About this response & our editorial approach
About this candidate response
DutyStation contacts candidates to ask whether and how they support service members, military families and veterans, and invites them to share their thoughts and priorities. We share their replies here in the candidate’s or campaign’s own words, with minor formatting for readability and correction of obvious spelling mistakes.
No endorsement in either direction. Publishing a reply does not mean DutyStation endorses the candidate. Replying does not mean the candidate or campaign endorses DutyStation.
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Organized by topic. Email greetings and sign-offs are omitted; campaign contact details appear alongside.
Government shutdown and cooperation
- I oppose a government shutdown. Congress has a responsibility to fund the government, and neither party should use service members, veterans, federal employees, or their families as leverage in a political fight.
- If Democrats control one or both chambers, I would work with the administration and members of both parties to pass appropriations on time, focus negotiations on areas where we can find agreement, and support a clean continuing resolution if more time is needed.
- If a shutdown does occur, protecting military and veteran families should be immediate. I would support legislation ensuring all service members continue to receive their pay on time and protecting military family programs and essential civilian employees. I would also work to ensure VA health care, disability and pension benefits, the GI Bill, transition assistance, and other critical veteran services continue without interruption.
- We can have serious disagreements in Washington without making the people who serve our country pay the price.
Quality of life
- Taking care of service members and their families is essential to military readiness and retention. My priorities would start with competitive pay and housing allowances that keep pace with the actual cost of living.
- Military families should also have reliable access to quality healthcare, including mental health and specialty care, without having to start over every time they move. We need to expand affordable childcare, increase capacity on installations, and make sure care is available for the nontraditional hours military families often work.
- Military spouses should not have to sacrifice their careers because their family serves. I support improving professional license portability, expanding employment and remote work opportunities, and continuing assistance with licensing and relocation costs.
- Finally, we should reduce unnecessary moves when the mission allows and make PCS moves less disruptive and costly. Military families accept sacrifice as part of service, but we should not create additional hardships that can be avoided.
Veterans’ care and civilian transition
- Veterans should be able to get the care and benefits they earned without spending years fighting through paperwork and bureaucracy.
- One of my priorities would be improving the transition from active duty to the VA. Service members should begin that process before leaving the military, with organized programs that help them understand and apply for VA healthcare, disability benefits, education benefits, mental health services, and other programs they have earned. The Department of Defense and VA should work together so medical records, service information, and benefit applications move with the service member instead of making them start over after they leave.
- I would also work to reduce VA wait times, strengthen mental health and suicide prevention services, improve the disability claims process, and expand employment, education, and credentialing assistance.
- Our service members should not leave the military and then spend years trying to navigate the system alone. We need to do a much better job helping them move from military service into civilian life and the VA benefits they earned.
Family housing and accountability
- Military families should have access to safe, affordable housing wherever they are stationed. I would work to ensure housing allowances reflect actual local costs, identify communities where military families face serious housing shortages, and support partnerships with local communities to increase available housing.
- For families living on installations, maintenance problems need to be addressed quickly and correctly. Mold, pests, unsafe conditions, or repeated repair failures should never become something a family is simply expected to tolerate.
- Private housing companies that receive federal dollars must be held accountable. I support consistent inspections, clear repair standards, stronger tenant advocacy, and meaningful consequences when contractors repeatedly fail to maintain safe housing. Families should also have a clear and independent way to report problems and resolve disputes without fear of retaliation.
- Housing is part of military readiness. Service members should be able to focus on their mission without worrying whether their family has a safe place to live.