WHY DAN CARES
Dan serves as the Representative for Texas’ 2nd Congressional district. As a 6th generation Texan and Houstonian, Dan has a deep love for his country and state. Dan and his wife Tara understand that there is no higher calling than service-before-self to the American people. While Dan no longer fights on the battlefield, he utilizes the integrity, leadership, vision, and tenacity he gained in the SEAL teams to serve honorably in Congress. Dan stands for common sense policies that ensure our nation’s prosperity and security, represent our Foundational values, and give Texans a reason to once again be proud of their leaders.
DAN WANTS TO HEAR WHAT MATTERS TO YOU
SCHOOLS & EDUCATION
Our youth are our future leaders. I’m a vocal advocate for students in our community and frequently speak to schools and youth groups to encourage them to think big and emphasize the importance of hard work, and having a sense of purpose and vision.
It is crucial that we prepare the next generation for the workforce. We must promote vocational training as a sensible alternative to a college education and allow for Pell Grant flexibility to allow students the option to choose technical education programs.
WHAT SHOULD CONGRESS DO TO IMPROVE ON SCHOOLS & EDUCATION?
Your perspective on this issue is important to making sure Congress finds solutions that work for all Americans.
BORDER SECURITY
We are currently unable to protect our sovereignty because of the situation at the border. Illegal immigrants are abusing our asylum process. While the President has taken action to improve the conditions at the border, Congress has to reform our laws for there to be a substantial change. Democrats refuse to address the issue at its source and are advocating for open border policies. This is wrong and unfair to legal immigrants, asylum seekers, migrants who are trafficked, and the Customs and Border Protection agents at the border. We must act now.
NATIONAL SECURITY
America is the leader of the free world, and should not back down from this responsibility. We can never forget the atrocities of September 11th, and what occurs when you allow terrorists to operate freely in ungoverned areas. We must continue to take the fight to ISIS. I have been doing that for my entire adult life.
The threat of ISIS is not the only major concern we face on the global stage. We must be wary of Russia, China and North Korea. These countries and their world views pose legitimate threats to America and must be taken seriously.
WHAT SHOULD CONGRESS DO TO IMPROVE AMERICA’S BORDER SECURITY?
Your perspective on this issue is important to making sure Congress finds solutions that work for all Americans.
RIGHTS & AMENDMENTS
The Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution represent the greatest ideas that humankind ever had. It was the moment that we wrote down our inalienable rights – life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness – and said that the role of government was simply to protect those rights, not create new ones or change them. The purpose of law is to implement justice, and protect our citizens from injustices committed against them. The purpose of law is NOT to engage in endless redistribution and regulation, with false promises that inevitably leads to the removal of individual freedoms. We must protect these time-tested principles of governance if we are to continue to be the most successful experiment in the history of mankind.
When it comes to defending our rights, I’m adamant about protecting our constitutional right to bear arms. I will always fight for Second Amendment rights. This right must never be infringed upon, but we must do a better job of enforcing current laws, especially background checks, so that guns stay out of the wrong hands. I will never allow the government to prevent law-abiding citizens from defending themselves.
I’ll also fight to protect our First Amendment. Our country is frighteningly close to violating our Constitution by allowing the left to shout down and shame anyone who disagrees with them. Social media platforms are shutting down conservative opinions. We need to encourage and inspire conservatives to stand up to this leftist bullying, and urge social media companies to develop clear and concise rules that are easy to understand.
WHAT SHOULD CONGRESS DO TO ENSURE THAT THE BILL OF RIGHTS ARE NOT INFRINGED?
Your perspective on this issue is important to making sure Congress finds solutions that work for all Americans.
DISASTER & RECOVERY
“Harvey was the most significant tropical cyclone rainfall event in United States history, both in scope and peak rainfall amounts.”
– National Hurricane Center, January 25th, 2018
For Texans in the 2nd District, flooding is frequently on our minds. As your Representative, I’ve been focused on two challenges: (1) providing relief to those affected by Hurricane Harvey, and (2) implementing the long-term solutions that will prevent future flooding.
A year ago, I said my role in Congress will be to work with local entities to exert pressure on the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to take action without delay. And we’ve done just that.
Our Progress
While we still have a long way to go to fully recover from Harvey, we’ve made some real progress.
I’ve worked in a bipartisan fashion to get the Administration to release the much-needed $4 billion in federal disaster relief funding for mitigation projects. These funds are crucial for our community. The next step is for the GLO to develop an action plan that details how funding will be dispersed.
I’ve worked closely with local officials to ensure FEMA approved the Lake Houston Dam Gates project to help manage the flow of water in the San Jacinto watershed. This is an area that suffered some of the worst of Harvey.
