Jake was born and raised in the Massachusetts Fourth Congressional District he now represents, the son of a surgeon and a scientist. They taught him the values of curiosity and integrity. He and his older brother and sister grew up in the Jewish faith tradition and attended the Newton Public Schools. His 2nd-grade teacher saw he loved to read and gave him books on United States history. He was hooked.
I'm the father of two pandemic babies. I met both Teddy and Grace for the first time in surge-strained hospitals. One of Teddy’s first words was “mask.” My wife and I once assumed that neither of them would even remember COVID. Now we worry that it will cloud their childhood. I see our anxiety mirrored in my constituents, of all ages.
Like so many parents, this is not the path I want for my kids. Step one is the schools. Re-opening schools was my day-one priority when I took office in January 2021, and Congress sent more than $130 billion to school districts last winter to help them reopen. No school should be operating without high-quality ventilation and filtration systems. And, every school district should have clear, forward-looking infectious-disease policies that disavow closures and implement restrictions only as a last resort, with input from child psychologists and parents in addition to public health officials. If states and cities need more flexibility from American Rescue Plan funds to pandemic-proof their schools, then Congress must give it to them.
We must also expand youth services. Congress is working to guarantee affordable access to child care and early education for every family. Mental health should be part of that deal, too. But capping costs leads to shortages if we don’t simultaneously expand supply. There are too few pediatricians, inpatient providers, child psychologists, adjustment counselors, social workers, early educators, and childcare specialists. Boosting supply may require the government at all levels to cut red tape for occupational licensing, subsidize workforce education, increase funding for afterschool and other wraparound programming, and change rules for insurance rates. If states need more flexibility from American Rescue Plan funds to achieve this, then Congress must give it to them. Congress must also pass two bipartisan bills, both of which I have cosponsored, to (1) better fund children’s mental health, and (2) incorporate collaborative care models, which integrate mental health services with primary care.
I’ve only been a congressman for one year and a parent for two, but I am committed for the long haul to improving children’s socioemotional wellbeing. It’s a special responsibility I have as the youngest parent in the House Democratic caucus. COVID is a fork in the road: let’s take the harder, better path for our kids.
In Congress I am using every tool at my disposal to drive down costs for families. Rising costs, from housing to heating to child care, are a real problem. Pandemic and overseas war have primarily driven this inflation by disrupting supply chains and employment, but now Congress must help fix it. While Republicans were trying to use inflation for political points, I offered real solutions to get our economy back on track .
I am also fighting to lower or eliminate out-of-pocket costs in health care, so that patients never struggle to afford the medicines they need.
We must work across the government, business, and education sectors to boost employment and increase research and development. That is why I was proud to play a role in securing key wins in the House version of the COMPETES Act , a generational investment in our workforce, supply chains, and America’s leadership in science and technology.
As a member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee I am working to ensure that Massachusetts residents benefit from better infrastructure, which supports stronger towns and healthier families. In my first term I helped pass an historic, bipartisan infrastructure bill. Now, I’m working with state and local leaders as America invests more than $1T in roads and bridges, transit, high-speed internet, the electric grid, and clean water.
Climate change is a clear and present threat to our planet and our children’s way of life. Even before coming to Congress, I was leading on this issue in the private sector and in local government. On the city council, I voted with Green Newton priorities 100% of the time. At a Fortune 100, I helped build products for sustainable mobility. Leading environmental advocates endorsed me for Congress because they knew I’d hit the ground running – and I have. As an original co-sponsor of the Green New Deal and leading advocate for Offshore Wind, I have called for a carbon tax to curb the pollution that causes climate change; fought for investments in green infrastructure and clean-energy research and development; and have become a champion for sustainable, on-demand transit.
We must protect access to the ballot and the independence of state election officials. Our campaign is committed to fighting to protect our democracy. My work has won me the endorsement of the Progressive Turnout Project who cited my “history of championing pro-democracy legislation and a shared commitment to a reality that everyone has the right to vote in a country where voting is made simple and accessible to all.”
Your time is valuable, but getting around keeps getting harder. Greater Boston has the worst traffic in the country; and transit is inconvenient and unreliable. Moreover, transportation accounts for more than 40% of Massachusetts’ carbon emissions.
Jake has been the Newton City Council’s leader on transportation and an advocate for progressive transportation policies statewide. As a manager at Liberty Mutual’s innovation lab, he has also helped re-orient a Fortune 100 company to a future where people have the option to drive less and walk, bike, and take transit more.
