Republican Rep. Michael McCaul is working hard in D.C. to make sure that Texans in the 10th District receive no meaningful health reform. With efforts to block President Obama's proposals at every turn, the unremarkable incumbent has now taken to touting bogus polls and whining about not being included in the process. And what does McCaul have to show for it? A Republican bill that will leave 17 million Americans uninsured, and won't cut the deficit nearly as well as the Democratic bill.
Last week, Michael McCaul went on KVUE to complain about health insurance reform, touting an oh-so-scientific poll from his own website. From KVUE, October 31, 2009:
"In my view, the majority of the American people don't support [the Democratic health reform plan]. Certainly in my district, on my website I have a poll, and it's about 85% against this, it's what's called the public option, the government-run option, the government takeover of our healthcare, it's one sixth of our economy."
Michael McCaul is wrong about health reform. In August, 77% of Americans supported the public option, according to a SUSA poll. That's even higher than it was in June. According to an ABC News poll conducted last week more Americans prefer the Democrats' public option than a watered-down, bipartisan compromise.
McCaul continues on with a series of bogus Republican buzz-words against health reform: "government-run takeover," "getting in between you and your doctor" and "health czar!" Funny, last time I checked, the only person coming between me and my doctor was some insurance company bureaucrat trying to decide if I really need that M.R.I., or visit to a specialist, or blood test, or not. And what's with their czar fetish?
To provide justification for his position, McCaul sites a bogus poll conducted on his website. (How does he know the folks voting on his website are only constituents? Hmm?) On his Facebook Feed, McCaul also published the results of another bogus poll conducted during his own tele-town hall, with 65% opposed to the public option.
Whaaat? You mean to say the small sample of folks who bother to visit his website or join a tele-town hall happen to overwhelmingly agree with his views on the public option?! What's extra irritating here is how the newscaster just takes the bogus statistic as God-given fact. Then she has the gall to suggest that health reform is actually moving too fast. As anyone who has actually been following the legislative process can tell you, things are definitely NOT moving too fast, especially for the 9.3 million Texans who were uninsured for all or part of last year.
Then, just this week, McCaul continued whining in a call-in press conference that Obama and the Democrats have "left out" the Republicans in the health reform process. This is disingenuous, for three reasons.
First, the Republican bill championed by McCaul is widely considered to be a dismal failure. From Ezra Klein:
In 2019, after 10 years of the Republican plan, CBO estimates that ...17 percent of legal, non-elderly residents won't have health-care insurance. The Republican alternative will have helped 3 million people secure coverage, which is barely keeping up with population growth. Compare that to the Democratic bill, which covers 36 million more people and cuts the uninsured population to 4 percent.
According to CBO, the GOP's alternative will shave $68 billion off the deficit in the next 10 years. The Democrats, CBO says, will slice $104 billion off the deficit. ... The Democratic bill, in other words, covers 12 times as many people and saves $36 billion more than the Republican plan.
McCaul describes the Republican bill as better, because it "incentivizes the free market and the private sector to provide coverage." Except that's the same idea that has failed Americans since World War II. It's no change in policy, and it will do very little to change the rate of uninsured Texans.
Second, Republicans--teabaggers and members of Congress alike--are deliberately trying to obstruct the reform process for ideological and political gain. They spent all summer yelling about death panels and insuring undocumented immigrants and shouting "YOU LIE!" during joint sessions of Congress. Republicans are too busy trying to prevent meaningful reform and coverage that will extend to all Americans, in order to support their buddies in the insurance industry. All they want is for President Obama's plans to fail--they don't care about meaningful reform, they only care about their own electoral prospects in 2010 and beyond.
Third, while McCaul complains about not having a seat at the table, he made it nearly impossible for his own constituents to share their views on health reform. He complains that the Democratic bill was written "behind closed doors in Washington," despite the many open town-halls held by Democratic Representatives and constant stream of news coverage about every single step of the process and constant updates from Democratic Congressional leaders.
Meanwhile, it's McCaul who is largely operating behind closed doors, having private meetings with folks who seem to unanimously oppose reform. According to his website, McCaul held only one in-person town hall, at 9:00 a.m. on a Friday, in Katy, the day before Labor Day weekend. He waited until the final day of the Congressional District working period to solicit real input from his constituents. It was only posted to his campaign website three days before the event. Sounds as if Rep. McCaul doesn't want to hear what his constituents have to say. In a district that spans 150 miles from Austin to Houston, he holds only one event, off in one of the most Republican parts of the district. There sure was no event in Travis County, because if there was, McCaul would have heard an earful from his constituents who are tired of losing coverage for pre-existing conditions, being dropped from their plans, and watching premiums rise as access to quality care drops.
To conclude, let's sum up the many ways in which Michael McCaul is wrong about health reform:
Elections have consequences. Barack Obama won, and Democrats have significant majorities in the House and Senate. Democrats are supposed to set national policy. That's what people voted for. (N.B.: Olympia Snowe is not a Democrat and should not be setting health care policy.)
If Republicans want a seat at the table they need to offer real solutions backed by their party, not just vitriol and obstruction. A bill that leaves 17 million people uninsured and doesn't cut costs as well as the Democratic bill is not a real solution.
Congresspeople can't conduct bogus polls on their websites and conference calls and tout it as scientific fact. Anyone who actually has a say in our nation's education funding should know better. The thought makes me shudder.
Michael McCaul is yet another out-of-touch Republican in Congress working hard to prevent the people of the 10th Congressional district from having access to quality, affordable health care. He needs to go.
