Why My Candidacy is Different
For The Old Parties, It's ONLY About "Winning"
"I won't vote for a Libertarian because they never win." I hear this quote (or one like it) wherever I campaign, and it's absolutely true ... for the moment. "So, since this is true," most people seem to wonder, "why do you even try to compete?" Because, quite frankly, I don't believe that "winning the race" is the "end-all, be-all" of political existence.
A political race is NOT a game, and winning one is only the first step in a longer journey. Everyone knows this, so that's not really any startling revelation. But to the media, the ONLY aspect of politics that is continually reported on is which party won and which party/parties lost. It's not about the issue; it's about the win-loss ratio, and how much "power" the winning party accumulates as a result of the win. Sure, there may be some analysis about how this win or loss will affect this party or that one, and maybe some coverage about how they perceive the issue, but the only aspect that partisans ever seem to care about is whether they won or not (and gloating about it to the other party).
Here's a challenge that I try to point out whenever I encounter this comment: Is winning really the only thing that matters? I only ask because I suspect that their perspective is not about "winning" as much as it is about "team loyalty" (or, put another way, "tribalism"). Many of the people I've heard this statement from are also Dallas Cowboys fans and they haven't won even a league championship in over two decades.
There's an axiom that is currently applied to American politics: "You can eat anywhere you like as long as it's McDonalds or Burger King. You can drink any soda you like as long as it's Coke or Pepsi." Despite the gallows humor associated with the axiom, I think the more important question to ask, especially in Texas, is "what if I like tacos and cerveza?"
One of the primary reasons that I decided to run for the Texas House of Representatives is that I am not offering to be a “better” candidate, simply a “different” one.
Libertarians refer to the Democratic and Republican Parties as "the Old Parties". To us, they are sedimentary behemoths who do not believe in compromise despite all of their rhetoric to the contrary. For them, regardless of which party, the idea is, "it's my way; no 'highway' option."
Here's another challenge: listen to what the Old Party candidates have to say about the issues that matter most to you; the ones you sit at the dinner table discussing. Are they actually discussing those issues? Or are they simply telling you their positions on the issues that they claim should matter to you? Welcome to politics in the 21st Century, where both sides of the political duopoly ramble about their pet issues and simplified views, and the majority of the populace is beguiled by the narcotic-like effect of simplistic solutions that seemingly need only the "political will" to succeed. They seem to gloss over the reality of the situation; that their idealized campaign bumper sticker slogans sound great, but would have a perfect failure rate in the real world.
I don't have any simplistic answers, nor will I pretend that I do (except for the "tacos and cerveza" thing; that's pretty simple, I think). The single most important idea that I can bring to the Texas legislature as a representative is "compromise". Legislation is all about compromise, and compromises don't always please everyone completely. But being able to look at the many facets of an issue allows me to take the best parts of each facet and put together something that (at the very least) most people can agree with even if they don't get everything that they wanted.
If you're tired of the two-view, stale political atmosphere where everybody talks but no one ever seems to say anything, and nothing ever seems to actually get done, then perhaps it's time for a change. If you are as tired as I am of the Old Parties continually bickering about their respective "righteousness", if you're tired of the continuous recycling of issues just to have something to bicker about, if you actually want to solve problems, then I would appreciate your consideration and support for something new and someone different in the Texas legislature. I feel that the people of District 57 deserve a representative who is not going to get stuck in the blinding fog of partisan politics. You WILL have a choice: you can vote for more of the status quo, or you can vote for something different - someone who might actually get something done for a change. Choose wisely.
