FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: PETER SHAMS-AVARI
MONDAY,
NOV. 11, 2013 505.410.1171
peter@priem.us
RICHARD PRIEM
ENTERS NM-1
CONGRESSIONAL
RACE
ALBUQUERQUE
– Albuquerque businessman and retired Army veteran Richard Priem today
announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for U.S. Congress in the
1st Congressional District of New Mexico, citing his desire to run
for the office “as the Country needs new leadership to restore the American
dream which seems to be slipping away as overly partisan bickering adversely
threatens the future of our Country.”
Priem
(pronounced “Preem”), a former Army Lieutenant Colonel served as a Commander
and Staff Officer from 1973-1994, before retiring to work in the private sector
for the last two decades as a program manager and corporate officer overseeing
law enforcement training and national priority installation security programs. In
these roles, for over 15 years Priem had oversight of contractor support for
First Responder training at New Mexico Tech in Socorro, New Mexico, and the
International Law Enforcement Academy in Roswell, New Mexico. Priem, who
currently resides in Albuquerque, relocated from Washington, D.C. in 2003 to
manage these programs on a full-time basis.
“New
Mexico and New Mexicans play a vital role in our national defense. Whether we
talk about defense-related companies based here, or individual New Mexicans
serving on active duty, the National Guard, or in Reserve units, I bring extensive
knowledge and experience-based perspectives that will permit me to represent
New Mexico and New Mexicans well in Congress,” Priem said. “I also wanted to thank our veterans for
their service to our county on this day of recognition and stand with them as a
candidate who will represent their concerns as the Government continues to
break its promises and commitments made throughout the years. That must stop
and I will work hard to ensure the U.S. Government keeps its promises to all military
personnel-those who currently serve and those that have served our country in
the past with honor.”
Priem
has interests in three small businesses in New Mexico which provide leadership
training, law enforcement training and operational security support to the U.S.
Coast Guard and overseas clients. The
businesses will employ over 40 individuals. “I am not a career bureaucrat or
politician. Through my experience as a small businessman I know what it means
to meet a payroll. I have employed people who rely on their paychecks to
support their families. I know only too well what impact the actions of
government have on our economy. I also know that, as a businessman, I can’t ask
taxpayers to pay every time I make a bad decision. The federal government
should work the same way. There has to be accountability from top to bottom.”
Priem
referenced the importance of Kirtland Air Force Base and the Sandia National Laboratories,
noting “the $8 billion in economic support to our local economy from these
facilities are vital to our community, our State and our Nation. We must ensure that, as the Federal
Government refocuses its spending programs’ we don’t make foolish decisions to
downsize these important programs, thus jeopardizing our national security.”
Priem
is an internationally-recognized combating terrorism expert and consulted with
the U.S. Capitol Police Board and the House Appropriations Committee after the
9/11 attacks to the U.S. in 2001 and the U.S. Capitol Police shootings in the
1990s. Priem’s experiences have helped him understand the complexities of the
Legislative Branch of government. He has worked with member of Congress, Congressional
committees and their staffs providing him unique opportunities to view how they
all operate. “I’ve seen firsthand how Congress can perform for the American
people and how it can fail to meet our expectations,” Priem reports. “There is
potential to do good things for the American people, but it takes exceptional
people to keep us on the right track.” Among his many awards, Priem was awarded
the “Police Service Award” by the U.S. Capitol Police for his work in
supporting their critical law enforcement and security roles.
Priem
and his wife Janice have two children and another who passed away in 1995.
“I
look forward to meeting with the people of the 1st Congressional
District in the days and months ahead as we campaign for this important office.
I plan to do more listening than talking because I believe that all of us are
smarter than one of us. In that regard, it is important that our citizens have
a Congressman who can hit the ground running to solve our nation’s problems on
day one. We don’t have time for the endless bickering that occurs today. Our
citizens want action, not politics. We’re in the new fiscal year and our Federal
government doesn’t have a budget; none of the Appropriation bills have been
passed; and our nation’s debt limit continues to soar upward. Young Americans
are graduating from college with huge debts. Many don’t have prospects for good
jobs. The government is engaging in unheralded spy operations against honest,
law-abiding U.S. citizens. We can’t afford to continue an agenda of paralysis
and inaction.”
