"Congressman With Guts": What Does That Mean?

Alan Grayson’s pal, David Keith here. If I knew anything about modern culture, I would make an oblique reference to “Superman’s Pal, Jimmy Olsen,” a popular comic book that was published from 1954 to 1974. But that was way before I was born, so I know nothing about that.

Here at Casa Grayson, we sometimes are asked why the name of our website is www.CongressmanWithGuts.com. Once when Alan was on Rachel Maddow’s MSNBC show, Rachel noted that there wasn’t much demand for that URL before Alan came along. So it was readily available.

Do you want a Congressman With Guts in the U.S. House of Representatives? Then please click here, and show your support for Alan’s re-election campaign.

OK, so we didn’t have to use the term “guts.” We could have said bravery, courageousness, pluck, boldness, daring, fearlessness, audacity, intrepidity, heroism, lionheartedness, dauntlessness, spirit, resolution, determination, feistiness or spunk. But “guts” is so . . . short. And “CongressmanWithSpunk.com” definitely doesn’t sound right.

CongressmanWithPluck.com, on the other hand . . . .

Anyway, I want to prove to you, by example, that my boss deserves the title of “Congressman With Guts,” and that you should contribute to his campaign in the next 72 hours. If not sooner.

You may know the story of the last three Grayson elections:

2008: won narrowly, becoming the first Democrat to represent downtown Orlando since Watergate.

2010: lost badly, after being hammered by more “independent expenditure” sewer money than any House candidate in the country, anywhere, ever.

2012: won solidly, in the greatest comeback in House history – and the Koch Brothers started to run attack ads against him shortly thereafter.

We can’t let 2014 be like 2010. Contribute to Alan Grayson’s campaign before our June 30 deadline, and make sure that he continues to represent us in the House.

So let me tell you about something gutsy.

Of the $5.5 million in sewer money spent on vicious attack ads against Alan in 2010, providing Alan with a two-year unpaid vacation, $4 million of that was spent by the Koch Brothers.

You might think that after that trauma, when Alan ran for Congress again in 2012, he might have kept his head down, and gone out of his way not to bring himself to the attention of them Koch guys.

If you thought that, you would be wrong.

In 2012, Alan went on national TV, and condemned the Koch Brothers by name for their “outright lies” and their “trickery.” A Huffington Post report on that interview drew over 2000 comments.

In 2013, when the Koch Brothers held a sewer money summit in Alan’s hometown of Orlando, he organized a street protest against them.

And earlier this year, when Alan learned that the Koch Brothers own much of the Texas refinery capacity at the termination of the Keystone XL pipeline, standing to make billions in profits if the pipeline is completed, he spread that essential information far and wide.

Alan Grayson: He Doesn’t. Back. Down.

And that’s why we need Alan Grayson to remain in Congress, despite the Koch Brothers attack ads running against Alan in his district since last November. That’s why Alan needs your support – and deserves it.

So when we say that Alan Grayson is a Congressman With Guts, we’re not talking about his viscera, his entrails, his bowels or his innards. We’re not talking about his chitlins.

We’re talking about his moxie, his cheek, his cojones, his grit and his chutzpah.

But sometimes, you pay a price for that. Here is another random cultural reference that I couldn’t possibly know:

Lou Grant: “You’ve got spunk. I hate spunk.”
- The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970).

I’m going to go out on a limb, and say that the Koch Brothers hate Alan Grayson’s spunk. <strong>And that is what makes it so important that you contribute to our campaign today, before the June 30 FEC deadline.</strong>

That, plus the fact that I’m paid in arrears, and I deeply desire to see a paycheck on July 1 for my outstanding work during the month of June.

It’s time for you to chip in.

Temerity,

Alan Grayson’s pal David Keith

Turk Jackson : You got rocks [guts], ain't ya?
Jimmy Olsen : Yes, sir, especially in my head.

- Adventures of Superman: Through the Time Barrier (1955).