FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 20, 1999
Dear friends,
You may have heard the news through the grapevine, but I'd like to make
it official: I am running for the United States Senate from the state of
Maryland. If I win the Republican primary in March, I will have the privilege
of challenging Paul Sarbanes, one of the most liberal members of the U.S.
Senate, in November 2000.
Over the past 23 years, Mr. Sarbanes has voted repeatedly to raise our
taxes and diminish our military. He has voted again and again to increase
the size of the federal government, and to handicap personal initiative.
These are national issues, that concern all Americans, not just the voters
of the State of Maryland.
Most of you are familiar with my work on behalf of democracy and freedom
in Iran as Executive Director of the Foundation for Democracy in Iran (FDI).
I believe the student demonstrations this past summer in Tehran and
17 other Iranian cities showed once and for all that the clerical regime
is united its fight to suppress political freedom, and that any talk of
a "moderate" president opposed by a "hard-line" Leader
is just a fiction concocted for the Western press. On the FDI website (www.iran.org), you can find many of my
writings in support of democracy in Iran, including my condemnation of
President Khatami's repression of the student movement.
I pledge to you that if I am elected U.S. Senator for Maryland, I will
carry on this work on behalf of the people of Iran, because I believe it
is in America's best interest to promote true democracy in Iran, not some
sad clerical imitation. I do not believe the United States should legitimize
the Islamic Republic system by allowing U.S. companies to build pipelines
across Iran or to invest in the state-run oil and industrial sector Nor
do I believe the United States should support Islamic Marxists who were
Khomeini's allies in the early days of the Revolution, but later lost in
the power struggle to him.
I am running on a broad conservative agenda, which includes revitalizing
our military, the deployment of a national missile defense, and reasserting
proud American leadership in the world. On the domestic side, I support
tax reform, school choice, and other policies that promote personal responsibility,
not government hand-outs.
Most of you know where I stand. And if you don't, please look at my
record on the FDI website: you will see that I have never wavered in my
belief that the American people and the Iranian people share a common bond
in their thirst for democracy and freedom. I have long been your advocate
in Washington. With your support, we can change U.S. policy, and launch
truly effective action to help bring democracy to Iran. I thank you in
advance for your support.
Kenneth Timmerman
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