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.
Jack McDonald, whose campaign is still technically in exploratory mode, has reported another impressive fundraising quarter.
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
Does Texas Congressman Michael McCaul support the segregation of buses? Because on of his biggest friends -- the infamous Rush Limbaugh -- called for just that today during his radio program.
Then Rush took a caller who said the local police investigating the bus assault said today the attack was not racially motivated. Rush responded to these developments put out by the local law enforcement:
LIMBAUGH: I think the guy's wrong. I think not only it was racism, it was justifiable racism. I mean, that's the lesson we're being taught here today. Kid shouldn't have been on the bus anyway. We need segregated buses -- it was invading space and stuff. This is Obama's America.
Call Congressman Michael McCaul, and ask him to denounce Limbaugh for calling for segegating buses!
Brenham 2000 S. Market Street, Suite 303 Brenham, TX 77833 979-830-8497 979-830-1984 (fax) Office Hours: Monday 1pm – 5pm, Tuesday and Thursday 8am – 5pm CT
Katy 1550 Foxlake, Suite 120 Houston, TX 77084 281-398-1247 Office Hours: by appointment only
Tomball Rosewood Professional Building 990 Village Square, Suite B Tomball, TX 77375 281-255-8372 281-255-0034 (fax) Hours: Monday – Friday, 8am – 5pm CT
Last May, Governor Perry honored Rush Limbaugh as an "honorary Texan" -- and the following video (which we originally posted on BOR) was shot:
Call Congressman McCaul today! Demand that he denounce Rush Limbaugh for asking us to return to the days of segregation! Tell him to end his communications with Rush immediately -- that he must denounce him and never appear with him again.
Has anyone read the latest posts about the Jack McDonald vs Michael McCaul race for the Texas 10th District? We deserve a strong, progressive Democratic candidate in a district which is trending Blue. Increasingly, it looks like McDonald has the same "I'm not really a Republican" problem plaguing Tom Schieffer's candidacy.
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:
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:
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.
“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.”
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), chaired by Congressman Chris Van Hollen, announced automated and live calls will be starting today against Representative Michael McCaul as part of its month-long major advertising and grassroots offensive in support of President Obama's health insurance reform plan.
"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 Texas, we have a distorted view of what a "swing seat" is for Democratic targeting. Given our multiple rounds of redistricting, true marginal seats in the traditional sense are hard to find. Texas Democrats either hail from incredibly safe districts, districts that are safe due to demographic trends but not ideology, or Republican districts where great Democrats make an exception (Chet Edwards).
That said, it's encouraging to see not one, but two Republican Congressional seats listed among the top 10 potential "dark horse" breakout races that are causing buzz in the Beltway. And not only that, but they are at the top of the list.
McCaul was technically a lower-tier Democratic target in 2008, but that was really only because his opponent, former TV judge Larry Joe Doherty (D), was raising money like gangbusters. Doherty really didn't have the right profile, and he wound up losing by a pedestrian 11 points - the exact margin of the presidential tally in the district. Now, Democrats have another big-money candidate, with businessman Jack McDonald raising $300,000 in the first quarter. We'll see if he has the right profile, but the fact that he is vice chairman of the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce suggests he might. The party has already put McCaul near the top of its target list.
4. Rep. Pete Sessions (R-Texas)
Democrats tried to mount a late charge in 2006 against National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) Chairman Tom Reynolds (R-N.Y.), and they could do it again in 2010 against current NRCC Chairman Pete Sessions. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) only took this suburban Dallas district 53-46 in the 2008 presidential race, and the heavily Hispanic areas have grown at a faster pace than the white areas. Sessions's district is actually probably more fertile ground than McCaul's, but Democrats might not have as good a candidate. Attorney Grier Raggio (D) has an exploratory committee, but it's not clear who else might emerge.
In TX-10, Democrat Jack McDonald expressed earlier today that there is good reason to be paying attention to the 10th yet again, having raised over $634,000 to date with over half a million on hand, even while in exploratory mode and having yet to roll out campaign staff or field. While there isn't a equivalent Democratic response in TX-32 up in Dallas as of yet, the more competitive nature of the district and county coordinated campaign there provides a bit more breathing room for a top notch candidate to get settled.
A couple of weeks ago, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Executive Director Jon Vogel stated that TX-10 and Michael McCaul were in the top 10 targeted seats in the nation. Combined with the work done the past two cycles in-district, and the over $300,000 McDonald raised in the first quarter, there is good reason to finally have the tenth so high up on the DCCC's radar.
McDonald is looking to repeat that amazing first quarter, having stated in a meeting with activists in Austin this week that fundraising continues to be strong. The reaction from those activists at the gathering was very positive, given his responses, both in his willingness to engage on a broad cross-section of social and policy issues from a back and forth debate over health care options, choice, economic development, and positive statements on equal civil rights and a willingness to engage, work with, and support county party operations.
McDonald is still in exploratory mode, largely until business leadership issues are settled; he is chairman and CEO of Perficient, a publicly-traded company headquartered in the District that is one of the nation's top information technology consulting firms. An official campaign launch is scheduled for the coming months.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, in a piece for National Journal's CongressDaily, listed the TX-10 Congressional District as one of the best opportunities for Democrats to pick-up a seat in Congress in 2010.
This should come as little surprise to anyone that has been following the race -- which we've been doing closely here at BOR. A quick scan through the TX-10 tagged posts here at BOR gives you a recap of what's going on in the district:
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.
