Previously, I discussed the race in my home Congressional District, IL-12
The 7th stop of my tour and first one in Missouri: Rush Limbaugh's home district, Missouri's 8th Congressional District, which includes Rolla, Farmington/Park Hills, Poplar Bluff, Sikeston, Cape Girardeau/Jackson, Dexter, Kennett, West Plains, and Potosi.
Missouri 8th has ConservaDem or Republican-leaning tendencies.
Incumbent Jo Ann Emerson (R) is expected to win this seat safely. The competitors are Tommy Sowers (D), Rick Vandeven (L), and Larry Bill (I).
MO-08: Limbaugh's District is going to go possibly Blue in 2010 !!!
In November the people of Missouri's 8th district have the chance to send a Progressive to congress. To top it off it's also Rush Limbaugh's home district So here's everything you need to know.
Born and raised in the district, Tommy Sowers spent 11 years in the U.S. Army, as a Ranger, Green Beret and West Point professor.
He was born in Rolla, Missouri where he has deep family roots. His grandfather started the local paper in 1942. Raised with a deep sense of faith and the values of small communities, he was taught to serve others and work hard.
Tommy attended Rolla public schools and earned an Army ROTC Scholarship to Duke University. Later in his career, he won a Rotary Scholarship to study at the London School of Economics, where he graduated with a mark of distinction awarded to the top three graduates. He is currently completing his PhD in Government.
After two tours in Iraq, Tommy returned to teach at West Point, where he taught classes in American Politics and Mass Media and Politics. At West Point, he was nominated for an APGAR Award for excellence in teaching.
Tommy was commissioned into the Army’s Corps of Engineers in May of 1998. Assigned to the 1st Infantry Division, Tommy deployed to Kosovo where he led a platoon of Combat Engineers. He later attended Army Special Forces Training, where he graduated first in his class of Green Berets.
A Warrior on a Mission in Rush Limbaugh's Home District
Posted: 03.18.2010, by Paul Begala
Democrats who may be worried about the 2010 congressional races have a long shot hero this Veterans' Day in a most unlikely place: Rush Limbaugh's home congressional district, the 8th District of Missouri.
The southeast corner of Missouri reared Rush, but it may be about to redeem itself. This reddest of districts has a realistic chance of turning blue, and the reason is former Green Beret Tommy Sowers.
Sowers, who recently left active duty in the Army, has a gold-plated pedigree. Major Sowers earned two Bronze Stars in two deployments in Iraq. Mr. Limbaugh, the churlish champion of the chickenhawks, avoided duty in Vietnam because, reportedly, he had a boil on his ass. Some boil. Some ass.
Jo Ann Emerson spins her bailout vote
Sowers on The Ed Show:
Tommy Sowers Ad: Jo Ann Emerson's Horse Manure
Tommy Sowers's issues
JOBS
Since Jo Ann Emerson took office, our district has lost an estimated 16,000 jobs as over 150 plants have closed or laid off workers. We are the eighth poorest district in the country. Every politician promises jobs, but we have a plan:
Bring 21st Century infrastructure to Southeast Missouri
I had better cell phone reception abroad in Baghdad than we do in many parts of the Eighth District. We need new cell towers and improved broadband Internet. 21st century infrastructure will help create the conditions to restore jobs and economic opportunity to Southeastern Missouri.
Reform the financial system to benefit our small community banks
Community banks are the lifeblood of our rural communities, and shouldn’t be punished for the crimes of Wall Street. By changing the outdated laws on assessing banking risk, we can help restore credit to our small communities and help small businesses thrive.
CONGRESSIONAL REFORM
The current Congress is the longest serving in history. When I taught the Constitution at West Point, I explained to my students that the Founding Fathers were wary of government by kings, dukes and duchesses where power was simply passed within a tight group of families and relationships. Our Founders never dreamed of a class of professional politicians, whose every passing year in office makes them harder to unseat due to the campaign funds and favors they amass.
Institute limits on Congress
Congress should have term limits, just like the President: six terms for the house and two for the Senate. Congress should not be able to raise its own pay when the rest of the country is facing economic hardship. I get my healthcare from the VA, and Congress should have no better healthcare than our fighting men and women.
Limit campaign timelines
Elections need to be fairer and incumbents in Washington should have to fight for every reelection. By limiting the time for campaigns and fundraising, we can make sure that incumbents spend their time doing the people’s business and not waging a perpetual reelection campaign.
DEFENSE
Congress has the lowest number of veterans since World War II. Congress must check the Executive and exercise its Constitutional duty to declare, fund, and end our nation's wars.
End the war in Afghanistan
The U.S. Army's Field Manual states, "every military operation toward a clearly defined, decisive and attainable objective." Our nation cannot accomplish our objectives in Afghanistan without a commitment of billions of dollars and a permanent growth of our military. We need to bring our conventional troops home and combat terrorism with smarter, more cost-effective methods.
Veterans care
Our veterans deserve the best our country can offer. Our men and women who fight for us overseas should be able to return home and make a living for themselves and their families. In Congress, I’ll have a laser-focus on bringing jobs back to my district, so veterans do not need to leave their home to find work.
He has a lot of good ideas.
Jo Ann Emerson's issues:
Agriculture & Manufacturing
Southern Missouri is home to the farms and ranches that supply the safest, most affordable supply of food in the world. By working with members of both parties to make sure a safety net stays in place for our family farms and ranches we're working to make sure American producers to continue to lead.
Protecting Individual Rights
As a long-time and proud member of the NRA, I oppose further gun control measures and believe we must more adequately enforce the laws already on the books. In Congress, I was proud to support the exemption of off-duty law enforcement officers from the ban on carrying concealed weapons in Missouri.
A strong supporter of the Houses of Worship law to protect speech in churches as well as the effort to strengthen private property rights, I am proud of my efforts to defend the personal freedoms and individual rights of all Americans. Individual freedoms are what make this country great and I will continue the fight to preserve and protect the individual freedoms of all those in Southern Missouri and across the country.
Putting Healthcare Decisions back in your Hands
Last spring, President Obama, Speaker Pelosi and liberals in Congress told us they know better than we do when it comes to making decisions about our own health. They told us that we just don’t know what’s good for us and despite our objections passed a massive federal government takeover of our healthcare system.
The truth is there aren’t very many things the federal government does well. The last thing we ought to do is put them in charge of personal decisions affecting our health. That’s why I so vehemently opposed this government takeover. That is why I listened and talked with you and I brought your opinions to the debate.
Rick Vandeven's issues:
End the wars
Opposes the 2010 Health Care Reform Act
Larry Bill's issues:
He is a Christian Conservative nutcase.
A Pro-Life Conservative
Every morning I wake up and thank God I live in the greatest country in the world. I accepted Christ at the age of 19 at an altar call in a small country church. I have tried, occasionally failing, to lead a just life since then. My wife and I currently belong to the First Presbyterian Church of Jackson. We are pro-life and oppose government efforts to promote abortion. We believe that societal influence, church teaching, and the encouragement of two parent households by family members should be tools to help eliminate abortion.
Growing up on a farm in Cape Girardeau County, I have learned persistence and hard work are the only routes to meaningful achievement. I have used the education I achieved by attending Jackson High School and Southeast Missouri State University to make a better life for my family.
Why Larry Bill ran as an Independent?
I believe the financial trauma our country is now experiencing was a team effort of incumbent congressmen of both the Republican and Democratic parties. We did not want to go to Congress "owing," which is why we are independent and self-financing.