AG Greg Abbott Fears Battleground Texas More Than North Korea

by: Katherine Haenschen

Tue Apr 16, 2013 at 09:00 AM CDT

At a Republican Club meeting in Waco, Abbott stoked the flames of partisan rancor by railing against the United Nations and emphasizing the threat that Battleground Texas poses to Republican dominance in Texas.

From the Waco Tribune:

Abbott also weighed in on Battleground Texas, a group formed by veterans of Obama's presidential campaigns hoping to make Democrats more competitive in Texas, where the party hasn't won a statewide election in nearly two decades.

"One thing that requires ongoing vigilance is the reality that the state of Texas is coming under a new 
assault, an assault far more dangerous than what the leader of North Korea threatened when he said he was going to add Austin, Texas, as one of the recipients of his nuclear weapons," Abbott said. "The threat that we're getting is the threat from the Obama administration and his political machine."

Battleground Texas realizes Republicans can't win a presidential election without Texas' 38 electoral votes, which makes the state "the last line of defense" in protecting the country's future, he said.

Abbott's the likely GOP nominee for Governor in 2014 -- I don't expect Perry to run again, and given how much Perry's money men are donating to Abbott these days, it's clear the fat-cat cronies don't either. His comments are red meat tossed to the Republican primary electorate, which for the time being remains the voting bloc that determines every statewide official in Texas.  

He clearly took a breath from suing the Feds long enough to realize that Republicans' hold on Texas becomes tenuous as Democrats get informed and turn out in greater numbers than they have in the past. Abbott has every right to be nervous -- the Houston Chronicle recently reported that if Texas Latinos had the same turnout rate as Anglo voters, the Lone Star State would already be a Battleground.

In case you've stopped keeping track, Abbott has sued the Obama administration 25 times, which has cost the state $2.58 million and more than 14,000 hours spent by staff and state attorneys as of September. He lost the Affordable Care Act decision, and has mostly been on the losing end of the stick in redistricting as well.

Battleground Texas has emphasized that the change in Texas elections won't occur overnight. However, their work will be a crucial part in not only making Texas competitive but also helping Democrats win -- and hopefully doom the electoral chances of right-wing partisan panderers like Greg Abbott in the process.  

Texas Republican Party Chair: Battleground Texas Is A Threat To Your Family

by: Joe Deshotel

Sun Apr 14, 2013 at 02:50 PM CDT

At every opportunity Munisteri cranks up the fear machine characterizing the Politico.com article with Jeremy Bird as Battleground Texas being "exposed by a major national newspaper," and stating that the, "article uncovered their plans." He warned Texas Republicans that "Barack Obama's 'Battleground Texas'" was a "clear and present threat to you and your family," and that they are coming to "take away your guns," "confiscate more of your paycheck" and "hijack your rights and freedoms."

The Chairman used blatant double-speak with no regard for the intelligence of potential moderates or otherwise informed election volunteers. He wrote that "Obama's team have become masters of the slimy "dark arts" of campaigning: creating a massive database; collecting detailed information on every voter and non-voter." On the very next page he writes, "Your gift will be used to help me identify thousands of Texas conservatives."

The letter -- which could honestly be mistaken for an April Fools joke -- contained several gems including: "When we say the Second Amendment gives us the right to own guns, they say we want to see more school children massacred," "Obama and his allies have an unquenchable thirst for your tax dollars," and "we simply cannot allow Obama-style politics to invade Texas."

Other claims were just outright false. The TRP Chair said Obama had "virtually double[d] our national debt," which by "virtually" I assume he means "didn't". He also said the President failed to "create any new private sector jobs" which is also not true.

Read more of the Texas GOPs fear-mongering below the jump.

Former Obama Organizers Meet In San Antonio; Texas Turns a Shade Bluer

by: Joe Deshotel

Sun Mar 24, 2013 at 04:12 PM CDT

On Saturday a statewide grassroots coalition tentatively dubbed "Texas Obama Leaders" met in San Antonio to discuss all of the great volunteer opportunities within the progressive movement of our state. The daylong think tank-styled forum is a follow up to a similar one held in DC with the White House Office of Public Engagement during the "fiscal cliff" discussions. The group is not officially sanctioned by the Democratic Party but is more an organic group of Obama volunteers and campaign alumni from around the state who want to maintain momentum and some organizational structure to help push progressive causes in Texas.

The speakers included Texas Democratic Party Chair Gilberto Hinojosa and special assistant to the Chair Glen Maxey, Battleground Texas Executive Director Jenn Brown, Southern Regional Director of Organizing for Action Gregory Jackson, and State Director of Engage Texas Katrina Mendiola. All of the participants, about 60, were split into 4 rotating breakout groups, each with a timekeeper and facilitator, to conduct more intimate question and answer discussions with each speaker and each other. The event co-chairs and lead organizers of this event, Ian Davis and Judy Hall, said the purpose of this effort was to identify all of the opportunities to engage our networks in a way that uses all of our resources more efficiently and to allow Democrats from around Texas the ability to share ideas.

