Wendell Bailey of Willow Springs, a former member of Congress in the 8th Congressional District, announced Friday in press conferences across the southern Missouri District that he is a candidate for the remainder of the unexpired term of Jo Ann Emerson.
Bailey has sent notice of his intention to be a candidate to Eddy Justice, chairman of the Republican 8th District committee.
“I am in this race. And I have the best plan for the Republican Party,” said Bailey. “That plan is to win the race for the remainder of Jo Ann Emerson’s term, and then I will not be a candidate for re-election. This plan allows the Republican Party to have a full-fledged primary.”
“I understand there may be as many as 20 or more people who are interested in being a candidate. The only fair way, the only way, to give these good Republicans a level playing field is to allow my plan for a primary to go forward.”
“I am by far the best person to fill this unexpired congressional term. I have congressional experience. I passed legislation on the floor of Congress in my freshman term regarding the Paddy Creek Wilderness. This legislation limited the number of wilderness areas on U. S. Forest Service land. I am proud that it was signed into federal law by President Ronald Reagan.”
“Not only do I have this Congressional experience, I have a distinct advantage because of my name recognition. This recognition is high in the 8th District. My old congressional district included Howell, Texas, Shannon, Oregon, Phelps, Washington, Crawford and Dent counties.”
“In addition, my eight years as atate treasurer and the noted ‘Mo-Bucks for More Jobs’ program moved this name recognition to a factor of 87 percent statewide, including, of course, all of the southern Missouri counties.”
“Before that, during my terms as state representative, I was the sole author of the legislation that combined the Missouri Department of Transportation with the Missouri Highway Commission. This was a cost-saving measure and reduced duplication in government.”
“Today, I am communicating with the 90 plus members of the committee in order for them to better understand the logical reasons for choosing me to serve only the remainder of Jo Ann Emerson’s term. Of the approximately 20 people that have expressed interest in being the candidate, there are a number of committee members interested in their campaign. The only way that these committee members can ensure that these candidates get a level playing field is to select Wendell Bailey, who will not be a candidate for re-election.”
“In this way we allow all these candidates to be in the nomination process in the Republican Primary election in August of 2014.”
“Now, depending upon the time frame that the congresswoman and the governor choose, the election for the unexpired term would probably be held in April or August of 2013. That would mean there would only be one year or perhaps 16 months that I would be serving in Congress before the people would go to the polls and vote for a new Republican candidate. This would occur during the primary election in August of 2014. I would become a ‘lame duck’ congressman and the new Republican nominee for Congress would move into the spotlight.”
“During this upcoming service in Congress, I have some specific goals for the 8th Congressional District. I want to work to create as many private sector jobs as we possibly can. This district is reported to be one of the poorest dstricts in the nation. Private sector jobs are the only solution for this economic stagnation. I have experience and success in private job creation. Job creation was one of the major factors for the noted Mo-Bucks program. The other major factor was agriculture.”
“I am challenged by the awesome task of representing the people and their common sense values.”
“I am troubled by the task of selecting a candidate in 45 days to build into this time table. Much better would be to allow the primary process, which would allow a one-year examination of these candidates. And, there can be no way to be certain that we have seen the best candidate come forward. And, we can be certain we have not seen the best campaign.”
“Clearly, the public opinion of Congress is low. Some people believe Congress should have term limits. Founding father Thomas Jefferson wrote about ‘rotation in office’ and the framers set two-year terms for the House of Representatives and six year terms for the Senate. Abraham Lincoln served only one two-year term in Congress and did not seek re-election. The idea that I will not seek re-election will assure the Republican rank and file people will have a fair say in electing their next congressional representative.”
“We are all painfully aware of the advantages of the incumbency in the re-election of a candidate. A fair chance, a level playing field, will be difficult, if not impossible, if the committee chooses to go away from my plan.”
“I will continue to work every day possible to assure the committee and the voters that my role in the Reagan Revolution of tax cuts and spending cuts that brought about 12 years of unprecedented economic growth is the correct role for Congress during their difficult time of trillion dollar deficits.”