OR-5: Kurt Schrader Hits the Campaign Trail
Congressional candidate Kurt Schrader made his first campaign appearance in Salem yesterday speaking at a Marion County DemoForum.
From the Statesman Journal:
Inside the Capitol, Kurt Schrader is best known as the Senate co-chairman of the legislative committee that writes the state budget.In Clackamas County, Schrader has been elected three times to the House and twice to the Senate, and his wife, Martha, is a county commissioner.
But in the rest of the Mid-Valley and the central coast that falls within Oregon's 5th Congressional District, Schrader is largely unknown.
So he began Wednesday to promote himself for the May 20 Democratic primary, which has drawn five candidates seeking to succeed retiring Rep. Darlene Hooley of West Linn. Three Republicans also are in the race.
Schrader outlined his background as well as his priorities as a US Representative:
"I'm the only candidate in the race who actually has experience doing these things," he said to more than 50 people at a Marion County DemoForum luncheon. "I have a proven track record of delivering. I've taken tough votes. It's not easy being a legislator sometimes, especially if you are like me and speak your mind."Schrader also talked about his 30 years of managing a small business — he is a veterinarian with two clinics — and his early years as the Senate co-chairman of the budget committee.
"We went through one of the roughest times in our state's history, the worst recession (for the budget) since the Great Depression," he said. "... But I thought I did a good job, and it's the type of expertise that I think we need right now in Washington, D.C."
As a U.S. representative, Schrader said he would continue Hooley's support for veterans and work on more federal aid for education, clean energy, and repairs of highways, water and sewer lines.
He also added a little fire to his appearance:
"But the reason I'm running is that I'm mad as hell," he said. "This current administration is an abomination."
Read the rest. Discuss.
|
April 03, 2008
Posted in in the news. |
More Recent Posts | |
Albert Kaufman |
|
Guest Column |
|
Kari Chisholm |
|
Kari Chisholm |
Final pre-census estimate: Oregon's getting a sixth congressional seat |
Albert Kaufman |
Polluted by Money - How corporate cash corrupted one of the greenest states in America |
Guest Column |
|
Albert Kaufman |
Our Democrat Representatives in Action - What's on your wish list? |
Kari Chisholm |
|
Guest Column |
|
Kari Chisholm |
|
connect with blueoregon
Apr 3, '08
So does this mean he's going to debate Steve Marks or what?
Apr 3, '08
The other question I have, is now that he is running for US Congress, will he take a hard line against the war and against foreign intervention and aggression, or will he just pay lip service and pander to us, while still voting in favor of the war and military spending like most of the rest of the democrats?
Apr 3, '08
Was glad to hear Kurt at Marion Demoforum. Not only talked about ending the war and what could be done with the money saved, but also talked about caring for veterans.
We should all hope the US Senate debate at Portland City Club on Friday has the same level of serious policy debate as what we saw with Kurt at Demoforum.
Apr 3, '08
Is Kurt doing any good with his cyber campaign?
9:50 p.m.
Apr 3, '08
cyber?! What is this, the 1980s?
I'll leave the evaluation to others, but the Kurt Schrader for Congress website is right here.
My firm built that website, but I speak only for myself.
5:10 a.m.
Apr 4, '08
Kurt is one of the great lawmakers who has shown an incredible work ethic. I appreciate the fact that when he says he will do something...he actually does it. And, that "fire" is always there so that when you give him a problem that needs to be addressed he moves on it.
Apr 4, '08
I'm not a resident in the 5th district, and know very little about it. I'd sure appreciate some brief comments as to how this district may go in the general election.
Apr 4, '08
I'm planning on voting for Kurt because he's familiar with ag issues on both the large producer scale and the small producer/homesteader scale. Understanding both sides of an issue as fundamental as food production is very important at both the state and federal levels especially in light of the amount of international trade in agricultural commodities and the continuing shift from locally produced food and animal feeds to those sourced from foreign countries.
In addition, I think that understanding both sides of this issue makes it easier for him to understand both sides of other issues and it makes him more sensitive to the needs of individual citizens, a quality I found lacking in Darleen Hooley, especially in the ag field.
Apr 4, '08
How come Ross Day owns kurtschraderforcongress.com?
And how come he's listed a being from Chemeketa Community College on the registration... is squatting a domain name part of his job description at CCC?
What a goofball.
Apr 4, '08
Is Kurt's cyber campaign organizing like Obama's, Bill Richardson’s, Ron Paul's? Or is it just an online brochure? Or just an online donation source? Is it a major organizing tool for Kurt's supporters through forums, blogs, meetups, communities?
<hr/>