Brand New Ad Campaign

[An Important Man]

http://www.greggibas.com/images/gopad.jpg

What do you guys think? hehe..

I'm currently working on a website for myself to try to get my name out there. Hopefully in a few years I'll be well enough known in my locality to pursue some public office.

I was thinking a good thing for the GOP would be to shed the 60-year-old-CEO as the face of the party and put the PARTY into Political Party instead. Perhaps a more modern image would help us all, especially in places like Illinois.

[Bill Hodges]

Quote[/b] ]What do you guys think? hehe..

I'm currently working on a website for myself to try to get my name out there. Hopefully in a few years I'll be well enough known in my locality to pursue some public office.

Well, "G-man", you definitely give meaning to the term.
I wish you success on your website, I'm sure you'll do well with it.
Why wait several years to inject yourself into public view? That's wasted time that you can be out there getting your face seen in the media. Jump in, get as much publicity and exposer as you possibly can by running for office now. If you lose the first race or two, it won't matter, you will have successfully promoted yourself before the public and will be more easily recognized as you run for office in the future.


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[An Important Man]

So are you saying I should pursue public office at age 18 or 19? It sounds wacky, but Cook County offices minum age is 18, so I guess I can put myself on the ballot for 2004 for some cook county office (if its up for election).

I will definitley run in 2006 and 08 for state senate/house.

What do you propose I do to put myself in the media?

[Bill Hodges]

Quote[/b] ]So are you saying I should pursue public office at age 18 or 19? It sounds wacky, but Cook County offices minum age is 18, so I guess I can put myself on the ballot for 2004 for some cook county office (if its up for election).

I will definitley run in 2006 and 08 for state senate/house.

What do you propose I do to put myself in the media?

That's EXACTLY what I'm saying. You cannot buy the coverage that you receive for free from news media. They HAVE to allow equal time, so every time your opponent gets coverage, they must afford the same amount of coverage to you. You're a novelty at your age. The media will have a greater deal of interest in you than they will with others. Not only are you a novelty in age but in the fact that you're a Conservative at your age as well. I guarantee you, you'll receive better treatment and more interest from the media because of that fact. Milk it for whatever you can out of it. You may not (and most likely will not) win your first race, but as long as you keep your name and face in front of the public eye, you're more likely to win your second run (or at least get very close to it). As long as you stay involved and public (stay out of trouble!), you'll eventually get further.


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[Floridaguy]

Greg, I have told you before, I think you should run. Did you ever check the bio of Congressman Adam Putnam from Florida? We need young conservatives in elected office in the party, not just at the grassroots level. I see more and more Young Republicans, and even College Republicans, making the leap towards running. Also, if you do not win the first time out, you are at least building name recognition in your area, and statistically, good candidates will have a better chance of winning the second or third time around than the first. And if you do win the first time out, you will be ready to run for that higher office you mentioned. http://gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

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[Terri]

I love your enthusiasm AIP, and I don't mean this to be a dash of cold water, but I have a different perspective.

Let's say you get elected. Have you thought through what you bring to the office you will hold?

It doesn't sound as though you have a specific office in mind at this point. Each office requires special skills and a certain amount of experience.

What if you won and found that you knew nothing at all about accomplishing what you were elected to do?

I don't think you have to be 60 years old to be elected to office but there is a reason that most people have a variety of life experiences first. Even 10 years will give you a totally different perspective and a lot of experience if you use the 10 years wisely.

And last but not least, they tell me that YRs is a great place to work through the "party" years. *http://gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

Ladies, how about weighing in on this campaign ad. Would it get your vote?

[Bill Hodges]

Quote[/b] ]What if you won and found that you knew nothing at all about accomplishing what you were elected to do?

I hate to spotlight here, but can you name a single individual who was ever elected into office for the first time that knew what they were doing? I can't, and I grew up in a family of politicians and spent my life surrounded by them. I guarantee that everything an individual who thought they knew what they were doing the first time they were elected into office was thrown out the window once they arrived. As someone I know who is a Congressman in his second term stated very recently, "It's on-the-job training [political office] and I [he] learn something new everyday."


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[Terri]

Bill, I'm looking at this from the perspective of a voter rather than the perspective of a politician.

Let's say I'm going to vote for a city councilman or a county commissioner.

They will have to deal with a wide variety of issues, most of them concerning money and people.

So, I would look at the available candidates past experience in areas that might help them to cope. People who have run their own company and dealt with employees make fine councilmen and county officials.

This is nothing against our member but you can't have a lot of that experience at age 18.

Even the guy in charge of animal control will have to know something about budgets and personnel as well as animals, physical facilities, and on and on.

No elected official can know everything that they will be called upon to address but there are levels of life experience that give a person an advantage.

That is not to say that this young man won't be a fine public official someday but I prefer my public officials to have some experience in the private sector (real world) first.

So, I would encourage him to work for other candidates, be very active in the party, get his education, hold down some ordinary jobs along the way, and keep his eye on his goal.

[Terri]

One more thing, it's important to know that you target a wide variety of people when you run for office so I would think that all opinions count on this issue. http://gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

I know the campaign ad is a joke and so was my comment to the ladies. But I would like to hear the opinions of some of the other folks here who have no political ambitions but are very experienced voters and know what they look for in a candidate.

[Bill Hodges]

Quote[/b] ]That is not to say that this young man won't be a fine public official someday but I prefer my public officials to have some experience in the private sector (real world) first.

Just like a young doctor has to begin somewhere, so does a politician. Experience is secondary, coming AFTER the fact. The IMPORTANT thing (in my opinion) is that the person running is a person with solid character, scruples, desire, and passion. The knowledge of job duties will follow.

