‘Diehl on Wheels’ rolls through Agawam, tours local businesses

July 27, 2018 | Jordan Houston
jordan@thereminder.com

State Rep. Geoff Diehl, left, toured downtown Agawam with State Rep. Nicholas A. Boldyga.
Reminder Publications by Jordan Houston

AGAWAM – State Rep. Geoff Diehl, the endorsed Whitman Republican running for the United States Senate, recently took time to campaign in Agawam as part of his “Diehl on Wheels” bus tour.

Diehl roamed around Agawam on July 13 in his new RV to promote his campaign and explore some of the town’s local businesses, including Six Flags, Oasis Shower Doors and V&F Auto, Inc. The politician said the purpose of his trip was to study the economic impact of these businesses, as well as gain input from local owners on how he could better serve the industry in the event he unseats Sen. Elizabeth Warren in the November election.

“Today is part of what we’ve been doing for the last 13 months, which is campaigning across Massachusetts,” said Diehl. “What we’re doing is meeting with business owners to talk about what I can do once I reach the U.S. Senate to continue to help Massachusetts businesses – which are employing people, taking care of their health care and giving them their salaries they need to stay in their homes. The most critical thing is supporting those who keep everybody in the work force, and beyond that, to see what else I can do to try to help specific industries or businesses that maybe have regulations that are burdensome that perhaps I can help streamline.”

He added that he was thankful for the help and guidance of State Rep. Nicholas A. Boldyga, who served as his tour guide in Agawam. Diehl also praised Boldyga for being a “great partner” to work with on Beacon Hill, in terms of spearheading pro-business legislation.

The Republican hopeful also spent some time in Holyoke and Chicopee.

Diehl was elected to the state legislature in 2010, representing Whitman and two other towns in Plymouth County. He previously worked as a salesman for Poyant Signs of New Bedford for 10 years and opened Boss Academy of Performing Arts in Hanson with his wife. Because of this experience, he said he believes he understands the needs of small business and can work toward utilizing the state and federal government to meet these needs.

“My wife and I own a small business, so when I first ran for the Legislature I wanted to bring an element – the history of investing your life savings and trying to make a business work, employ people and keep your doors open for customers – to Beacon Hill,” he said. “In downtown D.C., it’s going to be important as well.”

Despite campaigning in a heavily-Democratic state, Diehl said he feels confident about his chances for the fall.

The politician – who was formerly the state co-chair of the committee to elect Trump in 2016 – said he appreciates the Trump Administration's efforts on immigration, and has recently criticized Warren’s opinions on replacing the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.

“We’re extremely optimistic based on several things. One is that it has become very clear that Sen. Warren is more focused on running for the White House in 2020 than she seems to be in serving the people of Massachusetts – she’s now calling for the abolition of I.C.E, getting rid of a federal agency that’s trying to protect the citizens of Massachusetts,” he said. “She voted against a bill called the 21st Century Cures Act, which gave Massachusetts $12 million in funding to fight the opioid crisis. She also voted against the tax reform bill, which gave 80 percent of Massachusetts residents tax reductions and allowed businesses to re-invest in expanding their businesses by hiring new people and increasing their wages. Those are three examples of why I think I’ll be a better choice.”

He also stated that he is leading with the independents and is within the margin of error to defeat Warren in November, according to recent polling done by his team.

Using this “momentum,” Diehl told Reminder Publications he would do his best to serve Agawam if he makes it to Washington.

“For me, Agawam is a lot like the towns I represent – I represent hard-working people that get up and go to work everyday and are just looking for someone who is not going to overlook them down in Washington,” he commented. “I think right now the people are very disappointed that Washington, D.C. is still very partisan and not focused on working for the American people. The best way I can serve Agawam is to listen to them and make sure that when I go to Washington, I keep them in mind with the votes that I take in what I want to try and get done for them.”

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