I hope you and your family are doing well and that you've been able to find a safe way to spend time together over the holidays. Amy's sister is in from out of town and we spent most of yesterday with her young family.
The boys, Amy's nephews, were baptized in the morning (by the same priest who married us and who just celebrated his 70th (!) wedding anniversary) and afterwards we came back to our house for a big family lunch to celebrate. Tonight we're hoping to see my uncle and aunt who are also in town. It's good to be with everyone again after the last two years of being apart.
When not with family I've spent the last couple of days on the phone calling people to ask them to contribute to our campaign before the end of the year or to thank them for organizing events for us. We want to end the year strong, so these calls are really important. I'm happy to tell you that the support out there has been really encouraging — people are genuinely happy to help and are giving what they can.
Our campaign team has also been working hard, focused this week on making sure that our message is getting out to voters everywhere in Texas. And not just to those who receive this email or to those who show up to our events. These headlines are a great example:
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While most Texans live in the big cities and urban counties — and while you will see me spending a lot of time in Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, San Antonio, Austin, and El Paso — smaller towns and rural communities are also important to this state's future. These are the places that produce the fiber, food, and fuel that drives the success of our state. They are typically overrepresented in enlistments for our armed forces. In short: Texas wouldn't have a prayer if it weren't for these rural communities.
But because these places have voted reliably Republican over the last twenty years, you've seen many state and national Democrats write them off. And because those Democrats stopped showing up, Republicans didn't have to either. There was no competition for votes, no accountability for office holders and very little progress made on the issues most important to this part of the state.
For example, because Governor Abbott has refused to expand Medicaid, more rural hospitals have closed in Texas than in any other state over the past decade. People are driving hours in some cases to see a doctor or deliver a baby. Greg Abbott has also vetoed critical funding for rural phone and internet service, meaning that bills in this part of the state could go up by more than $100 per month for many customers. And rural towns are not seeing the investment in roads, water systems, and broadband that will allow them to be competitive with other parts of the state and country.
As one person I met in Jones County put it to me: "How do I ask my kids to move back to Stamford if they can't get online, if we can't attract better jobs and if they don't see us investing in the future of our town?"
I am showing up in these communities — places like Stamford, Abernathy, Rising Star, Paris, and Marshall, to name a few from this last trip — because the people who live in them are important to me, important to the future of Texas, and because as Governor I want to deliver for them. I am listening to people, and reflecting back their priorities and solutions in the campaign that we're running.
This is the right way to run a campaign if we want to win — by doing better in every part of the state. And I believe this is the only way to run if I'm going to come through for everyone in Texas as the next governor of this state.
Thank you for supporting a campaign that refuses to take anyone for granted or write anyone off. Happy holidays to you!
I look forward to seeing you in the new year.
Beto
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