The Ride Begins

Yesterday, August 5 I submitted my paperwork to run for Enfield Town Council in District 1, having gathered enough signatures in order to get on the ballot. This morning I received a call from the Town Clerk’s office that my list had been certified and I was officially a candidate for Town Council. Now the journey begins.

I have been asked why I would want to run for town council. After all, I have two teenage daughters, am actively involved in their sports participation and am active in the Fermi High School music program.

To answer, I will say that I feel that public service is something that I have always been driven to do. From joining the North Thompsonville Fire Department when I was 19, then serving 28 years with the Enfield Police Department, coaching youth softball for 8 years, or helping out with the Fermi Instrumental Music Association, community service is something that I believe in. I’m not one of these self-aggrandizing individuals who feel that because I am in public office I am somehow entitled. I think of the town councilman in Glastonbury who, upon being arrested for drunken driving asked the police officer, “Do you know who I am?” Politicians like that make me sick.

In Enfield, we have some very good people serving in public office. I have tremendous respect for people who have the public interest first and foremost in their hearts. I will single out Scott Kaupin and Pat Crowley among those who put their constituents first and are not in public office for “the glory.” There are of course others.

In my press release, I stated that I am not running against Joe Bosco because I have anything personal against him. It is quite the opposite. I have tremendous respect for Joe and his family. They have taken a business that was started by their parents and continued the tradition. This is not about Joe as a person or as a businessman.

Where I have an issue is when it comes to a candidate running unopposed. Part of the beauty of our republic is the ability of people to vote for whom they wish to represent them. It is a right that we in America take for granted, and one for which much of the world would love to have. Unlike countries where governments are overthrown violently, Americans have the right, every 2, 4, or 6 years to change their leaders. In the case of the 1st Council District, why should voters in that district not have that right?

Running an independent campaign, without the benefit of a party’s financial coffers will be difficult. As someone who ran on the Republican ticket two years ago, I know precisely what I am up against. The Republican leadership ran a stellar campaign two years ago and the results from the election bear that out. As a beneficiary of that campaign, as well as a contributor to it, I know that I have a tremendous hill to climb.

What gives me reason for optimism is that with what I see going on in our country today, the time is ripe for an independent voice to be elected to public office. I do not believe that politics should be put above principles. In trying to conduct votes based upon my principles and not party politics, I was kicked to the sidelines by the Republican party. As the leading vote-getter in the 2007 municipal election, this was a bit surprising, although not totally so. That brings me to today.

Over the next three months, I will be posting on this blog various components of my campaign platform. Suffice it to say that with my public safety background, some of it will have to do with the safety of our community. Taxes, customer service, quality of life, and blight will also be among my concerns. While some of these issues are not prevalent in District 1, they adversely impact all taxpayers in town. These are the areas which I will explore.