Curtis here, my candidate Jeff Reed took part in a virtual Q+A with the 20,000 member Beer Party group on Facebook. We had a good exchange, Jeff showed why his candidacy is worth supporting.
Jeff Reed
Well, first off, I appreciate you allowing me to participate in this forum with The Beer Party.
Well, in Missouri's 9th District, we are currently represented by Blaine Luetkemeyer, A Republican and recent member of The Tea Party caucus. A few months ago, I got involved with the Coffee Party movement in Mid-Missouri. My involvement with that was a very valuable learning experience. It also led me to Congressman Luetkemeyers office to have talks on him sitting down with my group to talk one on one about what we could all be doing together to improve the process and the way of life for millions of Americans. Needless to say, my office visit did not go very well and they used that as an opportunity to fling GOP buzzwords at me for an hour.
The filing deadline came and passed and no Democratic challenger stepped up to the plate. So I filed as a Write In to give a voice to the constituents of my district, that do support a health care plan for all americans, that do want to invest in clean energy jobs, and that do want the middle and working class to have a chance.
Much thanks to the Beer Party folks for hosting us and asking great questions.
Getting Jeff's Generation Involved
Maria Suhr
My question is...how do you see your generation playing a role in reshaping the country?
Jeff Reed
Maria, great question. More and more young people need to be involved in the process. I mean, essentially, it is my generation that is inheriting the problems we face today. Something woke me up. Watching my friends lose their jobs, from reckless Wall St. betting, people losing their homes, it was all hitting way to close to home. So I stepped up, got involved in my community, talking to folks, getting them registered to vote, pounding the pavement. I have been fired up ever since.
Democratic Party Support
Herb Craven
Has the Democratic Party supported your candidacy as a write-in?
Jeff Reed
Herb. No, they have not. As a Write In, I actually have no party backing, for what I know, I am essentially running as an Independent. We have been reaching out to the Democratic groups in my district, and reception has been lukewarm as a group. But when I visit with members of the different Democratic groups in the district, they are fired up and ready to support me. They are glad someone stepped up and decided to, as my friend Martin says, make them defend their seat and positions.
The DNC
Brett Chapman
Evenin' Jeff, thanks for stopping by! Do you feel that the DNC should take a different stance on areas of the country that don't have a strong showing for Dem/Prog candidates? Do you feel that it might be $ down the drain? Or is there a middle of the road option I'm not lisintg? :)
Jeff Reed
Brett. I like the Howard Dean way of doing things, every seat is winnable. Especially when I am up against a candidate that has voted no on important measures like the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Affordable Care Act, The Disclose Act, and so many more. My district is a middle class district, and these are all bills that have had an immediate positive impact in my district. Take me for instance, I sell windows for a building supply company. Without the stimulus, one of our main suppliers of product, Simonton Windows based out of West Virginia, would not have had the opportunity to bring back hundreds of workers. Which means, if they are building windows, I am selling them. I have to believe that I personally have a job today because of the stimulus. I know it with all my heart.
DADT and Health Care Reform
Curtis Equality Abbey
Hi all, I'm Jeff's campaign manager Curtis. Please like our page on facebook and consider sharing it with your friends and family. We're raising money to air some radio ads we're taking donations as small as $1 at http://www.actblue.com/...
I've got the same questions for Jeff as I had for last night's candidate.
what changes in society and in government have you seen during your lifetime that you'd like to reform?
And what would you like to strengthen?
What formative experiences have you had in life that have inspired you to be a public servant?
Jeff Reed
Curtis is a beast, I just want everyone to know that.
Well, for one, the repeal of the barbaric policy of DADT would be high on the list. Why should we be turning away qualified members of society, offering to serve this country, based on... sexual orientation? We shouldn't, and I will be dancing when this policy is repealed and ALL men and women can serve this country.
I would love a stronger health care reform bill. I believe we made a step in the right direction, but it is not the final solution. It simply does not go far enough. I do not agree with the mandates, without the presence of a public option. I think we are just herding more and more people to the mercy of the health insurance giants. And that is not a good thing.
