ENDORSEMENT

Today, Erik Aadland, CD7 Republican candidate for Congress, announces a formal endorsement from former Colorado Governor, Bill Owens.

Bill Owens was the Governor of Colorado from 1999-2007. Prior to becoming governor, Owens served in the state house and senate and as Colorado treasurer. He was sworn in as Colorado’s 40th governor in January 1999 and was reelected in 2002 with the greatest majority in Colorado history.

Governor Owens pushed through the largest tax relief package in state history, amounting to $1 billion in cuts in rates of sales, personal income, and capital gains taxes, and eliminating the marriage penalty. Owens created an education accountability system, including detailed, online school report cards. He combined this model education accountability plan with five consecutive years of full state funding for public education. He also kept his commitment to transform Colorado’s transportation system by accelerating road and mass transit projects, thus reducing completion times from half a century to a decade. He pushed for and signed into law the largest state commitment to transportation, which promised to invest $15 billion in the following 20 years.

In 2005, Owens led a bipartisan effort to speed Colorado’s recovery from the recession. The effort led to citizen approval of a measure allowing the state to retain certain revenue for a period of five years, putting an end to serious budget cuts that were negatively impacting state services.

In a statement sent to the Aadland campaign, Governor Owens stated:

“Erik Aadland is exactly the type of person we need serving us in Congress – a West Point graduate who served in both Iraq and Afghanistan, a successful businessman, husband, and father of three.  He has proven his leadership and character in all of his endeavors.  Erik is the perfect choice to serve us in the U.S. Congress.“

Erik’s remarks:

“I am deeply grateful to receive an endorsement from a successful public servant the caliber of Governor Owens. I aspire to serve the people of Colorado on a broad, non-partisan basis just as he did. I am greatly encouraged by his support, and I will do my best to live up to the promise of the opportunities we face as Americans in spite of today’s difficulties.”