On the Campaign Trail

Ohio pumper Tim Kettler vies for a seat in state senate

Tim Kettler likes to tell folks on the campaign trail that he prepared for a career in politics for 22 years, because that’s how long he’s been “pumping it.”

“That always gets a laugh,” says the Green Party candidate for southeast Ohio’s District 20 state senate seat, to be decided Nov. 4. “But seriously, voters can relate to me because I’m a working person who comes home dirty and tired just like they do. That work ethic says an awful lot.”

Kettler, who owns and operates Action Septic Service in Warsaw, Ohio, with his wife, Roberta, has been involved in politics for many years. He serves as the secretary of Ohio’s Green Party and is a representative with a non-partisan Ohio organization advocating for the establishment of single-payer, universal healthcare. During the 2004 Ohio presidential vote recount, he worked as a regional coordinator, organizing and conducting recounts in six east central Ohio counties. He also ran unsuccessfully for Ohio secretary of state in 2006.

“It was a hard decision to run for office again knowing what I was up against as a working person; the demands in time and the financial involvement,” the candidate says.

FINDING THE TIME

Kettler filed candidacy papers for state senate on Sept. 30, 2007, and started campaigning that same day. The 20th district, which stretches from east central Ohio south to the West Virginia state line is mostly rural.

“The district is made up of nine counties and stretches 125 miles from north to south so there’s a lot of traveling,” he says.

Kettler says he has managed to service his customers as needed throughout the year of campaigning, but it hasn’t always been easy.

“I’ll go out and work an 18-hour day to free up my time for a campaign event if I have to,” he says. “I can work at home in the shop in the evening because I also repair wastewater equipment, especially aerators.”

Kettler says thoughtful scheduling as well as the help of his 17-year-old son Malcolm makes it possible to keep up with the business.

“There are ebbs and flows in calls,” he says. “And the regular monthly work can be scheduled so I can work long days to free myself up. It seems to work out but it’s very stressful, which is why more working people don’t participate in the political system.”

Kettler divides his time between pumping 15 to 20 septic tanks and servicing 10 to 15 package plants each week. He also repairs and rebuilds about 2 or 3 aeration systems in his shop each week. All of that adds up to a 60- or 70-hour workweek, which he says hasn’t really changed during the campaign, just becomes more hectic. He relies on his 1991 GMC Topkick outfitted with a 2007 Marengo Fabricated Steel 2,300-gallon steel tank to get his jobs done efficiently.

Kettler says he does not use his job as a platform for campaigning.

“I don’t want to intrude on anyone’s personal space,” he says. “When you invite me to your home or place of business to perform my services, I don’t take that as an invitation to ram my political views down your throat.”

The pumper/pol says when the topic of his campaign does come up with customers, most respect what he’s doing, even if they don’t share his views.

“The feedback has been very, very positive,” Kettler says. “People say, ‘Wow, I could never do what you are doing; my hat’s off to you.’ I have one customer who is the polar opposite of me on the issues. We have honest, open discussions, yet he’s supportive of what I’m doing. When people realize you just want to solve problems in an honest way, that makes all the difference.”

WHERE HE STANDS

The Green Party philosophy is a belief in “strong grassroots democracy” — a concept Kettler thinks other pumpers can relate to.

“Grassroots democracy is just like starting a service business,” he says. “Both start with nothing but an idea. I have worked hard at developing trust and relationships with my customers. And now I’m working at developing trust and relationships with voters.”

From the perspective of a pumper, the two most important issues to Kettler are healthcare and the environment.

“I think healthcare is a right. It’s a matter of dignity and self-esteem,” Kettler says. “But people don’t think they deserve it because we’ve always tied healthcare to ‘good’ jobs.”

Kettler says companies that employ fewer than 10 people provide the greatest number of jobs in America.

“That’s our industry,” the pumper says. “That’s the best way to sell our service. But when we’re spending 24 percent of our pre-tax income on healthcare, it’s easy to feel that something isn’t working.”

Kettler says that 24 percent of his income pays for a high-deductible insurance policy with no wellness benefits.

“I’ve paid off my house, but I’ll never pay off my healthcare,” he says. “I’m 58 and we can’t afford to do any of the wellness things we’re supposed to do like have colonoscopies or mammograms for my wife.”

He says the administrative overhead in Ohio’s for-profit healthcare system is 10 times higher than that of Medicare, the federal health insurance program that covers people age 65 and older.

“A single-payer universal healthcare model is the only way that yields any savings,” Kettler says. “But any healthcare plan that comes up is labeled as socialized medicine. That’s not what our plan is at all. People can still have their choice of doctors; the paperwork will just go to the State of Ohio.”

As for environmental issues, Kettler believes in building comprehensive regulation to protect the environment.

“I don’t just want people to cooperate because there is a heavy hammer over their head, but because it will enrich their lives to protect the environment. But that’s a tough sell, especially when facing tough economic times.”

OUTSIDE INTERESTS

It’s not just politics taking up Kettler’s after-hours time. He also raises horses and milks about a dozen Nubian dairy goats each day.

“Another big hobby of ours is traveling to national parks with our son,” he says. “We have seen and touched so much of this country by hiking in our national parks. It’s very rewarding.”

Most summers the Kettlers close up shop and travel for two or three weeks. This summer, however, the campaign forced them to abbreviate their travels to five days in nearby Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park.

“When we go, we shut off the phone and refer our customers to other companies,” Kettler says. “Our customers are great about it. They know it’s coming every year and will ask us where we are going. It limits what we can do in the company but it’s well worth it. It’s time well spent.”

As is the time it takes to be politically active, according to Kettler, who, despite being an underdog third party candidate, insists he’s “in it to win it.”

“I’m not running to make a statement,” he says. “I’m running to win.”



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