Dave Chandler

Chandler Pictured in Today's Rocky Mountain News

In the print edition of today's Rocky Mountain News, Dave Chandler, is pictured as a candidate for U.S. House of Representatives for Colorado's 7th Congressional District.

From the caption to the phototgraph:

"What he says: "My candidacy provides the citizens of the 7th Congressional District with a genuine choice. The Green Party and my candidacy are all about departure from politics as usual."

The photo is four years old, though a current one has been provided to the Rocky Mountain News. (Dave isn't complaining ... there certainly is more gray in his beard these days.)

The news article itself recounts only the political back-and-forth of personal charges and counter-charges that the news media and the two big parties seem to love. Not a single substantive issue of concern to the daily lives of residents of the 7th CD is mentioned.

Dave comments: "The article in the Rocky this morning proves the validity of my contention -- we need a departure from politics as usual. The tired, moribund big political party candidates, with the complicity of the news media, want to trade personal potshots at each other rather than discuss issues that really matter.

"It is being reported today that the "Iraq 4-Day Death Toll Climbs To 200." The voters of the 7th district, the people of America and Iraq, want a debate about how we can stop the killing -- not a tit-for-tat exchange about what 'Both Ways Bob' thought about Rick O'Donnell over four years ago.

""Principle Before Politics." The voters in the 7th Congressional District can say 'yes' to real discussion of important issues and say 'no' to petty sniping and the coming multimillion dollar television attack ads by voting for Dave Chandler for Congress!

This election -- do what is best for the country."

Link: Beauprez's '02 Claims Hurled at O'Donnell | Rocky Mountain News

Single in a district where lots of folks have kids.

Career government employee.

No business background.

Republican Bob Beauprez in a 2002 campaign mailing listed the reasons Rick O'Donnell shouldn't be elected congressman from the 7th District.

"The last thing Congress needs is another inexperienced bureaucrat playing games with our future," Beauprez said then, when he squared off against O'Donnell and two other Republicans in the GOP primary.

O'Donnell's back this year, again running in the 7th District.

And Democrats charge that the O'Donnell resume Beauprez found so lacking hasn't changed much in the past four years.

Not true, say O'Donnell supporters.

Chandler in 7th Congressional District Poll

Dave Chandler, candidate for U.S. House of Representatives for Colorado's 7th Congressional District responds to the 9NEWS report and poll broadcast yesterday evening.

Channel 9's Adam Schrager in the video report linked to here tells us that $10 to $12 million dollars is likely to be spent by and on behalf of the Perlmutter and O'Donnell campaigns in the 7th Congressional District.

Let me say it: this would be an obscene expenditure of money and borders on being immoral.

Is it any wonder that cynicism and distrust of our political system is on the increase when big-monied special interests are so eager to contribute such grotesque amounts of money to gain influence in government? You can also be absolutely certain that almost all of this tremendous amount of money will NOT come from individual residents of the 7th Congressional District or the state.

This is wrong ... and explains why a recent Gallup poll reports that 'Americans Increasingly View Most Members of Congress as Corrupt'.

The House of Representatives is supposed to be the legislative body in the national government that is closest to the people; that's why there are 435 districts and why the House is up for election every two years. When hundreds and hundreds of thousands of dollars are raised by special interests from outside the district for the express purpose of influencing how we vote -- that subverts the intent of the drafters of the Constitution of the United States.

I appeal to the voters of this district to give a resounding rebuke to the system of "legalized bribery" that has corrupted our politics.

There is an alternative to the current corrupt system that has survived with the connivance of the likes of candidates such as Perlmutter and O'Donnell and their big-money, partisan supporters. From my party's 2004 platform, here are the principles that I support to ensure that this becomes once again a government "of the people, by the people and for the people":

1. Political debate, public policy, and legislation should be judged on their merits, not on the quid pro quo of political barter and money.

2. We propose comprehensive campaign finance reform, including caps on spending and contributions, at the national and state level; and / or full public financing of elections to remove undue influence in political campaigns.

3. All viable candidates at the state and federal levels should have free and equal radio and television time and print press coverage.

4. We will work to ban or greatly limit political action committees and restrict soft money contributions.

5. We support significant lobbying regulation such as strict rules that disclose the extent of political lobbying via "gifts" and contributions. Broad-based reforms of government operations, with congressional reorganization and ethics laws, must be instituted. At every level of government, we support Sunshine Laws that open up the political system to access by ordinary citizens.

You do not have to put up with the nasty politics that all of the Democrat and Republican campaign money is going to subject you to in the next two months.

If the integrity of our politics in this country is of concern to you ... you have a real choice in the contest for U.S. House of Representatives for Colorado's 7th CD. You can vote to encourage the corrupt, profligate system we now have by voting for O'Donnell or Perlmutter -- or you can chose a new direction, you can vote your conscience and make political finance reform a high priority.

You can do something courageous this election that will genuinely help to renew our republic and move our nation forward -- Vote for Dave Chandler for Congress!

VIDEO

Link: New Poll: Perlmutter, O'Donnell Tied in 7th CD Race | 9 News KUSA-TV

Democrat Ed Perlmutter and Republican Rick O'Donnell are tied in a new 9NEWS poll conducted by Survey USA in the race to represent Colorado's 7th Congressional District.

The polling company called 535 "likely voters" between Friday, August 18 and Sunday, August 20.

Perlmutter, who is a former State Senator from Jefferson County, received 45 percent of those surveyed. O'Donnell, the former head of the Colorado Commission on Higher Education, also received 45 percent.

Constitution Party candidate Roger McCarville and Green Party candidate Dave Chandler each earned 2 percent support.

Nastiness in 7th CD Will Elect Green Candidate

(Arvada, Colorado) -- Dave Chandler, Colorado Green Party candidate for Congress in the 7th CD, said today that he will offer bold positions on issues and a dedication to political reform as a real difference to the coming campaigns of Democrat Ed Perlmutter and Republican Rick O'Donnell.

"My candidacy is going to offer a clean breath of fresh air," said Chandler. "I believe in talking to the voters as the intelligent citizens they are, and that they should determine who wins, not the spending of massive amounts of money on attack ads."

Chandler was nominated to be the Colorado Green Party's candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives for the 7th Congressional District at the party's state convention held Saturday, May 13, 2006 in Denver. He was also the Green Party's U.S. House candidate in the 7th CD in 2002, placing third with 3,274 votes in a race ultimately decided by only 121 votes.

"In a very short time, we are going to witness a level of nastiness, mudslinging and the spending of obscene amounts of special interest money from the Perlmutter and O'Donnell campaigns," Chandler predicted. "It is going to be a display of everything that is wrong, dirty and disgusting with politics in our country today."

"The back-and-forth attacks will probably get so bad that voters will begin asking if there isn't a better alternative --- and there is!" Chandler said. "Progressive, reform-minded Democrats and unaffiliated voters will find my candidacy attractive; and traditional, 'Constitutionalist' Republicans will find out that I am closely aligned with their values."

"I'll win because I am going to represent honest, clean, down-to-earth, grassroots democracy," Chandler said. "My candidacy gives voters the opportunity to vote their conscience and not just the 'lesser-of-two-evils' --- by November 7, that's going to look mighty good to a lot of 7th CD voters."

Chandler supports an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, public finance of elections, an impeachment inquiry by the U.S. House of Bush and Cheney, national health insurance, and serious efforts to reverse global warming.

Dave Chandler and his family have made their home in Arvada, Colorado, for over fifteen years. He, and his wife have two children -- a daughter in middle school and a son who is a recent high school graduate. Dave is a stay-at-home dad.

Press Release
Wednesday, August 9, 2006