Why I Filed for TX-10 by Ted Ankrum

by: Ted Ankrum

Tue Jan 05, 2010 at 05:32 PM CST

The '06 Campaign put me on record for many things and if one Googles Ted Ankrum, much of that remains.  Many of my positions will need to be updated, though.  I think the Senate Health Care Plan leaves much to be desired, but if that is what we get; take it for now and fix it later--in particular the part that still keeps health care costs on the backs of our companies.  We always seem to be one war behind.  We fought Iraq when we should have finished Afganistan when it was easy.  The most recent attack came from Yemen, just as we are ramping up in Afganistan. Our President says that Afganistan is not Vietnam or Iraq and I agree with him.  It's mired in the time of Alexander the Great and it breaks my heart that our troops are dying to prop up a feudal and corrupt regime.  Our fight is with the terrorists, not the Taliban and we ought to concentrate on them where they are--and they aren't in Afganistan.  I think there are far too few military veterans, and combat veterans in particular, among our political leaders.  If there were more, there might be a different perspective on where and who we choose to fight.  Our military leaders fight the wars they are presented with.  Our political leaders are the ones that do the picking.  There is more to discuss on Cap and Trade and Financial Regulation but I'll save all that for the future.

I got an artificial shoulder last January (the VA now rates me as 100% disabled) and I'm scheduled for an artificial knee on Feb 2. It wasn't an IED that got me in Vietnam, it was an East German anti-tank mine; but the effect is the same.  One doesn't let these availabilites slip, so I'll be good for nothing the first week of February.  I told you I never expected to do this run.

I can't promise you that I'll win, but I will promise you to show just how bad a Representative Mike McCaul is.  He ignored me in the '06 race and that let me knock 10% off his expected results.  Ever since, he's looked vulnerable and attracted stronger opposition than I could give him.  He really should have smacked me down in '06 and scared away any thought of opposing him.  We'll see what happens this time.

By all means support our Statewide Candidates as much as you can.  That's really important.  But if you have anything left over, I could use the help; no matter how small.

Ted Ankrum Congressional Committee 2010, 13707 Via Siena Ct., Cypress, TX 77429  

Ted Ankrum Set to File for 10th Congressional District

by: Matt Glazer

Sun Jan 03, 2010 at 11:44 AM CST

Dan Grant opted out of running because his first child is due in a few weeks. Larry Joe Doherty looked at the race, and decided not to run.

It looks like in the final day to fill the vacancy, another McCaul challenger has decided to run.

Multiple sources have indicated Ted Ankrum will file tomorrow to run against Republican Michael McCaul. Ankrum ran in 2006 and kept McCaul to just 55.28% of the vote but only garnered 40.4% of the vote himself.  He spent less than $75,000 total in his race but gains have been minimal over the last 4 years.

For Ankrum to be successful, he will have to spend the bulk of his time in Harris County, stress his military service, let the Travis County Democratic Party and Austin area activist do the heavy lifting in the north part of the district, and get a committed group of surrogates in the 10th Congressional District and beyond to begin a massive fundraising operation.

Needless to say, with the shortened window, Ankrum will have an uphill battle. The district continues to be tough pre-redistricting, but it is good to see a Democrat step up to the challenge.

Statement: Dan Grant Not Running for TX-10

by: Katherine Haenschen

Thu Dec 24, 2009 at 02:55 PM CST

Grant--an Austin native--was widely viewed as one of the strongest contenders to make a late entry: he still has solid support from his previous campaign, and is extensively well-regarded by local activists. He has extensive foreign policy experience from his civil service work in Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan, and Iraq.

Today, Grant released a statement making clear that he would not be entering the race. From his press release:

"Like others, my wife and I were surprised by our friend Jack McDonald's announcement this week that he will not run for Congress after all, and I am deeply grateful for the strong encouragement I have received in the past two days to get into the race.

Because time is short, I have visited quickly with friends, Democratic Party officials, and community leaders in the district.  After giving the decision due consideration, I am today announcing that I will not be a candidate for this or any other office during the current election cycle.

As many of you know, my wife and I are expecting our first child in less than a month.  In other words, the standard excuse that I want to spend more time with my family is, by a happy coincidence, actually true in this case.

Moreover, my work training civilian workers and soldiers for the international mission in Afghanistan will continue to require my professional focus for the foreseeable future.

Again, my wife and I appreciate the many expressions of support we have received in the past two days.  We look forward to helping Democratic candidates in this race and up and down the ballot get their positive message out in the months ahead."

Dan Grant remains a great candidate for this district, as he was in 2008. A loyal, committed Democrat, Grant has remained highly active within the party since his unfortunate loss in the 2008 primary. He continues to participate extensively in our local grassroots organizations, and has been involved in fundraising efforts for Democratic candidates.

