Since I am new to the political world, I wanted to take a moment to explain my political philosophy. I have been a lifelong  Democrat and I’m proud of the contributions my party has made to American political life -  voting rights, civil rights, promotion of individual liberty and privacy, health care, social security, welfare, environmental protection, and corporate regulation.  Though I am a loyal to the central tenets of my party, I have been dismayed at the corruption I’ve witnessed within our party in Illinois. It’s one of the central reasons I got in this race.

I suppose my political philosophy can best be described as a conservative Democrat. I believe in fiscal responsibility and honest integrity in government service.  There are so many challenges facing our state government, but unless we promptly address the issues of campaign finance reform, pension reform, and cut wasteful bureaucracy from our state, I don’t see a sustainable path forward.

As such, my three priorities are state pension reform, comprehensive campaign finance reform, streamlining state government, and preserving the social safety net for our neediest neighbors.

• The pension system in this state is broken and it is breaking us. We need to abolish the system for new state employees and replace it with a 401(k). I would not take away pensions from those currently receiving them.
• I also believe in comprehensive campaign finance reform with strict reporting requirements and regulations.
• I support the continuation and preservation of our state educational institutions, but oppose wasteful spending on the bureaucrats and political insiders that sap precious dollars from our educational institutions.
• I am a strong supporter of preserving and continuing social services, particularly those that assist the mentally and physically disabled, victims of domestic and sexual violence, at-risk youth, and the truly needy citizens of our state.

You can learn more about these topics in the Issues section.