I am declaring my candidacy for the U.S. Congress to represent Missouri's
 ninth district. This is a crucial time for progressives to stand up and
 resist the reactionary turn that national politics have taken in the past
 couple of years, and we must state clearly that we are against the rush to
 war abroad and the restrictions imposed on our civil liberties at home. It
 is disturbing that only a single Representative in the entire U.S. House
 could muster the courage to vote against the blanket resolution authorizing
 President Bush to use military force in the "war on terror".  It is also
 disconcerting that only a select few Representatives and just one U.S.
 Senator opposed the so-called Patriot Act, which severely curtails our
 constitutional liberties.

I offer my candidacy as an alternative to the status quo, and I will
 advocate positions that differ significantly from those being advanced by
 the two corporate political parties that currently rule. I will push for an
 economic bill of rights that guarantees universal health care, free
 childcare, free public education through college, affordable housing, and a
 living minimum wage. I will push for a more just tax code that does not
 punish low-income workers with regressive payroll taxes, while multinational
 corporations dodge their share of the tax burden with loopholes.
  I will promote renewable energy and call for an end to destructive
 environmental practices such as strip mining and clear cutting. I will also
 call for a halt to commercial exploitation of public lands by private
 grazing, mining, and logging interests and I will promote the preservation
 of large tracts of natural areas that will be off limits to further
 development. In addition, I will address global warming by supporting strong
 measures to curtail carbon dioxide emissions.

 I will steadfastly oppose international trade agreements that exploit
 workers at home and abroad, and that fail to provide environmental
 safeguards and I will not support agricultural bills that benefit huge
 agribusinesses at the expense of family farmers.
 Our campaign will be run with limited funds but limitless ideas. We will not
 have access to the massive corporate contributions that flood the coffers of
 the two major parties, but we will offer a message of hope for a peaceful
 and just future. I hope some of you will join our campaign to articulate a
 vision for an economically just, ecologically sound, and peaceful future for
 residents of the ninth district, the State of Missouri, the nation and the