Grant has also expanded his work on foreign policy issues by joining up with Operation Free, an organization that focuses on clean energy from a national security perspective. In an ironic bit of timing, the Austin Chronicle ran an article this week in which Grant evaluates President Obama's Afghanistan strategy.  

Grant's decision not to enter the race at this late stage in the game is completely respectable. With less than two weeks in the filing period, it will be challenging for anyone to assemble a team capable of challenging McCaul. However, I sincerely hope that Grant continues to consider the race in the future. He would be a strong voice for the people of the 10th District.

Meanwhile, best wishes to Dan and his wife as they await the arrival of their first child.  

TX-10: Jack McDonald Decides Not to Run for Congress Against Michael McCaul

by: Phillip Martin

Tue Dec 22, 2009 at 01:26 PM CST

From an e-mail I just received:

"In February, after receiving strong encouragement from friends and supporters throughout Texas to consider running for United States Congress, we formed an Exploratory Committee to evaluate the race.

My wife, Carla, and I have been humbled by the broad and deep support and kindness we've received over the last 10 months from fellow Texans, including business, community and political leaders, Democrats, Independents and Republicans alike. 

However, after careful consideration, and with the January 4 filing deadline approaching, I have decided that this is not the right time for me to run and I will not be filing to enter the race. This was a difficult decision for me and one I did not make lightly.  I approached the decision in the same way I have approached my business decisions over the years-in an informed, realistic and fiscally-responsible way.  In the next few weeks, we will be offering to return the contributions made to our committee.

For Carla and me, the last 10 months have provided some of the best and most enriching moments of our lives-with so many wonderful people from throughout the district and state sharing with us their hopes and concerns.  As we look ahead, I remain more committed than ever to public service, to the need for more people in government who can put aside partisanship to do what's right for Texas and America and to my work with the State of Texas' Emerging Technology Fund and the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce to create more good jobs in the state."

Myself and many others were excited about his efforts in the exploratory campaign, and I believe he had a strong chance against McCaul. Here's hoping that at some point in the future, the circusmtances work out so he can run again. He remains one of the most impressive (potential) candidates I've ever had  the pleasure to meet, as well as a genuinely compassionate and caring individual. I don't get to know a lot of candidates very well, but in the few times I was able to talk to and meet Jack McDonald, I always knew he cared about the work he was doing. I am proud I supported him while I did, and I sincerely hope that in the coming years he takes another look at running for office.

Michael McCaul Google Ads Running on Burnt Orange Report

by: Phillip Martin

Wed Dec 09, 2009 at 04:19 PM CST

Key Point: The Google ads (for when they disappear) have an image of Jack McDonald and say, "Real leadership means taking a stand on the issues." In fact, Michael McCaul is the one is standing down -- and could not so much as lick a stamp -- while he lost the largest defense contract in his district and the 3,000 jobs that came with it.

Oh, the irony.

Yesterday, I wrote a lengthy post about how Republican Congressman Michael McCaul Dropped the Ball and lost 3,000 Texas jobs. The story was picked up and received some links from the Texas Tribune, KUT, KSAT, and several other traditional and new media sources. The highlights (or lowlights, as they should be called) were that:

1. Michael McCaul had absolute no written communication with the Department of Defense about the defense contract BAE Systems lost. In fact, the communication he had was so non-existent that he and BAE Systems admit to being "blindsided" by the contract change. (Source: Department of Defense)
   
   
2. The defense contract McCaul lost was the single largest defense contract in his district, and 3,000 Texans are likely to lose their jobs because he dropped the ball. (Source: Austin American-Statesman)
   
   
3. McCaul has provided no proof of any communication with the Department of Defnse about the contract, and only now -- after the fact -- has solicited the help of high profile Democrats Chet Edwards and Bill White to help save the jobs (which, hopefully, they can do). (Source: Virtual Capitol)
   

That post -- which generated quite a lot of traffic and buzz -- is now the reason that Michael McCaul ads are running on Burnt Orange Report. As Google searches the "Texas news" sites across the internet, it comes across the keywords in our post -- predominantly, Michael McCaul. As a result of that, we now see his ads running on our site -- which is great for the BOR staff because that means some more money from advertising generated for everyone.

So -- thank you, Michael McCaul, for paying for the coffee we drink, the chicken sandwiches we buy, and the small dollar contributions we make to your opponent, Jack McDonald -- an opponent who is going to defeat you in November 2010, no matter how much you try to advertise on our site.

The Google ads (for when they disappear) have an image of Jack McDonald and say, "Real leadership means taking a stand on the issues." The idea that Michael McCaul is the one who is taking a stand -- when he could not so much as lick a stamp in order to help save the largest defense contract in his district and the 3,000 jobs that came with it -- is purely laughable for any BOR readers who McCaul could hope to advertise with.

