Rep. Allen Boyd Speaks to Democratic Party

Congressman Allen Boyd, Speaks to Local Democrats,

Strongly Supports Obama for President

Congressman Allen Boyd, who has represented Florida’s 2^nd Congressional District since 1997 and currently serves on the powerful Appropriations and Budget Committees, addressed a meeting of local Democrats last week at Johnston’s in Monticello.  Boyd began by praising Chair Eleanor Hawkins for the work she and her team have done in reviving the Democratic Party structure in Jefferson County, saying that he holds it up as a successful model to other counties in his district.  Boyd represents a district that spans 16 counties, from South Walton County through Tallahassee, almost reaching Jacksonville, making up the largest geographic congressional district in the state.

Boyd congratulated local candidates for having that “something special” it takes to hold oneself up for public office, including the willingness to work very hard and be available to constituents.  He encouraged the candidates to be who they are and be what they believe, putting forward their ideas about how they would improve the community.  Boyd, a fifth generation resident of Jefferson County, makes himself available to help constituents – he is home most weekends, he has a local aide, Travis Hart of Mayo, and, with the support of Cissie, his wife of 38 years, he has always been listed in the local phone book.  His stated mission is to help people connect more easily with their government and to help make their government better serve their needs.

The Congressman spoke of a meeting he attended that same day with the North Florida organizing team for the Barack Obama presidential campaign.  Boyd said how impressed he was with how strongly the Obama campaign had committed organizational resources to North Florida, far more than any previous Democratic presidential nominee.  Boyd, who has spent time with Obama and feels he knows him, said Obama is very intelligent, makes good decisions, and has good people on his team who know the issues, know what needs to be done, and know how to get it done.

Boyd urged those in the audience not to apologize for being a Democrat or for wanting change from the “complete failure” of the Bush administration, which has resulted in a dysfunctional government, the largest budget deficit ever, and borrowing from foreign countries that don’t necessarily have our interests at heart, such as China and Japan.  A leading voice on fiscal responsibility in the House of Representatives, Boyd said that because of mismanagement by Bush and his appointees, and by a Republican Congress for six of the past seven years, all economic indicators say that we’re worse off today than in 2001 when the Republicans took over. 

Boyd’s bottom line was that everything is “not okay,” it is not the Democrats’ fault, there are very serious problems, and the country must take a different direction.  He said he believes the candidate for the Presidency who can govern effectively is the one who makes good decisions, who can pick the right people for the right positions, who is exciting people of all ages and all ethnicities about his positive vision for change, and who has recruited and coordinated hundreds of thousands of volunteers working for him across the country – Barack Obama.  He contrasted that with the McCain campaign, which is notoriously plagued by chronic problems, such as lack of coordination, staffing problems, misstatements, and in Boyd’s words, “It’s always a mess.”  Boyd said he is optimistic that Obama can win Florida and is confident that Obama will be a great President.

Preceding Boyd’s speech, a sampler of Johnston’s menu was made available for purchase, and local candidates were encouraged to introduce themselves to the crowd.  Ryan Carmichael, a representative of the local Obama Campaign, also introduced himself and said he would be actively contacting people in the county who want to be involved in the campaign.  After Boyd spoke, the Executive Committee of the Jefferson County Democratic Party met, with an open invitation for audience members to attend.