Support for Shoemyer continues to rise!

As the election continues to draw nearer more and more support for Wes Shoemyer is being revealed. Just a few days ago Quincy's newspaper, the Quincy Herald Whig, endorsed Shoemyer by publishing a very informative article. The article was not simply biased, but instead listed both Shoemyer's and his opponent Brian Munzlinger's accomplishments to prove why Wes is the best candidate for the job. We encourage Munzlinger's campaign to speak up and tell us why he thinks he is the best for the job because from what we have seen so far the competition is not keeping up to Wes!

To read the full endorsement article click here

Want to hear more from Shoemyer on a regular basis? We have found a great website, centralmoinfo.com, which has various radio segments of both Wes Shoemyer and Brian Munzlinger giving feedback on important issues concerning this election. One of the most informative clips I found was a radio debate where both of the candidates got a chance to give an opening statement, give answers to several questions, followed by closing statements. We encourage our readers to check out this site and we will be watching and posting any clips that appear in the next two weeks!

To listen to the radio debate click here!

SHOEMYER ON THE MOVE: Very exciting news for all you 18^th District voters out there who would like to see Shoemyer prove his worth in person! This Friday, October 22^nd, Shoemyer and his opponent will be participating in a debate at the Parker Theatre of the Roland Fine Arts Center on the Hannibal-LaGrange College campus in Hannibal. The debate will start at 7pm and all voters of the 18^th District are encouraged to attend. Any questions can be asked of Louis Riggs at 573-629-3121 or for more information click here

Think you have decided Wes Shoemyer is the right candidate for you? Want to give him some support in these last two weeks? Donations to his campaign are welcome and greatly appreciated…to donate click here

The election is SO close so remember to keep checking back here for updates and send your comments and questions our way!

Tell us why, Wes

What’s the most important piece of information to ask a candidate running for any office?

• Do you want to know his or her stance on hot-topic issues like the economy, reproductive rights, health care or the war?
  
• Do you care most about his or her education, experience or background?
  
• What about plans for if he or she becomes an elected official?

And we’d agree; all of these things are important to know when deciding how you will vote. If you have the answers to all the questions above, you can make an educated decision on Election Day. But there’s something missing in that list of questions. It’s the most basic thing you could ask a candidate and our previous commenter, Michael, hit the nail right on the head.

Why are you running?

Simple, right? It’s direct. It’s to the point.

The answer, though, isn’t always so simple. We here at A New View on Shoe think this question can be one of the most difficult yet important for a candidate to answer. They must think about how it’ll appeal to their audience, especially those undecided voters every candidate is after. We aren’t big fans of “cookie cutter” answers and we hope candidates realize this in their audience.

We want a real answer. An original answer. An answer that actually shows the candidate cares about his or her potential constituents.

That’s why Senator Shoemyer’s answer pleasantly surprised and interested us. Take a listen for yourself.

Why.mp3

Through some quick research, we found a House Bill that was first introduced in February of this year:

• The bill's goal is to combat the problem of Congress members not being equally accessible to all constituents
• This bill, if passed, will accomplish what Senator Shoemyer sees lacking in Missouri Congress: Congress members will have to inform constituents if their offices are handicap accessible (through their website and other electronic/print resources)
  
• If their offices are not accessible, the bill will designate an area in the capitol to hold meetings so that mobility-impaired constituents may meet with their elected official in private

We feel confident that Shoemyer will continue his dedication to this issue. The bill has since been referred to the House Health Care Transformation Committee and may end up in the Senate where Shoemyer can continue to fight for it.

And beyond this specific issue of giving increased rights to mobility-impaired constituents, Shoemyer shows his commitment to increasing government transparency and accessibility to all of District 18 and the state of Missouri.

What do you guys think?

It's Friday!

Hey readers!

I had the opportunity to meet with Senator Shoemyer yesterday. Yep, he didn't just return a stock e-mail or have his campaign give me answers. He took the time out of his busy campaigning schedule to meet with me in the Democratic Headquarters in Kirksville, MO. Thanks to Rebecca McClanahan for letting us use her office for our meeting.

