Stevens County Republicans Statements of Principle

2021-22 SCRCC Candidate Questionnaire

Here are my responses to the Stevens County Republican's questions for candidate vetting.

The following statements of principle are taken from the Stevens County Republican Party platform. You are invited to reflect on each statement.

FREE ENTERPRISE: The engine of economic growth is privately held property, used productively with inspired resourcefulness, ingenuity and innovation.

As a small business owner since 2002 I’ve been building a company from the ground up. I work diligently in everything I do, and those efforts have borne fruit within our company, my family, and my community. My business employs 7 full-time software engineers from our offices in Kettle Falls.

EDUCATION: It is the ultimate responsibility of parents and individuals to make use of the highest and best educational resources available to them for the preservation of a free and productive society.

My parents were both teachers and they instilled a strong work ethic (as a child we farmed 2 acres of organic strawberries) and a love of learning. They guided six children through graduate degrees at Whitworth and Gonzaga. I have four children of my own who are bright, thoughtful and hardworking. It is imperative that we raise up our children in the way that they should go.

FAMILY: We assert that the cornerstone of any just and enduring society is the preeminence of strong, loving families defined by the traditional view of marriage as a covenant between one man and one woman.

I married my wife in April of 2000 and that relationship has been foundational to the raising of our four children. My parents, grandparents, and siblings have all modeled strong spousal commitments in their relationships, and amongst us all there are hundreds of years of fidelity. I’d personally broaden this plank, as I think it takes a community to raise a child. We need strong, thoughtful, loving extended families, teachers, coaches, pastors, and friends to foster society.

LIFE: We recognize that every being of human origin is a person, and that all human beings possess the equal, inalienable and most fundamental right to life. Government, having derived its legitimacy from the preservation of this and other inalienable rights, must protect the lives of the innocent and vulnerable among us.

Strongly Agree

HEALTHCARE: It is the inherent responsibility of each citizen to provide and prepare for his or her own healthcare needs.

As a business owner I’ve experienced first-hand the egregious costs associated with healthcare. Our current system is a travesty of special interests and inappropriate mandates that directly affect our bottom line. For my employees I’d much prefer a system of self-pay where my company offers a catastrophic insurance policy as a benefit. Each employee knows best the health risks they take and can best plan for their own care. Each year I experience a 10-15% increase in cost and over 20 years of experience shows the brokenness of the current approach.

CRIME: It is the natural right of every lawful citizen to secure the safety of their person, lawful liberty, families and property, and the primary intent of the Second Amendment to the US Constitution was to guarantee this right through the right to keep and bear arms. Furthermore, the Fourteenth Amendment, Section I, constrains all states from infringing on any privileges and immunities guaranteed by the Constitution. Therefore, it is the federal government’s obligation to ensure no state passes laws that infringe upon these privileges and immunities.

As a boy my grandfather (a WW2 vet and scout leader) taught me to use and respect guns. We spent many an hour chasing whitetails, experiencing nature, and developing a sense of resiliency and self-sufficiency. My high school English teacher Mrs. Davis, always impressed upon us that freedoms must be protected, that my freedoms only went as far as they didn’t impinge upon someone else’s freedom. I’m supportive of the foundational ideas of the Constitution and its amendments.

ENVIRONMENT AND NATURAL RESOURCES: The responsible use of our natural resources is the base from which all other industry grows, and proper stewardship of these resources is the guarantee of future economic stability.

Appropriate forest, land, mineral management practices are essential to the local economies. I’m a good steward of my resources, and expect others be so as well.

NATIONAL DEFENSE AND FOREIGN POLICY: One of the primary responsibilities of the Federal government is the securing of our national borders and interests through a strong, well-prepared military supplied with the best technology, intelligence, and resources available and that these borders and interests should never be subordinated to or breached by another nation or organization.

Both of my grandparents served in WW2 and impressed upon us the need for a strong military.

LIMITED GOVERNMENT AND ELECTION REFORM: In a Constitutional Republic, only when Self Government is maintained can State and Federal Governments be restrained to their proper constitutional parameters and local governments empowered to preserve the sacred rights of their sovereign citizens. Furthermore, a secure and transparent system of elections and campaign finance is vital for the maintenance of a strong Republic.

I’m supportive of local governance within the framework our founders envisioned. I personally believe that the way our country finances campaigns foster’s beholden politicians who quickly forget they are public servants.