Sean Casten: 2024 candidate for U.S. House 6th District representative

Bio

Party: Democrat

Office Sought: U.S. House 6th District

City: Downers Grove

Age: 52

Occupation: U.S. Representative

Previous offices held: U.S. House of Representatives, 2019-present

What must be done to achieve a consistent national policy on immigration, not just in terms of what such a policy should be but also in terms of getting a policy through the Senate?

I'm fond of Ronald Reagan’s description of America as a “tall proud city … teeming with people of all kinds living in harmony and peace …”

That is the vision of America that drew most of our ancestors here. We remain American only so long as we hold onto that vision. There is nothing about that vision inconsistent with border security — but we lose something essential to our character when we focus so much on keeping bad people out that we fail to let the good people in.

While there is bipartisan support for increased border security, it is increasingly partisan to provide support to let good folks in. From the Dreamers left in limbo to underfunded refugee processing facilities to the farmworkers we have welcomed but demonized as “illegal” … we can do better.

I’m proud to cosponsor legislation to address these issues, from the American Dream and Promise Act to the Farm Workforce Modernization Act — and to provide increased resources for border security and immigration processing.

Do you believe the nation's election system and those of the individual states are secure and fair? If not, what must be done to improve them?

Recent elections have been the freest, fairest elections we have ever known. COVID protocols led many states to introduce overdue incentives making it easier for Americans to vote. Expanded mail-in voting, more drop boxes, longer early vote hours. All these contributed to record turnout.

In Congress, I’m proud to have worked on, cosponsored and passed bills in the House to expand voter access like the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and my IDs for an Inclusive Democracy Act. We need to pass additional legislation to:

• Permit federal courts to halt questionable voting practices while they are reviewed.

• Provide the Attorney General with the authority to request federal observers be present anywhere in the country where discriminatory voting practices pose a serious threat.

• Require reasonable public notice for voting changes.

• Provide all citizens with the right to obtain a free federal ID to — among other things — prevent states from using ID laws to target low-income populations.

What responsibilities does the United States have toward achieving peace in the Middle East? Do you support a two-state solution?

I have consistently called for the creation of conditions to lead to a permanent peace — with two fully autonomous states between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea. Hamas’ stated goal to eliminate the state of Israel is inconsistent with that peace — but so too is the rhetoric from the far right in the Israeli Knesset.

In the near term, this will require U.S. diplomacy to press both parties to (a) return all hostages, (b) demilitarize Hamas, (c) prevent civilian casualties, (d) curtail settlement expansion and settler violence in the West Bank, (e) prioritize near-term flows of food, water and humanitarian aid to Gaza, (f) provide long-term rebuilding of the Gaza strip and restoration of a peaceful civilian government, (g) elevate moderate voices in the Knesset and the Palestinian Authority who advocate for peace and tolerance rather than demonization and war, and (h) constructive engagement with other Arab countries as partners for peace and to curtail malign Iranian influence.

Do you think the United States is providing adequate support for Ukraine? Should the U.S. support Ukraine’s efforts to join NATO?

We should continue to support Ukraine until either (a) all territory seized by Russia including Crimea has been returned to Ukrainian control or (b) the Ukrainian government is satisfied with something less.

The needless delays in delivery of aid as Republican leaders in Congress dithered over whether to bring an (overwhelmingly bipartisan) bill to the floor undoubtedly cost Ukrainian lives and contributed to Russia’s advances this summer.

I am pleased to have finally passed that aid package but we could have and should have done more to stand up to Putin’s aggression.

With respect to NATO, we should not lose sight of the fact that the successes Ukraine has achieved against Russia have come without putting a single American soldier in harm’s way.

In the near term, our strategic goal must be focused on making sure Ukraine wins. Only once that has occurred is it appropriate to discuss possible NATO expansions and conditions thereon.

How do you perceive the financial health of Social Security and Medicare/Medicaid? To the degree you may see problems with these programs, what should be done about them?

Ensuring Social Security and Medicare continue to provide economic security for Americans requires work on the cost and revenue side of the ledger, but cannot include any cuts in services provided.

On the revenue side, both programs suffer from the fact that they are progressive policies funded by regressive taxes. FICA contributions are currently capped at $168,600 of W-2 income. This means that the wealthier you are, the less you contribute as a percent of income.

Taking off that cap would substantially solve near-term challenges, and I co-sponsored H.R. 4583 which would start that process.

On the cost side, we have huge opportunities to lower the price of health care in this country which would in turn drastically cut the cost of Medicare. That means defending and expanding the ACA and lowering prescription drugs costs — building on the work we did to impose insulin price caps and limited Medicare price negotiation for pharmaceutical purchases in the Inflation Reduction Act.

How do you assess the state of the national economy? What should be done to make it stronger or more stable?

The national economy is in very good shape. U.S. GDP is not only growing, but is growing faster than all our OECD peers. Inflation, while still high, is coming down faster than our OECD peers after we all experienced the same COVID-driven price shocks. Unemployment is at historic lows, and job creation is at record highs, with over 15 million new jobs created since 2021.

Perhaps most significantly, wage inflation is outpacing core inflation for the first time in my lifetime, leaving more money in more people’s pockets.

As against those successes, wealth inequality is stubbornly and unacceptably high and U.S. debt levels are unsustainable. Our tax system must be reformed so everyone pays their fair share and our tax officials must be sufficiently funded to pursue tax cheats and make sure all pay the taxes they owe.

That is not to say the cost of living does not remain too high. There is work to be done to make sure life is affordable for American families.

What personal qualifications do you bring that would make you an effective congressional representative in dealing with the issues the country will face in the next two years?

I ran for Congress in 2018 having spent 20 years in the private sector running companies that were dedicated to profitably reducing greenhouse gas emissions. It was the belief of those companies — and my Congressional career since — that there is no conflict between our wallets and our morals; there is only a conflict between the interests of energy producers and the interests of energy consumers.

Since coming to Congress, I’ve been able to bring that perspective to the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis, where I served for two terms and where we wrote the report that became the Inflation Reduction Act — the biggest climate bill ever passed by any government anywhere.

But that belief — that there is a win/win provided we craft regulation to align profit incentives with the public interest — has informed all of our other legislative efforts as well, such as pushing for expansions in the Affordable Care Act as a way to lower health care costs. I look forward to continuing that work.