Candidate Q&A
Why are you running?
I’m running again because I love this community – and because our work is far from finished. I believe I can be the voice our community needs in Washington, focused on two urgent priorities: standing up to Donald Trump and lowering costs for working families. These are the issues that keep people up at night. They keep me up at night, too. I’m committed to fighting for this community every single day, just as I have in my first three years in office delivering a record amount of resources back to IL-13. We’ve already made real progress together, and I know that by staying focused, determined, and united, we can keep delivering the results people deserve.
What do you think is the most pressing issue facing your constituents and how do you plan on addressing it?
As stated above my focus is on two urgent priorities: protecting our communities from the Trump Administration’s actions and fighting to lower costs. This President has been a disaster for Illinois and for my district. In 2025 alone, inflation cost Illinois families $1,781. Working people deserve far better. At the same time, the Administration’s abuse of ICE remains one of my top concerns. The deployment of masked, untrained ICE agents into our communities does not make us safer – it spreads fear and undermines trust. I’m demanding accountability, including the impeachment of Kristi Noem, and pushing for serious reforms to ensure these untrained, masked ICE agents are taken off our streets and no longer allowed to terrorize our neighbors. If re-elected, I’m going to keep doing everything I can to raise my voice and keep our communities safe.
What is one unique challenge your district faces and how do you plan to address it?
I represent a large and diverse district, and each community has its own unique needs. And I've been proud to be elevating those needs and those voices in Washington to deliver real, lasting results. In Champaign, I’m working closely with the University of Illinois to support research investment, workforce pipelines, and keeping higher education affordable. In Springfield, I’m focused on economic development and tackling rising costs, including securing over $150 million for the Springfield Rail Improvement Project – a multi-phase project to boost commerce and passenger transportation across our state and lead to a brighter new future for Downtown Springfield. In Decatur, I’m standing up for our farmers and agricultural producers, fighting against painful tariffs, supporting the biofuel sector, and overall leading the charge in DC to secure a farm bill that will help our growers in my district thrive. In the Metro East, I’m addressing longstanding flooding and water infrastructure problems that residents have dealt with for far too long. At the same time, I’m working to ensure additional investment in Granite City Works, safeguarding good-paying union jobs. I’ve also been fighting to include the communities I represent in the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, so families can finally receive the justice and accountability they deserve. Continuing to serve in this office means continuing to fight for all these objectives and having the experience and passion necessary to get the job done – and done right.
What do you think federal immigration reform should look like?
I am horrified by the Trump Administration’s deployment of ICE into our communities. Masked officers abducting people off the streets – many of whom have lived here for decades, raised families, and contributed to our communities – is unacceptable. The recent deaths of two American citizens at the hands of ICE and CBP officers underscore the urgent need for congressional accountability. That is why I voted NO on additional ICE funding both times it came before the House this year. I cannot support a single additional dollar until meaningful, enforceable reforms are in place. I have been outspoken in condemning these extreme and reckless tactics, and I am actively supporting legislation to rein in ICE’s abuses. I am proud to cosponsor the No Secret Police Act and the Stop Excessive Force in Immigration Act, which if taken together, would ban masks for ICE officers, require body cameras, and limit the use of force when safer alternatives exist. I am also calling for Secretary Noem’s removal or impeachment – she is profoundly unfit to lead this department. On top of demanding these changes, we need to finally pass comprehensive immigration reform. That’s why I joined a bipartisan group of lawmakers to introduce the American Dream and Promise Act and the Dignity Act, which would reform asylum, provide Dreamers a path to citizenship, and grant work authorization to other undocumented immigrants. I remain committed to immigration reform that secures our border, while upholding the dignity and humanity of all immigrants.
How should Congress address the rising costs of health care?
We live in the richest country in the world, and everyone should be able to afford reliable health care. But Republican policies under Donald Trump have pushed us into a health care crisis, and I’ve been fighting back. I’ve met with Medicaid patients facing $900 billion in proposed cuts, rural hospitals worried about closing their doors, and families whose ACA premiums are skyrocketing. Their stories are heartbreaking. That’s why I voted against the disastrous “Big Ugly Bill” and pushed for months to protect ACA tax credits. That fight paid off—but it’s not enough. I’m taking on pharmacy benefit managers who drive up drug prices, fighting for rural health funding, and working to deliver lasting solutions that lower costs and protect care for everyone. As Vice-Chair of Policy for the New Dem Coalition we just unveiled our healthcare agenda that includes efforts to end surprise billing and increasing transparency, and extending out-of-pocket prescription caps to more hardworking Americans. Again, healthcare should be affordable for everyone and the cuts coming down the pipeline are cruel – I’m going to keep fighting back and demanding better for our communities.
What approach would you take on tax policy and what is your top priority?
