Candidate Q&A
Why are you running?
I’m deeply concerned about the chaos and uncertainty — and the real pressures people face, rising costs, broken systems, and a government that too often feels disconnected from real life.
I’m running because I’m frustrated with the lack of commonsense leaders and solutions. I’m not a career politician. I’m an award-winning entrepreneur, a small education innovation business owner, and a military mom who has spent years juggling work, raising three boys — including one serving in the Air Force — and caring for aging and disabled parents. I understand firsthand how hard families are working just to stay afloat.
Today, the common good is under threat — from division, dysfunction, and a political system that rewards noise over solutions. That’s why I’m leading with a clear, two-pronged strategy: defend our democracy AND build a real path forward for working families.
My platform is about freedom, opportunity, dignity, and security for every American.
We need new leaders, new ideas, new solutions. I’ve built businesses, created jobs, and helped shape policies that deliver real results. I bring an innovation mindset focused on solving problems — questioning outdated assumptions and finding smarter ways to serve our communities.
Through my service on a presidential working group and national boards, I have current federal policy experience strengthening small businesses, creating jobs, and protecting economic and national security — enabling me to be effective from day one.
With hard work, collaboration, and common sense, we can restore trust, defend our democracy, and rebuild an economy that rewards hard work.
What do you think is the most pressing issue facing your constituents and how do you plan on addressing it?
My top priority is two-pronged: defending our democracy and restoring affordability for working families. These challenges are deeply connected. When democracy is weakened by chaos, politicized institutions, and a Congress that can’t govern, families pay the price through higher costs, instability, and lost trust.
Defending democracy means protecting the rule of law, fair elections, independent institutions, and a Congress that does its job. I will fight efforts to weaponize government, undermine voting rights, or rig outcomes. Our democracy only works when people believe the system is fair and accountable.
Affordability is the daily test of whether government is working. Rising grocery prices, housing costs, healthcare, childcare, elder care are squeezing families, seniors, and small businesses. Fixing this doesn’t require slogans — it requires commonsense, responsible updates to policies that no longer reflect real life. As a small business owner, social scientist, and educator — and as a mom who raised three boys while caring for aging and disabled parents — I’ve seen how outdated rules push families off a cliff.
In Congress, I will modernize how we measure affordability so programs reflect today’s real costs, smooth benefit cliffs so work always pays, lower everyday costs by fixing supply chains, housing shortages, and poorly designed tariffs, and raise incomes through better wages, skills training, and support for small businesses. I will also strengthen economic security through global leadership and fiscal responsibility that keeps inflation in check.
Democracy gives us the power to act. Affordability proves whether we use it well. I’m running to deliver both — with competence, integrity, and results.
What is one unique challenge your district faces and how do you plan to address it?
Illinois’ 8th District is home to hard-working Americans who have paid into the system, raised families, built businesses, and contributed to their communities. They deserve to live and age with dignity and security.
If elected, one of my top priorities will be lowering healthcare and housing costs — two of the biggest threats to stability for seniors and working families. Today, too many people are forced to choose between prescriptions, housing payments, and groceries. That is unacceptable.
I will fight to protect and strengthen Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act, expand subsidies, and continue efforts to lower prescription drug prices. As someone who cared for aging and disabled parents, I understand firsthand how quickly medical costs can become a financial crisis.
Housing is also a growing crisis in our district. Rising rents, property taxes, and home prices are pushing seniors and families out of the communities they helped build. I will work to expand housing supply, support the workforce and senior housing, and reduce regulatory barriers that drive up costs. I’ll also work to direct investment into new affordable starter homes so that young families have an opportunity to root themselves in our communities.
I will also prioritize expanding home- and community-based care so seniors and people with disabilities can live independently with dignity. Preventive care and mental health access must be strengthened to improve outcomes and reduce long-term costs.
As the only candidate in this race with deep private-sector experience and national policy expertise, I am ready to lead from day one. With common sense and practical solutions, we can lower costs, restore stability, and ensure every resident of IL-08 can live and age with dignity.
What do you think federal immigration reform should look like?
We are a nation of immigrants. It is one of America’s greatest strengths, fueling our economy and strengthening our communities. We can honor that legacy while maintaining secure borders and the rule of law through competence, dignity, and common sense.
Today’s immigration crisis is the predictable result of decades of failed leadership. Congress should have passed comprehensive reform years ago, when it was already clear the system was outdated and broken. Instead, leaders delayed, deflected, and politicized the issue until dysfunction turned into chaos.