Our coalition also convinced the Army Corps of Engineers to not classify Langham Creek as wetlands, so that Harris County Flood Control District could remove the silt to mitigate future flooding.
Another project we’ve had success with is the dredging of the San Jacinto River. It is crucial that it is restored to pre-Harvey conditions. Not only has the Army Corps of Engineers completed much of this, but the Corps extended the project to the confluence of the West Fork of the San Jacinto and Lake Houston. This is a great start, but we cannot forget the East Fork.
In addition to these projects, we’re closely watching the results of two crucial studies: the 216 study led by the Army Corp of Engineers and the San Jacinto Watershed Master Drainage Plan led by the San Jacinto River Authority (SJRA), City of Houston, and Montgomery County.
The 216 study is still under way, but once it is completed we will have a strong understanding of the best ways to mitigate flooding in the Addicks and Cypress Creek.
The San Jacinto Watershed study is also still in the works. The goal of the study is to develop a plan to mitigate flooding for the San Jacinto and 27 of its major tributaries.
Additionally, we are working with the Harris County Flood Control District to ensure that the White Oak, Hunting, and Brays Bayou projects are fully reimbursed under the 211 (f) authority. When completed, these bayous will increase conveyance and mitigate flooding in the future.
I’m proud of the success we’ve seen so far, but we are not finished. Flooding continues to be my number one priority.
WHAT SHOULD CONGRESS DO TO HELP STATES WITH DISASTER RECOVERY?
Your perspective on this issue is important to making sure Congress finds solutions that work for all Americans.
HEALTHCARE
I am focused on health care solutions that lower your costs at the pharmacy counter, increases transparency, and puts YOU in control of your health care decisions, not the federal government.
Democrats in Congress are proposing massive government takeovers of our health care system with proposals like Medicare for All and pharmaceutical price controls. These policies will force you into a one-size-fits-all, government-run health plan, and restrict your access to new innovative cures.
It’s clear our health care system is broken and too expensive, but what is the right answer to fix it? What we need is a free market, competitive, patient-centered health care system.
WHAT SHOULD CONGRESS DO ON HEALTHCARE?
Your perspective on this issue is important to making sure Congress finds solutions that work for all Americans.
JOBS & INNOVATION
Free-market principles have allowed our economy and job market to thrive. We must stand for pro-growth policies, because we cannot lift the poor out of poverty or raise middle class wages without a strong and growing economy. This is common sense economics, and we must show leadership to make it happen.
While pro-growth policies have stimulated this economy, we cannot ignore the necessary reforms to our entitlement programs. We must reform programs like Medicare and Social Security to save them. Our seniors deserve and earned these benefits, let’s ensure they’re around for future generations as well. But the answer isn’t taxing the next generation. The answer is common sense reforms. As our runaway debt continues to grow exponentially, any reforms must be fiscally responsible.
WHAT SHOULD CONGRESS DO ON JOBS AND THE ECONOMY?
Your perspective on this issue is important to making sure Congress finds solutions that work for all Americans.
Energy & Environment
WHAT SHOULD CONGRESS DO ON ENERGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT?
Your perspective on this issue is important to making sure Congress finds solutions that work for all Americans.
WHY DAN CARES
Dan serves as the Representative for Texas’ 2nd Congressional district. As a 6th generation Texan and Houstonian, Dan has a deep love for his country and state. Dan and his wife Tara understand that there is no higher calling than service-before-self to the American people. While Dan no longer fights on the battlefield, he utilizes the integrity, leadership, vision, and tenacity he gained in the SEAL teams to serve honorably in Congress. Dan stands for common sense policies that ensure our nation’s prosperity and security, represent our Foundational values, and give Texans a reason to once again be proud of their leaders.
DAN WANTS TO HEAR WHAT MATTERS TO YOU
SCHOOLS & EDUCATION
Our youth are our future leaders. I’m a vocal advocate for students in our community and frequently speak to schools and youth groups to encourage them to think big and emphasize the importance of hard work, and having a sense of purpose and vision.
It is crucial that we prepare the next generation for the workforce. We must promote vocational training as a sensible alternative to a college education and allow for Pell Grant flexibility to allow students the option to choose technical education programs.
WHAT SHOULD CONGRESS DO TO IMPROVE ON SCHOOLS & EDUCATION?
Your perspective on this issue is important to making sure Congress finds solutions that work for all Americans.
BORDER SECURITY
We are currently unable to protect our sovereignty because of the situation at the border. Illegal immigrants are abusing our asylum process. While the President has taken action to improve the conditions at the border, Congress has to reform our laws for there to be a substantial change. Democrats refuse to address the issue at its source and are advocating for open border policies. This is wrong and unfair to legal immigrants, asylum seekers, migrants who are trafficked, and the Customs and Border Protection agents at the border. We must act now.