As for a life in public service. I just think people like me get lost in the flux. The everyday guy, that just goes to work, try's his best. Sure, we get "represented" in campaign ads. But that is not the real me. I want someone representing me that is like me. Someone who has been to the bottom of the totem pole, and knows what it is like to have to work your way up it, fall along the way, and pick yourself back up again. So many politicians were simply born into this, no experience.
Why Democrats Are Better For The Economy
Chris McGann
Hey, Jeff: As a small business employee you should be familiar with how much Congressional decisions affect the economy. We hear from the Republicans ad nauseum that more regulations and higher taxes automatically weaken small business and the economy. (Never mind the Clinton years.) Why do you think Democrats in general and you in particular would be better for small business and the economy?
Jeff Reed
Chris.
Well for one, in the industry I work in, the bubble that Republicans created in the 2000's through housing, is not working out particularly well for us right now and the past 2 years. I can speak from experience, our business has been devastated by the downturn in housing. De-regulating the industry, essentially handing over the keys to Wall St. and saying "here, do the right thing", has put a lot of peoples behinds in the pinch, to say the least. Right now, the gears are working against the small business and small business employee. Handing over all these freedoms to big business to persuade legislation and such, it is a eventual lose-lose for small business and its people.
Healthcare Reform
Joe Haffner
Good evening Jeff. One of the biggest issues facing this country is health-care reform. There is still a lot of partisan bickering going on even though Pres. Obama signed HCR into law in March. MO voters even said no to being "forced" to participate in the new Health Care reform. What will you do to ensure that the courts don't declare HCR unconstitutional? And if the courts do declare it unconstitutional, what will you do to bring about a future HCR law?
Jeff Reed
Joe, as I said before, I never liked the HCR mandates without the presence of the public option. BUT, I do understand why we have them. The Right can argue all they want about unconstitutional this and that, but the fact of the matter is, the reason costs are so high and healthy people like me keep getting our rates jacked up, is because so many do not have access to health care. Someone has to eat the cost. The mandates, I think of it like this. If I am driving down the road in my truck, and I rear end you sitting at a stop light, you are going to jump out of your car fighting mad, wondering who is going to pay for the damage. Your not going to wonder if I am practicing my personal freedoms, you are going to want to know who is going to pay for your car. Essentially, healthy people like me are being rear ended by people not having access to health care in this country.
People Voting Against Their Best Interests
Liz Wagner-Chapman
In Missouri so many people vote based on religious and conservative values. They end up voting the same corrupt people back into office. What are the main issues you are addressing to persuade voters?
It just makes me sick that people keep voting the same people in over and over who are so out of touch with us. Too bad we can not pay the politicians minimum wage and make them pay for their healthcare and benefits and lets see how they manage!
Jeff Reed
Liz.
That is why I think my simple write in campaign is a breath of fresh air to so many. I have raised about 500 dollars in a month. Compare that to the 500k the other guy is sitting on. Look at those numbers deeper, and he has received quite a bit from banks and insurers. Think that influenced his voting record some?
That is the message I am trying to drive home. We all pine for a Representative that knows what it is like to struggle to pay a bill one month, that has had to sit at work and worry about his job being there the next day, that has seen his health insurance premiums skyrocket or lost all together. I have years of experience being the little guy.
Small Businesses
Brett Chapman
I own a small business, and usually work FOR small business people when I have the opportunity, the Government is my only client, and business is SLOW (thankfully) I feel I understand the wants/needs of small business... if you were to start your own business, what would you choose?
Jeff Reed
Brett. A deli. I love lunch meat and cheese. I am a sandwich tycoon. HA! I have always dreamed of owning a little deli, where people could come in, buy some meat and cheese, maybe have me make them a sandwich, and they just sit and hang out, read the paper, talk to friends. A poor man's Starbucks.
Moratorium on Foreclosures
Linda Young
Jeff, how do you feel about a moratorium on home foreclosures?
