Will is a former federal prosecutor who focused on counterterrorism and counterintelligence cases in Southern California. He’s from a family of Republicans and Democrats and is running for Congress because the attack on the U.S. Capitol underscored why America needs a new generation of leaders to end toxic divisions that threaten our democracy and prevent us from solving problems together.
Riverside County, and especially the Coachella Valley, is home to many retirees and seniors. As your Congressman, I will fight to protect and expand Medicare and Social Security from Republican attempts to cut funding for these programs for our seniors.
I believe in equality and reproductive freedom for everyone. The recent Supreme Court decision effectively ends Roe and abortion access as we know it, overturning nearly 50 years of precedent. This decision is a horrifying reminder that the far-right will stop at nothing to dismantle reproductive rights.
If you’ve sat in traffic on the 10, the 15, or the 215, you know the dire need for increased infrastructure funding for the Inland Empire and Coachella Valley. Our current representative, Ken Calvert, voted against the bipartisan infrastructure bill that will provide millions of dollars for local transportation and infrastructure projects, such as the I-15 corridor project in Corona and the $12 million needed to widen Bundy Road in Menifee. He also voted against the American Rescue Plan, which yielded Riverside County with nearly $480 million in funding for economic recovery, infrastructure and aid for local governments’ COVID recovery needs.
Extremists, Big Tech, and media outlets are profiting by spreading division based on lies, even as they erode our democracy and make it easier for adversaries like China and Russia to exploit us. But I have a specific plan to hold these actors accountable:
I want to lower taxes on the middle class families who actually live in Riverside County, where the median income is around $70,000 per year. We do that by raising taxes on the billionaires who have been protected by my opponent Ken Calvert over the last 30 years: The 400 richest Americans – all billionaires – hold more wealth than 60% of the country put together – that’s more than 150 million Americans combined. Those 400 households pay an average of just 8.2% per year in federal income taxes, while the rest of us pay significantly more.
Climate change is an existential threat that is already damaging our health, communities, and economy. We are living through severe droughts, heat, water shortages, and more intense storms and wildfires. In Riverside County, and throughout California, a record drought is straining our water supply. Record hot temperatures put many people at risk, especially those working outdoors and without access to cooling. The impact of climate change will increasingly affect tourism, construction, agriculture, and other sectors of our economy. This is why I support taking bold and decisive action on climate change.
I believe that healthcare is a human right, and that all Americans should have access to affordable, quality healthcare. We also need to support our nurses, doctors and other professionals working to provide quality care in Riverside County, especially given the stress they have been under during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
I’m a proud graduate of California public schools and am grateful to the teachers who supported my learning, growth, and development. I will always advocate for our public education system to ensure all our students, no matter their family income, have access to great schools and teachers. We owe this to all parents and kids.
My partner Paolo and I came of age when being gay was still a crime in many states, homophobia was pervasive, same-sex marriage was illegal and LGBTQ people were not allowed to serve openly in the military. When elected to Congress, I will be a strong champion of equality and LGBTQ rights for all Americans.
We need comprehensive immigration reform that will secure our country’s borders, create a modern immigration system that reflects American values, provide a pathway to citizenship for qualified immigrants, and support the labor needs of businesses in Riverside County and the U.S.
ur right to vote is fundamental to the health of our democracy. Sadly, partisan interests in too many states are enacting new laws to restrict voting access, often to suppress minority voters. This is why I support the For the People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. These bills will protect and strengthen voting rights, reduce the influence of money in politics and ban partisan gerrymandering.
I will always stand up for common sense gun safety laws that help save lives. As a federal prosecutor who worked on cases involving gun violence, I’m committed to basic rules that will encourage gun discipline and keep firearms out of the hands of violent and dangerous people.
Unfortunately for those of us who live in California’s 41st Congressional District, my opponent Ken Calvert is funded by the gun lobby, having received more NRA campaign money than any other California congressperson from 1998 to 2016.
The truth is that gun safety laws don’t infringe on the rights of law-abiding folks, but they do help reduce gun violence. That’s why I’m ready to enact the changes that the vast majority of Americans demand immediately, including:
As someone who has worked in law enforcement, I support the valuable roles of our police, first responders and federal officials in protecting our homes, businesses and communities. I do not support efforts to defund the police; in fact, given the rise in crime, we need to make sure our local police forces have the resources they need to keep us safe. Meaningful reform of our criminal justice system, however, is necessary. We need to ensure practices and policies are in place to prioritize public safety, fairness and equal justice.
My opponent Ken Calvert claims that he supports law enforcement even though he voted against additional federal funding for our local police departments in Riverside County last year. Similarly, after 140 police officers were injured at the January 6th insurrection, Calvert voted to decertify the results of the 2020 presidential election and then went on to say that charges should be dropped against the insurrectionists. More recently, Calvert impugned our nation’s top law enforcement agencies without any evidence, writing: “All of us should be extremely concerned about what is happening to institutions – the DOJ and FBI – that must be above reproach. Should House Republicans regain the Majority, it will be incumbent upon us investigate to [sic] and root out the rot that has infiltrated these agencies.” His words are both disgraceful and dangerous, and threaten the safety of the men and women working to investigate domestic terrorism, cyber-crimes and foreign interference in our elections.
At the Justice Department, I focused on counterterrorism and counterintelligence cases in Southern California. When I helped respond to the attack on the U.S. Capitol last year, I saw firsthand how conspiracy theories and lies turned to violence. I left my job at DOJ to challenge an entrenched incumbent who helped spread those lies.
Priorities:
I became a national security and terrorism prosecutor because of 9-11. I wanted to help keep America safe. As someone who has worked on cases involving corruption, terrorism and threats from China and Iran, I know how important it is to support our veterans and service members. These courageous men and women put their lives on the line to protect us.
We have 120,000 veterans living in Riverside County, the third-largest veteran population in California. Sadly, in Riverside County, the rate of veterans who have diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure is considerably higher than the general population, and almost one in three veterans under the age of 40 are unemployed. We need to help get veterans onto insurance plans and create additional tax incentives for employers to hire veterans who’ve given the country so much only to come home without a job.
Support for Veterans and Service Members:
The attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021 was a stain on our country’s history, and it is the reason I decided to run for Congress. My opponent Ken Calvert believes former President Trump’s “big lie.” Rep. Calvert’s refusal to stand up to President Trump when he tried to extort Ukraine by withholding the weapons they needed to fight Russia is shameful and unpatriotic. We need leaders in Congress who will confront threats to democracy at home and prepare our country from adversaries like Russia and China.
Some additional facts about Ken Calvert’s record:
Middle class families’ voices are being left out of the political process. Powerful special interest groups with unlimited amounts of money are undermining our democracy. Americans are tired of the partisan dysfunction and the corrupting influence of money in politics. I will work every day to stand up for working families in CA-41. Our campaign is powered by people, not corporate interests and lobbyists. This is why I am refusing corporate PAC money in this campaign.
My opponent Ken Calvert spent his career creating a tax system that punishes people who work for a living and allows the wealthiest 400 families in the United States – and many of his corporate donors – to avoid most taxes. His campaigns have raked in tens of thousands of dollars from the oil and gas industries and the NRA. No wonder Calvert voted against the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act of 2022 – the first major gun violence prevention act signed into law in decades. He also voted against legislation that regulated online campaign ads and foreign involvement in elections – important safeguards for protecting the integrity of our elections.
Priorities:
I look forward to fighting for real campaign finance reform in Congress and ensuring that our democracy is responsible to working families and not large corporations or special interest groups.