There has been much speculation since I announced my candidacy on what it means to run as an independent. Last year, when Deval Patrick chose to raise taxes during a struggling economy, I knew that I could no longer remain a member of the Democratic Party.
This election requires an honest discussion on the issues and problems that face the commonwealth, not the typical back-and-forth between Republicans and Democrats. That is why I am running as an independent.
I believe that leadership should always transcend party. The issues facing our commonwealth do not discriminate on the basis of political party, and the solutions to building a more secure future will not be achieved without a bipartisan effort.
Time and time again, Democrats and Republicans turn to their worn-out party agendas to feign change and reform. Republicans oppose ideas from Democrats and Democrats oppose ideas from Republicans — this has led to nothing more than gridlock.
Whether you're talking about the Democrats or Republicans on Capitol Hill or Beacon Hill, their shortcomings are one and the same. The Democrats' idea of "good government" is fairness, transparency and accountability, and the Republicans always talk a good game about "fiscal conservatism" — preaching small government, affordability and individual responsibility. Yet, both parties financed earmarks, big-business bailouts, and the Big Dig; neither side has dealt with our state nor our country's mounting debt and deficits.
There are ideological issues on which the parties fundamentally differ, but the overall success of our future should not depend on adherence or disagreement with those beliefs depending on who wins an election. When the election is over, we must work toward a consensus on the challenges that divide us, while remaining committed to those that unite us. This is not something either party has had the willingness or ability to do.
I am running for governor because the middle class is getting overlooked and there is no longer anyone representing our interests. Look at your choices this year: a Democrat who raised taxes and sent much of our state's decision-making power to Washington, and a Republican who saddled taxpayers with billions of dollars in debt by concocting the financing scheme for the Big Dig. We have to do better than that.
I understand the struggles of the middle class because I share those same struggles in my own life — unlike the other two candidates in this race. As a former small-business owner, I am the only candidate who can truly appreciate the value of every dollar. I am the only candidate who has a proven record of responsibility and results in government, and I am the only candidate who will look out for the citizens whom special interests and party agendas have left behind.
In the past 50 years of campaigns, we have been told that only a Republican can cut taxes and only a Democrat can fight for the middle class. But the two parties have strayed from those ideals. Democrats focus on big government and Republicans focus on big business — and that must change.
I am running for governor to improve our state's business climate by shifting the focus back to small business growth, to make government function in a more fiscally responsible way — just as I have over the past seven years as your state treasurer — and to restore the voice of the middle class in government. It is time to stop worrying about moving Massachusetts to the left or to the right; it is time to move the commonwealth forward.
Timothy P. Cahill is running for governor of Massachusetts
