One of the neat things about local publications is that those who write for them are often more blunt when they speak about local politicians and issues. That's what makes this piece about the race for the GOP nomination in CD22 so fun.

Southbelt-Ellington Leader

February 24, 2008



PublisherÂ’s Opinion


ItÂ’s probably not necessary to remind our readers that election day is right around the corner, and everyone should vote.



There is plenty of information available to encourage you to vote for specific candidates. The Leader is not going to endorse candidates at this point.



But there is one candidate in a race, the congressional race for the 22nd District, for whom we are going to urge people not to vote for. That candidate is Pete Olson.



In May of 2007, he quit his job in Washington, D.C.



He left his $700,000 home to buy a house in Fort Bend for approximately $185,000 in August of 2007. At that time, he reported his mailing address as his home in Virginia.



When he filed with the Republican Party in December to run for the local congressional seat, he was asked how long he lived in the state, county and district.



Olson reported he lived in the state, county and district for four months.



Olson thinks he can use the big bucks he is getting from lobbyists to buy our congressional seat.



In his third campaign filing period, he reported receiving $175,000; with 90 percent of his funds coming from out of the state of Texas, most of it from well-known lobbyists.



He avoided his fellow opponents in the one televised debate, telling Channel 13, he was declining attending the event.



LetÂ’s see, home base really in Virginia; living in Texas for a few months out of the last couple of decades and most of his campaign money being donated from out of state.



Seems clear to me.



If elected, when his constituents want something for the district, they are going to have to get behind the long line of out-of state lobbyists.



He canÂ’t have, in such a short time, learned what he needs to know about representing this community.



Sorry, Mr. Olson, you must earn our vote, not buy it with out-of-state dollars from big lobbyists.



– Marie Flickinger

Well said, Marie. The problem with Olson is that his roots in the district are incredibly attenuated, and his position in the race is owed to those from outside of the area -- and the state -- who are financing his race. We deserve better.

Posted by: Greg at 11:07 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
Post contains 428 words, total size 3 kb.