Daniel Cottam

Daniel Cottam earned a bachelor's degree from Brigham Young University and a medical degree from the University of Texas. His career experience includes working as a businessowner, bariatric surgeon, and as a consultant with Medtronic.[1]

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I am a practicing surgeon in the first congressional district. I am married and have five children. I have started four businesses in the first congressional district and these businesses all relate to healthcare. Up until the age of 50 I had been registered as both a Republican and Democrat, but when I woke up on my birthday, my gift to myself was to register as a libertarian. The party principals all are aligned much more closely with my belief system. Currently the candidates in the first congressional district are all lacking in practical solutions to the hard choices facing this country. Being a libertarian allows me to speak the truth about the national debt, social security and Medicare. It also allows me to advocate for common sense solutions to these problems. In addition I can advocate for issues that are closely aligned with Utah's needs, and since we have a closely divided congress, a libertarian who holds no allegiance to any party is actually in the best interest of all Utah's citizens.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

As a libertarian I am not beholden to the power structures of either party. Many congressmen and women want to be part of party leadership like Blake Moore and thus make many bad decisions. A prime example of this is Blake Moore's repeated votes for a non-balanced budget. Each congress person has a bad reason for this. Javiar Milei, the libertarian president of Argentina, showed us how easy it was to do this. In Argentina which has run large budget deficit's for over 100 years he was able to do this in three months. There was some austerity pains, but the nation survived and is now running a budget surplus. I pledge to the voters of the first district to never vote for a budget deficit.Up to now neither opponent of mine in the Utah's first congressional district has advocated publicly for the need to reform Medicare. I am not afraid to say we need to reform Medicare. One of the ways I would reform Medicare is by decreasing regulations that prohibit patients from using less expensive surgical centers. I would also allow Medicare to negotiate with drug companies for drug prices. I would also make it easier to opt out of Medicare and stay on employer health policies further saving taxpayer funds.Social Security has been an important part of the retirement landscape for generations and everyone is afraid to do anything about it because they think they won't get elected if they advocate for any change. As a libertarian, I believe in fiscal sanity. Since social security will not meet its obligations by 2033, we need to raise the retirement age by at least 3 years across the board with a gradual phase in. The government has always borrowed money against social security benefits which leads to the government spending more money. We need to eliminate the ability of the government to borrow from social security and allow people to take up to a third of their social security saving and buy index funds.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

As a libertarian I am always concerned about government overreach. A prime example of this is Blake Moore allowing warrantless wiretapping of Americans without their knowledge. This happens as part of the FISA act and Blake Moore voted to allow this and voted against the Amendment to force the government to get a warrant whenever they look at American's data because he said it was inconvenient for the federal government. This bill conveniently applied to all Americans except members of Congress. Freedom is not a inconvenience. It is mandatory.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

Ron Paul, Neil Gorsuch, Clarence Thomas, Ruth Ginsberg and Justin Amash are great examples of principal people in the spotlight. They each followed a vision of the future and have stuck to their principals with rare exceptions.

Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?

The writing of Tyler Cowen and Alex Tabarrok on their shared blog the Marginal Revolution offers good insights into the thinking of modern day Libertarians. Additionally, the writing of Don Boudreaux on trade policy is extremely insightful into how I would legislate on trade. Milton Friedman offers good perspectives on the consequences of overregulation.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

As a libertarian we value the individuals freedom above all else. However, to keep this priority front and center an elected official needs to be able to say no to governments intrusions into our lives. It means saying no to the overregulation of our jobs. It means saying no to crony capitalism. It means saying no favoritism by the government in hiring and benefits. It means saying no when the president wants to get us involved in a foreign war without our consent.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

I am a principled person with qualities that would make saying no easier than someone else. The libertarian party prides itself on its ability to be disagreeable without taking offense. I hope to continue this proud tradition to the House.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

The responsibility of a congressman is to pass a balanced budget for the federal government. Everything else is secondary.

What legacy would you like to leave?

The most important legacy I could leave would be the first libertarian to be elected to federal offices and show people of the US that Libertarians can be trusted to govern the country.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

I remember the election of Jimmy Carter. For some reason I was not to pleased with him. Little did I know or appreciate how important his deregulatory impulses would be to the modern economy. He is the model of trade deregulation for the America.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

My first job was cleaning construction sites when i was 14 so that there would not be too much dust when the workers came to do sheet rock. It was hard and very dusty work. I did this for an entire summer.

What is your favorite book? Why?

My favorite book is always the one I am reading next. However, the best book I have read in a long time is Freedom and Evolution by Adrian Bejan.

If you could be any fictional character, who would you want to be?

It would be any hero in any Louis L'Amor book.

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

I am two days into college and I am three lectures behind. by Aimee Carty. This is what i always feel like.

What is something that has been a struggle in your life?

The biggest struggle in my life is finding the time to do everything i want to do.

What qualities does the U.S. House of Representatives possess that makes it unique as an institution?

The best thing about the house is the fact that every two years people can be voted out when they are doing a bad job. The current congressman Blake Moore is doing a bad job and should be voted out.

Do you believe that it's beneficial for representatives to have previous experience in government or politics?

I personally believe that previous experience in government is a liability not an asset. New perspective are constantly needed to prevent institutional sclerosis and group think.

What do you perceive to be the United States' greatest challenges as a nation over the next decade?

The greatest challenge is to get enough people elected who actually believe in a balanced budget.

Do you believe that two years is the right term length for representatives?

I would prefer three years so there would be more time to legislate and less time running for congress.

What are your thoughts on term limits?

Term limits are a good idea. The fresh turnover of people and ideas is needed in a functioning democracy.

Is there a particular representative, past or present, whom you want to model yourself after?

Ron Paul offers a look at what a principled politician looks like who is unafraid to say no.

Both sitting representatives and candidates for office hear many personal stories from the residents of their district. Is there a story that you’ve heard that you found particularly touching, memorable, or impactful?

In my local city an apartment complex wanted to be erected. However, there were so many people who were against it that it did not get approved. These same people complain that their children and grand children cannot live near them. Until we accept the fact that the only way to solve the housing crisis is higher density we will continue to have relatively unaffordable housing.

Tell us your favorite joke.

I am not a very funny person.

Do you believe that compromise is necessary or desirable for policymaking?

Compromise on most things is very important but on freedom of speech and a balanced budget there is little room for compromise.

The Constitution says that all bills for raising revenue must originate in the House. What role would this power play in your priorities if elected?

As a member of the house I will insist that every budget i vote yes for must be balanced. Until we elect people with these priorities we will continue to have inflation and debt issues.

How should the U.S. House use its investigative powers?

Investigative powers in the last 40 years have almost always been used for political purposes. When house investigations are undertaken there should be broad consensus of a problem long before the investigation has begun. This has not happened since Richard Nixon and it makes politicians look foolish.

What committees interest you?

There is no committee in congress that could not use a libertarian on it so I would be happy to serve on any committee. However, healthcare is a specialty of mine and i would be best there.

What are your views on financial transparency and government accountability?

Currently there is no financial transparency or government accountability on the federal level. This needs to be restored by electing people who can say no to the current power structure.

Daniel Cottam did not complete [the profile publisher]'s 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

Daniel Cottam did not complete [the profile publisher]'s 2020 Candidate Connection survey.