Larry Joe Doherty, the Democratic nominee in the 10th Congressional District is poised to take on Republican Mike McCaul this November. The good news for Democrats is that Doherty looks to have the resources he needs to run a competitive race.
Yesterday, the Doherty campaign reported receiving $108,680 from 141 contributors since his last filing on February 14, 2008, giving him $122,452 cash-on-hand.
"People are ready for change," noted Doherty, "we saw it at the polls, we saw it at the caucuses, and we're seeing it in our fundraising."
Mike McCaul should see the writing on the wall too. Currently the Republican only has a 2:1 fundraising advantage on Doherty who just ran a competitive primary. McCaul is reporting $318,097 on hand and $212,173 in debt.
The Doherty campaign is quick to point out that Mike McCaul is wrong on the issues and bad for Texas.
In the past year, the Republican incumbent voted 4 times against the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), which would help ease the rising costs of health care by extending health insurance coverage to an additional 4 million low-income children. In those same votes, McCaul opposed providing employment guarantees for family members of severely wounded servicemen and women who are at risk of losing their jobs while caring for their wounded loved one.
The Texas 10th Congressional District represents our best chance to pick up another seat in Congress and LJD seems to have the financial backing to do it.
Veteran Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle yesterday endorsed foreign policy expert Dan Grant in his race for the Democratic nomination in the 10th Congressional District, saying he is uniquely qualified to step into the seat once held by Lyndon B. Johnson and J.J. 'Jake' Pickle.
"Dan Grant has the wisdom and experience that we need to face the challenges of the future," Earle said. "He is too good an offer to pass up."
Earle, who last month announced his retirement after 31 years as the county's top prosecutor, announced his endorsement during a news conference at the Travis County Courthouse.
Grant, campaigning in Austin on the last day of Early Vote, said he is proud to have Earle's backing.
"Ronnie Earle has held a generation of public figures accountable, including the man who engineered the mid-decade redistricting scheme that put the seat I'm running for into Republican hands," Grant said.
CD-10's boundaries were redrawn in 2003 under pressure from then-U.S. Majority leader Tom DeLay, who has since been forced to resign in disgrace.
Grant spent much of the past decade working as a civilian under contract to the U.S. Government in trouble spots around the world. He returned to Texas last March from Iraq, where he served as part of the international civilian team in Baghdad. He helped the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq prepare and conduct the historic elections of 2005 and, as deputy director of Iraq's largest out-of-country voting program, oversaw the effort to register eligible voters in major U.S. cities for Iraq's Transitional National Assembly election.
A graduate of Georgetown University and the London School of Economics, Grant has put forward a detailed plan to help working families find economic security during the current downturn. He has called for universal health care, significant steps toward energy independence, an expansion of the pro-work, pro-family Earned Income Tax Credit, micro-lending programs to help local companies and entrepreneurs, and new investments in education to help the U.S. compete with China, India, and other emerging global economies.
Grant grew up in Austin and interned for legendary Congressman Jake Pickle while attending McCallum High School.
(Dan Grant is a BOR endorsed candidate in the TX-10 Congressional Primary. - promoted by Burnt Orange Report)
Yesterday, we received yet another major endorsement. Increasing our list of endorsers to 42, the Houston Chronicle wrote:
U.S. Congress, District 10, Democrat Dan Grant - A graduate of the London School of Economics and Georgetown University, Grant has deep foreign policy experience earned as a U.S. Agency for International Development official in Afghanistan and Iraq. He favors an immediate pullout of the bulk of American troops from Iraq. Closer to home, Grant says his domestic priorities will be supporting policies geared to economic recovery and health care reform.
Our current TV spot has also received great response:
The people have spoken and believe I am the candidate for the voters in CD-10. Here is a complete list of our supporters:
On Tuesday, more than one thousand of Prairie View A&M University students marched seven miles from campus to the Waller County Courthouse in protest of dramatic cuts of early voting locations on campus for the March 4 primary.
The sentiment was echoed repeatedly, as it has been over the course of the years and particularly during this 2008 election season, that while civil rights have progressed in leaps in bounds over the years, even in the days of "Yes we can" and "Si se puede," minority groups are still having to fight for their rights.
Following the wake of the historic march, Larry Joe Doherty issued a press release commending the students of Prairie View and publicly recording his support of their efforts. Larry Joe Doherty, who has earned the endorsements of the Black Austin Democrats and the Houston Black American Democrats, not only marched the entire seven miles with the scholars but afterwards spent time serving up bar-b-que and talking to the students themselves. BOR writers also recorded entries on the emotional march, lauding the protesters for their activism.
However, Vince Leibowitz at Capitol Annex chose to instead focus his efforts on a bizarre attack on Larry Joe Doherty's appearance at the march with a libelous, inaccurate and uninformed blog entry.
