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Quick Facts
Who: Tim Ryan
State: Ohio
Current position: U.S. House Representative from Ohio (13th District)
Campaign Website: https://timryanforamerica.com
Background: Tim Ryan graduated from Bowling Green State University and worked as an aide to Jim Traficant before receiving his J.D. from from the University of New Hampshire School of Law. He served in the Ohio Senate from 2000 to 2002. He has served eight terms in the U.S. House. In 2016, he unsuccessfully challenged Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) for House leadership.
2020 Campaign & Endorsements
Date Announced: April 4, 2019
Fundraising: N/A
Campaign Leadership: Mike Morley
Key Endorsements:
Political Positions
- Healthcare: Ryan is a supporter of the Affordable Care Act, which he helped pass. He believes that healthcare is a human right, and wants society to move towards embracing Medicare For All. On his website, Ryan states that he supports creating a public health option, without getting rid of private health insurance, as the change to Medicare For All has to realistic and gradual.
- Environment: Ryan believes climate change is one of the biggest threats facing the planet. He supports re-joining the Paris Climate Agreement and embracing technology that will reduce carbon emissions and provide new jobs. His website reads, "A social pact to clean energy also creates opportunities for new, good-paying jobs across the country. There are 8,000 component parts that make up a new windmill. There will be almost 30 million electric cars on the road by 2030. The solar industry is growing at 50% annually. This stuff has to get built somewhere and I want everything built right here in the United States."
- Economy: Ryan's main focus is on manufacturing and keeping jobs in the United States. He also wants the government to embrace and invest in emerging technologies, as he sees more jobs coming from these investments.
- Agriculture: Ryan wants to shift government subsidies from big producers to small, family-owned farms. He also wishes to promote and invest in sustainable farming practices. His website states that "We need to start city farming programs. We need to teach people about conservation practices. Most importantly, we need to increase access to healthy, fresh foods for all Americans. We need to enact federal policies that protect family farms. The numbers don’t lie. Big producers of crops get billions of dollars in subsidies each year. While the smaller, regional farmers producing diversified specialty crops receive next to nothing. Additionally, 60% of these subsidies go to corn and other grains. Only 0.45% goes toward fruits and vegetables. This is unacceptable. Government subsidies need to shift away from highly processed foods, and more to fruits, vegetables, and organic farms."
- Veterans: Ryan is committed to reforming the Veterans Administration. This includes "fighting against efforts to privatize the VA, and making significant investments into modernizing and improving military health services through innovative care."
Criticism/Controversies
- Taliban Controversy: At the first Democratic primary debate, Ryan misspoke when he said that the Taliban was responsible for the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. Ryan said that the U.S. must engage in the Middle East or "the Taliban will grow and they will have bigger, bolder terrorist acts." Fellow contender Tulsi Gabbard, a veteran, corrected Ryan by saying that “The Taliban didn’t attack us on 9/11, Al-Qaeda did. That's why I and other people joined the military, to go after Al Qaeda, not the Taliban."
This piece is part of our Election 2020 series. See below for more information on the most talked about Democrats challenging President Trump.