It seems to me that anyone running for Congress should be able to tell you, in a paragraph or two, why they want to hold that position, and why you should vote for them.
First, I would like to thank Congressman John Peterson for his 40 years of public service, the last 12 of which were as our Congressman in Washington DC. I have had the opportunity to work with John on numerous occasions, most recently in opposition to the plan to toll I-80, and as many of you here can attest, he may be the hardest working member of Congress down there. We are all thankful for his dedication to the people of the 5th district and all of rural America.
With that said, I am running to be your next Congressman because I have the most drive and the most experience to step into those shoes and lead the fight to improve our communities here in Rural Pennsylvania.
As we all know, rural Pennsylvania is about the communities. Every day in the small towns and cities that make up the 5th District, men and women wake up and spend their days making their communities better. And just like all of you, I spend every day working to make my community better. As a father and husband, as a leader in a number of community organizations, as a health care executive, and as mayor of one of 5th District’s most vibrant communities, my life is defined by my commitment to making our communities better.
I understand the challenges that our families, cities and towns face because I have faced them myself. As a husband and father, I know what it is like to pay a mortgage and the heating bill…to have to fill up the tank with $3 gasoline and pay child’s college tuition bill. As Mayor, I have faced the challenges of maintaining the roads and sidewalks of a small town or finding new innovative ways to keep crime out of our communities and fight illicit drug use.
It’s from these real life experiences as well as the ones I have gained from working to better a small community hospital or helping run a small family owned business that make me the most qualified to serve you as your next Congressman.
From the way that the state has treated rural Pennsylvania in its efforts to toll I-80 to the efforts by federal government bureaucrats to cut off programs that are the economic lifelines for rural areas, rural Pennsylvania needs not only a voice, but an experienced fighter to stand up to the federal bureaucracy in Washington DC .
I am running to be your Congressman because I have the experience to lead that fight to improve our communities, here in Rural Pennsylvania and across Rural America. As your Congressman, I will focus on fighting for jobs, improving health care, and developing new opportunities for rural communities like innovative energy sources. I will be just like you, someone who wakes up every morning and spends their day working to make their community better.
Authorized by Friends of John Stroup
