Hi name is William T Russell. He is running for Congress against John Murtha as a Republican in the 12th Congressional District of Pennsylvania in the November 2008 election.
Until August 31st of this year, he was a fulltime Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Army Reserve, stationed at the Pentagon and a little over 2 years short of full, active duty retirement. He also is a small business owner and entrepreneur, as well as a husband and father.
During his military carrer he served six tours in hostile fire zones including Desert Storm, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and the Balkans. These tours include almost three years in the Middle East (Iraq and Saudi Arabia) and a year and a half in the Balkans (Hungary, Bosnia, Kosovo, Croatia). He and his wife, Kasia, who was pregnant with their son at the time, were also in the Pentagon on 9/11.
His message:
“The United States is now engaged in a great political battle to determine whether this nation, founded in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal, can maintain the political resolve in its fight against a totalitarian political system, cloaked in religion, which is dedicated to the destruction of our liberty.
Pennsylvania has been the turning point in many of the great events that have determined our nation’s future as well as its character. These turning points include the founding of our nation with the signing of the Declaration of Independence to establish the political entity of our nation, followed by the Continental Army’s long winter at Valley Forge and its crossing of the Delaware to capture Trenton on the long road to military victory. The Constitutional Convention defined the structure of this nation, the Battle of Gettysburg determined that such a nation could long endure, and Lincoln’s address there clearly defined the purpose of that most difficult of this nation’s struggles. The passengers of Flight 93 turned the tide of battle on September 11 over the skies of this great state and diverted what would have been the most devastating of the blows to this nation. In this war against Islamic Radicalism, the political battle of the 2008 election in the Pennsylvania 12th Congressional District is a critical turning point of this war.
The people of the 12th District have a choice between continuing on a path of economic stagnation and undermining our Soldiers in the fight with an enemy that seeks to destroy us or of growing the next generation of entrepreneurs and supporting our most precious national resources as they engage an enemy we cannot afford to lose to. It is a choice between a corrupted, long time Washington insider who is playing into the hands of the enemy and a new comer with 28 years of honorable Active and Reserve military service to this nation in war and peace. It is a choice between an incumbent who encourages the enemy to kill more of our troops with his calls for withdrawal and a new candidate who has served with our troops in the streets of Ad Daluhya and Kirkuk, and understands this enemy is seeking to weaken our political resolve. It is a choice between a politician who has accused a Marine from this District of the cold blooded murder of innocent civilians for his own political ends (when in fact that Marine was facing four armed enemy combatants at extreme close range), and a professional Soldier who understands this enemy was looking to create a My Lai type incident for propaganda purposes and knows our brave Service Members need our faith and support. It is a choice between an extreme practitioner of cronyism who brings in earmarks that benefit a few close supporters while providing few long term jobs and a practicing small businessman who knows that real jobs and economic growth are produced by men and women who respond to the demands of the free market. It is a choice between a political player who continually creates dependence on pork barrel projects that dry up every two years and a practicing entrepreneur who wants our children to start and own their own companies rather than work for them.
In this election, surrender on the political, military, and economic fronts is not an option. We must turn the tide toward victory.
Throughout this campaign, I will be visiting with people of every county and township in this district to listen, learn, and assist in developing free market and small business based solutions to meet the economic challenges of this part of South Western Pennsylvania. I believe I have a unique background as a soldier, small businessman, and student of international relations to help turn the tide economically for the 12th district and for our nation’s security.
I deeply appreciate those supporters who have already welcomed this career Army transplant, who grew up as an Air Force brat and has lived in 11 different states and seven foreign countries. I invite all voters to follow suit.
I thank you for your time, interest, and support.
Very Respectfully,
William T Russell”
Johnstown, Pennsylvania 15907
http://www.williamrussellforcongress.com/ ……his website …….. he has a lot of things there you can read as well.
william.russell@williamrussellforcongress.com ……his email
(814) 248-3435
Wild Thing’s comment……..
Hooray William T. Russell, for taking on that bloated, elitist, earmark-plundering POS Murtha. Murtha is a curse!
