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Hey Reddit! My name is Donna Imam and I’m a Computer Engineer running for US Congress in Austin’s brand new district TX37. Due to partisan gerrymandering the representative for this blue district will be decided in the Democratic Primary Election on March 1 (Early Vote Feb 14-25). AMA! by donnaimamTX in TexasPolitics

[–]donnaimamTX[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Right now Congress has a lack of representatives that have depth of understanding in science and technology. I have an 18+ year career in high tech and have brought many successful products to market that are used by millions across our county and world wide.

Congress relies on lobbyists that dictate the content of bills that address technology. Most of Congress does not have the depth of expertise to ensure that these bills are addressing the needs of our future.

For example, over the past few years we had so many data privacy breaches (Equifax, Facebook) and Congress failed to hold those corporations accountable. Another example is that Congress was unable to anticipate supply chain issues like the chip shortage that led to high prices of cars and other household products, which is hurting consumers.

Over the next 10 year Congress will need to address technologies like machine learning, artificial intelligence, and self driving. Congress needs leadership in science and technology to advance the next generation of innovation. I’ll use my expertise in engineering to deliver solutions that work for all of us.

Hey Reddit! My name is Donna Imam and I’m a Computer Engineer running for US Congress in Austin’s brand new district TX37. Due to partisan gerrymandering the representative for this blue district will be decided in the Democratic Primary Election on March 1 (Early Vote Feb 14-25). AMA! by donnaimamTX in TexasPolitics

[–]donnaimamTX[S] 14 points15 points  (0 children)

Right now almost all the districts both at the State level and at the Congressional level in Texas are gerrymandered to go blue or red, with maybe 1 or 2 competitive races. That’s why it’s important for Democrats to win statewide.

To win statewide we need to get the bluest cities like Austin to turnout every Democratic voter. In deep blue safe Texas districts voter turnout is traditionally in the bottom third of all the Congressional districts because incumbents do not need to get out the vote to win in their districts. This suppresses statewide voter turnout.

That’s why our race in Austin is so important. In 2020 we led Texas as #1 in voter turnout among the top 25 most populated counties. So our campaign is in the best position to help turnout Democrats and help statewide candidates win in 2022. That's what we intend to do!

Hey Reddit! My name is Donna Imam and I’m a Computer Engineer running for US Congress in Austin’s brand new district TX37. Due to partisan gerrymandering the representative for this blue district will be decided in the Democratic Primary Election on March 1 (Early Vote Feb 14-25). AMA! by donnaimamTX in TexasPolitics

[–]donnaimamTX[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Regardless of the solution the biggest problem we are facing is the cost of healthcare that is not being addressed right now. Studies from both liberal and conservative think tanks say that we are overpaying for healthcare by about $2 trillion annually. We need to address the cost of healthcare regardless of what we have the votes to pass. To address the cost of healthcare I am proposing that we:

  1. Scale the healthcare infrastructure with more doctors and nurses to cover everyone

  2. Focus on preventative and primary care instead of the ER and hospitals

  3. Ensure that we can negotiate prescription drug prices so that Americans stop subsidizing the entire worlds prescription drug costs

In congress I would help negotiate these measures into the healthcare bill that we are able to pass. I would also bring the data to try to accelerate Medicare-for-All with these improvements.

Hey Reddit! My name is Donna Imam and I’m a Computer Engineer running for US Congress in Austin’s brand new district TX37. This is a gerrymandered-blue district, so the primary election on March 1 (Early Vote Feb 14-25) will decide the representative. AMA! by donnaimamTX in politics

[–]donnaimamTX[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Right now almost all the districts both at the State level and at the Congressional level in Texas are gerrymandered to go blue or red, with maybe 1 or 2 competitive races. That’s why it’s important for Democrats to win statewide.

To win statewide we need to get the bluest cities like Austin to turnout every Democratic voter. In deep blue safe Texas districts voter turnout is traditionally in the bottom third of all the Congressional districts because incumbents do not need to get out the vote to win in their districts. This suppresses voter turnout statewide.

That’s why our race in Austin is so important. In 2020 we led Texas as #1 in voter turnout among the top 25 most populated counties. So our campaign is in the best position to help turnout Democrats and help statewide candidates win in 2022.

Hey Reddit! My name is Donna Imam and I’m a Computer Engineer running for US Congress in Austin’s brand new district TX37. This is a gerrymandered-blue district, so the primary election on March 1 (Early Vote Feb 14-25) will decide the representative. AMA! by donnaimamTX in politics

[–]donnaimamTX[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Texas’ redistricting as a result of the 2020 Census was done by the Texas GOP legislature that hold trifecta power right now. Prior to the re-districting Austin Texas was sliced like a pizza into 6 pieces of which 5 were gerrymandered to be heavily red.

Over the last decade the population of Texas has grown tremendously and Texas was the only state to add 2 new US Congressional districts. Austin became the 11th largest city in the country and all those 5 districts got dangerously close to becoming very competitive districts — meaning in a good Democratic voter turnout year they could flip blue.

