By Kyle Castellanos
Maria Elvira Salazar is a Cuban-American journalist, working in the industry for 35 years. Now, she is running as the Republican candidate in 2020 for Florida’s 27th Congressional District, which is currently held by Rep. Donna Shalala (D-FL). I sat down with her this week to discuss climate change her views on climate change as a Republican living in Miami, one of the cities most affected by climate change.
How do you think climate change will impact Miami?
Tremendously. We have a very long coast so we must bring federal dollars to Florida’s 27th District because we have Key Biscayne, Miami Beach, and we must preserve the beaches. If we preserve the beaches we are preserving our economy. If we don’t have beaches we don’t have tourism, and thus, our economy and jobs will be negatively affected. Our main goal is to bring federal dollars to preserve our sand, create reservoirs to pump our excess water faster, create a sea wall to protect against sea surges. Anything we need in order to preserve our coasts.
If elected, how do you plan on implementing policy to reduce the effects of climate change in Miami?
Bring federal money. And bring the best engineers to performs studies in order to understand and tackle the problem to the best of our ability.
Do you think there is a balance between economic growth and climate action?
I think there has to be a marriage between growth and preservation of the environment. That is why we need further studies in order for them to tell us what the best courses of action are. What specifically Miami needs to do in order to mitigate the effects of climate change.
Do you see a way in which Republicans and Democrats can work together in order to produce comprehensive legislation on climate action?
Absolutely. We have to work together on every top, not only on climate change, and that’s one of the problems we’re facing in Washington. People are just not talking to each other. These are the reasons why I want to go and help the [Republican] Party understand the other side. We all know that we need solutions. It’s just about sitting at the table and finding them. Not degrading the other side’s point of view or the solution they are bringing to the table just because it is not politically convenient to side with them, which is what is happening right now with prescription drugs and with climate change and with immigration. Both sides know what needs to be done, but they are not giving the other side the merits for political reasons.
What is the most important aspect of your campaign you want to communicate to voters?
The most important aspect is that I am here fighting for the interests of District 27. I am going to be a voice fighting radical ideology, anti-Semitism, and I am going to be very vocal. I am going to be present and fight for the people.