I am the youngest of three brothers born to a US Forest Service officer and a teacher. Raised in San Bernardino, California, I attended Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic School, Cajon High School, and Cal State San Bernardino where I earned a bachelor’s degree in Economics. I worked to pay for my university education as a camera salesman at FEDCO, a busser and waiter at Lucy’s Mexican Restaurant, and a soccer coach at Cajon and Aquinas high schools.I am a member of the Lone Pine Paiute Shoshone Tribe in the Owens Valley of California, a lay minister at Catholic parishes in the United States and the Philippines, and an amateur travel filmmaker, photographer, and writer.
We cannot allow illegal immigration to continue; it degrades sovereignty, creates vulnerability and undermines unity. America has always benefited from our incredible mix of cultures, ideas, and backgrounds. We should continue to welcome new immigrants from around the world who share our values and commit to contribute to our great American experiment. We can also have a robust foreign worker program with eventual repatriation and protections from exploitation. However, coming to the United States unlawfully as an adult should be a disqualification to ever becoming a citizen.