In Congress, he will ensure that federal investments in a carbon-neutral future, including any form of a Green New Deal, brings funding for Massachusetts to re-invent its transportation system. The status quo of traffic and pollution is not acceptable. Jake will help deliver smarter transportation policy to Massachusetts, while strengthening the vibrancy of downtowns and neighborhoods from Fall River to Franklin, Needham to Brookline.
Jake commanded an infantry platoon in Afghanistan and special operations in Panama. He slept, ate, trained, and patrolled with an assault weapon for four years. Those are not the ‘arms’ that our Founders had in mind when they wrote the Second Amendment in 1791.
Jake supports the efforts of groups mounting a campaign against gun violence, such as Moms Demand Action and Everytown for Gun Safety.
As a member of Congress, Jake would push for mandatory assault-weapon buybacks; mandatory liability insurance for all weapons; Red Flag laws; and universal background checks.
Talent is everywhere, but opportunity is not. Jake’s great-grandfather, a Russian Jew, fled the pogroms and built a small business in Massachusetts. From those refugee roots, his granddaughter, Jake’s mother, became the first female CEO of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
Today, the future first Hispanic CEO of the Dana-Farber may be in a cage at the Mexican border. America’s promise is that the condition of your birth should not determine the outcome of your life. We fail that promise when we deprive immigrants of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Health care is a human right, not a job perk, and guaranteeing health care for every American is the most effective and morally urgent way that we can unlock opportunity for all.
Growing up in a family of physicians, scientists, and public-health officials, Jake deeply appreciates the pivotal role of health care in quality of life and the Massachusetts economy. He will be a champion for a public option, for increasing federal funding for basic medical research, and for a woman's right to choose.
The public school teachers in Newton prepared Jake to succeed at Harvard and MIT—and to be a lifelong reader and learner. Every kid deserves teachers like Mrs. Rosengard and Mrs. Green. But we can’t recruit and retain life-changing teachers unless we pay them more. When the Newton City Council debated a pay raise for elected officials, Jake voted No (one of only two out of 24) because Newton teachers were not guaranteed a pay raise, too.
In addition to standing with teachers on pay, Jake has been an effective advocate for early education in his hometown, helping to bring about full-day Kindergarten and calling for expanded pre-K offerings. Excellent public education is the best way to ensure equal opportunity. And the evidence is compelling: the earlier we nurture young minds, the more positive difference we can make.
Jake has been a major supporter of Ranked Choice Voting, which allows voters to rank the candidates on their ballot. It is a simple and fair way to better represent the will of the majority in elections. Jake has also presented at conferences on more equitable and transparent financing mechanisms for political campaigns and journalism.
After corporations spent money on a ballot initiative in Newton, Jake detailed the problem to his constituents in his newsletter and then submitted and passed a resolution with the Democratic City Committee calling for an end to corporate spending in local elections. Jake has not and will not accept any corporate PAC donations.
The common thread is that Jake believes systemic change is the most durable and has the most impact. In Congress, Jake will look at root causes, not just surface problems.
Jake commanded special-operations-capable units, and he knows what the United States military is capable of—and what it is not. Massive troop deployments in nation-building exercises waste blood and treasure.
As a congressman, Jake would work to reduce the conventional ground-force footprint, to scale naval, air, and cyber commands that protect the global commons, and to invest in surgical special operations that can identify, target, and neutralize terrorists across the globe without overextending the United States.
In addition, Jake believes that international aid and robust diplomacy can strengthen our standing in the world while helping those most in need around the globe.
Jake believes that reproductive care is health care. In Congress, he’ll stand up to President Trump’s dangerous agenda, will defend Title X, and will work to guarantee that safe and legal abortions are accessible to all. From strengthening the ACA birth control mandate to eliminating the Global Gag Rule, Jake will be a strong advocate for pro-choice policy, including codifying the ROE Act at the state and federal level. He will also push for eliminating the Hyde Amendment and will support Senators who will vote for pro-choice federal judges.
In both business and local government, Jake has delivered progressive solutions that match the urgency of the climate crisis. On the city council, Jake has voted in line with Green Newton’s priorities 100% of the time, ranging from municipal solar panels to mixed-use developments that lower our carbon footprints. The city’s leading environmental advocates have endorsed his campaign for Congress.
In Congress, Jake will:
Jake will lead on progressive environmental policy, ensuring that each community in the Massachusetts Fourth benefits from progress made.
Unemployment has spiked and Main Street businesses are shuttering. In the aftermath of COVID-19, we need to kickstart job creation and send federal support to cities and towns to prevent cuts to essential services. We can’t just return to the status quo, though: an inclusive economic recovery means every family, everywhere in the district, gets back on their feet with good-paying jobs.
