Iowa Deserves Better Than Leonard Boswell
Released On: March 10, 2008
BURLINGTON, VT Democracy for America, our nation's largest progressive political action organization, endorsed Ed Fallon's campaign for Congress last month and Leonard Boswell is scared.
Fallon is challenging Boswell in the Democratic primary to represent Iowa's 3rd Congressional District. There is good reason for Rep. Boswell to be worried: an unimpressive Congressional record coupled with his support for the failed policies of the Bush administration. Since first being elected to Congress in 1996, Boswell has only managed to get 2 bills out of committee and enacted into law. 2 bills in 12 years; the change Iowa need in Washington is not going to happen with Leonard Boswell.
"Leonard Boswell has been trapped in the Washington insider culture for 12 years and that is just not going to cut it," said Jim Dean, Chair of Democracy for America. "Rep. Boswell is part of a go-along, get-along Congress that has allowed President Bush, the Republican Party, and corporate special interests to run roughshod over our economy and our Constitution."
While Rep. Boswell has not been introducing legislation, he has been voting for a host of unsound and unpopular Bush policies. He voted for the War in Iraq and has voted for each and every one of the President's bills to fund it. He voted for the Patriot Act and has been a champion of retroactive immunity for the telecommunications companies that participated in the President's program of warrantless wiretapping. And, he has done this while collecting boatloads of cash from Washington PACs and lobbyists. In fact, 74% of his campaign contributions have come from the political action committees of companies like AT&T and Wal-Mart.
"We not only need more Democrats, but better Democrats," said Arshad Hasan, Executive Director of Democracy for America. "Ed Fallon is an experienced legislator who unlike Leonard Boswell will represent his constituents and not his corporate donors."