Pete Ashdown

Last Monday night in Salt Lake City was the biggest fireworks show of the year. With the help of able friends and volunteers, we distributed 850 ice-cream “Creamies” along with thousands of stickers, postcards, and yard signs. As the fireworks started, I walked down 7th East next to Liberty Park carrying a yard sign and a megaphone. As people shouted out to me, I shouted back to them and told them I needed their help in November.

Politics is not about raising money, buying ads, and hiring focus groups. Politics is about reaching the people with honesty and integrity. After the fireworks show ended, I climbed up onto a traffic light box and shouted, “My name is Pete Ashdown and I need your vote!” through the megaphone. Five minutes later, the police busted up the crowd because we were blocking a major intersection. For a brief moment, I saw Americans who weren’t cynical or apathetic, but incredibly happy to see a politician asking for their vote in person rather than over the television.