Post Tribune - House Dist 1 Visclosky

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Name: Pete Visclosky

Current occupation: U.S. Congressman

Are you retired? No

Party Affiliation: Democrat

Where do you live? Merrillville, IN and Washington, DC

Do you have a website? Yes

Campaign: http://www.viscloskyforcongress.us/

http://www.facebook.com/viscloskyforcongress

Official: http://www.visclosky.house.gov

http://www.facebook.com/repvisclosky

http://twitter.com/RepVisclosky

What are your goals should you win election to public office?

As a federal legislator, my most fundamental responsibility is working to ensure our nation's military and economic security. We remain a nation at war, and I would continue fighting to ensure our troops receive their necessary equipment on the battlefield and receive world class healthcare when they return home, through projects like the expansion of the Adam Benjamin Jr. VA Outpatient Clinic.

Jobs and the economy remain the top priorities for many individuals and families in our region, which is why I would continue to work every day to bring jobs and economic recovery back to Indiana's First District. I wrote the Buy America Amendment to the 2009 stimulus package that required public infrastructure projects to use iron and steel made in America, and I have testified before the International Trade Commission and lobbied the Administration to oppose unfair trade practices and Chinese currency manipulation. As Chairman of the Congressional Steel Caucus and a senior Member of the Appropriations Committee, I have fought and will keep fighting to enact Buy America requirements, keep steelworker jobs in Northwest Indiana, and ensure that American workers are able to compete on a level playing field.

How will you engage with voters in a time when tea party politics make anyone in government seem like the enemy?

As a public servant, I am always conscious of the responsibilities that have been entrusted to me by the residents of Indiana's First District, and I take those responsibilities very seriously. I try to be readily available to constituents through my annual Town Hall meetings, of which I have had 50 in the past two years. As always, I welcome all constituents to contact either of my offices if I can be of service, and if reelected, I will remember that first and foremost, my work is to serve them.

Tax Questions:

While taxes are essential to our government and society, it is the responsibility of elected officials to use those funds wisely. For example, I strongly oppose the use of taxpayer funds to bail out large, mismanaged financial institutions. That is why I voted three times against the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, more familiarly known as the "Big Bank Bailout."

I also believe that it is vitally important for Congress and the Administration to address the long-term fiscal situation facing the federal government. We took a positive first step this February by reestablishing the pay-as-you-go rule as law, which requires Congress to pay for spending programs and certain tax cuts as it passes them. But much more needs to be done, and all areas of the federal budget need to be on the table.

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