• The Save Act would require all citizens to provide proof of citizenship prior to voting. It would disproportionately impact women and older Americans. It's intended to suppress the vote for millions of Americans. The Senate needs to reject the House bill. Restoring voter protections and reverse practices intended to suppress voter turnout. No one should have to wait in line for hours to cast their vote. Voting must be easy and accessible.

• Head-of-household Voting has been floated by the authors of Project 2025. Although it sounds incredibly far-fetched, the President and some within his Cabinet, namely Pete Hegseth, have issued support. Given the President's actions in his 2nd term, this must be taken seriously. Carin supports the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act of 2021. It defends against inequitable voting practices by restoring and modernizing the full protections of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. In addition, it updates the Act to address modern forms of voter suppression, such as restrictions on same-day registration, automatic voter registration, unrestricted absentee/mail voting, and allowing polling places to be open more than 12 hours for election-day voting.  

 

Affordability Healthcare

• We have some of the best healthcare in the world but it's unaffordable. For immediate relief, Carin supports a reversal on funding cuts to Medicaid and ACA subsidies.

• Recently, the President floated the idea of Medicare for none (to pay for the war). Carin supports a phased-in expansion of Medicare, moving the qualifying age to 64, then 63, etc. Healthcare premiums would be based on age and income, but moving more Americans to the single payer model would be progress.

• Healthcare costs continues to rise year over year. The origin can be traced to Reagan-era policies that moved insurance from federal management to private insurance and state-level management. For 50 years, private health insurance moved in favor of shareholder value over affordable care. Longer-term, Carin will be laser focused on reducing friction and reversing the perverse profitability incentives. She supports a shift away from employer-negotiated reimbursements; restrictions on pharmaceutical advertising, and investigating monopoly drug pricing.  

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Tariffs

• Trump’s random rollout of tariffs on foreign trading partners has led to massive uncertainty in the marketplace and prices for everyday purchases to skyrocket. Prices have increased in nearly all areas, from housing to groceries, and local businesses cannot plan when they don’t know the true costs. Reclaiming control over tariff policy is key. Carin believes that if President Trump wants to use tariff policy to return manufacturing to the U.S., he needs to work with Congress to achieve this. Restoring good trade relations with neighbors is a priority.

 

Jobs, Local Manufacturing

• Our district is a hub for innovation, presenting major opportunities. Carin will focus on incentives that balance AI-driven growth with investments in infrastructure, leading to exponential job growth. This should be coupled with do-no-harm policies to protect local economies. Tech companies building data centers need to pay for their own grid upgrades and power needs. 

• During her three years at LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired, Carin experienced first-hand the benefits of funding federal programs such as AbilityOne and SourceAmerica, which move people wanting to work into the workforce. These federal programs provide first jobs and career paths for those with disability, individuals who are blind or low vision, and veterans. She will fight to protect federal funding for these programs.

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Preparing for AI in Everything

• AI is solving some of society's biggest problems. From curing rare diseases, such as as retinitis pigmentosa, to improving medical screenings, such as China’s work for early dedication of pancreatic cancer, and advancing accessible technology, such as glasses which assist blind and low vision individuals independently navigate. Unfortunately, AI creates tools for more sophisticated fraud, misinformation, cybersecurity threats. Carin will advocate for a smart use of AI. AI leaders want to see robust guardrails to ensure the safe, ethical, and sustainable development. Because uncontrolled AI poses significant risks.​

• Our children’s education is key for a thriving future. States have taken the lead on setting guidelines for use of AI in the classroom. The federal government is deferring to Tech companies, asking that they police themselves. Carin believes that it’s imperative to establish federal guidelines for the use of AI in education, especially since understanding how to use AI effectively is important for future success in the job market.

• The on-going use of bots as a tool for misinformation and division is unacceptable. It has made communities less engaged and more focused on anger. Carin values healthy debate but wants to focus on facts, not feelings, allowing voters to make informed decisions in all aspects of life, especially at the polls. Honest representation matters. With this in mind, Carin supports current legislative efforts that require AI tools to visibly label content that has been created with AI.

• The current Administration cut $6B federal research funding, impacting funding for medical research at universities and hospitals, and led to the canceling of thousands of grants impacting many clinical trials. Carin will fight to restore federal funds for vital research.  

