The Elly Report: Candidates Corner

Gary Lee Announces Candidacy for Governor

Today I am announcing I am a candidate for Governor of Massachusetts and for the position being vacated by the current Governor, Mitt Romney. Our democracy is under attack on all fronts. I believe only the people of Massachusetts have the right to decide who their next Governor shall be. And, I believe in a democracy no man or woman has a right to hand pick his or her successor or use elective office to serve his or her political ambition. Public service is about representing those people that we serve and assuring their needs and their well being is taken care of, while we improve their quality of life, and improve the opportunities available to them, their children and their grandchildren. For the past 16 to 17 years I have represented the people of Norwood, Massachusetts, as one of their Selectmen. I crossed party lines a great many years ago when I was drawn to the Republican Party and the words of President Reagan promising less taxes, less Government and a strong national defense. I believe Massachusetts and America has lost its way, and I believe the message of President Reagan is more urgent now than ever with our rights, our freedoms, and our traditions being taken from us by big Government, diversity and political correctness run amuck. We are being assaulted on all fronts, and this is not the America our parents, our grandparents and our loved ones fought for. I am amazed to see the disrespect and dismissive attitude we have towards Veterans of WW II and Korea who fought for everything we have, yet whenever they try and raise an issue they are silenced or put in the corner. There is no greater voice than the voice of these men and woman challenging us to pay heed to where we are going as a State, and as a Nation. Government is again encroaching into our bedrooms, our homes, our private conversations and trampling upon our civil rights and our U.S. Constitution at an alarming rate. Veterans that fought and died for our Country are being told their children and grandchildren cannot mention a Christmas tree in the public schools or recite the Pledge of Allegiance or state: "One Nation Under God" without the fear of some errant bureaucrat breathing down that child's neck. God did not come to judge or condemn nations, however he did come to challenge nations to put their trust in him. Here in Massachusetts and across this Country we have lost sight of that. We need to put God back into our State, back into our Country and back into our schools and the public domain if we in Massachusetts want to lead this nation forward.

We have become a nation divided, over what, Stem Cell Research, Abortion, Gay Rights, Parish Closings and Church Scandals? We have parent pitted against child, sibling against sibling, and friend against friend. Aren't we all one, and don't we all have the right to speak our minds and our convictions? There are more pressing needs of our residents than what appears on the front pages of newspapers everyday. Across this State, as in Norwood where I live, Quincy where my wife is from and where my mother-in-law resides, South Boston where my parents are from, Brockton where my father-in law was a Chief Probation Officer in Superior Court, or in Springfield where my brother, a retired Public High School teacher, and my nephew, a Springfield Police Officer reside, we are all concerned about Government taxing us to death, taking away our rights and we are concerned about our Schools and the Safety of our children and their future; we are concerned about what are children are learning and the devastating impact taxes and proposition 2 1/2 overrides are having on seniors and young families alike; we are concerned we are not getting the assistance we deserve from the State and Federal Government to help us rebuild our deteriorating Schools, Libraries, Senior Centers, Housing Complexes, Police, Fire and Public Works Departments; we are concerned our cities and towns can't balance their budgets and concerned the State keeps taking our local aid so that our Police, Teachers, Fire and other essential personnel and their families live in fear of layoffs and loosing their homes; we are concerned we need new parks, playgrounds, walking trails, soccer fields, clean water, clean air, less traffic, less congestion, and new Little League and Babe Ruth fields in all cities and towns; we are concerned seniors and elders live in fear in homes and neighborhoods they grew up in due to street gangs, anarchy, sex, drugs and violence taking foothold across America; and, we are concerned we need more affordable housing for those seniors and the less fortunate, and concerned we must work with communities to accomplish that and respect their rights and their priorities too; we are concerned we need accountability from our Schools and concerned parents and the public have a right to follow what goes on in the Schools and a right to know what we are getting for our tax dollars; we are concerned we need to reduce or control our water, sewer, cable and electric rates hitting the roof; and, we are concerned we are not doing enough to take the lead to assist victims and families suffering from ALS, Multiple Sclerosis, Cancer, Leukemia and other disease who are in desperate need of our help and support. Catastrophic and Universal Health Care Coverage for all families from cradle to grave is long overdue. The time to act is now.

Your concerns are my concerns. As an Elected Official, I have consistently fought for my residents and fought to raise those issues I believe will improve the quality of peoples' lives. I have insisted upon public accountability and insisted that all decisions and deliberations of Government take place openly, in public and on the record. I am willing to continue to fight to assure that every man, woman and family and every city and town in Massachusetts is provided for, that their residents are represented, their lives improved, and their freedoms protected. That to me is what public service is all about, and that is what our Veterans, parents and grandparents fought for. We need to keep our borders safe and to improve our residents' lives. We need to unite to take America back. We need to give people hope and we need to understand that is what is expected of us as we move forward. It is up to all of us to continue the fight and stay vigilant. The day is fast approaching when at 3AM under the guise of Homeland Security and the newly expanded Patriot Act some unknown and unannounced Government official can show up at your home without so much as a warrant or a court order and take your spouse, your son or your daughter off for questioning and you having no rights in the matter. Our Veterans and civil libertarians are trying to stress the need to stay vigilant in these matters. We must never let our guard down, or be intimidated by a Federal Bureaucracy that is out of control and taking away those freedoms and those liberties upon which America was founded.

The question in the next election will be to each and every one of us. Are we doing enough? Are we doing enough to stand up for our freedoms and are we doing enough to help everyone here in Massachusetts improve them and their family's lives? We as a Country can be part of squandering $64 billion in aid at the UN and part of forgiving $40 billion in debt to South Africa, but we can't provide here in the States for Health Care, Schools and the welfare of our own residents. When I see Navy Seals, F-16's, the National Guard, and State Police practicing military maneuvers and forced landings out in Boston Harbor and off the East Coast it concerns me. My father was a Bombardier and Pilot with the 8th Air Force in WW II and Korea. The conversations we shared over the years ring truer now than they ever did. America is not as we know it. Our shores and our liberties are at risk, while our Country and our lands are under attack from external forces. However, a Great Nation can never crumble and fall except from a lack of spirit and resolve from within. You take the spirit and the notion of God and Country out of any Nation, and you have already lost the fight. We must unite to assure that does not happen. My wife and I have four young daughters ranging from 12 down to 2. My wife and I have every intention of making their future as safe and secure as ours was because of the effort and sacrifice of our parents and those who have gone before us in this Country. The future and well being of our children, and our grandchildren across Massachusetts and America must be as bright and as safe as our parents made it for us.

I grew up in Norwood and I am a graduate of Norwood High School 1973, University of Massachusetts at Lowell and the New England School of Law. My wife, Marguerite Ladas Lee, is a graduate of North Quincy High, Boston College and New England Law where we met. We are both proud of our families, communities and our roots here in Massachusetts. I believe our concerns are your concerns. I am willing to work hard to assure all our residents and all our cities and towns are safe and secure. Please join me in making this possible by electing me your next Governor of Massachusetts.

Contact information:
Gary M. Lee
Norwood, MA
Email: garymleeforgovernor@yahoo.com
H: 781-762-6833
W: 781-762-0242