Priorities
In Congress, Ryan will fight to make life affordable in the Lehigh Valley, strengthen our democracy for all Americans, and protect our fundamental rights.
Cutting Costs in the Greater Lehigh Valley
Even in the working class town where Ryan grew up, people had faith that if you put in the work, your family had a decent shot at getting ahead. But as the cost of living keeps increasing, it doesn’t feel that way anymore in the Lehigh Valley. That’s why Ryan is committed to fixing a system that props up tech billionaires on the backs of teachers and tradesmen. In Congress, Ryan would support:
Health Care
- Protecting Pennsylvanians’ health care and reversing Republicans’ crippling cuts to Medicaid
- Extending the Obamacare subsidies to prevent premiums from doubling
- Rolling out a public option for health care to ensure that everyday Americans have access to the same quality health care as members of Congress, addressing the price-gouging of drug industry middlemen with transparency laws around drug costs
- Expanding Medicare’s ability to negotiate lower prescription drug prices
- Cracking down on abuses by insurance companies, so they can’t deny coverage for needed treatments prescribed by a patient’s doctor
Housing
- Passing legislation to enable the building of more housing across PA-07 so our housing supply keeps up with demand
- Ending tax benefits for the predatory real estate investors who are buying up homes and driving up costs
Education
- Incentivizing colleges to make tuition affordable and ensure their students find work after graduation by requiring them to assume a percentage of their students’ loan debt.
- Supporting Lehigh Valley vocational and technical education options. Reversing the Trump Administration’s crippling cuts to the Department of Education and federal education funding
Energy
- Repealing the Big Ugly Bill and reinstituting clean energy tax credits to help reduce utility costs and meet the energy needs of this moment
- Fighting the construction of any AI data center built in or around PA-07 that would increase energy costs for Lehigh Valley families or damage the environment
Child Care
- Expanding the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit, because families have been hit hardest by the affordability crisis.
Protecting Our Democracy and Taking on Government Corruption
As a Marine and federal prosecutor, Ryan took an oath to defend this country and the Constitution. So when Trump tried to force him to drop a corruption case against one of his friends, as part of a plan to turn the Department of Justice into a weapon against his enemies, he refused and resigned instead. When our elected officials put service to self above public service, it diminishes the lives of everyday Americans and it erodes people’s faith in our democracy. Ryan is running for Congress to take on corruption in government by fighting for these critical reforms:
- Codifying a nationwide ban on partisan gerrymandering and mid-decade legislative redistricting
- 18-year fixed terms for Supreme Court justices, with protections in place to ensure the Senate cannot stonewall a president’s nominees
- A constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United
- Term limits for members of Congress
- A prohibition on stock trading by members of Congress
- A two-year lobbying ban on former members of Congress after they leave office
- Legislation to get dark money out of our state and local elections
- Legislation that would reimburse states who prevail in lawsuits against the federal government to provide money already appropriated by Congress but seized by the administration
Holding Trump Accountable
Ryan Crosswell drew national attention by standing up to Donald Trump and his corrupt Justice Department while big law firms, tech moguls, media conglomerates and members of Congress bent the knee. When asked to violate his oath as a Marine and a federal prosecutor and drop a case against one of Trump’s allies, Ryan refused. Then, he resigned. In Congress, he’ll stand up to Trump again and hold his administration accountable. He would support:
- Holding hearings and issuing subpoenas to members of the administration to put their naked corruption on public display
- Using the constitutional power of the purse to assert Congress’ authority in setting policy as a co-equal branch of government
Reproductive Rights
Ryan joined the Marine Corps to protect people’s rights and freedoms, and that includes a woman’s fundamental right to control her own body. Ryan was proud to stand with his niece outside the Supreme Court to protest the Dobbs decision, and one of his first acts in Congress will be to add his name to a bill to restore the protections of Roe v. Wade and abortion rights as the law of the land.
Immigration
As a former federal prosecutor, Ryan understands the need for secure borders. But masked men disappearing our neighbors from our streets can never be the norm in America, and deportations of U.S. citizens and raids on elementary schools aren’t making Americans safer. Ryan would support:
- Requiring ICE to de-mask like any other branch of law enforcement and requiring all federal agents to follow the law
- Ensuring money appropriated by Congress is spent on keeping Americans safe from violent crime, not on deporting our peaceful longtime friends and neighbors
- Creating an eventual pathway to citizenship for longtime residents who have otherwise followed the law
- Investing in border security and engaging with our neighbors to prevent illegal drug trafficking
Serving our Seniors
Ryan knows that Social Security and Medicare aren’t handouts – they’re promises we made to our seniors. Ryan supports protecting and strengthening these programs to ensure they’re available long into the future.
A More Patriotic Tax System
Ryan celebrates that the sky is the limit for prosperity in this country, but believes that America is at its strongest when opportunity is available to all of us. However, the hard reality today is that everyday Americans continue to fall further behind no matter how hard they work, and our tax system is a huge reason why. It is unpatriotic for the top 1% of the top 1% of the wealthiest Americans to spend their time, money, and influence to shift the tax burden to everyday Americans. Ryan believes the biggest corporations and the wealthiest Americans who have benefitted most from this economy and this country need to pay their fair share. That means a fairer tax system that rewards hard work, not accumulated wealth.
A Responsible Budget
Ryan believes the federal government’s current levels of deficit spending are not sustainable. As a country, we continue to accumulate debt that is being invoiced to our children.He would support reducing the budget deficit by making the ultra-wealthy pay their fair share in taxes and ensuring taxpayer dollars are used efficiently. And he would support docking members of Congress’ salaries during government shutdowns, because it is an abomination that politicians keep getting paid while dedicated public servants are not.
Ending Gun Violence
As a Marine, Ryan was trained to use weapons of war and knows the destructive power they hold. He also knows they have no place on our streets. After decades of heartbreaking tragedies in our schools, cities, and public spaces, it is past time to come together and pass commonsense reforms supported by most Americans. Ryan will fight to keep our kids and communities safe by pushing for:
- Universal background checks centralized using the FBI’s criminal database
- Closing the gun show loophole
- Limiting the availability of high capacity magazines
- Strict liability lawsuits for the victims of mass shootings against gun manufacturers
