Rales says Novice Better Than

Good Old Boys Network

ST. MARY’S TODAY

LEONARDTOWN — He wants to cure America of its oil addiction.

With a $120 million net worth in assets and income, he said being a political novice is an asset not a liability for the country, adding voters might be happy he does not belong to the tried-and-tested old boys club. He adds the system is broken and the U.S. needs more people from the outside who are not career politicians.

“We have got a big gap compared to the other two guys,” Josh Rales said in an interview with ST. MARY’S TODAY. He decided to run for the U.S. Senate last September on the seat being vacated by legendary Senator Paul Sarbanes.

Rales opponents include nationally known Congressman Benjamin Cardin, who like Rales is Jewish, and NAACP leader Kweisi Mfume, a former congressman from Baltimore. Rales has put a million dollars from his own pocket to make his name a household name in Maryland.

He conceded Congressman Steny Hoyer (D-Maryland) who has known him for 30 years is supporting Cardin. “It’s the good old boy network. I am unpredictable for him,” he said, while saying he will work closely with Hoyer on Southern Maryland issues if elected. “Benjamin Cardin has got one bill passed in 20 years,” he said.

He said while will be almost 70 by the end of the first term “I am going to turn 49 in November. We need new blood and effective advocacy in the US Senate not old time career politicians who keep singing the same song. Same tired songs.”

Change starts with ideas, Rales said. Promising to bring sense of frugality to Washington and in line with fiscal reality, he said as an entrepreneur he is accustomed to bottom line. “Successful entrepreneurs are practical problem solvers, not just talkers, otherwise we will be out of business,” he said

He said he has refused to accept special interest PAC money as he did not want to be beholden to anyone other than the people of Maryland. “I plan to push for solutions that benefit all the people, rather than a select few,” he said.

He said the he has told the voters of Maryland that he would be offering solutions, in the fields of education healthcare and energy. “I am offering specific strategies for addressing the challenges in these areas. Most politicians talk about what the problems are, about what everybody knows already, but don’t offer any solutions,” he said.

He explained the reason he is aiming directly at the senate without ever being in local politics is that he is very interested in national and international issues. “The key issues are energy, healthcare or education that’s where the leadership is needed,” Rales said.

As the nation’s capitol reels under crime, Rales said the U.S. has yet to adopt short-term and long-term approaches to keep offenders away from crimes by providing them gainful employment. “Our criminal justice system has yet to provide an alternative,” he said.

He said he supports the “second chance” bill pending in the senate that allocates 100 million dollars for rehabilitation of first time offenders by creating re-entry partnerships for housing, employment to get them reconnected with society and community. “If we don’t’ make an investment as a country, the offenders would end up falling back in the same rot that ended them in jail in the first place,” he said.

He said his education plan seeks to ends the disparity based on incomes. “Children from poor neighborhoods do not get the best teachers. We plan to give them the teachers they need the most to help reduce the crime rate,” he said.

Rales said he liked St. Mary’s County a lot during his five campaign trail visits. “I was there last week. I would say it was probably my fifth time. It’s so beautiful,”

“(I am told) Local county commissioners are very pro-development. But it has to be consistent with the preservation of the environment and they need to be sensitive on how development affects the environment,” Rales said. “The St. Mary’s River is one of the most pristine of the sub-estuaries of the bay and we need to make sure it stays that way.”

He said he will focus to put teeth in the Clean Air Water Act. “Right now it lacks enforcement action to protect the environment in Maryland,” he said.

On the transportation issue, he said, “I am a big infrastructure guy. The quality of our life depends on adequate infrastructure to support growth.”

He said the Democratic Party was fast losing its vote bank in St. Mary’s County. “14 years ago they had an edge of 26 percent over the GOP now it’s down to three.”

He said the Democratic Party needs to emphasize individual responsibility and talk about family. He said can not only re-energize the Democratic Party but also bring back moderate and liberal Republicans back into the Democratic Party.

Rales said his multimillion assets or his two brothers being among U.S. billionaires did not mean he would support special interests. “I am not taking monies from special interests. My brothers put the put the stakeholders first and I will put the people of Maryland first.”.

He warned if people keep electing the same people, they are going to keep getting the same results.