I am the only March 6 Republican Primary opponent of 18-year incumbent John Culberson in Texas Congressional District 7. Congress is ineffective and we need new representation in District 7. I live in the District and my neighbors flooded. I will represent everyone in the District. I am a veteran (Air and Army National Guard six years). I am an engineer who solves problems. The House of Representatives is made up of 435 members and just like in an organization or business new personnel are needed at times to make things work. The incumbent has been there 18 years and issues that affect Houston get pushed down the road term after term. There is no indication that things will change or improve with the incumbent in office for another term. I will solve our problems and bring our tax dollars back here to help the District.
A Summary of My Positions:
I have set forth a flood plan (see below), I support term limits for Congress (8 years for the House, 12 years for the Senate), cut spending (1% to 3% a year with no indexed or automatic increases), a better tax plan (the recent changes in corporate tax rates will add jobs, but the changes in taxation will not help workers and families very much—instead of touted thousands of dollars a year savings, I think actual paycheck analysis will show only a part of those tax savings will be realized by workers and families—with the $ 10,000 deduction cap on real estate/local taxes a real problem in Houston that has high property taxes). We need to fix Houston’s streets and potholes (as part of infrastructure overall), public transportation, to preserve net neutrality or not slower service for people who do not want to pay more, to have a high quality healthcare system with lower drug costs, and people who earned Social Security will keep it.
Specifically for flooding, fix what we can control. We cannot control the rain, but when the water hits the ground we can control where it goes and when. These issues include: (a) de-bottleneck the bayous; (b) more retention (3rd reservoir and/or deepen areas behind the dams, dams upstream in other counties); (c) upgrade flood insurance for adequate coverage and require flood insurance or no more public funds for future losses (folks need to be encouraged to protect themselves where they can); (d) FEMA procedures, speed, and fairness need improvement; and (e) on local level rethink and continue to improve building, location, and permit issues.
I am not commenting much on immigration issues as of today. I am waiting and watching as the White House and Congress are working on a plan now—maybe. I will comment as this goes on. Basically, countries have borders and countries have laws.
Thank you, and please vote in the March 6, 2018 Republican Primary for TX CD 07.
Republican Congressmen John Culberson and Kevin Brady are among 106 Republicans who voted YEA on an Energy-Water Appropriations bill that contained an amendment that would codify Obama’s executive order 13672 making transgenderism the law of the land and a local Harris-Montgomery County area TEA Party “recommended” Republican primary voters cast their ballot for these two Congressmen in the recent March 2016 primary.
Last night, I reported on how House leaders allowed democrats to insert a provision to the Energy-Water Appropriations bill allowing bureaucrats to discriminate against businesses that don’t adhere to the newly-minted national religion of transgenderism. The amendment, from Rep. Sean Maloney (D-NY), would codify Obama’s executive order 13672 making transgenderism the law of the land. Pasted below this article re the names of the 43 Republicans who voted for this amendment, which would have codified language from Obama’s sexual identity executive order into law*
Congressmen Culberson and Brady voted NAY on Rep. Maloney’s amendment however when the final bill came up for a vote, Culberson and Brady were among 106 Republicans who voted for the final bill.
Thankfully, the bill did not pass—-Republican Congressmen Pete Olson, Ted Poe, Randy Weber and Brian Babin joined with Democrat Congressmen Al Greene and Sheila Jackson-Lee and other colleagues to vote NAY on the final bill.
BTW, which TEA Party published a March 2016 voter guide “recommending” Republican primary voters cast their ballot for Congressman John Culberson and Kevin Brady?
Maria Espinoza, a Houston Republican and National Anti-illegal Immigration Leader, Announces Congressional Run
Houston Republican and national anti-illegal immigration leader Maria Espinoza filed today as a candidate for Texas’s 7th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. Rep. John Culberson currently holds the seat.
“Career politicians and Washington bureaucrats are leading America in the wrong direction,” Espinoza said. “We need true conservatives in Congress, people with the boldness to stand for what is right, not just some of the time, but all of the time.”
“I won’t just talk like a conservative during the election season,” Espinoza said. “I am a proven champion for Constitutional governance, individual liberty and the Rule of Law. I have boldly faced down attacks from the Liberal Left, and even Establishment figures in my own party, to speak the truth about the crises facing our country, especially on the issues of border security and immigration.”
