Susan Hathaway-Altman: 2024 candidate for U.S. House 11th District Representative

Bio

Party: Republican

Office Sought: 11th District U.S. Representative

City: Geneva

Age: 57

Occupation: Chief Sales Officer, American Travel Solutions

Previous offices held: N/A

What must be done to achieve a consistent national policy on immigration, not just in terms of what such a policy should be but also in terms of getting a policy through the Senate?

We have a current and consistent national policy, and need to enforce our current immigration laws. Although we already have a border policy, we need to enforce that a well and secure our border to ensure that no one comes across our border illegally.

Do you believe the nation's election system and those of the individual states are secure and fair? If not, what must be done to improve them?

I believe there is a lot of work to do to ensure that elections are secure and fair. Many states have adopted legislation for proof of citizenship to vote, which I believe should be enacted in all 50 states. I also feel that in the days of cyber crime coming from inside and outside of our country, we should increase software security and auditing of our voting machines. We should also encourage more bi-partisan poll watching and election integrity programs. In Congress, I will make it a priority to focus on election integrity, and to regain confidence of the American people that every vote cast is counted and is a good vote.

What responsibilities does the United States have toward protecting the security of our allies or other countries where democracy may be threatened? In particular, what are our responsibilities toward Israel and Ukraine?

Peace through Strength — we would not have been in this situation if we had not shown weakness in the current administration. This conflict started shortly after the total U.S. withdraw from Afghanistan, leaving America looking weak in military strategy and foreign policy. This poorly executed pull-out not only inflamed Islamist militants around the world but also emboldened Putin. To help end the conflict with Russia and Ukraine, we should concentrate our efforts on fiscal strategy through sanctions and other tactics limiting oil production in the Western Siberian region. But we certainly don't want the conclusion to be like the Korean War where it ended without a decisive victory and the country destroyed. We must re-establish ourselves with pre-eminence worldwide. I consider myself a Constitutionalist, which makes me a non-interventionalist, and we should stick to our founding principles, and the majority of our focus on preventing or defending conflicts on our own soil.

Is the world in a climate crisis? If so, what role should the federal government play in addressing it?

I am not a supporter of the current administration's climate narrative and the hyper focus on abolishing fossil fuels has desecrated our economy. We need focus on the much bigger problem in China that impacts the earth; the human-harming pollutants caused by burning fossil fuels with a high degree of CO2 with Delta 13 isotopes, which is being completely ignored. Before the federal government steps in, we really need to understand conclusively what the facts are around climate change. I am not saying that we should abandon reasonable efforts toward sustainability, and in fact, I believe the opposite. But reasonable is the operative word. We need more studies on the replacement for fossil fuels, and how we can sustain such things as an “all-electric” transportation system when our electric grids are already compromised and dispose of the batteries? And how does supporting an industry that relies almost 100% on China for rare earth minerals for manufacturing support our U.S. economy?

How would you describe the working relationships in the U.S. House today? What can be done to promote more effective government in Congress, and what will you do personally to work toward this goal?

I believe our Republican Congressman are working hard and trying to implement the right legislation for our country. As the Candidate with the most leadership and negotiations experience, I have the best skills in our race to move issues to resolution. I clearly understand the issue first and can articulate the issue as well as all of the implications that arise from the issue. I can “think on my feet” which is definitely a necessary skill for day-to-day Congress and with the media. I will create the right solutions that work, and remove any barriers to resolve things quickly. I have refined business skills collaborating each day with large and mid-sized businesses for the past 30+ years on challenges and trepidations. Candidates not as experienced may falter. More people in Congress need to have these types of skills, as well as the motivation to be laser focused on issue resolution and good, sound and effective policy creation.

What role should the United States play in NATO?

NATO continues to be a slippery slope, Is the United States is getting as much benefit as other countries receive from the U.S. being a part of NATO? Is NATO the right move to combat the evil triad — Russia/Iran/China? Or is being a part of NATO to our detriment? My answer according to our U.S. Constitution is to be U.S.-centric. We need to concentrate more of our efforts on building up our own military to be prepared for conflict on our own land. We must increase U.S. manufacturing of military supplies, equipment and capital expenditures (fighters, nuclear subs, etc.) because today we do not have nearly enough for our own needs, let alone providing them to other NATO countries to fight forever-wars and proxy-wars.

How do you perceive the financial health of Social Security and Medicare/Medicaid? To the degree you may see problems with these programs, what should be done about them?

We should cut federal spending drastically in other areas to continue to support Social Security and Medicare/Medicaid.

How do you assess the state of the national economy? What should be done to make it stronger or more stable?

We are in a severe economic crisis, masked by inflated numbers of job growth and suppressed energy costs and other indicators driven by election-year antics. We need to fix our failed economy through energy independence, increased U.S. manufacturing, solving supply chain breaks, a sharp decrease in regulation, and a reduced tax base. I speak to District 11 business leaders that feel strongly about creating jobs and producing more on U.S. soil with federal help. We must permanently fix the supply chain issue, by correcting bureaucracy & putting US companies first. We need to remove unnecessary federal spending programs to ease the problems with inflation and maintain good general fiscal accountability. We need to stop incentivizing Americans to stay at home by providing government hand-outs. And we shouldn't escalate federal spending by programs like student loan forgiveness, non-citizen entitlement programs (like free medical and cash to migrants), and Green Energy initiatives.

What personal qualifications do you bring that would make you an effective congressional representative in dealing with the issues the country will face in the next two years?

As a respected business leader, I have gained many of the skills critical to that needed to be effective in Congress — communication, negotiations, financial, policy, contracting, management, collaboration, and many more. More people in Congress need to have these types of skills, as well as the motivation to be laser focused on issue resolution and good, sound and effective policy creation. I believe in a small government, and consider myself a Constitutionalist, so I will always fall back on “what the Constitution says” to determine my position on issues, and then use my well-established skills in communication and negotiation to get others on board to put the right policies in place. I have the best possible skills to fix the economic crisis that we are in due to my 30+ years in large business and my S.U.C.C.E.E.D. plan for the 11th District. And my strong community involvement has brought me close to my constituents and more prepared to understand their needs.