Dino Rossi in 2018 League of Women Voters

On Corporations: Small business tax cuts lead to good-paying jobs

Dino Rossi: I support policies that put people back to work at good-paying jobs. Specifically, I support increasing small business tax credits, fully repealing the estate tax, focusing on economic competitiveness, and fostering an atmosphere that allows businesses of all sizes in the 8th Congressional District and throughout the country to compete and thrive.

On Crime: Put child molesters in prison for life after second strike

Dino Rossi: I have a wide range of interests and expertise. In the Washington State Senate, I brought Republicans and Democrats together to balanced state budgets without raising taxes while still protecting the vulnerable. I also passed legislation to put child molesters in prison for life after their second strike and the first law in the state to require ignition interlock devices in the cars of chronic DUI offenders. I also received two Good Green Deeds awards from Washington Conservation voters, fully funded our State Park system and found the funding to save the Issaquah Salmon Hatchery from closure. This is a long way of saying that my first choices would likely be the Ways and Means and Budget Committees, but I would be comfortable on a broad range of committees.

On Free Trade: Opposed to tariffs; strengthen trade with allies

A: I believe that free trade allows us to bring the success of a free market approach to areas that might otherwise be inflicted by poverty and despair. Free trade is important to Washington State. I am strongly opposed to tariffs and will work within my party and with those in good faith on the other side of the aisle to ensure that trade relationships with our allies are strengthened.

On Health Care: Replace ObamaCare with more competition in the marketplace

A: When the ACA was passed, my family and I were kicked off our health plan and had to re-enroll in a plan with a higher deductible and fewer services. The ACA failed to reduce costs or provide quality options for families, so I believe it must be repealed. But we also must make sure all Americans, including those with preexisting conditions, have access to affordable, quality health care.

Q: What actions would you take to implement your ACA perspective?

A: Health care is far too costly for too many people. Here are just a few solutions to reduce costs and increase access:

• More competition in the marketplace. People and employers should be able to go across state lines to buy insurance coverage.
• Support Association Health Plans so that small businesses can pool together to get the same discounts that big employers do.
• Look at ways to bring down prescription drug costs.

On Immigration: Don't deport DREAMers; improve the guest worker program

Dino Rossi: I support an immigration system that prioritizes cutting red tape to allow legal immigrants into America in a faster and less bureaucratic way while also beefing up security at our border to ensure that we know who is coming here.

Q: What is your position on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)?

Dino Rossi: I support improving the guest worker program for those who want to enter our country legally. A legislative immigration "fix" must also include a humane and compassionate approach to those here under the DACA program. Deporting hundreds of thousands of people to a country that they may have never known and left when they were young is not logical.

On Principles & Values: In State Senate, my bills always had bipartisan support

Dino Rossi: I am the only candidate in this race who has actually worked on a bipartisan basis to solve problems for our citizens. When I served in the Washington State Senate, every bill I had signed into law was supported by both Republicans and Democrats. I am running for Congress because Washington DC is broken, and I have a proven track record of accomplishing bipartisan solutions and solving problems, and doing so in a bipartisan way. I believe I have the skills to contribute solutions.

[Democratic opponent] Kim Schrier: Washington's 8th District is incredibly diverse and in many ways a microcosm of the entire country. Before I launched my campaign, I worried it would be hard to represent such diverse interests, but the more I talked to folks across the district, the more I realize that we have a lot more in common than divides us.

On Technology: Infrastructure should ensure earthquake readiness

A: I look forward to listening to industry leaders and policy experts and working with my colleagues from the western states to ensure that earthquake readiness is addressed at the federal level in the next Congress. I vividly remember the Nisqually earthquake of 2001 that shook the entire Puget Sound region and understand the need to ensure that our region's buildings and infrastructure are safe in the event of another major earthquake.