“I will take that same strength of conviction to Washington, standing up for our conservative values and American families,” Espinoza said.
Leadership Record
Espinoza is the Co-founder and National Director for The Remembrance Project (www.TheRemembranceProject.org), a 501(c)3 not-for-profit corporation, that advocates for the families of Americans who have been killed by illegal aliens. On May 7, 2014, she faced down Eric Holder, Obama’s first notorious Attorney General, and in a separate private meeting, she met with U.S. Department to Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson. Her message: Obama must enforce current laws on immigration to protect American families from the illegal criminal and terrorist invasion across our border. Both meetings were attended by family members of slain Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry, who was murdered with a weapon identified as allegedly being from the illegal Obama/Holder “Fast & Furious” gun-running debacle.
In June of this year, in response to the national media’s mis-reprentation of Hispanic Americans’ allegiance to America, Maria envisioned and innaugurated a new initiative, America First Latinos (www.AmericaFirstLatinos.org), an organization giving a voice to patriotic, conservative Americans of Latino heritage who favor strict border enforcement.
Maria has appeared before numerous Texas House and Senate Committees and work groups, spoken in many state Capitols and established Remembrance Project affiliates in over 30 states. She is the former President of Eagle Forum – Houston.
A 6th generation Texan on her mother’s side, Espinoza’s father was born in Mexico and legally emigrated to Texas in the mid 1950’s. Espinoza was an All-American Track Star at Abilene Christian University and studied Business Administration. She eventually settled in Houston, starting a career in the legal and real estate fields. She and her husband Tim, a civil engineer, now live in west Houston, and they have three adult children.
Career Politician Opponent
Espinoza’s opponent, John Culberson, has been in Washington since 2001. Culberson has spent virtually his entire adult life in politics, winning election to the Texas State House while he was still a law student, then jumping directly from the Texas Legislature to Congress.
“Culberson is now part of the problem in Washington, not the solution,” Espinoza said. “Fourteen years in Congress is long enough. Conservatives can no longer count on Culberson.”
Culberson’s Conservative Review Liberty Score is 62{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986}, a D-minus rating that Espinoza says is very much deserved.
Espinoza cited Culberson’s absence in the fight on key issues, from runaway spending and debt, to stopping amnesty and sanctuary cities for illegal aliens, to defunding Planned Parenthood. All of these votes are cited on Espinoza’s website, www.MariaforAmerica.com
“Culberson just isn’t working any more. In fact, last year, he missed the second most votes of any Texas Congressman and was among the bottom ten percent of all members of Congress for missed votes,” Espinoza said.
“It’s time for new energy, fresh commitment and strong conservative values in our Congressman,” Espinoza said. “It’s time for a bold new leader who will fight the tough fights, who will stand up and be counted for our conservative values. That’s the leader I will be.”
The Remembrance Project is a 501(c)(3) non-profit. Your donation will help us build more Stolen Lives Quilts, continue revealing the truth and placing American families first.
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PO Box 440548
Houston, TX 77244-0548
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I still can’t believe that Rep. Ted Poe (R-2) supports building another boondoggle rail line in Harris County. And his reasoning for that support doesn’t pass the smell test, so you have to ask yourself, what is this really about?
I can’t answer that one but I can debunk his argument that “his constituents” want it. Not a chance. His congressional district is comprised of 698,488 residents, of which 518,345 are of voting age. There are very few residences along the portion of that line that is included in his district. Very few residences means very few voters. Why is he favoring a few constituents over the vast majority?
The length of the proposed boondoggle rail line on Richmond Ave. that is included in Poe’s CD-2 is 1.7 miles:
To put that in perspective for his entire district:
The 1.7 mile length in his district would include four stops: S. Shepherd, Menil, Montrose, and Wheeler. If you live four blocks off Richmond and eight blocks between stops, are you going to walk twelve blocks in the Houston summer heat to catch a ride that goes a mile or so? Seriously?
Let’s think about those “constituents” in Atascocita and Kingwood? Are they “for” this boondoggle? Hardly. And there’s lots more of them. Or what about those in Spring? Are they “for” this boondoggle? Again, more of them.
