LaRocco for Senate

Video Town Hall with Idaho's next U.S. Senator!

Thursday, August 14, 2008 at 1 PM MST

Today’s live online town hall meeting with Larry LaRocco begins at 1 pm MST. To ask Larry a question, please scroll down to the chat room underneath the video player and submit it. Be sure to include your name and location with your question. Thank you for joining us today!

Update: Thanks to everybody who participated in today's 3rd online town hall meeting!  You can watch video from today's event below.  I look forward to chatting more with you online very soon!

Republican Volunteer

Republican Volunteers

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Yesterday we had a lady in the office making voter identification calls and house party invitations. Now, we have a lot of energy down here, and there are always volunteers, but this lady was something different: a Republican.

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There’s a lot of talk about crossover voters and the breakdown of the partisan divide, but this was more than a check on a ballot―this was a statement. Having met Larry at a house party, she was convinced that he cared more, and represented her more accurately than his Republican opponent. So she followed her heart and helped out however she could, regardless of old categories.

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Until next time―

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Brad Baughman

104 days - Blog No. 1

104 DAYS

Things are looking up. Whenever you get 22 people working 10+ hours a day for a common purpose, the energy starts to build. We’re practically running the lights down here on intensity alone.

LaRocco has been running the wheels off the ROCK08 campaign van (which we refer to as “L Force 1”), driving all around the state. Most days are planned out from sun up to sun down with travel, meetings, house parties, and “working for the senate” jobs. The crazy thing is that the guy will go for a six or seven mile jog at six in the morning, and then go 16 hours straight.

Sure ― that’s not an every day schedule, but it’s a concrete sample case taken from June 6. We woke up early to be in Pocatello for a labor convention, did call time on the road and attended a picnic in the afternoon. When we rolled back into Boise, it was already June 7.

LL, as we call him around here, was up early again the next morning for an interview with Jill Kuraitis from NewWest.net.

I was asleep.

Until next time –

Brad Baughman

Larry blogging live on Daily Kos today!

Larry is blogging live on Daily Kos today, Wednesday, July 9, 2008 at 1pm to report on the latest from the campaign trail and answer your questions.  You can participate here.  Please join us today!

Larry is blogging live on Daily Kos today, Wednesday, July 9, 2008 at 1pm to report on the latest from the campaign trail and answer your questions.  You can participate here.  Please join us today!

Town Hall Meeting with Idaho's next Senator

Today’s live online town hall meeting with Larry LaRocco – the first of its kind in Idaho -- begins at 12pm MT.  To ask Larry a question, please scroll down to the chat room underneath the video player and submit it.  Be sure to include your name and location with your question.  Thank you for joining us today!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Strong Candidate and a Stong Dollar

Hello, Idaho.  My name is Cyrus Osborn and I'm the newest addition to the now bustling LaRocco for Senate campaign.  And, while it might seem strange for a guy who's only been on the job two weeks to be looking back, I just can't help but get nostalgic when I think about the President's $600 stimulus check I will soon receive.  You see, if you'd offered me $600 back when Al Gore was the next president of the United States, well I would have jumped through hoops for it.  I could have made a quick trip north and traded my 600 Greenbacks for 900 Loonies.  Not bad, eh? Today I might break even with the Canadian dollar.  Or, had I been particularly ambitious, I could have  hopped a flight to Rome or Paris and traded my USDs for 700 Euros.  Now I'd probably get 400 or so in continental coin. 

Ahhhhhh...Where does the time (and for that matter, the economy) go? 

But all kidding and fuzzy math aside, I think the majority of Idahoans would rather have a strong U.S. dollar than 600 weak ones.  This country's economic troubles run deeper than the band-aid style stimulus checks President Bush is handing out can cure.  Larry LaRocco recognizes this because in addition to being a veteran, a former congressman, a businessman and a family man, he's an Idahoan, and like all good Idahoans he listens to other Idahoans.

Whether he's shearing sheep outside Bellevue while Working for the Senate or pouring refreshments for folks in Winchester at a Meet and Greet, the most important part of his day is listening to the concerns of voters who notice that food prices are going up faster than wages, or people worrying that their children will live their lives trying to pay down our national debt. 

I'm working to get Larry LaRocco elected as I support him whole-heartedly in his bid to be a U.S. Senator because his honest desire to interact with and work for Idahoans perfectly embodies what a member of the legislative branch-the people's branch of the U.S. government should be.  And, that's a lot more than I can say for Jim Risch who prefers the protection of a podium to actual human interaction and who drops out of a debate for fear that it could turn into, of all things, a debate. 

I've gotta say I'd rather be represented by a guy who in addition to having been a Congressman, will look me in the face and hear what I have to say, than by a politician who only campaigns from behind the seal of his accidental temporary governorship.  You just have to ask yourself, if this guy won't even listen to what I have to say when he's in Idaho trying to get my vote, will he even care that I exist after I've given him a six year term in Washington?  I don't think so, and that's why I'll be voting LaRocco.

LaRocco pitches in for veterans

Blogmother at Red State Rebels:

Anyone who's ever caught Larry LaRocco as the guest auctioneer at an Idaho Democratic event knows that he has a real talent for it. (Remember when he drove up the bids for a roll of George W. Bush toilet paper at the '06 state convention?)