NATIONAL SECURITY
America is the leader of the free world, and should not back down from this responsibility. We can never forget the atrocities of September 11th, and what occurs when you allow terrorists to operate freely in ungoverned areas. We must continue to take the fight to ISIS. I have been doing that for my entire adult life.
The threat of ISIS is not the only major concern we face on the global stage. We must be wary of Russia, China and North Korea. These countries and their world views pose legitimate threats to America and must be taken seriously.
WHAT SHOULD CONGRESS DO TO IMPROVE AMERICA’S BORDER SECURITY?
Your perspective on this issue is important to making sure Congress finds solutions that work for all Americans.
RIGHTS & AMENDMENTS
The Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution represent the greatest ideas that humankind ever had. It was the moment that we wrote down our inalienable rights – life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness – and said that the role of government was simply to protect those rights, not create new ones or change them. The purpose of law is to implement justice, and protect our citizens from injustices committed against them. The purpose of law is NOT to engage in endless redistribution and regulation, with false promises that inevitably leads to the removal of individual freedoms. We must protect these time-tested principles of governance if we are to continue to be the most successful experiment in the history of mankind.
When it comes to defending our rights, I’m adamant about protecting our constitutional right to bear arms. I will always fight for Second Amendment rights. This right must never be infringed upon, but we must do a better job of enforcing current laws, especially background checks, so that guns stay out of the wrong hands. I will never allow the government to prevent law-abiding citizens from defending themselves.
I’ll also fight to protect our First Amendment. Our country is frighteningly close to violating our Constitution by allowing the left to shout down and shame anyone who disagrees with them. Social media platforms are shutting down conservative opinions. We need to encourage and inspire conservatives to stand up to this leftist bullying, and urge social media companies to develop clear and concise rules that are easy to understand.
WHAT SHOULD CONGRESS DO TO ENSURE THAT THE BILL OF RIGHTS ARE NOT INFRINGED?
Your perspective on this issue is important to making sure Congress finds solutions that work for all Americans.
DISASTER & RECOVERY
“Harvey was the most significant tropical cyclone rainfall event in United States history, both in scope and peak rainfall amounts.”
– National Hurricane Center, January 25th, 2018
For Texans in the 2nd District, flooding is frequently on our minds. As your Representative, I’ve been focused on two challenges: (1) providing relief to those affected by Hurricane Harvey, and (2) implementing the long-term solutions that will prevent future flooding.
A year ago, I said my role in Congress will be to work with local entities to exert pressure on the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to take action without delay. And we’ve done just that.
Our Progress
While we still have a long way to go to fully recover from Harvey, we’ve made some real progress.
I’ve worked in a bipartisan fashion to get the Administration to release the much-needed $4 billion in federal disaster relief funding for mitigation projects. These funds are crucial for our community. The next step is for the GLO to develop an action plan that details how funding will be dispersed.
I’ve worked closely with local officials to ensure FEMA approved the Lake Houston Dam Gates project to help manage the flow of water in the San Jacinto watershed. This is an area that suffered some of the worst of Harvey.
Our coalition also convinced the Army Corps of Engineers to not classify Langham Creek as wetlands, so that Harris County Flood Control District could remove the silt to mitigate future flooding.
Another project we’ve had success with is the dredging of the San Jacinto River. It is crucial that it is restored to pre-Harvey conditions. Not only has the Army Corps of Engineers completed much of this, but the Corps extended the project to the confluence of the West Fork of the San Jacinto and Lake Houston. This is a great start, but we cannot forget the East Fork.
In addition to these projects, we’re closely watching the results of two crucial studies: the 216 study led by the Army Corp of Engineers and the San Jacinto Watershed Master Drainage Plan led by the San Jacinto River Authority (SJRA), City of Houston, and Montgomery County.
The 216 study is still under way, but once it is completed we will have a strong understanding of the best ways to mitigate flooding in the Addicks and Cypress Creek.
The San Jacinto Watershed study is also still in the works. The goal of the study is to develop a plan to mitigate flooding for the San Jacinto and 27 of its major tributaries.
Additionally, we are working with the Harris County Flood Control District to ensure that the White Oak, Hunting, and Brays Bayou projects are fully reimbursed under the 211 (f) authority. When completed, these bayous will increase conveyance and mitigate flooding in the future.
I’m proud of the success we’ve seen so far, but we are not finished. Flooding continues to be my number one priority.
WHAT SHOULD CONGRESS DO TO HELP STATES WITH DISASTER RECOVERY?
Your perspective on this issue is important to making sure Congress finds solutions that work for all Americans.
