Proud to give Scott Walker a “platform”!

Guest Blog by Tommy Dimsdale

For those who may have missed it, Scott Walker made his very first campaign speech, in the upstate of South Carolina, from the back of my blue pickup truck! Now, I will admit that I was a little concerned I might be… well… just a tiny bit over zealous about the whole thing. If I am, it’s only because I am so proud that this very personal symbol of mine was actually used as the “platform” of his speech. Please allow me to elaborate.

When I was just 15 years old I never considered about asking my dad to help pay for my first car, or anything else. It was just something I had to do. To me, this was a part of becoming a man and growing up. I had actually worked since I was 13, so at an early age, it became natural just to buy something myself if there was something I really wanted.

At some point I switch from working the family business (installing automotive glass and windshields) over to bagging groceries and cleaning bathrooms at Food Lion. I would work at the grocery store while seemingly everyone else my age did little more than play. I would drive to school in my somewhat normal (it’s a pretty strong blue color) Ford Ranger while the other kids that were out partying the night before got to drive stuff like a jacked up F 150 to school with mud all over a brand new paint job.

The fact that my lifestyle was so much different than my peers didn’t bother me. It actually didn’t bother me in the slightest because I knew, while they drove “daddy’s money” around, I was driving a symbol of my hard work, so I was proud rather than envious. In my eyes, I was driving what essentially told the world “I’m in this to succeed and better myself every step of the way.”

Looking back I would not trade all the parties and high school popularity in the world for the lessons my truck has provided me. Making the payments, the insurance, the gas (back when it was $4.25 a gallon), and upkeep gave me, at an age earlier than most, a sense that I was capable and could accomplish anything I was willing to work for. It was a true confidence builder, enabling me to face the world knowing, I’ve got step one down, let’s tackle step two. Let’s go get a house. Let’s go buy a motorcycle. Let’s go make my American dream come true.

Of course I don’t say any of this at all to brag, but rather I say it because I know there are others like me (I’ve met them), so I believe I speak for a proud minority of young people and more importantly, I tell my story in hopes of inspiring others; if I can go from cleaning bathrooms at a grocery store to having a top tier presidential candidate speak from the back of my truck then certainly anyone else can.

So this is the reason I couldn’t wipe the grin off my face as Scott Walker spoke to the huge crowd in the Upstate of South Carolina, outside of a BBQ joint called Mutt’s. This is why I loved posting the pictures all over facebook. This is why I will continue moving forward and bringing the message of conservatism, and what it really means, through the Dimsdale Debate and any other outlet anyone will give me access to, so I can reach (and hopefully inspire) as many young people as I possibly can.

It was truly poetic to see Governor, and Presidential Candidate, Scott Walker, speaking from the tailgate of my truck; the truck I still use every single day to take me back and forth to work, the truck I had my first real date in, the truck which I spent cleaning for hours on weekends, the truck that even emptied my wallet on occasion, the truck that has been with me for nearly a decade now and is still going strong.

So, when I watched as Scott Walker spoke about hard work, fiscal responsibility, and the American dream… I saw him quite literally and figuratively doing so, standing on the symbol of those same values I will always see in “my truck.”

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