Jeff Reed
Linda. I haven't kept up with that whole mess as much as I should. I know BofA and JP Morgan was having some issues with repossessing the wrong houses, selling homes with people still in them, etc. It was a mess. In my business, obvious...ly, it has an adverse effect because if people are not buying these properties, they are not fixing them up. It is a double edged sword. Yes, I want to keep people in their homes, obviously. But not being able to sell these properties to prospective buyers, has a pretty bad effect on the economy overall. So much American business is tied to housing. From carpet, to appliances, carpenters, and windows. Housing has to pick back up for us to really begin to move the meter.
Gay Marriage
Linda Young
A few years ago, Missouri voted against legalizing gay marriage in our state. Do you feel this is a state or federal issue, and what are your personal views on this issue.
Jeff Reed
@ Linda. Gay marriage is neither a state or federal issue. They are human beings, they are in love, let them marry. No one voted on my right to marry.
Campaign Outreach
Linda Young
there are many older people in MO who probably do not use the internet or facebook. How will your campaign reach these people and how can we help?
Jeff Reed
@ Linda again. That has been the most frustrating, for me anyways, aspect of this campaign. As I have said before, I am running as a Write In, so naturally, I don't have the influence and money to just say, well, I am going to take a year off and go run for Congress. I can't do that because I still have business to take care of on my own home front. I would love to be out and about in my district EVERYDAY, but I can't. So basically I am trying to get to as many functions as I can, talk to people, let them know their is a choice out there and see if they can help me spread the word.
CEO Pay and Outsourcing
Maria Suhr
Jeff...how do you feel about corporate CEOs making a killing while shipping jobs overseas, and what could/would you do legislatively to deter this?
Jeff Reed
Maria's question about outsourcing.
Outsourcing of jobs is something that hit my community particularly hard. In late 2007, my town of 10,000 people lost two industries that employed 500 people collectively. 500 in some places is a pebble in the ocean, but in Moberly, it is catastrophic. That had a real negative effect on our local economy. Those jobs went overseas, to never return. These jobs were held by friends, family, people you spoke with at the grocery store.
Tax breaks to these big corporations that ship jobs overseas must stop. Our middle class can't take it anymore. We need to give business incentive to set up shop here in the states, to hire our workers, to grow and hire more of our workers. Not enough is being done.
Roy Blunt and Tea Party Groups
Liz Wagner-Chapman
Jeff you are definitely a breath of fresh air and It is about time!! I see people praising the likes of people like Blunt. This man took money from a tobacco lobbyist and left his wife of 30 years for the lobbyists daughter.Talk about family values. In all honesty you are the first person I have seen running in I don't know how long who is finally in touch and you don't know how much I appreciate that!!
Jeff Reed
Liz. Blunt is horrible, and it is fascinating because all the local Tea Party groups have thrown their weight behind him, which I do not understand, because Blunt is the epitome of everything the Tea Party is against. '
Linda. My district... includes Columbia, straight up 63 to the Iowa border, Kirksville, Hannibal. It is a big district.
The Recession
Herb Craven
Jeff, It has been said that the recession is over, though it seems that, as usual, the markets are recovering but the American worker is getting little immediate relief. What would you do to try and reduce unemployment and create new jobs during this jobless recovery?
Jeff Reed
Herb. Numbers wise, the recession is over. The recession never ended. The number one growing industry in this country is clean energy. Naturally, it makes sense to start investing in this field. I heard one time that the state of Missouri was planning to sell ad space on our overpasses to make up for lost revenue. You want to know what the Germans are doing? Installing solar panels on their overpasses. Why can't we get it in this country?
MSNBC and Fox
Curtis Equality Abbey
Fun question time: You can only appear on one show on MSNBC which one? Same question for Fox?
Jeff Reed
Maddow, without a doubt. She is loved like no other in this house. She is tough, she is fair, she is hands down the best news person on TV.
If it was for Fox? Does The Cleveland Show count?
That was a great Q+A.
Here's the map of Jeff's district
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