League of Women Voters election survey: Alex Bischoff, candidate for U.S. House Rep. - District 32

by Staff of League of Women Voters

The League of Women Voters of Dallas sent a questionnaire to every candidate running for public office in Dallas County. The election on November 4th features a number of local races to decide state and national Senate and House of Representatives seats.

The responses of Alex Bischoff (L), who is running for the U.S. House of Representatives - District 32 seat, appear below. Bischoff is running against the incumbent, Rep. Pete Sessions (R), and Eric Roberson (D).

LWV: Please describe the training and experience that qualify you for this office.

Bischoff: I work each day with team members and clients to help launch web sites. Among such a wide group of people, we often have a variety of ideas within the process – which is good – but I know how important it is to work together toward our common goals.

LWV: What reforms would you propose to the U.S. healthcare system to control costs, improve the quality of care and expand access to healthcare to uninsured Americans?

Bischoff: Our healthcare woes have no easy answers and I'm not going to pretend that I have a silver bullet in my back pocket. Moreover, I'm not a doctor, and that's why I feel it would be an important first step to convene hearings from all sides of this debate – doctors, nurses, healthcare administrators, and as well, representatives from health insurance companies. Only then can we step forward with a level playing field of ideas.

LWV: Do you support a timetable for the withdrawal of American forces from Iraq?

Bischoff: Our continued presence in Iraq is not in our best interests, neither in terms of the strain on our troops nor in terms of the cost to our treasury. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has asked for a sixteen-month timetable for withdrawal and I think that's a reasonable and feasible course of action.

LWV: How do you propose to reduce the number of undocumented immigrants currently living in the U.S., while also meeting the increased need of American agriculture and small business for workers?

Bischoff: The vast majority of our immigrants (whether documented or otherwise) are law-abiding productive members of our society and I think that clarifying the path toward citizenship is our best option in reducing the number of undocumented immigrants. For starters, our INS bureaucracy has more than a few rough edges that need some attention, but I would also propose an education push (through community centers and other means) to help convey the necessary steps toward citizenship.

LWV: The U.S. Highway Trust Fund is expected to go into deficit next year. Congress is reluctant to raise the federal gas tax. How should America pay for its massive infrastructure needs related to roads and bridges?

Bischoff: With Iraq's reported $79 billion budget surplus (due to oil revenues), their infrastructure reconstruction appears more than capable of being funding by their own government. Our continued contributions into the Iraqi infrastructure can be better put to use toward our own infrastructure needs, including our roads and bridges.

LWV: What source do you think represents the greatest opportunity to achieve energy independence? How can the federal government best advance its development?

Bischoff: I have no objections to further research (and implementations) of wind, solar, and geo-thermal energy, but I think that nuclear power may be our most promising opportunity for clean energy over the long term. Nuclear power is already making in-roads toward contributing power for home and business use, and with the coming advances in plug-in hybrid vehicles, this source of power can help reduce our national oil consumption as well.

LWV: What other issue do you believe will be most pressing in the next session of Congress, and what is your position on this issue?

Bischoff: The latest report from the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), with 400 contributing scientists from around 120 countries, has made clear the scientific consensus of human-caused climate change. Among other objectives, I will work to promote a cap-and-trade system in which corporations would have caps placed on their allowable pollutants while also retaining the option of trading those credits with other companies if they're able to fall below their caps.