Let’s say that you live up in Huffman near Gardenia Gardens and want to eat at Pepino’s Italian Restaurant on Richmond, right in the middle of Poe’s section of the boondoggle rail line. What is that $60 million per mile boondoggle going to do to help you? Nothing at all. You’ll drive the 41 miles and hope that the toy train hasn’t run over another bicyclist and shut down traffic on Richmond.
It’s like saying that Rep. Steve Stockman should support building a rocket launch pad in Shoreacres because his “constituents” in Shoreacres want one.
So let’s drop the whole “my constituents” want it. Because they don’t and Poe hasn’t done any research whatsoever to conclude that they do. His entire support is due to “dozens” of phone calls, “hundreds” of emails, some blockwalking by his staff (seriously, in this heat?), and over a thousand Facebook comments, all in the space of two days. Here is his comment posted on Facebookat 11:21 am on Wednesday, July 31st:
STATEMENT FROM CONGRESSMAN POE: “On Monday, I asked for your opinion on whether or not federal funds should be prohibited from helping to build the Richmond Rail in Houston. Over the past few days, my office has received dozens of phone calls, hundreds of emails and over one thousand Facebook comments on this issue. Many of you even took the time to speak to my staff in-person when they went door to door in the district to talk to those of you in the affected area. I thank you for all of your input on this issue. It’s simple: blocking federal funds from coming to Houston will not save any money. Instead, your money will be spent on building infrastructure in other cities. I look forward to working with Congressman Culberson, the Houston Congressional Delegation and METRO to find a solution that serves both the interests of our constituents and the City of Houston.”
Wow, two whole days of “research” before he decides to support it! Isn’t he the workaholic. And we know that many of those participating in his Facebook poll were constituents of the CongressWOMAAN! How bizarre.
On the other hand, you have Rep. John Culberson, who has been providing real transportation solutions in Harris County. Think I-10 West and the nightmare it used to be versus what it is today. Culberson is aware of the fact that it costs on average five times the amount per mile to build a rail line as it does to build a freeway lane and the freeway lane carries five times as many people. Do the math.
Culberson’s district includes a much larger segment of the toy train, about 6.3 miles. He is completely against it because his constituents don’t want it. And he actually polled the property owners, property lessees, and business owners along the line that would have to deal with the boondoggle train and increased traffic jams on a daily basis. Here is what he found:
Summary of Poll west of Shepherd (83{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} reached) – Property Owners
But hey, it isn’t a Facebook poll, so it doesn’t count.
Here is Ted Poe on the floor of the House trying to explain his support for the boondoggle toy train. Notice that his main argument is that someone else is going to get the money – not that it is a good idea, or that it is necessary, or that it makes sense. Nope, just spend the money before someone else does.
Sometimes you find the best political commentary in the most unusual of places. I was listening to Geoff Berg’s Partisan Gridlock this past Friday afternoon (yeah, I like floggings too) and kept the radio tuned to KPFT 90.1 after hearing a blurb at the intro to their 4:00 pm news letting people know that Congressman John Culberson (R-7) would be on in an exclusive interview with Luke Jones to talk about immigration.
Rep. Culberson listed four points about the current bill and why it will never pass the House:
The Senate bill is unconstitutional and cannot be voted on. Sen. Harry Reid has not even sent the bill to the House because it is nothing more than a publicity stunt. It is unconstitutional and illegal on its face
Strenuously oppose the idea of amnesty or citizenship for people who broke our laws. All that is necessary is to enforce the laws that already exist. Fix the current VISA system – 50{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} of those here illegally came on VISA’s and stayed illegally.
Implement a commonsense guest worker program based on the Bracero Program of 1950’s – can’t bring family, no welfare, no social safety net programs that are already bankrupt, cross border legally with work permit, then go home.
Employers must have a safe harbor – they should be given a chance to check a worker’s eligibility at the Federal level. Once the employer has done their due diligence to make certain the employee can work legally, they need to be protected from fines, penalties, or further persecution from the federal government.
