Our country’s dilapidated infrastructure is a threat to public safety, an opportunity for potentially transformative economic stimulus, and a vital opportunity to upgrade our 20th century transportation system for the 21st century.

Crumbling roads and collapsing bridges threaten communities across the U.S. and create challenges for economic inclusion, especially for communities that lack accessible transit infrastructure.

Reflecting on early eras in U.S. history, the creation of the Interstate Highway system represented a massive stimulus package that not only increased transportation efficiencies, but also put a generation to work.

A similar scale investment in high-speed rail today could modernize our interstate transportation system, put a generation back to work, and bring the U.S. up to par with other countries from China and Japan to Germany and France, whose rail systems make America’s look archaic.

Investments in urban transit alternatives are also crucial. Finally, I would favor investing in roads and bridges at a rationalized level relative to other infrastructure investment opportunities given emerging transitions in patterns of car ownership and use. The rise of on demand ride-sharing and the emergence of autonomous vehicles, in particular, might suggest the possibility of smart infrastructure better suited for scalable future use.

Medicare for All is an imperative not only for human rights, efficiency in healthcare, and improving the competitiveness of businesses, but also a crucial bulwark against the medical costs that tip many people into homelessness.

The richest nation in the world should not be resigned to anyone dying early because they lack access to quality care. Ultimately, access to doctors and medicine should not be allocated to maximize any corporation’s profit, but rather available as a matter of right.

In addition, our current corporate healthcare system is a yoke around the necks of both small and large businesses whose competitiveness would be enhanced under a single payer system. Companies in other countries need not internalize the costs of employee healthcare. Put simply, for-profit healthcare places American businesses at a competitive disadvantage relative to their competitors in other countries.

My only quibble with this question is that healthcare as a matter of right should extend to all Americans, regardless of citizenship. My vision is predicated on the idea that by enabling access to preventive care, a single-payer system can drive down costs across the health care delivery system, both by addressing individual health problems before they grow acute and also by leveraging economies of scale. These effects only take root when services are available broadly, without being contingent on citizenship or immigration status.

I am running to represent California’s 12th congressional district as a Muslim immigrant, and present myself as an example of how immigrants demonstrate patriotism, often beyond that understood—let alone emulated—by Americans who take their citizenship and freedoms for granted.

My family immigrated twice: first from Pakistan to England to escape religious discrimination, and then from England to the U.S. for opportunity. I understand migration, both as a reflection of international violence supported by our country’s ignorant foreign policy, and as a simple choice among workers pursuing opportunities.

In the summer of 2017, I became the first advocate in the country to identify the use of cell-site simulators—military surveillance tools that allow law enforcement agencies to spy on cell phone networks—not to investigate a legitimate threat to national security, but rather to track down an undocumented American in Detroit. I have also long sounded an alarm about biometric privacy, which the FBI has assaulted using immigrants as political bait.

In Congress, I will fight for the rights of immigrants, including for a pathway to citizenship, and against “enforcement-first” proposals that aim to embed in comprehensive immigration reform proposals for further militarization of our borders.

I am proposing comprehensive tax reform that would create five new income tax brackets above the existing ones - separating those who make $418,400 a year from those who make over $750,000 a year, $1 million a year, $5 million, $10 million, and $50 million (with slight variations for couples and heads of household.) Additionally, we need to lower the taxable income percentage to 5% for the lowest bracket and move upwards, providing tax relief to millions who need it most. Annual income over $750,000 per individual will then be taxed at 39.6%, income over $1 million will be taxed at 45%, income over $5 million will be taxed at 50%, income over $10 million will be taxed at 55%, and income over $50 million will be taxed at 60%. We also need to end tax relief and exemptions for capital gains on long-term investmends and qualified dividends.

