This is our last Texas Tuesday of the 2004 election cycle. We wrap things up today with a look at the senior Democrat of the Texas delegation, Charlie Stenholm. He may have the toughest fight of all the redistricted incumbents, but he's up to it. Check him out, and please consider helping him, helping all the Texas Democrats, and helping the DCCC.
You just never know what can happen in an election. Jim Bunning melts down in Kentucky, Tom Coburn goes crazy for teenage lesbians in Oklahoma, Alan Keyes...well, you know. And now we have an incumbent Republican State Rep in West Texas who's been busy driving drunk, exposing himself, and arguing with DPS officers. Read all about it at Texas Tuesdays.
For our penultimate Texas Tuesday of this cycle, we bring you an update on the campaign of Rep. Max Sandlin, running a strong race for reelection in CD01. This promises to be a tight race, and though Sandlin continues to lead in cash on hand, his opponent raised more money than he did last quarter. There's two weeks left, so don't pass up an opportunity to help make a difference by supporting Max, supporting all Texas Tuesdays candidates, and supporting the DCCC. The wind is at our back nationally. Let's make sure some of that breeze blows in Texas.
Today's Texas Tuesday feature is Rep. Nick Lampson, running to keep his seat in the new CD02. I've said this before and I'll say it again: Lampson is the first candidate I ever gave money to, back in 1996 when he ousted the nutjob Steve Stockman. I've had a couple of chances to talk to him over the years, and he's always been very generous with his time. I want to see all of our candidates win, but I really really want to see Lampson win. As with Martin Frost, you can help in the usual ways: give to Lampson, give to all Texas Tuesday candidates, or give to the DCCC's Million for a Majority campaign. Lampson had the money edge as of the last quarterly reporting period, but the NRCC has been going hard after him. Let's not let them drown us out.
And here we are again for another exciting Texas Tuesday, with our special guest star Chet Edwards. Get the latest scoop and a Q&A here and here. We're officially in the home stretch now, with four weeks to go, and every dollar is donated is huge. You kow what comes next - Give to Chet Edwards, give to all the deserving Democrats, and/or give to the DCCC. I thank you, they thank you, and your country thanks you.
Yes, it's time for another edition of Texas Tuesdays, this time featuring special guest star Martin Frost. Byron has a state of the race overview and a chat with the Frost campaign that you should check out.
We're about to enter our last month of Texas Tuesdays, so before you know it, I'll be done nagging you about them. But since we're not done yet, you can donate to Martin Frost, you can donate to all Texas Tuesdays candidates, and you can donate to the DCCC. This offer expires November 2, so don't get caught out in the cold.
UPDATE: How could I fail to note BlogPAC and its pro-Frost ad?
Time for another Texas Tuesdays Twofer, this week starring Morris Meyer and Lorenzo Sadun, two creative and hardworking candidates fighting the good fight on tough terrain. Check it all out:
Meyer intro
Meyer interview
Donate to Meyer
Sadun intro
Sadun overview
Sadun interview
Donate to Sadun
Posts for these and all other Texas Tuesday candidates can be found on our ActBlue page, which of course also provides an easy way to donate to them. And don't forget the DCCC, who's working hard for every deserving Democrat. We're six weeks out, people. There's no time like the present to make a difference.
We got a huge response yesterday to Richard Morrison's appearance on Texas Tuesdays. Who knew so many people didn't like Tom DeLay? There's a long list of thank-yous here and a personal message from Richard here. As always, it's never a bad time to donate to Richard Morrison, to donate to any Texas Tuesday candidate, to donate to the DCCC, or to find a worthy candidate and volunteer your time and energy.
We'll keep bringing you information about Texas' fine slate of Democratic Congressional incumbents and candidates. There's no room to let up - those fun-loving folks at the Club for Growth are spending their nickels on two Texas races, setting their sights on Nick Lampson and Chet Edwards. Chron columnist Cragg Hines takes a look at Edwards' race against Arlene "Memorial Day Massacre" Wohlgemuth. This is what we're up against, folks. Please do what you can to help.
