Live updates: Texas Democratic Party convention concludes without a platform adopted
Texas Democrats concluded their convention in Dallas late Saturday afternoon without adopting a platform after there wasn’t a quorum.
“Texans should look forward to seeing the official, finalized party platform in the very near future, and we hope they will contrast it with the horrific trash the Republicans put out,” said Ike Hajinazarian, the party’s deputy communication director.
Attendees at the convention engaged in a lengthy voting process to elect a Democratic chair, which extended the day’s work. Texas Democratic Party Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa was ultimately re-elected to the leadership role.
After party leadership was announced, many filed out of the room where the meeting was being held. Work continued for awhile longer, before a point of order was called over a lack of quorum and the convention concluded.
To county judge nominee Deborah Peoples, blue Tarrant means blue Texas
To Democratic nominee for county judge Deborah Peoples, Tarrant County could be the key to a statewide flip to blue.
“When we flip Tarrant County, we flip Texas,” Peoples said with vigor to a crowd Saturday at the third day of state Democratic convention programming, drawing cheers.
Peoples joined Hays County Judge Ruben Becerra and Fort Bend County Judge KP George for a panel on the importance of flipping Texas counties blue, moderated by Harris County Democratic chair Odus Evbagharu.
Peoples, a former AT&T vice president and former Tarrant County Democratic chair, swiftly took her primary in March with 82.64% of the vote. She’ll face off against Southlake attorney Tim O’Hare in November in a race to replace 15-year county judge Glen Whitley, who did not seek re-election.
O’Hare previously served as Tarrant County’s GOP chair and beat former Fort Worth mayor Betsy Price in his primary with 56.95% of the vote.
Voices at the county level are important because of the chance Democrats had to improve lives across the state, Peoples said.
“Just imagine what will happen when the 254 counties in Texas when we elect Democrats,” Peoples said.
Peoples told the crowd local government impacts everything from the water constituents drink to the taxes they pay. She said everyone needed to become a superhero and “fight the evil that has infested Texas” by voting blue.
Beto O’Rourke lays out vision for Texas at Democratic convention
Gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke is convinced: Current Texas leadership doesn’t truly represent what Texas is all about.
Greg Abbott, he told the crowd in his keynote speech at the state Democratic convention on Friday night, is chaos, is corruption, is cruelty, is incompetence.
“But he is not Texas, and he is not us,” O’Rourke said.
Friday in Dallas marked yet another night O’Rourke set out to distinguish himself from his November opponent, this time on the Democratic convention stage to some of the state’s most dedicated Democrats. Attendees cheered and held the El Paso Democrat’s campaign sign as he took the stage.
O’Rourke began his speech by thanking those who have shown up for him on the campaign trail.
“You are the spirit of this moment,” he said “Absolutely undefeatable, persistent, courageous, and you will work until we win.”
He then went into a list of what he considers his opponent’s wrongdoings as governor, such as the failure of the power grid during 2021’s winter storm, denying reproductive rights to women, attacks on teachers and parents of transgender children, the passing of permitless carry and failures in the foster-care system.
“No, ladies and gentlemen, we are not that,” O’Rourke reiterated. “Those are not Texas values.”
O’Rourke asked the crowd to imagine a governor who connected ERCOT to the national power grid. He asked them to imagine someone who stood with small businesses and with women in their right to reproductive healthcare. He asked them to imagine a governor who didn’t arrest for marijuana because he would legalize it, and a governor who would fight for red-flag gun laws, safe storage and universal background checks.
“We can do better than just imagine because all of this is within our power to accomplish,” O’Rourke said.
O’Rourke gave nods to the Texas women who made Roe v. Wade possible, and to Fort Worth’s own Opal Lee, who walked from Texas to Washington D.C. to make Juneteenth a federally recognized holiday.
“We are the heirs to their service and their sacrifice and to their struggle,” O’Rourke said. “And what we do with this inheritance will determine our future and define us in the eyes of our kids forever after.”
After the convention speech, O’Rourke headed to a nearby bar where he and Lee spoke.
“You know this is the man for Texas,” Lee said, before encouraging people to donate. Some there began handing her cash. O’Rourke told those who did to share their contact information so the donations could be properly reported and then went into a speech similar to his convention remarks.
O’Rourke has been front-and-center at the Dallas convention, where at a hotel walking distance away Abbott’s campaign has worked to distinguish the governor from O’Rourke by holding news conferences.
