Young Conservatives of Texas Presents: The Top 5 Reasons to Oust Straus
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 28, 2012
Contact: Tony McDonald, Senior Vice Chairman
Mobile: (512) 923-6893
Email: [email protected]
Austin, TX — Young Conservatives of Texas (YCT) responded today to the news that former House Majority Leader Dick Armey and his grassroots TEA Party organization, Freedomworks, had endorsed conservative businessman Matt Beebe in his campaign to unseat current Texas House Speaker Joe Straus. YCT issued its endorsement for Beebe earlier this cycle.
“Liberal commentators like Harvey Kronberg were quick to dismiss the Freedomworks endorsement,” said Tony McDonald, YCT Senor Vice Chairman. “The naysayers are wrong. The endorsement is just another sign that conservatives everywhere are recognizing what we already know — that Matt Beebe is putting himself in a strong position to defeat Straus this May. He’s able to do that precisely because the Speaker’s record is out of touch with conservative voters.”
The group made light of the statements made by Harvey Kronberg, editor of Quorum Report, in his commentary on the endorsement. Kronberg claimed that Freedomworks had “no problem with Straus other than he should be doing much more.”
“If liberals like Mr. Kronberg think the only problem with Speaker Straus is inactivity, then they haven’t been paying attention these last two sessions,” remarked Jeff Morris, YCT State Chairman. “Straus mishandled the redistricting process in his attempt to consolidate power and punish opponents. He attempted to pass casino gambling legislation. And he was successful in killing the TSA groping bill that would have protected Texans’ civil liberties. Straus’s only saving grace is that he that he hasn’t done enough to pass his liberal agenda.”
To clarify why conservatives oppose Straus and are supporting Beebe, YCT offered their Top 5 Reasons to Oust Straus:
- Joe Straus completely misunderstood the mandate from the voters in 2010 when they elected a super majority of Republicans to the Texas House. He opposed measures which would have permanently limited government growth and instead decided to employ accounting gimmicks and shell games with the budget in order to allow greater current and long-term spending at the expense of a nearly certain budget deficit in the next biennium.
- Joe Straus directly opposed Rep. David Simpson’s TSA groping bill, yielding to the Obama administration’s empty threats in the process. His resistance was in direct opposition to the will of the House and the will of Texas voters desperate to protect their civil liberties from federal encroachment.
- Joe Straus attempted to push through the House comprehensive casino gambling legislation which would have directly benefited his family’s gambling interests. These efforts were in direct opposition to the will of Republican voters and the mandates of the Republican Party agenda.
- Joe Straus has refused to address illegal immigration during his tenure as Speaker. Not one piece of meaningful immigration reform became law during the 82nd Legislature. Joe Straus failed to allow the super majority to pass the Senate’s version of Sanctuary city legislation during the special session. This, again, was in direct opposition to the will of the House.
- Joe Straus accepted $1,000 from Planned Parenthood. In a time when Planned Parenthood is teaming up with the Obama administration to withhold Texas taxpayer dollars from its citizens, we are reminded that this same organization teamed up with Speaker Straus just a few years back and supported his campaign.
“Matt Beebe offers a clear contrast to Joe Straus for the voters of House District 121,” added McDonald. “Straus is a liberal-to-moderate Republican who is out of touch with conservative voters. Beebe is a principled conservative who will fight for our values.”
Young Conservatives of Texas has been promoting conservatism at universities across the Lone Star State for over three decades. The state’s most active political youth organization, YCT is composed of hundreds of members and alumni who participate in the full spectrum of politics. YCT issues the most respected ratings of the Texas legislature and is the only conservative group to have done so without interruption over the past 19 legislative sessions. To learn more about YCT, their ratings, or for information on joining, please visit www.YCT.org.
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