Smith shares his vision in Jay Co.

Tim Smith visited Jay County on Thursday as he continues his campaign for Congress.

Smith, a Fort Wayne resident and one of eight candidates for the Republican nomination for the U.S. House of Representatives in Indiana’s 3rd District, shared his campaign vision with The Commercial Review.

“I concluded my grandchildren do not have the opportunity that I had when I was young,” he said. “And I could either continue to whine about it or throw my hat into the ring.”

He is one of eight candidates for the GOP nomination in District 3, which covers the northeast corner of Indiana including Jay County, along with former Rep. Marlin Stutzman, Grant Bucher, Andy Zay, Wendy Davis, Eric Whalen, Mike Felker and Jon Kenworthy. Current Rep. Jim Banks is giving up the seat to run for Senate.

Smith spent the day in Jay and Adams counties, meeting with local officials, business leaders and farmers before attending an Adams County Farm Bureau event in the evening. He shared a campaign platform that includes cutting government spending, securing the southern border and defending “Hoosier values.”

On spending, he was critical of both debt being sold to foreign countries, specifically mentioning China, and the billions in aid that have gone to Ukraine to support its war with Russia. He advocated for a concept similar to former U.S. Rep. Ron Paul’s “Penny Plan” to reduce spending almost across the board.

(He said he would make exceptions for national defense and contractual promises such as Social Security.)

“Our spending is out of control,” said Smith, who lost a bid for mayor of Fort Wayne to Democrat Tom Henry in 2019. “And the worst possible thing I think from a moral perspective that we can do to our kids and grandkids is continue on that trajectory.”

Having visited El Paso, Texas, the previous week, he said his priority for the southern border would be to finish construction of the border wall. He also advocated for enforcing existing laws, such as levying fines on those who get caught employing workers who are not legal U.S. citizens, and overhauling immigration policy.

He also shared his agriculture plan, which he developed in conjunction with an ag advisory team that includes Barry Miller and Brian Homan of Jay County. It calls for policies including repealing the “death tax,” also known as the estate tax, investing in rural infrastructure and cutting regulations.

Smith, who worked for medical malpractice insurance firm MedPro Group of Fort Wayne for 25 years and is now CEO of non-profit Lasting Change, said his business experience and conservatism make him the best choice among who he considers his top GOP rivals — Zay, Davis and Stutzman.

“Of those four, I’m the most conservative,” said Smith. “Of those four, I’m the only businessperson who’s never been elected to anything.”