Colorado's 4th Congressional District Candidate Profile - Republican Cory Gardner GARDEN CITY, KAN (hppr) - In the historically conservative Colorado 4th District, Democrat Betsy Markey defeated incumbent Marilyn Musgrave in 2008. For the first time since the Nixon administration, a Democrat represents the district in Congress. Now, Republican Cory Gardner is trying to reclaim the district for the G-O-P on November 2nd.

Gardner, currently a state representative, began his career in politics after working at a family-owned farm equipment dealer. He says he entered politics because he felt the needs of the people in Colorado were not being met.

"You know I believe we need a stronger voice in Washington D.C. and at the state legislature in Denver," he explains. "Somebody who understands that we got to balance the budget, cut spending, and get our economy back on track, and felt those needs and that concern was going unaddressed at the state capitol and not only at the state capitol but also in Washington D.C. so I decided to run for office."

Gardner was first appointed to the State Legislature in 2005 to fill a vacant seat, and was re-elected in 2008. He was the House Minority Whip while in the legislature. A minority whip keeps track of bills and makes sure all the members of the party are present for important votes. Some of the bills Gardner voted for included measures such as a tax credits for job creation, as well as a law prohibiting government's use of eminent domain to acquire water rights. He also voted to get rid off the limitation on how many extensions judges can give when approving wiretapping.

During his campaign Gardner has endorsed the Republicans "Pledge to America." The Pledge outlines the Republican platform for the November elections. Gardner says many of the things that the document outlines are items he's already included in his own plan.

"Many of the things we have talked about in the 2010 plan have been are part of the Pledge for America as well. I am excited that other people are talking about our ideas to cut spending, to balance the budget, to bring more transparency and accountability back to Washington D.C. and so really look forward to opportunities to work with Republicans and Democrats," he says.

Gardner says uncertainty about future tax policies and uncertainty about costs associated with health care overhaul are hurting the economy by making businesses reluctant to invest.

"There are businesses that are unable to expand, hire new people, to grow because they don't know what is going to happen with tax increases in January," Gardner says. "They are uncertain about the costs of the healthcare bill. They don't know what their energy costs are going to do because of the National Energy Tax so we got to restore economic certainty peel back regulations that are going through the administration that could penalize the hardworking families of this country."

He also says that he's watched ordinary families live within their means and believes that government should do the same.
"Whether it's vacant federal buildings that are costing 30 billion dollars a year in this country or whether it is the16,000 new IRS agents that the healthcare bill calls for the hiring of. We need to do a better job of cutting spending"

November's winner will likely vote on a new Farm Bill in 2012. Gardner says he believes the next Farm Bill should include ways to bring the next generation of farmers and ranchers back to southeastern Colorado. He says increasing trade opportunities can keep family farms and ranches in business.

"I believe we need to focus on value added opportunities to add more value to the commodities that we produce, and also make sure we are able to expand our trade opportunities and make sure we are able to expand on our trade efforts with our trading partners," he says. "If we were to increase trade by 1% in this country we could create 250,000 new jobs. That is an incredible number and I believe agriculture could lead the way."

In a recent poll from the Penn Schoen Berland polling company, Markey and Gardner remain close- with the Republican Gardner leading the Democrat Markey by three points.

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