Tryon For Congress

A competent, credible alternative to our current congressman.

Cook some popcorn... order pizza... ask the neighbors over... This is gonna be better than the Superbowl!

I am proud to endorse the Carbon Fee and Dividend proposal sponsored by the bipartisan Citizens’ Climate Lobby. This proposal puts an immediate $15 per ton tax on CO2 equivalent emissions with net proceeds returned to families as a monthly dividend that will increase household income immediately to compensate for rising energy costs. Studies, including one by the Congressional Budget Office, show that this model will reduce harmful greenhouse gases, grow our economy, and support the transition to renewable energy more effectively than any alternative. But don’t take my word for it. Use your mind and see for yourself.

I support the Affordable Care Act. So I was debating whether to title this post, "Congratulations. You've Paid the Jason Chaffetz Tax"... or... "When $6.82 earnings per share just isn't enough, let's stop covering the people who really need our product." Aetna should be ashamed of itself. Read my comment below the post for further detail.

Climate change is real, and it's time we elected a Congressman who has the courage to take action. I am proposing a 21st-century Manhattan Project to address climate change, headquartered in Price, Utah. Watch the video at the end of the attached article.

NINETY-EIGHT PERCENT OF CHAFFETZ' $1 MILLION + CAMPAIGN FUNDING COMES FROM PACS AND LARGE INDIVIDUAL DONATIONS. Only 1 percent comes from small individual donations. Chaffetz' campaign funding is a practical example of the point I make in the attached editorial: Political contributions are not the same as free speech. Corporate "wallets" are louder than the "voices" of individuals.

Gee, Jason, why would you be so pro-debates in 2014 and be working so hard to avoid answering my challenge to debate this month? Anytime, anywhere. That's what I told your campaign manager 2 weeks ago, in the email she hasn't acknowledged yet. You took an oath to support and defend the Constitution, right? Like the one I took when I was 18, minus the part about really risking your life, of course. Let's do something to help the voters, shall we?

What's up with that?

Had a great evening with the Provo Pride council tonight. The group has grown since I was with them in April, and they are counting down to the Provo Pride Festival September 17th in Memorial Park (800 E Center). 10am to 6pm. I'll be there--come join me!

If current trends continue, the Social Security Trust Fund will be exhausted by 2023. I propose to restore the social security trust fund to sustainability by lifting the cap on income that is taxed for the fund and by reducing benefits for the highest earners. Currently, only income up to $118,000 is taxed for social security. A whopping 94 percent of Americans make less than that amount, and all of those people pay social security tax on their entire paycheck. Those who make more than $118,000 pay social security tax on that amount, and then pay no social security tax for the income received above $118,000. The problem with this system is that 85 percent of all new income in recent years has gone to the top 1 percent of wage earners. So all this new income is not helping solve the social security shortfall. The disparity in wealth between rich and poor in America is worse now than at any time since 1928. My solution to the challenge of restoring the social security trust fund would address this horrible and unsustainable inequality. My opponent's proposal is to use the same Republican tactics that will make inequality worse: raise the retirement age, etc. etc.

We must insure that higher education is accessible to all. From the first cave paintings until 2003 we produced about 5 billion gigabytes of information. Now we are producing that much information every 2 days. Why do we think K-12 is good enough, when there is so much more to learn? How can the United States be competitive on a global scale if higher education is unattainable? We must make higher education accessible to anyone and everyone. And I do not believe that the government has to pay for it all. As a business executive, I helped build an online campus that was integrated with the degree programs of 5 colleges and universities, and we provided tuition assistance and pay raises for employees completing a degree. As a US Congressman, I will work with businesses, universities, colleges, and communities to make access to a 4-year degree an option for all Utah residents.

Outside of Salt Lake City and the Silicon Slopes, Utah’s economy is in trouble. In the rural parts of the 3rd District, unemployment is 6 percent, twice what it is in Salt Lake City and a full percentage point greater than the national average. As your Congressman, I plan to focus on the rural parts of my district to bring their economies up to the level of the Wasatch Front. The Governor’s Office of Economic Development says that only one-third of Utah businesses have a web site. Why? I have a plan to recruit Utah’s Silicon Slope businesses to help fix these disparities. By focusing much of my energy on rural Utah, the entire state will benefit.

I support President Obama making Bear's Ears a National Monument through the use of the Antiquities Act. I absolutely oppose the so-called Public Land Initiative because I do not trust the process or the crony politicians who crafted it. The Public Land Initiative only affects counties where there are energy interests in play. San Juan County has a history of violating the civil rights of its Native American population. No reasonable person can look at those facts and say that the PLI is better than the President's monument initiative.

We need a 21st Century "Manhattan Project" to address this crisis, and I will push for the headquarters to be in Price, Utah. I want to make southeastern Utah a winner as the initiatives to address global warming begin to gain momentum --AS THEY MUST. My proposed Climate Change Research and Development Center in Price will (1) work to reduce use of fossil fuels; (2) speed deployment of wind, solar, wave, and other technologies that do not contribute to global warming; (3) research technologies that will mitigate the effects of global warming; and (4) support the transition of workers from the fossil fuel industry.

While I understand that some structural debt is okay for the federal government, the combination of a steadily increasing debt and the absolute failure of Congress to balance a single budget in 15 years is an existential threat to our republic. There are four ways to address the deficit each year: (1) raise taxes, (2) cut spending, (3) eliminate fraud, waste and abuse in government spending, and (4) do some combination of all of the above. I support doing number 4: all of the above. My opponent Jason Chaffetz has been in the PERFECT position to attack fraud, waste and abuse in government spending for the past several years and he has accomplished nothing. Instead, when asked what he has accomplished, he cites the administration officials he has caused to resign or be removed from their positions as a result of his political witch hunts. He is letting us down.

There are many positives to the TPP, and there are a number of drawbacks as well. If given the chance, I would vote against the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) as it is written now. My reason for opposing the agreement is that it will increase the movement of things from country to country, and will therefore contribute to the problem of carbon emissions and climate change. However, I would support a TPP limited to services, e-commerce, digital goods, and biologics while still providing its current environmental protections. This type of agreement would help the US economy without increasing carbon emissions substantially.