It seems incredible. Twenty years ago I campaigned for Secretary of Agriculture for the State of Iowa. I lost. There was a day where things looked really good and the thought occurred to me that I might win. It was pretty scary thinking I might have to regulate gas pumps and scales for four years. My goal was really to educate on the benefits of limited government with no thought of actually winning.
I ran as a Libertarian and got 20,000 votes. I was in third place behind the winning Democrat, Patty Judge and a Republican. I can’t remember his name, only that he wanted taxpayers to buy him a tortilla factory. They each got about 450,000 votes. Maybe I was a spoiler. Or maybe it was the tortilla factory. There was also an independent and a Green Party candidate. We all got to meet each other at a public television forum.
We guys stood around and chatted while Patty Judge stood to the side and scowled at us. The forum didn’t go so well for me. When they asked me for an issue I mentioned our wildflower seed production business and how state prisoners were being used to compete with us. They laughed.
I really did have a ball campaigning the rest of the time. Craig Donnelly interviewed me live at the fair. This being fair time in Hampton is what reminded me of the campaign. The 2002 Franklin County Fair is where I kicked off my campaign. Mayor Lee Hinrichs was first to sign my petition. An old friend refused, saying he was “voting green this year,” even though the petition was only to put my name on the ballot.
The thing I remember most though, was talking with a couple of guys who wanted to sign and one of them couldn’t read or write. His signature looked like a kindergartener had written it. But he owned a Peterbilt with a trailer outright, and hauled hogs for a living.
I had a few speaking engagements with fringe extremist groups including the Hampton Kiwanis. They were all friendly and quickly put me at ease. The discussions at the end of the meetings were the highlights. I still have a little piece of paper with the ten prerequisites for a communist world as listed in the Communist Manifesto taped to our mudroom wall that the “Freedom Library” gave to me. It could be posted by the flag in most public schools and fit nicely today.
The parades were the best part. Summer brings town celebrations in Iowa. We work hard all year and take a day to have fun with friends and neighbors on a summer weekend. We had a two-stroke SAAB 95 at the time. It sounded like a ’60s dirt bike and never let us down. Dawn and our daughter handed out fliers instead of throwing candy. It was hot most days and we didn’t travel far from home. In Bristow I braved an open container arrest when a friend handed me a cold refreshing Busch Light.
In Latimer I met Del Stromer, Speaker of the House. We had a great discussion about limited government. I find a lot of politicians see the benefits but get caught up in the process of “doing something.” Famous people are mostly on our level when one on one.
The county fair and campaigning that summer epitomize what is great about not only this country, but individuals throughout the world getting together and celebrating their humanity. Now it’s time to proof this column and get to the fair.
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