MICHAEL CLOUD (R)
LUIS A. ESPINDOLA (R)
What is/was your profession? Are you now retired?
High Threat Security Consultant.
What relevant experience can you bring to office?
As a veteran and security professional, I bring firsthand knowledge and experience to our nation's largest concern, national security. Working in the Eagle Ford and Permian Basin has also shown me just how important it is to protect and promote our right and ability to produce energy here in our own country. I am also a small business owner who can speak to the concerns that American business owners face.
How have your life experiences prepared you for this position?
Serving in the military, working oil field, and time as a security consultant have all given me a unique perspective on the issues that everyday Americans experience. I am one of them. My blue-collar background will ensure that the welfare and interest of hard-working Americans will be the only influence on legislation passed during my time in the House. I am prepared to be a voice for the people since it is them I am beholden to and not special interests.
Which problems would you address on your first day in office?
I will be a proponent of lateral legislation within Congress. They have passed enough laws to govern us as citizens, but they have not yet passed enough laws to govern themselves. I will introduce bills that will keep members of Congress forcefully tethered to their districts by way of mandatory community service hours in various industries within their own districts.
What do you see as long-term issues which need to be addressed throughout your time in office?
I will be a champion for term limits and will put forth legislation that ends the tenure of lifelong politicians. I firmly believe in term limits and electing people who are willing to start the conversation in a serious manner within the House of Representatives.
What is local government doing well right now that needs to be expanded further?
Inviting more outside commerce to take part in our local economy should be the local government’s main priority. Our district has the potential to be an economic powerhouse. During my time as a representative, I will use the full weight of the congressional office and work towards expanding opportunities for our district and its citizens.
SCOTT MANDEL (R)
What is/was your profession? Are you now retired?
CEO of a security guard services company for 33 years. I am semi-retired.
What relevant experience can you bring to office?
10 years of law enforcement experience and 33 years of business experience. The last 23 of my 33 years have been a government contractor with a specific focus on immigration and the border.
How have your life experiences prepared you for this position?
I have experienced poverty, and I know what it’s like to live paycheck to paycheck. Currently, about 60% of Americans live check to check. We need to ensure we do everything we can to manage gas prices, food costs, healthcare and drug prices.
Which problems would you address on your first day in office?
I would propose legislation that would close the border for a minimum of 1 year, secure the border with forward operating bases managed by Border Patrol, limit immigration to the number of people we can process annually, which is currently 52,000, allows asylum seekers to claim asylum at US embassies and on-line. I would also ensure that every federal politician and manager in the federal system be send a monthly email providing them with the amount of money we are in debt (34 trillion) and what the number is projected to be in 4 years (46 trillion).
What do you see as long-term issues that need to be addressed throughout your time in office?
America’s debt will take years to solve. I would cut agency spending to equal our income. Reduce the processing time for veterans' claims to a few weeks instead of months and focus on those veterans who need our services the most. I would also focus on providing better healthcare options.
What is local government doing well right now that needs to be expanded further?
There is always room for improvement at all levels of government.
CHRIS MAPP (R)
What is/was your profession? Are you now retired?
I am a Jesus-loving man, married for 40 years, with amazing grown adult children. My experience is over 30 years in business. Very skilled in negotiating complex business issues.
What relevant experience can you bring to office?
I have a Bachelor's degree in business and many vocational certificates for the technical trades, as well as comprehensive leadership certificates. Through the many years of being well-read, there are very diverse authors that make up the complexity of my political understandings. The Constitution was not written to suppress the American people, yet it was written to minimize government intrusion into our American lives. There are many relevant factors of experience that I will bring to Congress.
How have your life experiences prepared you for this position?
I grew up with epilepsy as a young man and was not able to enter the Armed Forces. I tried every branch more than once. When I did not have the ability to enter the military, my life journey took me on a path of having to prove myself. Prove in such a way that I embedded myself into work, learning, education, and an understanding of people, culture, and politics. The diversity of my life is exactly what qualifies me. The voters would see my experience mirrors the common hard-working individual who seeks to pay the bills, live the American dream and provide a better life for their family. We all make mistakes along the path of life and I am no different. I would like to help others maybe avoid some of the pitfalls, and that includes minimizing government where it needs to not intrude or become overbearing.
Which problems would you address on your first day in office?
The problems I would address on day one are three specifically. I would focus on closing the border and getting real immigration solutions brought to the table because we are a nation of immigrants, yet we are not a nation to be invaded. We are the shining light on the hill, and we should not be punitive, yet we should be sovereign and fair within the structure of policies that welcome new legal immigrants. We should abode the rule of law. Illegally entering the country for whatever reason is not valid because one must contribute to the economy and assimilate into the culture. When entering illegally, the person robs themselves of the opportunity to be a part of something great and not just live in the shadows. The war in Ukraine funding must stop, and the deficit must be brought under control. I have a plan to reduce and to stop the spending, the radical spending. Our education system is failing us at the primary and secondary levels. The Department of Education requires many changes. We should not be teaching our students simply to pass the test but the pure substance and facts of education that allow our future workers and leaders to be able to critically think.
