Why Stand Up?

Now is the time we must all take a stand for America. I am in the race for Arizona's 5th for that very reason. I look around and see politicians and opportunists who are only running out of a desire for self-promotion, they have little concern for serving their constituents. I see corruption and appeasement at every level. When I look at my fellow Americans, I see the disgust in their eyes, but yet too many just sit there, few citizens are actually involved enough in the political process to run for office or help someone else make a difference. No, instead, the vast majority leave running up to others. Sadly, this has lead to a political nobility in our representative republic that doesn’t know or care to know the people for whom they are elected to represent.

Unlike most individuals who run for office, I am no sort of “insider.” I am just an average guy with some fresh ideas for restoring Washington to what it should be. I have good points and bad, and I refuse to hide the bad points of my life, giving you only a cardboard façade of perfection for which to vote. However, to be successful, we need to work together to retake Washington. To do this, you and I need to know each other. You deserve to know how I got to where I am and why I am willing to sacrifice everything to fight for what is right. You need to know why I am the best candidate in which to put your faith and trust, and know that I will not be swayed by political pressure, money, favors, or any of the other pollutants that go along with the status quo in Washington. You need to know that I do have the strength and courage to stay the course and finish what I have started without conceding. And you also need to know that my fight is temporary and that my time in Washington will be limited. I firmly believe we must change our representation regularly in order to keep Washington resolute, and to foster new creative ideas with a steady, Constitutionally-based direction.

I am not the “perfect” politician, far from it. Like everyone, I’ve made mistakes. I have had some great moments (and some fairly lousy ones) in my life, but I have learned from my errors and believe I can make a difference in Washington. The silent majority of Americans need to send an unequivocal message to the elitist and self-proclaimed nobility in both parties who prefer to rule over us instead of govern with us. If we the people truly want accountability in our government, we must first take the responsibility ourselves. Those in the powerful circles who can purchase government influence and keep control of that position year after year shouldn’t be the only ones allowed to represent you.

While I have spent the last 13 years in Arizona leading up to the 2010 primaries trying to build and maintain my business, I have also been raising my kids as a single father, trying to keep afloat when times weren’t exactly on my side in the real estate industry. At one point, I was even baking bagels at 3 AM, selling real estate from 9-5, then waiting tables at Cheesecake Factory at Chandler Mall until late at night just to get by. My perseverance paid off though, because I was ranked in the top 1% of Realtors in the nation just a few years after breaking into real estate.

Nevertheless, I have had my failures and embarrassments - I even had the police called on me years ago for swimming at home “au natural” with my girlfriend at the time and jumping out of the backyard pool to run and grab a pool float from a garage cabinet. What should have been a private moment quickly turned into my most embarrassing moment. Little did I know that the neighbors had been watching me for the better part of a year and said nothing! I watched on TV the other day where, while shooting a music video, a musician stripped completely nude at Dealey Plaza in Dallas, in front of families with small children. Not a single police officer at the time said a word, and no one there complained! I’m at home and get in trouble for offending a neighbor, but if it’s in public and in the name of “art,” it’s OK? Double standard?

I’ve been told that issues like this in our past make us incapable of running for public office in the future. By making mistakes or bad decisions at some point in our life, we forfeit the right for future opportunity. I don’t believe that. I believe one is judged not by their mistakes but by how the rebound and move on after making those mistakes.

I was at an event the other day and while discussing Arizona’s DUI laws and society’s new level of awareness about alcohol, I disclosed that I had received a DUI about 12 years ago after having just 2 drinks with friends over dinner. On the way home, I was stopped for speeding and received a DUI. I was shattered. I had always thought DUIs were for “drunks” or people who drank heavily and often. Many in the audience no doubt judged me at that moment and it may or may not be the deciding factor in voting for me or someone else, but I made the disclosure, to make a point while they were finishing their cocktails and wrapping up their evening and about to head home in their cars. Many, if not most, were doing the exact thing they were judging me for. Obviously, today awareness of the effects of alcohol is much higher than it was then, but that event was a huge turning point in my life. It was a solid reminder of how harsh lessons in life can be and how permanently a bad decision can mark your life.

Why am I sharing all of this with you? Because many in the political arena try to display only their best side, hiding any failures or indiscretions in their past. This practice is continued even after they get in office. I refuse to do that. By hiding from the past, you never learn from it, and are not being honest with those whom you wish to represent.

I wake up each and every day with the same goals: try to live my life right, provide for my children, be an example, leave every day better than I found it, and never stop trying. Some days I succeed, some days I don’t, but I still keep working toward achieving that goal with the same passion- regardless of how disappointing the previous day may have been. I believe true character is demonstrated by the way in which people reengage in life after making mistakes, not by the mistakes themselves.

I’m not politically correct, and I don’t want to be. Like all of us, I am who I am: the good and the bad. I will assure you though that with your help I will deliver on my campaign promises to fight for you and with you in Washington. Your support is vital to the success of my campaign to make the federal government more accountable to the citizenry and to take common sense solutions to the floor of the Congress. I believe I can do that better than anyone running right now, but if you decide I can’t because of my imperfections, we need to find someone who can, someone who will fight for what’s left of the middle class in this country, and get behind that candidate with all our energy!

In some ways my embarrassments and mistakes have become a cornerstone to my campaign. Everything discussed here has been discussed openly with my opponents and in forums and I hope that in some ways it encourages others who have made mistakes or gotten off on the wrong track to reengage. We can’t self limit ourselves or tell ourselves that we have to surrender our dreams because of past screw ups. Believe me, there are plenty of people out there that will tell you that. You don’t need to agree with them. If we are to be denied our rights and our opportunities because of stupid missteps in life, even when we are willing to take responsibility, pick up and move on, then Obama has already won. People will continue to be discouraged to challenge the system or status quo over risk of embarrassment. They will self limit themselves and stifle their level of achievement in life. We will see more people without a sense of purpose, and more people dependent on entitlements.
It is my hope that you will look on my life’s achievements, missteps, and embarrassments with understanding and even see yourself in these situations. Individuals must be encouraged to run for office despite minor errors and I hope my candidacy will inspire others to reengage after failures and to continue to fight to achieve whatever their goals may be. We can never allow anyone to tell us that we cannot or should not do something as important as run for political office out of fear or embarrassment over simple mistakes. Instead, we must continue to strive for better and do what is right in our heart. America is the land of opportunity, and I believe that opportunity is even for those that mess up from time to time. Success, however, only goes to those who have the resolve to pick themselves up, brush off the dirt, and take life by the horns. One of my heroes, Chris Gardner, who inspired the movie, Pursuit of Happyness and portrayed by Will Smith has a great book, Start Where You Are. The title alone sums it up for me, and many in America today and I think symbolizes our entire movement. We have to start where we are. We can’t change the past and being a victim, blaming others, or refusing to be accountable just prevents you from getting a fresh, true start. If you ever want to finish where you want, you have to start where you are.
I hope this helps many of you that I have not been able to meet or who have not been able to hear me speak understand a little of who I am, and why I am doing this. I hope that I will also have the opportunity to earn you support throughout this process and that if not, I hope that you stay strong behind whichever candidate you choose and help course correct this great nation.