I know, you probably don’t believe that it is possible to run a clean political campaign, but I do.  And if it can be done anywhere - it ought to be in Provo!  It’s simple. All you have to do is follow some very basic ‘Sunday School Rules’:

1) Be kind and respectful to those you are running against (be slow to judge)

2) Follow the Golden Rule (do to them as you would want them to do to you)

3) Respect personal property (do not steal or damage signs, banners, or brochures)

4) If you disagree with your opponent - reach out to them first.   Do not write anonymous notes, threaten legal action, or gossip.

5) If you do something wrong, apologize.

Sounds simple doesn’t it?  Sadly in this day and age we’ve become obsessed with ‘being right’ instead of ‘doing right’.  Still,  just think how much more productive our campaign season would be if we could really focus on the issues that face our community and put our time and collective knowledge to work on finding solutions instead of wasting our time on dirty politics. 

That’s what I am trying to do.

It was a good day in church today.  Talks on Faith and Hope.  A lesson on service and how service can and ought to be a reflection of our ability to express charity, the pure love of Christ. Time to ponder one of my favorite scriptural passages about a time in the history of man when there “was no contention in the land” nor any “envyings”or “lyings”, “nor any “manner of -ites: but they were in one, the Children of Christ”.

It made me think a lot about the blogs I’ve read and written this week and the discussions I’ve had about political party affiliation.  It’s made me wonder if the conversations I’ve had about ’political party affiliation’ have crossed the line into ‘contention’ about what manner of ‘-ites’ we are  - at the expense of acknowledging that we are all children of the same God. 

And so, here is my public apology.  If I have been contentious in defending my political party affiliation - I am sincerely sorry.   Rather than becoming defensive when I feel accused of being ‘evil’ or ‘wrong’ because of the “D” beside my name on a ballot, I hope I can find a way to show respect for and support of someone else’s choice to be a “Republican”.  And in so doing,  I hope that I can convey my commitment to the preservation of free agency - the ability to choose our individual life paths, our affiliations, or our political philosophy.

I hope that I can do a better job of conveying my firm belief that there is good and bad in every political party.  Just like there are no perfect people, there are no perfect political parties, nor perfect businesses, nor perfect educational systems, nor perfect families.  There is good and bad in all.   Our challenge is to find a way to champion and foster the good, so that the good can overcome the bad. 

I’ve pondered today if the secret of how to foster good isn’t as simple as  ‘doing to others as you would have others do to you’ .  In my family it was called the “Golden Rule”.  I bet we, citizens, candidates, and elected representatives would all be better off if we would abide by this basic Christian principle “Love thy Neighbor as thyself”.   For me that means loving and serving my Republican neighbors in the same way I would want to be served. I am looking forward to that opportunity!

A couple of months ago following a family discussion about the increasing power of political parties and the danger that it presents to our constitutional government, my 15 year old son got on the internet and found a quote from George Washington’s Farewell Address in 1796. The paper he printed it off on is still taped right here in front of me on my computer screen. 

The Father of our Country basically sounded a warning over 200 years ago that while political parties may serve some purpose in helping organize and educate citizens they are likely to “become potent engines, by which cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people and to usurp for themselves the reigns of government”. 

As I’ve listened to my Republican husband, friends, and neighbors tell of some negative experiences in the Utah County Republican Party - of veiled threats, intimidation, black balling potential delegates, changing the party rules to put power into the hands of fewer people, and a few of my own negative experiences within the Democrat Party - I’ve thought time and again - “By George -  He was right!”.

It’s been fascinating to watch your reactions when you find out that I am a Democrat.  You struggle to reconcile your beliefs about Democrats with what you see and know about me.

It is very much like what I experienced when I lived outside of Utah, in that moment that people learned I am a Mormon.  Have you experienced this same awkward moment?  Have you ever come face to face with prejudice?  For that is what the “awkward moment” is all about – people are trying to reconcile their pre-judgment of how a Mormon, a Democrat, a (name any ‘group’) thinks, feels, or believes – with you – the person standing before them.

