It is time for new leadership, new direction, and new results in Washington, D.C., and that is why I am running for United States Senate.
— Ron Crumpton
In 2010, Republicans took control of politics in Alabama by advocating for increased transparency and an end to government corruption, but instead of ending it, they have raised the level of corruption to the point that the stench of dishonesty fills the air, decadence drives policy, and bribery is the norm in Montgomery.
You cannot be against a raise in the minimum wage and for cutting government assistance and still say that you are worried about the people living in poverty.
In addition to their risky investments, the big banks have a history of breaking the law whenever it suits their purpose, which is to make more money.
The people have the right to know whether or not the person they elect has the capacity to represent them.
You have to be committed to the people and willing to do what is in their best interest even when it isn't in your best interest, and you have to be committed to getting results even if you don't get the credit.
A 2010 report by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a non-partisan watchdog group, lists eight staffers to Sen. Shelby that left his office to join or create lobbying firms: Ray Cole, Stewart Hall, Richard Roberts, Wesley Ryan Welch, Amelia Blackwood, Phil Rivers, Jennifer Bendall and Geoffrey Gradler.
Raising the minimum wage would be a positive step in reducing poverty, the humiliation of living in poverty, and dependence on public assistance.
Poverty should be one of the top concerns for any elected leader. It has a negative effect on almost everything we as society entrust our government to do, but it seems that those in the Republican Party find it is more politically viable to fight a war on the people in poverty than it is to fight a war to end poverty in this country.
In reality, Senator Shelby's Financial Regulatory Improvement Act is nothing more than a wish list for the Wall Street bankers that fund his campaign.
A jurist can obey the letter of the law and violate its spirit, or it can follow the spirit of the law and violate the letter of the law. I want someone who can reconcile the letter and the spirit of the law without partisan leanings.
The problem in Washington is that no one is trying to work together.
Richard Shelby has a long history of sponsoring legislation that would only benefit his largest contributors, for trading earmarks of pork-barrel politics and personal favors in order to benefit himself, his campaign war chest, political action committee, and former members of his Senate staff.
If you do not ensure that people are being paid a living wage, then you are going to have people who rely on government assistance. It is that simple.
If Senator Shelby calls his Financial Regulatory Improvement Act anything other than a hand out for the big banks, then he is being untruthful, and the people of Alabama deserve better.
If Dick Shelby were to participate in a debate, it would answer a lot of questions about his health and cognitive ability.
I will always support a vote. The constitution gives the president the right to appoint justices with the advice and consent of the Senate. The Senate does have the right to say no; they do not have the right to say nothing.
