Endorsement: Hultgren for Congress in Dist. 14
U.S. Rep. Randy Hultgren is staunchly conservative in just about everything except vote totals. He beat Democratic incumbent Bill Foster in 2010, and cruised in 2012 and 2014 against Dennis Anderson, racking up 177,603 and 145,369 votes, respectively.
Next up in the 14th Congressional District - which includes parts of Kane, DuPage, McHenry, Lake, DeKalb, Kendall and Will counties - is Warren Township High School District 121 board member Jim Walz.
We endorsed Walz, an outside sales rep, in the Democratic primary because we liked that he wanted to increase taxes on the wealthiest individuals and tax capital gains the same as ordinary income. We also appreciate his views on climate change and lowering higher education costs ("We have to work on our intellectual infrastructure").
But in the 14th District race, Hultgren is a champion of small businesses along with science and innovation. It's no surprise he has roles on the Financial Services and Science, Space and Technology committees. He's worked with Democrats to invest in jobs through funding research at Fermilab and Argonne. He wants to reform the tax system to make it fairer to families and business owners. He's intent on preserving and strengthening Social Security and Medicare.
Hultgren has done a solid job the last five years, and while there's always room to improve, he's almost always put families and small business at the top of his priority list. He is endorsed.