Now before you think I believe that being a member of a political party is the same thing as being a member of a particular religion – I don’t.  In fact, I think we would all be much better off if we recognized the differences between our church membership and our political party affiliation.  

But I digress.  I started to write this blog to try and explain why I am a Democrat.  I am a Democrat because I was raised by Democrats. My father was a leader of the Democrats in Utah State Legislature during my formative years.  In my family I was taught and I continue to believe that:

• The government of this country was designed to be ‘of the people, by the people, for the people’.
• Government is only as good and as strong as the people who are active participants  
• We, the people, have a responsibility to care for the least among us
• We, the people, have a responsibility to provide access to education for all
• We have a responsibility to protect and preserve our inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Remembering that ‘liberty’ is another word for ‘free agency’. 
• The best solutions to the problems that face our country are those that are discovered through a collaborative legislative process in an environment of mutual respect and tolerance.
• That power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.  That’s why we must have checks and balances in government.  Just like a monopoly isn’t good in a free market, a monopoly isn’t good in a free government.

And I can go on… about stewardship over our natural resources, about our duty to preserve peace and protect human rights.  To me being a Democrat is about a wider range of issues then just two – gay marriage and abortion.  I freely admit that on these two issues I do not agree with the more socially liberal members of my party.   But there is much more to my party affiliation then these two issues. The bottom line for me is this:  you can be a good Mormon and a Democrat.  I am.

On Saturday, after hearing yet another person say “I can not publicly contribute time or money to your campaign.  Your opponent is vindictive and if I support you he will retaliate against me” – my husband looked at me and said, “I’m sure glad we are not afraid of that man.”

We’re not.  But that doesn’t mean that it is fun to be where we are right now. Besides the people who have said they are too afraid to publicly support me, I’ve heard story after story of unethical and corrupt practices among our elected State Representatives and Party Leaders.  And yet those people who seek me out to tell me these stories say, “You can’t use my name or reveal the industry I represent”.  What then am I supposed to do with the ‘hearsay’ I am presented with?   I do not have the time or the resources to serve as an investigative reporter or public prosecutor! I am a candidate. And frankly it is taking all my family has for me to be a candidate.  There are days when I feel like we are the only ones willing to stand up and say, “Enough is enough.  We want ethical representative government.  We will pay the price in time and money to make sure we have it.”

Maybe the reason we are willing to do what we are doing is because of what we know.  We know it is possible to have ethical representative government.  We know that it is possible for people to govern and be governed without intimidation, without threats, without abuses of power.  I believe I will be able to serve as a Utah Senator with a clear conscience, being able to stand before my maker and look Him in the eye and say “I have dealt with my fellow man the way you would have had me deal with them, and when I didn’t, I swallowed my pride, sought forgiveness, and then tried again to do as you would have me do.”   I know others who have had governed with a similar approach, George Washington, Abe Lincoln, FDR, Scott Matheson, Howard Nelson, and my own father Roger Rawson.  I believe that such an approach to government not only is the way He would have us govern, but is ultimately the most effective way to lead and govern in this land.

But our elected leaders can not govern alone.  We the people must be actively engaged in the government of our communities.  That is because the best solutions to the problems that face us are ones that grow up out of respectful and thoughtful consideration of the needs and wants of all the people.  

If the people are silent, whether because of apathy or fear of retaliation we have crossed into a dangerous place – one where truly our ‘constitution is hanging by a thread’. From what I have heard these past few weeks, we are at that dangerous place. 

So what are we going to do?  I know what Harlan and I are doing.  Will you join us?  Will you stand up, without fear of retaliation, with hope and faith in the good people of our town and say “Enough is enough. I want ethical representative government.  I too will contribute time or money to help elect a candidate that will represent me and my values and will do so with integrity.”   If you will, then right now, as soon as you finish reading this sentence, click on the “Join the RaDene Team” button and sign up for what you can do.

