reforms; cutting certain oil and gas subsidies; selling underutilized federal buildings; and authorizing the HHS Secretary to negotiate drug prices for Medicare, which alone could save as much as $156 billion over 10 years. Clearly, Medicare, and the health care system in general, must be reformed in order to cut the deficit. I will continue seeking ways to reduce spending and cut budget deficits while maintaining essential services and investments for the middle class.
4) If Republican, which GOP presidential candidate do you support?
N/A.
5) Give an example of something you’ve done that is bipartisan in nature.
I voted for the bipartisan budget deal that prevented a government shutdown in April and cut spending in FY11 by $38 billion, as well as the short-term extensions that enabled us to reach that compromise. As the debate over the debt ceiling got underway last year, I voted against a bill that would have increased the debt limit without addressing future deficits. I then voted for the Budget Control Act in August to reduce the deficit by at least $2.1 trillion over 10 years, thus beginning the process of bringing the national debt down to sustainable levels. I was also one of the 100 House members who signed a bipartisan letter in October in support of a comprehensive, $4 trillion deficit-reduction plan. Last month, I voted for the bipartisan agreement that sets federal government spending for fiscal year 2012 and adheres to the deficit-reduction compromise passed in August. I also voted for the balanced budget amendment to force fiscal discipline on Washington before the national debt reaches completely unsustainable levels. I continue to urge my colleagues to put aside their differences and come together to provide the deficit reduction that we need in order to avoid a fiscal crisis.
In addition, among many other things, I have introduced bipartisan legislation with Sen. Mark Kirk and Rep. Bob Dold to protect the Great Lakes from pollution; passed in the House on a strongly bipartisan vote my National Manufacturing Strategy Act to revitalize American manufacturing; helped write and lead passage of bipartisan legislation – the America COMPETES Act – to create jobs and improve American competitiveness by investing in manufacturing, science education, and advanced research; and repeatedly joined with members of both parties to call for passage of a bipartisan multi-year surface transportation reauthorization bill.
6) Name one good policy idea that comes from the opposing party.
Republicans are certainly not alone in believing we must reduce the national debt, as many Democrats strongly support deficit reduction measures. But Republicans deserve credit for making deficit reduction a major priority for Washington. While I may differ with many of my colleagues across the aisle on how to achieve this goal, there is no doubt that we must reduce the national debt before it becomes completely unmanageable and does grave damage to our economy and the prospects for the middle class.
7) How do you define family values?
Family values to me are all those values –responsibility, compassion, honesty, respect for life, hard work, and many others – that make it possible to raise our children to become upstanding citizens and to contribute to the improvement of their community and their nation.
8) What are your thoughts on the healthcare law?
Throughout my time in Congress, I have fought to rein in soaring health care costs and make insurance coverage more affordable. The PPACA made a number of improvements, including banning lifetime and annual limits on coverage, extending coverage for dependents on their parents’ plans, banning discrimination based on pre-existing conditions, and setting up insurance exchanges with transparent information available for making informed choices. Unfortunately, it is also deeply flawed. I could not support the bill and believe there are many areas that should be changed. At the same time, repealing the bill without making much-needed changes to our health care system would put us right back where we started – with a system in dire need of improvement and little chance of action in a gridlocked Congress.
The PPACA’s greatest failure was doing little to affect the cost of health care. One step we can take to bring down costs is to require health care providers to disclose their prices (as my Hospital Price Disclosure bill does). We must also find ways to ensure more competition among health insurance companies; for example, Maryland has “all-payer rates” for hospitals to even the playing field amongst insurers. Most importantly, we must implement delivery system reforms such as accountable care organizations, bundling of payments, and medical homes. The PPACA starts some of these reforms but doesn’t go far enough. The way we pay for health care must be changed if we are going to be able to afford it.
The PPACA includes more than $400 billion in Medicare cuts. The Chief Actuary of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has stated that these cuts would likely lead some providers to refuse to take Medicare patients. In addition, the bill does not allow the government to negotiate for lower drug prices in Medicare, which I have long supported and which would have a significant cost-saving effect. I would amend the law to include this negotiating capacity.
I would also eliminate the CLASS provision. In March, I helped introduce bipartisan legislation – H.R. 1173 – to repeal this well-intentioned but fatally flawed long-term care program, which experts agree would add significantly to the national debt over the long term. Before the PPACA passed I warned that CLASS was unsustainable. HHS Secretary Sibelius has conceded the program is unworkable, but it is still in law.
One other misguided way of paying for part of the cost of PPACA involved the imposition of an expensive and burdensome tax-reporting requirement on small businesses. This provision required businesses to file an IRS 1099 form for every vendor payment over $600. I helped pass a bill that eventually became law last year to eliminate this burden, which we could not afford to put on small businesses, especially when we need greater job creation.
Finally, the PPACA changes current federal policy and provides funding for abortion. It allows federal funds to subsidize health plans in the insurance exchanges that cover abortion, requires participants in any insurance plan that receives federal subsidies and provides abortion to make a separate payment to fund abortion services, and opens the door for Community Health Centers to use federal funds to pay for abortions. This must be rectified, and I have cosponsored and voted for legislation to ensure no federal money pays for abortion. Worst of all is the rule now imposed by HHS that would violate conscience rights by requiring that every health plan and employer, with very narrow exceptions, covers contraception – including abortifacients – as free “preventive services.”
9) Who is your political role model?
Ronald Reagan and William Lipinski.
10) What’s on your iPod?
I put my iPod on shuffle and the first ten artists that played were Paul McCartney, Chicago, Switchfoot, Dennis DeYoung, Journey, The Alarm, Def Leppard, Night Ranger, The Go-Go’s, and Stephen Curtis Chapman. I also have podcasts of all the Sunday morning TV political talk shows.