The crony Keystone State sucks and they ran Sen. Rick Santorum out of Dodge. Governor Mister Ed Rendell (not the horse but the horse’s a**) could sell sand to an arab, and Filthadelphia’s former mayor was a hot dog vendor?
We certainly need Conservatives like Colonel Russell. I don’t know if he can defeat Murtha. That whole congressional district must be a bunch of crooks to keep returning slimeball Murtha to office for so many years.
In 2006 a Conservative woman ran against Murtha and lost. She would have also been a new breath of fresh air from screwy Pennsylvania. Let’s hope that Colonel Russell can run a successful race and knock Murtha out of Congress.
You can tell something about a people by the representatives they continually reelect. In 2006, like TomR said, Diana Irey, a decent honorable woman of high character and integrity, ran against Murtha and she lost.
And So It Begins ~
I have posted before on the hope I have for this country. I see it in the actions and bearing of our present generation of active and combat experienced military. Words like “duty”, “honor”, “leadership” and R…
Nope, Pennsylvania, is not the brightest state, they are primarily conservative, but they are basically ‘Blue Collar’ and remember the OLD Democrat party, the time when the democrats were conservative, too. This has carried over to today.
They work hard and pay little attention to politics, like most of the American people. But there is going to be a epithany for these solid Americans who still believe in the Democrat party, They don’t realize it yet, the democrat party of Today left them a long time ago, they are just now beginning to realize it.
My whole street, every house has a flag prominately displayed in their front yard with lights on it. If they have kids at least 18 they are in service.
The people here are very conservative here, they just don’t know that their party of choice has left them in the lurch.
Murtha becomes a conservative when he comes back to his district, and has all the money he has bought every election he has been in, its that simple.
Back when, I voted Democrat. Way, way back, I was insecure , thinking that they would protect my job and the industry I was in, I remember when JFK visited the area, lots of kudo’s about one specific strategic site, it was shutdown shortly there after, then he went off to abandon the counter revolutionaries at the Bay of Pigs, from there he conceded to remove strategic U.S. nuke sites in Turkey for the removal of the Soviet nuke sites in Cuba plus he allowed a U.S. ally to be assassinated with his aid. I admit I voted for LBJ once, big mistake, as VP he didn’t show his colors until he was elected, then I switched permanently.
It appears that the PA constituents are dependent on government jobs and/or handouts, like where I was in Washington State back then, thinking that a few tidbits of government aid by the likes of Murtha will bring back the industry that has been lost, it won’t. I think what Mark says are the facts, all my PA friends are very conservative, patriotic and all have left PA for better opportunities elsewhere. I’m reminded of this old Chinese saying. “Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime” .
The Dems want everyone to be dependent on their form of government, look at Europe, little or no defense systems, infested with ME vermin and economically dying. That’s the mold they want for the US.
Back in the great depression and the dust bowl days there were no government props, the people moved to where the jobs were, a temporary hand up is one thing but FDR made the population slaves to the government with the Socialist notion of wealth redistribution. Government aid is like joining the mafia, there are some heavy and unbreakable strings attached.
Darth, yes, I still am hoping though that maybe this one will run Murtha out of town. I was pulling for Diana Irey and it just didn’t happen. She was great.
Tom Yes I remember her. I forget how many posts I did about her to try and support her on here. I felt badly when she lost to Murtha.
Bob, yes she was wonderful, I was so hoping she would win.
When Nick and I lived in Calif. we knew tons of conservatives. We all voted and worked hard for the Republican’ running for office,and yet the State of Calif. is known as fruits and nuts and liberal as can be. It is hard when a person lives in a State where even though there are conservatives, there are just not enough to pull it off in an election. It breaks a persons heart.
Mark thanks so much for sharing about that, I understand completely. What you said reminds me of that awesome speech Zell Miller gave. I saved it and it still gives me goosebumps.
The dem party has move far to the left and the Republcan party has moved into the middle more then ever.
Jack, that is such a good example about the fish and so true too. I agree and what you and Mark said is so true. There are so many that are conservative, love America, and serve our country.