Yesterday's Republican primary should be a wake up call to Democrats. Texas Republicans opted for the most extreme candidates across the board. From Ted Cruz to Donna Campbell, Republicans proved that, for them, ideology is more important than leadership. This marks a new low in an alarming trend of the Republican Party's rapid exit from the mainstream.
The same day, nine-term Rep. Steve LaTourette (R-Ohio) announced his retirement from congress, echoing Senator Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), citing growing polarization in the Republican Party. Also the same day, Congressman Richard Hanna (R-New York) joined the shrinking chorus of moderate Republicans being pushed out of their party, commenting that he was frustrated with how Republicans are "willing to give such deferential treatment to our extremes," and commenting that it had rendered Republicans "unable to govern." The moderate Republican is a thing of the past. The Republican Party has fully embraced extremism and has demonstrated it will not work in good faith to move the country forward.
This Congress, already deemed the worst and the most polarized in history, will get a whole lot worse with Ted Cruz in the Senate.
We HAVE to win in November.
The inmates have taken over the asylum. We cannot let extremist ideologues take over Texas.
From his ridiculous conspiracy theories to his plan to gut Social Security, Ted Cruz has proven he isn't fit to lead. Donna Campbell has announced her support for a 35% sales tax, which would destroy the Texas economy and raise taxes on middle class families. She also supports forcing women who become pregnant as a result of rape or incest to give birth. In the 2011 Legislature, Jason Isaac voted to cut public education by $5.4 billion and cosponsored the bill that forces Texas women to undergo medically unnecessary ultrasounds, and even voted against an exemption for victims of rape and incest.
Yesterday was also a victory for special interests, with Open Secrets publishing a special report about the outside money being poured into the Texas GOP senate race. Corporate front group Texas for Lawsuit Reform poured millions into Elizabeth Ames Jones' campaign, helping bruise Senator Jeff Wentworth going into a runoff with Donna Campbell. In the runoff, they switched their support to Campbell.
Texas Republicans also proved, yet again, how welcome Hispanic Texans are in today's Republican Party when they opted for obscure-but-white John Devine for Texas Supreme Court over sitting Justice David Medina, who was appointed by Rick Perry and endorsed by numerous Republican officeholders. Texas Republicans did the same in 2010, when they nominated unknown David Porter over Victor Carrillo, longtime member of the Railroad Commission. Carrillo attributed his loss solely to his Hispanic surname.
We have great candidates in Paul Sadler, John Courage, and John Adams.
With your help WE CAN win in November.
We've tried ideology in Texas; it has failed. It left us $27 billion dollars in the hole in 2011. Budget gimmicks from the last legislature mean that we'll begin the next legislature at least $12 billion in the red. That will mean more cuts to Texas schools, Medicaid, universities, community colleges, criminal justice programs, and others. We need to return to our roots and restore common sense in politics. Texas deserves better. |
