This past weekend, many Democrats from Denton County made their way to the Texas Democratic Convention in Houston. On the first day of the convention, outgoing chair of the Texas Democratic Party Boyd Richie gave an impassioned speech and implored Texas Democrats to “stand up, speak out, and tell your story!”
We couldn’t agree more.
Last night, Rep. Michael Burgess, who represents District 26 in the United States House of Representatives (including Denton County,) hosted a town hall meeting in Denton. Democrats were there to tell their story; the Denton Record-Chronicle created an excellent Storify article that covers much of the highlights he
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Democrat Gail Rutledge was one of the first people to speak to Rep. Michael Burgess, who represents District 26 in the United States House of Representatives, which includes Denton County. Gail spoke about her niece, who has had a number of health problems since birth, and who would be denied any sort of reasonably priced coverage without the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Rep. Burgess emphasized his willingness to compromise, but after so many years of promises to work together, it’s easy to feel cynical about these kinds of assurances. This morning, Gail was featured on the Denton Record-Chronicle’s website.
It’s easy to feel frustrated at the kind of inflammatory rhetoric we hear all the time. When David Sanchez, Democratic candidate for District 26, spoke in support of the DREAM Act, he hadn’t made it all the way back to his chair before someone called him a “communist”. Another supporter, speaking in favor of more efficient energy standards, was interrupted repeatedly when he tried to ask a simple question.
But if Texas is ever going to turn Democratic –in time, it will– then we need to continue to do what we’re doing. Tonight, Rep. Burgess will hold another town hall, this one at Trietsch Memorial United Methodist Church, beginning at 7 p.m. You can find directions here. We strongly encourage you to attend.
We have shown that we can “stand up, speak out, and tell our story,” as Chairman Richie demanded so passionately. Nothing is stopping you from doing the same.
