Perry or White

[txmatt]

People need to stop voting for the Democrats and Republicans because they are the problem and that doesn't mean vote for the TEA Party. The TEA Party is a bit questionable too because they all of a sudden show up after Obama gets into office. They are supposed to be for the constitution so where were they prior to that? Perry or White? Doesn't matter which of them gets into office they both work for special interests. They are bought and paid for. I am voting for Kathie Glass. I know a lot of people in Texas think Rick Perry is some great guy because he talks with a fake Texan accent and talks about succession and shoots coyotes with his LCP but you need to learn how to see past the smoke and mirrors. That guy works for the private special interests and you are not part of that club.

Sorry, I value my gun rights too much to throw away my vote on a 3rd party in what is looking like a somewhat close race for governor. Many of us here are no big fans of Perry, but take a look at the (realistic) alternative.

Voting third party has its place but not in a tight race where there is a clear lesser of two evils.

[MR Redneck]

I saw my first "Perry for governor" TV ad a couple of days ago.

Finally!

He's been a little too quiet it seems.

[texas1234]

Heavy Metal: We are all part of the special interest club. Kathie Glass if she were to get elected would work for special interest. You cant be in politics and not work with special interest, its impossble. Special interest all the way from business to social issues to gun rights drives our political system. If a politician didnt work with special interest they would get absolutely nothing done. As a matter of fact if it were not for special interest politicians would not be able to make decisions because there would be nobody there to inform them of issues. Go to the capitol sometime during this session and sit in a committee meeting, the entire room is filled with special interest, some you agree with, some you dont, but its special interest thats sitting there.

Voting on principle is a good thing, but for your own special interest you have to look at the numbers, if Kathie Glass has no chance of winning and she doesnt, you are throwing your vote away. If your looking for a pro-gun politician in this race Perry is your guy and its better to support him than have a chance of White stepping in. By the way Perry was born in Paint Rock, TX. I dont know how you fake a Texas accent being born in Paint Rock!

[UpTheIrons]

Voting on principle is a good thing, but for your own special interest you have to look at the numbers, if Kathie Glass has no chance of winning and she doesnt, you are throwing your vote away.

Voting third party has its place but not in a tight race where there is a clear lesser of two evils.

I'm putting both of these quotes together because I think they illustrate the frustration that we who no longer strongly identify with one of the major parties feel. Please forgive a short bio:

When I was a kid, Ronald Reagan was (booming, echoing voice here) THE PRESIDENT. He took office just before I turned 10, and was president forever (it seemed), and I liked it that way. I was a red-blooded, to-the-bone, elephant-owning Republican. Now that I'm a bit older, I no longer identify with the R's. I flirted with the D's a while back, but ran screaming from that camp.

Since then, I've found an uneasy home in Libertarianism - the closest "party affiliation" I can find to what I believe politically. Every time an election comes around, I have to evaluate the R's, the D's and the 'third party-ers' to see who will be the best choice to represent my interests and what I hope for our state and nation (locally or globally). And I am under no illusions about any candidate being able to ignore special interests.

I'm not registered as a Libertarian, and I likely never will register. So when I went into the voting booth last week, I had a couple of hard choices to make. Do I vote for Glass on principle, or Perry out of pragmatism? Do I vote down-ballot on principle or pragmatism, because there are some offices there that need change, too. For governor I chose pragmatism this time, even though I didn't in the primary.

Voting third party does have it's place - even in tight races, even when there is a clear lesser of two evils. And I will never say that you are "throwing your vote away" if you vote third party. This is a private and sacred right. Try and convince me all you want with facts and figures and the reason why I shouldn't vote outside the R and D parties when it is close, but don't belittle me because I vote on principle over pragmatism.

It took a long time to make this bed we're laying in, and it's going to take a long time to get out of it. If it takes one candidate here, and another over there to feel the discomfort of just barely winning because a third party candidate "took some of his votes", or another candidate lost because some people "threw their votes away on someone who couldn't win", then so be it.

It is my vote, it goes to the person I believe has earned it, or to the person that I believe can best serve the people affected by that office.

[Bart]

I'm not throwing away my vote. Politicians have a chance to earn my vote but if they throw away their chance, that's their choice and they should accept the consequences like adults.

In response to the other comment, I say theres no place for alienating voters who honor their oath to the constitution, especially in a race where there is a clear least of three evils.

[sjfcontrol]

Would you all still feel that way if it means that White wins the election?

[Bart]

100%

[UpTheIrons]

Would you all still feel that way if it means that White wins the election?

Yes, I would. Because it meant I voted with a clear conscience, I voted based on my beliefs, and I did not compromise my principles. I might be mad at those who simply voted for the party, but I'm usually worked up about that anyway.

I chided those who voted for Perot over Bush 41, which gave us 8 years of Clinton. That was based on the idealism of youth and still hewing to the R party line. Looking back, I don't think a second term for Bush 41 would have been any better than Clinton's first term. Plus, that would have pushed Clinton's two terms (and he would have had two, even if he were elected in 1996) forward to ending in 2004. Think about that for just a minute. Frightening, isn't it?