What do you see as long-term issues that need to be addressed throughout your time in office?
The same issues I would tackle on day one are long-term issues that are multifaceted. Comprehensive problems require comprehensive resolutions. Resolutions require listening to many of the voters to understand what is important to them and their families.
What is local government doing well right now that needs to be expanded further?
The local government in Corpus Christi, in my opinion, is fractured on many fronts. I think the Port is the pearl as well as the mechanisms that draw people in for tourism for such a beautiful city. It is my belief that economic prosperity is what drives the American dream, and local government should focus more on what it could be, rather than the diversity of opinion that does not allow Corpus Christi to move forward the way that I believe it could or should. There are many great leaders in Corpus on both sides of the aisle. It would be my job as a Congressman to listen and to help where asked to bring things together. I would have a staff member very involved at the local level to help in any way I can to contribute to the economy and the betterment of Corpus Christi. As a congressman, my office would be on the ground floor.
TANYA LLOYD (D)
What is/was your profession? Are you now retired?
I have been actively teaching elementary public school for the past 17 years in Lockhart, TX. My professional experience outside of the classroom includes many years working in various office positions in the car dealership and automotive industry, as a church secretary, and also as a realtor.
What relevant experience can you bring to office?
To best serve our district our Congressperson needs to be a good listener and to ask good questions, both of which are skills I have honed during the last 17 years teaching elementary school. Not only helping my students succeed but also supporting parents and colleagues as we prepare the next generation for success and fight to overcome generational poverty. My professional experience outside of the classroom includes many years working in various office positions in the car dealership and automotive industry, as a church secretary, and also as a realtor. I have deep roots in this district, with my family immigrating to DeWitt County in the 1840s. I have lived in and traveled throughout District 27 for most of my life, attending the 2nd grade in Robstown before moving to Lockhart. My favorite spot to recharge is sitting on the jetties in Port Aransas, watching the wildlife. I grew up helping my grandmother raise livestock on our small family farm and was a club manager with my husband of our local 4-H and active in our FFA Booster Club while our daughter, who is now majoring in Animal Science at Texas A&M Kingsville, was growing up. Standing up for our rural economies and infrastructure and making sure our representative in Washington is a champion for TX-27 making sure no rural communities, town, or city is left behind is vitally important to me. Congress could use more people with these life experiences and in particular right now needs a first-grade teacher.
How have your life experiences prepared you for this position?
Connecting with people and listening to their needs is a skill that is needed in Congress and I plan to use those skills to bring better representation to TX-27. Because I have been teaching for 17 years, I have met people from many walks of life and have actively worked to understand their joys and concerns. I have deep roots in this district, and am extremely proud to call it my home, therefore will do my best to represent and advocate for the needs of TX-27. I will use my voice to make sure that your voices are heard.
Which problems would you address on your first day in office?
My first act of business would be working to codify the protections of Roe v. Wade into law with the Women's Health Protection Act.
What do you see as long-term issues which need to be addressed throughout your time in office?
- Standing up for public education and our democracy: for my students, their families, and our community.
- Ensuring no community is left behind: no rural community, town, or city. Our communities need investments to grow our economy; strengthen public education, college access, technical schools, and job training; address our rural healthcare crisis; and invest in our infrastructure.
What is the Federal government doing well right now that needs to be expanded further?
One thing that our Federal government is doing well right now is passing bills that put long overdue investments into our crumbling public infrastructure and domestic manufacturing industry with the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the CHIPS and Science Act. Our current incumbent in Congress voted against both of these bills, and I think we need someone in congress who knows that fiscal responsibility doesn’t mean spending nothing, it means making wise investments in the right places.
ANTHONY (A.J.) TRISTAN (D)
What is/was your profession? Are you now retired?
I'm the owner of Tristan Financial Consulting LLC where I provide Small Business Tax Accounting Services and Individual Tax Services.
What relevant experience can you bring to office?
My relevant experience is that I work with people from all walks of life and help them save on their tax and financial issues. There is no bigger topic than helping people keep more of their hard-earned money.
How have your life experiences prepared you for this position?
I have traveled and helped people all over Texas. Consequently, I prepared to do the same for District 27th.
Which problems would you address on your first day in office?
Day one, women's Reproductive Rights need to be restored Nationwide.
What do you see as long-term issues which need to be addressed throughout your time in office?
Corporate price gouging needs to be addressed. Every year, prices for energy, food, insurance, and other necessities increase. There is no quantifiable reason other than greed and crony capitalism.
What is local government doing well right now that needs to be expanded further?
It's all about good-paying jobs. You can never have enough, and I think the local government understands.
www.tristanforcongress.com [tristanforcongress.com]