Glen Maxey said the TDP and its new VAN Director are focused on getting the VAN set up for grassroots organizers and precinct chairs to be able to get the data they need to organize within their community - including more cell phone numbers and email addresses. Chairman Hinojosa said the party would also like to capture more data from its organizers. He plans for the party to hold more VAN trainings around the state to show county parties and local activists how to utilize the tools that are currently available and introduce others being developed to update the TDP's organizing database in real time. Connecting and supporting organizers is important, but we must also have good candidates to support in order to win. Maxey and Hinojosa said that the party would aggressively move to fill out the Democratic ticket down ballot, especially in places like Amarillo where Republicans dominate local politics but demographics suggest Democrats are competitive.

Read more about the event below the jump.

Battleground Texas is Coming to a City Near You, Starting This Weekend

by: Ben Sherman

Fri Mar 15, 2013 at 00:30 PM CDT

Over the last week, Battleground Texas has held two heavily attended - and standing-room only - events in San Antonio and Austin. Democrats across the state (and country) are getting fired up as the Democratic movement in Texas gets properly mobilized for the first time in decades.

Jeremy Bird, the Senior Advisor of Battleground Texas, sat down with the Texas Tribune for a lengthy interview this week. He explained BGTX's strategy:

Part of the reason that [the Obama campaign] won Florida in 2012 is that we had had a grassroots program running for six years with all the components - digital, communications, field, data, analytics - all of them put together into a 21st century modern campaign that worked for people's votes.

We have to do that here. And it can't just happen in one part of the state; it has to happen across the state. We need to touch places where we're getting 25 percent of the vote and get 32 percent of the vote. It's not necessarily about winning all those places, but we have to compete there. And then we have to have higher turnout in places that have already gone blue.

Learn more about Battleground Texas' plans and their upcoming state tour below the jump!

Battleground Texas Launches in Austin

by: Chaille Jolink

Tue Mar 12, 2013 at 08:00 AM CDT

It's official. Battleground Texas has launched, Deep in the Heart of Texas.

Yesterday evening in Austin, Jeremy Bird, Senior Advisor to Battleground Texas, gave an exciting and thorough look into what Battleground Texas is and what it hopes to accomplish.

"Texas isn't as red of a state as people say it is, if you look at the numbers," Bird started off, "...not by looking at the number of donors, not by looking at the number of volunteers who made some 400,000 calls to Florida in the last three days of the election, and not by looking at the 300 people who showed up yesterday in San Antonio."

There was standing room only at the kickoff in Austin last night. During the last several days of the 2012 presidential election, volunteers in the Austin area alone made around 125,000 dials to voters in Florida. Their hard work did not go unnoticed, and there is much more hard work to be done in Texas over the next several years that, hopefully, will also not go unnoticed.

According to Bird, Battleground Texas will be many things, but foremost it will be a "100% grassroots organization." It will be "digitally sophisticated" and use a message strategy working with partners across the state. He also noted that Battleground Texas is not a national organization, and that the money raised here will be spent right here in Texas.

More about their plans below the jump.  

Jeremy Bird Introduces Battleground Texas in Video

by: Karl-Thomas Musselman

Fri Mar 01, 2013 at 09:00 AM CST

Who Is Battleground Texas?

by: Michael Hurta

Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 01:30 PM CST

Executive Director: Jenn Brown
Jenn Brown is an Obama for America veteran. In the 2012 campaign, she was field director in Ohio, overseeing a 600-person staff among 130 offices. She's been all over, though. She was the Minnesota State Director for the Obama Campaign in 2008 before being promoted to Regional Field Director, and she managed 9 states during the 2010 midterm election cycle for OFA. And she's from California, a graduate of UC-San Diego. She has lessons from everywhere to pull from for Texas.

Digital Director: Christina Gomez
You might be more familiar with Christina Gomez's comedic work at #WhenInSession, but this native Texan has a quality resume of electing Democrats. She served as a digital strategist for the Democratic National Committee during the 2012 cycle. She earned her stripes here in the Lone Star State, though, when she worked for State Representative Trey Martinez Fischer and then the Mexican American Legislative Caucus. Oh, and she seems pretty happy to be returning home.

Senior Adviser Jeremy Bird and 270 Strategies
Battleground Texas is advised by the 2012 National Field Director for the Obama Campaign, Jeremy Bird, who now runs 270 Strategies, a "people-centered, data-driven, and digitally-sophisticated" firm that "unites some of the best and brightest talent among democratic politics today." He helped create and implement the neighborhood team organizing model

Begin Battleground Texas

by: Michael Hurta

Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 09:30 AM CST

For years and years, Texas Democrats have been holding down the fort without much help. Texas Democrats have had some good days (winning 74 House seats in 2008) while still failing to smell a majority. Activists have told anyone who would listen around the country that Democrats can win if only with some help, but we've persevered on our own. Now, however, the much anticipated Battleground Texas is here. The reinforcements have finally arrived.