I've been flogging the various Tom DeLay scandals and outrages for some time now. I do this for two reasons. One is that I think DeLay is a corrupt, morally bankrupt charlatan who can't be removed from power quickly enough. The other reason, one which I think is even more important, is that I believe in Richard Morrison. Having met and spoken to him several times, I can say in all earnestness that he's the kind of person I want to see in Congress. He'll represent the people who live in his district, and not the prevailing moneyed interests. He'll stand for the sensible middle that everyone complains gets the short shrift, rather than the extreme fringe. He'll care about good and efficient governance, rather than government as a means to an ideological end. I can't say enough about him, and I strongly encourage you to check him out for yourself.
Texas Tuesdays is proud to feature Richard Morrison, the next Congressman from Sugar Land. The intro is here and the latest interview is here. There may be a guest post later, so check back for details. You can help Richard Morrison by making a donation, or if you live in the area, by volunteering to help the campaign. You can see our earlier interviews with Richard on the Texas Tuesdays ActBlue page, where you can also make a donation to him or any of the other Texas Democratic candidates. And finally, you can help the DCCC help Morrison. We've got seven weeks left, and every little bit counts.
Admit it - yesterday felt like Monday, right? If so, then today must be Texas Tuesday, with our special guest star Jim Nickerson, running against Ralph "I Was DINO Before DINO Was Cool" Hall in CD04. Learn more about Jim here and here, and show him some love. This starts our return engagement with the Congressional races, which will continue through Election Day. We'll have the ActBlue page updated for Nickerson later today and will keep it updated for all of the Texas Tuesdays candidates as we go forward.
We wind up our tour through the State House today with a look at Stephen Frost, running to replace the retiring Killer D Barry Telford in HD1. This is a seat that the Democrats should hold, but just as we get excited about possibly picking up open Republican seats, they get excited about maybe picking up some of our open seats, and we all know they have the resources to give it their best shot. HD1 is also one of the areas that Max Sandlin will need to do well in to win, so helping Frost is a twofer. Check out the intro and the interview, and as always, if you like what you see, you know what to do.
Next week, we start again on Congress. You can find links to our earlier coverage of Congress, as well as a convenient way to make donations, here on our ActBlue page.
We're getting close to the end of our tour through the State House, but that doesn't mean we're close to running out of good candidates to highlight. Today's special guest star is David Leibowitz, who's running in a very winnable district in San Antonio. Check out the intro to David and the intro to the district, and check back later for a Q&A.
Today's special guest star is Rep. Scott Hochberg from SD 137. Scott is a Rice grad, a go-to player in the House on all things education, and one of the all around good guys in Austin. Check out the brief intro here and the thorough analysis of the race here, and as always if you like what you see, let him know it.
They say everything is bigger in Texas, and that goes for our Tuesdays as well. This week's Texas Tuesday is so big, it covers all of Wednesday. Meet Hubert Vo, our featured candidate for today, read his intro and his analysis of the race he faces against incumbent Talmadge Heflin, and of course, donate to the cause.
Due to technical difficulties with the TexasTuesdays.com webhost, which kept the site unavailable to us until a few minutes ago, we are postponing this week's Texas Tuesday until tomorrow. It may look like Wednesday to you, but it'll still be Texas Tuesday. Look for the usual announcement in the morning. Thanks for your patience.
It's Twofer Tuesday on Texas Tuesdays today, as we feature Charlotte Coffelt and Wade Weems, two Houston-area candidates who are trying to conquer some challenging territory. Read about Wade here and here, and about Charlotte here and here, and if you like what you see you can help them out here and here.
I know everyone's eyes are focused on Boston right now, but back here in Austin we've got another fine Texas Tuesdays candidate for your approval in Kelly White, former executive director of SafePlace. Though this is her first run at public office, she's got an extensive resume in public service, and she's running against yet another TAB/TRM-enhanced incumbent. Meet Kelly White, check out the Q&A with Kelly White, and of course if you like what you see, please make a donation to Kelly White.
