Friday, December 14, 2007

A New Kind of Lieutenant Governor - Dr. Sam Page

Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to sit down and chat one on one with Dr. Sam Page, the Democrat seeking the nomination to become the state's next Lieutenant Governor. We spent about an hour at the cafeteria at Truman Medical Center, a location he suggested when we found out that You Say Tomato is closed on Mondays. It turned out to be the perfect venue for Sam Page - the more you chat with Sam Page, the more you realize that he cares deeply for those in need, and is willing to do what needs doing.

The first thing I asked him was why in the world he wants to be Lieutenant Governor. Not exactly the sexiest of positions, the LG has traditionally been a parking place for some dependable partisan twit who isn't qualified for one of the more visible statewide positions. Sadly, our current LG fits into that mold.

Sam Page wants the position because he is freakishly well-qualified for it, and it fits into his approach toward public service - solid, substantive, and not flashy. It so happens that one of the important aspects of the LG office is to sit on 12 state commissions, 6 of which would benefit greatly by having an experienced physician on them. Similarly, Sam's 6 years of accomplishment as a legislator make him qualified to serve in the unique position of LG, the only office to formally bridge the Executive and Legislative branches.

As a candidate, Sam is also very attractive. He grew up in Van Buren, Missouri, spent much of his life in Kansas City (including medical school), and now lives in St. Louis County. He has substantial roots in both urban areas and outstate.

There are more exciting races to talk about right now, for positions that capture the imagination more than the LG office does. But, if you care about good, effective government in Missouri, no race presents a more obvious choice than Dr. Sam Page's campaign for Lieutenant Governor. Definitely plan on voting for him, and, even better, consider making a donation here.

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6 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Top 10 Local Blogs

PresentMagazine.com is pulling together some Top 10 lists for year-end. We're asking selected people around town as well as our readers to offer their rankings in several categories. We would like to have you participate by responding with rankings as listed, plus any optional liner notes that support your picks.

If you can respond by December 18, then we will include your lists in our publication before year-end. We're also inviting our readers to submit their lists and hope to find interesting submissions.

Please contact Pete Dulin at present@presentmagazine.com with any questions.

Pete Dulin / Pam Taylor
PresentMagazine.com

12/14/2007 8:00 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Sam is going to be a huge plus for the ticket. Nixon will benefit. People below Sam on the ticket will benefit. The Democrats are going to be able to put up a great team in November.

12/14/2007 8:48 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Dr. Page is a man of high integrity with a great work ethic and sound decision making ability. He will be an outstanding LT. Governor.

Dan, we finally agree.

Thomas

12/14/2007 10:26 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

so this Dr.Sam, He doesn't look like the Funk, much better looking, I think, he is white, but still.
will he be more fun than the Funk?
That would be nice, I think

Is he on the school board too , with the Funk?
I'm so confused

ANNA

12/14/2007 11:59 AM  
Blogger maire said...

I can personally say that I've enjoyed working with Dr. Sam Page at the legislative level. It is very rare when legislators "get" public health and more than that, advocate for access to preventive medicine and proactive solutions. I am very honored to be working with Rep. Page on health policy and know that the health of Missourians is a prime issue.

Mary E. Homan, MA
Research Analyst, Controlling Asthma in St. Louis, Saint Louis University, School of Public Health AND
Health Policy Analyst, Page for Missouri

12/14/2007 3:21 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I don't know, every doctor my family has ever endured ended up screwing us over, and, after my dad's illness, taking every thing my mom had forcing her into bankruptcy.

I don't really want these guys having political power to.

12/15/2007 10:31 PM  

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