Blunt Makes Campaign Stop at Edwards FRP

US Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Niangua, made a campaign stop south of Sedalia today (Monday) at Edwards FRP Tank & Repair, Inc., and took a tour of the plant.

Joining him were Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler, R-Archie; and State Sen. Mike Parson, R-Polk County. All three spoke to a small crowd gathered to hear them in the large work bay among several huge tanks being worked on at Edwards, 31197 Wingate Road. All three won their primary battle on Aug. 2 and are looking towards the General Election in November.

Sen. Blunt won his primary by 72.5 percent against three other challengers. He faces Democratic opponent Jason Kander, who won his primary by 69.8 percent.

US Rep. Hartzler won her primary by 72.4 percent, besting John Webb for the honor of moving on to the General Election to face Democratic challenger Gordon Christensen in November to represent District 4.

State Rep. Mike Parson beat two challengers in the primary and won with 51.5 percent of the vote. He faces Democratic candidate Russ Carnahan in his race for lieutenant governor.

In his remarks, Sen. Blunt, who arrived in a big, blue bus that proclaims, "More Jobs, Less Government," said that "out-of-control government regulators are the biggest obstacle to better jobs today."

World food demand is going to double in 35 to 40 years, Blunt predicted. "The biggest area of commerce in the world ... will be twice as big 35 or 40 years from now as it is today." That increase will affect production agriculture, food processing, storage, transportation, marketing, insurance and financial advice, he emphasized.

"There is nobody better positioned than we are in our country right here," Blunt noted, adding that the Mississippi River Valley plays a vital role in that. "The middle of the country has more access to every market in the world than either coast, or anywhere else, and we've got a river system, a highway system and a railroad system." He touted the five-year highway bill that was passed by the Republican Congress.

"In fact, if you're going to make something in America today, the first two boxes you should check are: Does the transportation network work? And can you pay the utility bill? And if those two boxes can't be checked, there's no reason to go to the third box, which is "Where is the best labor?" Blunt said.

In her remarks, Hartzler congratulated the Edwards family on a successful business. "This is what we need more of. We are here to help you any way we can. We're just so proud to have American manufacturing right here in this District," she said.

Hartzler railed against overregulation as one of the barriers preventing job growth. "It seems like they are on a mission to make it harder to be able to thrive and grow and succeed, and we've got to pull that back and have some common sense regulations." she said.

In his remarks, Rep. Parson said it was a honor and privilege to ride along with Vicky and Roy on the Blunt bus. "I can't think of two better people to take Missouri values to Washington, DC. Their vision is our vision when it comes to agriculture, the number one industry in our state," Parson stated.

Over 80 percent of the new jobs in Missouri comes from small businesses, Rep. Parson stressed.

According to the company's website, Edwards FRP Tank & Repair provides fiberglass tanks to companies across the nation for storage of water, chemicals, food products, pharmaceutical, specialized processes and government projects.

Tanks can be ordered in vertical, horizontal or rectangular form with flat, dome, cone, or sloped tops and/or bottoms. The capacities of their tanks range from 25 gallons to over 40,000 gallons. They also repair or inspect tanks as well. Call 827-5331 for more information on the business, founded in 2000 by Robert L. Edwards, who has worked in the fiberglass industry since 1964.