I've set up an ActBlue page for all of the Texas Tuesdays Congressional candidates (ActBlue is for federal candidates only, so no State Rep hopefuls). It'll serve as a repository for links to the profile/interview posts that we've done and will do, and as a convenient entry point for making donations. Check it out and let me know what you think.
Time for another Texas Tuesday, this time featuring Harris County's own Jim Dougherty. He's running against the notorious Martha "No Thong" Wong in SD 134, and he should have a decent shot of making a race out of it. Greg Wythe brings you some good analysis of the district and Dougherty's prospects, and a Q&A with Dougherty. Check it out, and as always, if you like what you see, please give him a hand.
Today's featured candidate on Texas Tuesdays is Jeanette Popp, a woman who became politically active after the wrong men were convicted of her daughter's murder. If that makes her sound like an unconventional candidate, she is. Read her story and see for yourself what an extraordinary person she is. We'll have an interview with her up later today. If you like what you see about Jeanette Popp, please consider helping her out.
UPDATE: And the interview is up.
More Texas Tuesdays goodness from Mark Strama, who gave us a nice interview. Here's a taste, on the question "what have you learned from your experience working in State Sen. Rodney Ellis' office?"
Probably the most important lesson I learned from him is that politicians, to preserve their integrity, must be willing to lose their office. I remember one time when Rodney was confronted with a choice between doing what he thought was right, and doing what was politically expedient. He was genuinely concerned – wrongly, as it later turned out – that voting his conscience on this issue could actually get him defeated in a future election. He thought hard about it, and when he made his decision, he called me on the phone (which I remember vividly, because it was 4 in the morning when he called), and said, “The heck with it, I’m doing the right thing. And if I get defeated, I’ll still be a lawyer, I’ll still be an investment banker, I’ll still be Nicole Ellis’ daddy, and I’ll still be an interesting guy to talk to at a cocktail party.”
Another Tuesday, another fine candidate to check out on Texas Tuesdays. Today's feature is Mark Strama, running against first-term incumbent Jack Stick in Austin's SD 50. This is a race that has been targeted by the state Democratic Party, and it should be a competitive one - Stick won with 55% of the vote in 2002, but both John Sharp and Kirk Watson carried the district, and Ron Kirk garnered 48%. I see this is being kind of a bellwether race - if the Dems win here, they're probably having a good day around the state, while if they lose here, things are probably going pretty well for the GOP.
Anyway, Strama is an exciting candidate with a background in both politics and the Internet. Check out the intro to Mark and the look at his campaign academy, and check back later for an interview with him. If you like what you see, please consider helping him out.
Thanks as always to everyone who helped spread the word about Jake Gilbreath, a name I'm sure you'll be hearing many times in the future. Be sure to check out this report on Jake that Byron filed later in the day yesterday. Next stop - Mark Strama, another name you'll be getting very familiar with real soon.
And we start our look at the State House candidates with Jake Gilbreath, who as a student at George Washington University is the youngest candidate running for state office in Texas this year. We've got an intro to Jake, an overview of the district, and an interview with Jake up on the TT site, so check him out and if you like what you see make a donation. Go Jake!
Rep. Max Sandlin's campaign site has undergone a redesign, and the index page now features a blog. Check it out, it looks pretty cool.
Now that the state convention is behind us (there's a slightly updated list of convention reports here), it's time to regroup and focus even more on the many important races going on in Texas. Towards that end, Texas Tuesdays will start featuring candidates for the State House. Many of these names will be less familiar to you, and many of these races will seem a bit remote, but we saw last summer how important control of the State House is, and these candidates represent hope for retaking that control. Please check out the still-to-grow list of candidates that we plan on featuring in the coming weeks, and follow the links to the candidates' websites to learn more about them. With your help, we can send Tom Craddick and his cronies back to the sidelines where they belong.
