FlashReport Contributor Jim Lacy had an opportunity recently to interview GOP Congressional candidate John Dennis, who hopes to be the Republican Party’s standard bearer against 
Speaker Nancy Pelosi this Fall… In the photo to the right, Dennis is pictured with retired Congressman Barry Goldwater, Jr, at the 2009 Western CPAC Conference…
Three Minutes With John Dennis
By Jim Lacy
One of the most interesting races in the Bay Area is the GOP primary fight in the 8th Congressional District for the right to take on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. I caught up with the leading candidate, John Dennis, for a brief chat on the campaign trail…
JL: You have an unusual background for a Republican candidate…
JD: Yeah, another humble beginnings story. I grew up in a public housing project in Jersey City. It eventually became everything you associate with the term "public housing." The Spike Lee film “Clockers” was based on this place. Luckily my family got out. I graduated from Fordham, founded a couple of successful businesses, moved to San Francisco, got married and started a family. Actually, not all that unusual for a Republican.
JL: What got you involved in politics?
JD: Ayn Rand, Barry Goldwater and Ronald Reagan. Although I’d been a Republican for over 25 years, I really didn’t get active until the Ron Paul Presidential campaign. I’m a strong believer in individual liberty and the Constitution, so I was drawn to Ron Paul’s message. I ended up campaigning for him in Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and California. After the 2008 primaries, I became a volunteer in a couple of San Francisco races, Mike DeNunzio for Supervisor and Harmeet Dhillon for Assembly.
JL: Why run against Pelosi?
JD: It’s a unique opportunity for Republicans in what should be a very good year for us. Because of the fact that this race will be taking place in the 5th largest media market in America and she is such a polarizing figure, we can make this a national campaign. I plan to challenge her on issues that she doesn’t want to discuss, like the Federal deficit, her flip-flops on foreign policy and the corruption in her Democrat Caucus. Every dollar Nancy Pelosi spends defending herself against me is a dollar she can’t spend to help another Democrat candidate somewhere else. That has to be good for Republicans.
JL: You have a Primary opponent?
JD: Yes. She was the GOP nominee against Pelosi in 2008. We did some research going back as far as the 1864 election and discovered that she received the lowest vote percentage of any Republican Congressional nominee in San Francisco history. Plus she doesn’t even live in the district and can’t vote for herself. Enough said.
JL: What’s the status of your campaign heading into June 8?
JD: Republicans really, really want to see someone stand up to Pelosi and that’s helped enormously. So far we’ve raised over $600,000, enlisted over 100 volunteers and won the endorsement of every Executive Committee member of the SF Republican Party, as well as the SF Young Republicans. I’m also fortunate enough to have the endorsement of Barry Goldwater, Jr. and Tony Ribera, who is the former SF Chief of Police and the outgoing President of the San Francisco chapter of the California Republican Assembly. We’re going to have a strong, united Republican team for the Fall campaign.
JL: I assume you have a website where people can find out more about your candidacy and sign up to help you out?
JL: Thanks for taking a few minutes to chat with us for our FlashReport readers! Good luck!
JD: Thank you, I appreciate the opportunity
June 4th, 2010 at 12:00 am
As Chairman of the San Francisco Republican Party including the Executive Committee, I do not and did not endorse in this primary.
June 5th, 2010 at 12:00 am
I could not think of a better candidate to confront Pelosi than John Dennis. A Pacific Heights resident, John has been successful in business, he actually lives in the Congressional District, and he understands political philosophy. He is a candidate that should be thanked, encouraged and embraced by the rest of us in the GOP.