By many standards, Dan Patrick is just your average Republican politician. He boasts a socially conservative background and is running on a typical platform of lowering?taxes, reducing government spending, and boosting the economy.
Oh, and he also wants to repeal the 17th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which established direct election of U.S. senators by popular vote.
Meet the Republican nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Texas, Dan Patrick.
While he eventually flopped?on doing away with the direct election of U.S. senators, that’s far from?the only bad mark on Dan Patrick’s record. Labeled one of Texas Monthly’s “Worst Legislators of 2013,”?he was seen as such an electability risk that even many of his own colleagues openly protested his nomination. The word around the Republican camp before the primary was “ABP – Anybody But Patrick“. They worried that he was too radical, too temperamental, and too guided by personal ambition to be put on a statewide ticket.
Patrick has proven to be incredibly out of touch with women voters. He’s firmly against?laws to protect equal pay for women, seemingly denying that there’s even a pay disparity at all.?When the topic of women’s healthcare came up in a primary debate, he claimed that it was a “myth” that “planned parenthood had anything to do with women’s health.”
But?some of?Dan Patrick’s worst attributes are his radical and discriminatory views on immigration and Hispanics. ?He holds a staunch anti-immigration stance, referring to the influx of immigrants from Mexico as an “illegal invasion” on his own donations page.?Of course, that’s nothing compared?to statements he’s said in interviews?trying to accuse?immigrants of being the biggest perpetrators of violent crime. He even spent time in a?televised?debate with Mayor Julian Castro of San Antonio to lecture the mayor on the dangers that “anchor babies” posed to the state.
Texas Democrats are hoping they can get the word out about their opposition. Battleground Texas’ Facebook page has already started exposing his misdeeds and extremist views. If they can get the word out about what kind of craziness is on this year’s Republican ticket, they can turn this bad nomination into good wins for Democrats in 2014.
Edited/Published by: SB
