As the owner of a small environmental business and as a school board member, I’ve paid attention to legislation that is introduced, debated, and ultimately voted on that affect me.  I was struck by the hypocrisy of the people representing me.  They’d acknowledge that schools are underfunded but vote for bills that increase costs to schools unnecessarily.  They’d talk about the need for more funding for roads and public transit and then allow the governor to use these funds for other purposes.  In short, it became very apparent that they were playing a game of working primarily to get re-elected while leading voters to believe they were working for them.

I teach my children and demand my employees take action when a situation needs attention and encourage them not to wait for someone else to deal with it.  This is who I am.

My state senator was not representing me or my interests personally, socially, professionally or otherwise. I was given no choice in who was going to represent me because neither my state government representatives were going to be challenged in this election!  This is unacceptable. I’m at a point in my life professionally where I can leave active management of my company and practice what I preach and not look to someone else to do it.

I asked my wife, who’s no fan of politicians, if she was okay with me running for office.  After some discussion, she said she’d support me “as long as I didn’t become one of them.”  Not only do I not plan to become one of them, I have no desire to make “politics” a career choice.  I have a career I enjoy.  I make more money now than I’d make as a state legislator, but I feel an obligation to use my experience where I understand that:

·    nonperformance equates to losing clients or jobs

·     nothing is possible without the tax revenues from the private sector used to fund the state’s general operations

·    getting re-elected is not my goal, but rather making the tough choices to ensure the well-being of the state and its citizens over long-term is most important

·    the games our elected leaders are playing is placing a debt burden on future generations, and I don’t want to leave my children with this

There is no doubt that running against a four-term incumbent in an Obama year will be a monumental challenge, but I feel good about the challenge for several reasons:

·    Illinois is ready for change.  Senator Link has been in office for four terms and for the last six years has had complete control with his party.  Everyone can agree that our state has NEVER been so dysfunctional

·    incumbents in Illinois, especially those aligned with Governor Blagojevich, have lost credibility with the voters

·    voters know that without a strong business presence, jobs are lost resulting in a higher tax burden for fewer people - a condition that cannot be sustained

I offer the alternative:  a representative who is not beholden to donors of organizations and businesses who benefit directly from legislation or contract awards.

Would a freshman senator in a minority party be able to make a difference individually?

Votes in the legislature count the same whether they’re cast by Terry Link or Keith Gray.  It’s only one!  Not wanting to make a career out of public service, I’d work hard to forge positive relationships and move legislation ahead.  I’d vote “NO” to allowing the sweeping of any designated funds, and most importantly I’d demand accountability.

In business, wasteful spending is met with ultimate failure because the business becomes less competitive.  In government, wasteful spending is rewarded by increases in taxes and fees.  This has to change, and just as I expect my family and employees to step up and make a difference, I plan to do the same.