Deluzio, Shaffer square off in Pa.'s 17th Congressional District

Iraq War veteran and voting rights attorney Chris Deluzio faces former Ross Commissioner Jeremy Shaffer in a race to replace U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb in Pennsylvania’s newly redrawn 17th Congressional District.

Deluzio, 37, of Aspinwall, earned the Democratic nomination to run for the seat in the Nov. 8 election, while Shaffer, 45, of Richland, is the Republican nominee.

The district includes Beaver County and part of Allegheny County.

Deluzio

Deluzio served in the military after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, deploying to Iraq. He later became a voting rights attorney and union supporter — all experiences that he said have helped form his ideals.

“I’ve dedicated my life to protecting this country,” Deluzio said. “I was willing to risk my life for this country because I love it.”

If elected, Deluzio said he would advocate for abortion protections at the federal level.

“I will vote in Washington to protect what Roe v. Wade used to protect,” Deluzio said, referring to the recent Supreme Court ruling to overturn the landmark abortion rights case.

He also said he would advocate for voting rights and support proper funding, training and resources for police.

Deluzio said he wants to fix supply-chain issues by bringing more jobs back to the United States. Western Pennsylvania suffered, Deluzio said, when factories were moved overseas.

“We’ve got to be making things here,” he said. “We’ve got to give workers a fair shot. What we’re hearing from people is they’re tired of getting pushed around by big corporations gobbling up our small businesses, fighting unions and workers and gouging people. We’re ready to bring things back home.”

Deluzio called for “regular, sustained” federal funding for infrastructure projects. He said he would support measures to ensure the jobs created by such infrastructure investments were union jobs with good wages. Such jobs, he said, should use American-made materials to further bolster the economy and ensure the nation is not as reliant on overseas supply chains.

“Neglecting infrastructure all these years has been a mistake,” Deluzio said.

As a veteran, Deluzio said he would fight to ensure Veterans Affairs is properly funded and staffed to ensure that those who served have the care and resources they need when they return home.

“There’s never going to be a day when I will vote to send Americans off to fight in a war unless I were willing to send my children, unless I were willing to look every single constituent in this district in the eye and tell them I think they or their kid should risk their life for something,” he said. “It’s not a duty I take lightly.”

If elected, Deluzio said he has committed to joining the bipartisan For Country Caucus, which aims to provide military veterans serving in Congress with a “nonpartisan platform to work together to create a more productive government.”

Shaffer

Shaffer, a former Ross commissioner and small business owner, said one of his focal points is ensuring that police are funded and supported.

“The police put their lives on the line every day to keep our community safe,” he said. “It is critical that we fund the police and that the police know their elected officials have their backs.”

He suggested increasing funding for law enforcement to help with recruiting efforts, training and purchasing necessary equipment.

Shaffer said inflation is another major concern of his.

“People are suffering,” he said. “This is a problem of our own doing. We have out-of-control government spending. We need to balance our budget and prioritize, just like families and small businesses do.”

Shaffer said he would not support cuts to Social Security or Medicare, which he said is a “promise we have made to our seniors.”

Shaffer said he believes bolstering domestic energy production would ease inflation by lowering energy costs, creating jobs and strengthening the American economy.

“We can do it in an environmentally safe and sustainable way,” he said.

Shaffer, who identifies as pro-life, said he personally believes abortion restrictions should include exceptions if the mother’s life is in danger, or in the case of incest or rape.

“But I believe this is a state’s issue,” he said. “It is exceptionally clear from the Supreme Court that it’s up to individual states.”

As an engineer, Shaffer said he was supportive of President Joe Biden’s bipartisan infrastructure bill. He said he wants to see proper funding for the nation’s infrastructure, but also called for government accountability in maintaining infrastructure so that a bridge collapse like the one involving Pittsburgh’s Fern Hollow Bridge doesn’t happen again.

He said he also would push for “reforming the system” by instituting term limits for Congress, ending gerrymandering and implementing campaign finance reforms.