Richard Morrison meets the bloggers at Kaveh Kanes and answers a few questions. Check it out.
Just when I thought we'd have a quiet week at the Texas Tuesdays site, we received a guest post from Max Sandlin's campaign manager. Check it out.
Texas Tuesdays is taking the week off due to the Democratic convention, which starts this Thursday. I've mentioned the Friday Blogger Caucus before, so consider this a reminder to come by and meet up with some of your favorite Texas progressive political bloggers from 1 to 3 at Kaveh Kanes downtown. Directions and details can be found here, and as an extra added bonus, Congressional candidate Richard Morrison has promised to make an appearance as well. Hope to see you there!
For obvious reasons, I'll be pretty much a no-show at the Democratic convention, but I will be able to make it to the first ever Texas political bloggers caucus next Friday the 17th from 1-3 PM at Kaveh Kanes downtown. Come join us if you can. Leave a comment at the Texas Tuesdays post if you have any questions. See you there!
Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet, nor sleep deprivation caused by new babies can stop us from bringing you another Texas Tuesday, with this week's feature being Rep. Martin Frost. We've also got a reposting of the interviews that Byron and I did awhile back. Check it out and lend a hand if you can.
My Texas Tuesdays colleage Gary Beason has a nice interview with Rep. Max Sandlin up on the TT site. Check it out. If nothing else, this ought to impress you about Sandlin:
Chili Pepper Magazine called you the “Zestiest Legislator.” Can you still eat eight peppers and chug a bottle of Tabasco sauce?Two years ago I ate eight peppers and chugged a bottle of Tabasco sauce in five minutes as part of a competition between chili pepper providing states. Last year, I ate 42 peppers in five minutes along with the Tabasco closer.
[whoa!]
I wish they would think of a new competition—enough is enough!
There's a second post about some lies Sandlin's opponent is spreading in his early campaign advertising. Now, I certainly wish that Sandlin had voted against the so-called (and currently deemed to be unconstitutional) "Partial Birth Abortion" ban, but I cannot understand the utility of claiming that he did when a little websurfing proves it to be untrue. If Louie Gohmert is going to lie about easily-checked facts, what will he do about stuff that's harder to check, or stuff that requires taking his word for it?
Morat says:
For the record, I think Texas Tuesdays is a great resource to those of us living in Texas, and hope similar sites spring up for the other 49 states. Nothing beats an informed electorate.
I continue to see straws in the wind that make me think this could be a year for sweeping changes. It's been ten years since the Republican takeover in 1994. Dick Armey thinks the time may be right to make a case for throwing the current set of bums out. The Bonassus reminds us that a big chunk of the "Contract With America" was more about reforms within Congress than about sweeping visionary legislation. With all of the DeLay scandals, the Medicare vote including the Nick Smith bribery allegations, and so on and so forth, turning those tables should be easily doable.
But even if you put all that aside, what this has been about as much as anything has been banding together for a common goal. It's about doing something rather than hoping someone else will. It's about taking part in this allegedly participatory democracy that we have. It's about trying to make a difference. I could keep reaching into the bag of pompous, high-minded syllogisms here, but you get the point.
So yeah, steal this idea. Do us one better. I don't mind at all.
UPDATE: Nick Confessore pours a little cold water on the "Contract with America" logic.
Props to Byron for doing such a great job with yesterday's Texas Tuesday posts on Rep. Chet Edwards, and thanks to all the bloggers who participated. Special thanks to Richard Morrison for giving back to the effort with a blog link. If you need one last reason why you should make that donation to the Edwards campaign, may I suggest reading this article about the huge drop in the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) enrollment, and note that the principle architect behind it was Edwards' opponent in November.
Byron's working hard today at the Texas Tuesdays page, with two excellent updates on Rep. Chet Edwards. Check 'em out here and here, and please remember to kick in to the cause.
