ELECTION ISSUE
more restaurants, amenities, and an ever-growing number of shops and services that cater to you. But if you’re not, you probably feel you’re being squeezed out of the valley to make room for the ‘haves.’ You’re working longer hours to make ends meet, and watching your small town and caring community slowly disappear. And for people who’ve lived here a long time, the option to pick up and leave just doesn’t exist. Studies have shown inequality is bad for everyone, not just those without means.
“solving the housing crisis is the key to our community’s survival.” - Pete Muldoon
Q: Tell me about your leadership style. How do you run a meeting? Muldoon: I think being prepared is the most important thing. I’m fascinated by policy and how things work and don’t work. I don’t plan on a career in politics or lobbying; I just want to get things done. I’ve been an activist and have written about politics and economics for years because I have a passion for it, not because I’ve been paid to. I don’t take things personally. I’ll compromise on details, but not on principles. And unlike our current mayor, I won’t be negotiating with former or future lobbying clients. I’ll be able to base my decisions on what’s best for the community.
Q: How important is the presidential race to you? Who will you vote for? What do you think are the most important national issues? Muldoon: The presidential race is extremely important to all of us. I voted for Bernie in the primary; he’s not perfect, but he was the best option we had. And I’ve already voted for Hillary Clinton. Yes, she represents the establishment politician, but her opponent is an open racist, sexist, xenophobe and fraud who is an absolute embarrassment to our country. Climate change is an existential threat. Wealth inequality, structural racism, sexism, civil rights, the drug war, war in general, money in politics, elite domination of public policy, political corruption, mass incarceration, homelessness—these are all issues we have to confront as a nation. PJH
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Q: What do you say to the critique that Jackson’s housing crisis is deepening because of inaction? Muldoon: I think it’s true. It’s the main reason I’m running for office. Our current mayor believes that collaboration is the answer to everything, but collaboration only works when people are on the same page. Getting them on the same page is what leadership is all about, not waiting around for everyone to agree and to be happy with every decision. Our housing crisis is an existential threat to our community. Solving it is the key to our community’s survival. We need a mayor who will use
Q: What are the biggest health concerns facing this community and how will you address them? Muldoon: I think the lack of stable, secure housing is perhaps the biggest health concern facing us today. Health outcomes for homeless people or people with substandard or insecure housing are significantly worse. Stress, depression and higher substance abuse rates result from this as well. To solve our housing crisis, we’re going to need to make significant investments in community rental stock, deed restrictions, increased mitigation rates, and rental subsidy programs. The good news is that we can do these things if we choose to.
Q: Where will we house Jackson residents who are currently without homes this winter? Muldoon: There aren’t a lot of options for emergency winter housing. New housing takes time to develop, and that’s why it’s unacceptable that we haven’t moved more decisively to put shovels in the ground when we’ve had the opportunity to do so. I would support the town playing an active role in working with local motels that are closed in the winter to secure housing for our workforce. But the summer season is just around the corner, and we have a huge new Marriott opening with even more workers. I’ll lead the discussion about emergency housing solutions that Mayor Flitner refused to have.
| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |
Q: Do you support implementing rent control measures in town? Muldoon: I don’t. Solving our housing crisis is a community responsibility, and I think that rent control unfairly burdens landlords, many of whom are doing the right thing. I also don’t see a way to implement it effectively, and we might end up worsening our housing shortage by incentivizing people to take homes out of the rental pool. I’d prefer to see a subsidy from the town to landlords who agree to rent at a discount to workers. The Housing Department could qualify tenants and administer the program. And we need some basic tenant rights to go with this.
political capital and the powers of public persuasion to actually lead instead of worrying about being criticized.