State Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth, said Monday that she will either run for re-election or for Texas governor, and that she's working hard to make her decision.
Speaking at a National Press Club luncheon, Davis said those were the only two options, and that she's not considering joining the lieutenant governor's race. She did not indicate when she'll make up her mind.
"People do feel we need a change from the very fractured, very partisan leadership we’re seeing in Texas right now," she said.
In her speech on Monday, Davis painted Texas Republicans as being driven by party politics, criticizing Perry in particular for his job-luring trips to New York and California and his veto of equal work-equal pay legislation. Davis tried to portray herself as above party interests, saying she had worked on “issues people don’t usually associate with Democrats” such as transportation and water funding.
“I will seek common ground because we must,” Davis said. “But sometimes you have to take a stand on sacred ground.”
Davis also spoke out against the restrictions on abortion clinics lawmakers recently passed and previous cuts to family planning in Texas, saying she relied on free and low-cost women's health care as a young woman. "Partisan legislation on top of years of significant budget cuts has cut that access for tens of thousands of women across the state," she said.
Following her address, Matt Angle, a senior strategist for the Davis campaign, said he expects her to make a decision on her political future before Labor Day.
Just about every pundit that has weighed in on this expects Davis to forgo a reelection bid and launch a campaign for Governor in the next few weeks.
And let's face it, with women being groped by police officers, legislators stripping away women's reproductive rights every time they reconvene, and Republicans dragging the state back to the dark ages, Texas needs a progressive woman in charge now more than ever.
This may be the first time in my life that I have ever wanted to go to Texas voluntarily, but I would do it to help with this campaign.
I just wish we could clone Wendy Davis so we could have one up here in Alaska as well.
Texas has always had a "Frontier Mentality" but this is the worst I have seen. When I was an undergrad at UT-Austin back in the late 60s and early 70s, the police were not as out-of-control as they are now. Austin back then was (by today's standards) very liberal. The whole vibe was "kinder and gentler". What the hell happened to TX? Some of my friends and family who still live there say that the Tea Party happened to TX and then George W. Bush happened to TX, or maybe vice-versa. I hope the women of TX can turn things around, 'cause TX can be a mighty nice place and I would hate to see it become "a no-man's land" (pun intended).
ReplyDeleteTexas wants this lady for their Governor, they are just too afraid (Individually ) of eachother to say or show it, If she runs and I hope she does she will win in a landslide !
ReplyDeleteWendy being a young single mom has greatly influenced Bristol.
ReplyDeleteBristol has enrolled in college and is planning on going to Harvard Law School.
Keep the Koch brothers and their ilk out of Texas! I agree with Gra'ma Banana; Texas used to be a wonderful state until the Republicans took over. Let's take Texas back, ladies!
ReplyDeleteI saw this in the NYT this morning. Wendy Davis is everything Sarah Palin will never be.
ReplyDeleteFinally, Thousands of Old Rape-Evidence Kits Are to Be Tested
Thousands of evidence kits collected from rape victims that have sat untested for years in Texas can now be analyzed, thanks to an $11 million budget appropriation earmarked for the Texas Department of Public Safety.
The line-item financing disbursement was passed as part of the state’s biennial budget during the regular 83rd legislative session. It follows the 2011 approval of related legislation filed by Senator Wendy Davis, Democrat of Fort Worth.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/04/us/finally-thousands-of-old-rape-evidence-kits-are-to-be-tested.html?ref=texas&_r=0
Republicans Seek to Decriminalize Rape and Other Crimes Against Women
ReplyDeletehttp://www.politicususa.com/2013/08/06/republicans-seek-decriminalize-rape-crimes-women.html
5 ways fundamentalists misinterpret the Bible
ReplyDeleteRight-wing Evangelical Fundamentalism claims to “go back to roots of Christianity.” In fact, the “literal” (i.e. the earth was created in seven literal days) reading of the Bible was invented in the 19th century. Few fundamentalists care about the early church, the Gospels, the Catholic traditions, Augustine, Arian heresies, encyclicals and councils. Rather, they blend Southern Conservatism, bastardized Protestantism, some Pauline doctrine, gross nationalism and a heavy dose of naive anti-intellectualism for a peculiar American strain of bullshit. As Reverend Cornel West has noted, “the fundamentalist Christians want to be fundamental about everything, except ‘love thy neighbor.’”
