As campaign season cranks into high-gear, heavy hitters are making their way down to Texas for a few marquee fundraisers in support of various Congressional candidates. Now, you can tell a lot about a candidate by whom they choose to draw in the high rollers. Seems to me that the Republicans down here in Texas are increasingly relying on the crazy fringe to bring out the checkbooks and media attention. Let's take a look at who's traveling down to Texas to raise the big bucks:
Candidate
Special Guest
John Carter, TX-31 -- Round Rock Republican, recently described health care bill as "Death for the Baby Boomers, Jail for the Middle Class, Free Healthcare for Illegal Aliens," on his own website, no less.
Michele Bachmann, MN-6 -- Fox News' favorite census conspiracy theorist and global-warming denier. Hosted fundraiser for Carter on October 17 in Cedar Park.
Michael McCaul, TX-10 -- Unremarkable Republican incumbent and heir-in-law to ClearChannel fortune. Misrepresents gerrymandered chunks of Austin, Harris County, and some of everything in between.
Rush Limbaugh -- Famous radio hate-monger, failed hypothetical NFL owner, McCaul's Daddy-in-Law's heavy hitter. Attended fundraiser for McCaul with Governor Rick Perry in May 2009 at undisclosed location.
Jack McDonald, TX-10 -- Self-made entrepreneur, chairman of Perficient. Leader in the Austin business and philanthropic community. Unstoppable fundraiser, drawing strong bipartisan support in R+11 district.
Dr. Madeleine Albright -- Secretary of State and Ambassador to the UN during Clinton Administration. Also, not a crazy hate-merchant dragging political discourse down into ever-deeper gutter. Special guest at fundraising brunch on October 30 for Jack McDonald at MPower Labs.
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.
According to the DCCC there are 67 House Republicans who voted against the stimulus package. But when these no voters are back in their home states they like to brag and swagger about bringing home the bacon. On a different level, Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison joins these ranks. She voted against the stimulus bill and yet she criticized Rick Perry for turning down federal funding for extended unemployment benefits.
Texas has its fair share of outstanding hypocrites. Check the list below to see if your U.S. House Rep. is included in the GOP Hall of Hypocrites. I must admit that I am not shocked to learn that my U.S. Rep., John Culberson, is among them. I betcha your U.S. Reps are too.
I started advising Brian last year, but recently was asked and I accepted the responsibility to become Campaign Manager. I have been on the campaign trail with Brian and have met several of you. I, personally, want to thank you for your continued support. If you haven't met me, let me tell you right now - I am to the point. I have committed myself to this campaign in order for Brian Ruiz to be elected as District 31's next Congressman. With that stated, let me apologize ahead of time if I come across slight abrupt.
Brian is also my brother. Although we are family, we are very different from each other. Just like many of you, we have different feelings and views on the Democratic Presidential candidates. But, we work well together in this campaign to unify the party and continue the momentum created this election year.
Brian is not a seasoned politician and doesn't claim to be one. He is running for Congress to represent ALL of Texas Congressional District 31.
We are extremely busy drafting positioning papers, making public appearances and securing financial contributions. We are working feverishly to meet or exceed our April goal of $20,000. We are doing our part to raise the money needed to win in November. All we are asking the voters of District 31 is $10 each. We understand the economic strain put upon you during these trying economic times.
Think about this: Congressman John Carter owns several million dollars of oil company stock. (I wanted to say, "Every time you fill up your car or truck...", but who does that these days?) Every time you pump gas into your vehicle, you are essentially contributing to Congressman Carter's campaign. Congressman Carter is dependent on the oil industry. He is personally invested. How does that represent you?
Brian believes in energy independence and wants to end the US foreign oil addiction.
As Campaign Manager, I have been going through all of Brian's writings and positions on various issues from his educational and professional years. Along with the original "Together We Can!" speech he gave in middle school, I also ran across some of Brian's radio projects - some of which were never aired. One of the projects I ran across was a radio tribute to Pat Tillman. Cpl. Tillman will have past away 4 years ago this Tuesday, April 22nd. I thought this should be released again to continue to raise awareness and concern for ALL our servicemen (active, reserve, veteran and deceased).
As a USAF veteran, I was moved by this tribute to a great "American Soldier." I asked Brian about the history of this tribute and believe his thoughts needed to be shared with all of you. I discovered a story that I didn't even know.
"...after I produced this tribute I seriously considered joining the service to do my part. I went into a Marines recruiting office on North Lamar (in Austin) and met an old high school classmate that was now a Marine recruiter. We spoke for a long time and he recommended that I go through ROTC. I started training so I could physically meet the requirements and had even longer conversations with my fiancé about this decision. I could enroll and do basic training during the summer of 2004 and be back for my wedding on September 4th and then leave two weeks later for active duty.
After hours of contemplation and prayer, I decided not to join based upon my emotions. A month later I learned about the lies of Tillman's death and it made me wonder, 'how many other young men and women signed on before learning the true story?'
About a year later, I found myself asking the same question regarding the misinformation we were told before invading Iraq. Today, I am noticing the lengths we go to for recruitment and retention and clever ways to ensure the goals are met, but inhibit the veterans of the Iraq war from being adequately compensated for their duty to this country."
Brian P. Ruiz
With so much going on Tuesday (Earth Day and Pennsylvania Democratic Primary), I thought we should take time to remember Cpl. Tillman and address the "war" in Iraq to remind the voters how Rep. Carter addresses this issue. You have probably heard Congressman Carter state,
This is a statement that he has used repeatedly over the last couple of years and continues to use it to this day. This is his way of justifying our occupation in Iraq and deflecting the focus away from the primary objective of "War On Terror" - Osama Bin Laden. This "war" cannot achieve victory without its primary objective being met.
