Help Our Cause

1. An immediate ceasefire in Gaza and a plan for rebuilding

As of August 2026, in Gaza, the West Bank, Yemen, Iran, Iraq and Lebanon, hundreds of thousands have been killed by Israeli and American forces. Millions have been displaced from their homes. Enough is enough! I would take up the cause of Peace for the United States by taking the following actions to end genocide and endless US war in Western Asia:

1) Immediately end of all weapons sales/donations to Israelfor the immediate future. Passing the "Block the Bombs" legislation (H.R. 3565) would be a great start to ending arms sales. I would also prevent the sale or provision drones, small arms and ammo.

2) Call for refunding and reinstituting UNRWA and other support humanitarian organizations into the Gaza strip

As Congressman, I would also implore the federal government to send trucks to supply sufficient food, water, and medical items.

3) Demand a peace conference of leading nations to establish a lasting political settlement between Palestine and Israel

Photo by Mylo Kaye: https://www.pexels.com/photo/crowd-with-banner-at-antiwar-protest-in-manchester-england-25430970/ 

The Cold War is over.  So is the War on Terror.  America does not need the one trillion dollar plus annual defense budget that it currently has.  It does not need the more than 800 bases it currently maintains worldwide. [The US spends more than the next 10 leading countries on defense (needs confirmation).]  Let's identify what savings in military spending can be made and return that money to the people! This can be either in the form of lower taxes or investments inaffordable housing, improved schools, new infrastructure,  health care for all, and better social services. This was successfully done in the 1990's, a time of greater prosperity and large job growth. Now is the time, to invest in “Medicare for All” as a nation instead of continuing to fund the military-industrial complex and endless war.

Photo by Akin  Victor: https://www.pexels.com/photo/men-working-on-a-construction-site-while-wearing-hard-hats-10202856/ 

Housing must be a priority! Housing is obviously a huge problem in Connecticut's 4th District district and in the state generally. There’s nearly a 100,000 unit shortage in Connecticut. The average multi-room rental in Fairfield county is nearly $2800! Additionally, homelessness has reached all-time highs. Anyone who's walked by the tent city under the Bridgeport train station bridge is aware of the issue. I’ll work with the federal housing administration, local governments, realtors, builders, and social service agencies on ways to increase the lower to middle income housing inventory.

Photo by Kindel Media: https://www.pexels.com/photo/couple-sitting-on-the-staircase-7579356/  

 The education of our children is critical to the betterment of our society. Unfortunately, the problem of staffing and funding the local school districts has been a huge issue in Congressional District 4. Our three largest cities (Stamford, Norwalk, Bridgeport) have all seen reductions in funding and staffing in 2026. For example, the Bridgeport School system was put under state oversight in 2025/26 due the system-wide $35 million shortage for most of the fiscal year. Similarly, Norwalk reduced its education budget by $5 million. This required reductions in staff workers at central offices and elimination of the universal free lunch program (free lunch will only be provided “as-needed” per the governor’s program). M  Stamford reduced nearly 55 positions from its education department due to a lack of funds in 2026. While many of these issues are due to long-standing local and state funding issues, the sudden elimination of federal ESSER funds (Covid relief funds for schools) in 2025 contributed much to western Connecticut’s school funding problem. If the ESSER program was so successful at helping staff and fund local school districts, why wouldn’t we continue it??? 

Endless war funding is a major reason our kids aren't getting the education they need. It results in a lack of resources and ill-maintained schools. If elected to Congress, I will not vote for a single dollar of supplemental funding for foreign wars without a congressional war resolution and will fight to get more federal dollars into our children's schools.

Endless war funding is a major reason our kids aren't getting the education they need. It results in a lack of resources and ill-maintained schools. If elected to Congress, I will not vote for a single dollar of supplemental funding for foreign wars without a congressional war resolution and will fight to get more federal dollars into our children's schools.

