Maxey expects legislators and Republican leaders to be penalized by voters for lofting the amendment but failing to lower local school property taxes or bolster school funding.
He speculated that Perry will use the amendment to identify social conservatives he can energize against Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn in the Republican gubernatorial primary in March.
"Silly," Carney said, comparing opposition to gay marriage to aversion to communism, galvanizing voters of all stripes.
The No Nonsense group intends to remain active in the 2006 elections by tapping voters whom Maxey expects to rouse against the marriage amendment.
Maxey likened the public to a snake that's been provoked by legislators who have advanced marriage to the polls while stalling on school finance.
"This snake can bite. It's going to bite them all over this state."
Maxey, who earlier in his career coordinated Get Out the Vote efforts for former Gov. Ann Richards, said, "There are campaigns and there are campaigns, and I know how to run a campaign."
Since I last wrote you … No Nonsense in November has picked up solid financial support, generated a lot of buzz in the media and even picked up a few clues on what the opposition’s planning.
* Members of the Human Rights Campaign have committed to raise $120,000 to support the infrastructure of the campaign. This is a fantastic boost to our efforts!! Clear your calendars for the middle of September and watch our web site as we’ll soon be posting dates for major fundraising events inAustin, Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio. Next week, you’ll be able to donate towards one of those events on our web site, www.NoNonsenseInNovember.com!
* We had several great stories in the media – all in cities critical to the campaign.
Political reporter Kristen Mack wrote about the campaign in her column in today’s Houston Chronicle entitled, Marriage amendment foes have 'No Nonsense' plan, and noted the city school district elections could increase turnout.
Austin American-Statesman political columnist Gardner Selby wrote about our campaign on August 11, in a story headlined, Marriage amendment foes at work. Selby’s story has the opposition praising our quick start-up efforts with “a prominent conservative” quoted as saying, “The other side seems way ahead. The question is whether those in favor of the amendment are going to wake up before it’s too late.”
The president of the Dallas-based Texas Eagle Forum echoed that sentiment in David Webb’s article in the Dallas Voice, “No Nonsense Campaign Off to Fast Start.”
We’re glad our efforts are being noticed because we have been working hard to build a strong coalition to do what no other state has done – defeat a marriage constitutional amendment. It’s going to take all the strength we can muster and then some.
* Opposition Rears Its Ugly Head. If there was ever any doubt about where the right is going with this issue, consider what Rick Perry’s political consultant, Dave Carney, says in Selby’s article.
Carney, who is confident the amendment will pass, compares opposition to gay marriage to an aversion to communism, describing it as “something that would galvanize voters of all stripes.”
Is he suggesting that the right’s game plan will use the same hate-mongering tactics we saw during the McCarthy era?
Word on the street is that the “grand old party” will be deploying “strike teams” to churches to do Voter I.D. As usual, they’ll rally support for the amendment by portraying themselves as the party that’s “for family values.”
With your help, we’ll be ready for them.
* Volunteer to fight … we need people to host House parties, volunteer in our field offices and be part of our Speakers Bureau, which is in formation. Within days, you’ll be able to download speeches and talking points from the web.
The Speakers Bureau will keep the focus where it belongs – on the Texas Legislature’s failure to address real issues and on our zeal to Defend, not Amend, the Texas Bill of Rights.
While they may be able to afford television ads, showing people around a dinner table talking abut family values, we’ll be organizing around our own dinner tables, and talking to Texans in churches and temples, in offices and at civic group meetings, letting them know that our families have value, too.
We’ll counter their claim to be a party that supports limited government by pointing out that there is nothing more intrusive than government telling Texans who they can marry.
And we’ll show them that the real power of the people is to defend a Constitution and a Bill of Rights that protects all people.
We’ll stand up to them in the same way people stood up to McCarthy-ism.
* We’ll show them that Texas voters are like a snake that’s been provoked by legislators who have advanced marriage at the polls while stalling on school finance. We’ll show them this snake will bite and it will bite them all over the state.
We will galvanize our people to vote against this amendment. We will vote against the purveyors of this hate in 2006. And we will support those good legislators in 2006, who took the right stand and stood with us.
* Where’s Rick?
One thing “the buzz” isn’t clear on is whether Gov. Perry will actually campaign for the amendment. His smiling face and good hair are all over the opposition’s web site, www.txmarriage.com, but inquiring minds want to know whether he’ll get out in front of this, and use this wedge-issue to identify social conservatives to vote for him and not One Tough Grandma in the Republican primary?
Word has it that some GOP movers and shakers are afraid that all their GOTV efforts for the constitutional amendment election will be used to fuel – and finance - a “Re-Elect Rick Perry” campaign, and they’re not happy campers.
The election will definitely come down to who can turn out the most voters. Help us increase our numbers by sending the Pledge to Vote page to five of your friends and get them pledge to vote against the Nonsense Constitutional Amendment.
And help keep up us on “the buzz” by letting us know when your local paper or broadcast station covers the campaign. We want to post those stories on the web site, and keep all of you updated.
Thanks again for all you are doing … now go back and click on these links!
Glen Maxey
Campaign Director
