Mark Small

Random House Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary defines “progressive”: “favoring or advocating progress, change, improvement, or reform, as opposed to wishing to maintain things as they are, esp in political matters” 3/15

The word “progressive” has become pejorative on today’s political scene, but was long embraced by GOP elected officials, most notably President Theodore Roosevelt and Wisconsin Senator Robert LaFollette. 4/15

GOP of recent years is neither progressive nor “conservative”: “Predisposed to traditional attitudes, beliefs, and teachings; favoring established traditions, social stability, and gradual developments as opposed to abrupt changes.” Black’s Law Dictionary. 5/15

GOP’s trad’l attitudes, beliefs & est’d traditions: support of civil rights (Lincoln, Reconstruction, opposed Dixiecrats in 1950s), environment (T Roosevelt; EPA under Nixon), opposition to military-industrial complex (Pres Eisenhower’s farewell address). 6/15

GOP opposed accumulation of great wealth in few hands (1854 origins; T. Roosevelt’s “busting” of “trusts”) and was extremely aggressive as it sought to protect the rights of those newly freed from slavery. 7/15

Unfettered pwr of $ in campaigns was notably opposed in 1894 by Montana’s GOP. Neither the minority of people who hacked and took over the GOP in recent years nor my opponents in the May 5 primary are conservative. 8/15

Religious bigotry - as pushed by one of my opponents Rev Micah Beckwith - and embracing the recent idiocracy to which the GOP post-tea party has devolved are neither progressive nor conservative. 9/15

To be clear: I do NOT want votes of racists, people who love dictatorships, advocates of a military to kill as many people as possible. Those individuals have over a dozen other candidates for whom they may cast ballots. 10/15