It was either Boss’ Day or Election Day. I chose the latter.
Unless you’re living on the moon, we have an election coming up, not just for POTUS but for certain members of congress as well - dentists! This coming election has more riding on it than the presidential race. Five of our very own are up for reelection.
Members of the House of Representatives are considered for reelection every even year. Dentists represent a little more than 1% of the 435 - seat House. This year, five dentists are up for reelection in their respective states: Dr. Jeff Van Drew(D) Pleasantville, New Jersey; Dr. Mike Simpson(R) of Idaho; Dr. Paul Gosar(R) of Arizona; Dr. Brian Babin(R) of Texas; Dr Drew Ferguson(R) of Georgia.
As my mom would say, “whoop de doo! What is 1%?”
She’s right, but these dentists and elected officials to congress are not schlubs. They’re kind of a big deal! Four out of five are serving two or more terms and positioned to have a strong impact because of leadership roles in Congress. That’s huge. I feel like we have some allies in Congress. We have some pretty smart docs doing some pretty smart things.
Congressman Drew Ferguson was appointed Chief Deputy Minority Whip - the highest appointed position in the House of Representatives. His story is pretty good. Take a listen to Dr. Ferguson as he speaks to Sarah Milligan and Peter Aiello of the American Dental Political Action Committee on Tooth Talk On The Air. During the interview, Dr. Fergusen says, “running a congressional office is a lot like running a dental practice. There is a schedule…...every minute has a value.” He goes on to say, “everybody that walks in the door, has a problem that they want taken care of with the least amount of pain.”
According to the Center for Responsive Politics, a non profit, non partisan research group, who maintains a public online (www.opensecrets.org) database,the majority of dentists are Republican - 60% of dentists are republican while 40% democrat. Leaning right, dentists and dental practice owners value a conservative approach to business - like doing more dentistry with less regulations and lower taxes. During the 2018 midterm cycle, 61% of contributions to Republican partys’ candidates followed suit.
Historically, dentistry makes sizable campaign contributions and therefore will continue to have a loud voice in politics. We need to keep this up individually by speaking up on election day.
The Power of One Vote....
Here are some instances where one vote made all the difference...
- In 1776, one vote gave America the English language instead of German.
- In 1800, one vote kept Aaron Burr from becoming President. That one vote elected Thomas Jefferson.
- One vote gave statehood to Texas (1845), California (1850), Oregon (1859), Washington (1889) and Idaho (1890).
- In 1868, one vote saved President Andrew Johnson from impeachment.
- In 1875, one vote changed France from a monarchy to a republic.
- In 1876, one vote elected Rutherford B. Hayes to the presidency, and the man in the Electoral College who cast that vote was an Indiana Congressman elected by one vote.
- In 1916, Woodrow Wilson was elected President by carrying one state by less than one vote per precinct.
- In 1920, women won the right to vote by passage of the 19th amendment to the Constitution. Tennessee, the last state needed to pass the amendment, ratified the amendment by one vote.
- In 1923, one vote gave Adolph Hitler leadership of the Nazi Party.
- In 1960, John F. Kennedy's margin of victory over Richard Nixon was less than one vote per precinct.
- In 1968, Hubert Humphrey lost and Richard Nixon won the presidential election by a margin of fewer than three votes per precinct
Please vote on election day.
That’s all! I’m done! Promise, no more politics.