Let's take a look at some of the issues Michael McCaul has stood down on:

1. Michael McCaul Has Stood Down and Supported Rush Limbaugh's Attacks on Sonia Sotomayor (Source)
   
   
2. Michael McCaul Has Stood Down and Allowed Property Tax Rates to Increase (Source)
   
   
3. Michael McCaul Has Stood Down and Allowed Student Loan Interest Rates to Increase (Source)
   
   
4. Michael McCaul Has Stood Down and Allowed Insurance Companies to Block Meaningful Health Care Reform (Source)

There are dozens more instances -- I'm sure -- of McCaul standing down and allowing special interests and Republican ideologues to run him over. Those are the ones that took me forty seconds to find here on BOR. The simple truth, though, is that Michael McCaul doesn't work hard, and doesn't really care about his job. He is a career politician whose support of the far-right policies do a tremendous disservice to his district -- and his complete ineptitude has led to nearly 3,000 Texas families losing their jobs.

Michael McCaul -- if you want to advertise on BOR, by all means. KT will just collect the ad revenues and send all the money to Jack McDonald, the man who will soon replace you in Congress.

Look Who's Coming to Fundraise

by: Katherine Haenschen

Mon Nov 02, 2009 at 10:54 AM CST

As if the Texas Republicans in Congress weren't inane enough, they need to import the likes of Limbaugh and Bachmann to do their fundraising for them? Limbaugh openly hopes for the Obama administration to fail and compares Obama to Hitler. Bachmann blames Obama for the swine flu outbreak and refuses to fill out her census form because she thinks it's an ACORN plot to steal her private information. (Seriously.)

Meanwhile, McCaul's challenger, the completely-not-insane Jack McDonald, is drawing serious support to his campaign from legitimate leaders such as Dr. Albright and talking about how the people of TX-10 can gain real representation in Congress on issues such as the economy, health care, and clean energy.

Currently, John Carter has no challenger to offer the people of Bell and Williamson County actual representation in Congress. But Central Texans can unite behind Jack McDonald, and make sure that the people of Texas' 10th District send a strong Representative to work on their behalf in D.C.

Meanwhile, the voters of TX-10 need to ask themselves: "Who better represents me and my views in Congress? ...

... Rush Limbaugh and Michael McCaul? Or Jack McDonald and Madeleine Albright?"

McDonald's campaign is still in exploratory mode. You can check him out on his website, www.JackForCongress.com, and make a donation or offer to volunteer. It's going to be a good race. Best of all, a McDonald victory may mean 100% less Rush Limbaugh in our backyard. And if that's not a reason to get involved, I don't know what is.  

TX-10: Jack McDonald Raises $300,000 in 3rd Quarter, Over $800,000 on Hand

by: Karl-Thomas Musselman

Wed Oct 14, 2009 at 06:03 PM CDT

Raised in Q3:   $298,000
Raised to Date: $932,000
Cash on Hand:   $805,000

McDonald's continued broad appeal has enabled him to earn a very large percentage of his contributions from Republicans and Independents.

"I've never supported a Democrat before, but I'm very enthusiastic about Jack McDonald's candidacy," said David May, CEO of Third Coast Capital Management.  "Jack McDonald goes beyond party labels to focus on what's right for Texas. He's a strong, independent-minded leader with solid values and real-world business experience.  He's exactly the kind of fiscally-responsible representative we need in Washington."

And of course, the continued success in putting his financial house in order has the continued interest of the DCCC.

DCCC Chairman Chris Van Hollen said   "Jack McDonald's continued fundraising success makes this district a good pick up opportunity for Democrats.  As a self-made successful businessman who has created thousands of jobs and a fiscal conservative who currently serves as vice-Chair of the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce, Jack has the right experience to get our economy moving again and tackle the difficult problems our country faces."    

In terms of electoral numbers, TX-10 has been included in a series of posts at Swing State Project, where they have been looking at the population and demographic changes of districts across the country since 2000. Here are some important things to note.

• TX-10 ranks as the 3rd highest district by raw population growth since 2000 in the country, adding 303,840 residents, a 47% increase in 8 years! Of the top 25 fastest growing congressional districts, 6 are in Texas. See chart.
• TX-10 ranks 3rd among the fastest growing congressional districts in the last year, adding 56,716 people between 2007-2008.
  
• TX-10 ranks as the 9th highest district by raw % point loss in White residents since 2000, going from 66.3% white to 54.7% white. In fact, Texas congressional districts claim 3 of the top 10, and 7 of the top 25 districts ordered by highest percentage point declines of white residents. See chart.

TX-10 is changing rapidly. It's gone from a 67-34 Republican district in 2000 (33pt gap) to a 54-44 Republican district in 2008 (10pt gap), largely without major spending or national focus. In a year where Democrats may lose seats elsewhere in the country, TX-10 could prove to be be one place for a pickup.

