Keys to the Candidates: U.S. House, District 9

EDITOR’S NOTE: Candidates are listed in alphabetical order by last name. No corrections or changes have been made to the responses submitted.

Three candidates are vying for the U.S. House of Representatives in the 9th District of Indiana, including Trey Hollingsworth (R), Tonya Millis (L) and Andy Ruff (D).

1. Please describe the occupations, education/training and experience that qualify you for this office.

HOLLINGSWORTH: I was a small business owner in the real estate and manufacturing sectors. In business, I found myself constantly frustrated by the roadblocks created by the federal government demonstrating those who wrote these laws and regulations never actually had to feel their burden. Now in Congress, I have mobilized that experience into better outcomes for hardworking Hoosiers and my mission continues to be empowering every American to live their American Dream including helping families during this difficult time, safeguarding our communities, ensuring our safety, and boosting the economy back to where we were in February (the best economy in generations).

MILLIS: As a Real Estate Broker, I have been a leader in my industry by serving as President of the Board and serving in other positions. The work I have entailed involves contract negotiations and multi-tasking. I am a grandmother with life-long experiences as a Hoosier. I have a detailed biography on my website, www.tonyaforcongress.com.

RUFF: I am a former Bloomington City Council member with 20 years of service as an elected City of Bloomington council member, including multiple terms as president. I have tremendous experience building policies that improve the lives of ordinary Hoosiers at the local level. I have a master’s degree in public & environmental affairs from Indiana University and a bachelor’s in natural resource management from Cornell. My education and professional experiences have given me a deep understanding of the complexities and vulnerabilities of our world, setting me on a path of lifelong service and protection for the environment and my community.

2. Why are you running for this office?

HOLLINGSWORTH: I am fighting for a government that is run by the people and for the people. Congress is filled with career politicians who worry more about their own careers than those they represent. Washington for too long hasn’t been concerned with us and our values despite hardworking Americans remitting over $3.5 trillion to the federal government every year. I signed a term limits promise to Hoosiers that I won’t serve in the House more than four terms, and I’ve introduced legislation to make term limits law for everybody. Serving you, your family, and your future is my priority.

MILLIS: I have watched our Country’s freedoms and liberties slowly being whittled away over decades. ‘We, the People’ have watched our independence fading away. I feel compelled to stand up and serve. I intend to win this election, go to Washington D.C. with like-minded members of Congress, and put a halt to the unconstitutional behavior that has been going on for years by both parties.

RUFF: Right now the 9th District is poorly served and represented by a son of a billionaire with no ties to Indiana. I am a lifelong Hoosier with a decades-long political record of working selflessly to benefit the residents of our district and the people of our state. As a U.S. congressman, I will work with the same tireless devotion to provide 9th District residents with access to their federal government using the skills I sharpened as a counselor, educator and civic leader for over 20 years. Brown County deserves no less than someone whose values and challenges mirror their own.

3. Please discuss the current state of race relations in the U.S. and what actions, if any, Congress should take to address these.

HOLLINGSWORTH: Our country aspires to treat everybody equally and judge us only by the sum of our actions, not the color of our skin. We have, as individuals and as a nation, in many places and many times fallen short of our aspirations. It is up to us as Americans, and in our capacity as parents, neighbors, and friends, to hold us to our own country’s standards. To make a difference, we have to start one by one, and each take individual responsibility for our own actions. Let’s continue to reach for better together.

MILLIS: Over recent years, modern technology (cell phones w/video) has been shining a light on the dark wrong doings that has been going on for hundreds of years. Although the process for change has been too slow, communities and local leaders are banning together to correct the problems. The ‘people’ are working together with their officials to weed out racism in our institutions. State’s and townships (under Article 4 and 10th Amendment) are finally starting to work together to right the wrongs. The federal government (Congress) is limited under their constitutional authority while encouraging change needed across our Country.

RUFF: The state of race relations in the U.S. is this: Huge problems exist, and too many people either refuse to acknowledge them or latch onto any excuse to blame the victims of systemic injustice for social unrest. While some politicians use their bully pulpit to help reassure and temper the masses rising up against injustice, others stoke fear while encouraging us to arm ourselves against our own countrymen. Many do nothing at all. Those in the latter two groups include my opponent. Real and substantive changes in our legal system and law enforcement can and must be done now.

COVID-19 has exposed strengths and weaknesses in public health and health care. What changes, if any, would you make to health care nationally that would benefit Indiana?

HOLLINGSWORTH: Great health care starts with top-notch cures. This pandemic has been a reminder that we need to empower our health care researchers to develop the best cures, which this country has been the leader in for decades. I’m a strong supporter of biotech research and making advances in cures for Alzheimer’s, diabetes, and cancer.

Also, ensuring access to affordable health care for Hoosiers is hugely important to me. While there are plenty of proposals that want to consolidate government control of health care, I believe the patient should be able to decide what provider they see and what cures they use.

MILLIS: The coronavirus revealed the CDC (Centers for Disease Control) was unprepared for a crisis it was designed to handle. The CDC is an extremely large beaurocracy (sic) that is over-funded and outdated. When the C-19 outbreak hit the U.S., FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) took over and managed the responsibilities that were under the CDC’s purview. It’s time to reduce & streamline the CDC into FEMA for efficiency and to save the taxpayer millions of dollars. Today, most parents, businesses and patrons are using ‘best practices’ for safety as appropriate for their own situation. This has been a learning curve for everyone. As a member of Congress, I would encourage the recommendations of well-regarded scientists, and I would encourage ‘the people’ to be safe as reasonably possible while living their lives the best they can.

RUFF: Over 200,000 citizens have died from COVID. Job losses rival the Great Depression, yet health insurance remains tied to employment. Millions lose coverage during a global pandemic while my opponent tells people to get “back to work.” Big U.S. medical industries still care more about saving money than lives. Can there be any doubt any longer that we finally need to ditch the profit-driven system for a far cheaper public one that guarantees health care fit for the greatest nation on Earth? Universal health care will help all Hoosiers, and not just so they can get back to work5. .

5. Please explain what national actions, if any, should be taken to address our climate and related environmental concerns.

HOLLINGSWORTH: America is the leading country in innovation, ideas, and technology, and the track record of American firms reducing emissions per dollar of GDP over the last two decades has been impressive. We must be mindful that long-term, sustainable solutions only work when we offer Americans the opportunity to improve their economic and environmental situations simultaneously, not try to mandate tens of trillions of dollars in regulations, taxes, and rules from the federal government stifling freedom and opportunity. Hoosiers want abundant opportunities for their kids not trillions more in debt on partisan mistakes like the Green New Deal.

MILLIS: From my perspective, the majority of people want clean air. They want a safe & clean society for their families going well into the future. Congress should continue to inform the public of its findings and make recommendations, in general, while not infringing on the personal freedoms of each individual. There is a balance here. It doesn’t matter your age, race or religeon, (sic) on behalf of Indiana’s District 9, I will have a voice in Washington D.C.

RUFF: We don’t need scientists to tell us man is destroying nature anymore. It’s right outside our windows. Indiana may not have hurricanes or fire tornadoes, but the poisoning of our Hoosier grounds and waters is causing extinctions and public health crises even in populated 9th District cities like Franklin, Martinsville and Bloomington. I’ll protect our state through market incentives for green products and tech; a zero-emission and carbon-neutral government and military; protecting public lands from further exploitation; battling corporate influence in politics; strengthening the EPA; supporting relief for disaster victims and climate refugees; and especially lowering impacts on marginalized communities.

~ From the League of Women Voters of Bloomington-Monroe County | Published September 25, 2020 The Reporter Times