REGIONAL REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE SCREENING

OPENING STATEMENT OF DAVID BELLAVIA

FEBRUARY 20, 2011

I want to thank you for inviting me to discuss my possible candidacy for the 26th Congressional
District. It is my hope that after this session you will know me better, understand my mission
and choose me as the Republican candidate for this vital Western New York seat in the House of
Representatives.
My record is clear. I served in the United States Army infantry for over six years. My unit fought
on almost every major battleground for over a year in Iraq; we earned the Presidential Unit
Citation. I served among humble and honorable men who were remarkable soldiers for our
nation.

I am also honored to have been personally considered for

or to have received almost every major award our great nation has to offer for combat valor. I
hold a Silver Star and a Bronze Star for my actions in Fallujah. State Senator George Maziarz,
through Governor George Pataki, selected me as one of the first inductees into the New York
State Veteran's Hall of Fame and gave me New York State's highest award for combat valor, The
Conspicuous Service Cross.
There can be no greater privilege in life than having the opportunity to serve our nation under
fire. There is no greater honor in this world than serving on the bleeding edge of a battle to
preserve our fragile way of life. I had the distinction of protecting my family and avenging our
citizens at a time of war.
Since leaving the Army, I have been an active and loyal Republican. I co-founded Vets
For Freedom, a national organization that has helped seat ten veterans into the House of
Representatives. Together, with other like-minded veterans, we built a vast network of young
conservatives poised to lead the Republican Party for generations to come.
Vets for Freedom played a major role in the 2008 national election. We spent millions of dollars
in twelve states that certainly turned the tide in tough races and stopped the hemorrhaging of
Republican seats in others. From our desert battlefields to our continuation of duty at home, my
generation and Vets for Freedom has made a difference in the Republican Party.
In 2008, when I ran for this same nomination against the eventual Congressman, Chris Lee,
I was faced with a golden opportunity. The Democrat front-runner was also a veteran, and we
had the chance to truly bring the hard fought success of the Iraq War front and center into the
national dialogue.
When Chris and I became the last two in Republicans in contention, I met with leaders of our
Party and former Congressman Tom Reynolds. Together we decided what was best for the Party
would be best for the district. It was "not my time" and I decided to bow out of a costly and bitter
primary to allow Chris Lee a clear sail into the House of Representatives.
I not only stepped aside, I did something no other primary candidate did for Chris Lee or our
Party: I actively supported him.