The latest was on Saturday, when former House Speaker Dennis Bonnen told reporters O’Rourke has flip-flopped on a number of policy issues. He said O’Rourke can’t pick a position.
“He can’t decide whether he wants to be a United States Senator, President or Governor,” Bonnen said. “And the truth of it is, the reason he can’t be any of those things is because his liberal, socialist policies don’t fit the voters of Texas.”
Bonnen touted jobs and Texas’ economy under Abbott, Abbott’s work to secure the border and the governor’s work to shore up the power grid.
TX Rep. Chris Turner calls top Republican leaders a danger to democracy
Texas House Rep. Chris Turner told an exuberant crowd, in his speech to some of the state’s most dedicated Democrats attending the state convention in Dallas on Friday evening, that some of Texas’ top Republican leaders are a danger to democracy.
Turner, who represents parts of Arlington and Grand Prairie, began his speech by accepting an award on behalf of the 57 Democratic members of the House who broke quorum to block an election bill they said would disenfranchise voters. Later in the night, U.S. Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, a Dallas Democrat, would be presented by U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey the Eddie Bernice Johnson Trailblazing Award.
Those who broke quorum did so at a risk, but there was no doubt it was “good trouble,” Turner said, quoting former U.S. House representative John Lewis. Texas is no stranger to laws that try to inhibit voting for people of color, he said, and the 57 Democrats stood on the shoulders of Texans who have long fought for civil rights in the state.
Turner told the crowd the fight will go to the streets next to turn the state blue come November.
“We must defeat the Republicans this November,” he said, pausing as the crowd cheered and a cowbell cut through the noise. “Because continued Republican control of Texas is a threat to all of us. It is a threat to bodily autonomy. It is a threat to the safety of our children and grandchildren. Texas Republicans like Greg Abbott, Dan Patrick and Ken Paxton are a clear and present danger to our freedoms and to our very democracy.”
Veasey told attendees he wanted to discuss progress in the state, something the North Texas representative said he’s reminded of every time he walks into his congressional office where he has a poll tax receipt from the Jim Crow era that belongs to his grandparents.
“But now, that progress that we’ve made, that progress is under attack because the radical, reckless Republican Party is fighting to steal our hard fought freedoms away,” he said. “And this party has been emboldened to do that because they are emboldened to an unhinged, disgraced former president. A former president who’s fueled rampant conspiracy theories about our electoral system. A former president who has consistently undermined the rule of law. And a former president who’s just plain dumb.”
He said Republicans “are so threatened by our progress that they are willing to steal our freedom to vote, steal our freedom to love whom we choose, steal our freedom to make our own health care decisions and steal our freedoms to own free and fair elections.”
“And that is why we must fight back,” he said.
Wendy Davis calls TX lawsuit over Biden abortion guidance ‘unbelievable’
Wendy Davis, a former state senator from Fort Worth and gubernatorial candidate, called it “beyond imagination” that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Thursday sued the Biden administration over its emergency abortion guidance.
“It’s unbelievable,” Davis said. “And I hope that as we move forward in the days and the weeks ahead in these campaigns, we make sure to help people understand exactly what is happening. That it’s not just that Roe is overturned. It’s that even if you wanted to go to an abortion legal state, Texas is going to try and do everything they can to keep you from doing it.”
Davis was speaking during a caucus meeting for those who support abortion rights. Beto O’Rourke’s wife Amy O’Rourke also addressed convention attendees at the meeting, as did Lt. Gov. Candidate Mike Collier.
Collier said as lieutenant governor he would work to codify Roe v. Wade into law. He said it will “be the first thing we do.”
Texas Democratic Party highlights congressional candidates
Former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro declared that Texas is turning blue during a Thursday night reception kicking off the Texas Democratic Convention, before turning attention to congressional candidates in the state.
Other speakers at the reception included U.S. Rep. Collin Allred of Dallas, congressional nominees Greg Casar, Jasmine Crockett and Michelle Vallejo, and Texas Democratic Party Chair Gilberto Hinojosa. The reception aimed to highlight young leadership in the state, Hinojosa said.
The three candidates sat down with Castro to introduce themselves and answer questions. Crockett is the Democratic nominee for U.S. House District 30, which includes a small part of southeast Tarrant County. The seat is held by Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, who is not seeking reelection.
