ABOUT JOSEPH TATNER


Originally, I founded a Political Action Committee (PAC) called "Voice of the People" to raise the conservative message of the Founding Fathers, the US Constitution, reduced spending and lower taxes. Actually, I was drafted by some supporters who began the PAC in my name without telling me beforehand. I mentioned in a speech that I was thinking of starting a PAC and before I finished speaking, several supporters raised money from the attendees for the PAC that did not as yet exist. After that, I was committed, but that wasn't enough. As I began speaking all over Las Vegas, people always assumed I was running for office and asked what I was running for. After nearly a year of this, I finally answered, "Congressional District 1" to a large group of Grass Roots supporters. I am truly the people's candidate, and I will never forget that. I believe it is time that Las Vegas had a Congressperson that represented them instead of representing the Washington establishment to us.

Frustrated by the lack of a voice that represented me in any media other than talk radio, I began speaking at political clubs and rallies and learned that -- like me -- the people of America are crying out for a voice to speak their values. Values that go beyond any designation of party. A voice that can break through the solid wall of the Dominant Media. With my background in media and the press, I know how to do that, and I will no longer be silent. I have a BA in Communications, MA in National Security Studies (thesis on Anti-terrorism), and a teaching credential on computer-related subjects.

First and formost I believe in the greatness of the United States of America, but I believe its greatness lies in you and me -- in its PEOPLE -- not in government programs. Our government leaders have forgotten that. I won't. I am committed to speaking out for the betterment of our country. I do so with a positive attitude, a spirit of charity and understanding for all, and above all...with a smile. I speak at times with humor, at times serious, but always the confidence that comes from knowing the principles I stand for have been proven throughout history to work, while the alternatives have been repeatedly proven throughout history to fail. I will no longer silently allow American principles to be trashed by those who do not understand or appreciate them, nor will I wait any longer for our elected leaders to defend them. When a lie is repeated without rebuttal it becomes percieved as the truth.

A real-life "Forrest Gump" (with a higher IQ), I had braces on my legs and orthopedic shoes until I was 2. I nearly died from a kidney condition at age six and suffered severe asthma attacks at age 8, when I began tap dancing to strengthen my legs and started singing to develop breath control. Dancing and singing led to a career in television, movies and stage--appearing on The Partridge Family, The Brady Bunch, Fame, numerous TV commercials, stage productions, concerts, etc. My father, Jack Tatner, led a popular quartet in the 1940’s called The Songweavers, which was featured on Coast-to-Coast radio.

My father was a Republican and my mother was a Democrat until she switched parties after voting for Ronald Reagan, so I grew up as a Republicrat. My parents proudly voted for John F. Kennedy and I still remember watching his funeral on our tiny black and white TV with my mom crying the whole time (I was 3 years old). Sadly, the Democrat party has morphed into something that neither of my parents would ever be able to recognize. My study of history has proven to me that the principles upon which this country was founded are sound and they work. Whenever we move closer to those principles (as with Kennedy and Reagan) the country prospers. Whenever we move away from those principles (as with Carter, George W. Bush and Obama) our prosperity declines. It's amazing to me that we have all lived through the tremendous prosperity brought about by Ronald Reagan despite dire warnings and criticism (after a collapse of the American economic system under Jimmy Carter), yet his enemies to this day deride Reaganomics as "Trickle Down" and they support the principles of Jimmy Carter which have again today managed to drive all condfindence in our economy out of the market. This is not "the worst economy since the Great Depression," it is the worst economy since Jimmy Carter -- and for the same reasons. Yet the enemies of Ronald Reagan still insist that they are right and Reagan was wrong. My dad used to say, "My mind's made up, don't confuse me with facts" -- but he was joking!

Graduating from Chapman University in 1982 with a BA in Communications and an emphasis in Theater Arts, I left the entertainment industry to join a Roman Catholic seminary, where I was let go after a year and a half by my vocations director for being "too traditional." That same vocations director and my pastor (who also refused to support me) were part of the child molestation scandal that rocked the Catholic Church in America. I continued my studies of theology in Rome, and found an order that wanted to accept me, but when I returned to visit America for summer break, I was hit by a car. After months of physical therapy, I incurred too much debt to return to the seminary right away, so I returned to show business by taking over a large singing telegram service in Orange County and produced many large promotional, civic and charitable events.

