Jesse Sbaih is running for U.S. S enate as a Democrat. KNPR News sent out a questionnaire to candidates. Here are his responses:
Question: Education in Nevada is ranked dead last or close to it. What, at the federal level, can you do to help improve education in Nevada?
The best investment we can make as a country is to invest in our children. Thus, on the federal level, we need to provide states like Nevada with increased funding for k-12, which would allow the states to hire more teachers to decrease class sizes, pay teachers a respectable salary that will lead to better recruitment and retention of good teachers, and provide children with up-to-date books, latest technology, and adequate facilities to foster learning. Increased federal funding for schools can come from, among other things, the insanely high federal defense budget without having to raise taxes.
Question: Do you support the Dream Act? Do you think the U.S. needs to build a wall between it and Mexico? Do you have a different idea on how to deal with illegal immigration to the United States?
Yes, I support the Dream Act. However, we can't stop there. Presently in our country, nearly 12 million undocumented immigrants live in the shadows. Therefore, I will fight for comprehensive immigration reform that contemplate a path to citizenship and securing our borders by hiring more border control agents and using technology. I strongly oppose building a wall as it would not effectively stop folks seeking to enter our country from entering and the enormous cost would not outweigh the benefit.
Question: Housing costs are skyrocketing in Reno and Las Vegas, and both metropolitan areas are having a difficult time providing affordable homes or apartments to the growing numbers of people moving there. How do you propose increasing investment in affordable housing?
I will fight for and support an infrastructure spending bill that includes funding for development and repair of public and other low-income housing to allow people live in dignity. In addition, I would support BLM sale of land to developers at below market value with a condition of building affordable housing. However, any release/sale of land by the BLM must not adversely impact our environment and the public's enjoyment of public lands.
Question: Nevada voters in 2016 approved slightly more stringent background checks, especially between private sellers of weapons. It did not happen after the NV Attorney General refused to enforce it, saying the technicalities of the background checks were prohibitive. Do you think that should have been enforced? Does the United States need more stringent background checks? In what form?
Yes, the NV Attorney General should have done his job and enforced the law. Unfortunately, far too many of our politicians are strong allies of the NRA and anti common sense gun safety laws. As a result, far too many innocent people (including children) have lost their lives. In order to keep our citizens safe, we must ensure that weapons are only purchased and retained by law-abiding citizens by, among other things, implementing the strictest of background checks and ending the gun show and private sale loopholes to keep weapons away from criminals, terrorists, those convicted of domestic violence, and others who may cause us harm . In addition, I support a complete ban of assault rifles as they lack a legitimate purpose in our society.
Question: Do you support the opening of Yucca Mountain for the storage of the nation’s high-level nuclear waste?
No, I do not support having toxic waste stored in our state. Aside from the profound dangers of transporting and storing nuclear waste, we all should be concerned about the potential environmental and health hazards that could arise. In addition, I am very concerned that Nevada's tourism industry would be adversely impacted as storing nuclear waste could deter tourists from visiting Nevada. Even with a very low a chance of 0.001% something horribly going wrong, I will not be willing to take that chance on the health and safety of Nevadans.
Question: Do you want to turn back the Affordable Care Act, or expand it? Why?
The ACA was a good start. However, in excess of 20 million Americans remain without healthcare, millions more have outrageous deductibles, and many others can not afford the skyrocketing premiums. After carefully studying different models of healthcare around the world, I am convinced that a single-payer system (such as Medicare-for-All) makes the most financial sense and would provide our citizens with the ability to live a healthy and productive life without having to choose between going to the doctor or filing for bankruptcy.
Question: Are you able to, or do you want to, work across the partisan divide in Congress. From your background, what have you done that demonstrates you are someone willing to compromise with others you might oppose ideologically?
Of course I am willing to work across the partisan divide. I am a big believer that when nothing fruitful is accomplished in our government, the real victims are the people. Therefore, we (Democrats, Republicans, and Independents) must be strive to create policy that benefits the people who entrusted us with this important job. We must search for common grounds and work together to find difficult solutions to what at times appears to be irreconcilable differences. As a trial attorney for the past 17 years, I have handled very complex situations and was able to work along with my adversaries to find a fair and reasonable solution for our respective clients. Such skills will strongly assist me and guide me in the United States Senate.
Question: Nevada has Nellis, Fallon and Creech Air Force bases. Do you support an increase in military spending?
No, I do not support an increase in military spending. To the contrary, we spend way too much on buying very expensive weapons and we engage in too many wars/conflicts around the world that we have no business in being involved in. Unquestionably, even with a modest 25% reduction in military spending, we will still remain the strongest military in the history of mankind. We can use the funds saved to, among other things, replenish military personnel who are often deployed and overworked and provide more support and opportunities for our veterans and their families.