~ Politics is about tearing other people down, instead of bringing other people up.~

~ Clay Aiken ~

Friday was a busy day for Clay Aiken.  It was mostly a radio day for him.  He had many interviews on many different stations.

One of the interviews was on The Stephanie Miller Show.  Clay Aiken called in at 9:30am ET / 6:30am PT to talk about his run for congress from the state of North Carolina.

Another radio interview was on SiriusXm – Progress  

You can hear the interviews right here on CANN.  Go to the top of the page and click on the new tab, Clay For NC (on the right).

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There are two more articles that I want to post here.  They are good reads!

EgbertoWillies.com – American Idol Clay Aiken Running For Congress – His Message Connects

Clay Aiken appeared on the The Daily Rundown with Chuck Todd today. He is running for Congress as a Democrat. He is vying to replace Congresswoman Renne Ellmers (R-NC). North Carolina’s 2nd district is fairly Republican. President Obama lost it by 16 points in 2012.

That said, after listening to Clay Aiken and given the current disdain for Congress, this may be the time for someone like Clay Aiken to run a campaign to unseat Ellmers. Aiken came across very knowledgeable on the issues. He did not allow Chuck Todd to push him into a corner about Obamacare(ACA). He did not run away from it. He highlighted its benefits and expressed the necessary openness to change it where needed.

Congresswoman Renee Ellmers has dismissed Clay Aiken’s candidacy. In fact she did it in a rather unseemly manner. The Huffington Post reported the following.

In a radio interview with WMAL last week, the congresswoman was asked about Aiken, who is exploring a run in the Democratic primary.

“Apparently, his performing career is not going so well. He’s very bored,” Ellmers said. “I’ll tell you, I’m a little hurt. I think he has an incredible voice and he’s incredibly talent, and I’d rather have his support.”

The hosts then asked Ellmers if she had voted for Aiken during his stint on the popular Fox reality show.

“As we know, he didn’t really fare all that well. He was runner-up,” she said. “He also didn’t win on [‘Celebrity Apprentice’].. so I guess the next step is Congress. You know, we don’t have a very high approval rating so I guess the bar’s been lowered for him.”

Clay Aiken cannot be counted out.

Pundits are counting Clay Aiken out. It may be much too soon to do this. He displayed something special in this video and in the interview with Chuck Todd. He showed a trans-partisan empathy. He was able to give a vicious attack on his opponent without seeming vicious.

This is a great website.  It includes the video of the interview and also Clay’s campaign video.  You can see it at EgbertoWillies

The second article is an opinion/Letter to the editor

Newsobserver.com – Perry Deane Young: Aiken’s public service

We have to smile at Renee Ellmers’ efforts to ridicule and dismiss the serious candidacy of North Carolina born and raised Clay Aiken. Ellmers’ own biography says she was “born and raised” in Michigan and came to North Carolina in very recent years. Aside from working as a nurse, she lists her chief public service as being “president elect” of the Dunn Chamber of Commerce.

How dare the Republicans question an entertainer’s right to campaign for office when they put a B-movie actor in the White House and a local television personality in the U.S. Senate.

Before “American Idol,” Aiken was a special education teacher in Wake County and later worked with UNICEF. With his wealth earned from singing, he has established a $2 million foundation to help children with disabilities. There is nothing whatsoever in Ellmers’ career that is even remotely comparable to that kind of public service.

Aiken is right. It’s time the good people of District 2 put someone in Washington who is not beholden to party ideologues but is concerned about the hard-working people in this district where Aiken grew up.

It is always good to see positive reaction to Clay’s decision to run for Congress.  You can see the article at Newsobserver