Elections 2014 Just another Arizona Capitol Times Election Coverage site
Democrat – Congressional District 5 U.S. House
Phone: (602) 505-0892
Email: james@jameswoodsforcongress.com
Website: www.jameswoodsforcongress.com
Facebook: James Woods
Twitter: @Woods4Congress
Address: 848 N Golden Key St, Gilbert, AZ 85233
Age: 35. (02/08/79, Phoenix, AZ).
Arizona since: Birth
Occupation: Vocational rehabilitation since 2006 after surviving an antibiotic resistant bacterial infection resulting in multiple amputations, renal failure and blindness; debt management & LAN administrator, Great South West Mortgage, 2006; tier 2 & tier 3 technical support analyst, 2wire, 2002-03; business support analyst, Inficad, 2000-01; tier 2 technical support analyst, Mindspring, 1999-2000; technical support/pre-sales rep, MCI Worldcom, 1998-99.
Marital: Single
Education: Vocational rehabilitation, Southern Arizona Assn of the Visually Impaired, 2013; general studies, Mesa Community College, 1998-2005.
Political experience: Board member & precinct chair, LD17 Democrats.
Interests: Volunteering with Nat’l Federation of the Blind and Banner Good Samaritan transplant services, learning Braille, listening to music, listening to TED talks, listening to podcasts, reading, respirating, running for Congress.
Top priority: American workers need a living wage. It’s time to stop talking about minimum wages and start talking about prosperity wages. Consumers drive the economy, and we need to get more people earning enough to take care of themselves and their families – and spend back into the economy. That’s how we’ll achieve stable demand growth and an economy that supports prosperity for all.
Initial legislation: Eliminate the exemption that allows employers to isolate workers with disabilities and pay them sub-minimum wages. More than 400,000 people with disabilities work in segregated workshops for as little as $5.80 a day, which is not even enough to buy a Big Mac Value Meal at McDonald’s. This is an easy, nonpartisan no-brainer. Exploiting disabled workers is wrong. We need a living wage for ALL of our workers – no exceptions.
Federal deficit: We need a progressive tax structure, free of loopholes that benefit corporate interests rather than facilitating economic prosperity and empowering working families. We need public investments directed toward areas such as education, infrastructure and environmental protection—investments that yield high returns in terms of a productive workforce, modernized industry and sustainability.
Federal spending in AZ: Public transportation. This is a human rights issue. Currently, 80% of federal transportation funding is dedicated to our highway system, yet millions of Americans lack access to an automobile. This means low-income Americans have fewer opportunities for employment. It means Americans in the lowest 20% income bracket spend around 42% of their income on transportation. It means that annually, about 3.2 million children in the U.S. either missed a health care appointment or were unable to schedule a health care visit because of lack of access to transportation. Improving public transportation in Arizona means more jobs, stronger communities and healthier constituents. We need to make public transportation a major national priority.
Respected opponent: I’ve been really impressed by some of the compassionate, resonant words I’ve read from Ronald Reagan, George H. Bush and Jeb Bush about immigration. Their perspectives have really enhanced my empathy for immigrant families and have inspired me to be a better advocate for the immigrants living and working in our communities. When Jeb Bush said that the struggle to come to America, even undocumented, in order to take care of your family was an act of love, I knew he was someone with incredible capacity to think deeply, to empathize, and to humanize people regardless of political, economic or ideological difference. I strive to have that kind of empathy and openness.
Public policy advice: When I went blind and nearly died following a MRSA infection just before my 27th birthday, I found myself suddenly in a very difficult situation – one that is not dissimilar to that of millions of Americans: I needed help. I needed supplemental nutrition assistance, Medicaid and SSI Disability. Without these programs, I would have died. Now, because I can no longer see, I need to listen. I hear people telling me about the help they need – and those are the people I turn to for advice on what policies are necessary for the well-being of the American people. I listen to others in positions of public leadership on what works and doesn’t. I listen to my dad and my brother. Progressive leaders including State Representative Juan Mendez have been incredible in sharing knowledge. I was even offered some advice by Barney Frank in a Religion News Service article! I’m grateful to be surrounded by wise, dedicated people.
