Posted on 07/05/2012 4:54:17 AM PDT by Zakeet
One of the Tea Party's most critical battles is heating up in Texas, where two conservative Republicans will slug it out for their party's Senate nomination later this month.
State and national Tea Party groups are backing former Texas Solicitor General Ted Cruz, who they hope will join a small but growing group of U.S. senators aligned with the conservative movement and pushing an agenda of less government spending, lower taxes and fewer regulations.
Cruz faces David Dewhurst, the state's lieutenant governor, in a July 31 runoff election after finishing at the top of the May 29 primary. Dewhurst beat Cruz by 10 percentage points but fell short of the 50 percent needed to avoid a runoff.
The Texas race has captivated the Republican Right. The popular blog RedState calls it "the most important battle for conservatives this year" and is pushing for a Cruz victory.
In the face of Dewhurst's apparent lead, state and national Tea Party groups are pouring money and manpower into Cruz's campaign.
They want Cruz to join the growing ranks of Tea Party senators, including Jim DeMint of South Carolina, Marco Rubio of Florida, Mike Lee of Utah, Rand Paul of Kentucky, Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania and Ron Johnson of Wisconsin.
And they have good reason to feel hopeful.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonexaminer.com ...
Cruz is a Conservative; his opponent is a RINO as are the two current Texas Senators.
I thought this was Cruz and Dewhurst? Maybe I’m confused, but there’s only one conservative in that pair...the one that hasn’t been Governor Perry’s bitch for a decade.
LLS
Both Perry and Dewhurst are conservative Democrats who had to have the R behind their names to win in Texas. Neither has ever endorsed the conservative bedrock belief in limited government, because they love the power of unlimited government.
Cruz is the Texas version of Florida’s Rubio, endorsed by the TEA Party against the wishes of the moderate Republican Party.
ABSOLUTELY!
But the RINOS who run the RNC would prefer you not know that.
Dewhurst is nothing but another GOPe—forget him!
As for me and my house, we will all vote for Mr. Cruz—a very true conservative!
Cruz is a longshot to win, just because of name recognition. Far to many people vote for a familiar name, which seems bizarre to me. I’m just the opposite. If I recognize a name, I tend to think he/she has been in office to long so I vote for anyone else. Mmmmmmm term limits....
Also, Rick Perry and Huckabee are NOT Tea Party icons, that is just silly.
I’ll vote for Cruz, and I’m gettin the word out to my friends, but I give Cruz maybe a 30% chance to actually win. I hope I’m wrong, we can’t afford another KBH.....
Polls are nonexistant in this race at the current time. Cruz has an internal poll showing him leading but I’ve found nothing else that is current.
The next and most likely last debate is scheduled for July 17, 2012. The race may well hinge on how Tom Leppert’s supporters (13%) break. Leppert hasn’t endorsed as of yet and may not.
A couple of other current articles dated July 5 if anyone is interested in reading them:
http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/304723/can-cruz-pull-it-katrina-trinko
What this is REALLY all about is several big money supporters of Rick Perry and David Dewhurst who benefit greatly from the current illegal immigration situation and want things pretty much left alone are behind Dewhurst. Those of us who actually want the problem fixed are supporting Ted Cruz.
That's the nub of it in a nutshell.
Big money supports are in the race for sure. Note this from one of the articles I linked above:
snip......
Dewhurst is the clear choice among registered lobbyists in Texas, drawing 26 times more money from them than Cruz, according to a recent analysis of campaign finance data by the Houston Chronicle. Lobbyists in Washington, D.C., are donating to the race on a smaller scale but favor Cruz, according to the same analysis.
Dewhurst attracted $189,869 from 85 registered lobbyists in Texas, while just four Texas lobbyists gave a combined $11,750 to Cruz, according to the report. Federal lobbyists and their families have donated $120,148 to Cruz. Dewhurst has drawn less than $25,000 from that sector.
end snip
Dewhurst may fool some but I KNOW what has gone on in the Texas senate under his leadership and wouldn’t vote for him for dog catcher!
Runoff elections tend to not favor the incumbent. This will be a very low turn-out vote with motivated tea party people making the difference.
Do the names Bob Perry and David Weekly ring any bells with you?
The Cruz campaign claims nearly 23,000 donors, compared to Dewhurst’s 3,000; Cruz also counts nearly 27,000 donations under $100, compared to 11 for Dewhurst.
The paid Dewhurst advocates have shown up finally!
Mornin ngat!
Shame on me. That had never entered my mind. You are quite right. :)
Thank you, you have made my day! :)
Agreed.
It will be a low turnout so all of the tea party people will push Cruz across the finish line!
I have been waiting and marking off the calendar to vote AGAIN for Ted Cruz!
This is the last election that the gop will pull this crap.
Now that is funny....same ole complaint but nothing done. Conservatives will fall in line just as they have with Romney in 2020 when they put Bloomberg as the Republican Nominee. Conservatives fall into place no matter who the Presidential nom is....Who would have thought Romney after all the complaints about him a short time ago. Now he is Ronald Reagan according to most FREEPERS....Yes it is nauseating but that is the reality.
I voted in my last Democrat primary in 1972 at Lake Jackson, Texas.
If your ancestors could see what makes up the Democrat party today they would be rolling in their graves!
Hi neighbor! We lived in Bailey’s Prairie at that time. Moved ‘back’ to Houston in ‘79.
Just repeating what I heard from someone with many years spent in politics.
