Ladies and gentlemen I would like to introduce you to Dr. Seldon Spencer. He is running for Congress in Iowa's 4th district.
I first learned of Dr. Spencer's candidacy online at his website where I read and agreed with him on nearly every issue. Dr. Spencer is a neurologist in the town of Huxley, IA. He is married with three children and his wife is also a doctor. Sound familiar? Well, that is pretty much where the similarities end. I like Dr. Dean a lot and his bulldog personality is much needed in our party. Dr. Spencer, on the other hand, is soft-spoken and humble. His manner reminds me a lot of Jimmy Carter.
Dr. Spencer recently spent two weeks in Afghanistan training residents. He blogged his exceptional experiences there. Hop on over there to read some riveting stories and gain some insight to this outstanding gentleman.
I went to the Warren County Democrats event in Indianola, IA on September 30th to see General Wesley Clark's keynote address. Dr. Spencer was allowed to say a few words (video) before Clark addressed the audience. I was touched by Spencer's gracefulness and genuine nature. He said, "I go home and look at the paper and I look at the news and you know, you just feel insulted. What insult did you hear today? How many more dead? How many more tortured? How big is our debt? You know, you just get beaten up everyday. You see it. What legislation was bought and paid for today? When is this going to stop? When is this going to stop? It's going to stop on November 7th if you and I step up and make a difference."
Just one week later on October 8th, General Clark came back to Iowa to speak in Fort Dodge for Dr. Spencer. I was lucky enough to see them both again. The event was held at Marvin Gardens for a Sunday morning breakfast. State Senator Daryl Beall introduced General Clark. (video) Sen. Beall said of a previous meeting with him, "General Clark spoke and outlined his vision and his ideas for where the world ought to be going. In retrospect, wow, we would have been wise to have paid more heed."
"I am here for Seldon Spencer," said Clark. General Clark outlined his greatest concerns facing our nation and without a change in Congress we have much to fear. Clark said, "A lot of this mess we are in today is the mistaken, blundering methods of the Republican party and George W. Bush in trying to compensate for the failure that was 9/11. And it has brought our country to disaster and we've got to change the course."
General Clark said he is worried this administration is going to try to blame Iraqi's for this mess. "I think that what we need is a real change in course in this country and we can't wait until 2008. It's too late. Right now, if you look at where the administration is, you can see it moving and changing the rhetoric. I'm anticipating that the administration is going to try to blame the Iraqi's for the failure in Iraq." The people in attendance chuckled. But Clark was very serious. He said, "No, you watch. You can already see the hint of it coming out from John Warner. It's going be like, `Well these Iraqi's, you know, we put them on notice. They have got to take care of Baghdad and they failed to do it.'"
Dr. Spencer addressed the audience (video) and said, "I got into this race because of the sickness in my stomach about what's going on this country." He talks from a doctor's perspective, "Doctors take care of patients, sometimes in the office, sometimes in the hospital, and sometimes you just have to trust your gut instinct. You see a person and you just say something is not quite right here in the emergency room and I think we're going to admit you. I'm not sure, maybe you're having a heart attack, maybe you're having a stroke, but I think we owe it to you to just keep you in the hospital. And it's that same gut instinct I think all of you have in this room right now."
Dr. Spencer talks about healthcare, energy, and his trip to Afghanistan. He acknowledges he doesn't have a record to run on but adds, "I'm a doctor. This is what I do every day. I get in and get clobbered by the insurance company, by the pharmaceutical company, by the hospital, by other doctors, by family members and at the end of the day I do only one mission. I do the right thing for that patient. You understand, that's my job. And listen, when I go to Washington that is my mission on the same level. I have only one mission and that is to do what is right for the country, at the end of the day."
Dr. Spencer will be the first to tell you he doesn't have the depth of knowledge on military issues that General Clark does and deferred to Clark in the Q&A session at this mornings breakfast. Rest assured, Dr. Spencer is the kind of man who listens to experts like General Clark and his respect for him is enormous. Neither of these men will take us into another senseless, illegal, immoral war.
Dr. Spencer exudes humanity. It is something sorely missing in the U.S. Congress. It is crucial that we, as Democrats, do everything in our power to change the leadership in Congress. Please consider donating to Dr. Spencer's campaign to help him get his message to the voters. Buttons and yard signs are good but the power of TV ads cannot be denied. These ads cost money.
Let's surprise the hell out of this Republican held seat and give Dr. Spencer what he needs. We can do it! $10, $25, $100... Please send your contribution today. Dr. Spencer will make you proud you supported getting him to Congress.