I know, it feels like Monday today. But it's not, and that can only mean one thing: It's time for another Texas Tuesday, with our very special guest star Rep. Chet Edwards. Byron has a nice intro to Rep. Edwards and the race that he faces (also analyzed by Greg Wythe), and as always he'll have more later today. Drop by, check out Rep. Edwards, and if you can please lend him a hand.
Thanks for another successful Texas Tuesday, featuring Rep. Max Sandlin this week. We hope you enjoy reading about the candidates and getting the chance to help them out.
We were asked in the comments yesterday about an RSS feed. This is a Movable Type site, so it creates a feed automatically - it's http://www.texastuesdays.com/index.rdf. One thing we hope to have soon is a little utility that can be added to one's sidebar which will show recent posts. We'll announce that here when it's ready.
Next week we'll be featuring Rep. Chet Edwards. You can get an early jump on helping Edwards, as well as giving one last boost to Sandlin, by voting in this Longview News-Journal poll. It's not scientific, of course, but what the heck, it's fun.
Thanks to everyone who helped promote this week's event:
The People's Republic of Seabrook
A number of blogs (which I haven't yet fully counted) have also added the TT link to their sidebar. We thank you very much for that, too!
It's still Tuesday, so there's still time to participate in Texas Tuesdays and lend a hand to Rep. Max Sandlin. Check out what Gary has posted about him, and do what you can to make a difference in this tight race.
A bit of a late start today, but that's OK because today's featured candidate, Rep. Max Sandlin, is worth waiting for. He's got a spiffy new website and another cookie-cutter redistricting-abetted opponent, so hop on over, check him out, and toss him a few coins if you can. Be sure to check back later today for more info - there's been some action up in the 1st CD lately.
Thanks once again to everyone who participated in this week's Texas Tuesday for Rep. Nick Lampson. We're still trying to get some kind of interview with him up on the Texas Tuesdays site - this is still an experiment, and there are still a few bugs in the system, so we appreciate your patience. Greg did post a news roundup yesterday afternoon, so check that out. And if you're still looking for a reason to make a donation to the Lampson campaign, consider this:
Vice President Dick Cheney plans to visit Houston on Friday to provide fund-raising muscle for Ted Poe, the Republican candidate for the 2nd Congressional District.The breakfast fund-raiser should provide a needed shot in the arm for Poe, a former state district judge from Houston who is running against U.S. Rep. Nick Lampson, D-Beaumont.
Poe's campaign war chest was almost drained during his March GOP primary against five other Republicans.
As of March 31, Poe had a cash balance of $34,691. Lampson -- who was unopposed in the Democratic primary -- had $490,029.
Organizers said Friday's event at the Houstonian featuring Cheney is expected to raise $150,000 to $200,000.
Poe said he expects to have more than $250,000 by the next reporting deadline, June 30.
"It is great encouragement to have Vice President Cheney and the White House supporting our congressional race," Poe said. "We're honored and humbled."
[...]
After leaving Houston on Friday, he is expected to attend similar events in Texas for two other Republicans challenging Democratic U.S. House incumbents. They are state Rep. Arlene Wohlgemuth of Burleson, who faces U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards of Waco, and former appeals court Judge Louis Gohmert of Tyler, who faces U.S. Rep. Max Sandlin of Marshall.
Anyway, here are the citations from yesterday:
The People's Republic of Seabrook
And special thanks to The Stakeholder for adding Texas Tuesdays to their sidebar.
Please let me know if I missed anyone!
Greg is your tour guide for Texas Tuesdays today, and as we celebrate the launch of the new site, be sure to check out today's featured pol, Rep. Nick Lampson.
Nick Lampson is the first politician I ever gave money to, back in 1996 when he was running against the execrable nutball Steve Stockman, who had ousted 40-year incumbent Jack Brooks in the purge of 1994. He's been an effective and moderate voice for his constituents, and his success in getting reelected in his mostly-Republican district made him a marked man during last year's redistricting travesty. I have no doubt that he'll run as good and tough a campaign as one can run against eccentric former judge Ted Poe, but he's going to need all the help he can get. Please consider chipping in to make his victory possible.
