Who is John Cox?

Dr. Bill Smith, ARRA Editor: In the Iowa Republican Straw poll the candidate on the bottom of the list is John Cox with 0.1%. I had the opportunity to meet John Cox at the National Federation of Republican Assemblies convention in St Louis. He spoke to the convention attendees and he espoused a clear platform of conservative ideas.

Cox is a 52-year-old Chicago businessman, who vows he is the "only real conservative" running for President in 2008. I interviewed two delegates from Republican Assembly of Lake County Illinois (RALC): Raymond and Doreen True. Raymond is Chairman of the RALC and Doreen is Secretary. They shared that Cox is a member of the RALC and a long-time Republican activist. Cox has served as president of the Cook County Republican Party and was on the state steering committee for former Housing Secretary Jack Kemp's presidential run in 1988. He ran for the GOP nomination in the 10th Congressional District in Illinois in 2000; the GOP nomination for U.S. Senate in 2002.

He attended the University of Illinois at Chicago, graduating with honors and a degree in Accounting and Political Science. While attending night school at ITT / Chicago Kent College of Law, Cox landed his first job with the accounting firm of Coopers and Lybrand. After graduating from law school he worked as an associate at a prestigious law firm before starting his own practice. He opened a law and accounting firm in 1981 and then an investment advisory firm, real estate management company and a venture capital firm. In the 1990's, Cox led the investment group that purchased Jays Foods, a major regional potato chip manufacturer, saving over 600 local jobs. He recruited and led a team of professional managers who turned a $17 million loss into a $3 million profit in less than a year. Cox and his wife, the former Sarah Hall, reside in Chicago. He is the author of three publications, "Campaign for Prosperity and Renewal", "A Blueprint for the Renewal and Rebirth of the Illinois Republican Party" and a new book, "Politic$, Inc." which addresses changing American politics by bringing back statesmanship.

In his bid for the Republican nomination, Cox identified that he has invested over $800,000 of his own money in his campaign and has visited 99 counties in Iowa and traveled 24 times to New Hampshire and South Carolina. Despite these efforts he has been "iced out" of the presidential debate. Although the Iowa's Caucus results may signal the beginning of the end of his current campaign, Cox is someone to keep an eye on in the future. As a self-made successful businessman, he is like another Republican that sought the Republican presidential candidacy - Steve Forbes.

People like Forbes and Cox who are not politicians are needed to help solve many of America's critical problems. However, it takes more than intellect, personal ability and wealth to become a party's candidate for president. It takes building a successful coalition of faithful supporters and donors. Hopefully John Cox is observing and learning form other candidates like Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee, both former governors, who are experienced in building a willing coalition of volunteers and donors to promote both them and their message. To learn more about John Cox, visit John Cox for President and read the Weekly Standard article on John Cox on the RALC website.

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Tags: Election 2008, Illinois, John Cox, presidential candidate, Republican To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!