Yesterday the people of North Dakota decided to send Earl Pomeroy, a liberal democrat, back to the US Congress where he will serve his ninth term. Despite the single digit approval ratings given to the Democrat-led Congress almost immediately after the 2006 elections, instead of voting for new representation and new ideas, North Dakotans voted for the tired, out-of-touch philosophies of Earl Pomeroy. Earl voted himself a six-week vacation in July of 2008, voted to redeploy troops out of Iraq in 2007, has voted to give illegal immigrants social security benefits, and voted against a bill that would have required that parents be notified by the abortion clinic when their child seeks an abortion. Are those votes a good indicator of "North Dakota values"? Earl Pomeroy apparently thinks so.Duane Sand was ready to fix what he called "the most broken body of Government" anywhere in the world - the United States Congress. A congress where corruption is king and where people like Earl Pomeroy take upwards of $20,000 in campaign contributions in the few days before voting to bail out those very institutions with $700 billion taxpayer dollars. Duane Sand was ready to stand up for limited government and lower taxes, defend the lives of unborn children, and support our soldiers as they secure victory in Iraq. Duane Sand was ready to expand domestic energy production and free us from foreign oil. But most importantly, Duane Sand was ready to stand up for the true beliefs of North Dakotans, not the special interests of Washington.
It is unfortunate that incumbency is so powerful in this country that it can prevent those with new and innovative ideas from going into Washington and making necessary changes. It is astonishing that despite recognizing that we have a failed Congress, when given the chance to make a change at the polls, the voters send the same people back for another term. I long for the day when North Dakota will awaken and recognize the need for new representation in Washington.