These should be taxed at the standard federal income tax rate. We must also reaffirm our commitment to the estate tax. With this restructuring of our tax code, not only will we be able to ease the burden of taxes on millions of Americans, we will also begin to generate revenue we have missed out on for decades for desperately needed programs such as infrastructure, education, and much more. Of course, to make a more progressive tax code effective, it must be backed up with a serious enforcement mechanism. That's why as part of tax reform, Congress must implement air-tight anti-money laundering laws that allocate additional funding to IRS investigators and give the agency the authority to freeze the assets of any individual hiding over $1 million in offshore tax havens until they fully comply with all audit requests.

If we want to maintain our position as a global economic superpower, we need to pass the largest infrastructure bill since the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956. We need to build out a network of solar, wind, and other renewable energy sources connecting counties across the country. We need to repair and modernize our transportation indrastructure by repairing national highways and providing local grants for road and transportation improvements. Additionally, we must design a national transportation network of high speed railways that connect urban centers and enable economic opportunity for those left behind by our 20th century infrastructure. 

By building out a new national infrastructure, we will create a host of benefits that strengthen the economy in several ways. First, it will ensure the long-term viability and sustainability of our economy in a world where our major competitors, China and the E.U., are pivoting towards renewable energy. Second, it will provide significant job opportunities for manufacturing employees who have been displaced or are otherwise out of work, who will be needed to take on these projects. Finally, by reinvesting in the employees who literally build our country, we will infuse a large amount of income into our middle class, increasing their spending power and the overall health of the economy.    

I support the expansion of medicare and medicaid into a single-payer health care system that guarantees universal coverage, and I believe this should be Democratic voters’ litmus test for candidates in 2018. If we are going to do something meaningful when we take back Congress, we need a real alternative to the havoc Republicans are wreaking, and that alternative needs to be single payer.

The ACA set us on a course towards universal coverage by expanding our existing single payer programs, and it’s time for Democrats to step up and finish the job President Obama started. Senator Sanders has continued to engage in a nationwide tour of rallies that show there is massive, growing grassroots support for medicare-for-all throughout the country. It’s time for the Democratic party to get on board - for our own good and the good of our country.

We must also introduce common sense cost-cutting regulations as part of health care reform. Most importantly, medicare must be allowed to negotiate prescription drug prices with companies to get the best deal possible for patients. Additionally, international purchase of prescription drugs and medical devices should be legalized, advertising of all prescription drugs should be banned, and cash bonuses for doctors from drug companies should be banned.

Immigration is an issue on which we can no longer afford to compromise, because DACA was the compromise. Making deals that empower a destructive administration should not be part of the Democratic platform. This appears obvious to everyone but our Congressional leadership, who fail to realize that their complicity at this pivotal moment will not be forgotten. Now is the time to stand in solidarity and organize to elect a Congress and President who will pass legislation to protect all immigrants, instead of conceding to Trump and furthering a divisive “good immigrant/bad immigrant” narrative.

Saving DACA would be a start, but doubling down on a stop-gap solution is not sustainable. In reality, the answer is quite simple: we need comprehensive reform that grants citizenship to those who already contribute so much to our economy and communities, and creates a pathway to citizenship for ALL people who wish to live, work, and build families in the United States.

With recent droughts, California has learned an important lesson that must serve as the impetus for significant policy reforms if we want to avoid the further economic degredation of central valley farmlands while securing sufficient water supply for all residents. I believe that the state legislature should take up legislation expanding on the legislation Governor Brown signed into law in 2015 increasing local regulatory agencies and water boards power to manage groundwater resources. State law should mandate much stricter plans for sustainability from all regions in the state, not just the worst affected regions, and a clearer definition as to what qualifies as "sustainable" in a local water plan should be implemented. 

At a federal level, we must address the reality that California has developed what seems to have become a too big to fail agriculture industry. According to NASA research, more unprecedented droughts will hit California within the century and while farmers have managed to sustain their high levels of production in recent years by drilling deeper wells in order to drain aquifers, the scientific consensus seems to be that this is an unsustainable solution. Conditions are only going to get worse in the future for California, and we need to have a serious policy conversation about how we will mitigate the human impact of our changing climate now. 

