The best thing the federal government can do for California’s water crisis is to fund more dams.

If you think that California’s water problem can be solved with only dams: you are wrong. The changing climate means that the water is not there. If you think that you can solve California’s water problem with only water restrictions: you’re equally wrong. You will bankrupt farmers and destroy California’s agricultural industry.

We know, given climate change, that we will have these droughts in the future: the economics of these projects are clear, and every acre-foot of surface water capacity represents a foot less of groundwater users will need to pump.

Doug LaMalfa likes to claim that he knows water because he has a family tradition of using water. That is like a fox saying he should be in charge of the henhouse because he comes from a long line of foxes. The Steiners have a tradition of actually solving water problems in the West. My grand-uncle, Wesley Steiner, was Deputy Director of the California Department of Water Resources before becoming DWR Director in Arizona. There, he angered anti-infrastructure environmentalists by building the Central Arizona Project aqueduct, which moves 1.5 million acre-feet/year. He also angered agricultural interests by writing the first Groundwater Management Act in the country.

I hope you will give me a chance to carry on the Steiner family’s tradition of solving water issues in the West through intelligent, balanced policymaking.

Policy Proposals:

1. The federal government should fund 25% of Sites Reservoir for environmental water: cross-subsidizing capacity needed for urban and agricultural use while protecting vulnerable ecosystems.
2. The federal government should continue to explore the Shasta Dam raise, and explore mechanisms to recoup costs through sales on the California Water Futures market.
3. The federal government should continue to support California state efforts to balance groundwater use to provide an environmentally sustainable supply of water for users across the state.

As the American officer in charge of agricultural affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Honduras, I helped American farmers export rice, potatoes, and beef products even as local producers tried to get around the protections granted by CAFTA (The Central American Free Trade Agreement). I know the challenges that American producers face in exporting overseas and I know how to fight for you.

As your Congressman, I will support farmers in the district who have trouble penetrating the maze of American agricultural bureaucracy in Washington, D.C.

The farmers of this district don’t need a Congressman that knows how to farm – they’re not turning to D.C. for help with farming. The farmers of this district need a Congressman who understands how to solve bureaucratic problems.

I’m not a farmer, but I know how to support farmers through policy.

Policy Proposal:

1. An amendment to the Immigration and Nationality Act to allow Foreign Agricultural Service officers of the United States Department of Agriculture to unilaterally revoke the visas of foreign nationals that are attempting to impede the sale of U.S. agricultural products overseas. Central American agricultural magnates using their malign influence over foreign governments against U.S. producers should not expect to vacation in Miami or send their children to Ivy League institutions on the East Coast.