Name: Chris Dargis

Position for which you are a candidate: U.S. Congress, from the 8th District

 

Why are you seeking this position?

I am seeking the honor of serving the people of the 8th Congressional District of Illinois because I recognize the past few years have been tough on Illinois families.

I see the impact of high gas prices on my sister, a teacher, and on others who don’t have the option of working from home, eating into budgets, and pushing struggling families deeper into debt. I see the impact of inflation on my mother and other senior citizens on fixed incomes, as rising prices eat into savings and force untenable choices between needed medicine and groceries. I know how rising crime has turned previously easy decisions to spend a day in Chicago into one fraught with concern, and I see how the American values I stood for when I served in the Navy are today minimized in Washington in favor of divisive rhetoric. As someone with 30 years of experience as a Naval Officer, Nuclear Engineer, and Businessman, I know that I have the ability to lead on these issues and bring relief to Illinois families.

The meaning of service is to put the needs of others before one’s own needs, to put people ahead of partisanship. I am running to stand up for the men, women, and families of Illinois and solve these problems caused in large part by the policies set in Washington. I have served my country once, and I look forward to the honor of serving again as the Congressman for our Community.

 

 

What experience and background do you have which qualifies you for this position?

My background as a Naval officer, a nuclear engineer, and as a businessman give me the necessary experience, understanding, and credibility to solve the challenges we face today and will face tomorrow. I will be a voice that unites the people of the 8th District in a shared vision of American principles, fairness, and opportunity. I care deeply about the people of Illinois—my family, friends, and neighbors that I grew up with and my children are now growing up with.  The hard-working, patriotic men and women of this district deserve better than they are getting today, and deserve a Congressman who will fight for them.

Also, as a Ukrainian-American I am deeply concerned about the unprovoked Russian aggression and war crimes being committed against Ukraine. The tragedy in Ukraine we see every day on television is personal for me and my family.  My grandparents, both from Ukraine, met in a Nazi labor camp in World War II and after the war were able to escape to U.S.-occupied territory.  My mother was born in a refugee camp in Germany and the family eventually emigrated to the U.S. I studied in Russia during the final months of the Soviet Union and know the culture and history of that part of the world well. I can bring that expertise to Congress to address the challenges posed by Russia today and in the future.

 

 

What will be your highest priorities if elected?

Reckless fiscal policies and extreme energy policies in Washington have led to the highest inflation in 40 years, a cancer that eats at the American Dream, destroying the value of retirement savings, burdening our seniors on fixed incomes, and straining American families just trying to stay afloat. The Democrat economic plan is the same one that created these problems: raise taxes and spend even more of our hard-earned money on special interests.

As a businessman, I know how to lead and grow a business and balance a budget, and also know what it is like to live paycheck to paycheck, worried about the uncertainty of whether the next check will come in before the bills are due. I’ll always put the working families of Illinois first, fighting to bring inflation under control and against special interests taking the hard-earned tax dollars of the women, men, and families of Illinois. As a Congressman I will:

• Oppose wasteful government spending that increases inflation and lines the pockets of the politically connected while doing nothing to help working Americans.
• Increase domestic energy production to lower costs of fuel and energy and remove one of the largest factors driving inflation.
• Exempt Social Security payments from taxes to protect our seniors. Our seniors have earned this right after decades of working and paying taxes into the trust fund.
• Stimulate job creation by eliminating unnecessary regulatory hurdles.
• Secure our border to protect the wages of those at the lower end of the economic spectrum.

 

 

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