My Decision to Run

My decision to run for Kurt Schrader’s U.S. House seat was a spontaneous burst of outrage, and yet not totally illogical. In December, he signed HR-38, the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act which would force Oregon to recognize the concealed carry standards of every other state, even those with the weakest standards - even those that require no permit at all. Then in February, Nikolas Cruz killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. I’d had enough. Guns and gun control needed to be on the ballot. Schrader, with a 73% approval rating from the NRA, was out of step with the majority of his constituents. I signed up with the Secretary of State to challenge this Democratic turncoat.

As I looked more closely at my opponent, I discovered a smart, competent, dedicated, scandal-free man who loves Oregon and works across the aisle for healthy, national solutions. He’s what I think everyone would want in a Congressman. A member of Problem Solvers (a caucus in the House which a Member can join if he brings someone from the opposite party with him), he was able to unite enough members of Congress around a bill to designate forest fires as federal disasters, thus saving the limited funds of the Forest Service. This was a big win for western states.