I firmly support school choice in Arizona. When it comes to the education of our children, options are important and merit matters.

I also believe in transparency when it comes to how our tax dollars are being spent. How many times have taxes been raised statewide or in individual cities for the purpose of “funding education,” only to find out shortly thereafter that most of the money never makes it into teacher salaries or the classrooms.

In 2020, nearly 50% of our state’s annual budget goes into education, but what are the results of that amount of money and such a large share of our tax dollars being spent? That’s not to mention the money that individual cities like Chandler and Ahwatukee contribute towards public schools through bonds and taxes.

Education is about more than how much money is gained through new taxes and how much money is spent. It’s also about where the dollars go and what standards have to be maintained by each publicly funded school.

I want Arizona to have the highest-ranking schools possible by maintaining high standards for students and teachers. That’s the only way we will get ahead.

Teachers

I support teachers, they are essential to the development of so many and leave a lasting mark on the youth of Arizona. I believe that one way to truly support teachers is to demand higher standards for our educational system. We do not have to settle for any less in our state.

Support for teachers is undeniably necessary for our children to receive the best education. Reasonable and financially responsible salaries and raises are necessary for our educators. This also comes with supporting teachers based on performance standards and merit.

Parents

I also support parents. I support their instincts to choose the best possible education for their children, which means supporting school choice. It’s well known that school districts don’t serve the needs of all students and parents, which is why Arizona’s educational system is constantly evolving to meet those needs with charter schools, private schools and magnet schools just to name a few options. We must continue to foster the growth of this system.

Students

Unfortunately, the people most caught up in the middle of disputes between teachers, parents, politics, budgeting and interest groups are the very people who should be left to learn and prosper – the students.

Students are who miss out when classes are canceled because of budget impasses, teacher shortages or budget shortfalls.

We have to do better for our student. We cannot have a repeat of the teacher walkouts ever again. That is not Arizona and that’s not fair to our young people.

More and more, students are being inundated with political messages being presented as lessons and coursework. This is a slippery slope and I pledge to do what I can to curb this type of teaching. The more time spent on politics in the classroom, means less time for students to learn the essentials of primary education classes and important curriculum like STEM.

I also believe that students should be free to display their faith in schools. That includes praying in school and talking about God and their faith in class assignments. Freedom of Religion is found in the 1st Amendment to the US Constitution and we need to protect it.

In my heart and my principles, I am a big supporter of law enforcement and first responders. We must do everything we can as a state to give them all the resources they need to protect us and our children from those who are a danger to our society.

Human Trafficking

There is an epidemic in our state of human trafficking, which results in some of the most horrific crimes that we would ever want to imagine. I support our attorney general taking action to partner with the Department of Homeland Security to train local professionals on how to spot this crime in action. We need more community-based solutions to curb this problem, because it’s a crime that is hidden in the shadows, with victims who are often too afraid to speak up.

I am also strongly in favor of allowing local law enforcement to crack down on human trafficking by assist Federal enforcement such the border.

Illegal Immigration

Donald Trump was elected in 2016 in large part because he wasn’t afraid to take a stand against illegal immigration. Politicians in our state and in D.C. have been telling the public for years that we have a problem with people who have broken our immigration laws, are not legally allowed to remain in the United States, but continue to live here. The public is very aware of these issues because they hear about them over and over again.

As a border state, Arizona faces the dual burdens of having to regularly enforce immigration law through our local law enforcement agencies and the economic effects of immigrants who depend on our welfare programs to pay for their basic needs.

I believe that there are too many financial incentives for people to break our laws by crossing our borders illegally and stay in our state at a steep cost to the taxpayer.

Many people do come to the United States to work, pay taxes and become productive members of our society and that’s what we need more of.

As a state senator, I will fight to give our law enforcement all the resources they need to fight against illegal immigration and the growing epidemic of crimes committed at our southern border. I will fight against reckless policies like giving Arizona Driver Licenses to illegal immigrants or undocumented migrants and Sanctuary City laws, which create safe zones for law breakers.

Arizona’s economy is booming. Businesses and people are relocating to our state from all over the country and it could be said that things have never been better in the Grand Canyon State.

• We’ve added 350,000 new jobs since 2015.
• 300 new people move to Arizona from other states every single day.

This is all great news and we have Governor Doug Ducey’s policies to thank for much of this growth and business expansion. But what happens when the governor moves on in 2022?

We want to maintain Arizona’s business friendly environment. Arizona has seen rapid expansions and population growth many times in my life. If we’re smart from a policy perspective, there’s no reason why this cannot continue for many more years.

For that reason, I pledge, like the Governor to not vote for any new taxes.

A lot of people relocating to Arizona are coming from high tax “Blue” states, especially California. The danger is that they will support new taxes because that’s what they’re accustomed to but do not realize the negative effect it had on their state’s economy. They may be tempted to vote for Democrat politicians who will head to the legislature with an agenda of higher spending supported by raising taxes on the middle class.

We cannot let Arizona emulate California, because just as fast as our state has expanded, high taxes will create economic ruin.

District 18 was once held by Republicans across the board, just a few years ago in fact. Now both House members and the Senator, my opponent, are Democrats. And the Republican majority who I credit with the recovery from the 2008 financial crisis and its effects in Arizona, is now down to a 2-seat advantage, thanks in part to this district flipping.

To preserve our economic expansion, LD 18 must flip back to RED, starting with this seat. It’s so important to me that I am putting things in my life on hold to run this race and win back this seat for Arizona Republicans.

Real Estate and Housing

Affordable real estate is on everyone’s mind. With all the relocation and expansion, there is a housing supply shortage which has caused some of the rise in prices of buying or renting homes and multi-family dwellings. In “Blue” states, they respond to these market conditions with bad ideas like “rent control” and mandates on what homebuilders can build. I do not support bringing these failed policies to Arizona and I will stand against them as your senator from LD 18.

I also support guest worker programs for homebuilders which continues to help keep the business environment in Arizona competitive and costs down. These policies and allowing the market to work unfettered will keep living in Arizona affordable.