Ken Paxton traveled to northeast Texas yesterday to meet with conservatives in Texarkana, Marshall, and Longview. This 3-stop tour was hosted by State Representative Bryan Hughes and coordinated with the release of over 220 Tyler/Smith County endorsements. Glenn Evans of the Longview News Journal published this piece in today’s LNJ after attending the lunch reception:
By Glenn Evans gevans@news-journal.com | Posted: Wednesday, December 11, 2013 4:00 am
One of three Republicans vying to be the state’s top cop was clear Tuesday about what Texans have to gain by resisting federal laws such as Obamacare.
“Freedom and the ability to continue to prosper economically,” attorney general candidate Ken Paxton said during a campaign stop in Longview. “This is a critical time in the state. We’ve got the federal government intruding.”
The freshman senator from North Texas said he would press on with Attorney General Greg Abbott’s agenda of taking the federal government to court. Past high-profile efforts of Abbott, who is running for governor, have included defense of Texas’ voter ID law.
“They want to change who we elect and how we elect them,” Paxton said of the U.S. Department of Justice.
A lawyer in McKinney, Paxton has a year left on his first term in the upper chamber in Austin, after serving five terms in the Texas House of Representatives.
Paxton faces Texas Railroad Commission Chairman Barry Smitherman of Austin, a former Public Utility Commission chairman, and six-term Texas Rep. Dan Branch of Dallas in the GOP Primary on March 3.
Democrat Sam Houston of Houston is unopposed in the Democratic Primary.
“The attorney general has the obligation of defending the laws of the state of Texas,” Paxton said. “I don’t know of any lawsuit or anything in the federal government that we’re suing on that I wouldn’t.”
The attorney general also is the state’s chief consumer advocate, prosecuting identity theft, and the watchdog on open government issues. The office also prosecutes people who withhold child support payments.
Paxton, a married father of four, aligns himself politically with U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and promises the most conservative stance of the three candidates seeking the Republican nod.
“Our records are different both on fiscal issues and conservative issues,” Paxton said during a reception at Papacita’s Mexican Restaurant. “I have a proven, conservative, consistent record like few people in the state.”
Paxton’s reception was hosted by state Rep. Bryan Hughes of Mineola.
Click here to read the full article.
This piece originally appeared in the Longview News Journal on December 11, 2013.
