Beltway Will Never Give Up Trying To Write Texas Progressives Out Of The Game

TX-21 candidate Derrick Crowe with Randy "IronStache" Bryce in San Antonio last week

In a post early this morning, we saw how progressive former congressional candidate (PA-07) Paul Perry was so disgusted by the establishment's attitude about fundraising that he withdrew from the race. But it isn't just the DCCC and the DSCC pushing the narrative that nothing matters as much as a candidate's ability to raise money. The Beltway media is just as guilty. Yesterday, Hill reporter Lisa Hagen (reportedly Nina's German cousin) did an analysis about how crowded the Texas primaries are and basically got no further than pushing the narrative that top candidates are the ones who raised the most money. Primaries are March 6 and early voting kicks off on February 20. Runoffs are May 22, which is key because unless a candidate gets 50% on March 6 (in generally crowded races) Texas mandates runoffs.

The first district she tackles is TX-23, a seat currently held by Republican Will Hurd, who won it from corrupt Blue Dog Pete Gallego, now a slimy lobbyist, in 2014. Here's The Hill's analysis of the race:

Hurd’s Hispanic-majority border district has been a perennial target for both parties, and one that Republicans have held since 2015.

Democrats see it as a key opportunity to flip a seat after Clinton won it by more than 3 points. Hurd, a former CIA officer, only carried the district by a little over a point in 2016.

The crowded field features five candidates, but two have emerged as front-runners ahead of the March primary. Jay Hulings, a former federal prosecutor, currently leads in fundraising and is an ally of two brothers who loom large in Texas Democratic circles, Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas) and former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro.

Gina Ortiz Jones, a former Air Force intelligence officer, has also proven she can fundraise. Jones has also garnered some significant endorsements, most notably from EMILY’s List.

Jones’s residency has come under scrutiny because she has benefited from an out-of-state homestead deduction, but Jones has said she’s lived in the 23rd District since June.

Here's what Nina's American cousin Lisa left out. She's right that the district has a Hispanic majority. But it's more than a majority-- it's 71% Hispanic and just 24.8% white. The PVI is R+1 and Hillary scored 49.8% against Trump's 46.4%. On that same day there was a rematch between Hurd and Gallego. In the 2014 midterm, Hurd had beaten Gallego 57,459 (49.8%) to 55,037 (47.7%) In the 2016 rematch-- despite Hillary's win-- Hurd was reelection 110,577 (48.3%) to 107,526 (47%). Gallego tried running against this year but the DCCC persuaded him not to.

"Two have emerged as front-runners," the Blue Dog, and Castro machine candidate, conservative Jay Huling and another conservative Gina Ortiz Jones, the EMILY's List candidate. No one outside of DC cares about EMILY's List and they have proven to be far more detrimental to candidates than helpful. Neither of these crap candidates is Hispanic-- the population is only 71% Hispanic, so why should that matter? The 3 non-frontrunners are all Hispanic, Angela Villescaz, Judy Canales and Rick Treviño. As of the September 30 FEC reporting deadline Hulings had raised $200,100, Jones $103,688, Canales $10,125 and Treviño, who had just gotten into the race a few days before the reporting deadline, $1,838. But the main thing Hagen-- the the Beltway media in general-- misses is that it isn't just about money. Hulings and Jones aren't part of the community. They're establishment elites. Jones lives in DC and has been in the district for over 2 decades. To get into the run-off what Rick Treviño has to do is mobilize the 36% of the voters who opted for Bernie in 2016. He founded the Bernie for President organizations in San Antonio and Laredo. He's been endorsed by Bernie-associated organizations like Our Revolution-Texas and the National Nurses Union and his whole campaign is about community activism, not about dialing for dollars. His platform is about the people who live in the community, just as Bernie's was:

1- Health Care as a Right-- Rick believes that healthcare is a right of all people and not a privilege. In the United States of America no one should die because they can't afford to see a doctor. America's health care system is broken. Rick will fight for a Single-Payer Medicare for All system that will lower health care costs and provide better services to all.
2- A Living Wage for America-- Rick believes that in the richest country in the history of the world no one who works forty hours a week should live in poverty. Adjusted for inflation, our minimum wage is lower than that of a worker 50 years ago. Rick will fight for a $15 dollar living wage tied to inflation that will help so many low income workers enter the middle class.
3- Free Public Colleges and Universities-- For District 23 to complete in a highly technical and globalized world we need the best educated workforce. Unfortunately, the cost of higher education drives students to abandon their dreams or be burdened with crushing tuition debt. It is time that the United States join the rest of the industrialized world and provide tuition free public colleges and universities to all its students.
4- Climate Change and Clean Energy-- The debate is over. Climate Change is real and it is affecting our precious environment as we speak. If we don't get a handle on Climate Change soon our children and grandchildren will inherit a deteriorating planet that cannot provide a good quality of life. Clean renewable energy like wind, solar, hydroelectric, and geothermal is the pathway towards a clean environment and energy independence. Excitingly, District 23 is in a unique position to take advantage of all these renewable energies. District 23 can have one of the most dynamic economic sectors if we make a commitment to invest in our citizens and district. Clean energy jobs will provide a robust and thriving economy, while at the same time ensuring a good future for our planet and families.

None of that in The Hill article. And it was the same in every district. Never mind that Lillian Salerno is running on incredible, useful ideas. The "analysis" of the race in TX-32 was just about she, Ed Meier and Colin Allred simply being able to raise lots of money, primarily from wealthy friends and special interests. In TX-07, not a mention of the grassroots excitement being generated by progressive candidates Laura Moser and Jason Westin, each of whom has raised substantial 6-figure hauls, while unimpressive establishmentarians Alex Triantaphyllis (a district-shopping carpetbagger) and Elizabeth Pannill Fletcher have raised more... so they're the "frontrunners." And, again, EMILY's List endorsed Fletcher, as though that means something positive. Nothing about platforms, nothing about grassroots engagement as if those factors are meaningless (which they are for the DCCC and the Beltway media). If you want to contribute to the best progressives running in Texas, just tap on that "Turning Texas Blue" thermometer on the right.