Policy made with people,not flung at them.
Housing Affordability
Build more houses — and remove the obstacles that make it harder and costlier to do so.
The intuitive solution to the housing shortage is the right one: build more houses. How many, what type, and where is a problem best left to the states to determine. But the federal government has a role too. Entire new neighborhoods will be required, and that drives costs and considerations beyond the initial build.
Those who create the economy ought to be able to live in it.
I propose a solution set that has the federal government remove obstacles that would otherwise pile costs on new home buyers.
Unwind the tariff regime that increases both the initial costs of building materials and appliances and that of insurers for replacements. Tariffs are a tax on American home buyers — they raise costs at every stage of construction and drive up insurance premiums when homes need to be repaired or rebuilt.
When the states identify what, where, and how much they want to build, the federal government should provide grants to extend public infrastructure, such as roads and utilities, to those areas. New neighborhoods require new connections; that cost should not fall on initial buyers.
Agriculture & Trade
Idaho feeds the world. The obstacles in front of us now are ones we put there ourselves.
Idaho grows food products that the world depends on. Our struggles now result largely from self-inflicted wounds, and the solutions are clear.
Tariffs raise the costs of fertilizer and other raw materials, invite retaliation from trading partners, and destroy confidence in the reliability of our supply. When markets move elsewhere, they are not readily recovered.
Legitimize and support the workers our agricultural sector depends on. Idaho's farms, dairies, and food processors rely on workers that the domestic labor market doesn't supply in adequate numbers. Restricting that labor doesn't protect American jobs — it leaves crops in the field and businesses on the edge of failure. The immigration reform outlined below addresses this directly.
Commit to the world that we will continue to be there as reliable producers. Trading relationships are built on trust and long time horizons. Unpredictable policy — tariffs imposed and lifted, supply threatened by workforce disruptions — undermines that trust and drives buyers to establish supply chains elsewhere.
Immigration
A dual-track solution: build the right system for the future, and deal appropriately with those already here.
Immigration reform is a deeply emotional issue, without an easy, one-size-fits-all solution. There may be as many as 14 million undocumented – illegal – immigrants residing in the U.S. Among them are gang members who strapped on a backpack filled with drugs to pay their way into U.S. cities, as well as the families of Afghans who sacrificed their safety by helping U.S. forces during the long occupation of their home country. There are repeat criminals, who return over and over again after being deported, and families who have lived peacefully, worked, and paid taxes and social security for decades. There are refugees, who, though they mean no harm, can quickly overwhelm community resources like schools and clinical care. No one characterization can cover 14 million people, and there are no quick solutions.
At the same time, our economy depends on foreign workers to augment those from the U.S., and there are significant mismatches between what our economy needs and what our immigration system provides. This sort of complex problem is best solved by breaking into manageable pieces. First, we need to control our border effectively, with full funding to need and smart use of technology. From there, I propose a dual-track solution: devise our preferred future framework separately from dealing with the undocumented immigrants already here.
Start with a clear-eyed snapshot of our current needs for temporary, seasonal, non-seasonal, and highly-skilled workers. Set reasonable visa goals for each category, with a process for periodic revision. Fund integration so that communities aren't overwhelmed.
It took us a long time to get to the level of dysfunction we have seen in immigration, and it will take real effort to fix it. Those here without authorization should not be — but we have run a historically inefficient system, with years-long backlogs. We need to work through each category for the right disposition.
Track One: The Future Framework
The future solution should start with a snapshot of our current needs for temporary, seasonal, non-seasonal (such as the certified agricultural worker), and highly-skilled workers. We already have visa programs to cover most of these categories. I support the Farm Workforce Modernization Act to fill out more of our needs.
Congress should set reasonable visa goals for all categories, with a process for revising those goals periodically. That's our baseline — and we provide funding for integrating immigrants into communities so that schools, clinics, and other community resources are not overwhelmed.
For worker visas, the states should be responsible for integration costs. Workers entering through visa programs bring economic benefit; the states should throttle up and down the number of workers and families they accept by balancing economic gain with the costs of their integration into communities.
