The Man, the Myth, the Second Coming

Campaign season will soon be upon us. Local politicos are lining up their bow ties and blazers and beginning to make backroom deals with possible candidates for all seats from local county council to national races. I, for one, pick my candidates how I pick my friends. I look for people who are real, accessible, a person with honest eyes and a genuine nature. At times I say to myself, "Self. You need medication because no candidate is all of these things." But instead of medicating, I go for educating. Educating myself on all the candidates to see if there may be at least one who can live up to the stringent standards I set forth for any public official. To my surprise, one actually does exist. He's my friend, he's your friend, and he's a friend to South Carolina. His name? Andre Bauer.

The race for the brand new Seventh Congressional District seat will be one of the hottest races around in the upcoming months. Candidates from all sides of the political spectrum will throw their hats in the proverbial ring. One already has and there is one I am hoping will. Andre Bauer. Because no other candidate has what Andre has. Simply put. He's your friend first and your candidate second. I challenge you to sit back and watch as Andre works a crowd. While most candidates will blindly shake hands with as many people as possible, not even bothering to make eye contact, Andre wants to know you. Your name, where you are from and what, if anything, he can do for you. No longer is the political process only accessible to a chosen few. With Andre Bauer at the helm, he will give the power back to the people of South Carolina and for the first time in a long time, give the people of the Pee Dee a voice and a place on the national stage.

Today I took a moment to look back my past blog posts from last year. My very first entry was a recap of the first time I met Andre. It's amazing how, after so many months have passed, I have gone from looking at Andre as not only my candidate of choice, but also my friend. He has that affect on everyone he meets. I've spoken with a few other Bauer supporters in the past few days and they all feel the same way as I do. How often does a politician come around who is the type of person you'd want as your best man at your wedding, as the brother you never had, and as someone you could call at 2 am just to talk . And to think soon he may be, once again, back out on "the trail" asking the people of the Pee Dee to give him a chance to make them proud as he represents us all in Washington. People light up when he enters a room, he puts you at ease making you want to spell out your life story, and, when you leave meeting with him, you feel as if you are leaving an old friend you've known since those childhood days gone by.

As I've stated before, I am not your typical "Young Republican". I don't own a blue blazer, I think bow ties belong in a museum, and I have vowed since day one, that I will never compromise myself nor my integrity just to get ahead in this, the rat race that is South Carolina politics. Whether I remain simply a volunteer working towards advancing the Republican cause or if I actually make my living one day as a shiny new Politico, I will remain true to myself. Which means you can trust what I am saying. I am not merely writing random niceties to try and flatter Mr. Bauer so I may one day find my name on his payroll. I say these things because I mean them. I am nothing if not an honest, trustworthy young man. My momma raised me right. I tell it like it is. Good or bad. Always have and always will. And the day my feelings about Andre change, I will be the first to sit down at my laptop and type out those words for the world to read. But that won't happen. Because, like me, Andre is a man of his word.

As Voltaire once said, "All is a miracle. The stupendous order of nature, the revolution of a hundred millions of worlds around a million of stars, the activity of light, the life of all animals, all are grand and perpetual miracles." My friends, the Pee Dee is full of miraculous wonders from the sandy white beaches of Myrtle Beach to the sun rising over the Lynches River . There is one man who will work tirelessly to protect the Pee Dee and all it holds dear. Please join me in supporting Andre Bauer for Congress.

The Man in the Moon

Stepping outside at night into the darkness of yet another summer evening in the South brings about a mix of emotions. The sounds of the cricket symphony in the background act as a soundtrack in this, the final act of the day. Standing there I tilt my head back and look towards the moon in all it's glory. No matter how many years pass by, I still feel like that 5 y/o boy who stood staring at the moon fascinated by the fact that some other little boy somewhere else at that exact moment in another place was staring at the same moon. At that moment in time, we shared something. A friend. The Man in the Moon. It's amazing how you can feel like the only person left in the world at times and yet feel as though you are a small part of something much bigger than yourself. Now that I am older and hopefully a little wiser, I realize the importance of submitting myself to the fact that I, nor anyone else, is ever truly alone as long as we believe in the realm of infinite possibilities and places.


We have heard so much in the news lately about a little place in a faraway land known as Washington. We hear of this place, of these people who, in all their suited glory, make some of the most important decisions of modern times. Yet there seems to be such a disconnect between them and us. We see them on TV, like modern day Knights of the Round Table, jousting back and forth and here we sit, feeling all but helpless. And yet I am once again reminded of what Abraham Lincoln once said, "Any people anywhere, being inclined and having the power, have the right to rise up, and shake off the existing government, and form a new one that suits them better. This is a most valuable - a most sacred right - a right, which we hope and believe, is to liberate the world." These words may have been spoken many moons ago yet they still ring true today. And these very words were brought to life recently when a group of people unhappy with the way things were, rose up against the establishment and enacted a change that will forever shape the future of this Nation, this State, and above all, this, our home, the Pee Dee .


Recently a special gift was bestowed upon the Pee Dee area and it's residents. At times all the talk of maps and demographics and facts and figures clouded the true meaning of this gift, this blessing in disguise because it is not simply a line. It's not a label nor a title. We have received the most powerful gift in the history of man. We have more than just a new 7th Congressional District. We now have... A Voice.


In the grand scheme of things, someone in Boise, ID or Yuma, AZ or even Big Sky, MT may not know the Pee Dee area of South Carolina exists or even what the "Pee Dee" means to them or anyone for that matter. Soon, that shall change. For, on the outside looking in, we may be nothing more than a small piece of turf to be easily forgotten, but somewhere in the depths of Washington, DC there is a sound. A rolling thunder that will be the new voice of the Pee Dee. For so long, our cries for help, our longing for true representation have all fallen upon deaf ears. Now, we will have a vessel for all our wants, needs, fears, and ideas to travel in to our nation's capital to be heard from the rooftops loud and clear.


This person must have the heart of a champion, the tenacity of a bulldog, a genuine nature, and a will strong enough to withstand the harsh and brutal world of DC politics. I have always said that, in politics, you have two choices if you want to bring about positive change. You can decide to submit yourself to being under a microscope and become the candidate or you can decide to work behind the scenes for the candidate you truly believe in. The person you can relate to, the person you can trust, and above all, the person who is willing to let your voice be heard. We all have our candidate of choice for this sacred new Congressional seat. Some of our choices will throw their hat in the proverbial ring. Some will cower before the fear of a such an epic undertaking. And one special person will rise to the challenge and like a hawk, set their sights on taking the Pee Dee and it's residents to a whole new level. This person will be our voice, our knight in shining armor, who will make sure this, our nation, never forgets we are here. We are strong. And we will not stop until our voice is heard.


We, my friends, have a rare opportunity to give that man in the moon a name. Let us not squander that opportunity. For if we do, we will only have ourselves to blame. So tonight, before you lay your head down ready to enter another night of peaceful tranquility, take a moment to look up at the moon and remember that even though we , the Pee Dee, may be just a dot on a map, soon everyone looking at that same moon will know us and know our story.


Good night...