Bud Lidzy For Arkansas in '08
The only candidate with real experience
Why you should vote for me.
| Ph 501-847-4521 Fax 501-847-6838 |
1. I have been an active member of this community for over 20 years. I have raised 2 children through schools and they are well into college. I also have a third child that will begin her education in Bryant schools this fall. I have worked in the Bryant community as a city council member in the past and am proud of the many things I accomplished for the community. I didn't do any of it alone. I was able to work with some very good people on the council and concerned citizens around to get these things done. A few of the things I am most proud of are:
Cordinated the construction of Alcoa 40 softball park with little monies from the city being spent. This was done mostly with donated labor and materials from many individuals and companies. Next time you go to the ball park, look around. Most of what you see was built with back breaking labor from people with a servants heart. It was my humbling pleasure to be part of this.
I served on the fire committee while on city council and was able to keep our growing fire department supplied with the latest equipment to keep our city safe. I was able to find a buy a ladder truck for the fire department at auction for less than $5000, giving us added protection from this badly needed piece of equipment without having to spend $175,000+ that a new piece of equipment would have cost the city. More recently, I appeared before the city council as a citizen asking that they immediately fund a full time fire department to serve our citizens. I am proud of being able to persuade them and proud of the fire protection we have now. All this adds up to caring and community service.
2. I have the experience to legislate effectively. I have great experience with the legislative process because of the work I did on city council, lobbying state legislature through the Arkansas Municipal League and lobbying the legislature for veterans benefits. As a city , I learned the process of drafting legislation, getting support from members of the community and input from them and most importantly getting support from other council members. The last is probably the most key component. Without the support of other members of the council, I could draft all the legislation I wanted and still not accomplish anything. It took persuading a majority of the other 7 members that this legislation was needed. Working with the state legislature, I was able to get laws passed with bipartisan cooperation. Working with our local state senator, Shane Broadway, we were able to get the bill signed into law with a unanimous state senate vote and only one no vote in the house. This experience working with both parties uniquely qualifies me as a good legislator. I not only had to convince the legislature that the idea was good, I had to convince the State Board of Higher Education and the committee in charge of economic impact. I was able to do this with many long hours sitting in committee meetings and talking with the committees. I am the only candidate that has the experience to work with the legislature from day one, knowing the system and how to move through it effectively.
3. I listen to people. I have been here, answering questions, taking calls, and trying to make things work smoothly in this great exchange of information we have at our fingertips. I state my beliefs clearly and love to debate my viewpoint and love to hear yours. I've been able to sharpen my stances with input from members of this community and many ideas you have offered I have adopted. I will be the first to tell you that I don't know everything. I still have much to learn, but I enjoy that because when learning stops, your mind goes stagnant. All this means is that I am accessible to you, I value your opinions and really think about what is best for this district.
4. I am a Republican for a few reasons, mostly moral issues that I disagree with the Democratic party on. The biggest part of disagreement I have is the stance on abortion. I must choose the Republican party, if not for any other reason than this one. I am also a conservative on spending states (your) money and believe that the less government interferes with your life, the better. I have no problem working with Democrats and know many great legislators that were and are Democrats. I don't look at my party affiliation as a religion to me and so am able to work with members of both parties to accomplish goals. One of my opponents is so entrenched in the local, state and national Republican party that swaying or compromising with members of other party's and viewpoints would be difficult for her, I believe. This all boils down to the fact that I am here to work for YOU. I am not here to make a name for myself with my party, pretty good at not doing that as you might have seen. I stand up for what I believe is right, no matter the consequences.
5. I want to serve you because I genuinely love to serve people and I love our system of government. It's not perfect yet, but with your vote, maybe I can make a small difference to our government and bring it closer to its full potential. I am not running to make a name for myself, I've done that in other arenas such as medical research and have found that the rewards and praise you get just doesn't compare with the satisfaction I received doing the work. If you come into my office, you wont see my diploma on the wall, you wont see my many certifications framed and hanging. You wont see my awards and letters of appreciation and service. Those are looked at and then placed in a box and placed in my attic. What you will see are pictures of my family, my pets, pictures of the community and things that are really important in life. I don't want to be elected so I can be important. I want to be elected so our community will be important and have a strong voice in what happens here and in the state. I want YOU to be important.
These are the main reasons I would appreciate your vote. If you think I would make a good voice for you, please vote for me and call other people in Bryant/Salem/Congo/ Fairplay areas and ask them to do the same. It's a small gesture on your part but would mean the world to me.
Thank you, Bud