Refugees or others in Temporary Protected Status arrive through federal humanitarian programs, and the federal government should bear the cost of their integration into the communities that receive them.
Every year in execution, the executive needs to be able to adjust to current realities — which might include opening the door to more refugees or restricting immigration from specific sources. But when the executive acts, it must do so within guardrails. If the executive increases the number of immigrants, they cover integration costs without increasing borrowing. When the executive reduces immigration below expectation, they make up for lost tax revenue and Social Security contributions — again, without increasing borrowing. They respond as needed, with responsibility for the impacts to our communities and our future.
The system only works if it is enforced consistently and adjudicated fairly. Border enforcement and immigration courts must both be fully resourced to need. Understaffed courts produce the multi-year backlogs that undermine confidence in the entire system.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement – ICE – has earned its reputation as a deeply unprofessional organization, with deadly consequences. I support gut-level reform of the organization and accountability for those who committed crimes, all the way up to the highest levels of organizational leadership.
Track Two: The Undocumented Already Here
The undocumented immigrants already here need special handling. They should not be here without authorization — but we have traditionally run a sadly inefficient immigration system, with average wait times to see an immigration judge that has extended up to five years. Once again, we are facing a complex problem that is best handled in manageable pieces.
People here illegally who have committed serious crimes should be deported.
Dreamers should immediately receive green cards — lawful permanent residency. They were brought here as children – they had no choice and committed no crime in coming here.
I support the Farm Workforce Modernization Act as the right vehicle for establishing a legal pathway for our agricultural workers, and will continue to push for its passage or an equivalent solution that meets Idaho's needs. These workers are essential to our economy. A path to legal status is both the right thing to do and the economically sensible one.
Beyond agricultural workers, there will be identifiable groups and solutions crafted to address those needs. At some point, we may need to go case by case to determine an outcome. But we are talking about people — even if not citizens — meeting proven economic needs, and shared responsibility for where we are today. No one word covers 14 million people — not amnesty, and not deport.
Federal Accountability
Hold the government accountable to the people it serves — through independent oversight, protected whistleblowers, and a Congress that exercises the authority the Constitution gives it.
Federal agencies operate with extraordinary powers — including detention, use of force, and the commitment of military lives. The people those agencies affect often have no direct legal recourse. That places the full burden of accountability on Congress, which has not consistently carried it. Inspectors General are structurally compromised. Whistleblowers face retaliation with limited protection. Congressional oversight has atrophied. And the authorization and aftermath of military force have both been treated as optional. These are serious problems, but solvable.
Inspectors General are supposed to provide independent oversight of waste, fraud, abuse, and misconduct in federal agencies — but they report to the agency heads they oversee, which limits their independence at the source. I support restructuring all federal IGs to report directly to Congress rather than to the agencies they are charged with scrutinizing, with appointment and removal authority vested accordingly.
Federal whistleblowers are often the first people to detect and report serious misconduct — and they face real retaliation for doing so. Current law limits their recourse to administrative processes that agencies can obstruct or delay. I support guaranteeing federal employees the right to take retaliation cases to federal court, and closing the security clearance loophole that allows agencies to silence national security whistleblowers.
Congress appropriates funds but frequently loses visibility into how they are used. I support requiring agencies to provide Congress with timely visibility into spending and fund reprogramming, and restoring Congress's authority to claw back funds that were unused or obligated in ways that were not authorized.
The War Powers Resolution exists because Congress recognized that war affects the entire nation and cannot be entered into on a single person's determination. I support reforming the law to close the loopholes that presidents of both parties have exploited — requiring an affirmative congressional vote to sustain military operations rather than letting congressional inaction stand as tacit approval.
The obligation to service members and veterans does not end when the fighting stops. I support fully funding the PACT Act, which provides health care for veterans suffering burn pit exposure from Iraq and Afghanistan. I also support the Major Richard Star Act, which would end the unjust dollar-for-dollar reduction of retirement pay for combat-injured veterans who are medically retired prior to reaching 20 years of service.
Let me be clear. This page is about changes to policy. Congress already has substantial oversight responsibilities, and as your representative, I will not let recent or ongoing violations of law or conscience lie.