Blaine participates in candidate forum with his opponents - June 5, 2008

Blaine Lotz endorsed by The State - The State, June 6, 2008

"Blaine Lotz served 26 years in the Air Force, winning the Bronze Star in Vietnam and commanding the Air Force Intelligence Agency. In retirement, he was appointed assistant secretary for intelligence oversight by then-Secretary of Defense William Cohen. He continued in that role under Donald Rumsfeld, which the Miller campaign has sought to capitalize on. But Mr. Lotz emphasizes that he had no role in the decision to invade Iraq, a move he says was ill-conceived.

Voters in the Democratic primary should choose Mr. Lotz, whose greater experience gives him a deeper understanding of both foreign and domestic issues."

"Rob Miller directs campaign staff to distort the truth"

The Truth about Miller's personal, negative attack on Blaine Lotz

Today, our primary opponent sent out a dishonest mailer to households throughout the 2nd Congressional District. Rob Miller's campaign called Blaine a "Bush Administration insider" and put his picture beside Donald Rumsfeld and George Bush. This negative attack was needless--Blaine Lotz served our country honorably in the U.S. Air Force, won a Bronze Star in Vietnam, and served in the Pentagon during the Clinton and Bush Administrations. He deserves better.

As Assistant Secretary of Defense for Intelligence Oversight, Blaine's job was to provide oversight of the process and make sure that intelligence was gathered legally according to the guidelines set forth by Congress. He didn't analyze intelligence or provide any intelligence to leadership, his job was to make sure safeguards were being followed during the process. However, in the Air Force he did analyze and gather intelligence.

When Rumsfeld and the new political appointees came in during the Bush Administration, Blaine and the other career civilians were pushed aside, their offices were moved, and their advice was not heeded. Decisions were made by the political appointees and, given the latest news from Scott McClellan's book, we all know how the Bush Administration values the political opinion of their appointees over the expert opinions of career civil servants.

Blaine has been speaking out against Rumsfeld and the Bush Administration long before many in the Democratic Party asked him to run for Congress:

Here is a 2005 story by Lisa Myers of NBC News:
(http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10454316/)

Is The Pentagon spying on Americans?
Wed., Dec. 14, 2005
Lisa Myers, Douglas Pasternek, Rich Gardella, and the NBC Investigative Unit

Some former senior DOD intelligence officials share his concern. George Lotz, a 30-year career DOD official and former U.S. Air Force colonel, held the post of Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Intelligence Oversight from 1998 until his retirement last May. Lotz, who recently began a consulting business to help train and educate intelligence agencies and improve oversight of their collection process, believes some of the information the DOD has been collecting is not justified. "Somebody needs to be monitoring to make sure they are just not going crazy and reporting things on U.S. citizens without any kind of reasoning or rationale," says Lotz. "I demonstrated with Martin Luther King in 1963 in Washington," he says, "and I certainly didn't want anybody putting my name on any kind of list. I wasn't any threat to the government," he adds.
"The harm in my view is that these people ought to be allowed to demonstrate, to hold a banner, to peacefully assemble whether they agree or disagree with the government's policies," the former DOD intelligence official says.

Blaine is proud of the fact that we've run a campaign for a positive change. His positive message is the reason that our campaign raised more money than Miller, who only has 13 contributors in the 2nd District.

BEAUFORT, SC-----Today former Democratic Governor Mark Warner issued the following statement in support of Blaine Lotz’s campaign for the 2nd Congressional District, “ I look forward to South Carolina’s 2nd Congressional District sending Blaine Lotz to Washington, DC to represent their interest in the US House of Representatives. Blaine’s experience and leadership, as a former Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Intelligence Oversight, Air Force Vietnam Veteran, and Commander of the Air Force Intelligence, is needed as our nation prepares to meet the challenges we now face. I look forward to seeing him elected in November.”

Lotz exclaimed, “ This is really an honor for me to receive his support. Mark Warner knows what it takes to be a leader, and his confidence in my campaign is a rally cry for my fellow democrats and supporters in the 2nd Congressional District.”

Also, today another Democratic organization announced its support for Blaine over his primary opponent. The South of the Broad Democratic club voted to endorse Lotz in his bid to be the next Congressman from the 2nd Congressional District.

