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If Rick Noriega continues to refuse to debate Ray McMurrey on the issues facing Texas voters this Election cycle, not only will he have done a disservice to Democratic voters, but he'll be a weaker candidate for it.
The campaign trail does exactly what it is supposed to do, and that is to make the candidates sharper and better prepared. Democratic groups in Texas should stop treating Noriega as the presumptive nominee and hold him to account on the areas where he is vulnerable (accepting contributions from registered lobbyist Bob "Swift Boat" Perry, and his own connections to the energy lobby).
In July of 2006, Vince Leibowitz, who runs a blog that I love, Capitol Annex, had this to say about Kay Bailey Hutchison's refusal to debate Barbara Ann Radnofsky:
"...the thought of debating Barbara Radnofsky evidently scares Kay Bailey Hutchison so bad that she hasn't accepted a single debate invitation that's been extended to date. What is Kay Bailey Hutchison afraid of? That Barbara Radnofsky is smarter than she is? That Barbara Radnofsky knows more than she does? That Barbara Radnofsky has her finger on the pulse of Texas voters more than she does?"
Link
I agreed with Vince completely at the time, and now I think it's fair to say that the same questions could be asked of Rick Noriega. But still, the Texas Progressive Alliance, which Leibowitz chairs, endorsed Noriega saying that Texans have a clear choice.
I don't mean any disrespect to Vince. I've followed his blog for years and I appreciate what the TPA is doing, but as Hugh Stearns has said, the Draft Noriega effort may have been a mistake and it seems that people may be loathe to consider that.
Consider a recent post on BOR about the Texas Environmental Democrats of Austin endorsements:
"Ray McMurrey impressed a lot of people, but it didn't show up in the vote totals. He was the second-to-last candidate to speak, and before he went on over 95% of our ballots had already been cast. But later, I heard a couple of people say they would have changed their votes if they had waited until after he spoke to vote."
Link
Ray McMurrey spoke at their candidate forum, Rick Noriega did not. Ray McMurrey answered their questionnaire, Rick Noriega did not.
http://www.texasenvironmentald...
And yet, the group endorsed Rick Noriega.
Even an informed reader who knows about both candidates and feels that Noriega is a better candidate must agree that the inevitability with which his campaign is being treated is simply a mistake.
I'm personally looking forward to voting for Ray McMurrey on March 4th, and if you're planning on voting in the primary I strongly urge you to take a close, fresh look at the candidates in this race.
Ray McMurrey for US Senate
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