A list of all the Blog Posts in this category.

How to Make a Successful Bid for Public Office

If you've decided to run for office and you happen to be a differently-abled individual, your personal story and journey could be an inspiring and compelling part of your campaign. There are still the typical everyday needs of running a political campaign to keep in mind, as well as any special accommodations that need to be made when you're traveling, delivering speeches, and interacting with constituents. Communication will be essential throughout your campaign, which can be buoyed with regular blogging and social media updates to keep people apprised of your campaign stops. Expert services can be assets in this area.

Photo by Pixabay

Vet Yourself

Before making a bid for public office, personally vet yourself. According to Purdue Online, there are smart ways to go about scouring your online presence, including social media accounts, past interviews, media statements, and articles you've written or been quoted in. Do you hold membership in any controversial organizations? Do you have close friends or relatives who have been in trouble with the law? Do you yourself have any legal troubles in your past that could come back to haunt you? You're wise to find out what's out there that has the potential to be embarrassing or damaging, then take proactive measures to clean it ups or prepare to address it.

Develop Your Platform

While your disability might be an element of your political platform, your overall agenda and messaging should be tailored to appeal to a wide and varied demographic. A knowledgeable and seasoned campaign advisor and campaign manager can be invaluable when it comes to helping you tailor your message, develop key strategies and approaches, and help position you within key demographics. You'll also want to evaluate the platforms of your opponents, both to differentiate yourself and to strategize how best to support and advocate for your viewpoints.

Ensure Your Access

Candidates for office often appear at a wide variety of places, from event stages to coffee shops in rural communities. If you have limitations that require special accommodations, have a member of your advance team ensure you're set up accordingly at different event stops. If you have an auditory or visual disability, also consider having events recorded to ensure you can review them in whatever way is most beneficial for you. If mobility is a problem, plan for events that curtail a lot of moving around, and if necessary, place firm limits on the amount of physical campaigning you do in a single setting. According to the Americans With Disabilities Act, you have the right to have a service support animal with you as well, but you'll need to have accommodations for the animal before, during, and after your campaign stops.

Proactively Talk About Yourself

Unfortunately, there may be people along the campaign trail who question your ability to serve based on your disability. While you are certainly under no obligation to divulge personal information, if you want to discredit these types of challenges, consider developing a standard response related to your condition and your abilities. If you can use your disability for advocacy purposes, that can be a positive tact, but give careful consideration to how ' if at all ' you use your disability on the campaign trail.

Surround Yourself With Experts

All candidates, regardless of their abilities, are well-served by hiring professionals with campaign experience in key areas including speechwriting, press writing and coverage, polling, and event planning. You can find qualified individuals on job boards. Freelance writers typically charge between $15-$40 per hour, but the cost of content can vary based on experience and expertise. You might also want to hire people with logistics planning experience, as well as website development and social media campaign knowledge. A researcher and a fundraiser can also be assets.

Running for office can be a daunting undertaking that's mentally, emotionally, and physically challenging. However, if you're committed to doing the public good by becoming a public servant, preplanning and hiring the right people for your team can make your vision a reality.

If you need expert insight into how to effectively use technology to bolster your campaign, visit cryan.com.

President Joe Biden

Congrats to Joe Biden for being the next President of the United States.

I had some other content set to post today, but Biden getting the official word that he won the Presidency certainly cannot be overlooked

Here's a couple logos I found in some emails that I have gotten over the past year.

I have been getting emails from him since he started running back in April 27, 2019. Most of the emails have been for fundraising. Every once in awhile it would be for some attack on Trump tweet.

Kamala Harris Email

This is an email that I got from Kamala Harris, on the day that Joe Biden put his hat in the ring:

Best of Luck Joe!

The recent election has shown that the nation is truly divided. It's going to take a lot to get the country back together again.

Some people think that Joe will put some Republicans in his cabinet - such as Charlie Baker, the current Massachusetts Governor who has a very high popularity rating.

2020 Elections

Did you know:

Know Why? Because the IRS says so:

The White House on August 25, 2002.

Opensecrets.org

You can learn more about the 2020 Presidential Cycle by visiting 2020 Presidential Race by OpenSecrets.org. They are a bipartisan organization that tracks the money for national campaigns - such as a Presidential Election.

