CULLMAN – The Cullman County Democrats welcomed U.S. Senate candidate Ron Crumpton to their monthly meeting on Saturday morning at the Cullman Area Chamber of Commerce. Opting to forgo usual business, the group gave the podium to Crumpton, who will meet incumbent Republican Sen. Richard Shelby in the November election, for the duration of the meeting.
Speaking under the theme of a need for “new leadership and new direction and new results in Washington, D.C.,” Crumpton spoke for an hour to the diverse audience of supporters.
“Shelby is not working for Alabama. It’s time the people of this state elect a senator who is true to Alabama, true to her needs and true to her people,” said Crumpton.
Working as an activist for the better part of past decade, Crumpton has “been in Montgomery for 97 percent of the legislation days over that time.” His time has been spent working on raising the minimum wage, employee rights, medical marijuana, women’s rights and other key Democratic issues.
Calling for a $90 billion investment in education over the next 10 years, Crumpton reflected, “There was a time in this country when we were the smartest people in the world. We were the first country to require our kids to go to school and we did that during a time when most countries didn’t allow the average child to go to school. We were the innovators.”
Crumpton outlined his “9-Point Plan for the Economy,” which includes breaking up big banks, investing in education and infrastructure and addressing job outsourcing- he noted he would not support the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) or any trade deals that would send American jobs overseas.
“We need to address the way we pay Americans. Currently, business profits are the highest they’ve been in the last 88 years, and yet workers’ pay is the lowest it’s been in the past 66 years. One of the biggest reasons for that is over the past three decades the minimum wage has failed to meet inflation. My plan would be to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour.
“If Mom is working in a job that pays a man $500 a week, she is making $390. That’s $440 a month difference, and for most families, that’s rent, a car payment, insurance or even a month’s worth of groceries. We currently live in a state where 45 percent of single parents are living in poverty. We have over 380,000 children who receive food stamps and we’re 49th in education.”
With Shelby not sponsoring or supporting any education bills, Crumpton said, “Unfortunately, my opponent hasn’t done anything to address any of these issues. Richard Shelby sponsors the fewest number of bills of any senator in Washington, D.C. If you look it up, it will say that he’s 97th, but there’s a four-way time for last place. He has about six bills. One of his bills is great. It deals with child exploitation. All of the other legislation he has is doing one thing and that’s making rich people richer and poor people poorer.”
Crumpton also voiced strong criticism of Shelby’s support of veterans and seniors.
“Shelby has voted against every piece of legislation over the past six years that deals with helping provide jobs to former soldiers or helps to improve the lives of our wounded warriors. Every single bill, he has voted against.
“Shelby’s plans will kill people in this state, seniors in particular. He’s got a bill that would start a flat tax in this country. A lot of retirees with retirement accounts could actually be forced to pay taxes on the value of their Medicare under his plan.”
Crumpton is hopeful for a victory in November, but said that a loss won’t stop him from continuing to try to make a difference in Alabama, going so far as to talk of a bid for the governorship in 2018.
The Cullman County Democrats meet at 8 a.m. on the second Saturday of each month at the Cullman Area Chamber of Commerce.
For more information on Ron Crumpton and his campaign, visit www.crumptonforalabama.com.
