Redistricting dilemma doesn’t hold back district 33 hopefuls

A rough patch in redistricting did not deter committed candidates vying for the elusive district 33 seat from taking to the podium Tuesday night; each expressing why those in the audience should vote for them in the upcoming primaries. The private room at Jake’s Burgers in west Fort Worth was filled with roughly 30 attendees, including local celebrity Bud Kennedy from the Star-Telegram.

Three of the five who were invited showed up for the debate. Monte Mitchell, a lawyer and seasoned medical professional, was able to speak to the audience for roughly 15 minutes before leaving for another event. This left candidates Al Lee and Chuck Bradley to battle it out on stage-or so I thought.

Each candidate was given the opportunity to select a moderator of their choice. I was invited by Al Lee to be one of the three moderators in what was billed as a debate. However, I quickly realized that when you put two candidates on the stage who have virtually the same political philosophies, it doesn’t leave much room for argument.

The other two moderators for the evening were David Lambertson from the Fort Worth 912 Group and Marie Howard from the Keller Tea Party, both of whom are politically engaged and serve as precinct chairs.

I’ll spare you the details and be frank; both candidates seemed to take nearly the same stance on all of tonight’s questions. Each candidate projected that they were a Constitutional Conservative who will fight for smaller government and less spending.

I was extremely disappointed with the response I received when I asked each candidate to specifically list 3 business regulations they would work to remove if elected to office. The combined answer was “Obamacare, the EPA, and a fuzzy comment about Czars.” Unfortunately, this is the type of easy answer that we receive from every candidate. I pine for the day when candidates provide specific answers rather than broad, across-the-spectrum responses.

Al Lee even mentioned that the federal government passed 40,000 new regulations but did not list a single one. It troubles me that some candidates run for office with the hope that they will be able to effect sweeping changes. Both candidates mentioned the EPA, but neither addressed the proposed “Cross-State Air Pollution” rule which will cripple coal-fired power plants in Texas.

Tonight’s discussion was not hosted by any particular Republican group; instead, it was organized by members of candidate Chuck Bradley’s campaign staff. Only Twenty members of the audience elected to participate in the straw poll. Chuck Bradley won with eleven votes, followed by Al Lee with eight, and Monte Mitchell with one.

Referring to the fact that the event was organized by members of Bradley’s staff, Bud Kennedy posted the following statement to his twitter account after the debate:

Was just called a ‘liberal RINO’ by fringe TX-33 R candidate Chuck Bradley. He barely won his own self-conducted straw poll 11-8 over Al Lee.

Harsh but accurate.

Nonetheless, I enjoyed being a guest moderator amongst fellow political enthusiasts and hearing some of the concerns expressed by citizens.