I have finally arrived at a decision - Scott Pruitt has won my vote.
Both Scott or his opponent will make a fantastic Attorney General; there's no doubt about that. They will fight back against ObamaCare, and other intrusive/unconstitutional federal legislation. They will enforce the law. They will fight crime and corruption.
What pushed Scott over the top for me, however, is his overwhelming passion for the Constitution.
Scott will be a leader in proactively defending the Constitution, both on the state and federal levels. Specifically, Scott has pledged to create a Federalism unit in the Attorney General's office, designed to focus on constitutional issues.
This is something that is needed in today's climate, with an administration and Congress that is constantly extending the government beyond its original, pre-set boundaries. Scott will be our sentinel and front guard against an overreaching federal government.
Scott's opponent, Ryan Leonard, is a great candidate, with many good qualities, and I was disappointed to see him leave behind that positive message and release an ad attacking Pruitt. I wish candidates would realize that people truly want to leave politics-as-usual behind, and find out about the candidate's virtues and ideas, rather than constantly hearing negativism.
Scott Pruitt will make a fantastic Attorney General, for the reasons I listed above, and more.
Oklahoma needs an Attorney General like Scott Pruitt, and I encourage you to vote for him on July 27th.
You can learn more about Scott and his campaign by visiting his website at www.ScottPruitt.com. He is also on Twitter (@ScottPruittOK) and Facebook.
Scott joins Tom Coburn, Dana Murphy, Owen Laughlin, John Wright, Gary Jones, Janet Barresi, John Doak, Daniel Edmonds and Robert Hubbard as my endorsed candidates for the July 27th Republican primary. Stay tuned for more endorsements!
P.S. As I said at the beginning of my post, this was the hardest choice in the races this year. I respect both gentlemen running, would love to see either one of them elected, and wish they could both be elected. However, I had to come to a decision, and Scott Pruitt ended up winning my vote. Whatever the result of the race is, Oklahoma will have a fantastic Attorney General, as the Republican nominee is heavily favored to win in the general election.
When are candidates going to realize that we want to see positive messages, not attack ads? With 2 great choices, this race could have been the standard setter of the entire election cycle.
ReplyDeleteTelling only part of the story is misleading and a real disservice to the voters. For instance, the Leonard attack ad claims that the Tulsa World reported "Pruitt...virtually no experience."
But the actual story stated "CRITICS, HOWEVER POINT OUT that Pruitt has not actually practiced much law and has virtually no experience in cases involving the U.S Constitution."
Critics can say just about anything, but that doesn't make it the truth. It looks like Leonard's "dirt diggers" didn't check for cases tried under Pruitt's legal name EDWARD Scott Pruitt! Major mistake!
Pruitt has my vote!
Ann
Thank you for your honesty. Leonard paints himself different that he acts--attack ad. He has running for AG longer than he has been an Asst DA--which he did traffic court--not quite AG stuff.
ReplyDeleteIt took me awhile to understand why a liberal Demo--Mike Turpen would endorse Leonard--until I discovered that Turpen's law firm gets millions of dollars a year in non-bid money fromt he AG's office---you connect the dots
Unfortunately, I could see this endorsement coming, Jamison.
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting that your take on the Federalism unit is different than mine. What you see as a passion for the Constitution, I see as another government entity (i.e., bigger government). Every AG has the responsibility of defending both the US Constitution and the State Constitution. I find it disappointing that a candidate would make defending the Constitution his platform as if it were some new idea.
Ryan Leonard has my vote for AG. I like him and I like his policies. I even like his campaign. From everything that I've heard and read about the two candidates, I believe that Leonard has the best reasons for running, the most solid campaign, and the right ideals.
The claim Leonard made was that Pruitt has never TRIED a case. Do the search under E. Scott Pruitt, Edward Scott Pruitt, or Scott Pruitt. LEONARD DID HIS RESEARCH. While Pruitt is indeed listed as the attorney in numerous cases, NOT ONE WENT TO TRIAL. This is a fact. Does anyone (including Pruitt) even know what a TRIAL is??? Investigative journalism is truly dead when everyone simply takes Pruitt's word that he has tried cases. And by the way, one year in a DA's office is worth 10 in private practice when it comes to real trial experience. Ask any real lawyer (not a recovering one). Is there anyone out there at all who knows ANYTHING about the practice of law? The misdemeanor division of most DA offices is where new lawyers earn their stripes. One misdemeanor docket can easily have over two hundred cases on it in one day. If simply arguing a detail of law, taking a pleading, or filing a motion counts in Pruitt's mind as "trial" experience, then Leonard got more experience in ONE DAY as an intern at the DA's office than Pruitt has had in 17 years. DO THE RESEARCH. Leonard was stating facts, which are verifiable by anyone with the intellectual honesty to check it out. Too bad emotionalism is the rule of the day.
ReplyDeleteIncidentally, Pruitt will be ethically REQUIRED to recuse himself from the poultry suit now that he has taken money from a defendant. It's not about being "open-minded," it's about doing the right thing and avoiding even the appearance of impropriety. An experienced attorney would know this.
Erin
SOOO erin is it ok for leonard to take money from the private attorneys that profit from the poultry suit continuing?
ReplyDeleteLeonard is a guy who was born on third base and thinks he hit a homerun.
And he criticizes Pruitt for running for other offices when everyone knows he's been political office shopping for a decade, thought state house or senate was "beneath him" and didnt have the gravitas to make a run 4 years ago because he knew he wouldnt win.
Yes, technically it is not a violation of ethical rules for Leonard to accept contributions from attorneys who are working for the state. It matters which side of the "versus" the money comes from. Check out the ethics rules. Don't like it? Lobby your legislator to amend the rules.
ReplyDeleteAnd now you begin to attack Leonard by saying "he was born on third base" and suggesting he has been office shopping for ten years. Got any proof for that other than "everyone knows?" I'm all about evidence, but now it starts to look like you just don't like the guy. I don't presume to know what either candidate actually thinks; I'm just looking at the record.
Erin