Since the theme of my campaign kickoff party is Bunker Hill Day I would be remiss if I didn’t point out that today is the actual date of the battle. Today is the 135th anniversary of the battle.

    Brief historic recap- 1500 colonists under the command of Israel Putnam and William Prescott twice repelled a British force of 2200 led by William Howe. The British suffered over 1000 casualties. Over sixty officers were killed. On the third charge the British captured the hill. The most famous American casualty was Dr, Joseph Warren, one of the leaders of the Boston Sons of Liberty. The Bunker Hill Monument was dedicated on June 17, 1843.

    Imagine if the patriots that defended that hill returned today. The modern equivalent of the king’s functionaries receive a paid day off yet those that pay the taxes do not. Services to the public are cut, taxes are raised but the elimination of an unnecessary public sector holiday remains a step the legislature refuses to carry out. How sad.

I would like to thank the Dracut Republican Town Committee for its generous contribution to my campaign.

Raising money is the hardest part of being a candidate by far. Yet each contribution is a vote of confidence, that somebody believes you are deserving of his or her hard-earned money. This is especially true in these hard economic times.

My goal is to wage a campaign that will be worthy of the generous efforts of the town committee and those individuals that have donated to my campaign. I am asking any of you that want to advance reform of state government, fiscal sanity, lower taxesand any of the other issues I advocate to help support my candidacy. Donations of $10 or $20 allow me to purchase important campaign materials. (It is not a cliché to say no donation is too small.)

Obviously larger contributions allow me to reach a wider audience. If you can help please see my Donate page.

I appeared on 980 WCAP with Warren Shaw on his Saturday Morning Live show. The segment was about eleven minutes long and we discussed my opposition to taxes and tolls, local aid, casinos and 40B among other topics.  You can hear it for yourself by clicking below.

I want to take a minute to thank Sheila Richardson for helping me get the signatures I needed to get on the ballot.  In addition to the signatures her hard work and dedication serve as a cure for complacency on my part.

I attended a seminar about campaign finance sponsored by The Office of Campaign and Political Finance at the McCormack building in Boston.  My campaign treasurer and finance assistant also attended.  The class covered the basics of what to avoid in fundraising and how to properly file reports. Hopefully as the campaign progresses I will raise a lot of money and this seminar will have been time well spent.

My wife Darlene and I were on hand to welcome Charlie Baker to Lowell. Our next governor brought his “Had Enough Tour” to the Pollard Library. He proposed solutions to various problems that people face all over the commonwealth.  

I asked him about rising health insurance premiums.  He mentioned that some healthcare providers are able to charge five times what others do for the same service.  Because these price disparities are not published consumers aren’t empowered to make better decisions when looking for health care.  Another problem is the over-regulation of what health care plans people can buy.  Consumers are forced to pay for procedures they don’t want and don’t need.

Essex County Sheriff Frank Cousins was kind enough to introduce me in his opening remarks.  Charlie spoke briefly with me after his presentation and posed for a picture.  Rick Livingstone and Ryan Coleman of the Baker campaign were also very helpful before and after the event.

I have completed my filings with the state and will be on the November ballot. Candidates must file with the Elections and Campaign Finance Offices. They must also get a receipt from the Ethics Department.  I am happy to announce the state of Massachusetts has certified me as ethical enough to be a politician.

 I  needed 150 signature to be on the Nov. ballot.  I did a lot of door knocking the past month and I got 315 confirmed signatures. Next I must submit them to the Secretary of State  to be on the ballot.   I'm almost there. I'll keep you posted.

Earlier today I turned in my Nomination papers to the Dracut & Tyngsborough  Town Clerks.

Well, Hi there!
This is my New Blog to go along with my New Website.  I'll be blogging a bit during the next several months before the Fall election.  I'll most likely blog afterward too.  It has been great meeting with people as I go about my way collecting signatures which is a requirement   to be listed on the ballot . I picked up Voter Lists from both Dracut  & the Tynsgborough Town Halls and  I'm working my way through the pages and the streets. I'm glad that my wife is letting me borrow her GPS. It comes in very handy when my published map book fails because of new developments after its printing in 2000.   I could buy myself a new book but the combination of book & GPS works just fine. Well I hope to visit as many of you registered voters. I look forward to future chats. Hope to see you around town.