I would like to thank the many people who supported our citizen-owned campaign. Your support was humbling. It is encouraging to know the grassroots are still growing. I am proud to live in a country where ordinary citizens have the right to participate by voting, volunteering, offering financial support, and even running for public office. As long as we have citizens who are willing to devote their time and energy to our political system, there is hope for a bright future.
Our Constitution lays out the blueprint for what is likely the best model of government on earth. Unfortunately, the system we have right now would be all but unrecognizable to our Founding Fathers. Today our government is nearly exclusively about Big Money. Candidates are judged based on their fundraising ability, not their ideas. Incumbents ensure themselves life-long positions by trading access to their power and our tax dollars in exchange for large campaign donations. In the end the candidate who raises the most money almost always wins. And the candidate who raises the most money is usually the one who is the most morally flexible.
If we are to ever have elected officials that work for our benefit, we will need to bring a much-needed adjustment to this system. If you found anything to your liking in our citizen-owned campaign, I urge you to read about and support a system of publicly-financed campaigns. Public Campaign is an organization devoted to advocating for publicly-financed campaigns. It is time to improve our system so “we the people” can once again be represented by people who work for us, not for special interests.
Having the opportunity to stand as the Democratic Party’s nominee for the U.S. House in the 4th District has been both an honor and a privilege. While our campaign for this particular seat in Congress has reached its end, our campaign for a “people’s seat in Congress” is just beginning. We must never give up hope that we can recapture our government for “we the people.” We will continue to fight by your side for reforms that will help restore our nation, and honor America’s promise.