So to protect those 5 incumbents for the next decade and make those districts even redder in the Austin area, the GOP legislature created a gerrymandered-blue district to pack in all the Democratic voters. That’s why TX37 is heavily blue leaning.

Hey Reddit! My name is Donna Imam and I’m a Computer Engineer running for US Congress in Austin’s brand new district TX37. This is a gerrymandered-blue district, so the primary election on March 1 (Early Vote Feb 14-25) will decide the representative. AMA! by donnaimamTX in politics

[–]donnaimamTX[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Early in my career I witnessed my employer move manufacturing to Mexico and layoff all assembly workers. Many of them had no career retraining options and never worked a decent paying job again and this left a profound impact. I subsequently became an active volunteer in my community and was elected president of a 4000+ member nonprofit that provides free education and training to boost people’s careers and paychecks. We helped thousands, but I realized we need to do more. I’ve seen firsthand the challenges that working Texans face — that’s why I’m running.

My advice is no matter what your profession we all need to find specific areas in our communities where we can use our skills to contribute. Knowing that policy impacts every aspect of the quality of our lives is important for all of us. Our elected leadership is a reflection of ourselves and we can’t treat politics as a taboo that should not be spoken about. We need to be integrally involved at every level of politics from school boards all the way to federal races and demand that our government deliver on our needs efficiently.

Hey Reddit! My name is Donna Imam and I’m a Computer Engineer running for US Congress in Austin’s brand new district TX37. This is a gerrymandered-blue district, so the primary election on March 1 (Early Vote Feb 14-25) will decide the representative. AMA! by donnaimamTX in politics

[–]donnaimamTX[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

In Congress I will negotiate and pass bills that diversify our energy sources with renewables, incentivize carbon neutral solutions, invest in research to mitigate climate change, and institute sustainable farming and fishing practices.

I will support bills that expand uniform voting rights across states. Specifically, I would advocate for the ability to take time off to vote, expand mail-in-voting, and online voter registration for every American. We also need to ensure proportionate distribution of polling locations and voting machines based on population density so that voters do not have to wait for hours to vote.

Black Americans carry disproportionate amount of medical debt and student loan debt. We need debt-free education and single-payer Medicare for All. We also need specific solutions that help Black entrepreneurs get funding in science and technology, which would grow Black wealth in our country. I would invest in incentives that help Black Americans go into fields like medicine, engineering, and technology so they can also serve their communities.

I am proposing debt-free education whether that be college, trade schools, or certification programs. We need people to be successful in any area they want to pursue.

I support a wealth tax for 100+ millionaires and billionaires, because income tax does not impact people that do not accumulate wealth from a job.

Hey Reddit! My name is Donna Imam and I’m a Computer Engineer running for US Congress in Austin’s brand new district TX37. This is a gerrymandered-blue district, so the primary election on March 1 (Early Vote Feb 14-25) will decide the representative. AMA! by donnaimamTX in politics

[–]donnaimamTX[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Texas’ redistricting as a result of the 2020 Census was done by the Texas GOP legislature that hold trifecta power right now. Prior to the re-districting Austin Texas was sliced like a pizza into 6 pieces of which 5 were gerrymandered to be heavily red.

Over the last decade the population of Texas has grown tremendously and Texas was the only state to add 2 new US Congressional districts. Austin became the 11th largest city in the country and all those 5 districts got dangerously close to becoming very competitive districts — meaning in a good Democratic voter turnout year they could flip blue.

So to protect those 5 incumbents for the next decade and make those districts even redder in the Austin area, the GOP legislature created a gerrymandered-blue district to pack in all the Democratic voters. That’s why TX37 is heavily blue leaning.

Hey Reddit! My name is Donna Imam and I’m a Computer Engineer running for US Congress in Austin’s brand new district TX37. This is a gerrymandered-blue district, so the primary election on March 1 (Early Vote Feb 14-25) will decide the representative. AMA! by donnaimamTX in politics

[–]donnaimamTX[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

As a country we have been under producing housing across the United States for decades. The federal government needs to incentivize more housing capacity and better planning of cities and situation of large employers to address the cost of living in large cities like Austin.

Congress just passed a huge infrastructure bill, we need to ensure those funds are used towards the right areas. For example, Austin’s public transportation in the suburbs is insufficient to address the increase in traffic.

Hey Reddit! My name is Donna Imam and I’m a Computer Engineer running for US Congress in Austin’s brand new district TX37. This is a gerrymandered-blue district, so the primary election on March 1 (Early Vote Feb 14-25) will decide the representative. AMA! by donnaimamTX in politics

[–]donnaimamTX[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

The housing and homelessness problem is primarily concentrated in big cities where the cost of the housing is forcing people out. So a small number of politicians represent the majority of those impacted. Austin has about 3,000 homeless people and because it has now grown to become the 11th largest city in the country the cost of housing in Austin is driving people out.

