SOUTH BEND — Luke Puckett says the American health care system needs to be overhauled; military commanders in Iraq need to be able to run the war without interference from bureaucrats in Washington; and strict measures need to be taken to secure the nation’s borders.

The 38-year-old Goshen resident kicked off his campaign this week for the Republican nomination for 2nd District congressman. He will face Tony Zirkle in the May 6 primary, and the winner will face incumbent Democrat Joe Donnelly in the fall.

During a press conference Tuesday at GOP headquarters in South Bend, Puckett outlined the key planks of his platform.

On health care, he said the nation needs a free-market approach to make affordable care available to every American who wants and needs it. We can do that, he said, by expanding care beyond the state’s four borders in order to drive competition up and costs down.

We also need to put an end, Puckett said, to frivolous lawsuits that give extraordinary awards to plaintiffs, thus driving up the health care costs for everyone.

On illegal immigrants, Puckett said, we need to enforce the laws already on the books and take additional steps to secure our borders against illegal entry. He supports doubling or tripling the number of border guards, he said, as well as high-tech security measures to keep illegals out.

Puckett said he wants to bring American troops home from Iraq, but only when the job over there is finished. A large part of the problem with the war, he said, is that it is being directed by people in Washington instead of military leaders on the front. He said he would change that.