I grew up as a poor kid in Stewartville right here in Southern Minnesota, and I made it to the middle class because I worked hard and people invested in me. Today, my wife and I are raising four boys on the salaries of a teacher and a paraprofessional, and we know just how expensive groceries, utilities, housing, and healthcare are these days. I’ve now held 21 public, in-person town hall meetings, one in every county in the district, and I’ve heard from so many parents, seniors, and young people who are facing similar challenges. People are working hard and struggling just to get by, and the American Dream I got to live is slipping away for the next generation.

There’s a lot that our government could do to make life cheaper and easier. But when career politicians are bankrolled by billionaires and big corporations, they become defenders of the broken status quo, helping the wealthy and well-connected at our expense. When only 2% of Congress comes from the working class, it’s no wonder that Washington keeps leaving communities like ours behind.