Irey, Butler, Fine, Bilbray & Raese...Election 2006 More Notable Republicans

Diana Irey, Washington County Commissioner and candidate for U.S. House of Representatives District 12 in Pennsylvania

Diana Irey, elected in 1995, is the only woman ever to be elected as a Washington County commissioner. She is now in her tenth year of public service.

Diana has held a number of positions helping to steer the Washington County area toward increased economic growth. She served on the board of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission; co-chaired its Committee to Develop the Former Alcoa building into a regional renaissance tower; served on the boards of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Growth Alliance and Pittsburgh Regional Alliance executive board, and co-chaired their business attraction committee.

Appointed by Governor Tom Ridge, Diana served on the Port of Pittsburgh Commission. And she is past president of the Mon Valley United Way.

For these and other endeavors, she was named one of the top "60 Pittsburghers of the year" by Pittsburgh Magazine in December 1999, and was honored to be chosen as the 1998 spring distinguished ethics speaker for the Beard Center for Leadership in Ethics at Duquesne University.

Commissioner Irey lives in Carroll Township with her husband Bob and their three children: Victoria (16), Frank (15) and Alexandra (12).

~Joyce Comments: To read Diana Irey on issues click here.



Keith Butler, Primary candidate for U.S. Senate in Michigan

In 1982, Mr. Keith A. Butler became a member of the Michigan Republican Party. One of his first political volunteer experiences was on the campaign of Mr. Richard Headlee, candidate for Governor. Mr. Butler was given the assignment of developing and writing the Urban Communications Plan for Mr. Headlee.


In 1984, Mr. Butler ran for the office of Precinct Delegate and won. In that same year,
Michigan Reagan/Bush Chairman, Mr. Paul Gadola, appointed Mr. Butler to be the State Chairman of Blacks for Reagan/Bush. Two years later, Mr. Butler served as Statewide Director of the Urban Coalition for Bill Lucas for Governor campaign. He was also selected one of Five Outstanding Michiganians in 1988 by the Michigan Junior Chamber of Commerce.

DETROIT CITY COUNCIL ELECTION

In 1989, Mr. Butler was elected in a city-wide vote to the Detroit City Council; he garnered 43% of the votes, representing 105,000 of the total votes cast. Eighty-eight percent of Detroit's residents identified themselves as Democrats. He was the first known Republican to hold a city council seat in the city of Detroit since before World War II. Mr. Butler served a four-year term.

In addition, Mr. Butler was selected to be one of Ten Outstanding Americans for 1989 by the United States Junior Chamber of Commerce and was honored by President George H.W. Bush at the White House in the same year.

MAKING A DIFFERENCE


In 1991, the nation witnessed the brutal beating of Rodney King by police officers in Los Angeles, California. President Bush invited Mr. Butler to provide valuable input regarding the White House's response to this event and the L.A. Riot resulting. The following year (1992), Mr. Butler served on the National Platform Committee for the Republican Party, assisting other Party members with drafting the language for the Party Platform. President George H.W. Bush also selected Mr. Butler to be Deputy Chair of the Republican National Convention. At the convention, Mr. Butler also delivered the introductory speech for then Congressman, Newt Gingrich.

Mr. Butler was a member of American Dreamers, the late Heinz Prechter's GOP Fundraising Committee, supporting the 2000 presidential nominee, now President George W. Bush. In addition, Mr. Butler has also served as a member of the Michigan Republican State Committee. Added to his list of accomplishments is his service as a 2004 co-chair for Bush/Cheney.

Mr. Butler has appeared on various national and local TV or radio political and news programs to discuss differing political issues facing the national and metropolitan Detroit communities. He is a contributing writer to The Detroit News, writing editorial commentary on a variety of important issues.

PROVEN LEADER AND STRONG FAMILY MAN


The founding pastor of Word of Faith International Christian Center Church, Mr. Butler is the Senior Pastor of the 21,000 member congregation; he is also the employer of over 200 ministry employees and manages an annual operating budget of over 30 million dollars. The headquarters site sits on 110 acres of land which houses all the ministry's buildings representing over $40 million in value.

Mr. Butler was graduated from the University of Michigan-Dearborn campus, earning a bachelor's degree. He also has completed his theological studies at Rhema Bible Training Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In addition, Mr. Butler has received an honorary Doctor of Divinity from Canada Christian College in Theological Studies.

Mr. Butler has been married 29 years to his lovely wife, Deborah L. Butler. They have three children who now serve with them in the ministry: Pastor & Mrs. Keith A. Butler II, Minister MiChelle Butler, and Minister Kristina Butler. The Butler family resides in the metropolitan Detroit area.

~Joyce Comments: To read Keith Butler on issues click here.



Alan Fine, candidate for U.S. House of Representatives District 5 in Minnesota

Lifetime resident of the 5^th Congressional District

100+ year heritage in Minneapolis

Youngest of five brothers, four of which still live in the district

Son: Louis, 11, attends Upper Lake Harriet School

Attended Audubon Elementary School and Southwest High School in Minneapolis

• Received the Sons of the American Revolution Award from the faculty of Southwest High School in recognition of outstanding character and patriotic leadership

Attended the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis

• B.A., Economics


• M.B.A. (Concentration: Management Information Systems)

Business Strategic/Consultant

• Provides guidance to corporations on business strategy formulation and implementation, pre-merger and consolidation planning, leadership coaching, and functional management. 


• Accounting Certifications: C.P.A. (held until June, 2006)


• Investment Banking Certifications: Series 7, 24, 28 and 63


• Worked with the leaders of many organizations across the state helping them to be more successful.