Election Polls

The Election Cyle pretty much kicks in high gears now that it's past Labor Day. The best place to find out the latest polls about the 2020 Democratic Presidential Nomination is RealClearPolitics

You can learn whos is doing well, and who's most likely to drop out.

Joe Biden

What I find amazing is that while Joe Biden has a commanding lead in all the presidential polls, but if you look at the OpenSecrets.com stats, you'll see that he is in 5th place in fundraising.

Did You know Pete Buttigieg has raised $10,000,000 more money than Joe Biden.

Framingham Presidential Election Results

Fresh off of Donald Trump win of the White House, I thought it would be interesting to see how Framingham performed against the actual winner of a major presidential election.

Framingham is clearly a blue town, at least that's what it has shown on every election result since 1972. The only year that the town went Republican was in 1984.

Here is a table highlighting how the town votes

Data used in the above table came from the Massachusetts PD43+ Elections Statistics Database.

Election Day 2016

Today is Election Day in the United States. Many voters have already casted their ballets via early voting.

In Framingham, Massachusetts, there was a long line at the Keefe Technical School which is our local polling place. It took 25 minutes to cast our votes this morning.

There was someone that cut in front of me in line that didn't even know which polling place they should be in. Take some time and learn where your polling place is, and plan to visit there often! It's 2016, there's plenty of resources available to help you find your local polling place.

Reguardless of who wins the Presidential race, it will be a historical win.

Updated American's Creed

I updated American's Creed from the Boy Scout Manual, I am sure that William Tyler Page wouldn't object to this version.

The original American Creed was developed by William Tyler Page in 1917. It is a brief, clear statement of American traditions and ideals, as expressed by leading American statesmen and writers.

Selfie Sticks in Massachusetts Polling Places

This year's Presidential election is pretty crazy and people are starting their early voting. Some people are even posting selfies of them at the voting booth.

While selfie sticks haven't been ban in some voting area, some schools/buildings have banned them for security purposes.

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts doesn't have any laws against taking any type of pictures at the voting area.

Following Voters

You can follow along those that have publically announced that they voted:

• Twitter - #iVoted
• Facebook - iVoted
• Google+ - ivoted

Did you know

• Flags are required by law to be displayed in a Polling area. (Title VIII, Chapter 54 Section 25A)
• Not only is Smoking is prohibited but carrying any cigarettes or lighter can be asked to leave, otherwise you could be faced with a $20 fine.
• You are allowed to put a sticker on the ballot in special situations. (According to the Massachusetts Election Day Manual: "The voter may also bring with them a sticket, handed to them on their way into the polls by one of the write-in candidates, to affix to the ballot.")
• Any person may challenge a voter for legal cause. (Don't do this unless you're sure of the outcome!) If a person makes a challenge for an unspecified reason, the election worker should thereafter ask the challenger what specific reason they wish to have recorded. If, after being so questioned by the election official, the challenger gives no specific reason, the voter should be permitted to vote, and should not be considered a challenged voter.
• The names of the Presidents are in the alphabetical order by surname.
• After the Polls have closed, the polling location must remain open so that the public may observe the counting of votes from outside the guardrail.
• When you vote and encounter a problem, notify the warden or presiding officer about the issue. They should be able to resolve the issue. If you do not get a satisfied resolution, contact the Commonwealth's Elections Division at 617-727-2828.

The American's Creed

The American's Creed from the Boy Scout Manual. This is something to remember as we get closer to election day in the United States:

I believe in
''the United States of America as a
''Government of the people, by the people, for the people;
''who just powers are derived from the consent of the government;
''a democracy in a republic;
''a sovereign Nation of many sovereign States;
''a perfect Union, one and inseparable;
''established under those principles of freedom, equality, justice,
''and humanity for which American patriots sacraficed their
''lives and fortunes.

I therefor believe it is my duty to my country
''to love it;
''to support its Consitution;
''to obey its laws;
''to respect its flag and
''to defend it against all enemies.

The American Creed was developed by William Tyler Page in 1917. It is a brief, clear statement of American traditions and ideals, as expressed by leading American statesmen and writers.

