Issues

Tennessee’s system is tilted toward insiders; working families deserve sustained relief, not gimmicks.

We reward big corporations and special interests with incentives while working people pay some of the highest sales taxes, on groceries, no less. That’s upside-down. 

What I will do:

• Push real, ongoing relief on necessities (not one-time gimmicks).
• Demand accountability for corporate incentive deals so we stop subsidizing profits without public benefit.
• Target major cost drivers (housing/healthcare) with practical state-level reforms.

How I’ll measure success: More dollars stay in family budgets year over year (lower effective costs on essentials + verified ROI on incentive spending).

People who work here are being priced out, and it strains schools, services, and commutes.

If you can work here, you should be able to live here. Housing policy must serve the whole community. Property values aren’t the whole story. Schools, hospitals, and local businesses depend on a workforce, and those workers need housing. When we don’t build enough, we push costs into longer commutes, worse services, and bigger public burdens. 

What I will do:

• Support smart density where it makes sense, while protecting historic areas and green space.
• Back reforms that make home ownership more realistic for District 33 residents.
• Prioritize “build enough to live here” planning so costs don’t shift into longer commutes and bigger public burdens.

How I’ll measure success: Housing supply and affordability improve (more attainable units + fewer cost-burdened households over time).

The market hasn’t delivered affordable care, especially primary, prenatal, and mental health access.

Lawmakers shouldn’t practice medicine; patients and providers should make decisions privately. Government’s job is to set fair rules so the system isn’t rigged.

What I will do:

• Fight for a baseline guarantee of primary and prenatal care access.
• Expand mental health access where need is greatest.
• Protect patient/provider decision-making privacy. Legislators shouldn’t practice medicine.

How I’ll measure success: Shorter wait times and fewer “care gaps” for primary, prenatal, and mental health, especially for seniors, caregivers, and rural residents.

Childcare costs can rival rent, forcing parents out of the workforce and pushing pressure onto schools.

Until childcare is affordable, schools become the default support system for families under strain. Childcare is an economic engine. Fixing it helps parents work, helps kids thrive, and takes pressure off schools.

What I will do:

• Expand access by supporting the childcare workforce (recruitment/retention).
• Improve and simplify subsidies so working families can actually use them.
• Back policies that help parents work without going broke.

How I’ll measure success: More childcare slots and lower net childcare burden for working families (especially for infants and toddlers).

Elections must be free, fair, and accessible. Representation should be fair and unbiased.

People should be able to vote without intimidation or manipulation, and communities should be represented fairly. I support policies that protect access, prevent interference, and move us toward fair districting so voters choose representatives, not the other way around.

The best anti-poverty program is a great public school.

No child should be blamed for their family’s circumstances. Supporting students is not charity, it’s an investment that pays back in public safety and economic strength. Teachers are not the problem; we ask more of them than almost anyone. I’ll fight for stable funding, teacher support, safe schools, and a clear focus on reading, math, and career skills.

Treat it early, treat it seriously, and stop punishing people for being sick.

Addiction can come from trauma, poverty, crime, or a medical injury and bad luck. We also can’t ignore the damage from aggressive opioid marketing. I support dignity-first involuntary holds when medically justified, when it is time-bounded, goal-based, and transparent with families. But the binding constraint is treatment capacity: without beds, everything else fails. Build capacity first: more treatment beds, better crisis pathways, and accountability for the harm done by the opioid era.

Bodily autonomy and medical safety are non-negotiable.

Whatever your moral views, medical safety should never be in question. I believe bodily autonomy is fundamental, and government shouldn’t impose religious doctrine on others. Doctors must be explicitly protected in emergencies; ambiguity is dangerous. And I strongly support reducing abortions without bans: contraception, sex ed, and real support for moms and families.

Follow the money, measure outcomes, and cut waste surgically—not blindly.

Avoiding tax increases is possible, but the first step is eliminating waste, with input from experts so we don’t cut what people truly need. Incentives and grants should be time-bound and independently audited. If we can’t measure results, we shouldn’t keep funding it.

Freedom is for everybody, or it isn’t freedom.

People should be free to live and love openly. Government shouldn’t target LGBTQ Tennesseans or police private life. The government’s job is to protect people from harm, not to harass them or single them out. I’ll oppose policies that discriminate against LGBTQ Tennesseans and support policies that protect equal treatment and safety.

Make education lead to opportunity, leveraging apprenticeships, trades, and credentials tied to real jobs in our region.

A ‘good job’ means fair wages, benefits, safety, and stability. The state can help by aligning schools, community colleges, and employer needs—especially in trades and technical pathways—so people can earn a real living without leaving home.

Enforce the law in a way that works: target employers who repeatedly hire illegally, protect kids, and build lawful workforce pathways.

People in District 33 have valid concerns regarding immigration, including lower wages and strain on services. But addressing immigration concerns can be done without sacrificing our American values. The most effective, enforceable approach is targeting demand: business owners who repeatedly break the rules. Raise detection and the cost of noncompliance, focus on repeat bad actors, and pair enforcement with legal pathways so we don’t create a fire-and-rehire cycle. Children are blameless: no family separation and no terrifying conditions.

Safety means low crime and high trust through support for responders, required professional standards, and use of accountability tools.

I define safety as low crime and high community trust. I support body cams everywhere because they protect officers and residents. We should invest in what reduces crime and recidivism: prevention first, then training, then specialized response pilots where they work.

When money runs politics, working people get the leftovers.

Money has too much influence in Tennessee politics, and everyday people can feel it in whose calls get returned, which bills move, and whose problems get ignored. I support stronger transparency and ethics rules, real limits on pay-to-play behavior, and full disclosure so voters know who is funding campaigns and lobbying for special treatment. Government should answer to the people of District 33, not big donors or corporate interests.

Your beliefs are yours. The government doesn’t get to choose them.

I respect faith deeply, and I respect the rights of people with different faiths or none at all. Government should not impose religious doctrine. Separation of church and state protects everyone’s freedom of conscience.

Legalize it, regulate it, tax it. Treat marijuana like alcohol and keep it away from kids.

Tennessee’s marijuana laws should be practical, consistent, and focused on public safety, not on saddling people with lifelong consequences for low-level possession. I support legalizing and regulating marijuana for adults with clear rules like alcohol: strict age limits, licensed sales, product testing and labeling, and strong enforcement against impaired driving. Any revenue should be transparently directed to priorities Tennesseans can see—like mental health and addiction treatment, community reinvestment, and education—while creating a regulated market that protects consumers and keeps products away from kids.

Local control with statewide responsibility.

Local voices should have the loudest say where they live with the consequences. But civil rights can’t be voted away, and environmental choices that affect downstream communities aren’t purely local. My principle is simple: heed the people when it doesn’t infringe on others’ rights and wellbeing.