Hackett makes it formal...

This just received:

I'm running for Senate to bring new direction and leadership to Washington.

I'm fed up with what's happening to my country. I'm ready to reset America's priorities. Just like you, I watched the same mistakes made an ocean away in Iraq repeated here at home in the wake of hurricane Katrina. This is a crucial time for America. The issues we now face and how they're resolved will have a lasting impact on us, and our children.

I grew up right here in Ohio, steeped in our American values. Now I'm raising a family here. I understand what's at stake for my neighbors and people all across America. I won't sit on the sidelines and watch politics as usual take us in the wrong direction.

I recently returned from Iraq as a Major in the US Marines Corps. I had been honorably discharged from the Corps in 1999, but I couldn't just sit by and watch what was happening over there when I knew I could help. So I volunteered to go. After I had been in Iraq for two months I volunteered again - this time to go to Fallujah. Religious fanatics and insurgents had seized the city. They had to be stopped. A civil government had to be restored.

My wife and three kids didn't want me to go to Iraq. But they understood my commitment to service and they knew that I had to do everything I could to support my brothers and sisters in arms. It was my responsibility to serve.

Now I'm ready to serve Ohio, this country, and you in the United States Senate. I'm ready to take your fight to Washington. I'm ready to take a stand on the issues that matter most to us, like keeping American jobs at home, protecting our Social Security benefits, making good healthcare accessible to everyone, and bringing the war in Iraq to a swift and secure resolution.

Let's not squander the exceptional opportunity we now have before us. Let's stop arguing about who's red and who's blue. Let's do all we can do for a stronger red, white, and blue.

Support my candidacy for U.S. Senate. Join me in fighting for a brighter future for all Americans. Together we can put things right. All we need is the will to do it.

Sincerely,

Paul Hackett

(website launched linked above)