On September 23, the voters of the 2nd Congressional District will have a chance to elect a Congressman who has taken no special interest money during his election campaign.

On September 23, the voters of the 2nd Congressional District will have a chance to elect a Congressman who has run his ideas for a “Common Sense Congress” around the 2nd Congressional District.

On September 23, the voters of the 2nd Congressional District will have a chance to elect a Congressman who has spoken out against continuing the Iraq disaster and who has proposed a Second Front on the War On Terror that would promote international understanding for future generations.

Finally, on September 23, the voters of the 2nd Congressional District will have a chance to elect a Congressman who has called upon the President and the Congress to stop strangling our babies in “national debt” — to Stop billing the babies and to stop Congressional pork barrel addiction. It always gets billed to your children and grandchildren.

On September 23, you get to vote. Only you can decide what issues are most important for you.

Happy birthday to the candidate, Joe. We’re all proud of you for taking your ideas for a better America on the road.

As a member of Congress, how would you work to ensure that the necessary resources would get into the state?

We need trained professionals, not political appointees, to run these important disaster relief agencies. And we need Congress to properly fund FEMA and Homeland Security. Cut out the politics; people’s lives are at stake. Use experts to help set funding levels. As Congressman, I plan to ask the right questions quietly before the disaster, not in front of a television camera after the disaster.

Then, make local plans and coordinate within the local areas, but also set larger geographic plans. Local rescue services will not be fully functioning after a large disaster. We saw that clearly in New Orleans, where local services evaporated. I also saw that years before, during Hurricane Hugo in the Virgin Islands. Consequently, there have to be plans to bring in assistance immediately from outside predictable disaster areas. That is especially true for our island communities. Skilled responders, sufficient supplies, no delays and no excuses.