For those of you in Austin, you are invited to come out for some great music with the McDonald campaign to support the efforts to take back LBJ's old Congressional seat.

Please Join Us For A Concert At Antones
Featuring Alpha Rev

In Support of
Jack McDonald
Candidate for U.S. Congress District 10

Wednesday, October 21st
Antones
5th & Lavaca
VIP Cocktail Reception- 6:00-8:00pm
Doors Open for Concert at 8:00pm

Host Tickets- $1,000
Includes admission to the VIP cocktail reception & VIP access for 4 for the concert

VIP Tickets- $250
Includes admission to the VIP cocktail reception & VIP access for the concert

General Admission - $15.00

To purchase your tickets please visit:
http://tinyurl.com/antonesrsvp

Who is our TX-10 Candidate?

by: txdem10

Mon Aug 17, 2009 at 06:13 PM CDT

I have found a few documents that I find very surprising and require some answers.  A short ten years ago, Jack McDonald was registered as a Republican in New York City where he worked for a prominent Wall Street law firm. See the link below:

http://www.keepandshare.com/do...

Okay, so he was once registered GOP - I'd like to know why and what changed his heart and I'm sure I can accept those answers.  What deserves a little more explanation is why he was repeatedly donating to George W Bush - one big contribution coming as late as 2003. See the link below:

http://www.keepandshare.com/do...

Our last TX-10 candidate, Larry Joe Doherty recently put his support behind Jack McDonald, but is anyone asking any questions about McDonald's past political affiliations, his donations, and his positions on key progressive issues? I think it is very important that we know who he is, what he stands for, and where he is going to lead our Congressional District, if elected.  

TX-10: Larry Joe Doherty Endorses Jack McDonald for Congress

by: Phillip Martin

Mon Aug 10, 2009 at 00:28 PM CDT

From an e-mail (copy and pasted):

“I enthusiastically endorse Jack McDonald for Congress in the 10th Congressional District of Texas,” said Doherty. “I have gotten to know Jack very well over the last several months and believe that Jack is exactly what our District needs. He's a self-made man who has experienced and understands the struggles that Texas families face, a businessman who values fiscal responsibility and knows how to keep Texan workers competitive in our global economy, and an involved citizen with real-world experience who has created jobs and improved healthcare and education opportunities for Texans.  Jack is the kind of principled, responsible leader we need in Congress.  We expect him to win and Joanne and I look forward to actively supporting his campaign."

“I’m proud to have earned Larry Joe’s support and endorsement, ”said McDonald.  “As we travel throughout the District, we continue to hear from Texans of all backgrounds and political affiliations that they want in Congress independent, fiscally-responsible leaders.”

DCCC Targets Michael McCaul Launches Grassroots Offensive, "Health Care ER"

by: Matt Glazer

Thu Aug 06, 2009 at 10:29 AM CDT

"Time and again, Republicans including Representative McCaul protect a broken system of skyrocketing costs, insurance companies making health care decisions, and record-setting insurance company profits instead of working with President Obama to bring real health insurance reform for middle class families," said Jon Vogel, DCCC Executive Director. "This August we are going district-by-district to hold Republicans accountable for trying to obstruct health insurance reform through their scare tactics and just-say-no protection of big insurance companies at the expense of affordable health care."

Unlike the chaos and shouting matches the Republican Party is building, the Democratic Party is organizing a series of educational meetings and reaching out to inform people about the true impact insurance reform will have on them.

According the the DCCC the outreach activities going on in Mike McCaul's district may include:

• Radio ads in eight (8) Republican Members' districts
• Volunteer live calls, automated calls to 25 targeted Republican Members
• Volunteer live calls to talk radio stations in targeted Republican Members' districts
• Three (3) million e-mails
• Letter writing drives in Republican Members' districts
• Letter to the editor drives in Republican Members' districts
• On-line petition campaigns
• Fact checking Republicans' lies about health insurance reform
• Tele-town halls in specific Republican Members' districts

An automated call has already started in Mike McCaul's district.  The message highlights McCaul's position and our current health care crisis.

This call is paid for by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, 202-741-1350.  Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee.

I have an important message about your health care.  Insurance companies are posting record profits while health bills skyrocket.  Now they are lining up to stop health care reforms and protect profits. Congressman Michael McCaul took almost fifty thousand dollars from the insurance industry and now he's trying to block reform... like reducing costs by forcing insurance companies to compete and preventing them from denying you coverage. Call Congressman McCaul today.  Ask him to stop standing up for insurance companies and start standing up for us.

In stark contrast, the Party of No is busing in people from across the state to silence constituents and prevent a dialogue on issues. Simply, one party is working to provide solutions to real problems.  The other "just says no."