​​I am the son of Korean immigrants — born and raised in America, the product of New Jersey public schools, a Rhodes scholar, national security expert, public servant, husband, and proud dad to two growing young boys.

I’m raising my kids just a few blocks from where I grew up because this community means everything to me and my family.

My father suffered as a baby from Polio, grew up without parents, and even was homeless for parts of his childhood. My mother grew up in a poor farming community that experienced famine and hunger. My father went on to become a PhD scientist who dedicated his life to finding a cure for cancer and Alzheimer’s. My mother became a nurse and helped serve thousands of people in South Jersey.

My parents chose to raise me and my sister in South Jersey because they believed the top-notch public school system would give us the best opportunities to succeed. I did all of K-12 right here, and that education helped me become a Rhodes Scholar and a leading national security expert – working at the Pentagon and in Afghanistan as a civilian advisor to the military.

New Jersey gave my family the opportunity to achieve the American dream, but now, with all the dysfunction and challenges in our country, I worry those same opportunities won’t be there for my kids. I worry that the community that gave me everything isn’t getting the support it deserves. That’s why I’m fighting for my family, for my neighbors, for the community that raised me, and for working families in pursuit of the American Dream.

I’m so honored to represent in Congress a district where I went to Kindergarten and where my little boys are going to Kindergarten now. This is where I got my first job and hit my first home run. Fighting for the community that raised me is the honor of a lifetime.

Strengthening Your Healthcare

Ifirst ran for Congress to protect your access to healthcare after doctors warned us that our unborn son could have serious medical complications in 2017. We’re lucky that he’s grown into a healthy and thriving little boy, but no family should worry about losing their healthcare just because of a pre-existing condition.

The pandemic has made it even clearer that all Americans need access to affordable, high-quality healthcare. Millions of Americans are only one health incident away from losing their job or financial disaster. My mother is a nurse, and she taught me to be a fierce advocate for healthcare access. Nobody should die or face bankruptcy because they can’t afford to visit their doctor.

That’s why I’ve championed legislation to

• Lower prescription drug prices, particularly for our seniors
• Protect people with pre-existing conditions
• Allow Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices
• Expand Medicare to include dental, vision, and hearing coverage
• Expand access to telehealth
• Ensure access to reproductive healthcare
• Provide permanent funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Plan (CHIP)
• Support rural community health centers

As the father to two young boys, there is nothing more important to me than making sure New Jersey’s children grow up healthy and have a stable future.

Supporting Small Businesses & Creating Jobs

Small businesses are the backbone of our district, and our country. They invest in our local communities, create jobs, and become part of the fabric of our daily lives. Small businesses were hit especially hard by the pandemic, and I will continue fighting for the funds they need to reopen and thrive. As the only Member of Congress from New Jersey on the Small Business Committee, I’m championing our small businesses to make sure they have the resources they need.

Small businesses have been a priority for me throughout my time in Congress, and I’ve sponsored and voted for legislation that brings small business owners needed relief:

• I co-authored the Microloan Improvement Act to reduce red tape and provide more options for accessing loans

• I sponsored the CARES Act, which provided direct checks to Americans, a paycheck protection program, and emergency grants for small businesses

• I voted for the American Rescue Plan that provided $6 billion in funding for New Jersey, including assistance for restaurants, funds for small business, financing for impacted businesses owned by people from marginalized communities, and funding to keep essential workers on the job

• I authored the Better Utilizing Infrastructure for Lasting Development of (BUILD) Veterans Businesses Act to create more federal contracting opportunities for veteran-owned small businesses

• I authored the Put Our Neighbors to Work Act to encourage the Department of Defense to hire more local workers on military construction projects and give small businesses more opportunities to compete

Small businesses were the first to feel the effects of the pandemic, and I want to make sure they are among the first to experience the recovery. I’ll always fight to give them the resources to grow, succeed, and contribute to our communities. And I’ll always look for ways to promote economic growth, create more good-paying American jobs in New Jersey, and strengthen our workforce for the future.