I believe deeply in the rule of law. But fear-driven raids that separate families, disrupt workplaces, and target people with deep community ties do not make us safer. They weaken trust, discourage crime reporting, and damage local economies.
Accountability matters. ICE should not operate as a masked, militarized force without transparency. I support requiring judicial warrants, limiting face coverings to verified safety needs, mandating body cameras, ensuring clear identification, strengthening independent oversight, and prohibiting enforcement at schools, hospitals, courthouses, and houses of worship.
Lasting solutions require a system that is fast, fair, and predictable. From day one, I have prioritized pro-legal immigration reform focused on speed, transparency, and the rule of law. That means more judges, more caseworkers, modernized processing, and timely decisions.
I support the Dignity Act, the DREAM Act, stronger access to legal counsel, and targeted enforcement focused on genuine public safety threats. America can be a nation of laws and immigrants if we replace chaos with competence.
How should Congress address the rising costs of health care?
Congress must start treating healthcare affordability as an economic issue, not just a medical one. Healthcare costs are one of the biggest reasons families fall behind, even when they are working hard and doing everything right.
We must lower out-of-pocket costs by expanding Affordable Care Act subsidies so premiums and deductibles are truly affordable, capping prescription drug prices, and fully empowering Medicare to negotiate lower costs. No one should have to ration medication or delay care because of price.
Congress should protect and strengthen the ACA and Medicaid expansion, and invest in primary care, mental health services, and preventive care so people can get help early instead of relying on expensive emergency treatment. We must also expand home- and community-based services, which cost less than institutional care, enabling more seniors and people with disabilities to age at home with dignity and independence.
We also have to address the cost drivers inside the system. That means reducing administrative waste, improving care coordination, cracking down on fraud and abuse, and increasing transparency around hospital and insurance pricing so patients know what they will pay before they receive a bill.
As someone who cared for aging and disabled parents, I understand these challenges firsthand. I have seen how medical costs can destabilize families. Congress has both the responsibility and the tools to fix this. My approach is practical and results-driven: lower costs, better access, strong oversight, and care that works in real life, not just on paper.
What approach would you take on tax policy and what is your top priority?
Any discussion of new taxes must start with a balanced view of how we tax income, wealth, investment, and consumption — and how those choices affect economic growth, opportunity, and fairness.
I believe we should move toward a fairer balance between taxing income, wealth, and consumption, rather than relying so heavily on wages while allowing sophisticated avoidance strategies at the top. That includes closing loopholes, improving transparency, and enforcing existing tax laws so that those with the greatest ability to pay do so fairly.
At the same time, tax policy must expand opportunity, not shrink it. Any reforms should be carefully designed so they do not discourage investment, innovation, or business formation. Long-term economic growth depends on people being willing to build businesses, take risks, and invest in the future. That’s why I favor targeted, technically sound reforms over sweeping new taxes that could have unintended consequences.
Finally, expanding the tax base matters. Policies that grow the workforce, including legal immigration, and bring more people into productive, well-paid employment strengthens communities and improve fiscal sustainability without raising rates on working families.
We can make the system fairer without undermining growth — by focusing on consumption, closing loopholes, and enforcing the rules with competence and balance.
Is the House currently using its oversight powers in the way it should be? What areas of government need more or less oversight?
Oversight should begin with one basic question: Is the executive branch following the law and respecting Congress’s constitutional role? Oversight is not about political retaliation. It is about accountability, transparency, ethics, and restoring public trust in government.
Congress should examine whether funds it approved were delayed, redirected, or withheld for political reasons. When funds are blocked without legal justification, families, local governments, and essential services pay the price.
Committees should review unilateral actions in foreign and national security policy. Decisions involving military force, sanctions, tariffs, and detention should not bypass congressional consultation or authorization. When presidents act alone in these areas, it weakens democratic accountability and shifts power away from the branch designed to debate and decide these serious questions.
Committees should assess whether federal agencies are operating competently, securely, and within their legal authority. This includes reviewing the actions of the Department of Government Efficiency and similar initiatives that disrupted services, improperly accessed sensitive data, or exceeded statutory limits. Efficiency cannot come at the expense of legality, security, or public trust.
Oversight should focus on whether government programs are delivering results. Congress should evaluate major initiatives to ensure taxpayer dollars are being spent effectively, transparently, and in ways that improve people’s lives.
