Originally from the Houston area, Rep. Dan Crenshaw is a proud 6th generation Texan. From an early age, Dan knew that he wanted to serve his country with the most elite fighting force in history: the U.S. Navy SEALs. His father’s career in the Texas oil and gas industry moved his family all over the world, including Ecuador and Colombia, where he attended high school. As a result, Dan is fluent in Spanish. In 2006, Dan graduated from Tufts University, where he earned his Naval officer commission through Navy ROTC. Following graduation, he immediately reported to SEAL training in Coronado, CA, where he met his future wife, Tara. After graduating SEAL training, Dan deployed to Fallujah, Iraq to join SEAL Team Three, his first of five deployments overseas.
America is the leader of the free world and should not back down from this responsibility. It is our job to stand up to provocations across the globe and defend democracy when its enemies seek to destroy it.
As a member of the Homeland Security Committee, I will work to protect the Houston-region’s vital infrastructure from emerging threats. The Committee plays a vital role in port security, aviation safety, and counter-terrorism.
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, not only in Syria and Iraq, but also in Afghanistan and Africa. The threat of radical Islam is real and we must do a better job fighting on all fronts. I have been doing that for my entire adult life.
We need to follow the President’s lead in rebuilding the U.S. military. I have seen first-hand the toll that 16 years of warfare has taken on our soldiers, sailors, and airmen. Texas is home to fifteen major military bases. As a result of previous budget cuts, our ships are barely operational and the ones that are deployed are colliding and running aground. Policy changes and strong leadership will set us back on the right course. Our military should focus on improving our cyber defenses and keeping talented people in the military. We need to invest in new technology to maintain our edge, as China and Russia quickly catch up.
Our immigration system is broken. We must act swiftly to ensure we keep the American people safe and enforce the rule of law. Border security must come first. Enough is enough, let’s enforce our laws. We should not only build physical barriers at the border, but also ramp up tech-savvy ways to secure our border, like drones and sensors. As a member of the Homeland Security Committee, I will approach border security holistically, with solutions that make sense for each stretch of the border.
Furthermore, border security leads to a better legal immigration system. When we finally secure the border, we can then talk about next steps for immigration reform. America is the shining city on the hill and the American Dream is alive and well. Migrants should enter legally and we should welcome them and their contributions to society.
Our economy thrives when government and bureaucracy get out of the way of innovation and entrepreneurship. Lower taxes, deregulation and pro-growth policies are the best way to boost our economy, which in turn creates more jobs and higher wages for the middle class.
The policies of the last few years have demonstrated just how effective a pro-growth agenda is for the American economy. The unemployment rate is lower than it’s been in decades, more Americans are joining the workforce and wages are increasing. A strong economy is crucial to lifting Americans out of poverty. We must continue to embrace policies that provide more jobs and create a brighter future for all.
Education plays such a vital role in our society, ensuring that Americans are well prepared to enter the workforce. But our education system is not adequately preparing our children for their futures. I believe in school choice and putting the students and their education first. We should allow families to choose the school that works best for their student: whether it be traditional public schools, public charter schools, virtual schools, private schools, or home schooling. School choice is about freedom, competition, and improving education for all children.
Additionally, college is becoming too expensive for working class families and not giving students the skills they need to succeed. A 4-year degree is the right choice for a lot of people, but it should not be the only choice. We need to promote vocational training and apprenticeship programs that give workers the skills that industries actually need.
Texas is an energy leader in the world. Our natural resources power our homes, businesses, and millions of other infrastructures around the country. Energy jobs are critical to our economy and must be a priority when considering any industry regulation coming out of Washington.
We have to unleash the power of the Texas energy sector and become the world leader in energy that we are meant to be. We should capitalize on our clean natural gas and export around the world, so that the everyone can enjoy cleaner and cheaper energy. New technology like fracking allowed us to access previously untapped clean natural gas, lowering our CO2 emissions drastically. Why not help the rest of the world do the same?
Fostering our energy industry and protecting the environment are not mutually exclusive. We need to protect our natural treasures, lakes, rivers, forests, and oceans. We have to keep Texas and America beautiful.
Our country is at a crossroads: do we get our fiscal house in order, or continue to kick the can and put the growing burden on the next generation?
It is critical that we balance our budget, and as a member of the House Budget Committee, I will work to restore our country to a fiscally conservative path. Our national debt has ballooned, doubling in the last ten years. We must take action to address this. We cannot keep borrowing from our children and we cannot impose one-size-fits-all proposals like the unaffordable “Medicare for All” plan, which could cost as much as $33 trillion over ten years.
We also cannot just cut discretionary spending. We have to deal with the hard issues: sensible reforms to mandatory spending, including Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. According to a recent Social Security Trustees Report, the Social Security Trust Fund is on pace to be depleted by 2034. If these programs continue on an unsustainable trajectory, the only options will be benefit cuts or increased payroll tax rates.
It is vital to implement solutions that do not unexpectedly cut the benefits our seniors have contributed to and planned on for decades. But a solution also must not place an unnecessary tax burden on today’s workers. It’s time we started making common sense decisions about spending before it is too late.
For Texans in the 2nd District, flooding is fresh on our minds and we deserve leaders in Congress who are dedicated to finding the right policy solutions and implementing them quickly. Although Hurricane Harvey is in the rearview for many Americans, those of us in Houston know recovery is far from over. I’m dedicated to getting TX-02 the disaster relief funding it deserves.
As a member of the Homeland Security Committee, I will make it my focus to ensure that the Federal Emergency Management Agency is able to rapidly deliver help to those in need. We must continue to utilize public-private partnerships to ensure our community is back and running at full capacity. I’m committed to our communities making a full recovery and more importantly, better preparing us for future storms.
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.
We need a free market, patient-centered health care system that gets the government out of your doctor’s office. Unfortunately, ObamaCare has caused health care costs to go up, kicked millions of Americans off of their health insurance plans, and increased taxes, all of which have been detrimental to the health care system.
Our goal should be to implement a healthcare system that puts patients first, encourages competition, allows consumers to buy health insurance across state lines, and expands health savings accounts. Our vision for healthcare should be centered on choice, customizability, and innovation, with sensible safety nets that ensure those with pre-existing conditions are not left behind.
As a veteran, I’m all too familiar with the VA’s much needed improvements. In the last few years, the VA has taken steps in the right direction, however, more must be done to better serve those who have served our country. Our veterans are hurting. They’re experiencing excessive wait times and suicide rates are at a catastrophic 20+ per day. This is why I support privatizing and outsourcing evaluation services for veterans coming into the VA system. This would allow VA doctors to focus on providing the best care for our veterans, not compensation evaluations.
While we must provide more for our veterans, we must bear in mind that excessive benefits for veterans that do not need them are costing the taxpayers billions and are crowding out veterans who truly do need the care. This must change.