Graves Joins Georgia Grassroots Activists in Helping Launch Historic “Contract from America”

Today, Tom Graves, congressional candidate for a May 11 special election in Georgia’s 9th Congressional District, joined hundreds of local Tea Party and limited government groups around the country joined together to announce the launch of the “Contract from America,” a grassroots legislative blueprint for 2010 and beyond. Originally proposed by Ryan Hecker, a Houston Tea Party activist and National Coordinator for the initiative’s chief organizing group Tea Party Patriots, this project is intended to present a different kind of agenda for our federal lawmakers: unlike the Contract with America introduced in the 1990s, everyday citizens proposed and voted on every plank of the Contract from America.

Grassroots activists from across the country, including Tom Graves, visited the website to choose their top ten priorities from a list of 21 action items that committed Americans from all walks of life proposed. The top ten issues comprise the final Contract. By asking website visitors to propose and vote on the agenda, the result is not a list handed down from on high by old-bull politicians, but one handed up from the true grassroots in this country. After garnering nearly half a million votes in less than two months, the Contract from America has now been finalized into a blueprint that will serve notice to public officials about what the people want for their future.

When voting was completed, the top ten planks were: (1) Protect the Constitution; (2) Reject Cap and Trade; (3) Demand a Balanced Budget; (4) Enact Fundamental Tax Reform; (5) Restore Fiscal Responsibility and Constitutionally Limited Government in Washington; (6) End Runaway Government Spending; (7) Defund, Repeal, and Replace Government-run Health Care; (8) Pass an ‘All-of-the-Above” Energy Policy; (9) Stop the Pork; and (10) Stop the Tax Hikes.

Tom Graves is proud to join with millions of Tea Party activists across the country to announce the arrival of the Contract from America and the exit of elected officials who continue to ignore calls for fiscal responsibility, constitutionally-limited government, and free markets.

More information about each plank, including its full description and the name of the activist who first proposed it, is available at the Contract from America’s website, www.contractfromamerica.org.

The front runner in the race, Graves has dominated every straw poll in the crowded field of Special Election. He has been endorsed by FreedomWorks, RedState’s Erick Erickson, Club for Growth PAC, the nation’s premier free-market, free enterprise group of conservatives, the Atlanta Tea Party and was the first candidate to be certified 100 percent pro-life by the Georgia Right to Life PAC.

Graves represented the 12th House District from 2003 until March 23, 2010. Graves announced last May that he would seek the 9th District Congressional seat that was vacated by Congressman Nathan Deal, who is running for Governor.

For more information about the campaign, go to www.GravesForCongress.org.

Graves, who was in his fourth term representing House District 12, was first elected to the Georgia House of Representatives in 2002. He has chaired numerous subcommittees, served in several leadership positions and been recognized statewide as a conservative leader. He received a 2009 “National Legislator of the Year” from the American Legislative Exchange Council, a 2009 “Guardian of Small Business” Award from the National Federation of Independent Business, the 2009 “Legislator of the Year” Award from the Georgia Retail Association, the 2009 “Legislator of the Year” from the 9th Congressional District of Georgia and was nationally recognized as the “Legislative Entrepreneur of the Year Award” by the Freedom Works Foundation for his tireless effort to stem the tide of expansive government and reduce the tax burden on Georgians. Georgia Trend named Graves to its 2009 “40 under 40, Georgia’s Best and the Brightest.” Graves has been endorsed by Club for Growth PAC, the nation’s premier free-market, free enterprise group of conservatives, FreedomWorks PAC, RedState’s Erick Erickson and was the first candidate to be certified 100 percent pro-life by the Georgia Right to Life PAC.

Graves grew up in White, Georgia and graduated from the University of Georgia, where he earned a Bachelors of Business Administration in Finance. Graves is a small businessman, past member of the Gordon County Board of Elections and an active member of the Gordon County Chamber of Commerce. He is married to Julie, a native of Marietta, and the couple has three children, JoAnn, John and Janey. They attend the Belmont Baptist Church in Calhoun. 
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