Senior Lecturer at the Carlson School of Management

• Was the primary architect of the undergraduate entrepreneurship program and directed the program from inception through the Spring of 2003


• Voted Faculty of the Year twice


• Voted Professor of the Year University-wide by the Mortar Board Senior Honor Society


• Taught thousands of students over more than a decade of teaching at the Carlson School of Management

Author: Empower Your Self: A Framework for Personal Success

Served on various boards.  Currently, President of the board of Turners Gymnastics

U.S. Masters swimmer and currently serving on the board of Minnesota Masters

~Joyce Comments: To read Alan Fine on issues click here.



Brian Bilbray, Representative for District 50 in California and candidate for reelection

Brian P. Bilbray is a native San Diegan and was born at Coronado Naval Air Station where his father served in the Navy. Prior to his tenure in Congress, Brian spent more than two decades in business and in local government. Brian was instrumental in developing San Diego County's progressive initiatives regarding environmental protection, pollution control, and economic development.

In 1994, he was elected to the United States House of Representatives as a part of the historic freshman Republican class which took control of both houses of Congress. Upon his election, Brian became very active in border control issues, understanding the correlation between border enforcement and national security. He led the charge to add almost 1,400 new agents to the US Border Patrol in 1995, and was instrumental in the effort to secure $425 million in funds to reimburse border states for the burden of illegal alien incarceration. Brian also introduced legislation that would reform citizenship laws and prohibit children born in the United States to illegal alien parents from automatically receiving American citizenship. Always conscious of his district’s needs, Brian authored legislation that was responsible for bringing the cruise ship industry back to San Diego which resulted in tremendous economic benefits for the region.

Brian was also a key player in the drafting and passage of some of the major accomplishments of the 104th Congress: the Safe Drinking Water Act, the Immigration Reform bill, and the Welfare Reform measure. Because of his intimate knowledge of environmental and water pollution issues, Brian was one of the principal negotiators who helped break the impasse over the landmark Safe Drinking Water legislation. As an acknowledged expert on border issues, he was also one of the Republican Conference's point men on HR 2202, the Immigration in the National Interest Act. Finally, as the only California member of the Welfare Reform Task Force, Brian had a hand in drafting the first revision of our nation's welfare system in three decades.

Brian’s second term was even more successful than the first as he played a major role in producing the first balanced budget in over 30 years, and providing tax relief to American families. Understanding that it is important to protect our quality of life, Brian was victorious in promoting cleaner air standards with the enactment of the Border Smog Reduction Act. The legislation prohibited vehicles that came from Mexico from entering the country if they didn’t pass California smog standards. He also successfully set aside nearly $10 million in the Transportation Bill for the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Program. This program helps states comply with the Clean Air Act by funding transportation projects that assist with lowering vehicle emissions.

Since he left Congress, Brian has been running his own public affairs business. He also is the co-Chairman of the National Board of Advisors for the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR).

Brian, 54, and his wife Karen are the proud parents of five children and one grandchild.

~Joyce Comments: To read Brian Bilbray on issues click here.



John Raese, candidate for U.S. Senate in West Virginia

Faith in God, love of family, hard work, courage and sacrifice. These are the values cemented in the people of West Virginia and these are the values of John Raese.

John is a third generation West Virginian, and unlike some representatives in Washington, he was born, grew up, and has lived his entire life in our state. John was raised by his mother and father, in Morgantown, WV where he still lives today. A product of public education, John graduated from Morgantown High School 1969.

Upon graduation he began taking classes at West Virginia University. John was not only an excellent student, but he took great pride in representing the Mountaineers in a variety of athletic endeavors. John was a standout varsity baseball player and he even spent one year hitting the hardwood as a freshman Mountaineer basketball player.

John thoroughly enjoyed his academic and athletic careers, and along with thousands of his fellow West Virginians, he will always cherish his years as a Mountaineer.

The most important thing in this world to John is his wonderful family. John met his beautiful wife Liz in Morgantown, and together they raise their two lovely daughters Jane, age 13, and Agnes, age 8.

Currently, John is the Chief Executive Officer and President of Greer Industries, Inc. and manages several successful family businesses. Greer Industries holds a variety of interests including Greer Steel, Greer Limestone and Greer Lime Companies. John is also Vice President of the West Virginia Newspaper Publishing Company, which publishes The Dominion Post, Morgantown’s daily newspaper and serves as Chairman of the West Virginia Radio Corporation, which owns 15 radio stations as well as a 56-station network. Over the last 20 years, under John’s leadership, these entities have provided quality, high paying jobs to hundreds of West Virginia families.

John has dedicated himself to not only providing jobs to West Virginia families, but continues to dedicate himself to a variety of civic and charitable foundations. He understands that in order for the communities across our state to grow, we must reach out to our neighbors and offer a helping hand.

John is no stranger to the world of politics. He is a former chairman of the West Virginia Republican Party and ran unsuccessful races against the incumbent Gov. Jay Rockefeller and former Gov. Arch Moore. Even though John’s efforts fell short, he was able to reach out to voters across the state about the real issues that affect our everyday lives.

Unfortunately, the elected leadership of our state has forgotten about the issues important to our families and we continue to slip further and further behind. Well….that is all about to change!!

As West Virginia’s next senator, John Raese plans on bringing his strong family values, tireless work ethic, and no nonsense attitude, straight to the Washington insiders. John believes in his heart that West Virginians are ready for a new direction, and he is committed to leading us into the brighter future we all deserve.

~Joyce Comments: To read John Raese on issues click here.