If elected, I would work with stakeholders at all levels, listen to their concerns, and ultimately support the policies I believe provide the best path forward. Whether that involves federal regulations regarding what crops can be grown in specific regions, new water projects, or economic incentives for farmers to relocate to areas with higher levels of precipitation remains to be seen. Additionally, I would support a federal regulation banning groundwater drilling beyond a certain depth to preserve crucial freshwater resources and prevent contamination. 

The key to a functional democracy is participation by the public. This is not achieved solely in the form of voting, but by civic engagement and the opportunity to interact with one’s representative. Unfortunately, we are living in a time where townhalls and constituent interaction in the district have become less common. This may play a large part as to why the current approval rating of Congress is only 13%.

And if there are townhalls, we can expect that many of them aren’t truly as “open” as we would like. Most upsetting however, is that time and time again we learn of fundraisers where a Member of Congress will attend, with tickets in the hundreds or thousands of dollars. We the people, who elected our representatives, deserve to have more interaction and accessibility to our Members of Congress, so that they can learn about the struggles we face and our opinions on policies, so that they can adequately represent us in Washington.

While I know that in the world of politics, many have become disillusioned with campaign “promises”, I’d like to make an unequivocal pledge. As a student my whole life, I yearn to continually educate myself on all matters and I am eager to learn from all perspectives. I admit that I don’t have all the answers. That is why I want to work with you all so that we can collectively tackle the pressing issues of today. This is a team effort.

I pledge to you all, that beginning on January 3, 2019, if I am honored to have the most sacred privilege of representing the people of San Francisco, that I will spend every weekend in the district. At the close of business on Friday in Washington, I will take a red-eye flight (with my own salary and not on the taxpayer dime through the Members Representational Allowance) to SFO to spend all day Saturday and Sunday with my fellow San Franciscans.

I will hold open meeting town halls every weekend, with questions taken directly from the audience at community centers, public schools, and libraries. I’d also like to begin an educational program, called “This Week in Congress with Ryan” - where I would go through all legislation that was proposed that week and all votes that took place that week, to ask for your thoughts and opinions. Furthermore, I hope to create facebook polling before a vote, so that I know exactly where you all stand before I vote “Yea or Nay.”

We’re all in this together. We need to restore trust in our government, after all, the Constitution refers to these roles as an “Office of Public Trust.” I look forward to learning from and working with you all so that we can restore trust in our institutions and bring Congress back to the people.

Deep cuts in military spending, and a truly progressive income tax system, requiring a far greater contribution from those who benefit the most from the way we currently organize our economy ad have wealth to spare.

A single-payer system, drawing on the experience and best practices of the many countries that are ahead of us on this score.

1) Effective support, via genuine grass-roots organizations, for the rebuilding of the countries devastated by our economic, political, and military intervention, conceived of as reparations.

2) An open door for refugees and liberal policies for other immigrants, more funding for resettlement, a reasonable path to citizenship.

3) Reinstatement of a friendly, government-protected environment for labor organizing, to minimize any depressing effect on wages, as well as far broader living-wage legislation.

4) Using the savings from massive military cuts to boost employment in areas such as infrastructure, green power, and helping communities deal with climate change.

I am sorry, but I have not studied this matter well enough to comment.  In general, I am opposed to massive engineering projects to support development and expansion that meets someone's economic interests but is subject to the law of unintended consequencers and overall unsustainable. But I doubt if the situation is black and white. If I had any power to influence it, I would want to study it deeply.

I would hope to model

• speaking the truth about what I see as the effects of people's actions without attacking them personally;
• recognizing that well-intentioned people can disagree
• noting that the very dangerous people whom I think need to be contained are, in my opinion, suffering from a spiritual malady (even more than the rest of us), and that theyneed to be displaced from power and -- where they have subverted our democracy or committed crimes, war crimes, or crimes against humanity -- experience consequences without being vilified or subject to vengeance.

I would also support the creation of forums to help us in the 99% who have such strong disagreements to conduct constructive dialog, and, if I lived long enough to see the victory of our popular movement for thoroughgoing transformation, the creation of a Truth and Reconciliation process.