Not many Idahoans know that LaRocco has put that skill to wider - and notable - use as the volunteer auctioneer for Fisher House Foundation, a group that shelters families of military service members. According to its website, Fisher House supports military families with airline tickets and "homes away from home" that help family members remain close by when a service member must be hospitalized for illness or injury. Tonight's charity auction, in Lansdowne, Virginia, caps the Fisher House Charity Golf Tournament, an event recognized by the Department of Defense program, “America Supports You.”

By contrast, LaRocco's likely opponent this fall, Republican Jim Risch, was also back East last week to cash in at a party thrown by Washington, D.C., lobbyists Jeffrey Kimbell and Rick Murphy of R.B. Murphy & Associates, known for their work on behalf of such corporate giants as Altria (formerly Philip Morris). As a LaRocco campaign press release noted today, former congressman LaRocco’s "charity work contrasts with Risch’s favorite charity—himself."

LaRocco is a Vietnam-era vet of the U.S. Army, while Risch - three years older - somehow managed to avoid military service during that tumultuous time. Also worth noting: LaRocco has been endorsed by Gen. Wes Clark and a host of Idaho veterans.

"Fool me once... you can't get fooled again."

Greetings from the LaRocco for Senate campaign!  My name is Eric Everett and I’m a field organizer for the campaign in Twin Falls County.  As a lifelong Idahoan (and a Democrat), I know this state is ready for some real change and that change is represented by Congressman Larry LaRocco.  The people of Twin Falls County are excited about Democrats' prospects in '08.  The caucus was attended by 763 people, that’s over five times the turnout from 2004!  Several qualified and respected individuals have stepped forward to run for office to take their county back.  On the 31st of March, we expect a large crowd to meet Larry as we cut the ribbon on our new field office in downtown Twin Falls.

I’ve traveled with the Larry as he’s meets people across the state, from Sandpoint in the north to Driggs in the east.  Like the people of Twin Falls County, the people of Idaho are energized about the prospect of sending Larry LaRocco back to Washington to work on behalf of the forgotten working families of Idaho.

Let me turn for a second to the Iraq war.  As you know, Wednesday marked the fifth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq.  As Larry noted in his recent release, this is also anniversary of the biggest lie in the history of the Unites States.  The President and his advisor's were wrong about the threat posed by Iraq and rushed us to war.  Because of this lie, nearly 4,000 of our best and bravest have been lost and nearly 30,000 have been wounded.  The total cost of this lie will be over $2 trillion.  My generation and the next will be paying for this lie for years and decades to come.

Larry has opposed this war from the beginning.  As a former Captain in the United States Army, Larry has demonstrated a genuine concern for this nation’s veterans and their families.  He sees the need to remove our troops from harm’s way as expediently as possible, but he also sees the need to give those troops the support they need to succeed, both in Iraq and after they come home.  We need to change how business is done in Washington and we can only accomplish that with new leadership.

I look forward to working with you all to bring real change to the state of Idaho.  Feel free to contact me at my email, eeverett@laroccoforsenate.com, if you need any info from the field.  Go luck and go Larry!

Bring on the change!

Hi there fellow Idahoans!  My name is Travis and I’m part of the field staff for the LaRocco for U.S. Senate campaign.  I’m excited to be a part of this historic election and to have the opportunity to help elect Larry LaRocco as the next Senator from the great state of Idaho!

For my inaugural post, I want to tell you why Idaho will be a purple state in November.  Larry LaRocco is not your typical politician; he’s a dedicated public servant, a former Congressman, a small business owner, and a Vietnam War era veteran.  His resume alone is leaps and bounds ahead of his Republican opponents, but that’s not enough to win in Idaho.  Democrats typically have the better candidates but the preconception that Republicans will always win this state has been tough to beat.  But it’s time for a real change, for a change.

Unfortunately, people believe a lot of what they hear on TV and the news.  Recent comments by public figures that Democrats can’t win in Idaho just perpetuate feelings of despair and hopelessness.  Hope has spread across Idaho and it is up to us to turn this state purple from the inside.  A recent poll shows that 59% of voters believe the country is seriously off-track and 42% would vote for a hypothetical Democrat versus 36% for the Republican with 21% undecided.  It’s up to us to reach out to that 21%!

The LaRocco campaign is doing everything we can to reach out to independents, moderates, and frustrated Republicans with Larry’s message of real change.  We’ve already launched a radio ad criticizing the hypocrisy of Jim Risch and his 20% increase of sales tax on food.  Our headquarters in Boise is open and already has volunteers and staff heating up the phone lines.  We’re in the process of opening our first field office in Twin Falls and we’re scouting locations for our first North Idaho field office in Coeur d’Alene (my home town!).  The campaign is going to have a stellar program at the Frank Church Banquet and we’re very excited that Senator Jon Tester (D-MT) will be in Coeur d’Alene on March 2nd for a reception with Larry and Chris and our North Idaho activists.

Anyone who questions Idaho as the next purple state in the Union will be pretty surprised come November.  As a part of the field staff, I hope to see you at our upcoming events, house parties, and office openings.  Sign up to volunteer at http://www.laroccoforsenate.com/help/ to help us with mailings, data entry, phone calls, and staff events.

Travis Shofner
Field Organizer
LaRocco for U.S. Senate
tshofner@laroccoforsenate.com

Check Us Out at RSR

Come check out the regular campaign updates from the LaRocco Campaign as well as 1st CD candidates Walt Minnick and Larry Grant at Red State Rebels.  We will be giving weekly updates on the growing momentum and support behind the campaign.