PARTNERSHIP - NOT PARTISANSHIP!
Issues & Priorities
Mike Simon proposes intelligent, balanced solutions that are non-partisan and that will win support from every rational thinker in Congress – Democrat or Republican, liberal or conservative. Mike advocates improving border security, protecting women's reproductive rights, simplifying the tax code, making the government more efficient, and defending democracy at home and abroad. He will propose smarter investments in education, workforce training, managing our energy transition, and protecting Social Security.
MIKE'S POSITIONS ON KEY ISSUES
IMMIGRATION REFORM
Mike shares the concerns of many District 48 voters about illegal immigration. Mike supports a balanced approach of stronger border controls, faster resolution of asylum cases, amnesty for “Dreamers,” and streamlining of pathways to residency and citizenship for legal immigrants, especially those possessing critical skills for our economy. The White House and key senators recently agreed on the contours of such a deal, but the agreement is being fought by Donald Trump and his loyalists like Darrell Issa, who want to extend the current chaos at the border so they can use it as an election issue.
VOCATIONAL TRAINING
Mike believes in expanding federal student financial aid programs to make it easier to obtain vocational training. This will provide new career pathways for citizens who desire high-paying jobs and will address the nation’s shortage of electricians, plumbers, fabricators, and other skilled workers. Under Mike’s plan, students who receive such financial aid will be able to repay their debt by joining the federal Job Corps and using their new skills to help rebuild America’s crumbling highways, bridges, and other infrastructure.
PRE-K AND K-12 EDUCATION
For younger students, Mike supports sensible educational reforms such as providing greater support for pre-school education, expanding school choice, and making teachers and schools more accountable for student performance. Mike is a strong proponent of STEM education, but believes it’s equally important for primary and secondary school students to learn history, civics, and economics. Mike believes that the proper functioning of our democratic society depends on having an educated and informed electorate.
MANAGING OUR ENERGY TRANSITION
Mike will utilize his decades of experience as an energy expert and entrepreneur to make sure the nation makes smart investments in our energy future. This means continuing to support fossil fuel utilization to control energy costs and preserve our energy independence, while also having a longer-term plan to replace fossil fuels with cleaner, renewable forms of energy. Mike’s experience in this area will help maximize District 48 benefits from the extraction of lithium – a key material used in manufacturing batteries – near the Salton Sea, which is projected to generate $7 billion/year in revenue.
PROTECTING OUR ENVIRONMENT
Nobody in Congress has worked longer or harder than Mike to help protect our environment. Mike has been developing clean battery and fuel cell technologies to reduce emissions from buses and trucks for 30 years, and has also worked to develop numerous renewable energy sources and safer nuclear power technologies. Mike’s balanced energy approach will assure that we continue improving air quality and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, while also pursuing new initiatives to clean polluted waterways and dispose of radioactive nuclear waste.
STRENGHTENING SOCIAL SECURITY
Future retirees are at risk of losing Social Security benefits because Congress has failed to address projected shortfalls in the funding this vital program. Mike’s plan will preserve the current $168,600 cap on wages subject to Social Security payroll taxes, but only on incomes up to $400,000 per year. Higher wage-earners would be required to pay a progressive payroll tax on incomes over this amount. Getting higher wage earners to pay payroll tax rates comparable to those of lower wage earners will enhance program revenues and help assure that Social Security remains solvent for years to come.
REDUCING BUDGET DEFICITS
If we don’t reduce the federal debt – which recently surpassed $34 trillion – future generations will face an enormous tax burden to pay for government services received by their parents and grandparents. Mike has the financial and business experience to fix this unfair situation and “balance the books,” by reducing wasteful federal spending and increasing revenue by eliminating tax loopholes that allow our wealthiest individuals and corporations to pay lower effective tax rates than many working-class Americans. By simplifying the tax code and making the government more efficient and accountable, essential national security and social "safety net" programs can be preserved without continuing deficit spending.
PROTECTING DEMOCRACY AT HOME
Darrell Issa is among those Members of Congress who have “fully denied” the results of the 2020 Presidential election, purely for political gain and without any evidence of widespread election fraud. Mike believes that Issa and these others have weakened our democracy by failing to honor a fundamental obligation to make our voters feel confident in our democratic elections. The Capitol riots on January 6, 2021 were a sneak preview of even greater chaos and violence that Mike fears will occur, if Members of Congress don’t have the courage to stand up to demagogues and conspiracy theorists making unfounded claims about “stolen” elections.
PROTECTING DEMOCRACY ABROAD
America cannot be the world's policeman, but history has shown we can't afford to be isolationist either. Wealthy democratic nations, led by the U.S., must use their economic might to help weaker democratic nations defend themselves when they are invaded or threatened by autocratic and expansionist regimes. In addition to having a firm grasp of world history, Mike has traveled to Ukraine and Russia several times, and has seen first-hand how America inspires the people in such nations, when we use our influence and resources to help them defend their democratic institutions and fight authoritarianism on all fronts.
DEFENDING CIVIL LIBERTIES
Mike Simon will be a champion of defending the civil liberties of all Americans. Mike believes that the federal government must help protect citizens against discrimination based on race, religion, or sexual orientation, and favors national legislation to protect women's reproductive rights. Mike believes America's incarceration rate is too high and that the government should provide alternatives to prison for most non-violent offenders. Mike favors a balanced approach to keeping powerful firearms out of the hands of criminals and mentally disturbed individuals, without infringing on the Constitutional right of law-abiding citizens to bear arms.
