Meet Josh
I'm Joshua Weil - a proud single father and public school educator. I want to represent you in the U.S. Congress.
I live in Orlando with my two boys: David & Alexander; and our cat—Chatterbox. I get up every morning and make four breakfasts and three lunches—before shuffling my kids off to school. We play Magic cards, watch hockey, and never miss a Marvel Comic Universe (MCU) film. What I am NOT is a career politician looking to maintain the status quo in Washington! I am a teacher who wants to help the people of Florida; and make a brighter future for all of us.
I was moved to join this race by my children and students, who deserve to grow into a society where we care about the facts, the planet, and each other. I have also talked to many families, small business owners, seniors, and other residents who have been hit hard by inflation and recent natural disasters. We need real world solutions—not just talking points—that address real problems; such as how to afford buying a new home (and attaining the American Dream for first time home owners).
We need to protect our environment, fix healthcare, lower drug prices, keep up with inflation for seniors living on a fixed income, and reset our economy—so that it works for everyone (not just the rich). And if we can afford “tax breaks” for the wealthy, then surely we can find a few nickels and dimes in the couch for the little guys—doing most of the work in America through small businesses and 9-5 jobs.
I think we can do better than “fine.” I believe that electing an “average candidate” is NOT enough. I always encourage all of my students to strive for the best (A+ grade in school). Why should we settle for anything less than excellent, outstanding, or great for our next representative in the U.S. Congress? “We the people” are selecting a person to represent us from Florida (NOT elite oligarchs, career politicians, or out of touch big shots on social media).
There's plenty of work to be done. And working together, we can make a difference. Please vote for a brighter future for Florida. We don’t need to “re-invent the wheel” because I am running for Congress to represent you. I humbly ask for your vote and your support. Thank you for your consideration.
The Issues
We need to reset the American economy for working people. Inflation is making it hard for families, seniors, and small businesses to afford basic things. In addition, working people should have the opportunity to achieve home ownership. Lastly, every time a hurricane or other natural disaster blows through the Florida peninsula, people need help rebuilding and starting over.
I have a plan called the ADE (American Dream Economy) to address these real world problems. My proposal has five parts, which are intended to off-set the effects of inflation and address the needs of new home buyers and disaster victims. I realize that my idea may not solve everything, but the goal is to put forward a blueprint that will make things better for the people of Florida. I also believe that we should give credit where credit is due—to the people doing the work.
Josh Weil’s ADE for Florida Plan (American Dream Economy)
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New Homeowner Credits
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Extend $50,000 down payment assistance for first time home buyers
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Family Credits
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Increase child tax credits by $5,000 per dependent
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Small Business or “gig” Credits
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Offer $20,000 business loan assistance for development
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Senior Credits
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Make cost of living adjustments more frequent—quarterly COLA’s
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Disaster Relief Credits
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Provide an additional insurance payment to families and businesses in geographic locations where a natural disaster, such as a hurricane, has occurred, and/or the State Governor or the President has declared an emergency. The amount to be determined by loss, etc.
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For those who wonder how we will pay for all of this, I have two things to say: First, we have to save the drowning victim before we can teach them to swim. So we don’t worry about the cost of the life preserver ring when we are saving them. This drowning analogy applies to working families, seniors on fixed incomes, and small businesses struggling to pay for necessities. Second, if we can afford billions of dollars in tax breaks for the wealthy, then surely we can find a few nickels and dimes in the couch cushions of our nation’s treasury to pay for the small gig worker, new home buyer, or victim of a natural disaster.
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I believe that healthcare is a human right. No one should be denied medical treatment because they cannot afford it. Healthcare in the United States costs nearly twice as much as it does in most developed countries. That increased cost is a function of the insurance industry managing the system and generating profits for themselves and their investors. So instead of having a “true actuarial pool” that covers everyone, the insurance companies cherry pick and design polices to make money instead of treating patients. The insurance companies also tell doctors what to do to save even more money, instead of trusting the medical experts’ best advice regarding treatment for you—the patient.
The Affordable Care Act went a long way to improving our healthcare system. But we need to include everyone in a system, much like Medicare does. Creating a universal system that includes all of us will ultimately cost less because hospitals end up covering many indigent patients anyway—and then pass those increased costs along to us through higher insurance rates. National polls about healthcare have consistently showed a significant majority of Americans, across party lines, support “Medicare for All.” In addition, we need to lower the prices of prescription drugs and free up doctors to use their best medical judgment when prescribing treatment options, instead of allowing insurance formularies to dictate the choices and the costs.
Lastly, I feel it is important to discuss abortion within the context of healthcare. An abortion is a medical procedure. Women need to be able to discuss options safely and privately only with their families and doctors. Having a child, or deciding to abort it, is a very personal decision. The government should not be telling women what to do when they get pregnant. Thus, abortion is also a privacy rights issue within the context of healthcare treatment. Moreover, blind bans on abortion do not address situations of rape or incest, and abortion bans based on a pregnancy’s term ignore the unique realities of each woman’s journey through this medical situation, one which may ultimately require the termination of the fetus to save the woman’s life. Therefore, I support a woman’s right to choose.