Talk about the power of the pen - I am stunned at the coverage that a pizza delivery girl’s blog has received. Whoever first coined that phrase “the power of the pen” would be absolutely amazed at what that has come to mean in today’s internet age. 

 I first read Anna Eager’s blog early in the controversy.  I was impressed by Anna’s writing.  Her clear prose coupled with my own experiences in Bramble’s home and with his family created a ‘virtual reality’ for me - like I was watching exactly what had transpired just a few hours before.  Anna did what few of us have been able to do - capture and communicate the essence of Curt Bramble’s character.

By Tuesday night,  Bramble’s treatment of the pizza delivery girl was being discussed on  KSL Radio’s nighttime talk show. 

I was sort of surprised by the interest of the media in Anna’s blog and a little bit miffed.  You see for weeks I had been trying to build up the courage to take Curt on regarding the issue of campaign finance - the fact that he is rolling in dough taken from businesses and special interest groups both in and out of Utah to finance the campaign that he will be running against me.  Tuesday morning, just hours after Anna posted her blog,  I sent out a Press Release to all of the major media outlets along the Wasatch front issuing Bramble a challenge to stop taking campaign contributions from any businesses or special interest groups from outside of Utah and join me in reporting on our websites the policy interest any and all of our contributors have in our campaigns.   If you are reading this - you won’t be surprised to learn that it took 6 days and a local reporter finally asking the question “who is running against Bramble?”  before anyone in the press even asked me about why I am concerned about campaign finance reform.  But of course, a conversation about political money is far less interesting then reporting the ‘David & Goliath’ story that Anna’s experience with Bramble described.

Because I was involved in preparations for a Provo School District parent meeting at UVU on Thursday and traveled to join my husband in California on Friday - I lost track of how big PizzaGate was growing.  When I returned on Sunday, I was stunned to see my inbox full of “Google Alerts” about Curt Bramble and comments from people around the country on the PizzaGate story.  I couldn’t believe that not only had the story appeared in the major newspapers, but reports had been aired on Channel 4 and KSL TV, and even on a CBS station as far away as Texas.  

Tonight, my family decided to go to Nicolitalia Pizzeria for dinner and see if we could meet the brave soul who had started it all.  We weren’t disappointed.  Anna was as quiet and unassuming as you would imagine.  She blushed bright red when I told her I was Curt Bramble’s opponent.  I complimented her on her piece and asked her if she could have imagined how big this would get.  She just shook her head.  I told her I had just got off the phone with someone from Bellevue WA who had read her blog.  She told me that she had read postings on her blog from people from Greece, NYC, and Chicago.  I gave her a cookie with my campaign card and told her I would welcome the chance to explain why I would like to be her Senator. 

Now that everyone else - across the country -  has weighed in, I think it’s time I speak up to let Anna and other voters in Provo know that they do not have to put up with  Bramble’s bullying any longer. 

I’m running for the Utah Senate because I believe I can represent Provo citizens better than Bramble.   I believe I can listen better, understand more and serve harder than my opponent.  Those who know me know that I am passionate about fighting for quality education, accountability in the legislature and our Utah values.  But in a representative democracy, those goals should never be accomplished through rudeness, disrespect and manipulation.  Some excuse my opponent’s behavior as his style because he hails from the Chicago area.  Such a brutish approach may be appropriate in Chicago style politics, but it’s a long ways away from our Utah values.  I believe we are passionate here as well, but we are cordial and respectful and more impressed by integrity and hard work than a title such as Senate Majority leader.

Anna’s story matters for another reason. Anna is more than just the ‘pizza delivery girl’.  Anna is someone’s daughter, friend and the Senate Majority leader’s constituent.  The way politicians treat people when they think no one else will find out, reveals much about the depth of their concern for the well being of their constituents and the degree to which they care more about public service than self service. 