It was a good opportunity to ask him questions on several wide-ranging issues and I think many will be surprised at his answers. They're far from just talking points that we know a lot of candidates fall back on.

And Michael, we've got your answers for you. You wanted to know his position on gun control, "Obamacare" (although we prefer to call it the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act), and why he is running for office.

All great questions, and with great answers. We invite you, and all our readers, to come back soon to hear these answers and many more!

If those aren't good enough teasers, we don't know what is.

Only a little over two weeks until election day. What else do you guys want or need to know? Are you still undecided on who to elect for our state senator? Let us know, we're here to help!

And of course, have a great weekend!

Contact has been made!

Great news! Shoemyer’s campaign finally responded to our emails and calls yesterday! We have responded to them by sending an e-mail of questions we have for Shoemyer as well as asking for any other information they can give us about the campaign. We’re so excited to get responses back from Shoemyer and share it all right here! We are going to continue to stay in contact with the campaign as much as possible and want all of you to tell us any questions or concerns you have and we will send those in Wes direction as well.

On another note, we wanted to mention an important proposition that is on the ballot this November, Proposition B. Some of you may have heard this bill referred to as the “puppy mill bill” and immediately wanted the bill to pass to save those poor little starving puppies. Shoemyer immediately saw through this bill, and its lobbyists, and is holding a strong opposing stance. Wes stated that the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) is only supporting this one bill now, but he believes they will work to develop many more in the future that could affect other types of animal farms. Shoemyer does not want these organizations to take control of our local farms and stated “These people (HSUS), without any consideration of their fellow man, will do great, great harm to our country. We have to fight them. This is about preserving our rights. This is about preserving our way of life. I hope you get involved in this fight.” You can go to nemonews.net to see more comments from Shoemyer as well as other local views on this proposition.

To see the full text of Proposition B and how the proposition will be stated on ballot…click here ---All the other issues that will be on the ballot are on the site as well so you can check those out too!

Don’t forget to send us any questions or concerns you have for Wes, see you back soon!

Stepping It Up

So for the past few entries, we've laid out some main issues that we think are important for this upcoming election. We stand behind Shoemyer and what he represents for this district. He's a socially conservative Democrat, which we feel is perfect for Northeast Missouri. His stance on issues seems to be consistent with what his constituents want.

With all this said, we hope to see even more from Shoemyer in coming weeks. We'd love to see his campaign website built up to include more of his opinions on issues so that it can act as a one-stop shop for those investigating the candidates. We have worked hard to piece together the puzzle and we'd like to see it be easier for other voters. The internet is here for a reason; let's encourage Shoemyer to use it to his best advantage!

We believe in local politics and politicians. We think it is necessary for voters to get involved with the process at the local level because of how much it affects our daily lives. Yes, the heated race between Carnahan and Blunt is important, if not entertaining at times. But choosing Shoemyer will help us the most right here in Northeast Missouri. For that reason, we continue to hope to see more from him.

Shoemyer does continue with his weekly columns, which are helpful, yet not all encompassing. He recently won "Legislator of the Year" by members of the Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives. Shoemyer won this award because of his legislative work this year on behalf of Missouri's electric co-ops. Shoemyer states that he's helped pass legislation to protect the co-ops, which turn corn into ethanol or soybeans into biodiesel so that we can be more independent in our production of fuel. Again, Shoemyer is helping to protect jobs while keeping rural Missouri first in his mind.

Bottom line: We support Shoemyer. We believe he is the best man for the job. We simply want a little more from him as the election nears; we don't want comfort to ruin any chances of his reelection.

Please continue to stay tuned to our blog. We are hoping that any day now, Shoemyer's campaign will respond to our request to meet with him/them so that we can pass along even more pertinent information to our blog readers. Have a great week, guys!

