Bend businessman Sam Carpenter declares bid for governor

Sam Carpenter, a Bend entrepreneur/businessman, author, philanthropist and former Republican U.S. Senate candidate, declared his candidacy for governor on Wednesday.

In his 2016 U.S. Senate bid, Carpenter noted, he was endorsed by former U.S. Senate candidates Monica Wehby and Jason Conger, as well as The Oregonian and The Bulletin newspapers. He also ran for the Republican nomination for Senate in 2014.

Carpenter, the owner of Centratel, a telephone answering service, has not held elected office. He has not formally filed for the governor’s race as of yet, according to the secretary of state’s Website. But there are two other GOP candidates, besides Buehler ,who have — Lyons resident Bruce Cuff and Keizer resident Keenan Bohach. Gov. Brown is the only Democrat to have filed so far.

Here’s the full text of Carpenter’s announcement:

“I confidently predict an enormous political and economic turn-around for Oregon as we leave behind the current failed progressive far-left leadership of Governor Kate Brown, and move forward to an executive branch that is laser-focused on serving the people of Oregon through a smaller, much more efficient government machine. In fulfilling its established obligations and duties, my administration of this streamlined government will have two special focuses: to assertively facilitate a private sector business environment that allows a robust economy to emerge, and sharply cut back government interference in our personal lives.

“Yes, I share President Donald Trump’s vision of a society truly in tune and serving the needs of regular Americans, not the needs of the intertwined cabal of big government, big business, and big finance.

“I’ll fight to put the power back where it belongs, in the hands of Oregon’s citizens.

“But there is much more to this than seating a Republican governor in Salem. I am also calling for ‘The 2018 Oregon Red Trifecta,’ in which both sides of our legislature will operate under Republican leadership. In this movement, the powerful winds of change are at our backs: nationally, there are now a total of 26 Red trifecta state governments, and just six Democrat. There were four new red trifecta state governments elected in 2016. It’s also notable that 70% of our governorships are now Republican.

“I am running on the Republican ticket, but this candidacy and the Red Trifecta movement are decidedly non-partisan. No matter individual political, economic or social proclivities, we understand that our decades-long economic doldrums are due to progressive far-left leadership’s largess, inefficiency, and over-reach.

“And Oregonians are tired of the progressive far-left’s relentless chipping away at the institutions and freedoms upon which this country was founded. This frustration falls across all political, socio-economic, and philosophical boundaries.

“I’m a fixer and a builder and have a special talent for getting inside a broken organization, quickly spotting what isn’t right, and then immediately proceeding toward a simple solution that benefits all concerned. It’s my profession.

“My personal background is rural small-town, working class, and I know what it’s like to manage a hard-hat construction crew, operate heavy equipment, run a chain saw, fix a fence-line, and fight forest fires on-the-ground. Those are my roots. But since the age of 35 I’ve been a multi-company CEO, author of a best-selling business book, and a business consultant/trouble-shooter, having assisted in the repair of over 500 small and medium-sized businesses across the country, the majority of which were on the edge of failure but now stand healthy and vibrant.

I also operate a small 501C3 international non-profit in east Asia and have business dealings in Western and Eastern Europe. For Oregon, I understand the importance of international trade and tourism.

“And I have a special desire to oversee a special Civilian Conservation Corps-like project, employing local workers, in which our 29,000,000 acres of forests are cleaned up and then cultivated on a sustainable basis, similar to how forests have been managed in Europe and in the southeast U.S. for the last 50 years. And with this huge project, we’ll not just end the mega-wildfire threat, but also bring rural Oregon back to economic life.

“Regarding our fiscal crisis: We can’t tax our way out it. We’ll need to grow ourselves out. We’ll accomplish this by inducing massive organic private sector growth, spurred on by a reduction in Salem’s enormous tax and regulation footprint.

“Yes, of course we have the capacity to assist those who are truly in need. We will never, ever, let these citizens down.

“I am pro-life, rely on God’s wisdom, revere our military and first-responders, love our flag, and always stand for our national anthem. I wish for a limited government based on our U.S. Constitution. And I will always put our own citizens first.

“In Salem and in DC, government is to be our servant. Not our master.

“With ​passion​, I look forward to the task ahead, intensely working with our legislature to bring our government under control and focused where it belongs, on the well-being of Oregonians just like you and me: Oregonians who show up to work on time, who pay the taxes, who raise the children, who fight for our freedom and safety both home and abroad, and who carefully manage their own local communities.”

Learn more at his Website: https://www.makeoregongreatagain.com/