I grew up believing that anyone born in the United States had the responsibility to serve and work to preserve the freedoms we have here. I was raised by parents who taught me through word and deed how to be a public servant. A public servant is someone who listens, is respectful, and believes that the people who elect them are intelligent and capable of self governance (see what Bramble said to the DeseretNews last week http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,700251968,00.html)

Curt Bramble, as PizzaGate has shown,  doesn’t quite fit the image of public servant.  Bramble is much more deserving of the title “Public Bully”.  It’s up to Provo voters to decide whether they want a ‘public bully’ or a ‘public servant’ to represent them in the Utah State Senate.

While on a morning ‘wog’ (I’ll explain later) with 3 of my 4 sisters along the boardwalk here in San Diego, we were talking about my new adventure into the world of public policy.  One sister asked me, “What do you think about the War in Iraq?”  My answer “We need to stop playing political volleyball with our military families and work together to identify the goals of our involvement there and then join forces, Democrats and Republicans, to reach those goals.  I am very disappointed in our leaders who have allowed the Presidential Debate on this topic to turn into a ‘they said - we said’ debate.”  

LaDawn, my sister who lives in Florida with 4 children and her husband who is a Lt. Colonel in the Airforce and will most likely be back on a tour in Iraq next month, said “Darryl thinks the Iraq people need us there. And we in the military are willing to do our duty and support them.”

She’s right.  I think that’s how most American’s feel.  We are willing to serve our fellow world citizens to fight against oppression or human right violations.  But I worry that our leaders have turned this War in Iraq issue into one of whether the Democrats or the Republicans are ‘right’.  The partisan wars in our county have escalted to epic porportions.  We, fellow Americans, are not the enemy!  The Sadams, the terrorists, the people who violate basic human rights - these people are the enemy.  We would do well to remember that and work together to stand against them.

It is delightful to get together with extended family and discover that even though you may live hundreds or thousands of miles apart, you are doing many of the same things.

Case in point.  I’m currently in San Diego at a reunion of my maternal grandmother’s family.  My Aunt, who lives in Fairbanks Alaska, but was raised in Warren, Utah is here.  Sue is just 11 years older than I, and someone I looked up to growing up in Hooper.  I watched Sue graduate from Weber High School, then BYU and marry the distant cousin on my dad’s side that I’d had my first little girl crush on (he was the star football player on Roy High’s team).  

Turns out that Aunt Sue is also a first time citizen candidate this year, running as a Republican for a House of Representative seat in Fairbanks.  Sue and I share many of the same concerns and reasons for why we are taking this step into public life. 

Yesterday we were talking about how expensive it is to run a campaign.  I started to share with her the fact that my opponent has raised 10s of thousands of dollars during the past 4 years but only 1 donation, of $150 has been from one of his Provo constituents.  Sue looked at me and said “RaDene, how is that possible?  Where are his campaign contributions coming from?”  When I explained that Utah does not have any restrictions on who can contribution to political campaigns nor limits on how much individuals, businesses, or special interest groups can contribute, my Aunt Sue couldn’t believe it.  She told me that she can not take contributions from businesses, in fact, she has received 2 donations from friends who because they are business owners and wrote the check from their business account, she was unable to accept their donations.  In Alaska,  the campaign contributions must come from individuals and can not be for more than $500.   

Sue’s shock reminds me of my own when I found out about how my opponent has financed his campaigns to represent the people of Provo.  There is something uncomfortable about a person running to represent the people of his or her town and and taking money from special interest groups - not individuals - outside of his town to do so.

But unless we talk about this practice, really shine a bright light on how our Utah public servants are selected, supported, and elected - unless we bring out in the open who is financing the political campaigns in our state and look closely at why these folks are willing and able to pay as much money as they do to finance political campaigns in our state,  until we do the work it will take to reveal the truth about the ‘money behind the process’, until we do that - I’m afraid we will continue to shock and startle people who learn about what really is possible in Utah these days.