Most people think that as a Republican that there is no way I could ever side with labor. In fact most would say Republicans are unanimously anti-union. I am here to dispel that myth. As other Midwestern Republicans such as Ohio, have put their necks out supporting labor, I can put my neck on the chopping block too. I used to be a member of the United Association of Plumbers and Pipefitters and I made a good living at it when we had work.  I choose to stand beside labor because that’s the makeup of my district and if I want to truly be a Representative then I will represent all of us, not the 1%.

     With 25% of children in my area being born into poverty and 38% of my constituents living in poverty I can understand why we are irritated by someone who is making $20 million a year. It seems like a slap in the face. I bet most of us would be happy making far less than that. Most of us would probably be happy with a gainful job. In the coming days we will announce our strategy to combat poverty in our area. It is just as serious as crime in some respects. This election is as important as the election of Ronald Regan back in the day. We all loved Democrats but when Carter couldn’t return us to prosperity we needed a new direction. Oakes can’t return us to prosperity. She just does not possess the business sense or education that can understand that our area is much like a business on its own; and today we are failing. We desperately need to shore up our weaknesses to move towards prosperity and I want to see everyone here prosper including our invaluable labor unions. Our children and your future pensions depend on it.