Amalia Almasy: District 3: Hill, Bridgeport, Herron Pointe
In my childhood home, on the wall in the living room where many family photos were displayed was a large 11 x 14 framed photo of JFK, my parent’s loved America and loved JFK – one of the messages I remember of this photo was JFK’s famous quote of “Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.”
My family and I serve our country by being a Military and Civil Service family in that we support the lifestyle and sacrifices that come along with the Military Lifestyle such as spouse absenteeism due to deployments, missions, training missions, travels, and more. We do not complain, and instead support proudly. My running for City Council is just another way of contributing. As a large taxpayer in Seal Beach, I feel that I am invested and relate to many Residents and will work to make sure their concerns are heard.
President George Washington is another favorite of mine. History shows that as an Officer/Solider in the Army, he went into battlefront and never left his troops, in many cases risking his life, rank and reputation. General Washington displayed the Character and leadership that eventually led him to become our first President.
President Ronald Reagan, I believe in his “conservative” principles. He pulled us out of the “Jimmy Carter’s malaise.” President Reagan helped the American Economy regain. He stood firm on his protection against nuclear bombs from USSR. He increased and strengthened the U S Military. He also forced the tearing down of the Berlin Wall.
These former Presidents displayed conservative values, principles, and public service, which I live by and respect. I will bring these values and enthusiasm with me to the council when elected.
Gordon Shanks: District 3: Hill, Bridgeport, Herron Pointe
My political hero is Abraham Lincoln. He is almost an obvious choice, but of all our presidents had the most difficult job and the job that had the most profound effect on the country.
President Lincoln stated in clear terms what his goal was, “To preserve the Union.” He had his goal and would not be deterred or sidetracked from working to fulfill that end. There were abolitionist who felt that abolishing slavery should be the primary goal. Lincoln was opposed to slavery but felt that keeping the country together gave a better chance of correcting the slavery issue. In forming his cabinet Lincoln selected many of his political opponents. These were major political figures of the time and could use their experience and influence to further his goals.
In any discussion of President Lincoln one must never forget his use of humor to disarm his opposition.
Some of his opposition thought him a fool because he was always cracking jokes. Jokes were his way of making a point and expressing his feelings about a subject.
Abraham Lincoln is my political hero. I don’t see how I could pick a better one.
Ellery Deaton: District 1: Old Town and Surfside Colony
My political hero and mentor is Ronald Reagan. I worked for Ronald Reagan for president in 1979-1980 because he was a principled man who brought a renewed spirit of hope to our country in very difficult economic times.
I admire him because he appointed the first woman Supreme Court justice. He handled an assassination attempt with grace; and because fifteen million new jobs were created during his Presidency. He also reduced inflation and introduced tax reform.
He set an example of how to work with people who disagreed with him while holding fast to his principles.
He forged a working relationship with Mikhail Gorbachev and called for him to “tear down that wall.”
While the wall did not come down until after President Reagan left office, it came down shortly thereafter in large part due to the work of this man who handled people with grace, maintained dignity and had a strong sense of purpose all while maintaining a great sense of humor.
As Councilwoman for District 1, I will continue putting the qualities I’ve learned from Ronald Reagan into practice by treating all people with grace and dignity, handling issues fairly and with purpose while maintaining a sense of humor as we work together improving our quality of life here in Seal Beach. For more information, please see ElectEllery.com.
Robert Aguilar: District 1: Old Town and Surfside Colony
In 2008 I had the pleasure of sitting with and talking to Cindy McCain at the opening of a campaign office for her husband, John McCain, in Coronado, California. I had volunteered some of my time to the campaign because of my admiration for the Senator. In our brief conversation we discussed why I felt the Senator was going to make a good President. My primary reasons were his integrity and his ability to overcome trying times and become a great leader and role model to many of his colleges and supporters. I’ve followed his career for a long time because his story fascinated me. And the more time I spent getting to know him the more I grew to admire him as a leader and as a man. However, that 2008 campaign reminded me that it’s not always the best candidate that ends up with the job. Unfortunately, the reality is that he who speaks the loudest or has the most signs wins the vote. But in my experience the candidate who speaks the loudest tends to be the least qualified to do the job and is always the least trustworthy. It’s all smoke and mirrors.
A Marine buddy of mine asked me why I was running for City Council and I told him that shortly after moving to Seal Beach I realized I wanted to raise my family here and I felt I had a vested interest in the future of the city. I’m not a professional politician, and I’m not willing to clutter our streets with misleading signs. But I love Seal Beach and I have dedicated my life to the service of my country, community, and family. And I hold on to the idea that once in a while the right person does win the vote.
Joe Kalmick: District 1: Old Town and Surfside Colony
There have been many “heroes” in politics who over the years made an impact on our society for a variety of reasons.
But if I had to choose a hero from the past whose abilities and actions reflect the needs of our world today, it would be Franklin D. Roosevelt.
When he took office the Country was in a deep Depression; huge numbers of people were out of work, many had lost their wealth and savings, and there were bread lines and soup kitchens. In 1932 his New Deal began, focusing on relief, recovery and reform. Between 1933 and 1938 programs such as the Tennessee Valley Authority, the NRA, and the WPA provided assistance to farmers, put people to work, and upgraded the nation’s infrastructure. And in an era before TV, 24 hour news and the Internet, his fireside chats on the radio calmed and gave hope to the people of America.
As WWII approached it became inevitable that the U.S. would join the Allied Forces. After Pearl Harbor and our entry into the war on two fronts, the United States had to quickly go from a virtual noninterventionist nation to one capable of producing huge quantities of war material. FDR inspired the nation to both produce and sacrifice for the war effort. There is much evidence that our ability to make this fundamental shift is what allowed us to win the War.
Therefore, despite his personal flaws and the historical controversies concerning the policies during the Depression and the War, Franklin Roosevelt was certainly an heroic figure in American history.
Scott Levitt: District 1: Old Town and Surfside Colony
It is difficult to select a political hero. The people elected to office many times lack independence, and even become corrupt during their political careers. For me, the closest thing to a political hero would be President Ronald Reagan. Reagan built his career on honesty and straightforwardness. He embraced a laissez-faire policy when it came to leading, and believed in, and endorsed the theory of supply-side economics. These are all principals that I believe in, and would practice as a Council Person in Seal Beach.
Reagan entered office at a time of international crisis, with the on-going hostage situation in Iran. Immediately after being sworn in, he, borrowing from Teddy Roosevelt’s approach, made the terrorists realize that they were going to feel the big stick of the USA if the hostages were not released. Freedom for those hostages was realized almost immediately. Repeatedly through his presidency, Reagan likewise showed strength of conviction by calling out over-reaching unions, challenging anti-democratic regimes to recognize the importance of the rule of law, and focusing on local government and its leaders as the core of government.
Government was created to protect the health, safety, and welfare of its citizens, any actions beyond such, should be strictly scrutinized by the citizens.
What government should not be doing is mandating that homeowners have specified window trim or roof angles on their homes, for example, or vetoing restaurants in areas zoned for restaurants, or talking about “protecting” a city at the expense of stomping on its residents’ and business’ fundamental rights. Doing so continues to drag the City into costly lawsuits and creates a tyranny of governance.
President Reagan would be appalled if he were with us today, and saw that personal agendas and cronyism have become the norm in governance! www.levittforseal.com.
