Who should I vote for in the 2008 Texas 7th District House of Representatives Race?
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
Michael Skelly, Democratic challenger for Texas's 7th Congressional District's House seat, is running on a heavy alternative energy platform. Skelly was the chief development officer for Horizon Wind Energy, working to bring sensible wind technology to the market. He makes the argument that the recent problems with the economy and the occupation of Iraq can be directly linked to the failures of the Bush Administration to make the changes necessary in our energy policy for America's success in the 21st Century. "I understand energy challenges inside and out," he says. "I understand the promise and limitations of various energy sources." With energy at the forefront of Texan's concerns this November, having experience in wind echnology may prove to be a boon for Skelly. Side: Wind Man
Several House Democrats hosted a fund raiser today in DC for Candidate Skelly. This race has been identified as important to the party, indicated by Skelly's inclusion on the list of both the NDC "New Democrat Coalition and the RedtoBlue program. This despite the district being considered one of the most conservative in the state, encompassing suburbs of Houston, an oil industry area. Side: Michael Skelly
|
It's possible that Skelly, having come to the United States from Ireland, could be accused of running for this office illegally. If nothing else, Culberson could use this to show himself more in touch with people in this district as a Houston native. There are already high expectations that Culberson will hold on to his seat. Side:
 John Culberson (R) In the world's first telephone/internet/video/text real time town hall meeting, Republican incumbent Congressman John Culberson, currently running for reelection in Texas's 7th Congressional District, has become known as the Twittering congressman. Recently, during the FISA vote, he streamed live interviews with fellow House members using Qik. Culberson was even stopped by Secret Service for trying to do a live posting from the Oval Office. Utilizing technology is one of the greatest advancements to hit the 2008 election cycle and Culberson has been at the forefront of the curve. Side: The Twittering Congressman
Culberson Votes Against Bailout Although Culberson noted some positives about the bailout bill including increased oversight and eliminating "golden parachutes," he was ultimately against its fundamentals. In a statement, he explains, "The $700 billion Paulson-Pelosi bailout forces Americans to choose between bankrupting our children or big Wall Street banks. The revised plan was just released a few hours ago, and while it contains some oversight, eliminates golden parachutes for bad actors, and creates an investment banking insurance program for the future, the bottom line requires me to oppose it. " He does mention an alternative, however, which includes cutting corporate and capital gains taxes in order to free more money into the market. He suggests a mandatory insurance program for banks, but he does not say how this would be funded without tax-payer money. According to Culberson, "The best solution to this crisis is to suspend mark-to-market accounting rules, establish a mandatory insurance/guarantee program to cover the banks’ losses at no expense to taxpayers, cut the capital gains rate to zero, cut taxes for offshore dollars repatriated back into the U.S., and slash corporate tax rates to encourage investment and lending. Changing the mark to market accounting rule alone will solve a huge part of the problem by allowing banks to keep non-performing assets on their books until they recover their value." Side: Bailout
|