Here are some verses we liberal Christians wish they would get “fundamentalist” about:
...5. Women
The Verse:
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. – Galatians 3:28
Why Fundamentalists Hate it:
Although the right often claims the Bible supports their absurd ideas about gender roles (just like the Bible supported anti-miscegenation) such claims have been thoroughly debunked by theologians. Generally, when you’ll hear an explanation of why women belong in the home, it’ll rely on a misreading of one of Paul’s doctrines.
In contrast to Paul, Christ rarely concerned himself with sexual mores, he was far more concerned with fighting oppression. Fundamentalists want to keep women submissive and subservient, but Jesus won’t let them. In Luke, for instance, Jesus is blessed by a priestess named Anna. He praises a woman who stands up to a judge and demands justice. It’s worth noting that in a time when women could not testify in a court of law, all four resurrection stories have women arriving first to Jesus’ tomb (although it’s unclear which women). Jesus talks with a Samaritan woman at a well and praises Mary Magdalene for listening to his words (Luke 10:38-42).
Fundamentalism Obscures True Religion
These verses are powerful and I believe that they should be carefully considered.
I worry that Christianity and religion in general is represented by its most conservative, fundamentalists elements. Remember that Marx drew his the inspiration for his famous quote “From each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs” from the example of the early church (Acts 4:32-35).
I understand the fun that Sam Harris and Reddit have destroying fundamentalism, and I went to a Christian college and had jolly good time of it as well. “Haven’t you read your own book?” I would ask smugly. But once the gleeful potshots are finished, we all have to face the fundamental and aching deprivation of having been born. We can continue to have a fun time berating those who believe the Bible explains science and that there was a snake in the Garden of Eden, but it’s really a waste.
The Christian message doesn’t contradict science, and nor is it concerned with bourgeois politics. Ultimately Christianity (and many other religions) are about transcending politics and fighting for social justice. Think of Martin Luther King Jr., Desmond Tutu, Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi and Thich Quang Duc – all of whom were influenced by their religion to change the world. Jesus saw how oppression and oppressors consumed the world. He, as all great reformers have, sided with the oppressed. This kind of skewed fundamentalism is radically new and far removed from true Christianity. True Christianity offers us a far superior doctrine — one of social justice, love and equality.
http://www.salon.com/2013/08/06/when_fundamentalists_get_liberal_about_the_bible_partner/
Ok Texas voters, time to boycott!
ReplyDeleteRick Perry Vetoed Texas Equal Pay Bill Under Pressure From Macy's, Kroger's
Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) vetoed a bill this summer to help prevent wage discrimination after receiving letters against the measure from retailers like Macy's and Kroger Food Stores, according to documents newly obtained by the Houston Chronicle.
The bill would have brought Texas state law in line with the federal Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which makes it easier for women to sue employers over wage discrimination.
Perry said in his veto statement in June that he objected to the bill because it "duplicates federal law, which already allows employees who feel they have been discriminated against through compensation to file a claim with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission." He also said he was concerned that it could lead to more regulations and hurt job creation.
The Houston Chronicle obtained letters sent to Perry by the Texas Retailers Association and five of its members before he issued his veto. In addition to representatives from Macy's and Kroger's, the Houston grocery company Gerland Corp., Brookshire Grocery Company and Market Basket all wrote to Perry, as did the Texas Association of Business and the National Federation of Independent Businesses, the Chronicle reported.
The sponsor of the bill, state Rep. Senfronia Thompson (D), told the Chronicle she was not aware that the retailers were opposed and sought out a gubernatorial veto.
"I shop at Kroger's for my groceries," Thompson said. "I shopped there just last week. I'm going to have to go to [Texas grocery chain] HEB now. I am really shocked."
Perry's spokesman did not return a request for comment on how much the retailers' opposition influenced his veto.
Backers of the equal pay bill argued that their legislation would allow parties to proceed on cases in a nearby state court, instead of having the increased expense of going to federal court. Certain state cases also do not always get Lilly Ledbetter protections.
Forty-two states have passed equal pay laws similar to the one Perry vetoed. Women currently make only 77 cents for every dollar men earn.
Kroger's director of consumer affairs told the Chronicle he regrets that Thompson is upset and that the company would discuss the bill with her. Macy's did not return a request for comment from The Huffington Post.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/06/rick-perry-macys_n_3714546.html
We need more women like her, especially in Texas! I'd love to see her go face to face against Perry.
ReplyDeleteRealizing that she started her career on the stance against abortion restrictions, I was shocked to hear that she had no idea about the Kermit Gosnell trial, and details of what he did!
ReplyDelete