From the InBox:

TEXAS VALUES ACTION ENDORSES BRISCOE CAIN FOR HOUSE

Texas Values Action proudly endorses Briscoe Cain for the Texas House of Representatives, House District 128. Cain is an attorney and community leader who has fought for religious freedom, including representing pastors against the City of Houston’s unconstitutional attacks on First Amendment rights. Cain is challenging Rep. Wayne Smith in the March 1 Republican Primary.

Briscoe Cain is currently the lead attorney for a group of law enforcement officers who had their Bible study banned by the City of Beaumont. Briscoe Cain stepped in and successfully fought for the religious freedom rights for the officers, drawing the praise of many statewide elected officials.

“Briscoe Cain is a proven leader for religious freedom, marriage, and life. His unwavering commitment to fighting for faith, family, and freedom leave no doubt he is the right choice to serve in the Texas House. With Briscoe Cain in the Texas House, the people of House District 128 will have a proven leader for the values that matter to Texans,” said Jonathan Saenz, President of Texas Values Action.

Rep. Wayne Smith was one of the lowest scoring Republicans in the 2015 Faith and Family Scorecard (66{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986}). During the 2015 session, Smith voted for a bill that would have infringed the First Amendment free speech rights of conservative non-profits and potentially even churches. Texas Values Action helped lead efforts to defeat the bill.

If you look at Cain’s endorsement page, he has locked up virtually every state and national grassroots organization’s endorsement in this race. That’s a good thing but it doesn’t mean much if those groups aren’t willing to invest their money in his campaign. We’ll see if that happens when the next round of finance reports come out.

Cain’s opponent, longtime incumbent Wayne Smith, has an endorsement page filled with local politicians and community leaders. That’s to be expected from an incumbent, even one as ineffective as Smith has been through the years. After all, incumbents have a huge advantage going in and local politicians don’t want the incumbent mad should he, as expected, win. Gravy trains and such.

The thing is, Smith hasn’t done much of anything to benefit the people living in District 128, which includes most of Baytown, Deer Park, and La Porte, plus parts of Pasadena and unincorporated Harris County. He is not an effective advocate for any specific policy issue – think about it, when was the last time you heard Smith’s name in front of anything? When it comes to legislators legislating, he is the very definition of “furniture” – he’s sort of in the background and necessary to meet quorums but invisible on policy discussions and fights.

He’s the sort of big business, old school Republican that doesn’t understand movement conservatism. And that is exactly what his endorsement list represents – mostly people making their living off of the government who cringe when they hear people wanting to slow the growth of government or increase transparency and freedom. For goodness sake, the guy voted to tax all internet sales in what would have been not only a massive tax hike for Texas residents but would have put the brakes on the economic success of countless internet businesses. As conservative as Smith might say he is, his record simply doesn’t reflect it. It doesn’t make him a bad person, just an ineffective state representative.

The District 128 race between Smith and Cain is a clear choice between an incumbent with no clout in the Texas Legislature and an outsider that will bring a fresh vision for the district and will be able to wield some clout during his first term due to his statewide network of grassroots connections. If the voters in 128 want to keep the status quo, they can vote for Smith. If the voters in 128 want someone that will listen to their concerns and help improve their quality of living, they have a clear choice in Briscoe Cain.