Seeking a lifetime career I could be proud of, I was accepted on my first application as an Air Force Officer candidate at age 28. I was commissioned as a 2d Lieutenant and sent to March Air Force Base not far from my home in Southern California. The day I got to my base, the KC-135 tankers I was to be in charge of were transferred to a Reserve unit by an act of Congress. I was left with no official job. I took on every available duty to be useful: I wrote squadron regulations, RFP's for base funding, I was the Squadron's Voting Officer, Morale Officer, Blood Drive Officer, and I created videos on the life at March Air Force base for the on-base Air Museum. Although I volunteered for Desert Shield and worked to supply our forces overseas, there was no slot for me in the Air Force even in time of war. Major cuts were being made to the military, so my base commander suggested I resign because I could not be promoted. I reluctantly resigned after only a year and was discharged under honorable circumstances with a Top Secret Security Clearance. I am proud of my service and of the dedicated men and women I served with. I certainly have never burned or stomped on the American flag.

I continued working on my political science Master’s Degree in National Security Studies at California State University San Bernardino, completing the two-year program in one year with a 3.77 GPA while working fulltime as a substitute teacher for the Riverside and San Bernardino school districts. I presented and defended my Master’s thesis orally on the subject of Anti-terrorism. I then moved to Washington, DC to pursue a career with the Defense Intelligence Agency or Central Intelligence Agency, only to find that a government-wide hiring freeze had just been initiated. Unable to get a government job even as a copy room technician in the Library of Congress because of the freeze, I started working for temp agencies as a computer technician, with a brief position as a Legislative Analyst for the AARP.

Before long, I worked my way up to Director of Technical Services at Talking Technology, Inc, a global voicemail hardware and software company. Nine months later, the company was sold and I became a very successful independent computer contractor, technical writer and business analyst. Shell Oil (Royal Dutch Shell) sent me to 3 different countries (New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and Guam) to design, document and implement the rollout of Shell’s "Global Office" computer infrastructure. I have worked in every major sector of the economy, including banking, medical insurance, hospitals, pharmaceutical manufacturing, energy, etc., working for such major companies as Shell Oil, Charles Schwab, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Southern California Edison, Baxter Pharmaceuticals, and even as an IT Recruiter helping people get jobs.

Meanwhile, a polyp developed on one vocal chord that nearly destroyed my voice. A surgeon eventually corrected the freakish ailment, but it took years to recover. In addition to my computer and consulting work, I became a manager, publicist and media relations specialist, producing a music CD and concerts that received stellar reviews from Los Angeles to New York. I have received numerous commendations and certificates of special recognition from the US Senate, Congress, state and local governments for my production and promotion of civic and charity events. I received a Teaching Credential from the State of California and I taught computer-related subjects in the classroom for the Los Angeles Unified School District.

I have worked on political campaigns for Mary Bono and B-1 Bob Dornan. I also have worked in the “Belly of the Beast,” so to speak, as a Legislative Analyst and Customer Advocate for the AARP in their Washington DC headquarters (when I thought they wanted to help seniors) and as a Marketing Specialist in the New York headquarters of the SEIU. Needless to say, neither was interested in hearing the truth about what their members wanted, they wanted ways to force their will on the members by any means possible. As a Constitutional Conservative Republican, I understandably did not last very long in either position, but I saw the enemy and their tactics firsthand – and they are our enemy because they choose to be. They are true ideologues who are not interested in dialogue.

I moved to Las Vegas in 2007, and soon became increasingly involved in local politics here. I have been speaking out to appreciative crowds on the greatness of our country and the principles of our Founding Fathers, which have been misunderstood and much maligned in recent years. I love this state and am alarmed by recent legislative attempts to turn it into California. If there ever was a role model to follow, California is NOT the one to follow for success!

If you fill the buckets, I will carry the water!