The standard must be consistent and nonpartisan: when laws are broken, corruption is tolerated, or authority is abused, Congress must act. Responsible oversight strengthens democracy, protects constitutional balance, restores trust, and ensures government works for the people it serves — not for politics.
What is the most pressing foreign policy issue facing the country and what role should the House play in dealing with it?
China is one of the most serious long-term economic and national security challenges the United States faces. Addressing it requires principled leadership, steady strategy, and coordination with allies — not chaos.
Along with previous administrations, the Trump administration was right to recognize that China engages in unfair trade practices, intellectual-property theft, and heavy state subsidies that harm American workers and businesses. However, its response relies too heavily on unpredictable, on-again, off-again tariffs without a broader strategy.
China, meanwhile, has been playing the long game. It’s already surpassed the US in energy innovation, bringing down costs. China has spent decades building economic, diplomatic, and strategic influence across Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Instead of responding with a clear counterstrategy, U.S. leadership has too often retreated or acted erratically, weakening American credibility and global leadership.
U.S. policy toward China should rest on three pillars.
- We must rebuild America’s economic strength by investing in domestic manufacturing, clean energy, semiconductors, and secure supply chains so we are not dependent on China for critical goods.
- We must work with allies, not go it alone. Coordinated trade enforcement, AI ethical frameworks, technology standards, and supply-chain security give us far more leverage than unilateral actions.
- We must pursue a diplomacy-first, deterrence-based strategy in the Indo-Pacific that protects Taiwan and regional stability while keeping communication open to prevent escalation.
China is a competitor and a challenge — but America succeeds when we lead with confidence, competence, and a clear strategy grounded in economic strength and global leadership.
How do you view AI and the role the government should play in its regulation?
Artificial intelligence has enormous potential to drive innovation, productivity, and economic growth. Used responsibly, it can strengthen healthcare, education, manufacturing, and national security.
As a lifelong innovator and EdTech business founder, I believe strongly in encouraging innovation, not stifling it. But leadership also means setting clear guardrails.
Congress must prioritize oversight of high-risk uses of AI, especially in national security, healthcare, finance, elections, and law enforcement. We are already seeing deepfakes of public officials, sophisticated scams, and AI-driven misinformation spreading online. We need clear national standards for data privacy, transparency, and accountability. Americans deserve to know when AI is being used, how their personal data is handled, and who is responsible when something goes wrong.
Regulation and policy must strengthen American leadership and competitiveness. We cannot afford to fall behind China or other competitors in this critical technology. That means investing in research and development, expanding workforce training, and supporting domestic innovation. It also means working with our allies to establish shared global ethical norms, so democratic values — not authoritarian models — shape the future of AI.
We must avoid rigid, one-size-fits-all rules or reactionary bans. Technology evolves quickly. Regulation should be flexible, evidence-based, and expert-informed, with regular reviews and updates as conditions change.
Congress has a duty to ensure that AI serves the public good — not just corporate profits or foreign competitors. That is the balanced, forward-looking approach I will bring to this issue.
How would you describe the current state of your party and what changes or new approaches would you like to see your party adopt?
American politics has become so polarized that neither side can help anyone, and in turn, everyone is harmed. Progress is only progress when we all agree to work together to help the American people, not score political points.
Serving on the Board of the National Small Business Association (NSBA), I regularly work with leaders, advocates, and policymakers from across the political spectrum to advance shared legislative priorities. In that role, I’ve helped build bipartisan support for policies that strengthen small businesses by improving access to capital, reducing unnecessary regulatory burdens, and supporting workforce development.
As a small business owner and educator, I’ve spent decades bringing together people with competing priorities — industry leaders, policymakers, labor groups — to solve complex problems. I’ve worked on trade, workforce, and economic policy in bipartisan and nonpartisan settings, including serving on President Biden’s Foreign Policy Working Groups, where collaboration mattered far more than party labels and success depended on finding practical, workable solutions.
I believe that progress happens incrementally. Sometimes, success means improving language in a bill, protecting a critical program, or securing a key line item — even if the final legislation isn’t perfect. Governing isn’t about ideological purity; it’s about delivering real outcomes that help people and communities.
Congress refusing to work across the aisle doesn’t lead to better policy — it leads to gridlock and instability. If elected, I will work with anyone who is serious about solving problems for working Americans. Partisanship may win headlines, but collaboration is how you get things done.