At the time I published the Morris Meyer interview as part of this week's Texas Tuesdays, I didn't have URLs for the various newspaper stories that he cited - the HTML got munched somewhere between his mail program and mine. It's fixed now, so if you want to go back and check his sources, you can. If you click on only one story, read A fresh face, his intro to Waxahachie voters from their hometown paper. And remember, when it comes to supporting good candidates like Morris Meyer, it may not be Tuesday, but it can always be Texas Tuesday.
Thanks once again to everyone who participated in Texas Tuesdays, this week on behalf of Morris Meyer. We're continuing to define and refine the process, and as we go along we hope to get the message of our many excellent candidates out to supporters everywhere. More people participated this week, and as we go forward we hope to keep building on what we've done before. We may even have a few surprises for you in the coming weeks, so stay tuned.
A big thank you to the following bloggers for helping spread the word:
Skeptical Notion (soon to be on its own domain)
The People's Republic of Seabrook
Continuing with Texas Tuesdays, here's a brief interview with our featured candidate, Morris Meyer from CD06. Remember, the goal here is to help him in his battle against Smokey Joe Barton, so please help us help him by kicking in a few bucks to his coffers, remembering as always to add on that $0.36 extra as a "from the blogs" tag. Click on the More link to read the interview with Morris Meyer.
How much traction have you gotten in your campaign against "Smokey Joe" Barton so far?
We've received extensive press coverage for our campaign regarding our environmental stand against "Smokey Joe".
Here is a sampling of some of the press coverage:
Dallas Morning News, March 20, 2004, Donors have stake in smog move
Dallas Morning News, March 23, 2004, Barton's talk on Ellis' pollution turns contentious
Waxahachie Daily Light, March 25, 2004, Barton explains clean air stance
Waxahachie Daily Light, April 4, 2004, Politics heat air debate; Democrat calls foul
Waxahachie Daily Light, April 8, 2004, Cement plants could get public funds
Waxahachie Daily Light, April 16, 2004, EPA: Ellis County on non-attainment list
Waxahachie Daily Light, April 29, 2004, Video slots proposal raises ire
Environment and Energy Daily, May 4, 2004, Barton faces challenge on air quality issues
Do you find that the people in the new 6th CD are receptive to your message?
We received an early near endorsement from the leading conservative publisher of the Waxahachie Daily Light in Barton's home county: Waxahachie Daily Light, April 9, 2004, A fresh face.
I had lunch with the leader of an 80 family moderate Republican activist group who fought Joe Barton and his cement plant patrons TXI on a bond issue that would have given tax breaks to a profitable industry at the expense of the public school system in Midlothian. He and I discussed a wide range of issues and he told me that "I've never voted for a Democrat in my life, but our organization is going to work for you".
How concerned are the voters in your district about pollution and clean-air regulations?
Joe Barton's negatives in two recent polls taken among likely Republican women voters are running in excess of 70%. The Dallas Morning News and Fort Worth Star-Telegram have written extensively about Barton's decades-long stance catering to the polluters over the health of the people of north Texas.
You've interacted quite a bit with the blog community - BlogAds, a guest post on Eschaton, etc. How has this benefitted you?
As a software engineer, we have been working on a strong technical campaign and were the first Texas campaign to embrace BlogAds. We received national attention from our early run and raised the early seed capital necessary to fund our fundraising efforts and establish offices in Tarrant and Ellis counties.
What is your strategy from this point on?
First, build an e-mail list of at least 50,000 voters in the 6th CD. Second, raise at least $500,000 by the first of October. Third, attract and train at least 3,000 campaign volunteers to work block by block every precinct in the district.
What three things would you most like to see happen in your race, and what are you doing to make them happen?