LLS
Another very important race to watch is the Randy Weber-Felicia Harris contest for Ron Paul’s old seat. Randy is a solid conservative to the core and was ranked as the second most conservative State Representative. Felicia is being endorsed by many Texans in Congress including Pete Olson, I would suspect because she will go along to get along, and not disrupt their sandbox.
Wish I could vote for Randy again but he, unfortunately, is no longer in our district. Those who want a real change in DC should vote for Randy. Texas has sent its share of RINO Republicans to DC. Time to stop and this can start by sending both Cruz and Weber to D.C.
Cruz is NOT a conservative. This is where the Tea Pary folks have set themselves up to be used. They got so wrapped up in the Tea Party logo and yelling at rallies, they failed to actually look at records. Cruz is DC insider the bureaucrat. His legal work helped China screw over US business people. He and his firm work with amnesty clients.
Period. That cannot be denied.
And Cruz’ own statements in the past show he is NOT a conservative. But just because he stuck Tea Party on a sign, folks got suckered.
This is why I have turned off the Tea Party. You want my support, show a conservative record. I don’t care about your logo on your sign and that you suckered people in at a rally with a speech that contradicts your actions.
Dewhurst has the more conservative record of the two.
It is amazing to see how so many Cruz supporters are upset with the not so supreme ruling on Arizona trying to rightfully protect itself. IF those supporters were really for border security and states rights, then they would not be supporting Cruz.
Cruz is NOT a conservative. This is where the Tea Pary folks have set themselves up to be used. They got so wrapped up in the Tea Party logo and yelling at rallies, they failed to actually look at records. Cruz is DC insider the bureaucrat. His legal work helped China screw over US business people. He and his firm work with amnesty clients.
Period. That cannot be denied.
And Cruz’ own statements in the past show he is NOT a conservative. But just because he stuck Tea Party on a sign, folks got suckered.
This is why I have turned off the Tea Party. You want my support, show a conservative record. I don’t care about your logo on your sign and that you suckered people in at a rally with a speech that contradicts your actions.
Dewhurst has the more conservative record of the two.
It is amazing to see how so many Cruz supporters are upset with the not so supreme ruling on Arizona trying to rightfully protect itself. IF those supporters were really for border security and states rights, then they would not be supporting Cruz.
Are you trying to claim the electoral college votes in Texas have any chance at all of going to Obama?
We do not have a popular vote count for president. There is no way Obama will see a Texas voting for him.
Perry i sfar more conservative - at least in th elast 4-5 years - than Dewhurst. Dewhurst is bad news all around. We need Cruz.
“Dewhurst and his record prove Dewhurst to be a conservative”
Peddle that elsewhere. I’ve interviewed Dewhurst. What a liar he is.
“I’ve interviewed Dewhurst.”
Oh. How ImPRESSive.
Good Morning!
Just a reminder, I’m pretty sure I told you in a previous Dewhurst thread I’m not paid or connected in any way with the Dewhurst campaign, nor have I ever even met the Lt. Governor. I am just another conservative voter that keeps up with Texas state politics.
Ditto.
Bob Perry is an open-borders billionaire. He wants Dewhurst in D.C. to back amnesty and the DREAM Act and to stop border security enforcement - all while lying about it. and he will get his wish, as he always does. Dewhurst will win the primary with ease.
You can say that all you want but I'm not buying!
Not this time he won't! Texas conservatives are on to the game now.
Dewhurst’s constant attack ads on TV have turned me off. I’m for Cruz.
LLS
“Oh. How ImPRESSive.”
Yes, but he wasn’t.
Dewcrist is a big gubmint liberal.
Dewpiss is no conservative.
He will vote exactly how Mitch McConnell tells him to vote.
He has been Perry’s bitch for years. If elected, he will be
Mitch Mcconnels Bitch.
Dewhurst zaffed(killed by committee assignment) Senator's Birdwell's bill to stop in-state tuition for illegals.
Which Dewhurst guest worker statement should we believe?
2007: "I support secure borders both North and South and I support a guest worker program for those here today illegally." SOURCE
2012: "I don’t support a guest worker program, never have, until and unless Congress addresses this — but after, and only after, we have secured our border.” - Last Debate
Liberal reporters are never impressed by conservatives.
“Just a reminder, I’m pretty sure I told you in a previous Dewhurst thread I’m not paid or connected in any way with the Dewhurst campaign, nor have I ever even met the Lt. Governor.”
“You can say that all you want but I’m not buying!”
At first, my feelings were hurt that a fellow conservative (no matter that he is a conservative gullible enough to fall for the Connecticut Counselor’s Career Politician Plan) would so lightly accuse me of lying when my statement is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, but after all, you are just an anonymous poster on an internet forum, so who cares.
Then, I realized what you said was a compliment, because it recognized the truth and effectiveness of my postings that defended Lt. Governor Dewhurst against the lies promulgated by the Cruz campaign. Why, my posts were so good, you and several others who were stung by the simple truth that Lt. Governor Dewhurst has always been a solid conservative and is vastly more qualified to represent the State of Texas as a U.S. Senator than Cruz, could not believe that a regular citizen such as myself could so easily make such profoundly persuasive arguments.
But then, I suddenly realized what I had been missing in my willingness to take the Cruz posters at their word, claiming that they were just tea-party patriots trying to challenge what they think is the GOP-e, even though they know Cruz is endorsed by the Bush family and Dewhurst is the farthest thing from the GOP-e. What they had in common, and what I was ignoring, was the use by you Cruz supporters of the tactic of accusing me of what you yourselves are guilty of, that is; being a paid (or in your case probably unpaid) campaign worker posting on internet forums, trolling for votes!
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