Friends,
A lot has happened since I last visited with you. First and foremost, we had an election. The election of President Barack Obama has given our nation a new beginning. We, once again, can claim to be the last, best hope for this world. I am so proud to have run as a candidate for the U.S. House in 2008, and to have been able to help Senator Obama become President Obama.
My own Congressional election in Florida’s 12th District was also very successful. While we did not take the seat, we did take over 137,000 votes. That gave us 42.5% of the electorate, which was the second best showing of any House challenger in the State of Florida. To understand why I dare call that a success, you have to remember that we were running against the third most-powerful Republican in the House, Adam Putnam. Mr. Putnam outspent us 18 to 1, and we still did almost 13 percentage points better than any other candidate who had faced Putnam in the past. So, we were very successful, even though we did not take the seat.
On the night of the election, despite having campaigned on his powerful position as the Chairman of the Republican House Caucus, Mr. Putnam resigned that position. Two months later, he announced he would not seek a sixth term in the House, as he is running for a state-wide office. It is widely assumed that he intends to run for Governor of Florida in 2014 or 2018.
So here we are: 15 months away from the 2010 elections with an open seat before us. I ABSOLUTELY, POSITIVELY COULDN’T BE HAPPIER!
While we know that there will be many challengers for this open seat, we also know that the groundwork we laid in 2008 will help us greatly in 2010. Now, don’t get me wrong; there’s a lot of very hard work to be done. But to be starting from a position of power is a direct result of the hard work we’ve already done together. Please help us keep the momentum going with a contribution. Please Contribute Now!.
A supporter of mine from Ft Meade, Florida, asked me the other day, "What are gonna be your issues this time?" I told him, "The issues don’t change, just the players." The issues I championed in 2008 are still relevant today.
• We must still end America’s military involvement in Iraq’s civil war.
• We must still ensure access to adequate healthcare for every American.
• We must still change our economic system to ensure accountability and basic economic fairness and justice.
• We must still ensure our education system is our number-one, long-term domestic priority.
I look forward to working with you during the next 15 months to address these issues and to win this seat. I also look forward to representing your progressive values for as long as I am in office.
Your brother, Doug
Doug Tudor for Congress – Please Contribute at ACTBLUE!.