I am a teacher and I believe in public schools. There is no greater opportunity for a child to secure a bright future than getting an excellent education. However, many people think of education mostly in terms of acquiring a set of academic or functional skills in order to get a good job and contribute to the greater economy. And while that is important, I think our schools have a far more important role in teaching students real-life skills such as citizenship and tolerance. Developing these types of social skills allow children to participate in our wider society. Eventually students will be able to vote, attend church, determine where to live, decide which organizations to join, select businesses to associate with, and whether or not to get involved with politics. Thus, like Thomas Jefferson, I believe our very democracy depends upon a “well- educated electorate.”
Public schools also provide an equal opportunity for all children to aspire to greatness. Public schools serve special needs students, children from poor families, and kids from a variety of different life circumstances. Educating all of these young people, together, teaches them the value of basic human dignity and how to respect everyone, regardless of spoken language, skin color, or other differences. Education provides possibilities for kids and opens doors to their future.
Each student deserves a fair chance to achieve success, and their potential depends upon how we treat and support them. Education is carried out mostly at the local level, but the federal government provides key resources and sustenance. Title 1 funding, college applications guidance, special education research, and training for teachers and school administrators are aspects of our educational system that are usually provided by the federal monies that school systems receive. So, eliminating the U.S Department of Education, which the current administration has vowed to do, is not a wise idea. Money is not everything, but school funding levels reflect the value that we place on the education of our kids. Let’s not sacrifice our children’s potential on the questionable altar of cost-cutting. A federal Department of Education demonstrates how important education is to our nation’s future.
We need to secure our border. We also need to bring order to our immigration system. However, in solving both of these problems we must address some more fundamental issues about what it means to be an American. The United States has traditionally relied upon immigration as a great source of pride, as well as being a useful economic tool by providing a necessary labor force. Why are foreign people still coming to America? For the same reason they have always come -- they are trying to build a better life for their families.
In New York Harbor, on the Statue of Liberty, we proclaim to the world: “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.” But today, many people seem to forget this invitation when they talk about closing our borders, or deporting millions of people. Most people immigrating to the United States want freedom and the opportunity to improve their situation. Immigrants have a fierce sense of pride and want to earn their fair share of the American Dream. They are not looking for a handout. Many people are also fleeing political or ethnic persecution inherent in their original homelands. America offers people all around the world hope because we are the “Shining City on the Hill” as President Reagan once called us. We are the restaurant or club that everyone wants to get into. Why would we want to tarnish that image by throwing people out without due process or a fair hearing?
In Florida, immigration is a more important issue than in some other parts of the United States because we are, literally, on the border. Thus, we also see a disproportionate number of people who attempt to reach our shores illegally. But we have a process for dealing with this. The problem is that our “legal immigration system” is overwhelmed. We do not have enough resources or people to process normal immigrations into the United States. The solution is not to assume that everyone who enters our country is a criminal or treat them as such.
The United States immigration system needs to be comprehensively reformed. People should be able to enter our country legally if they follow the process of obtaining worker permits (green cards) or pursue citizenship. We also need to better fund the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol so that it can do its job of protecting us from real criminals such as drug runners (who, by the way, are usually not immigrants).
Lastly, there has been discussion, lately, that when a person is born here, he or she might not be a citizen if their parents emigrated illegally from a foreign country. But the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution is very clear: if you are born in the United States, then you are an American citizen. And if the parents are not following the legal process of immigration, perhaps we should show them how and what they need to do—instead of assuming they are criminals or trying to get freebies for their children. When a rich person from a foreign country “visits” America, we always assume they are tourists on vacation. Why is this kind of hospitality not extended to everyone who emigrates to the U.S.?
As a nation of immigrants, it seems silly to me when people talk about clearing all of them out. Other than the original “Native Americans,” we are all descendants of immigrants. Should we all go back to where we came from? The United States is the “great melting pot” of cultures from all around the world because we both invite and welcome immigrants into our nation. And, in the end, we are a better and stronger country because of the diversity that immigrants bring to our society when they leave their homes to seek new their new lives here.
The existential crisis of climate change isn’t just the greatest threat facing our planet -- it’s also the greatest opportunity for adding millions of jobs to the American workforce. Creating new jobs in green energy helps us address climate change while stimulating our economy at the same time. As your Congressman, I will work to pass the Green New Deal to help the people of Florida and America transition from the use of fossil fuels to clean, renewable sources of energy. I will also work to limit greenhouse gas emissions and control the amount of carbon that we release into the atmosphere.
In Florida, we feel the effects of climate change more directly because we are surrounded by the ocean. Rising sea levels and more powerful hurricanes make it hard to ignore the dynamic effects we humans have on our environment and vice-versa. Rising insurance rates further demonstrate the connection between greenhouse warming and the wider effects of extreme global weather patterns, which can no longer be denied.
In addition, we must also continue to keep our air, water, and land free from pollution. Without the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) we would still be dumping harmful chemicals and compounds into our streams, skies, and ground. We must continue to monitor superfund sites for hazardous waste and clean up what we can. And in Florida, we have many nature preserves which must be protected from agricultural run-off due to the overuse of fertilizers. We cannot take nature for granted because the Earth can only absorb so much pollution before it spits it back out—contaminating our aquifers and ground water and potentially poisoning ourselves and our families.
I also think we need to do a better job of partnering locally with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The people of FEMA are a particularly important resource for Floridians who may be dealing with natural disasters. People rely on FEMA for assistance when their homes and businesses are literally blown away. I will work closely with FEMA to make sure that disaster relief claims are not delayed in processing for any local victims of nature’s destructive wrath.
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