McCullough: Expanding Medicaid would provide health insurance to thousands of Virginians who need it

Kyle McCullough is running to unseat Jackson Miller in the Virginia House of Delegates 50th District. 

The District encompasses the City of Manassas, and a portion of Prince William County.

Potomac Local sent a questionnaire to McCullough and he sent us the responses below: 

Find your polling place

PL: What are the top three major issues facing the district you wish to represent?

McCullough: Health care, income inequality and school funding.

PL: What concrete solutions do you propose to address these issues?

McCullough: Implement the Medicaid expansion. Raise the minimum wage. (I advocate a graduated increase, so an employer can pay a trainee the Federal minimum for a few months before the higher State minimum kicks in.) Restore school funding to at least pre-recession levels — adjusted for inflation and student-population growth.

PL: From your prospective, what is the job description of the office you’re seeking?

McCullough: To represent the people of the 50th district – to promote their values and best interests in the governance of the state.

PL: What expertise will you bring to the office?

McCullough: I think that my main expertise is my life experience. As a father and middle-class resident, I have some idea what it takes to raise a family in this area. And, while this is very hard to document, I think I have above-average empathy for people who are in different situations than my own — which I think is the most important qualification for a would be Representative, Delegate or Senator.

I think a lot of that comes from my upbringing. My mother was a speech therapist who worked with children with very diverse backgrounds. My father was the County Manager of our county who worked to serve the interests of people with a huge range of backgrounds.

And I grew up in a neighborhood and school district where most people did not have the economic or social advantages that I did. I spent a year in China, where I learned the value of good government by witnessing the lack of it. Less important, but still worth mentioning, as a computer programmer with a background in engineering, I have pretty good problem-solving abilities.

PL: Do you feel that the average citizen is well-informed and understands the workings of local government? If not, how do you intend on improving communication with your constituency?

McCullough: No, I don’t think that most people are. I have made two-way communications a priority in my campaign; anyone can easily reach me either at [email protected] or at 703-686-4804, and I reply to all polite inquiries. And I try to keep people posted on the issues through my web page and social media. I’ll certainly continue and expand on that if elected.

PL: Have you ever made any mistakes in your public life? How have they effected you?

McCullough: Well, I didn’t take fundraising seriously enough, early enough.

PL: Our readers want leaders in local government. Why should they vote for you? 

McCullough: They should vote for me because I take their needs and concerns seriously. When I am campaigning, I tell people what I think are the biggest issues facing the General Assembly, but then I ask what are their issues, what do they believe should be our biggest concerns.

I have made the Medicaid expansion the central issue of my campaign because it is the issue that compelled me to run. Providing health insurance to thousands of Virginians who need it, adding tens of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in economic stimulus are all important; but equally important is why we are turning it down, when doing so gives no benefit whatsoever to the state.

The inescapable conclusion is that the legislators who are refusing to let Virginia have those benefits believe that doing so benefits their party. I would never do that. I would never place narrow partisan advantage ahead of the needs of my constituents.