I’ve spent my life fighting for working people, not billionaires. At a time when this administration is proposing billions in cuts to SNAP and Medicaid to fund more tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans, it’s a slap in the face to families who are already struggling to get by. We must ensure the ultra-wealthy pay their fair share and close the loopholes that allow them to live off massive wealth while paying lower tax rates than teachers, nurses, and construction workers. That’s why I voted against the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill Act when it came before the House in July 2025. Instead of enacting provisions that would ensure that the wealthiest Americans paid their fair share, the President and Republicans in Congress chose to push forward a bill that made the 2017 Tax Cuts bill permanent – a $4 trillion giveaway to corporations and the richest Americans. It’s ridiculous and I will continue working to lower taxes people – not make it easier for billionaires to buy another private jet.
Is the House currently using its oversight powers in the way it should be? What areas of government need more or less oversight?
Beyond the lack of oversight and accountability at ICE, I was deeply concerned about the President illegally withholding funding from our communities – what’s known as impoundment – with almost no transparency and no real pushback from Republicans in Congress. Early in the administration, federal agencies were ordered to freeze grant and loan payments, essentially ignoring Congress’s constitutional power over federal spending. Federal grants aren’t abstract line items – they’re lifelines. I heard from and talked with countless farmers relying on USDA loans, and local leaders waiting on funding to fix roads, bridges, and water systems. Having worked at the Office of Management and Budget, I knew this move wasn’t just troubling – it was illegal. That’s why I spoke out and joined more than 150 Democrats in demanding answers from the Trump Administration and demanding they unfreeze these projects promised to our communities. Our message was simple: Congress approved these funds, the President signed them into law, and communities deserve to know which projects are being frozen and why. I’m pleased our pressure worked and many if not all of the funds put on hold have been released. I will always defend Congress’s power of the purse, and will push for Congress to continue to apply as much pressure as possible to hold the administration accountable.
What is the most pressing foreign policy issue facing the country and what role should the House play in dealing with it?
The more pressing foreign policy issue is less from a foreign threat, but from the lack of transparency and oversight we are seeing from this Administration as it relates to military power and threats. While there is no question Maduro’s regime in Venezuela was undemocratic and oppressive, President Trump’s use of force without congressional approval was reckless. Time and again, the president has demonstrated open disregard for the role of Congress and the principle of coequal branches of government. While Members of Congress, responsible for representing the will of the American People, were deliberately kept in the dark, the president was privately previewing his actions in Venezuela to U.S. oil companies. At a moment when families across this country are struggling to make ends meet, the president is instead claiming that the United States is going to “run Venezuela,” risking a costly war abroad. The American people deserve to know exactly what that means – now. Additionally, the President’s threats towards Greenland is another example of the President thinking he can just do whatever he wants without Congressional approval – and ignoring the real issues happening here at home. With that being said, I’ve been supportive of efforts in Congress, such as a bipartisan war powers resolution to block President Trump from continuing military action against Venezuela and Greenland.
How do you view AI and the role the government should play in its regulation?
I believe the federal government has a critical role to play in regulating AI and ensuring its growth is guided responsibly. The potential of AI is exciting, and we should continue to foster innovation, especially as China seeks to gain the upperhand. But government oversight is essential to address the real harms AI can cause, particularly the rise of deepfakes that threaten individuals’ privacy, safety, and reputations. Over the past several years, the rapid expansion of AI has also produced tools and platforms that are clearly harming the mental health of our nation’s children. We must take stronger action to regulate these technologies and protect young people from their negative impacts. I am also deeply concerned about the effect AI will have on our workforce. I have spent much of my career representing union workers and fighting for fair wages and safe working conditions. The federal government has a responsibility to ensure AI is not used as a tool to replace workers or undermine labor standards, but instead to support workers and create good, well-paying jobs. Congress must strike a careful balance – encouraging technological advancement while safeguarding our children and protecting our worker force.
How would you describe the current state of your party and what changes or new approaches would you like to see your party adopt?
I believe our party has been unified, and that was on full display during the fight to protect ACA tax credits and now, to demand accountability from ICE. We must continue to be united and demand better for the American people. But of course, there are areas where we failed. I think the biggest lesson from the 2024 presidential election is that Democrats did not listen closely enough to people’s real concerns – especially with the economy. You can’t tell someone how strong the economy is when they’re struggling to put food on the table. That disconnect matters. I’ve been proud to see our party rally around a cost-of-living agenda: extending ACA tax credits, protecting SNAP and Medicaid, and standing up for working families while Republicans push tax breaks for billionaires. We must continue to be the party that understands and relates to working people. But we also need to do more than defend the status quo. We have to show people the opportunities our agenda creates for them to succeed. Voters want an agenda that meets their needs and inspires them, and I think when Democrats take back the House, we must make good on that plan.