Key lines to the Creed:

1. Closing words of the Preamble to the Constitution
2. Lincoln's Gettysburg Address
3. Declaration of Independence
4. James Madison in The Federalist, No. X
5. Speech by Daniel Webster
6. Preamble to the Consitution
7. Adapted from closing workds of Declaration of Independence
8. Speech by John Hancock
9. United States Oath of Allegiance
10. George Washington's Farewell Address
11. War Department Circular, April 14, 1917
12. Oath of Alleigiance.

George W. Bush

Something to think about today, Patriot Day in the United States:

The following appeared in the Durham, NC local paper as a letter to the editor:

Liberals claim President Bush shouldn't have started this war. They complain about his prosecution of it. One liberal recently claimed Bush was the worst president in U.S. history.

Let's clear up one point: President Bush didn't start the war on terror. Try to remember, it was started by terrorists BEFORE 9/11. Let's look at the "worst" president and mismanagement claims.

FDR led us into World War II. Germany never attacked us: Japan did. From 1941-1945, 450,000 lives were lost, an average of 112,500 per year.

Truman finished that war and started one in Korea. North Korea never attacked us. From 1950-1953, 55,000 lives were lost, an average of 18,333 per year.

John F. Kennedy started the Vietnam conflict in 1962. Vietnam never attacked us. Johnson turned Vietnam into a quagmire. From 1965-1975, 58,000 lives were lost, an average e of 5,800 per year.

Clinton went to war in Bosnia without UN or French consent. Bosnia never attacked us. He was offered Osama bin Laden's head on a platter three times by Sudan and did nothing. Osama has attacked us on multiple occasions. Over 2,900 lives lost on 9/11.

In the two years since terrorists attacked us, President Bush has liberated two countries, rushed the Taliban, crippled al-Qaida, put nuclear inspectors in Lybia, Iran, and North Korea without firing a shot, captured a terrorist who slaughtered 300,000 of his own people. We lost 600 soldiers, an average of 300 a year. Bush did all this abroad while not allowing another terrorist attack at home.

Worst president in history? Come on!

The Democrats are complaining about how long the war is taking, but...

• It took less time to take Iraq than it took Janet Reno to take the Branch Davidian compound.
• That was a 51 day operation.
• We've been looking for evidence of chemical weapons in Iraq for less time than it took Hillary Clinton to find the Rose Law Firm billing records.
• It took less time for the 3rd Infantry Division and the Marines to destroy the Medina Republican Guard than it took Teddy Kennedy to call the police after his Oldsmobile sank at Chappaquiddick.
• It took less time to take Iraq than it took to count the votes in Florida!!!!

Our military is GREAT! PASS IT ON.

Corporate Money in Politics

Corporations have taken over the 2016 United States Presidential Elections.

This screenshot of a campaign donation request that I receieved recently:

Triple Match? Where is that matching money coming from? Corporations. This is why many people feel that the political system in the United States is out of control.

Not a Problem?

Don't think money is an issue in this Election? Consider this snip from the Ben and Jerry's website:

$200 may not sound like a lot of money, but in the last presidential election cycle less than - of one percent of Americans made a political donation of more than $200. Donating that kind of cash to a campaign is well beyond what many people and families can afford and if the decision is between funding a politician and buying a month's worth of groceries, you can bet that food comes first. Besides, since when did free speech get so expensive?

28th Ammendment

Please support the fight to get the Corporations out of the elections via the 28th Ammendment to the Constituion. The reason why we need a constitution is to overturn the Supreme Court's Citizens United ruling in 2010.

Visit getthedoughout.org

Let the People Vote! Campaign Contributions have gotten out of control. Before we can control the government spending, we need to control the contribution spending.

Pat Buchanan in 1996

An audio clip of the debate from the 1996 Republican Presidential Primary debate. I believe that is Pat Buchanan response to the question, "What is your vision for America."

Let me tell you where I stand
You know where I stand
I will fight to be the most Pro-Life President in the history of this country.
I will stop illegal Immigration cold.
There will be no more $50 billion bailouts.
We will end foreign aid
There will be no more American troops in Bosnia.
Downsize our Government.
Cut taxes on the American people
and we will restore the Constitutional Republic of the founding father's dream.
That is a conservative vision and a conservative agenda.
Senator Dole has no vision.
and when there is no vision, the people will perish.

The last line in the speech is a quote from Proverbs 29:18 - "Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he."