Kossacks,
Right now at Future Majority we're having a very special father/son live blog. Jim Slattery, running for the US Senate in Kansas, and his 26 year old son Mike, running for the Kansas legislature, are live blogging at Future Majority.
The Slattery's initial comments are posted in the extended entry. They'll be with us until 11am Eastern at Future Majority.
Jim:
Hi, my name’s Jim Slattery and I’m running for the United States Senate in Kansas and with me today is my son Mike who is running Kansas Legislature.
Mike:
We’re excited to be here today talking with you about important issues.
Jim:
I first ran for the Kansas Legislature when I was 24 and I’m so proud to see Mike now running at the age of 26.
Mike:
My father has taught me that public service is one of the best ways to serve our community and I think it’s time for members of my generation to get involved in shaping our state’s future.
I believe Kansas and our nation for that matter needs fresh ideas and new direction. There’s been a lot of partisan bickering in and I think it’s time we elect politicians who are able to put aside their differences and work on issues important to everyone like improving our struggling economy, building strong public schools, providing affordable health care, and finding alternative sources of energy."
Jim:
It disappoints me that the issues I first talked about when I ran for office 35 years go are still problems today- the economy, health care, education, energy etc. The incompetence of the political leadership in Washington is breathtaking. Government just isn’t getting the job done.
One of my biggest concerns is the rising deficit. Politicians in my generation are charging up bills that will have to be paid by Mike and the next generation. I call it intergenerational robbery and I believe it’s morally wrong and should be stopped.
Mike:
Somewhat along the same lines, I think it’s really important that we protect our environment for future generations. I’m excited about the potential of "green collar jobs." By investing in the research and development of alternative energy technologies I think we have the opportunity to create new jobs for our generation and protect our environment at the same time.
I think we’d be happy to take questions at this point in time.