NEW BEDFORD, MA – Today, Republican candidate for governor Brian Shortsleeve gave the following remarks at candidate for lieutenant governor Shawn Oliver’s campaign kickoff event in New Bedford:
“Thank you all for being here.”
“When I began thinking about who should join me on this ticket, I knew I was not looking for someone who simply checked a political box or had a famous last name or someone who had been part of the political establishment.
“I was looking for a partner in this fight to make Massachusetts affordable for working people; someone who understands how bad decisions on Beacon Hill impact taxpayers and our local communities, someone who will stand with me for law and order.
I was looking for someone who understands the lives of the people we are running to serve. Someone who knows what it means to work hard, take responsibility, raise a family, and live with the consequences of bad policy made in Boston. Someone who believes, as I do, that public service is about results, not rhetoric, and that government exists to serve citizens, not itself.
“I wanted someone with backbone. Someone who understands that working families and small businesses need relief, not lectures. Someone who knows that accountability matters, that taxpayer money is not free money, and that common sense is not some outdated idea but the foundation of good government.
“I wanted someone who reflects a part of Massachusetts that too often gets overlooked and talked down to. Someone grounded in community, shaped by hard work, and motivated not by status, but by service.
“And I wanted someone who shares the values that are at the heart of this campaign: faith, family, responsibility, discipline, and a belief that Massachusetts can be strong, affordable, safe, and sane again.
“Because this campaign is about more than one person. It is about building a team that is ready to govern. A team that understands the challenges facing this state not as an abstract policy exercise, but as a daily reality for the people living them.
“People who are getting crushed by housing costs, utility bills, taxes, and a state government that keeps asking more from them while delivering less in return.
“People who are tired of watching Maura Healey and Kim Driscoll put ideology ahead of affordability, politics ahead of competence, and excuses ahead of accountability.
“So, I set out to find a running mate who could help carry this mission to every corner of Massachusetts. Someone tough. Someone principled. Someone with real-world experience. Someone who understands exactly what is at stake in this election.
“And I found that person.
“He is a man of conviction, common sense, and service. He understands working families. He understands the pressures facing our communities. And he understands that this election is about restoring a government that respects the people who pay for it.
“It is my honor to announce my running mate, my partner in this Mission for Massachusetts, and the next lieutenant governor of Massachusetts, New Bedford City Councilor Shawn Oliver.”
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