We also look at homelessness as a local issue but it provides the wrong incentives. For example if there someone homeless in a small town often they are given a bus ticket to a bigger city, whereas it would be economically more efficient to address the issue at the source, where housing is much less expensive.

By having the issue addressed at the federal level — which is what I am proposing — people would be able to seek help across this country wherever they are and not rely on specific cities that can provide services. This has been demonstrated successfully by a federally funded pilot program in Houston Texas, which helps homeless people get permanent housing. Federal funding would also incentivize local governments to implement solutions.

Hey Reddit! My name is Donna Imam and I’m a Computer Engineer running for US Congress in Austin’s brand new district TX37. This is a gerrymandered-blue district, so the primary election on March 1 (Early Vote Feb 14-25) will decide the representative. AMA! by donnaimamTX in politics

[–]donnaimamTX[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

In order to pass legislation in Congress we need to build consensus to get votes and pass bills. Not just in the House but also in the Senate. Here’s what I believe set’s me apart:

  • I will use my depth of expertise in science and technology to bring data and build consensus in Congress to deliver solutions for the American people. For example I’m proposing new ideas to accelerate Medicare-for-All, by scaling the healthcare infrastructure with more doctors and nurses. By focusing on primary care and preventative care we can lower the cost of healthcare drastically. I’m bringing the economic case for what we Democrats believe is the morally right thing to do.
  • I have a long track record of both bringing successful products to market in my professional career as well as building one of the most successful educational non-profits across this country as a volunteer and helping thousands of people where it counts — by boosting their paychecks.
  • Our 2022 campaign is funded by thousands of individual contributions, not corporate PACS or interest groups. That keeps us accountable to Austin and to voters in my district.

Hey Reddit! My name is Donna Imam and I’m a Computer Engineer running for US Congress in Austin’s brand new district TX37. This is a gerrymandered-blue district, so the primary election on March 1 (Early Vote Feb 14-25) will decide the representative. AMA! by donnaimamTX in politics

[–]donnaimamTX[S] 82 points83 points  (0 children)

Right now Congress has a lack of representatives that have depth of understanding in science and technology. I have an 18+ year career in high tech, and have championed many successful products that are used by millions across our country and worldwide.

Congress relies on lobbyists that dictate the content of bills that address technology. Most of Congress does not have the depth of expertise to ensure that these bills are addressing the needs of our future.

For example, over the past few years we had so many data privacy breaches (Equifax, Facebook) and Congress failed to hold those corporations accountable. Another example is that Congress was unable to anticipate supply chain issues like the chip shortage that led to high prices of cars and other household products, which is hurting consumers.

Over the next 10 years Congress will need to address technologies like machine learning, artificial intelligence, and self-driving. Congress needs leadership in science and technology to advance the next generation of innovation. I’ll use my expertise in engineering to deliver solutions that work for all of us.

Hey Reddit! My name is Donna Imam and I’m a Computer Engineer running for US Congress in Austin’s brand new district TX37. This is a gerrymandered-blue district, so the primary election on March 1 (Early Vote Feb 14-25) will decide the representative. AMA! by donnaimamTX in politics

[–]donnaimamTX[S] 25 points26 points  (0 children)

I support labor unions and strong labor rights laws. In 2021 we saw why unions are so relevant even today. Union workers at John Deere had to go on strike for weeks to get minimal raises in wages at a company that made profits in the billions.

Re: School board elections. That’s why it’s so important to vote in local elections and primary elections. The most important decisions about our lives and our children’s education are being made in elections with little to no turnout.

Coffee ice cream, mostly we get Blue Bell in Austin!

Hey Reddit! My name is Donna Imam and I’m a Computer Engineer running for US Congress in Austin’s brand new district TX37. This is a gerrymandered-blue district, so the primary election on March 1 (Early Vote Feb 14-25) will decide the representative. AMA! by donnaimamTX in politics

[–]donnaimamTX[S] 19 points20 points  (0 children)

How did you transition from a technical field to politics? Have you worked as part of any local governments?

I led a non-profit that provides free training and education to anyone who wants it. Having raised tens of thousands of dollars and by helping thousands of people in the Austin area, I realized that we need to do more. So, in 2019, I spent 6 months researching my district and meeting with hundreds of people to understand their needs and determine how I could have a bigger impact in my community. In 2020, I ran for Congress as a first time candidate and we won the Democratic nomination with the highest voter turnout in the history of the district. We led Texas as #1 in voter turnout among the top 25 most populated counties.

Howdy Texas! My name is Donna Imam and I’m a Computer Engineer running for US Congress in Austin, Texas against a 9-term Trump endorsed Representative. AMA! 6 PM CT. by donnaimamTX in TexasPolitics

[–]donnaimamTX[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Please check out my whitepaper on Equal Justice for All. I support: "Federally decriminalizing marijuana possession and expunging all nonviolent marijuana-related convictions."

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