Last night I attended a fundraiser at the home of Jim and Kathy Jackson in Warrensburg for Courtney Cole, the Democratic Party candidate in the 121st Legislative District. State Treasurer Clint Zweifel (D) attended and spoke on Courtney Cole’s behalf.
…You know, there is reason to be optimistic, folks. Things can happen in Jefferson City that are positive. And, you know, I’m fortunate enough to tell you, first of all, a big thank you for giving me a chance to serve you as your State Treasurer. I was in the Missouri House for six years, got the opportunity to serve with Jim [Siegfried] for two of those years at the end. And you try to seep in a little bit of knowledge from those folks that have experience and Jim was an honorable public servant. We need more of those in the House.
And, you know, I’ll tell you what, during our time as State Treasurer, we campaigned on the fact that we were gonna have, committed to excellence in all of our core functions. That we were gonna make smart strategic investments to help grow our state and grow our economy. That we were gonna have a transparent government. You know, one of the things that we have to do as public servants is build trust and accountability so that voters have the confidence to believe in the work that we’re doing so that we can govern, so that we can ultimately make some tough decisions along the way….
….I also manage the college savings plan for the state, Missouri MOST, during one of the toughest economies we’ve had in decades we have more Missourians signed up for the MOST plan than ever before saving for college. And we’ve specifically reached out to middle income families, helping then understand that you can save as little as twenty-five dollars a month, fifty dollars a month and actually make an impact over eighteen years.
And another exciting thing that we’ve really worked hard on is our small business loan program and farm loan program. When I took office we had a low interest loan program for farms and for small businesses. The program was, frankly, operating a little slowly, wasn’t really relevant in the marketplace, wasn’t a lot of institutions using it. Since I came into office we’ve been able to place three hundred million dollars in farm and small business loans. That’s impacted one thousand five hundred farms in the state…that’s impacted three thousand jobs. And, and these are loans that, that might be to a high tech company that’s developing new technology to cure diabetes. And these are loans to a local hardware store down the street or a farmer that, that needs to borrow for cash flow purposes. Those are the types of things that we’ve been doing in the legislature, working with the legislature to get things done for the folks that we represent in Jefferson City. And you know, we’ve done that, we passed three pieces of legislation since I became State Treasurer….
….There is hope that when you’re involved in this process that you actually make government work better. And, and that’s why we’re here tonight. When you think about, when you think about this process and you think about candidates, and let’s talk a little bit about what Jim [Jackson] has done for us…What he’s done for us and they both have done for us running for state representative [in 2002 and 2008]. Folks, that is a tremendous leap of faith that it takes. It’s a leap of faith on the part of those supported Jim and it’s a leap of faith on, on his part, to be able to stand up and have the guts to put yourself out there, day after day, and let people know at a basic emotional level that you believe that you’re the best person for the job and that you want to be able to serve them. I mean, that is a tremendous thing that we should be able to thank Jim for and thank Kathy for, for what they’ve done. [applause]
You know, I tell you what, and when we think about the job that we do as State Treasurer, you know, you think about investments, right? And whether it was making that investment in Jim or making the investment that we’re making in Courtney tonight, that’s what this is about. Is the idea that we all believe that if we’re involved in this process, if we’re involved in a campaign and election, if we help get people elected and if those individuals are like Courtney, who’s a community leader, an educator, and somebody, that when we look at Courtney and her family, we say that we want them to be our neighbor. And that’s the type of people and the type of leaders that we need in Jefferson City. And I am so excited to know that Courtney is working hard right now, but you know what, folks, she needs every bit of your support….And it matters more than you can imagine….
….When we think about where we want Missouri to be, not just in a few months when we elect Courtney, but let’s think about where we want Missouri in ten years. And you just think about what in your heart and mine brought you here tonight. Folks, that’s why we’re involved in this process. And that’s why we’re going to elect Courtney state representative. Courtney, we’re glad to have you.
Courtney Cole (D): Thank you. [applause]….Thank so much for the kind words. Thank you so much for coming this way. It really means a lot to me that you can come here to Johnson County and meet my neighbors and my supporters. And thank you so much….
….You know, Jim [Jackson] ran this race last time. It means the world to me to have their support. This time around, they gave it to me very early on and were very supportive of me. And I can’t tell them how much it really truly means….
….Thank you to all of you for coming out tonight…you guys are energized, you’re out here and it’s wonderful to see all of your faces.
….Earlier today I was listening to Senator [Victor] Callahan speak. And he said something that reminded me of why I’m running this race. He said that he was really proud to be a Democrat. And the reason that he was proud to be a Democrat was because we are so open to diversity and to different ideas and different approaches. And how wonderful that is to hear him say that and for me to think, yes, that’s exactly why I’m doing this.
You know, because right now in Jefferson City that’s really not something that is there. You know, we have a lot of party politics that are going on and people are butting heads and we’re not getting things done….
….Not too long ago, I tried to send it out to as many of you as I could, asking the Governor to seriously consider having a special session to pass a jobs bill. Because as I’m going out and I’m knocking on doors right here in Johnson County, what the folks are telling me that’s important to them is that they have a job. And I spoke with a gentleman the other night and he said, you know I’ve always had a job. And he said, I took it for granted because then the day that I was laid off, you know, I realized, oh my gosh, I’m in trouble. You know I have a family that I need to support. What am I going to do? And so he’s looking at me and saying, help me. Please help me. Because that help is not there right now.
They spent the entire session, well, a good chunk of the session talking about non-binding resolutions to go up to Congress. And then the spent
literally an hour and a half talking about a jobs bill. With a rate of nine point four to nine point eight of unemployment in our state right now, to me it’s just irresponsible. And so I feel very passionately about working to bring jobs not only to the state, but to Johnson County, too….And so I’m really going to work hard to make that happen.
As a teacher, of course, I’m going to work very hard, too, to make sure that we are not just cutting our budgets, but that we are coming up with solutions. Because we’re not going to be able to cut our way out of this. You know we really have to take a hard look at where we’re at and come up with some solutions….
….[This summer] I have spent literally every hour throughout the day working on the campaign and I will continue to do so. And I thrive off of this, you know, I want this, I want this for all of us. It’s so important to me, every time that I go and knock on someone’s door and I shake their hand and, and hear them say, you know, I’m gonna support you, it just puts it right back in. The, the feeling of I gotta do this for them. You know, I’ve gotta work even harder for them. And, and so that’s what I’m doing. And thank you for joining me. We can win this, you guys. We can truly win this….
….We are staying positive and we have, we have great support here in Johnson County and it shows. And people throughout the state are seeing that. So, we can have a win right here. We only need eight more seats to have the majority in our House so that we’re able to get a lot of great things accomplished. But I will always be a voice here for Johnson County. So thank you so much for supporting me. [applause]
