These are some of the top priorities United States citizens- and residents of District 4- have regarding the Federal Government, with brief commentary on each by me as a candidate. You can research current, mainstream media polls on topics like these at pollingreport.com.

The economy
The situation in Iraq
Taxes
Gun policy
Religion in America
Homeland Security
Terrorism
Education
Health care
Government Corruption
The situation in Iran
Social Security and Medicare
Illegal immigration
The federal budget deficit
Global warming
Transportation
Veterans

The economy
I believe in a free market economy. This is not the free trade or fair trade discussion of the past decade, it is about free markets. If our nation presents the greatest opportunity in the world for the exchange of goods and services, we will have the richest amount of options to pursue prosperity at a wide range of levels. A free market economy is metaphorically like a huge, powerful river and a busy seaport, full of opportunities.

The situation in Iraq
Article 4, Section 4 of our Constitution closely describes our current involvement in Iraq, in which we are protecting their Republican form of Government, and their territory against domestic violence and invasion. But Article 4 of our Constitution is not about foreign nations, it is about the right of States in our Union. Iraq is not a State in our Union, and is not represented in Congress. Even though Iraq's current leaders have asked for our military assistance for their security purposes, I see nothing in our Constitution that suggests we have the right or obligation to sustain funding and deployment of Armed forces to fulfil their request (Article I, Section 8, [12], U.S. Constitution). My question is: How- and at what cost- do we continue something that is unconstitutional?

Taxes
It is my belief that a society should be able to function solely on a five to ten percent sales tax, which is, by nature, a progressive flat tax; the more an individual spends, the more taxes one pays, but at the same rate for everyone. Congress has always had the Constitutional right to impose and collect taxes (Article 1, Section 8[1]). Congress is not required to constantly tax the people. I support a repeal of the 16th Amendment- my least favorite Constititutional Amendment- and an end to personal income taxes. I believe in government restraint, which means we spend less at the federal level and avoid deficit spending, so that we do not need to replace income tax revenue if we end the IRS system.

Gun policy
I support the right to keep and bear arms as enumerated in the Second Amendment. People should be able to have a wide range of firearms in their possession, and I generally favor relaxing gun laws. I do respect the rights of property owners to restrict firearms on their property; for example, a nightclub owner has every right to not allow weapons into their establishment. I do not own any firearms.

Religion in America
I strongly support religious freedom in our country, and anyone who seeks to honor God through their faith should not fear persecution in the United States, regardless of their sect or practices. One of my favorite words regarding religion is nondenominational. I have no specific religious affiliation, and I honor all people in their efforts to bring honor to God as they freely choose.

Homeland Security
Our Constitution grants Congress the power to provide for a Militia to suppress insurrections and repel invasions. In Congress, I would vote to strengthen our domestic forces; our current National Guard and Homeland Defense seem inadequate by the standards of our Constitution and general perception. We should have secure borders and be able to better help in times of national disasters, as evident nationwide in recent years.

Terrorism
Terrorism is the use of nonconsensual violence, fear or intimidation in an effort to achieve political or policy goals. I am opposed to the use of terrorism. I am also opposed to fighting terrorism with nonconsensual violence, fear or intimidation in an effort to achieve political or policy goals, which is just more terrorism. One crime does not justify another crime. One of my main campaign themes is 'Greater Understanding.' Without greater understanding of what compels anyone to violent terrorist acts around the world, the terrorist acts will likely continue or worsen.

Education
Learning is something we should all have an interest in our entire lives; I learn from every waking moment. I value all discussions on critical thinking, expanding knowledge and improving educational opportunities. Everyone should learn how to find and access information, and everyone should learn how to communicate clearly, with dignity and respect. Putting more money into education isn't always the solution. I strongly support home schooling, private schools and alternative education of all kinds. With public schools, I prefer California State funding, control and standards over Federal Government educational standards and support.

Health care
For such a technologically advanced and wealthy nation, our current health care situation should be an embarrassment to us all. Both mainstream political parties have proposed paths forward that I am opposed to; I do not support raising taxes for health care, and I do not support mandatory health care insurance that would force U.S. citizens to buy insurance policies. Clearly, the profits made by large insurance, legal and pharmaceutical interests are dominating this arena, and the framework our Government provides to these institutions needs to be changed to reduce costs to the consumer. We need to create an environment where small, private practice medical clinics can be profitable providing basic services, protected from overburdening legal and insurance costs.

Gas prices
In Congress, I would promote the use of alternative fuels, I would champion replacements to the internal combustion engine; I would vote against warfare in the Middle East which always- by creating supply uncertainty- increases oil costs; I would vote in favor of Federal Reserve oversight to prevent inflationist devaluation of the dollar which results in higher commodity prices. Unfortunately- until policies like the ones I've mentioned are implemented- I expect gas prices to steadily increase in the coming years.

