Redistricting and the big decisions
Tom DeLay's Texas redistricting scheme to gain more Republican seats in Congress was passed by the Texas Legislature, in a grandiose waste of taxpayer money during three special sessions called by Gov. Rick Perry. District 21 was redrawn in 2002 to included just 5 counties, Travis, Hayes, Comal, Blanco and Bexar. It was in this condensed configuration that a virtual unknown, Rhett Smith, running as a Democrat polled nearly 36% against Lamar Smith in 2004. John had done that well in the previous configuration with 14 counties, so he was persuaded to take on Lamar Smith in 2006. Having run for office before, John had that valuable experience as one of his main assets. John also had courage and desire to work hard and to keep focused on winning. Lamar Smith was in our sights, and the race was on.
Tom DeLay's redistricting hack job in Texas had of course been challenged by the Texas Democrats and minority rights groups. The appeal cases finally made their way to the Supreme Court and that court ruled in July, that Congressional District 23 violated the Voting Rights Act. The ruling set in motion a new round of redistricting that impacted five congressional districts and invalidated the spring party primaries. On August 4th, 2006, a new map was approved. District 21 was reconfigured to include 8 counties, Bandera, Blanco, Comal, Kendall, Kerr, Real, Bexar and Travis. John always a fighter, made the decision to stay in the race and keep challenging Lamar Smith.
From John's BOR "I'm No Chicken Little" diary on his decision to stay and fight:
All of us expect and deserve a government that works. Our government today is not working; the majority of us believe that our government is headed in the wrong direction. In order to get things right we need to change what isn't working with people who will work to get it right. That's why I am remaining in this race.
John has had incredible support along the way, starting with this phenomenal support by the netroots, BOR included and all of the groups that have endorsed him so far. We very close to reaching our goal. Tomorrow is an important day for all of us. The country is poised for a change, and so are we.
Lamar Smith: The Enabler
Lamar Smith is vulnerable. He's a 20 year entrenched incumbent who has ties to corrupt politicians like Tom DeLay. Ties that should shame him and certainly tarnish his service on the House Ethics Committee.
A media story published Sunday Nov. 5th, in the Austin American Statesman titled, Democrats vow to keep up fight, focused on the three Democrats running in Congressional races around central Texas. One point that is emphasized in the stories of all three candidates is their ties to the military, while all three incumbents have never served in the military.
All three come from military backgrounds: Ankrum and Courage are veterans, and Harrell is a military wife whose son is serving in Iraq with the Fort Hood-based 4th Infantry Division.
Despite their military service and ties, despite the fact that none of the incumbents served in the military — not Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Austin; not Rep. Lamar Smith, R-San Antonio; not Rep. John Carter, R-Round Rock — and despite the fact that Fort Hood is just an 80-minute drive from Austin, the challengers' military messages have not shaken the Republican-leaning suburbs that encircle Austin's seemingly ever-shrinking Democratic core.
We of course disagree, that our military messages are not shaking the suburbs. We think John's message 21,000 More Promises to Keep is a very powerful and effective message.
The Daily Texan published a nice opinion piece by UT Student Abhinav Kumar, critical of our current representation. In a very timely article, pre-med and business honors sophomore Kumar, lays out why our constitution is under attack by the current administration. He also details a response from Lamar Smith's office to his vote in favor of The Military Commissions Act of 2006.
I called conservative Republican Representative Lamar Smith's office to ask if he voted for such harmful legislation. While Smith claims to be a fighter for smaller government, he did manage to vote for this pathetic attempt at national security without thinking about the constitutional consequences. His staff informed me that this law does not affect U.S. citizens. After reading this 98 page piece of trash, not fit to even replace toilet-paper, I realized that I was lied to by a U.S. Congressman's office.
The Military Commissions Act absolutely affects U.S. citizens. Once the executive branch labels anyone as an enemy combatant, our right to a writ of habeas corpus is stripped from us. We cannot challenge our detainment. The U.S. government can now torture people. Let me say that again - the U.S. government can now legally torture people. We are no longer the pinnacle of liberty that we claim to be, and we no longer hold the higher moral ground.
In its infinite and out-of-touch wisdom, Congress has dictated that by May 2008, Americans will be required to carry national ID cards. Without these cards, we will not be allowed to vote. Consequently, these ID cards will have radio frequency identification chips implanted in them, allowing the government to monitor the location of those cards - and thus, you - at any time.
Vote With Courage
John will make one final appearance in Austin today before the election. He's on the slate of the Student GOTV rally today today on the East Mall which starts at 3:00 p.m. Finally, we present our completed list of Top Ten Reason to Vote for John Courage, tomorrow. I may be preaching to the choir here on this board, but no one will accuse us of not finding every available avenue to get out the vote. Even if you're a little upset about those text messages. You'll thank us, once we're rid of Lamar Smith. If you have any time to help us out tomorrow, please sign up to stand with Courage on election day.
We'll see you at the polls! |