In fact, I doubled down on Chris Lee. Vets for Freedom endorsed

him; I endorsed him on behalf of pro-victory combat veterans. I campaigned across the district
for Chris, speaking at veteran organizations all over the region. We spent money on radio
advertisements and brought in other veterans to help support his campaign.
So let's put one issue to rest now: I am a loyal Republican.
My father was a dentist for over 35 years in Orleans County, where I grew up. He could have
made four times the money moving his practice into expensive suburbs of Erie or Monroe
counties, but he made sure we "grew where we were planted." He taught me that community
and family were the foundations of true wealth. I live his values today.
I am the youngest of four boys. All of my brothers have earned Master Degrees and two of them
went to seminary. My mother has had to fight disease for much of her life, but she is truly an
incredible example of Christian love.
I am married to a Rochester reporter and we have three wonderful children. We were separated
for three long years while I deployed to Germany, then Kosovo and finally Iraq. It was
exhausting for us to sacrifice our family for honor of service. Without my family, I would have
nothing.
I mention these things because in the most harrowing moments of our battles in Iraq, I thought
most of my family. When I returned to civilian life, I became all the more devoted to making a
better life for us. In many ways, my devotion to my family has driven my activism and compelled
me to serve.
I am especially active in veteran's causes. In 2009, I co-founded with prominent military
bloggers the Warrior Legacy Foundation, an organization dedicated to honoring the legacy of
military service. We aim to help teach children to value our nation enough to serve her, just
as we have done. I also coordinate veterans' activity for the New York State Rifle and Pistol
Association.
I believe I am the right person for you to select to represent the constituents of the 26th
Congressional District. The 2010 election made it clear: our nation has grown tired of retreaded
candidates void of passion and honor. We should heed that warning in New York and consider
whether we are truly reflecting the view and wishes of our base.
Today we are a Party that has not won a statewide race in two election cycles while Republicans
are winning similar contests in many other Blue States. We need to look at what we are doing
wrong. I believe the conventional wisdom about this meeting today is an example of our failings:
we are choosing the wrong candidates for bad reasons.
I believe being a Republican is more than just talking about fiscal conservatism, it is walking the
walk and acting with integrity. Too often, unprincipled Republicans talk conservative, then go
to Albany or Washington and get in bed with liberal, big government interests who betray the
electorate. If not, they often engage in personal conduct that betrays voter faith and their oath of
office.
For Chris Lee, that game is over. But we still pay the cost.
Today, the voters recognize the beat of the Albany Two-Step and the Washington Shuffle. I will
not learn those dances. I put my life on the line in defense of my country and I fought for the
men under my command and the oath I swore as an American. When I say something, I mean it.
When I say I'm going to do something, I do it. And I can prove it.
Our party was ill in 2006. Over the last four years, we have undergone a blood transfusion of
fresh conservative voices. Self made Americans; Republicans who understand their constituents
because they are of like mind with common backgrounds.
Too often, scandalized Western New York politicians have been in the national news. Eric
Massa tickled his way onto Jay Leno and David Letterman; Chris Lee's shirtless photograph is
memorialized on the Internet and will never disappear from our area's public record.
Time and time again, wealthy candidates who offer nothing more than the ability to self-fund
are embarrassing us. Few of them have accomplished much of anything on their own. Some
ascend in the ranks floating on piles of their father's money, not their own.
Sure, they can pay the bills and maybe they get elected. But with no sense of Duty, no sense of
Honor, no sense of Country, they often have no moral compass. And they implode.
As your Congressman, I will work to restore the honor and dignity to the office that was
squandered by one of those candidates.
Today, this group is interviewing several candidates and the clear favorites are again
millionaires who can buy the seat. The same is true for the Democrats - they'll find their own
wealthy candidate. I can't help but think to myself: Here we go again.
I believe the voters outside these closed doors are thinking the same thing: Here we go again.
I am offering this important panel a candidacy that is a complete departure from this proven
model of embarrassment.
The mistakes of 2008 were corrected in 2010, when decorated veterans were elected across the
country. LTC Allen West, regarded in 2008 as not good enough for the Republican mainstream,
is one of the most popular freshmen in Congress and was the keynote speaker at CPAC this
month. And there are many more.
These recent election victories are all proof the electorate responds enthusiastically to genuine
war heroes. I submit to you this candidate profile would be especially effective after the
embarrassing melt down that our party has suffered in Chris Lee.
My political and philosophical views are clearly conservative. I am unabashedly pro-life, without
apologies or compromise. I am a staunch advocate of our 2nd Amendment rights. We also need
tort reform to control trial lawyers and unreasonable abuse of our courts.
I am principally opposed to the Stimulus we already lost and any similar economic activity in the
future.
I'm a fiscal conservative - I believe Barack Obama's budget proposals will drive our deficit so
high that taxpayers may never recover and my children's generation will be enslaved by foreign
debt. I also believe it is up to the Republicans in the House of Representatives to stop this
travesty.
I agree with Rep. Paul Ryan's vision of the federal budget. I will not vote for any tax increase,
especially in the throes of a recession.
I believe the national health care debate is a propaganda war, with Democrats using code words
like "lowering costs" as if repeating them constantly will make them come true. We need to
overhaul our health care system, but on free market principles, not government control.
Obamacare is a government power grab, pure and simple, and it should be repealed. Lacking
repeal in the Senate, or after a presidential veto, the House needs to defund Obamacare, starting
with the 1,600 new IRS agents hired to enforce it.
As a freshman, I would model myself after freshman Representative Tom Reed of New York,
who spearheaded three cost cutting amendments last week that saved 460 million dollars. He
defunded the Presidio Park funding. He eliminated funding for Tijuana, Mexico's sewer repair.
He has plugged multiple holes that resulted in State Department pay abuse.
Clearly economic issues - and jobs, jobs jobs - are at the top of the minds of Western New
Yorkers today. But I am also the only potential candidate for this seat who knows what is going
on in the Middle East today. The toppling of Mubarak in Egypt; the violent protests breaking out
across the region - these issues will likely dominate our national foreign policy agenda for quite
some time.
I can be a strong and knowledgeable voice for freedom in that important region while working
on behalf of this conservative Republican district in Washington.
I believe the political process in New York, like elsewhere in America, has become dominated by
money and greed. Columnist George Will described it as the "Government Class" which includes
politicians and their enablers of both parties, who use government as a means to their own
employment and financial success, or to accumulate power to achieve political and social goals.
I have a different view - I think government should be limited to what society needs to protect
its citizens from harm, to provide for social order, and to minimally regulate commerce for the
common good. The Republican Party must remember: our base voters are people who think
like me, who respect the commitment and sacrifice combat veterans have made, and who look
skeptically at any process which ordains wealthy candidates who are Republicans in Name Only.
I have made my point: selecting candidates based on their bankbook is a mistake. But I believe
I am also a candidate who can raise money fast. Already I have received endorsements of five
political action committees, most notably Iraq Veterans for Congress, a PAC that was the tip of
the spear for electing veterans in 2010.
A Marine like Alario Pantano - a North Carolina Republican Congressional candidate with my
candidate profile - raised $800,000 last election. It is important to note that Pantano and many
other Iraq and Afghanistan vets raised that kind of money - all at the same time, all in a crowded
November election.
In contrast, this special election will focus the eyes of the world on us, and potentially a lot
more donors are paying attention. These are men and women who have just received their tax
refunds, who are still excited about how they changed the national dialogue in November and
who have an appetite for more. My candidacy will be a continuation of their reform.
Do not let anyone tell you Americans who believe in a proven patriot will not offer financial
support. Panatano, LTC West and many others proved that false. I believe I can quickly raise the
requisite donations to pay for an effective campaign for Congress.
This is a national race, and the candidate profile I bring to the campaign will earn even more
national media attention. In the absence of any other campaigns of such consequence, I believe
our news coverage may be heightened three or fourfold. This earned media can also drastically
increase fundraising from outside the district.
It is time for the seven county Republican Parties of Western New York to stand on principle,
not lean on a millionaire's checkbook. I believe the voters will reward that return to common
sense with a Republican victory in this important election.
I am delighted to be invited to discuss my potential candidacy with you today. Like I said, I'd like
to get to know each other better so I'm eager to take your questions. Thank you for your time.