Mike Thurow grew up in Mequon, Wi, in a middle-class family where hard work and responsibility were expected. His father, a U.S. Navy veteran, worked at Marquette Electronics, and his mother worked long hours as a nurse practitioner while raising three sons. From an early age, Mike saw how much effort it takes for working families to stay afloat. Throughout his career, Mike witnessed moments that stay with him forever: supporting grieving parents after the loss of a child, sitting with children after the sudden death of a parent, and standing alongside families as their lives were permanently changed in a single day. Those experiences showed him how quickly any family - no matter how hardworking - can fall into crisis. His experiences reinforced his belief that the government should work for the people, not donors and corporations. Now as a husband to his high-school sweetheart and father to four children Mike is focused on building a future where his children, and all children, have the opportunity to succeed. Conversations with his oldest child and seeing the American dream disappear at the hands of corrupt politicians from both parties and corporate interests pushed Mike to step forward. He is running as an independent candidate for Congress in Wisconsin’s 6th District to challenge a broken political system and bring back an affordable America where working families can succeed.
"Surveillance price setting” is where companies build a profile for a person based on their personal data and determine how much to charge them for their service or product based on this information.
It is a symptom of weak data protection laws, and corporate price gouging gone wild.
I will be tackling both these problems by banning algorithmic, or surveillance price setting to individual consumers, and by pushing for much stronger data protection laws.
Both parties talk about affordability, but they haven’t done anything to make life more affordable. Let’s call it what it is - life should be cheaper. But that will only happen when Congress takes on corporate greed and price-gouging which I will fight for by enacting stronger federal oversight of utilities, pharmaceuticals, and essential goods. Rising utility costs are a huge burden to our families as energy companies keep getting richer. That’s why I will back legislation to reduce energy costs through competition and modernization of the power grid.
We must also break up the monopolization of our food supply chains, from seeds and pesticides to meat packaging and farm equipment allowing for more competitive markets and cheaper prices at the point of production and consumption.
All across the country, we’re seeing housing prices skyrocket as Congress stands with developers, not residents. I will fight to expand federal and state affordable housing programs, including incentives for developers to build workforce housing, and advocate for tax relief targeted to middle-class families, not billionaires and large corporations.
The tax burden is currently being carried by the middle class and small businesses. We can lower taxes for regular Americans without raising the deficit by closing corporate tax loopholes, targeting wasteful government spending, and cracking down on fraud. My wife and I are raising four kids - we know how important tax cuts for families are, which is why I will push for an expanded child tax credit that will make life more affordable for working families.
Production levels are at historic highs yet only a small sector of the ultra wealthy are seeing the profits. That is why I will fight to pass the PRO Act, to protect the right to organize by strengthening labor law enforcement and cracking down on companies that illegally fight unions. I will oppose bad trade deals (like NAFTA and TPP) backed by both parties that outsource manufacturing jobs and support federal programs for companies that hire locally.
I will push for legislation to expand apprenticeships and vocational training in partnership with community colleges and local employers, and defend pensions by opposing cuts to retirement security programs.
Workers deserve to be treated with dignity and respect - and that means jobs that can support a family, with protections for workers, and safe working environments.
As we move into a modern industrial revolution we need real leadership and decisive action at the federal level to make sure the tech billionaires do not trample everyday American workers. Congress has failed to pass any meaningful legislation regulating AI or holding tech companies accountable. We must stop Big Tech from influencing the way our government will regulate AI, and I will fight for legislation to ban technology that infringes on our personal privacy and freedoms.
Additionally, I would fight to make sure American workers are protected as we move into this next industrial phase. AI puts us on the precipice of a new era where many essential workers are no longer needed in order to maintain current production levels. We have been here before and know that this could be revolutionary, leading to shorter work weeks, and better production capacity, but that is going to take serious foresight to make sure that these benefits are passed on to everyday Americans. Protecting workers and making sure that they are represented in this tech revolution will be at the forefront of my AI policy work.
Have questions or suggestions? I would love to hear from you!
Campaign Headquarters
916 Silver Spur Rd, Rolling Hills Estates, CA 90274