My life story is proof of the American Dream. My family and I came to America from Chennai, India, when I was a child. We settled down in Kansas.

From there, I set out to live my American Dream. 

For more than a decade, I practiced oncology and led global initiatives for new breakthroughs in cancer medicine. I was honored to serve families in their most challenging time, and to come up with solutions to give them hope and create better outcomes.

Then, on 9/11, the unthinkable occurred. Through fear and destruction, I saw an opportunity to help. I became an American citizen and joined the U.S. Air Force Reserve. For nearly two decades now, I’ve served and today I’m a Lt. Colonel. 

My life story is proof of the American Dream. But my life has shown that if new leaders don’t step up now, that dream could become a nightmare. 

Our southern border is wide open. I’m a legal immigrant, but what’s happening there isn’t legal. Millions of illegal immigrants and hundreds of terrorists (that we know about) have crossed our border in three years. Fentanyl is invading our communities, including my own in Kansas. Most of us know a family who’s lost a loved one to this poison. 

The open border is a national security, economic, and public health threat to our country’s future.

The rising cost of living is making it harder and harder for new generations of Americans to live their American Dream. For millions of people, putting food on the table, putting gas in the car, and affording a place to live, has gotten exponentially tougher since President Joe Biden took office. 

The economic policies of the last three years are a threat to our country’s future.

As a military officer, I see firsthand the impact of weak leadership and poor decision-making. No example stands out more than the aftermath of the October 7 attacks on Israel. Instead of standing shoulder to shoulder with our ally in its fight against evil, Biden has done everything he can to avoid upsetting the extremists in his own party. Instead of speaking with moral clarity, he’s given a pass to “protestors” defacing statues of American heroes, shutting down campuses, and blocking bridges and roads. 

President Biden’s weakness has emboldened our enemies around the world, and violent extremists here at home. 

This brings me back to my home, Kansas’ 3rd Congressionnal District. I thought I would never run for office, but last year I saw a chance to serve my country again. 

Next week will mark one year since I announced my campaign for Congress, and I’m running to secure the American Dream for future generations. 

My opponent is Rep. Sharice Davids, an incumbent Democrat. Her track record epitomizes why Congress is broken. 

When Davids first ran for Congress in 2018, she ran on defunding Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Since then, she hasn’t visited our border once or put forward a single constructive idea for how we can secure it before things get worse. She’s simply voted however the party bosses tell her to — which means she’s signed off on Biden’s open borders agenda.

The same goes for economic policy. She’s signed off on every single one of the big spending proposals that have driven up costs for working families in Kansas’ 3rd Congressional District, and across the country. 

Back home, Davids plays the “moderate” card, and she’s played it well for the last two election cycles. I intend to flip the script in November.

Why now? It’s this simple: If we keep electing politicians who rubber stamp the party bosses’ agenda to Congress, the institution will continue to fail, Americans will continue to pay the price, and the American Dream will be even more in doubt for future generations. 

As someone who’s lived my American Dream — as an immigrant, a cancer physician, and a military officer — I refuse to sit by and watch while that happens. 

To me, that’s what this Independence Day is all about. 

Our Founding Fathers, and many generations that followed them, rose to the moment of challenges facing them. They put their reputations, and often their lives, on the line. They left it all on the field to secure freedom, and the American Dream, for generations to come. 

As we celebrate them today, let’s also remember that the stakes are high for America now, too. If we continue to allow a failed class of politicians to leave our border open, our costs higher, and our country weaker, we will not be living up to their legacy. 

Dr. Prasanth Reddy is a cancer physician, military officer, and legal immigrant. He’s running for Congress in Kansas’ 3rd District as a Republican.