HEALTHCARE
I am focused on health care solutions that lower your costs at the pharmacy counter, increases transparency, and puts YOU in control of your health care decisions, not the federal government.
Democrats in Congress are proposing massive government takeovers of our health care system with proposals like Medicare for All and pharmaceutical price controls. These policies will force you into a one-size-fits-all, government-run health plan, and restrict your access to new innovative cures.
It’s clear our health care system is broken and too expensive, but what is the right answer to fix it? What we need is a free market, competitive, patient-centered health care system. That’s why I’m fighting for bills like the Lower Costs, More Cures Act, and policies like Direct Primary Care, which will improve the patient-doctor-relationship that is missing in our health care system.
I understand all too well the experience of being a patient in socialized medicine, both in the military and the VA. When no one is held accountable, and there’s no competition, quality of care suffers and prices skyrocket. That’s why a single-payer system is not the answer.
Protecting Our Community from COVID-19
COVID-19 is having a severe impact on public health and our economy in Houston. But we can overcome this challenge together. I am in constant contact with hospitals and those on the front lines of this fight to make sure they have what they need to keep our communities safe. That’s why I personally distributed 50,000 masks to help people in our community do their part to prevent the spread. I also helped provide billions in federal resources to meet the needs of our health care workers, bolster the capacity of our health care system, and improve our testing capabilities. And I have repeatedly stepped in to extend federal support for COVID-19 testing in Houston.
Holding Pharmaceutical Companies Accountable
Americans pay too much for prescription drugs. That’s why I helped introduce legislation (H.R. 19) to hold pharmaceutical companies accountable, improve transparency, and lower your drug costs. My bill would stop pharmaceutical companies from engaging in unfair and uncompetitive behavior that raises your out-of-pocket costs at the pharmacy counter. This plan also increases transparency in our health care system and protects your access to new drugs to ensure that America — not China — remains the world leader in medical innovation.
Protecting People with Pre-existing Conditions
Americans living with pre-existing conditions should never be denied health care coverage. This is personal for me — my mom died of cancer when I was just 10 years old. That’s why I’ve always supported legislation that requires insurance companies to provide health care coverage to people with pre-existing conditions.
On Nancy Pelosi’s drug pricing scheme (H.R. 3):
Americans pay too much for prescription drugs. But price fixing isn’t the solution. Nancy Pelosi’s drug pricing scheme (H.R. 3) would keep as many as 100 cures from reaching you. Nancy Pelosi wants you to choose between lower costs or more cures. I want you to have both.
Speaker Pelosi’s partisan drug pricing scheme (HR 3):
- Will result in fewer cures for Americans hoping for new medicines
- Will coerce manufacturers to accept government-set prices — or go out of business
- Will scrap the bipartisan consensus on drugs for seniors in Medicare Part D
Pelosi and the Democrats claim their plan is “Medicare Negotiation.”
This isn’t true. It’s price fixing.
There’s a better way. I’m cosponsoring a bipartisan bill (HR 19), The Lower Costs, More Cures Act, that will lower costs at the drug counter and encourage the innovation we need to develop new medicines and cures.
- Our plan doesn’t crush research and development of new cures.
- We cap seniors’ annual out-of-pocket costs and help seniors with fixed incomes better manage those costs.
- We increase transparency ensuring patients and doctors get the best, most affordable medicines.
- We increase competition and get more low-cost generic medicines to market.
- We add real trade enforcement mechanisms so that we stop subsidizing other countries drug prices.
Americans need more innovation, more access, and more cures for diseases.
Want to learn more about how innovation, not Pelosi’s radical price controls, will lower drug costs? Click here to read my recent oped from the Houston Chronicle.
WHAT SHOULD CONGRESS DO ON HEALTHCARE?
Your perspective on this issue is important to making sure Congress finds solutions that work for all Americans.
JOBS & INNOVATION
Free-market principles have allowed our economy and job market to thrive. We must stand for pro-growth policies, because we cannot lift the poor out of poverty or raise middle class wages without a strong and growing economy. This is common sense economics, and we must show leadership to make it happen.
While pro-growth policies have stimulated this economy, we cannot ignore the necessary reforms to our entitlement programs. We must reform programs like Medicare and Social Security to save them. Our seniors deserve and earned these benefits, let’s ensure they’re around for future generations as well. But the answer isn’t taxing the next generation. The answer is common sense reforms. As our runaway debt continues to grow exponentially, any reforms must be fiscally responsible.
WHAT SHOULD CONGRESS DO ON JOBS AND THE ECONOMY?
Your perspective on this issue is important to making sure Congress finds solutions that work for all Americans.
Energy & Environment
WHAT SHOULD CONGRESS DO ON ENERGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT?
Your perspective on this issue is important to making sure Congress finds solutions that work for all Americans.