Education is success for Wes

In several previous posts we have discussed how Wes Shoemyer is continually fighting to improve the job market here in Missouri. What we haven't mentioned is how he plans to use the improvement of education in Missouri to give every citizen in his district the best opportunity to find employment.

Shoemyer realizes how far behind our state is starting to fall in providing children with quality education. It may come as a shock to you to find out that, according to the National Education Association, Missouri ranks 30^th among the states for the percentage of young people with college degrees. In today's world it is almost a requirement to have a college degree in order to get a well paying job that provides benefits. We want a state senator who will work to improve this ranking for future students and Shoemyer has again proved that he is the man for the job.

Wes currently serves on the Missouri Educated Citizenry 2020 Committee which is dedicated to the academic success of Missouri students, as well as finding ways to allow more people to become educated beyond a high school diploma. According to a weekly column written by Wes over the summer the committee has been working towards a "long-term strategy and plan for an education system where every child enters school ready to learn."

Shoemyer knows that economic success and the amount of education that people receive are extremely interconnected and wants to give all his citizens fair and equal opportunities. Coming from a rural town he is prepared to fight for more funding for schools in the area that may not have the same supplies, technology and quality teachers that many urban schools do. He stands strong behind the traditional American value that EVERY child deserves to be provided with equal and quality education.

Do we want our children to be well educated?

Do we want our state and nation to keep up with the rest of the industrialized world?

To make this happen we must vote for a state senator who will continue the fight to put more money and planning into our education systems! Wes Shoemyer clearly knows the importance of education to the future of our state and as well as its role in improving our economy. A vote for Wes is a vote for education and success!

*More state rankings and statistic on education are available on the National Education Association website: http://www.nea.org/assets/docs/010rankings.pdf

The String of Shoemyer

Today we're going to focus on that little important idea of…health care. According to State Health Facts, a non-partisan group that researches health care issues, Missouri has over 700,000 uninsured citizens.

For this reason, Shoemyer is a member of the Healthy Missourians 2020 Committee. This special committee made up of seven Senators (both Rep and Dem) was created before this whole debate of national health care took over the media. They first were concerned for this state.

The senate resolution to create this committee mentions that Missouri is 38^th in the nation for the health status of its citizens. As residents of this state, we just find this sad and slightly terrifying to know how low our ranking is. But, we're glad to have a senator like Shoemyer who is being proactive in this fight for health care.

The resolution also specifically states that the committee doesn't think it's the best idea to just make Missouri businesses take the brunt of the cost for spreading health care coverage. Instead, they'll work to come up with a long term strategy that works with employers, doctors, hospitals, and insurance companies.

A quick look at opponent Munzlinger's Representative website shows that he is not a member of any health-related committees. Four of his five committees deal with agriculture. Yes, agriculture is important in Northeast Missouri. And yes, we want a candidate with knowledge and passion for agriculture. But is that all we care about? No. We need someone who is fighting for jobs in all sectors, someone who is fighting to bring us out of 38^th place in terms of health status.

Our bottom line: forget which candidate is red and which is blue. Forget if a D or R is attached to their name on the ballot. Is our future worth voting based on party? We strongly suggest all readers to consider Shoemyer. He cares about the people, not about the party. He will fight for your jobs. In a move that shows his dedication to this district and its wants and needs, he will fight for you to keep your constitution-given right of carrying a gun. And, as the national debate of health care draws on, he will continue to fight for your health care, right here in Missouri.

Shoemyer on the move: As further evidence that Shoemyer is invested in health care for Northeast Missouri, he attended groundbreaking ceremonies for renovations at Scotland County Memorial Hospital in Memphis last week. The renovations will include, among other things, new patient rooms and a new out-patient surgery center. These renovations were made possible by a USDA Rural Development grant, funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (aka "the Stimulus"). The main goals of this act are to create new jobs while saving existing jobs, encourage economic growth and make the government more accountable for spending. So, these renovations of the hospital will improve the health care in rural Northeast Missouri while also providing more jobs in the area.

Don't you just love how it's all connected?