I'm not one to usually "what if..." too much, but that's what I now think of the 1992 presidential election. It isn't exactly an apples-to-apples comparison for us now, but I think it can inform us of the possibilities. Again, after weighing the issues, I voted for Perry last week. Some would say I compromised by not voting for Kathie Glass, but I was drawn to Perry for more reasons than a fear of a Bill White governorship.

Thread Drift alert: Any of you SA people hear Hardberger's ads for White? Basically "We've never had a governor from San Antonio, so vote for Bill White, because he grew up here."

[Oldgringo]

My guess is that everyone who's gonna' vote has done voted. Tuesday night, we'll know how the rest of y'all voted.

Wednesday morning, it will be the same old same old. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer. {SIGH}

[TexasGal]

My guess is that everyone who's gonna' vote has done voted. Tuesday night, we'll know how the rest of y'all voted.

Wednesday morning, it will be the same old same old. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer. {SIGH}

I don't have much more blood to give. I'm about tired of spreading the wealth around the world starting with people in our government who think I own a printing press.

[seeker_two]

Sorry, I value my gun rights too much to throw away my vote on a 3rd party in what is looking like a somewhat close race for governor. Many of us here are no big fans of Perry, but take a look at the (realistic) alternative.

Voting third party has its place but not in a tight race where there is a clear lesser of two evils.

Other than sign a couple of bills that were going to pass with huge, veto-overriding Legislature support already, what has Perry ACTIVELY done for RKBA?

Has he supported open carry?

Has he supported reducing the DPS fee on getting a CHL?

Has he supported Vermont/Alaska-style CCW?

Has he supported the "parking lot" CHL exemption?

And, has he done ANYTHING different than Bill White wouldn't do in the same situation?

I voted for Kathy Glass....she's the only conservative running in this race....and, if my "wasted vote" results in White becoming governor, I don't think we'll notice much of a difference...except that the GOP will know where they have to go policy-wise to get my vote back....

[chasfm11]

My guess is that everyone who's gonna' vote has done voted. Tuesday night, we'll know how the rest of y'all voted.

Wednesday morning, it will be the same old same old. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer. {SIGH}

I never had a problem with the rich getting richer. Guys like Steve Jobs have earned it. My life is better today because of the products that he developed.

To me, that beats the pants off where the CORRUPT get richer. While I'm not sure that is going to change much in Texas, regardless of who wins this election, I sure would like to slow down the corruption a lot.

There a lots of reasons why the poor get poorer. I won't pollute this thread by bringing them up but most of those reasons stem from the government in one way or another. In a true free enterprise system, only the lazy would get poorer.

[Purplehood]

Sorry, I value my gun rights too much to throw away my vote on a 3rd party in what is looking like a somewhat close race for governor. Many of us here are no big fans of Perry, but take a look at the (realistic) alternative.

Voting third party has its place but not in a tight race where there is a clear lesser of two evils.

Other than sign a couple of bills that were going to pass with huge, veto-overriding Legislature support already, what has Perry ACTIVELY done for RKBA?

Has he supported open carry?

Has he supported reducing the DPS fee on getting a CHL?

Has he supported Vermont/Alaska-style CCW?

Has he supported the "parking lot" CHL exemption?

And, has he done ANYTHING different than Bill White wouldn't do in the same situation?

I voted for Kathy Glass....she's the only conservative running in this race....and, if my "wasted vote" results in White becoming governor, I don't think we'll notice much of a difference...except that the GOP will know where they have to go policy-wise to get my vote back....

The reality is that you take baby-steps in response to all of the "has he" questions above. You don't run out of the chute and bounce your head off a wall trying to shove radical change down the electorates throat. Radical change is what we need, but we are not going to get it in the real world. It is only going to happen incrementally.

[txmatt]

Sorry, I value my gun rights too much to throw away my vote on a 3rd party in what is looking like a somewhat close race for governor. Many of us here are no big fans of Perry, but take a look at the (realistic) alternative.

Voting third party has its place but not in a tight race where there is a clear lesser of two evils.

Other than sign a couple of bills that were going to pass with huge, veto-overriding Legislature support already, what has Perry ACTIVELY done for RKBA?

Has he supported open carry?

Has he supported reducing the DPS fee on getting a CHL?

Has he supported Vermont/Alaska-style CCW?

Has he supported the "parking lot" CHL exemption?

And, has he done ANYTHING different than Bill White wouldn't do in the same situation?

I voted for Kathy Glass....she's the only conservative running in this race....and, if my "wasted vote" results in White becoming governor, I don't think we'll notice much of a difference...except that the GOP will know where they have to go policy-wise to get my vote back....

If you don't think there is a difference between Perry and White on guns then there is probably nothing I can say that will convince you otherwise, and voting third party would make sense in such a situation. I've done so before myself. I don't think that's the case here, but that's just my assessment of the situation.

Maybe I'm being a bit overly optimistic but I think we might be able to get campus carry and/or parking lot carry through the legislature in the next couple of sessions, and when we do I would like to have a gov there that would not veto either of those.

[terryg]

Ok, I just got back from voting - reluctantly checking the box next to Perry.

Here's to prayerfully having better choices in the primary next time around ...