He emphatically said that there is zero chance of Republicans granting citizenship to those that entered the country illegally and elaborated on that at the end of the interview:
Under no circumstance will Republicans grant citizenship to those that have broken our laws. It is not necessary, illogical, unlawful, and contrary to our entire history as a nation. Those who waited in line patiently and obeyed the law, and have done the right thing, they should be honored and respected because they did it the right way and we should not disrespect them or dishonor them by giving citizenship to people who deliberately and knowingly broke the law.
And if you know the “conservative” columnist in the Houston Chronicle, Bill King, send a link to him and tell him to listen in. A dose of real conservative principles might help him.
Rep. Culberson is correct on this issue. Granting amnesty and/or citizenship will not help the Republican Party or the middle class. Country club Republicans may want cheap labor but the middle class is tired of them getting rich off our backs.
I don’t know about you, but I like for people to tell me the truth; the honest truth. I don’t want your version of the truth. Ever since my last blog post about Representative John Culberson’s voting record on some key spending bills called Just The Facts, Chicken!, my attention has been focused on him to see what he’s going to do next; if he’s going to reign in his spending habits, or continue to push us over the fiscal cliff. Unfortunately, I don’t have good news.
Earlier in the week, on Thursday, to be exact, there was a continuing resolution that was voted on by the House of Representatives called H.R. 933; a resolution that will fully fund Obamacare. According to Yvonne Larsen, a contributing blogger for Big Jolly Politics, who states in her blog, All But One! that: “With the exception of Representative Louis Gohmert (TX-01), every single Republican from the Texas delegation of the U. S House of Representatives voted to fund Obamacare. They even broke their own rules to do it.” Huh. Interesting.
So, I go to Representative Culberson’s Facebook page and lo and behold there is a blog post by one of their staffers about that very CR, titled The Truth About Obamacare and Continuing Resolution. They seemed to have been getting phone calls about why Congressman Culberson would have voted to fund Obamacare. Heck, according to his legislative staffer, he’d already vote to repeal Obamacare something like thirty-four or thirty-five times! So why not vote to fund it? He’d kept one part of the promise to REPEAL it. He never mentioned not funding it.
My next step in investigating this was to call his office directly. I felt like there was something I was missing and I wanted to get to the bottom of it. So here is in short the phone conversation I had with their staffer: She said that there were essentially 12 appropriations bills all combined into one bill. One of the agencies that was to be funded was the Labor and HHS which funds things like WIC and is the agency that funds Obamacare. They voted to fund all of these things together, so that’s where the confusion comes in. She assured me that every year, these agencies have been funded at lower levels, therefore only leaving enough money to fund WIC and NOT Obamacare. Okay, that may make sense, but this reason that they voted for it makes my blood boil. They voted for it in part, from my understanding is that if they had voted no that the bill wouldn’t have gone anywhere in the Senate anyway. SO WHAT?!? Take a stand! Vote ‘no’!
Yvonne Larsen raised another question after I shared this information with her. Why were they in such a hurry to pass the bill? They didn’t even allow for the seventy-two hour wait time that they promised. No, they were in such a hurry, they voted after the bill was only posted for forty-seven hours. Sounds a little fishy to me.
On a side note, while having a conversation with this staffer, who was very helpful, by the way, I told her some things that I thought she needed to hear. I let her know, nicely that Republicans are bad at messaging; that this information they posted about the CR was done in reaction to the response of the constituents, not as a proactive measure. Then again, if we had known about it, we probably would have called and told him to vote no. She assured me that they are very active on social media and do try to get their message out. Culberson is known for his ‘cut spending and reduce government waste’ stance, so I asked her what have they eliminated. She couldn’t name any specific program or agency right off the top of her head. Go figure.
Not to get preachy here, but the Bible says something about a person’s word, ya know, when you give someone your ‘word’ that you are or aren’t going to do something. Above all, my brothers, do not swear–not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. Let your “Yes” be yes, and your “No,” no, or you will be condemned-James 5:12. Unfortunately, it doesn’t say anything about the things you didn’t mention that you might do or the things you didn’t promise. We usually just get some version of the truth.
Kelly Horsley
Harris County Republican Party Precinct Chair #877
Katy, Texas
(Note: you can find this and more of Kelly’s thoughts are her blog, The Political Chicken)