 

Environmental Protections, Independent Energy Capture

• Since originally signing the Paris Climate Agreement in 2016, the U.S. has withdrawn twice. Both times under President Trump. As a result, the U.S. has become an unreliable partners in the fight against climate change. To solve this, Carin supports all efforts to find bipartisan solutions that provide stable, lasting environment policy. Climate change is now and we need to be bold. ​ ​

• Energy needs are great. Energy production needs to move away from old technology (fossil fuels) to new. To provide immediate relief, Carin supports investments in electric grid modernization and EV charging networks. Longer-term, she supports investments in the fusion energy projects, such as the work underway at Lawrence Livermore National Labs. The technology offers “clean, carbon-free, abundant, reliable energy capable of meeting the world’s energy demands, . . .  providing for the energy sovereignty and energy security [for] the U.S.” (LLNL, 2026). Funding for this research is critical and Carin will contine this investment into the district. 

• Restoring tax incentive for a solar/battery systems that creates independent energy capture. This is a bipartisan issue and Democrats need to directly engage with voters in the middle of the country. Restoring tax incentives for solar panels and battery storage will help American families cut energy costs. 

• California’s "Plug Into the Sun Act” (SB 868) (Scott Weiner, D-CA) aims to reclassify plug-in balcony solar panels as small appliances, allowing renters and homeowners to plug these panels into standard outlets. This is a brilliant bill since it bypasses costly utility permits and fees. She would like to see a future in which each renter or homeowner can achieve independent energy capture. 

• Restoring tax incentives for EV cars, funding EV public transit, and funding local initiatives to build biking networks to public transportation.​

• Data centers create significant environmental impacts through intense electricity consumption, massive water usage for cooling, and high e-waste generation, with AI accelerating these demands. Carin supports any legislation that protects ratepayers and ensures investment includes clean power.

• Carin supports all efforts to reduce "forever chemicals" (PFAS) in our water and improve climate resiliency. To make real progress in this area, the U.S. needs to leverage new technology. AI technology can transform water management from a reactive, manual process into a proactive, real-time monitoring system, allowing for the detection of pollutants, leakages, and consumption patterns. Combined with IoT sensors, machine learning, and remote sensing, AI can help ensure water safety and efficiency across diverse environments.  

• The EPA is reversing limits on four specific PFAS chemicals (PFHxS, PFNA, GenX, and PFBS) and extending compliance deadlines for PFOA/PFOS from 2029 to 2031. This removes critical protections for millions of people exposed to dangerous levels of PFAS. The compliance deadline for PFOA and PFOS regulations from 2029.

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Immigration, ICE Detention Centers

• Comprehensive immigration reform has been a rally-the-base issue for years. Congress needs to find a bipartisan solution that focuses on relief for families who seek permanent status. Carin supports the bipartisan Dignity Act of 2025 (H.R. 4393), co-sponsored by Representative Maria Salazar and Representative Veronica Escobar. The bipartisan proposal offers legal status, not direct citizenship, while significantly boosting border security. ​

• U.S. immigration courts have lost a significant number of judges, escalating in 2025; approximately 25% (200).  Combining these losses with budget cuts, limited staff, court closures, increased backlogs, and increased pressure for faster case adjudications, immigrant families will struggle to see quick resolution to their applications. Carin supports 1.) shifting immigration enforcement funds ($409B) to the immigration court system (currently set to $840M) and 2.) review of enforcement spending; approx. $45 billion has been set aside for detention infrastructure, largely benefitting private, for-profit prison companies GEO Group and CoreCivic. 

• Carin supports ongoing efforts by Democrats in the House to withhold funding from ICE until significant reforms are accepted. These include no masks, no unmarked cars, no racial profiling, real training, an end to warrant-less entry, and no roving patrols.  

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Equal Rights Amendment

• The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) was first introduced 103 years ago. In 2020, it was finally ratified. Unfortunately, it still faces opposition. Opposition centers on conservative concerns that the amendment would open abortion rights to federal protections, authorize women to be drafted, eliminate gender-separated spaces (e.g., bathrooms), and undermine traditional family structures. Opposition often focuses on the potential for broad, liberal judicial interpretation of the amendment's concise language regarding "sex" equality.

• Carin strongly supports the Amendment. If elected, she will join the ERA Caucus and work timelessly toward gaining support for resolutions that remove a 1972 seven-year time limit which legal scholars argue is invalid.​​ It's essential to ensure equality regardless of sex as the U.S. Constitution does not explicitly guarantee equality.

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