You keep a running deficit clock on your website. Why?
To raise awareness of our budget problem. My daughter is over a year old. When she was born, her share of the national debt was $35,000; today, it’s about $45,000. It’s alarming. We must make tough decisions for a better future
To be more competitive, the U.S. must—?
Lower corporate tax rates. The CEO of an Ohio company with overseas subsidiaries just told me his company is keeping some profits overseas, not bringing them back here. We can’t compete without being innovative and matching the incentives of other nations.
Your view of the State of the Union?
It was a good speech, but my constituents care more about what is done in Washington than what is said. I look forward to working with the administration on common-ground solutions, but I oppose policies that increase wasteful spending and hurt job creation.
You believe kids up to age 26 should be covered by parents’ insurance. Why?
It's one of the good parts of the health care bill. Many students can’t find jobs out of school. They should still have access to insurance. I’m committed to working in a bipartisan manner to support reforms like this.
The biggest issue for your constituents?
Job creation. On the Financial Services Committee, I’ll focus on access to capital for small businesses, economic growth and job creation, and the core cause of the financial crisis — the unregulated operations of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.