“Improvement usually means doing something that we have never done before.” ~ Shigeo Shingo
"Ask not what an officeholder can do for you but what can public/private/research partnerships do us?"
The elected lawyers and MBAs in government have not served the long term interests of our nation and planet very well. Voters cannot change the leaders of our corporations and private institutions but voters must begin to send a different type of leader to Washington.
This diary is about Texas but it applies to all...
What were Phil Gramm and Dick Armey doing prior to their election to the US House of Representatives? University teachers, they never held elective office before becoming members of Congress.
The late, great Paul Wellstone left Carleton College to join the United States Senate. Frank Lautenberg left his CEO job in 1982 to join the US Senate.
Wisconsin voters sent their “village idiot”, Ron Johnson, who married the boss’ daughter to the US Senate without a day public service, law school or a even functioning brain cell.
Poor Harvard-educated Al Franken never spent a day of his life in law school. Writing satire for SNL doesn’t count.
None the above Senators and House leaders had a day of law school or elective office prior to going to Congress. Many other great Congressional leaders missed prior elective office and law school as well.
Leaders who have climbed to the most influential perches in the academic, research and non-profit worlds have knowledge, networks and fundraising skills that are readily transferable to a campaign for and in the US Senate. Is the anymore competitive or political world that that of a major university or large non-profit?
These are leaders who know how to comprise and work as effective team leaders and committee members. These leaders would never allow their institutions to become broken as our Congress has allowed our government.
John "Let's break it and never fix it" Cornyn can be beaten in 2014.
Let’s make this election about jobs, jobs, jobs and future jobs and healthcare and education and the environment not social issues of the past.
When the railroads were being built they were heavily subsidized receiving land to sell and other financial support from Uncle Sam. During the Great Depression Big Government helped the drought stricken Dust Bowl with money for research and funds to support farmers testing what became modern agriculture. The Texas healthcare industry is a huge job creator. It was built with private dollars, Federal and Texas research dollars and the brains of university and corporate researchers funded with public dollars and corporate tax breaks for research.
What would Texas look like today without past public/private/research partnerships?
NOTE: Today, the Texas panhandle and west Texas are heavily Republican. Reading some of the Letters to the Editor in those small town weeklies leads me to believe most residents in those rural communities sustained by FDR's Big Government despise FDR and Big Government. Hate the Postal Service, the Interstate Highway System, the National Weather Service, the Crop Forecasting Service, etc. A blizzard or a tornado or a firestorm is none of the government's business. It should not be in the business of telling us about those things. The private sector can provide those services to each of who is willing to pay much more cheaply. BTW, none of their children or grandchildren watch Big Bird. They replay Mitt Romney's 47% speech!
Think “Outside the Box.”
In the immediate future two of Texas’ most productive industries face problems that will dramatically increase unemployment. What about your state?
Texas is in the middle of a predicted 5 year drought cycle, what can be done to help Texas farmers? End tax breaks for Big Oil and Big Coal and use those revenues to support rapid development of wind, solar and biomass farms on farmland hardest hit by the current drought. Replace some government subsidies to farmers with private royalty payments.
TRIVIA QUESTION: What Texas Governor has attended the most dedications of wind and solar farms? Rick Perry! Senator? John Cornyn. Over 7% of Texas' energy is furnished by renewable/sustainable resources.
After Virginia and California, Texas will be hardest hard by cuts to the defense budget. How can a US Senator not owned by Big Oil and Big Banking help create and foster of growth of 21st industries? We need candidates who support building industries with the jobs to replace those lost by defense cuts and technological change not another officeholder who lives in the past. Even T Boone Pickens moved on from fossil fuels! But not…
What are the issues that will be critical to Texans is 2014?
Is it the best interests of Texas or any citizen to send another lawyer or businessperson whose knowledge of job creation is rooted in the ideology of 1920s or earlier to Washington? In the 21st century it would be more effective to elect a Senator who has experience in and supports building partnerships between the private, public and university/research sectors to Congress. Those who denigrate the partnerships that built American prosperity are in denial of economic history.
I grew up outside Pittsburgh and two women Audrey Russo, President and CEO of the Pittsburgh Tech Council (PTC), and Christina Gabriel, Director, Innovation Economy, The Heinz Endowments have the experience we need in the Senate and House to enable America to become more prosperous and meet the competing demands of the 21st century. Google them, study their resumes and accomplishments. Each woman is well educated, has legislative and executive experience at the state and Federal level.
Who in your community has experience fostering the creation of new industries and/or helping those industries grow by leveraging business, government and research resources?
Ask, "Who developed the skills, acquired the knowledge and built the networks to enable Texas and my community to help conceive, birth, develop and nurture new industries to profitability?"
When making a comment please suggest who might be a great candidate and why. Others will discuss potential candidates as well as suggest other candidates. Create thread for your state to discuss possible candidates.
These leaders have networks in place for fundraising and volunteers.
Campaign Rule # 1: Run your campaign as the campaigns of the next election cycle will be run, not the last cycle.
What are the tools of a 21th century campaigns? What new campaign tools will be tested and used in 2014?
Finders, Keepers, I will not weep. Any spelling or grammatical errors you find are yours. You found’em, you own’em.