 Connecticut receives the 6th largest amount of military contractor funds among the 50 states. Three of our largest employers –- General Dynamics Electric Boat, RTX’s Pratt & Whitney and Lockheed Martin’s Sikorsky –- offer high-paying jobs and employ some of the most technically advanced personnel in the world. However, it also means the state's economy is highly dependent on the military industrial complex and, by extension, on war itself. I'd introduce legislation encouraging the diversification of our military contractors into civilian operations. Sikorsky's Turbotrain is one such example of this retooling. The Turbotrain was a revolutionary train capable of high speed velocities (175 mph) in the late 1960's and was a good commercial success for the primarily military helicopter company.

Using Connecticut technical know-how and resources to build the following infrastructure:

1. Become the nation’s leader in Maglev trains with short lines between key Connecticut cities including Hartford-to-New Haven, Hartford-to-Storrs and New Haven-to- Stamford.  Each of those stretches would have reduced rides of 20 minutes or more with the introduction of such technology.

2. Connect the shoreline to Long Island: Earlier this year, business and political leaders assembled to discuss a bridge-and-tunnel project to connect the Connecticut shorline to Long Island. I couldn’t agree more with this concept. Now is the time! Such a project would reduce commute times and traffic for thousands of Connecticut residentsl

Such projects would make the State more livable, reduce commute times, and make the State Contractors, Engineers and policiy makers leaders in cutting edge infrastructure.

 Photo by David Dibert: https://www.pexels.com/photo/white-electric-train-2169286/ 

President Trump's administration has made overt threats of revoking citizenship for naturalized citizens whose opinions are deemed unacceptable by the government. Hundreds of green card holders have had their visas revoked for speaking out against Israel's genocide in Gaza and Lebanon. 

And this is not just a "Trump" issue. In 2024, under President Biden, the federal government  passed legislation giving the President the right to shut down TikTok and any other social media companies that he or she deems "foreign-influenced". That's a direct violation of the First Amendment! You deserve a congressman who will fight for your right to express yourself freely without government interference.

 Photo by RDNE Stock project: https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-in-black-polo-shirt-and-blue-denim-jeans-standing-beside-woman-in-black-t-shirt-6257694/ 

President Trump was elected in no small due to his promise for "No New Wars" & desire to be the "Peace President".  A grotesque lie! Sadly, our nation has been constantly threatening and presiding over war since his inauguration.  According to the Iran war estmator(https://iran-cost-ticker.com/full), the US has spent over $114B as of mid August 2026.  It's led to inflated costs in Food, gas and other important commodities. That's money out of the hands of hardworking Americans.

It's also led to the deaths of dozens of Servicemen and thousands of Iranian civilians.  Enough with the Endless war!

Photo attributed to LA times:

https://www.latimes.com/opinion/letters-to-the-editor/story/2026-05-14/iran-war-school-strike

  “There is, simply, no way to ignore privacy. Because a citizenry’s freedoms are interdependent, to surrender your own privacy is really to surrender everyone’s." – Edward Snowden. 

Since 9/11/01, Americans’ right to privacy has been under constant assault. [Which is also an assault on the Fourth Amendment.] Flock Cameras, ICE warrantless detentions and arrests of citizens & non-citizens, and the federal government’s eavesdropping on citizen phone calls are all examples of attacks on the rights of individual citizens. I'll be an advocate for 4th amendment protections.

Now is the time to repeal the Patriot act and reform FISA! These programs give the federal government constitutional work-arounds to spy on everyday Americans.

 Photo by the Nation.com

https://www.thenation.com/article/society/wikimedia-nsa-government-surveillance/

The removal of two Norwalk undocumented immigrants, Ricardo and Leonardo Chavez, was an eye-opener. Both were pillars of the community and members of my church and both were deported despite that. Videos of ICE detaining citizens and detainees with excessive for, of detainees being treated poorly and denied their rights only reinforces the need for a wholesale reorganization of immigration enforcement.  Too often, ICE locally and nationally does as it pleases without regard for civil liberties.

Photo by Benjamin Wesley in front of St. Paul's on the Green.  The sign states "Bring Leonardo Chavez home"