CANDIDATE STATEMENT

Yes, this is rather long, but as I have yet to meet many of you, I want to give you a good overview of who I am before you consider me for this vital position of leadership and responsibility. With that in mind, I ask your indulgence.

I’m a seasoned attorney, professor, and author, and my career has been marked by dedicated community service, impactful public policy, creative endeavors, and education. With a dynamic blend of strategic insight, exceptional communication skills, and a drive for inclusive, forward-thinking leadership, I am well-equipped to help guide the Boulder County Democratic Party into a bold new future of service and advocacy. 

I am a proud member of the Democratic Party, having served over the past thirty-plus years in various capacities with several county and district areas. I settled in Boulder almost three years ago and immediately became active in the community. I am a proud member of the BCDP and served our candidates during the last election by writing their BCDP campaign blurbs. In addition, my commitment to our Boulder County community extends to my current role as Vice-Chair (and soon-to-be Chair) of Boulder County’s Board of Adjustment, where I lead the quasi-judicial board as it serves to resolve zoning disputes between the county and individuals/companies, and most challenging: between neighbors. I have also served on other community oversight boards for fire and police departments, advised civic communication campaigns, and chaired other county and city commissions.

Over almost four decades, I have gained extensive experience in political campaign work and leadership roles in U.S. House and State Senate campaigns, including as campaign chairman for candidates up and down the ballot. All the while, I’ve been a steadfast advocate for progressive causes. For example, in the early 2000s, I developed, launched, and led ProAmerica Companies, a national movement aimed at shifting policy and public opinion from denouncing undocumented workers to focusing on the companies that abuse and exploit them. During this effort, I appeared on many news networks, including  ABC, CNN, and even FOX. It was an overall success and was instrumental in improving the equitable fairness of the E-Verify program.

In addition, as a Democratic activist in the ultra-Republican and privileged Rockwall County, Texas, I am proud to have led a successful (albeit highly contested) campaign to incorporate the county’s large, intentionally underserved and primarily immigrant neighborhood into the city’s jurisdiction, thus providing that overtly marginalized community with equal and reliable municipal resources, services, and security.

Throughout my legal and consulting career, I’ve provided legal and financial guidance across industries such as real estate, finance, media, and healthcare. For example, as interim Executive Director of the Dallas United Way’s Deaf Action Center, I led the organization as it provided essential services for the deaf (and often LGBTQ) community. Further, as the Founder and Executive Director of the National Crowdfunding Association, I worked closely with the Obama Administration to launch equity crowdfunding in the United States. In so doing, I contributed to national discussions on finance and business policy through forums like the SEC’s Small Business Capital Forum and the Clinton Global Initiative.

In academia, I currently teach business law and negotiations as an adjunct at the University of Colorado Law School. In addition, I teach property and contracts at Texas A&M Law School, and I teach graduate media law and free speech courses at California State University Northridge—equipping students with skills for business, political, and community engagement. Beyond my professional and academic work, I am a prolific writer. I’ve published bestselling historical novels such as American Red and Fortunate Son, both critically acclaimed. (American Red takes a deep dive into the battles between labor and owners in Denver and across the Rocky Mountains at the beginning of the 20th Century.) All of my writings, including articles on storytelling and technology, reflect a commitment to exploring complex narratives.

I’m proud to call Boulder home and love spending time with my partner, Elizabeth, traveling to visit my adult kids and their families, and hiking our trails with Bonny, my border collie. And now, combining strategic vision, legal expertise, communication skills, and public service, I’m ready to bring fresh, bold, inclusive, innovative, and effective leadership to the Boulder County Democratic Party.

VISION FOR THE BOULDER COUNTY DEMOCRATIC PARTY

  • Expand Local Engagement: Leveraging my decades of political campaign leadership and proven ability to energize communities, I will broaden grassroots participation in the BCDP. An integral element of this will be renewed and innovative efforts to celebrate, empower, grow, and retain our incredible volunteers while tackling the glaring absence of young and college-aged Democrats in our efforts.

  • Serve the Underserved and Facilitate Aggressive Advocacy: My leadership experience on county, municipal, and civic boards as a seasoned community advocate equips me to lead the BCDP to foster new and deeper connections across Boulder County's diverse neighborhoods. In addition, I believe the BCDP has a special opportunity to take the lead in developing and maintaining ready resources to protect and advocate for our threatened immigrant communities.

  • Broaden the Candidate Pool: Drawing on my extensive teaching and mentoring experience, I would encourage the BCDP to innovate new candidate development programs, empowering new voices to step forward with the tools and support they need to conduct and win competitive campaigns.

  • Focus Strategically for Statewide and National Impact: As someone who has successfully led initiatives with national policy implications, including collaborations with the Obama Administration and the Clinton Global Initiative, I will work to maintain and further align the BCDP’s efforts with statewide and national Democratic strategies, ensuring we punch above our weight in critical moments.

  • Retake Congress in the Midterms: My background in strategy, negotiation, and coalition-building uniquely qualifies me to help lead the BCDP in crafting a winning roadmap for the Midterms. Together, we can harness our resources, mobilize voters, and execute a focused plan to do our part (and more!) in regaining Congressional control.

  • Bring a Fresh Start: Let’s be honest, the BCDP is at a critical inflection point in which a fresh beginning is needed — with some programs/ efforts requiring a reboot while others need strategic reshuffling. Having talked with many of you, I have heard the consternations about the BCDP’s potential being significantly underutilized, with recent years showing a troubling regression. What is needed is a bold Coalition for Change led by a Chair who brings fresh energy and is unencumbered by factional divides. With my decades of political advocacy and county and party leadership, I know that I am the right person to drive this transformation.

SUMMARY OF MY RELEVANT EXPERIENCE:

  • Extensive Political Campaign Leadership: Over four decades of experience, including leadership and strategic roles in U.S. House and State Senate campaigns and many marathons of GOTV work.

  • Advocacy for Progressive Causes: Founded and led ProAmerica Companies to promote fair labor practices and challenge exploitative employment practices.

  • Strategic Community Leadership: Current Vice-Chair (soon Chair) of the Boulder County Board of Adjustment, resolving complex zoning disputes; past chair of various civic and county boards and organizations.

  • National Policy Engagement: In addition to ProAmerica Companies, played a pivotal role in launching the equity crowdfunding movement in collaboration with the Obama Administration; invited to forums like the SEC Small Business Capital Forum and Clinton Global Initiative.