Quote[/b] ]That is not to say that this young man won't be a fine public official someday but I prefer my public officials to have some experience in the private sector (real world) first.


While this philosophy may be applied to some, may I remind you that many of our nation's greatest leaders began a life of public service immediately out of school.
In either event, I will never discourage a young, passionate, individual of moral fortitude from running for public office, no matter how small or great that office is. Who knows, we may be talking about the next Mr. Adam Putnam here.
I greatly encourage him to seek the position he desires, no matter what that may be, either in the private or public sector.

William (Bill) Douglas Hodges
T/O Ranch
Erick, Oklahoma



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[Terri]

Quote[/b] ]Just like a young doctor has to begin somewhere, so does a politician.

I prefer my doctor to be prepared also. He does that by going to college and then to medical school.

It's not a bad idea for a politician to have an education as well as experience.

I don't think it is discouraging to say that someone needs to prepare for the jobs they wish to hold in life. Preparation is important, education is important and experience is important.

I'm just one voter but those are the things I would look for.

Perhaps there are others who choose in different ways.

[An Important Man]

Thanks guys I appreciate your responses, and let me just respond to a few things you've been saying.

Number one, if I run at 18 or 19 there is no way I'm going to win, so it would basically be a publicity stunt to run in the first place which would help me out later.

Number two, I want to get in the legislature. Whether I do House or Senate I don't know yet, but their duties are similar. I am familiar with the workings on government, I have read books and I pay attention to what happens in state and national government.

I want to finish college first before I go someplace else, that is why I posted a few months ago regarding the possibility of running at some point in 2006 or 08 (I'd be 21-23 then). (By the way, for those who are wondering, I'm majoring in Management and planning a minor or double major in Marketing)

Sure that's still young, but I see that as an advantage. There is no way the Dems can dig up ANY scandals or shady histories because I'll have none. I have no police record, I have not so much as picked up a cigarette in my life nor have I experimented with any other contraband or shady items.

I think young age could also be an asset, making it easier for me to throw a positive optimistic message out there. Have you ever seen the movie Bob Roberts? That's the kind of candidate I want to be - minus the sleaze and corruption.

The big questions are how to get my name out there and will it be possible to win at some point. Sure, if I run for anything in 2004 then winning is definitley out of the question, BUT, it will help me accomplish the goal of being "out there" to some extent. I definitley want to try to run, even if its another "dry run" in 2006. Hopefully by the time this decade is over I will have succeeded at some level.

I'm not going to sit on the sidelines watching Gov. Rod "the communist" Blagoveich confiscating private businesses and Dick Daley's goons having their way with the state legislature worrying about what people think of my young age while my mind is already thinking up ways I can spin it into a positive thing.

As far as what kind job I can do at such a young age, if elected. I guarantee you it will be a better job than the Democrats are doing. I think you're underestimating my capability to understand and deal with the issues.

Also, one last question remains. So what if I fail? It's not like someone will eat me if I run and fail, so what's the harm in trying? I have pretty much nothing to lose. And if I get elected and I'm having trouble I'll do what Reagan suggested: Surround yourself with the best people and don't interfere.

Point is, I will run for office. The only thing that is not certain is the outcomes, places, and dates of my races.

I appreciate critisizm, so keep it coming, it helps me understand how others might see things and then help me think of how I can get around any obstacles posed by such thinking. But rest assured I will not be discouraged from pursuing what I want. As Harry Truman said, "How far would have Moses gone if he had taken a poll in Egypt?"

[Terri]

I like your determination.

When you have your education and your experience I think you can be a political force to be reckoned with.

Sticking with your original plan of waiting until you are 22 or 23 sounds better to me than running now but it will definitely be good experience either way.

So far, I don't think you've received any criticism here, just a difference of opinion on the best way to approach political life.

I do have a suggestion for you that might help in getting your name out. If you aren't doing any writing, I would suggest you start. Get your articles on some internet sites and see if they will publish them. You can read Hans Zeiger's articles here on GOPUSA. He's only 18 and will be starting college in the fall.

Another young columnist that is getting quite a following is Ben Shapiro. He is syndicated already and can be read at Townhall. We also post his articles here in the forum sometimes.

If you are already writing, or if you start, try submitting some of your work to opeds@gopusa.com I can't guarantee any of them will be published but I can guarantee they will be read and considered for publication.

[An Important Man]

Thanks for the opportunity. There are few topics that I wanted to write about in depth, and now that school is out for me for this summer I'll have more time.

On my website I will have a few pages dedicated to where I stand on the issues but they are by no means Op-ed quality, just some raw ideas written down basically.

If you have any other obstacles or concerns you'd like to mention in regards to running and winning public office, I'd really like to hear it all ASAP, so that I can start thinking of how I'll handle things.

Thanks again for all your feedback.

[An Important Man]

Well, I wrote an Op-Ed. I mailed to opeds@gopusa.com, so you probably got it. Let me know if you've read it and if you think it's any good. http://gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[Leelanau]

I'm going to agree with Bill on this. I don't think the age number means anything, it's the maturity level. I know 18 year olds I'd trust with my 401K, and some 50 somethings I'd run from as fast as I could. Anyone interested in an office should be knowledgeable about what is expected, but does that mean he should wait until he has a degree? I don't think so. It's very easy to take a community college course on business practices, or a variety of other things that might help. It's also helpful to go to your local library and study up - and free! Even if you prepare for the 6 months it might take to get elected, who says this young man wouldn't be prepared better than someone three times his age? I'd take Bill's advice and get out in the limelight - name recognition is an extremely valuable thing!