For immediate release
June 6, 2008
Contact: Dale Cardwell for U.S. Senate
(404) 767-3307

CARDWELL TO RIVALS: “JOIN BARACK AND MY ‘NO PAC’ PLEDGE”

Leading U.S. Senate Candidate Dale Cardwell is calling on the second and third place Democratic challengers to join him and Barack Obama in declaring the party’s independence from special interest “PACs” and Washington lobbyists. Dale declared his independence more than a year ago when he kicked off his campaign and promised to “work only for the everyday people of Georgia.”

Barack Obama shook the political world Thursday, when the presumptive nominee announced the Democrat National Committee (DNC) would now follow the “no PAC” example his campaign has set from the beginning.
In the following statement, the Senator made his position crystal clear: “I’ve sent a strong signal in this campaign by refusing the contributions of registered federal lobbyists and PACs. And today, I’m announcing that going forward, the Democratic National Committee will uphold the same standard and won’t take another dime from Washington lobbyists or special interest PACs. They do not fund my campaign. They will not fund our party. And they will not drown out the voices of the American people when I’m President of the United States.”

Dale Cardwell recognized the stranglehold special interest PAC’s have on most politicians, early in his 23 year career as an investigative reporter. The problem is documented by the non-partisan Center for Responsive Politics. The Center’s research shows more than 71% of all political contributions over $200 come from corporate PACs, owners, industry leaders and connected “insiders.” Two thirds of that money flows to Republicans. (www.opensecrets.org)

According to Dale, “Barack Obama and I have the courage and determination to give our government back to the people. I’m calling on Vernon Jones and Jim Martin to return their special interest PAC contributions and trust the people of Georgia to judge them on the merits of their positions, not the TV commercials their special interest contributors are about to buy for them.”

Georgians agree with Dale. According to independent polling by Rasmussen, Georgians continue to extend Dale’s lead over Jones and Martin, despite his competitors’ sizable PAC and special interest driven financial advantages.