SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
May 26, 2016
Sullivan’s
Salvos 5/31/16
In this edition:
*Sullivan for Supervisor Supporters!
*Memorial Day
*Graduations
*Solon Fire Breakfast
*Congratulations, Nancy!
*Did You Know?
*Sullivan for Supervisor Supporters!
Harry Truman once said, “If you want a friend in politics, get a
dog.” Truman knew what he was talking about! The hardest thing about running
for office is navigating the personal relationships.
It never fails: on the positive side, there are always a couple
people you barely know who send you nice notes telling you that they admire
your work. That is always unexpected, and serves as a wonderful surprise!
Unfortunately, those instances are overshadowed by the instances
where old friends or longtime allies support other candidates. Nothing hurts
worse than putting in years of work alongside someone, ostensibly with the same
goals, only to have that person decide to support someone else.
This happens every election cycle, and it makes you appreciate all
the more those who continued to believe in you as a person, as a candidate, and
as a friend.
At the risk of offending everyone else, here are just a few of the
folks who have decided to support me this time around: State Senator Joe Bolkcom,
State Senator Kevin Kinney, Tom Larkin and Joyce Bernardy, Royceann Porter, Dave
Leshtz, Bill Hanes, Orville and Billie Townsend, Nick Johnson and Mary Vasey, Iowa
City Mayor Jim Throgmorton, Mike Cilek, Barbara Beaumont, Karen Kubby, Nancy
Porter, Rebecca Reiter, Jae Retz and Roberta Till-Retz, Peter and Eileen
Fisher, Jim Walters, David Tingwald, and Iowa City Councilor Pauline Taylor.
There
are many, many others, and I apologize for failing to give a shout out to
everyone. But thanks to these folks. There are some Democratic Party giants on
that list! I am really proud to have earned your trust! Your support means the
world to me!
*Memorial Day
Monday, May 30 is Memorial Day. I hope you have a wonderful holiday, and I hope you spend at least a
part of it remembering those who have died while serving our Country. Happy
Memorial Day to all!
*Graduations
Memorial
Day Weekend means graduations. Congratulations to all our graduating seniors!
Commencement has already taken place at the UI and Kirkwood, and the local high
schools are graduating as we speak.
I
know that Melissa (and others) accuse me of being overly sentimental when it
comes to these types of things. That may be true. But graduation really is a
milestone.
Certainly, what graduates do in the future is much more important
than what they have done to date. But the fact is, they have accomplished
something important. Let’s reflect upon it, and celebrate it! Congrats again to
all the graduates!
*Solon Fire Breakfast
The
Solon Firefighters will host the 53rd Annual Solon Firefighter's Breakfast from
6:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Sunday, May 29 at the Solon Fire Station, 131 N. Iowa
St.
The
breakfast is all you can eat and the menu includes: pancakes, scrambled eggs,
fried eggs, patty sausage, sliced ham, milk and coffee. Cost is free for
preschool children, $4 for children 12 and younger and $6 for adults. For more
information, call 624-2386.
*Congratulations, Nancy!
Congratulations
to Nancy Quellhorst, who is stepping down as President and CEO of the Iowa City
Area Chamber of Commerce.
Some
folks know this, and others do not: the Iowa City Area Chamber is not
affiliated with the US Chamber of Commerce. And that is a good thing! The US
Chamber is an absolutely awful organization; they stand against almost every
principle I hold dear. I can say with some certainty that the US Chamber is in
conflict with the beliefs of over 80% of Johnson County residents. So again –
it is good that the IC Area Chamber has not been affiliated. If they ever did,
I would do everything I could to ensure Johnson County did not belong.
Despite the fact that the IC Area Chamber does not belong to the
larger group, I have had some deep and significant differences with the IC Area
Chamber over the years. I think that there has been a long running lack of
understanding within Chamber leaders that the biggest industry in Johnson
County is government. They can pretend all they want, but government drives our
local economy. The local Chamber says they support funding for K-12 schools and
funding for the UI, but instead argue for austerity at the State level. These anti-government
initiatives several Chamber members push every year are actually very bad for
our local economy. I wish more of them would understand this.
Many of our local Democrats spend a bunch of time kissing up to
the Chamber, even as those same Chamber members do everything in their power to
knock the same Dems out of office. Lately, some elected Dems have even decided
to adopt Republicans over Democrats as their candidates of choice! The
relationship has always been completely one sided. I have never quite
understood that dynamic!
I do not expect the IC Area Chamber to change any time soon. And
they probably shouldn’t hold their breath waiting for me to change, either.
Given this acrimonious history, you might be surprised to find out
that I really like, admire, and respect Nancy Quellhorst. Nancy has always been
honest, kind, thoughtful, and fair. She is smart, thorough, and does high
quality work. She is a good listener and has a good heart. Nancy is just a good
person.
Frankly, I wish she had worked somewhere else these many years. Nancy
had to do her best to defend some positions that were nearly indefensible. But
she was a trooper! I know the IC Area Chamber was darn lucky to have her!
I
wish Nancy all the best as she moves to the next phase of her life!
Congratulations, Nancy!
*DID YOU KNOW? Memorial Day originated as Decoration Day after
the American Civil War in 1868,
when the Grand Army of the Republic,
an organization of Union veterans founded in Decatur,
Illinois, established it as a time
for the nation to decorate the graves of the war dead with flowers.
Anyone
interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the
County website-
"Sullivan’s
Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a
brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages
come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the
whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise
mentioned.
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As always,
feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to
serving you!
---Rod
posted by Rod Sullivan @ 4:40 PM
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