Protecting Our Environment

Thousands of families across Ocean and Burlington county have suffered from flooding. Whether from the devastating Superstorm Sandy or from recent storms. There is even flooding on sunny days. We need to fix this immediately and secure our communities.

During my time in Congress, I’ve secured millions of dollars in loan forgiveness for shore towns still recovering from Superstorm Sandy, introduced bipartisan legislation to prepare our roads, bridges, and infrastructure for extreme storms, and voted for resources and funding to increase the resilience of our coastal communities.

We need even bolder action to protect our environment and make our communities more resilient to extreme weather. One of the best legacies we can give to our kids, grandkids, and generations to come is a safe and thriving planet. I won’t stop working to maximize investments in our coastal communities and create policies that mitigate the climate crisis and create a resilient future.

That’s why I’m fighting for our once-in-a-generation opportunity to rebuild our nation’s infrastructure and fight climate change by:

• Repealing tax breaks for oil and gas companies, making polluters pay their fair share, and cleaning up New Jersey’s Superfund sites

• Electrifying our transit system by investing in electric vehicle charging stations and modernizing our electrical grid

• Aggressively reducing carbon emissions at least 50 percent by 2030

• Continuing investments in coastal restoration and making New Jersey’s shoreline communities more resilient

The investments we make now will create thousands of jobs in New Jersey and provide a cleaner, safer environment to enjoy now and in generations to come. That is a future we can look forward to.

Investing in Families

The pandemic has challenged working families in ways we’d never imagined and has made it harder for so many of us to give our kids a good start in life. I ran for Congress to build a secure future for my family and yours. Recovering from the coronavirus pandemic means getting America’s families back on track.

I proudly voted to pass the American Rescue Plan, which provided shots in arms, money in pockets, and a pathway to economic recovery. Here in the Third District and across the country, the American Rescue Plan’s funding for school reopening plans, childcare, housing, and small businesses have proven vital to millions of peoples’ personal pandemic recovery.

One of the aspects of the American Rescue Plan I am most proud of is the Child Tax Credit, a forward-thinking investment in the future of America’s families that provides up to $300 a month for working families. In New Jersey’s Third Congressional District alone, 76.8 percent of children are benefiting from this policy, which is putting food on the table and lunches in backpacks, as well as helping households pay rent and bills.

But we need to do more. That’s why I’m also fighting to:

• Make the Child Tax Credit permanent to significantly reduce poverty in America
• Protect workers’ right to organize
• Expand access to pre-K programs
• Offer more job training and apprenticeship programs
• Make higher education more affordable
• Lower taxes for New Jersey families

Our families deserve more than just to survive. I’m committed to helping New Jersey families thrive so the American Dream becomes a reality for all of us.

Serving Our Veterans, Servicemembers & Military Families

As a former civilian strategic advisor to Generals Petraeus and Allen in Afghanistan, I’ve seen firsthand the sacrifices the members of our military make for us. That’s why I fought to get a seat on the House Armed Services Committee, where I’m proud to be a champion for our veterans, servicemembers, and their families.

New Jersey’s Third Congressional District is home to more than 60,000 veterans and tens of thousands of active-duty servicemembers that are stationed at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst. I’m committed to supporting and honoring their sacrifices and the sacrifices of their families.

I’m proud to have recently fulfilled one of my early campaign promises to improve healthcare access for our veterans by delivering a new state-of-the-art community health clinic for veterans in Ocean County, NJ.

And that’s not all I’m doing. Every day, I’m working to ensure that our veterans have the services and opportunities they deserve by:

• Doubling funding for veteran suicide prevention and outreach programs
• Ensuring veterans have access to employment opportunities as they transition to civilian life
• Prioritizing efforts to make sure no veteran has to sleep in the streets. The words “veteran” and “homeless” should never appear in the same sentence.
• Continuing to improve healthcare access for veterans
• Improving legal services for women veterans

When duty called, our veterans were there for us. I promise to always be there for them.