davecolenj

New Jersey! The second district. It's most of South Jersey, from the Philly outer suburbs to Atlantic City, Long Beach Island, and Cape May -- and everything in between.

Here's my bio, albeit in campaign-speak: http://coleforcongress.com/about/

The basics:

- Worked on '08 Obama campaign as a data analyst and field organizer

- I moved WhiteHouse.gov to an open source CMS and released code back to the public

- Worked with other govt agencies to do the same

- Helped design and set up the first versions of the We the People petition platform

- Worked on the "the good part" of healthcare.gov

- Early member at Mapbox, helped develop platform and work with clients

- Running as a Democrat supporting infrastructure investments for improving schools and wiring rural and non-competitive areas for high-speed (fiber) internet access

- Strongly support network neutrality, protecting free and open internet, taking on patent trolls, ending NSA domestic surveillance and supporting outside expert oversight, to name a few

Even though this is NJ, it's the US Congress -- votes affect us all.

HMO:

I'm a web developer from Mapbox / former White House tech advisor running for Congress. I released my campaign issues on GitHub: http://www.wired.com/2014/03/cole-platform/

I need help raising money to compete. Small donations welcome. http://coleforcongress.com/contribute

How I can help:

Happy to share my experience / advice with those interested in working in politics or government.

Once elected, I'll be a Representative in Congress who has worked in and understands tech. Here's where I stand on the issues: http://coleforcongress.com/issues/technology/ and a reddit AMA: www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/20wvx5/im_dave_cole_candidate_for_congress_nj2_a_coder/

dave [at] coleforcongress [dot] com

If only! Here's where I'm at now:

- Raise the national minimum wage and index it to the cost of living increases

- Extend unemployment benefits to workers who have lost their jobs and haven't been able to get back into the workforce

- Provide tax incentives to businesses that hire long-term unemployed workers and prohibit discriminating against the long-term unemployed when hiring

- Establish a work-sharing program that allows workers to collect unemployment assistance when employers choose to reduce hours instead of layoffs

- Provide incentives to employers for hiring unemployed veterans

- Support workers' rights to organize through the Employee Free Choice Act as well as trade laws that protect labor

- End tax incentives for companies that ship jobs overseas

- Fund school construction and modernization projects including urgent repairs, energy-efficient upgrades, and wiring for high-speed internet access

- Establish a National Infrastructure Bank to invest in infrastructure repair and expansion projects that will create millions of jobs nationally and open new economic opportunities

What do you think will work?

I respect the balance of federal vs state policy and don't seek to tip it. As others have pointed out, these are issues that the federal government regulates. I'd be happy to see states take on more of the burden on job creation, but national infrastructure projects are often some of the most cost-effective ways to create jobs and open up new economic opportunities. These are public goods that are not able to be privatized. Would love to hear your specific suggestions on ways this can be more balanced.

I simply mean that they aren't running and winning at the rate lawyers and those with long political careers are. I'd rather have them elected than only represented through lobbying groups!

I do not belittle it at all! In fact I think we should have programs in schools so more kids have the opportunity to get into the field. It's a wonderful profession that sadly too few people have access to. See the last Q here: http://www.itworld.com/networking/409027/meet-coder-whos-run...

I'd love to jump into this discussion. If you've got specific questions about what I stand for, fire away. Generally, though, my campaign focuses on the issues of job creation and education, because those are the most pressing issues I see here where I grew up in South Jersey. Every family has a story about someone who lost a job, spent too long unemployed, maybe lost healthcare in the process, and had to settle for a less stable job without benefits, less pay, or an hourly schedule. And everyone knows someone saddled with $30k in student loan debt settling for a minimum wage job after a degree, because the entry level jobs are gone or filled by those with more experience.

My district as a whole has not weathered the recession as well as many employed in our profession have. That's my top focus. I'm happy to engage a debate on how we do that or hear your thoughts.

I am not diminishing the work developers do in any way. I think the article's mention of "downplaying" just serves to put that in context of the issues I'm focusing on. Being a developer, having had the chance to work with an incredible team and contribute to growing a new company, give me important experience and a novel perspective compared to those who usually run for office at this level. I've tried to capture that here: https://medium.com/p/ce7c0dc63aaa

As for something unique, I have actually worked on government IT systems, as well as private sector ones. Go watch a Congressional hearing on a tech issue. Tell me you think more of us shouldn't be sitting in that room setting the record straight. Congress should represent all people, and include all professions like engineers and developers, not to mention people under 40.

Also, we're just a few weeks into the campaign, but next week I'll be posting a more detailed policy platform on http://coleforcongress.com, so I hope you'll sign up and stay engaged.

To the cynics, as I said in the comments of the article:

> Yes, the influence of money in elections is corrupting, but I refuse to give up on the idea of representative democracy. I'm willing to fight for it, even if the deck seems stacked. I see no shame in giving it my all.

> And it's a simple formula for how we win: less money from more people vs more money from less people. If people like you and me who recognize the system is broken put our necks on the line, work together, and contribute what we can, we will win. There are more of us who want to fix the system than those who benefit from it.

> So why not join me? http://coleforcongress.com