Get Joe Barton to debate me in all eight counties - we are in discussions with media outlets in these counties and are putting pressure on Barton's camp to participate.
Get the mainstream media to cover this race before September. We are putting out press releases on breaking news issues and have received good coverage thus far.
Build a community driven movement behind our campaign emphasizing the issues that concern moderate and swing voters - healthcare, good jobs, a clean environment and education.
What one thing would you like the voters in the 6th CD to know about you and about your opponent when they go to cast their votes in November?
Joe Barton represents no one but himself and the special interests that line his pockets. Morris Meyer will represent all the citizens of this district without regard to financial contributions or partisan labels.
Our featured candidate in this week's edition of Texas Tuesdays is Morris Meyer, running against incumbent "Smokey Joe" Barton in the 6th CD. If you're a blog reader, you've probably come across Meyer one place or another, through his guest post on Atrios last month and fire-breathing blog ads. Meyer's been at work on the campaign for awhile now, during which he's been quick to embrace bloggers and the potential of this new audience - only fitting for a software engineer by trade - and he's been generating some good press for himself in CD06. As with last week, we'll be bringing you a short interview and a guest post from the man himself, so stay tuned through the day, and take a moment to help Morris Meyer out with a donation or two. Please add on an extra $0.36 to let him know that it came from the Texas Tuesday effort. And we're off!
Nearly $500 was raised yesterday for Richard Morrison, which is a pretty decent total and an encouraging beginning to Texas Tuesdays. I'd like to thank all of the bloggers who helped promote this effort:
The People's Republic of Seabrook
As the wrapup to Texas Tuesday, here's a guest post by Richard Morrison on the YDB. Thanks again to everyone who made this a successful beginning.
Continuing with the Texas Tuesdays tradition (hey, we've had more than two posts now, so that makes it a full-fledged tradition now), YDB has a brief interview with Richard Morrison.
What are you hearing voters on the campaign trail say about the race and Tom DeLay?People are excited that I'm running! Honestly, the feedback I've gotten has
been the most rewarding and inspiring part of this whole experience. I can't
tell you how many people have told me, "Richard, I'm a Republican, but I
just can't vote for that Tom DeLay any more. You'll be the first Democrat
I've ever voted for, but I'm going to do it because I believe you'll do a
better job of representing me and my family in Congress."
Meanwhile, here's my interview with Morrison from a few months back, when he was just starting out. The more you know Richard Morrison, the more you'll like him.
Today is the debut of Texas Tuesdays, in which our coalition of bloggers raises awareness and hopefully a little money for some deserving Congressional and State House candidates. We lead off today with Richard Morrison, who is taking on Tom DeLay and has been buoyed by a recent poll that shows shallow support for the embattled Majority Leader. Everyone knows what last year's redistricting did to all of the Democratic incumbents, but CD22 is quite a bit different as well, with a sizeable chunk of Galveston County relocated there from Rep. Nick Lampson's old district. That's one reason why Lampson had been rumored to run against DeLay himself this time around, and it's one reason why DeLay's numbers may not be so hot right now - there are a lot of voters in CD22 now who are new to him.
You can help Richard's cause by donating to his campaign. As the Yellow Dog Blog suggests, please add $0.36 so he'll know where the donation came from. The YDB will have a guest post by Richard Morrison later today, so check back with them for that and for more info on what's happening today. Let's make Texas Tuesdays a success!
You know all about the rise of the small donor in this year's election cycle, right? And you know how successful Atrios has been with his John Kerry Thursdays, right? Well, nothing succeeds like success, so get ready to mark a couple more days on your weekly planner: The DCCC has rolled out Hard Sell Monday, and tomorrow will be the debut of Texas Tuesdays. Watch this space and the Yellow Dog Blog for more info on the latter, which will be aimed at helping out the various Texas Democratic Congressional candidates plus a few State House hopefuls. We're six months out from Election Day, and there's no time like the present to get ready for it.
