Maryland

"When I joined the Army we were taught and expected to live by the Soldier's Creed. It set the expectation that we would serve the people of the US, would always place the mission first, and never accept defeat. It concludes: "I am a guardian of freedom and the American way of life. I am an American Soldier."I left the Army in 2007, but today I found myself called to serve again. The US is still the envy of the world on many fronts, but we face massive challenges with rising or resurgent international competitors, and with non-traditional but no less serious trans-national security threats to America's leading role in the world that we've been blessed to have the opportunity to lead over the last 75 years. Unfortunately, as our external threats are growing in number and growing more serious, Americans at home are becoming increasingly polarized, and our political system more toxic. We aren't on the right path to meet those external challenges, because we aren't able to fix our issues at home.Meeting the US' challenges requires Americans of all stripes contribute to our national cause and continue our global leadership. And we have the collective human talent and resources necessary to do it. But we need to change our political system so we can elect representatives who are willing to listen and able to compromise - because are challenges are too great, and the time frames for action to take massive action to meet them too short - not to. We need ideas from all sides, and leaders who can be be confident that they can be re-elected if they choose to put the good of their country over any political party identity.But I believe America can right the ship, and that this current rough period can become just another chapter on America's resilience in this unique international success story - but we need to fix the system to make that happen. I may not still be in uniform, but I believe that working with others on this mission today is just as urgent as any I was a part of during my time in the Army."

"I got involved with VPI because being an Independent in Maryland means no primaries for me and my voter registration card says "unaffiliated." This gives the inaccurate impression that I'm not making an active choice to affiliate as an Independent - I am actively choosing to be an Independent, and I've actively made that choice for nearly a decade through different duty stations and after transition! I want to change the political environment for Independents in Maryland, while diversifying the movement in the process. Not only can Maryland adopt RCV, or Final Five, I believe we can make it a more equitable political arena for Independent candidates so that when I run for Mayor of Baltimore City as an Independent in a few years' time, I have a fair chance in the political process."

"The aims of VPI are exactly what I think this country needs to better represent its populace and break the disfunction in government today. I look forward to being part of the solution and learning to use my voice towards that end."