Government Corruption
Congress has had a 25% approval rating with the American public, and one could easily question why anyone would want to serve there, as they are the most disliked branch of our government. Our own district has had to cope with corruption scandals with the incumbent. My role in Washington will be to vote in accordance with the Constitution, the rules of Congress, and the voice of the Constituents; my own views or the views of my party will come second; lobbyists will not be allowed to buy my vote. In accordance with my 'Government Restraint' campaign theme: I will not introduce earmarked spending legislation or any pork barrel funding of any kind for ours or any other district, and I will not direct federal funds to any campaign supporters. I am not running for Congress to make a personal fortune, I am more motivated by being busy with rewarding, interesting work and experiences.

The situation in Iran
Since the end of World War II, the United States has continually meddled in the internal affairs of Iran, and I am opposed to this interventionist policy. Iran presents no serious threat to our country or our way of life. Former Republican President Ronald Reagan knew what a real threat was when he faced the Soviet Union during the Cold War; Reagan had tremendous skill as a listener and- using tremendous resolve and courage- was able to become allies with Mikhail Gorbachev and end the Cold War. Today, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the democratically elected leader of Iran, easily presents the most friendly face we've seen from the Mullah-controlled Iranian Government that has been in power since their Islamic Revolution in 1979. Ahmadinejad has made continual efforts to have open dialog with our country, yet we refuse to meet with him and treat him like an enemy, offering him hostile diplomacy full of ever-changing conditions and impossible demands. We have the power to decide whether we engage the world peacefully, to secure the greatest opportunities for humanity, and at the same time, we have the ability to make whatever enemies we choose and face the consequences. The choice is ours; I favor a United States that is engaged with Iran and not a United States that seeks endless war.

Social Security and Medicare
The preamble to the United States Constitution says that our government is to "promote the general welfare" of our citizenry; the key word is 'promote' and not provide. As a member of Generation X, the generation that followed the Baby Boomers in America, I have never had any faith that Social Security or Medicare would take care of me at any stage of my life. Yet, the programs persist. Generally, I am opposed to federal scale social programs, and it is very important that we consider the economic costs of these policies moving forward; we need to be careful not to engage in deficit spending or excessive taxation in efforts to promote all of our well-being. Our government should concern itself with creating a legal framework that allows small businesses to provide affordable housing and medical care, free from excessive regulation that makes those endeavors unprofitable or impossible undertakings.

Illegal immigration
I support the fourteenth amendment to the United States Constitution, which- for nearly one hundred and forty years- has guaranteed birth right citizenship, life, liberty and due process of law to any person in our jurisdiction. Expensive social services from our Federal government should only be available to U.S. citizens. Immigrants are an asset that help our economy; providing more workers, more customers, more revenues and more opportunities. Illegal immigrants should be deported, and afterwards they can come back legally if they are willing to participate in our system, which should be structured to allow opportunities for them and all Americans. We should always have an easy-to-use guest worker program that completely eliminates the need to smuggle people across our borders. Employers in the United States need a framework to legally hire workers from around the world, skilled or unskilled. One of the reasons outsourcing has been such a problem in our society is that it is very difficult for employers to bring in skilled workers from around the world with United States work visas, which results in jobs and paychecks being sent overseas.

The federal budget deficit
The Constitution, in Article 1, Section 8 [2] allows Congress "To borrow money on the credit of the United States" which makes deficit spending lawful. However, this is not a requirement, and, as a believer in government restraint, I think that Congress should not exercise this power unless absolutely necessary. I believe that we have not faced a crisis worthy of exercising this power at any point in my lifetime.

Global warming
It is clear to me that our planet goes through regular climate changes that we do not yet truly understand, resulting in epochs of ice ages and great deserts. There is clear evidence that certain glaciers are disappearing, even faster than computer simulations predict; temperatures- which humans have only been measuring for a couple of hundred years- have been measurably rising. It is obvious that humans will always need to adapt to whatever conditions the earth undergoes. I reject the extreme notion on one hand that SUVs are the sole cause of climate change, and I also reject the other extreme that climate change is a myth. Instead of blaming various ideological groups, we need to always adapt to our changing environment, and encourage greater understanding of our world through awareness, education and scientific research. If we see ways to make our life on earth more pleasant and sustainable for future generations, we should take advantage of those opportunities. If we are making mistakes, we should learn from them and correct them.

Transportation
Inadequate Highway infrastructure in Northern California's District 4 is a serious and growing problem. Funding for new transit projects comes from voter-approved bonds, the State, and the Federal Government. The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee does have some jurisdiction in this area, but the real decisions, action and funding for Highway improvements in our State come from the California Transportation Committee [www.catc.ca.gov] and Caltrans [www.dot.ca.gov]. Citizens should look to the state level agencies for progress and not Congress; these important issues are solved- and should continue to be solved- at the State level.

Veterans
So few people in our country are involved in public service, and fewer than one in five in our nation have a passport. Our military veterans have outstanding tales to tell from their travels around the world serving our country. I have always enjoyed the discussions with those who have served, whether they are in my generation, my parents generation, or my grandparents generation. We should always honor these people and listen to what they have to say. I generally do not favor large scale social programs, but our veterans truly deserve to be taken care of for their service to our nation.