Subjects addressed in the forum included abortion access and the school shooting in Uvalde.
Crockett, who is 41 and represents Texas House District 100, said the overturning of Roe v. Wade exacerbates a lack of equity regarding women’s health care.
“Because the very people who decided to overturn Roe v. Wade, guess what? If their mistresses or whoever is trying to get something taken care of, they’re going to be able to put them on a plane and make sure they get the access that they need,” Crockett said. “So what I’m [mad] about is that we continue to beat up on people who have lacked a voice.”
Crockett said she supports an assault weapons ban and looking into whether Homeland Security can be expanded to investigate those who’ve “made it clear that they have every intention of killing people.”
She emphasized the importance of talking with everyone about gun policies, including “common sense Republicans,” not just Democrats.
“When a bullet strikes, it doesn’t just strike Democrats. It strikes people,” she said. “It strikes Independents, Democrats and Republicans, and so we need policies that are going to protect us all.”
Texas Democratic Party convention begins in Dallas
The Texas Democratic Convention starts on Thursday in Dallas and features Texas’ most prominent Democrat, Beto O’Rourke, who is running for governor against Greg Abbott.
The three-day event will bring delegates from across the state to hear from speakers that include elected officials and candidates in the November general election. Fort Worth area speakers include Texas Legislative Black Caucus Chair Rep. Nicole Collier of Fort Worth, Texas House Democratic Caucus Chair Rep. Chris Turner of Grand Prairie, U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey and Democratic nominee for Tarrant County Judge Deborah Peoples.
O’Rourke is giving Friday’s keynote speech. The convention ends Saturday.
“Beto will focus on uniting Texans around a popular, unifying vision for delivering great jobs, world-class schools and the ability to see a doctor as the people of Texas work together to overcome Greg Abbott’s extremist agenda that is hurting communities and sending his disapproval ratings to historic levels,” a news release from O’Rourke’s campaign reads.
Also speaking at the convention is Jaime Harrison, the chair of the Democratic National Committee. His presence at the convention “highlights the investment the DNC is making in Texas in the 2022 election cycle, ensuring that Texas Democrats have the resources necessary to defeat Greg Abbott and win races up and down the ballot, across the state,” the party said in a news release.
During the convention, attendees will elect a party chair and vote on the state party’s platform.
Attendees were arriving at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas when an exhibit hall opened at 3 p.m. Beto T-shirts hung on display at the candidate’s booth. Nearby at another display were mugs that said “Texas Needs A Beto Governor” and mugs advertising the state convention. Groups with booths include Planned Parenthood Texas Votes, Texas Democratic Veterans, Mothers Against Greg Abbott PAC, Equality Texas and groups supporting expanded gambling in the state, as well as statewide candidates Rochelle Garza, who is running for attorney general, and Mike Collier, who’s running for lieutenant governor.
Meanwhile, Abbott’s campaign was working to distinguish the governor from his November opponent as Democrats meet in Dallas. The campaign on Wednesday announced billboards along Interstate-35 between Austin and Dallas likening O’Rourke to President Joe Biden.
On a call with reporters, Abbott’s campaign said news conferences would also be held throughout the weekend, including one in Dallas on Thursday featuring Tarrant County commissioner candidates Manny Ramirez and Andy Nguyen. The campaign’s ambulance fashioned as the “Beto Truth Response Unit” will also be in Dallas.
Just down the road at the Hyatt Regency as the Democrats kicked off their convention Thursday, a group of Republicans gathered in a humid, packed room to tout why Abbott was the best candidate for governor and why conservative values were the right choice up and down the ballot.
Eva Guzman, a former Texas Supreme Court justice who lost her race this year for attorney general, called Abbott the “greatest governor in the country” who was committed to its families and changing the state for the better. To a crowd of mostly reporters, she said the future laid in the hands of the Republicans in the room that day.
Ramirez said the issues the Republican party was worried about involve infrastructure, public safety and public health and said he was excited for the future. To him, there was nothing they couldn’t accomplish.
And for Nguyen, it was all about flexing Tarrant County pride.
“May I be so bold to say that nowhere in America is the American dream so real than in Tarrant County, Texas,” he said.
Nguyen told the crowd the story of his arrival to the United States at 14 years old, saying he had escaped Communist persecution in Vietnam. Those ideals he fled from, he said, are destroying society today and threatening that dream.
