Republican candidate Doug Gross officially kicked off his campaign for governor over the weekend. The Des Moines attorney says he had no interest in running for governor until September 11th. That night, his teenaged son came home from school and said he wanted to join the army and fight terrorism. He says it was like taking the scales off his eyes. He says that day made it very clear about the relevance of government protecting our basic safety.Gross served as an aide to Governors Robert Ray and Terry Branstad. He says running for governor is a natural progression. Gross says he is running for governor because of what he can accomplish. He says he doesn’t want to be governor “just to warm the chair.” He says our current governor gets an “A” for talk and an “F” for action.Gross believes governor Vilsack has mishandled the state budget that’s gone from a surplus to a deficit.Gross faces fellow republicans Bob Vander Plaats and Steve Sukup in the June primary.