This is the same person who claims to be consistent on his views on Iraq. How can he call Iraq a battle when he himself is on record referring it as a war? Also, 62% of District 31 is in favor of the war? I am not sure where is getting his numbers, but they probably need to be fired. If the voters of District 31 really believe this, then why did the Ruiz for Congress campaign receive approximately 12,000 more votes than Congressman Carter in the March 4th primary?
I understand many of you might perceive this to be negative towards Congressman Carter. I am only stating facts and referencing his statements. It is time for the voters to hold him accountable. I have committed to Brian and will publicly commit to the people of District 31, our message and campaign will not change. We will not accept PAC money! This campaign is about YOU! If you are ready for change, then contribute, donate, volunteer and most importantly - go vote.
I am a proponent of the political process - let the voters decide. If the sentiments from the voters are true, then in November, I am confident that Brian will be preparing to be inaugurated.
We are continuing to update our website to create a more interactive environment. If you haven't seen it lately, you may not even recognize it now. If anyone wants to donate their time to help us keep it updated, we would greatly appreciate it. Also, we have begun accepting resumes for full-time/part-time staffers.
Meet the Candidate: Brian Ruiz will be attending the upcoming events April 26-27 Red Poppy Festival Georgetown, TX If you would like to host a fundraiser for Brian, know of an event or meeting we should attend, please contact me:
I swear the man is nearly invisible in Stephenville. I have been affiliated somewhat with the Erath County Dems for the last couple of years and while they are beginning to make inroads there is still a lot of work to do. Mary Beth Harrell made a pretty good run at him and it was a nice try, but we need someone to mount another campaign at him.
I know there has to be someone out there who has the guts to take this man down. If Chet Edwards can hold his own in 17, I see no reason why someone cannot do the same in 31. John Carter is ripe for the picking. We can do better than this.
Why do Texas' Republican Congressmen continue to vote against our troops and for an unpopular war?
While it would seem, at the least, a bad political move and at its worst, a vote to put American men and women in harm's way, that is exactly what they are doing:
...Republicans continue to vote unanimously to send unarmored, untrained, unrested (and even, Salon and the Hartford Courant tell us, wounded and mentally unstable) troops to Iraq.
In a recent vote, the Republican members of the House Appropriations Committee unanimously opposed requiring that the troops sent to Iraq be properly prepared for their mission and protected with armor. Again.
And, of course, three of Texas' Republicans were part of that vote: Reps. Kay Granger (R-Fort Worth), John Carter (R-Round Rock) and John Culberson (R-Houston).
This is one of those cases where you have a Delay district with a newer congressman that doesn't have a massive warchest like Lamar Smith. I'll echo Kuff's thoughts that if the DCCC were to drop even a couple hundred grand into this race as well as say Shane Sklar or Robert Ricketts- a lot could happen.
(I recieved this email today and thought it imporatnt enough to post.)
John Carter Demonstrates DeLay Redrawn Districts
Prop-up Mediocre Members
When Rick Perry, Tom Craddick and David Dewhurst redrew Texas congressional boundaries, they crafted not only districts that favor Republicans but districts so skewed that plainly incompetent and ineffective Republican incumbents could withstand a strong challenge by a very capable and talented Democrat. In some cases, the Tom DeLay-inspired map has discouraged qualified challengers from even filing to run. However, in others, very good Democratic candidates who would make outstanding Members of Congress have emerged.
He knew I was running for the US Congress when he looked me in the eye and made his plea, right before we walked into the ceremony that marked his son's death five years ago. But he didn't know that our son is serving in Iraq right now. My husband and I understand his very real fear that his son's death will have been meaningless.
The town came together to dedicate a statue and plaque to his son - the first American soldier killed in Afghanistan after the September 11th attacks. He spoke of his son through his tears. The professional and patriotic soldier who had told his young wife he might not return from that fatal mission. Yet, while mortally wounded, he laid down suppressing fire that saved the lives of the soldiers in his charge.
A standard of any campaign is atttempting to get milage out of the "debate over debates" issue. Will incumbent X refuse to debate candidate Z? Why? Are they afraid of their record or the issues? What do they have to hide?
It's the same for every campaign in any district in any state. In general, if an incumbent is secure, they blow off their opponents, if not, they are obligated to debate. It's partially a sign of the how much of a real battle races are as well as the feelings and mood of those already in office. There are good and bad ways to accept or deny debates.
Clever ways? Rick Perry- by accepting one gubernatorial debate the weekend of the UT-OU football game, when no one will watch, and every radio station will be covering that or high school football. He accepts one, disarms calls for more debates, and ensures that the debate doesn't change his status in the race.
Stupid responses? John Carter by declining in such a manner that makes him look like a huge prick.
But Carter, as the incumbent, typically has less to gain in responding to Harrell than he has to lose. Carter has said repeatedly he won’t get into full “political mode” until October, after Congress adjourns.
However, in a previous interview this summer, Carter went a step further, saying that Harrell or any other challenger aren’t guaranteed the chance to debate him, despite their candidate status.
"People earn the right to debate me," Carter said in the interview. "I will determine how and not them."
Asked what would qualify someone for a debate, Carter said “credibility."
Then again, Rep. Carter has a history of making stupid statements to allow his opponent Mary Beth Harrell to respond effectively.