When the Democrats controlled the White House and Congress in the 90's, we had balanced budgets. In the 00's, the Republicans controlled the White House and Congress and we are back to deficits. The dollar's dropped relative to other major currencies. The average salary has fallen with respect to inflation. Common sense dictates that a country raise taxes to fund a war. For the first time in history, the Iraq war was accompanied with tax cuts. Fantasy is fun. We all want to believe we can have our cake and eat it too. The fiscal irresponsibility during the 00's has eroded our standard of living.
Larry Joe Doherty has demonstrated an understanding of money by his fundraising and campaign spending. Larry Joe Doherty has spent his career standing up for people in this country who were harmed by greedy people in an under-regulated environment created by Republican administrations. Larry Joe Doherty is the only candidate in CD-10 who has demonstrated the values of the Democratic Party by standing up for people in this country.
Larry Joe Doherty marched the entire 7 miles for the Prairie View A&M students today. Don't you love a sincere candidate who can talk the talk and walk the walk, who cares enough about people to walk among them to show solidarity? Larry Joe Doherty is a Democrats Democrat.
Dan Grant continues to attract national attention. This story was posted on The Hill last night...
Another ad from Texas Democratic congressional candidate Dan Grant features flag-draped coffins and calls for an end to the Iraq war. Despite its generally taboo imagery, the ad scored well among Democrats, garnering a 6.7.
Republicans gave it shoddy marks, including a 2.4 for its appeal.
Grant is running for Rep. Michael McCaul's (R-Texas) seat.
For those of you who haven't seen his ad, it is hard-hitting, but addresses a critical issue. As a veteran, I understand the uneasiness an image of a flag-draped coffin can inspire...however, I also think that ignoring the fact that there are far too many Americans coming home this way is unconscionable.
I have spent the last few months volunteering for Dan. Having depended upon U.S. Service members for his personal safety in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kosovo, Dan is now dedicating himself to fighting for their safe return. This veteran would much rather have someone representing him who is willing to talk about hard-hitting issues and work for solutions, than an empty suit who says it is unpatriotic to disagree with the War in Iraq. Dan is fighting to bring my friends home, and I'll do everything I can to make sure he is elected.
President Bush has pledged to veto the renewal of SCHIP - the Children's Health Insurance Program. And while the bill passed the House of Representatives, Bush is emboldened because the House lacks a veto-proof majority by approximately 12 votes.
One of those votes belongs to Texas' Mike McCaul, who has rubberstamped Bush's every move, from denying children's health insurance to supporting, funding, and apologizing for this misguided war. So what's emboldening Mike McCaul? It's simple, a gerrymandered district drawn by the hands of Tom Delay.
I can tell you firsthand that taking on a well-funded Republican incumbent is no job for the weak-willed or easily intimidated, and that's why I'm proud to endorse Larry Joe Doherty - a Democrat who will unseat Mike McCaul and send a message of what real Texas values are.
Actions do have consequences. Republicans have not walked their talk, and even the most loyal business person knows it.
From this morning's Wall Street Journal:
Some business leaders are drifting away from the party because of the war in Iraq, the growing federal debt and a conservative social agenda they don't share. In manufacturing sectors such as the auto industry, some Republicans want direct government help with soaring health-care costs, which Republicans in Washington have been reluctant to provide. And some business people want more government action on global warming, arguing that a bolder plan is not only inevitable, but could spur new industries. http://online.wsj.co...
Larry Joe Doherty has decided to open up a campaign headquarters in Houston. This is usually a wise move but according to the Austin Political Report, LJD opened up shop in Republican John Culberson's district. This of course is an issue since he is running in the 10th Congressional District, where he and Democrat Dan Grant are running to oust Clear Channel Exec Mike McCaul and not in the 7th Congressional District.
In other Doherty news, there is this gem on Amazon.com of Larry Joe and Anna Nicole Smith. At the end of the minute and half long clip, LJD invites Anna to come preside on a few trials for Texas Justice were she learns about the penal system.
Update: After talking with someone on the ground in Houston, the address being shown as his campaign office in Houston is actually the office of his general finance team. It does appear that he is possibly offering this address as his campaign office as well.
There will be a primary in the 10th Congressional District.
Yesterday we announced Dan Grant's entry into the race. Today, Larry Joe Doherty has filed the necessary paperwork to force a democratic primary.
LJD, as we will likely refer to him, is not at the same level as Grant or Ankrum. He is an actor, poet, singer, attorney, husband, father, outdoorsman, wildlife advocate, and classic car. At least that is what his bio says.
If you contact LJD, you can talk to him about public speaking, voice over work, merchandise, or other items of interest. If you need to talk to him about his campaign, I would suggest either public speaking or other.
In either case, Houston, Austin, and everywhere in between, get ready for a primary (kind of).