COLUMBIA, SC-----Today, Blaine Lotz challenged his primary opponent to a series of debates throughout the 2nd Congressional District. “ My opponent and I have differences on the solutions to issues facing the people of our district. It is time that the voters had the opportunity to see both of us in a live setting, talk about our solutions to the problems facing our district,” Lotz said.

"The next Congressman must be able to stand up and debate the issues in Washington. The people deserve to hear us debate the issues in the district. As a result, I challenge Mr. Miller to a series of Lincoln Douglas debates. It is the one true form of debate that allows candidates to present issues, ask one another questions and challenge each others assertions. I look forward to hearing from Rob soon,” Lotz concluded."

Click here to see Blaine's letter

LEXINGTON, SC-----This morning, four local Democratic Party Chairs announced their support for Blaine Lotz in his bid for Congress. Chairman Bill Robinson (Allendale) joined Kathy Hensley (Lexington), Arthur Murphy (Jasper) and Susan Rowell (Hampton) in announcing their support for his campaign. “ These Democrats represent the Party at the grassroots level. They are the heart and soul of the Democratic Party and I am honored to have their support.” Lotz stated.

The Party Chairs had the following to say about Blaine Lotz.

“ When the tornadoes ravaged Allendale County, Blaine Lotz took the time to walk through the neighborhoods that were destroyed. His compassion and the way he dealt with families who lost everything, proved that really cares about people. Blaine was one of the first people to ask why FEMA had not arrived. With someone like him in office, no one would have ever had to ask that question.”
Bill Robinson, Allendale County Democratic Party Chair

“ Blaine and his wife don’t just preach Democratic ideals, they live them. In my years as a Democratic Official rarely have we had a person of his character, integrity and strong commitment to the people of our community run for Congress. He is the type of leader that renews faith in public service. “
Kathy Hensley, Lexington County Democratic Party Chair

“Without roads, there are no cars, without roads & cars, there are no new jobs, and without great schools there are no high paying jobs. No one running for Congress understands this like Blaine Lotz.”
Art Murphy, Jasper County Democratic Party Chair

Job losses and the terrible economy have crippled families, and people are hurting. Blaine has been in our community and understands the issues that affect the lives of regular folks. I know Blaine because he has been active in the Democratic Party, and I have seen how he relates to the people of our community. We need to send him to Washington so he can lead the fight to create jobs and foster the investment that we so desperately need in our little corner of the world. I whole heartedly support his candidacy."
Susan Rowell, Hampton County Democratic Party Chair

ORANGEBURG, SC-----Today, Blaine Lotz criticized Joe Wilson’s vote against The
Protecting the Medicaid Safety Net Act of 2008. The candidate for the 2nd
Congressional District argued, “ This is exactly the type of vote that proves
Wilson is out of touch with people in our district. People are losing jobs,
paying astronomical gas prices and can’t afford decent health-care. Yet he votes
against a bill that provides health-care to children. Even Governor Mark
Sanford, a member of his own party, supported this legislation.”

COLUMBIA, SC-----Today, Blaine Lotz took issue with the media releases from his opponent in the Democratic primary for the 2nd Congressional District. " Normally, I focus on issues such as creating jobs, economic development, education and a solid infrastructure. However, after reading the latest press release sent out by my opponent's campaign director---I had to speak up. The facts simply do not live up to the hype" Lotz said.

In his efforts to build a grassroots campaign, Lotz reported that 75% of his contributions came from within the 2nd Congressional District. According to his ethics report, the Lotz for Congress Campaign reported over 170 contributions under $200.00.

Lotz continued, "Our campaign has 29 times more money from within the district than my opponent who has raised LESS than half a percent of his funds from the 2nd Congressional District. In essence, 99.96% of my opponent's funds were from his personal donations or people from San Francisco or Las Vegas. The majority of funds reported were a combination of personal loans and personal contributions by my opponent. The people of this district are tired of the same old political spin and rhetoric."

FORMER MILITARY LEADER TO RUN AGAINST JOE WILSON
It is time for a Congressman who will fight for the citizens of the 2nd District.

COLUMBIA, SC---On Monday, March 17, Beaufort County resident Blaine Lotz officially filed to run in the Democratic Primary for the 2nd Congressional District of the US House of Representatives seat currently held by Republican Joe Wilson.

Prior to filing at the Democratic State Party headquarters in Columbia, Lotz announced his candidacy at the Veterans Monument in Lexington where he was introduced by Kathryn Hensley, chair of the Lexington County Democrats.