It has become increasingly fashionable for Washington politicians to embrace socialism. Jim knows the inherent dangers of adopting socialist ideas – from wealth redistribution schemes to job-killing tax plans. Our nation was founded on the ideas of free enterprise and innovation, and Jim will support policies that enhance the free market and allow inventors, innovators, and job-creators to thrive. Socialism fails everywhere it is implemented, stifling creativity and freedom. Jim has been a staunch supporter of the free market in the state legislature and in his work in the private sector, and he will continue to champion the free market once elected to Congress.

Our nation’s border security system is undeniably broken. By not enforcing our nation’s immigration laws, we have created incentives for people to cross the border illegally. Jim supports strong border security, and believes the law enforcement agents who work at ICE (Immigration & Customs Enforcement) deserve to have the resources and support they need to conduct their vital work at the border. As a country, we must decide how many immigrants we want to accept per year and whether those should be merit based. Then we need to enforce that law. If we allow people to enter our country illegally, then we are pushing them to the head of the line for new immigrants and penalizing those who are attempting to join our country legally. That is not fair.

Out-of-control spending in Washington has created our nation’s $22 trillion debt. As someone who has run successful businesses, Jim recognizes the need for commonsense budgets and spending restraint. He supports spending reductions, and will work in Congress to eliminate the waste and redundant government programs. It isn’t fair for our children and grandchildren to be saddled with the burdens caused by today’s fiscal irresponsibility in Washington – and Jim will work to restore fiscal discipline on Capitol Hill.

Jim favors both state and federal proposals to limit legislators’ terms. Politicians who spend their entire careers in Congress inevitably start representing the government establishment and the special interests who finance their campaigns rather than the families they take an oath to represent. Term-limited politicians tend to vote in ways that they believe are good for our country instead of ways that are good for their reelection. Jim also supports the creation of an independent redistricting commission to prohibit gerrymandering.

From protecting those with pre-existing conditions to escalating health insurance costs to the need for accessible and affordable care, Jim understands the problems facing our nation’s health care system. Jim supports the free market, and believes government should play only a limited role in health care, while protecting those with pre-existing conditions. One of Jim’s favorite ideas to solve our nation’s health care crisis is to increase portability of health insurance plans. If we want to increase access and coverage, a great start is by allowing individuals to keep their insurance even when they switch jobs. In addition, if we want to bring down overall healthcare costs for our country, we need transparency in pricing and competition among providers.