Jake’s plans for economic relief in the short term include helping working families and small businesses, budget relief for state and local governments (H.R. 6800 - The Heroes Act), and providing aid to underserved children. He is also working with local officials to prioritize projects, ranging from water treatment and waste management to transportation, for federal infrastructure investment. For the medium-term, Jake is already working with state and local officials, business leaders, and unions on a roadmap for creating good jobs throughout the district. Read the first installment, centered on life sciences manufacturing,
COVID-19 has forced kids, parents, and teachers to sacrifice so much. Cities and towns throughout the district will need federal aid to prevent impossible tradeoffs between essential services, education chief among them. In Congress, Jake will work to ensure our schools don’t lose a dime and our kids don’t lose another year.
The first position Jake took in Newton was as an advocate for early education, helping to bring about full-day Kindergarten and calling for expanded pre-K offerings. Jake has continued to advocate for education — when the Newton City Council debated a pay raise for elected officials, Jake voted No (one of only two out of 24), because Newton teachers hadn’t secured a pay raise yet, too.
Excellent public education is the best way to ensure equal opportunity. In Congress, Jake will fight against Republican cuts to federal education aid, and will be a champion for early education, technical/vocational education, and student debt relief.
Jake is committed to confronting racism, and has helped initiate this work right here in Newton. On the city council, Jake led a review of the Newton Police Department’s policies surrounding use of force and joined his colleagues in backing the police reform Task Force. In his op-ed in WBUR’s Cognoscenti, Jake calls for a demilitarization of our police and advocates for a review of police functions through the lens of race. In Congress, Jake will champion anti-racist policy as we work towards this country’s core aspiration: equal justice and equal opportunity for all.
Jake unequivocally supports military aid to Israel as negotiated in the Obama-era MOU and recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. As a Jew and as an American, he is committed to Israel’s security and prosperity.
Jake favors a two-state solution, recognizing that such a solution must be negotiated between involved actors and cannot be imposed by outsiders. The solution must result in a viable state for the Palestinians and security for Israelis.
America’s alliance with Israel is based on shared values and shared interests; Israel shares our commitment to free and fair elections, individual rights, free speech, a free press, and an independent judiciary. Israel does not always live up to its highest ideals — but it remains committed to democratic values despite decades of war and terrorism.
Jake believes that, in such a volatile region, a democratic partner with a strong military and similar long-term goals is in our strategic interest. America has vital interests in the region – for example, keeping nuclear arms out of the hands of bad actors, and preventing failed states from harboring terrorists. A strong Israel that serves as a close partner, that supports her moderate neighbors, that shares critical intelligence, and that deters war in the region is vital to our ability to manage fallout from aggressive actors and failed states.
Congress must vigorously support and defend the Constitution to protect the republic from a corrupt president who believes he is above the law, who politicizes the judiciary, law enforcement, military, and scientific institutions, and who invited foreign interference into our elections.
Jake publicly called for an impeachment inquiry in 2017, and maintains that President Trump is wholly unfit for office. As a member of Congress, Jake is committed to strengthening Congressional oversight, using the power of appropriations to prevent abuses, and reinforcing the rule of law.
Jake commanded special operations and knows what the U.S. military is capable of—and what it is not. Congress must repeal the post-9/11 Authorization for Use of Military Force and end the failed Forever Wars. In tandem, Congress should use its power of the purse to direct the president to:
Jake has worked at a startup and a Fortune 100. He's served in government and at a non-profit. And he has degrees in economics and finance. He's seen the Massachusetts economy from multiple angles – theory and practice, high-tech and Main Street. The common denominator is the talent of our people.
In an inclusive economy, everyone can realize their talent, provide for their families, and retire with dignity. In Congress, Jake will work for:
After the most corrupt presidency in U.S. history, Americans' trust in the rule of law is shaken. Congress must help restore it. Jake is committed to the legislative blueprint proposed by Protect Democracy.
The blueprint includes measures to strengthen Congress's powers over war, spending, nominations, and oversight; to codify checks on executive powers; and to protect the apolitical status of the courts and other independent institutions. Key elements are included in the "Protecting our Democracy Act,” which Jake supports.
Jake also supports independent redistricting commissions, campaign finance reform, and better enforcement of federal ethics and disclosure laws. Dig deeper into other dimensions of democracy reform
I slept, ate, trained, and patrolled with an assault weapon for four years as a Marine officer. Weapons of war have no place on our streets or near our schools.
In addition to fighting for an assault weapons ban, I am also working for common-sense gun safety measures like background checks, red-flag laws, safe-storage requirements, and evidence-based violence-intervention policy.
My work in Congress has earned me the Moms Demand Action Gun Sense Candidate Distinction and Brady PAC's endorsement .