Candidate for
State Senator; District 11

I am a moderate conservative. I believe in a limited government that focuses on its core responsibilities--which include enforcing the laws, educating our children, building adequate infrastructure, and providing a basic safety net. While performing these functions, government should be made subject to the same discipline that households and private firms must exhibit. This requires vigilant oversight of program and agency effectiveness. It also requires tough, fiscally responsible decisions from leaders. In the end, officials must have a single-minded focus on serving their constituents--not rent-seeking corporations (e.g. Prop. 10), aggressive public sector lobbies (e.g. the prison guards union), or any other special interest.

I believe Californians can best prosper under a government that taxes and regulates with restraint. Our state has a considerable legacy of economic dynamism, from computer technology to entertainment to agriculture. We must not take all this for granted though. California rates among the highest-tax, most business-hostile states. If we want to see innovation, job creation, and economic advancement in the future, we must develop a government less antagonistic to the private sector.

Finally, I believe that traditional values are inextricably related to positive material outcomes. Stable and strong families make for prosperous, diligent citizens. That said, as a believer in limited government, I acknowledge that values must come from the ground up. It is not the place of the legislature to push a particular moral vision upon a populace with a different outlook.

My political principles will not be shared by all Californians. If elected, however, I would go to Sacramento in a good-faith effort to work for the good of the state. Our government suffers from an abundance of hyper-partisanship. It is my opinion that we can do better. I would attempt to stand by my principles while seeking common ground, healthy compromise, and political civility.