O. Kay Henderson Congressional candidate Brad Zaun says he not concerned by negative campaign ads being run against him because he has the prayers of his fellow Republicans. Zaun spoke Saturday night at the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition's fall banquet. "A lot of people have come up to me tonight and said, 'We're praying for you Brad,' and, you know, I cannot thank you enough for that," Zaun said. "And when they do that, they kind of grab me, like 'Are you all right? Is everything all right?' Of course I'm all right - because of the prayers, the power of prayers. Zaun is challenging Democratic Congressman Leonard Boswell this fall and Boswell's campaign is running an ad critical of Zaun for a lack of "personal responsibility" for failing to pay overdue taxes. Zaun accuses Boswell's campaign of engaging in "personal" attacks. "My mom and dad raised me to respect the people that are around you and I'm going to continue to do that and, you know, I've said many times during the campaign that Congressman Boswell is a nice man. He's had honorable service to our country, I just respect him," Zaun said. "But I feel very passionate about what's going on and it's unfortunate how these ads and how these campaigns are run." Another ad - run by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee - shows Zaun stating his opposition to tax breaks for biofuels. Zaun has changed his position and now supports the tax break for ethanol, but Zaun hasn't decided whether he would vote to extend the tax credit for soybean-based biodiesel. Zaun told the crowd on Saturday night that he is not "going to sell (his) soul" to get elected to congress. "But I can tell you what I'm going to do is I'm going to continue to talk about solutions," Zaun said. "And I would challenge Congressman Boswell just one time, in one ad, just give us a solution to the problems we have in this country." Zaun is running two ads. One criticizes several of Boswell's votes in congress and another says Boswell "just doesn't understand" the state of the economy. Zaun served as mayor of the Des Moines suburb of Urbandale for six years before being elected to the state senate in 2004.Zaun is challenging Democratic Congressman Leonard Boswell this fall and Boswell's campaign is running an ad critical of Zaun for a lack of "personal responsibility" for failing to pay overdue taxes. Zaun accuses Boswell's campaign of engaging in "personal" attacks. "My mom and dad raised me to respect the people that are around you and I'm going to continue to do that and, you know, I've said many times during the campaign that Congressman Boswell is a nice man. He's had honorable service to our county . . . I just respect him," Zaun said. "But I feel very passionate about what's going on and it's unfortunate how these ads and how these campaigns are run." Another ad - run by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee - shows Zaun stating his opposition to tax breaks for biofuels. Zaun has changed his position and now supports the tax break for ethanol, but Zaun hasn't decided whether he would vote to extend the tax credit for soybean-based biodiesel. Zaun told the crowd on Saturday night that he is not "going to sell (his) soul" to get elected to congress. "But I can tell you what I'm going to do is I'm going to continue to talk about solutions," Zaun said. "And I would challenge Congressman Boswell just one time, in one ad, just give us a solution to the problems we have in this country." Zaun is running two ads. One criticizes several of Boswell's votes in congress and another says Boswell "just doesn't understand" the state of the economy. Zaun served as mayor of the Des Moines suburb of Urbandale for six years before being elected to the state senate in 2004.

A survey released on August 23 shows challenger Brad Zaun leading 14-year incumbent Leonard Boswell by a 10 point margin, 51 to 41. The survey, conducted August 16-18, 2010, by respected pollster Whit Ayers for American Action Forum, asked 400 likely voters their views on the race in Iowa's 3rd Congressional District. The survey found Zaun leading Boswell by a 51 to 41 percent margin. Zaun stated, "This survey is a solid reflection of what I hear at events all around our district. People are tired of Congressman Boswell's approach of spend, spend and then spend some more. They want to put an end to out of control spending, and get Americans back to work." "Voters know there is a big difference between Congressman Boswell and me," Zaun added. "They are all too familiar with his brand of politica. . . .go along to get along. He has supported Nancy Pelosi over 98% of the time in return for pork barrel spending that drives our deficits and debt to record levels. He claims to have added jobs, but all he's done is added trillions to the charge account." "Voters know that when I go to Washington, there will be a new direction. I'll stop runaway spending. I'll make sure there is transparency so we trust that the federal government isn't wasting our hard earned tax dollars. They can trust me to do what it takes to get this economy moving again with real jobs that support our families," Zaun concluded. For a copy of the survey findings, please go to: http://americanactionforum.org/files/AAF%20IA03%20Memo.pdf

Republican Brad Zaun said in a State Fair Soapbox speech Thursday that he offers voters a chance for new leadership in Congress that will make the best decisions for the people of Iowa rather than any political party. THE RACE: Zaun, 48, a Republican state senator and former Urbandale mayor, is challenging U.S. Rep. Leonard Boswell, 76, a seven-term Democrat. The race in the 12-county 3rd Congressional District, which includes Polk County, has been rated as a tossup by some political analysts. KEY MESSAGE: Zaun said he's tired of being described as someone who represents "the party of no." If Republicans or Democrats are wrong, he'll do what's right, he promised. He spoke about his personal background, emphasizing hard work as a former hardware store owner and personal responsibility, even when he and his business fell upon hard times after big-box chain stores arrived to compete with him. CROWD: About 75 people, although the number varied during his speech. ISSUES: Zaun complains that Boswell votes "99 percent of the time" with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, "a liberal Democrat," and that the incumbent isn't providing the best representation for 3rd District voters. If Iowans are looking for a congressman who will bring home pork-barrel spending, don't vote for Zaun, he said. He's critical of the health care reform bill passed by Congress earlier this year. He said he doesn't favor privatizing Social Security, but he doesn't like the idea of paying benefits to wealthy people such as billionaire investor Warren Buffet. RESPONSE: Boswell said he doesn't know what percentage of the time he votes with Pelosi, but he added that he does what is best for Iowans. He defended bringing home money for projects in Iowa, such as new roads and bridges. QUOTE: "This election is not about me," Zaun said. "It is about you and your future."