Congressional District 24 GOP Primary

Candidates: Beth Van Duyne (incumbent), Nate Weymouth

What is the single most common issue voters have raised with you during your campaign, and how do you plan to tackle it? 

Nate Weymouth: The voters that I have talked with have expressed three major concerns equally: 

1. Healthcare issues related to pandemic policies, including medical insurance and pricing. 

2. Healthcare issues related to pandemic policies, including medical insurance and pricing. 

3. Healthcare issues related to pandemic policies, including medical insurance and pricing. 

1.     Costs to the taxpayers, especially in Texas. 

2.     Increase in crime and possible terrorist activity.  

3.     Importation of narcotics especially opioids.  

Let me address one of those issues, immigration, that is part of the national discourse in this election:  

Immigration must be comprehensive, equitable, and enforceable by laws otherwise: 

1.     Unfair to those who do go through the process lawfully.  

2. It undermines the social safety net for those working poor US citizens who depend on social services during periods of unemployment and emergencies, like a pandemic. 

Immigration reform requires more than just building a wall on the Mexican border. It is especially important because TX24 includes a major international airport. My platform for tackling unregulated immigration would be creating comprehensive, equitable, and enforceable immigration policies and laws that ensure:  

• It is fair to those immigrants who do go through the process lawfully. 

• It doesn’t undermine the social safety net of those working poor US citizens during periods of unemployment and emergencies. 
• Deters the importation of crime, potential terrorism, sex trafficking, and drugs into this country. 
• Allows the President to control immigration from terrorist countries during periods of terrorist acts and war. 
• Lowers the financial burden to this country and its taxpayers for the cost of assimilation of indigent immigrants whether documented or undocumented. 

I would rescind Biden’s Immigration Nationality Act (8 USC 1157) because it will exacerbate the current situation and encourage more illegal immigration. The criteria for asylum are arbitrary and not subject to Congressional approval. Further it calls for asylum of individuals from countries that harbor Jihadists. 

How would you characterize the federal government’s — both the Trump administration and the Biden administration, as well as Congress — response to the pandemic? 

Weymouth: As an experienced biomedical scientist with expertise in anti-viral therapeutics, medical diagnostics (PCR and rapid antigen), and vaccine development, the pandemic response by both administrations has been abysmal. With the potential for new emerging coronaviruses, we need to learn from our mistakes.   

The failed public health response, both medically and economically, should have been the same regardless of which variant is circulating in the population. Centers for Medicaid Services’ inability craft a policy to test the elderly frequently enough based on the science is shameful because it has resulted in the illness and deaths of many seniors in long term and retirement communities. Another mistake was the inability of the task force to develop a coherent testing policy that depended less on PCR and more on at home rapid antigen testing given the time course of infection. Lastly is the failing of the task force to encourage the development of protein vaccines early on and call for greater FDA transparency in regard to mRNA vaccines.    

Medically, Congress needs to implement the following policies which would help citizens better cope physically and economically: 

• a) Implement a focused public health response helping those at risk individuals of serious complications of infection by making sure these individuals have access to rapid antigen testing, personal protective equipment, protein vaccines, and therapeutics like monoclonal antibodies.  
• b) Increase frequency of rapid antigen testing and PCR among those at risk groups especially the elderly living in long term care facilities or retirement communities. Testing policy issues should fall under FDA guidance not the CMS. 
• c) Rapidly approve all protein vaccines for Covid 19 that show a high degree of efficacy and safety standards as demonstrated in animal & clinical trial studies which includes the Covaxin and Medigen vaccines.  
• d) All PCR and rapid antigen test kits must be validated rigorously with quality assurance and control data.  
• e) All mRNA and adenovirus based vaccines must undergo full FDA approval which includes transparency on animal studies involving pk, biodistribution, and toxicology data. These vaccines must meet the same standards of non-Covid vaccines before the pandemic started. 

Do believe that everyone has fair and equitable access to the right to vote? Explain. 

Weymouth: For the most part, yes, I do believe that every eligible US citizen has a fair and equitable access to exercise their right to vote. Sadly, many citizens don’t exercise that Constitutional right. For example, at best, only twenty percent of all eligible voters in the US exercise that right in primary elections. Yet many of these individuals complain angrily about voting injustices and irregularities. We have an obligation as citizens to exercise this precious right. Thus, we need to encourage greater voter education and active participation in the process while protecting the integrity of the vote.  

If elected to Congress, I would enact and advocate for policies that ensures the following: 

1.  All non US citizens are forbidden to vote in all US elections, local, state, and federal. This right is reserved for US citizens only. 

2.  All voters are required to be properly registered with the county elections division, which requires a birth certificate and driver’s license or proof of residence.  

3.  No ballot harvesting and proper accounting of mail in ballots. 

4.  Proper legal guidelines for dealing with chain of custody issues when handling electronic voting data. 

5.  All voting machines must be annually audited by the Secretary of State. 

6.  All voters must show voter registration certificate, driver license, and/or birth certificate plus proof of residence.  

7.  Eliminate the influence of PAC money and Citizens United decision has on both federal, state, and local elections.   

Such policies would incentivize those undocumented immigrants living in this country to obtain citizenship. These policies present an equal obligation for all voters, regardless of race, to preserve the integrity of one’s Constitutional right to vote.  We have to assure all citizens that our elections are fair, meaningful, and lawfully overseen. This will encourage greater voter participation. 

How are you different from your opponent (or opponents) in this race? 

Weymouth: First, I am unique given my expertise in healthcare including biomedical research, patent analysis, and biotechnology related venture capital. Thus, I am more qualified to tackle the current issues facing this country for the following reasons:  

a) Substantial qualifications, experience, and expertise in the life sciences, healthcare, education, and small business development:  

b) More reasonable substantial proposals to solve this country’s problems. 

c) Better understanding of aviation and supply chain issues which are essential to TX24.  

d) Van Duyne’s propose bills lack cogency and substance and don’t deal with pandemic related issues.  

e) More substantial proposals to contain the cost of healthcare by reforming ACA, price transparency, and medical insurance.  

As a Park Cities Rotarian and scientific business entrepreneur, I believe in service above self especially when one serves as a Congressman. It is important for true public servants to exhibit tact, discernment, and objective thought when discussing policies, not divisive rhetoric. True public servants unite rather than divide. Sadly, in recent years, many so called “public servants” have epitomized completely the opposite.   

Please take note Beth Van Duyne has hardly distinguished herself as being a public servant. For example, her polarizing rhetoric as Mayor in regard to Ahmed Mohamed after being proven innocent which cost Irving taxpayers to settle a defamation suit. Unlike her, I will always focus on practical cogent solutions not silly divisive rhetoric.    

Name one part of your platform that, if it was a bill, you feel would or should get bipartisan support? 

Weymouth: My healthcare platform includes mandating that medical insurance companies release contracted rates for all items which have a medical code and policies that allows one to use monies in health savings accounts (HSA) to buy insurance during periods of unemployment. These specific and practical changes would contain the costs in healthcare by applying market forces to healthcare pricing. Allowing one to buy medical insurance using HSA monies would ensure that one is covered during periods of unemployment. ACA plans would serve as a backup for those who have exhausted HSA monies or don’t have an HSA. Given the simplicity of these changes and our desire to make medical insurance more affordable, I strongly believe such policies would receive overwhelming bipartisan support.  

The overall goal of my healthcare platform would be containing the cost of healthcare while preserving affordability by reforming ACA, medical insurance, and price transparency by applying market forces.