Advised by the National Field Director from Obama for America, Jeremy Bird, Battleground Texas launched as a "multimillion dollar effort" to elect Democrats statewide in Texas again. Bird summarized Texas Democrats' frustrations while stating Battleground Texas's purpose:

With its size and diversity, Texas ought to be a place where local races are hotly-contested and anyone who wants to be President has to compete. Yet time and again, grassroots volunteers throughout the state have told us that Republican officials in Austin and Washington have failed to stand for Texans. We know part of the problem is too few Texans are participating in the democratic process - so we're bringing some of the best talent and strategies in politics to the Lone Star State to help expand the electorate by registering more voters and by mobilizing Texans who are already registered but haven't been making their voices heard.

Leading the effort, based out of Austin, are Jenn Brown and native Texan Christina Gomez. Brown comes to Texas as the organization's Executive Director after she successfully ran  President Obama's field operations in Ohio. Gomez returns home to the fight as Battleground Texas's Digital Director after serving as a digital strategist for the Democratic National Committee.

Can this major effort mobilize Texans in a way that makes a difference? As organizers from Battleground Texas have spoken with Democratic Party leaders in Texas, the answer is clear: Yes we can. The smartest political minds in the country  clearly give Texas Democrats an edge we didn't have before, especially when backed by national donors, but we still need to fight, too. Join the effort at battlegroundtexas.com or read on to see how change can come to the Lone Star State.

'Battleground Texas' Launches New Multimillion Dollar Effort to Turn Texas Blue

by: Michael Li

Thu Jan 24, 2013 at 11:29 AM CST

For all the sweat and money that Texas Democrats and their allies have poured into the state over the years, a big missing ingredient has been national interest in Texas.

Sure, as Bill Clinton said, "There's no state in the country that votes less like its demographics than Texas."  

But with cities the size of states (Harris County by itself would be the 15th largest state) and with multiple media markets, Texas was always too big, too expensive, and too hard compared with the other pressing priorities of national donors.

As a result, Texas for 30 years has languished near the bottom in voter turnout - finishing dead last in 2010. While one poll by LatinoDecisions estimates that nearly 60% of Hispanic voters in Colorado were contacted about the 2012 election, the same poll found that only about 25% of Texas Hispanics were.

But the good news is that the signs are that Texas' days as a perpetual bridesmaid are coming to an end.

One of the most promising signs came today in the announcement that former Obama for America national field director Jeremy Bird with support from national Democratic and progressive donors is launching Battleground Texas, a new organization that Bird told POLITICO "will make Texas a battleground state by treating it as one."

According to POLITICO:

"Battleground Texas," plans to engage the state's rapidly growing Latino population, as well as African-American voters and other Democratic-leaning constituencies that have been underrepresented at the ballot box in recent cycles. Two sources said the contemplated budget would run into the tens of millions of dollars over several years - a project Democrats hope has enough heft to help turn what has long been an electoral pipe dream into reality.

True to the Obama campaign's model in swing states, Bird said:

"Over the next several years, Battleground Texas will focus on expanding the electorate by registering more voters - and as importantly, by mobilizing Texans who are already registered voters but who have not been engaged in the democratic process."

And the good news is these efforts dovetail nicely into substantial work already being done in the state with low-propensity voters by partisan organizations as well as non-partisan groups like the Texas Organizing Project, Mi Familia Vota, and Texans Together.  Those efforts also are expected to increase in coming years.

While Texas may be big, the lessons of places like Colorado and New Mexico is that big change is possible over several cycles (and sooner than you think).  But engaging non-regular voters means starting earlier and year-around civic engagement.  And it also means more research and polling to understand the complex and incredibly diverse population of Texas.  All that's expensive.  But with national funder interest, the resources needed to do that kind of work may finally be available in Texas.

It's not hard to see why national interest has started to shift to Texas.  By many estimates Hispanic provided the decisive margin of victory to President Obama in Colorado, Nevada, and Florida - each states where President Obama lost the Anglo vote.  

In Texas, by contrast, there are some 2.3 million registered and eligible African-Americans and Hispanics in just the state's 11 largest counties who are considered unlikely voters.  Of those, only 782,580 (34%) voted in 2008. And in 2010?  Only 68,883 voted.  That's less than 3% turnout and a fall off of almost 714,000 in a state that Bill White lost by 631,086 votes.

And it's important to stress that while talk about Texas usually and inevitably focuses on Hispanics, more than 60% registered voters in Dallas and Harris counties are considered unlikely voters under common models.

That's opportunity galore.

And from a national perspective as one national donor said in Washington recently when calling for a "moon-landing commitment to Texas":  Texas is checkmate.

And with prolific San Antonio fundraiser Henry Muñoz taking over as finance chair for the Democratic National Committee, a deepening of ties of Texas with national sources of money will only increase.  

That's only further good news for Texas progressives.