Ben Butler, Republican candidate for Florida’s Ninth Congressional District, wants to bring rural, farming values to Washington, D.C.

Butler, a ninth-generation Floridian, said if elected, his priorities in Congress will include protecting the nation’s food supply, improving infrastructure, reducing federal spending, and improving health care, especially in rural areas.

"I'm committed to show up for work. It's what I've done my whole life. I've been raised to keep working until the job is done. You don't give up in farming," he said.

Food security is part of national security, Butler said. “A nation that can’t feed itself is in trouble.”

He said the U.S. needs to bring back domestic food production. U.S. farmers compete with farmers in other countries, but U.S. farmers must also meet higher standards than their competitors, he continued.

“Our food policy is not designed to keep farmers profitable,” he said. “It’s designed to make sure we have affordable domestic supply.”

When natural disasters such as drought, wildfires and hurricanes impact farmers, they need assistance from the federal government. When disaster help has been allocated in the past, “in many cases, it takes three years to get that money in the hands of the people who need it,” he continued. He promotes shrinking the federal bureaucracy and providing block grants for the states to administer disaster relief.

Butler said the U.S. could also save money by letting the states take over supervision of some federal construction projects. “The federal bureaucracy is so much harder to deal with,” Butler said. Contractors bidding on a federal project bid a third higher, he explained, because they know there will be delays due to the federal red tape.

“The state has the ability to push back and negotiate with the contractors,” he said. Butler said he saw this happen when the State of Florida took over administration of some of the contracts for the Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoir. The state can get these projects in half the time at two-thirds of the cost, he added.

“We have got to get it back to where our federal government can show a profit and pay back our national debt,” said Butler.

“My first priority as a Congressman will be to pore through areas I am familiar with and find ways to make things more efficient and reduce costs,” he said.

The federal government is facing an impending crisis with funding Medicare and Social Security, he continued. “We made promises to our retirees that we must keep.”

He said there will need to be some tough discussions with everyone about these programs. “We as a nation can’t keep our head stuck in the sand.”

Butler said the rural communities need federal help with additional infrastructure for health care. “I want to make sure we have the same access to health care in our rural communities that they have on the coast,” he said.

Butler said he is a big proponent of transparency in medical costs. Consumers should be able to shop around for non-critical procedures, he said, even if they have health insurance.

He said he would support a Constitutional Amendment to place term limits on members of Congress.

He also supports rules to prevent government officials, who have early access to information, from stock trading and taking part in prediction markets.

Congressional Representative District 9 Republican candidates are: Ben Butler, Marcus Carter, Thomas E. Chalifoux Jr., Dan Green, Jorge Martinez, Steve Rance and Justin Story.

Early voting in the Aug. 18 primary election will be Aug. 8-15 in Okeechobee and Glades Counties.

In Glades County, early voting will be 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Supervisor of Elections Office, 998 U.S. Highway 27 S (rear entrance).

In Okeechobee County, early voting will be 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Supervisor of Elections Office, 307 N.W. Fifth Avenue.

On Aug. 18, Election Day voting will be from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at designated polling locations.