Michael McCaul Google Ads Running on Burnt Orange Report

by: Phillip Martin, Progress Texas

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.

TX-10: Michael McCaul Drops the Ball, Loses 3,000 Texas Jobs

by: Phillip Martin, Progress Texas

Tue Dec 08, 2009 at 10:32 AM CST

Texas Republican Michael McCaul has fumbled away nearly 3,000 jobs in his district, according to the latest research put together by the Lone Star Project. McCaul -- who did not have any written communication with the Department of Defense prior to the announcement of the contract BAE Systems lost (Source) -- is now facing tough scrutiny about what, if any, work he did to keep what had been, until recently, the largest defense contract in his district.

The Lone Star Project knows that McCaul hasn't done at least the following four things:

1. An official letter from the Department of Defense obtained by the Lone Star Project states that no record exists of Michael McCaul contacting the Department of Defense during the contract review process to advocate for BAE systems or to request fair consideration that the contract be renewed. (Source: DOD Freedom of Information Act Request, 10/14/2009)
   
   
2. McCaul failed to appear before the House Budget Committee on “Member’s Day” where Representatives can advocate for programs important to their district.  (Source: House Budget Committee Witness List )
   
   
3. McCaul did not go to the House floor a single time to speak on behalf of the Texas/BAE contract or to defend Texas workers. (Source: Library of Congress)
   
   
4. McCaul did not make any public statements or issue any press releases supporting BAE or the nearly 3,000 jobs covered under the contract.  (Source: McCaul Website) 
   

Since that is all the stuff McCaul didn't do, the Lone Star Project is trying to ask just what he did do -- since he claims to have been having "regular" communications about the contract. In a detailed letter, the Lone Star Project has asked McCaul "a series of specific questions in order to resolve his conficting statements on the contract loss and to uncover the facts that may help avoid major job losses in the future." Here's a link to the full PDF of the letter -- I've highlighted some key points below:

• What specifically did you communicate to the Army in "Late 2007?" Was it by mail or telephone? Can you produce all copies of your communication?
  
  
• If you were informed of the potential problem in 2007, what did you to to advocate for the Sealy plant officially and unofficially?
  
  
• Did you formally notify and ask for assistance from your fellow local, State, and Federal officeholders regarding the potential job loss?
  
  
• You claimed that, "My office has been in regular contact with BAE Systems prior to and during the rebid process." Can you produce any documents that confirm "regular" communications?
  
  
• Since being elected to Congress from the 10th District, but prior to the loss of the BAE contract, have you spoken even once on the House floor promoting the quality of work and the importance of the mission at BAE Systems plant in Sealy?

As I noted earlier, previous research the LSP report has uncovered -- and the Austin American-Statesman picked up on -- was that McCaul's office has no written communication with DoD for the past two years. When asked about this by Gardner Selby, here's what McCaul said:

Written communication “is not how it works,” McCaul said. “It’s a little naive” to say so.

Michael McCaul never thought to get anything in writing?!?! Is it because he's just that foolish and irresponsible, or because he is just so used to communicating through right-wing radio -- after all, his father-in-law is the one who owns Clear Channel, the corporation that is both Michael McCaul's single largest political contributor and the one that has given a $100 million signing bonus to McCaul's best friend, Rush Limbaugh.

I share in Kuff's anguish about this:

No written communication? Not so much as an email? That’s pretty strange. Did anyone take notes from the phone conversations they had, or minutes at the meetings? [...]

McCaul’s statement here seems in conflict with this:

BAE employees expressed concern to McCaul aides around late 2007 that the Army was seeking bids for the production of the trucks made in Sealy. Many of the trucks had already been made, and they found it unusual that the Army would seek bids for the rest of those trucks. McCaul’s office relayed that concern to the Army.

In response, Army officials praised BAE’s work but said they would move forward with their plan to seek competitive bids, McCaul spokesman Mike Rosen said.

Surely BAE must have had a reason to be worried beyond the obvious fact that having a competitor means the possibility of losing. What was McCaul doing between then and September when the contract was officially awarded? Maybe he was working at it, and maybe there was nothing he could have done. I just have a hard time understanding how this could have caught people like McCaul off guard.

For 17 years, BAE Systems in Sealy, Texas, has built military trucks called Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles (FMTV) for the US Army in a plant that sits in the heart of the 10th Congressional District.  BAE Systems is the single largest defense contractor in District 10. (Source: USASpending.gov)   The billion dollar contract was recently taken from BAE and awarded to Oshkosh Corp. in Wisconsin costing McCaul's constituents thousands of good paying jobs.  McCaul has yet to produce any documentation that he fought for the Sealy jobs before the contract was awarded or even took the most basic steps to promote the fine work done at the plant. 

Other resources for this story:

• Off the Kuff: BAE Systems & More on BAE Systems
  
• Brains and Eggs: Maybe they can manufacture Republic of Texas trucks
• Houston Chronicle: Truck deal loss may be showing that Texas is losing leverage
• Statesman: Troubled deal could impact McCaul's bid

Michael McCaul Distorts Truth, Continues to Oppose Real Health Reform for Texans

by: Katherine Haenschen

Thu Nov 05, 2009 at 00:00 PM CST

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.

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

TX-10: Will Michael McCaul & Rick Perry Denounce Rush Limbaugh's Call for Re-Segregating Buses?

by: Phillip Martin, Progress Texas

Thu Sep 17, 2009 at 04:17 PM CDT

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.

From Media Matters:

Rush: "[W]e need segregated buses [...] This is Obama's America"

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!

Email Congressman McCaul

Washington, D.C.
131 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
202-225-2401
202-225-5955 (fax)
Office Hours: Monday – Friday, 9:00am – 6:00pm ET

Austin
5929 Balcones Dr. Suite 305
Austin, TX 78731
512-473-2357
512-473-0514 (fax)
Office Hours: Monday – Friday, 8:00am – 5:00pm CT

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.

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, Progress Texas

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."

The Hill Marks 2 Texas House Seats a "Dark Horse Races"

by: Karl-Thomas Musselman

Tue Jul 07, 2009 at 06:27 PM CDT

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.

From The Hill...

1. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas)

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.