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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Republican Suzanna Hupp phoning Libertarians to quit House races
AUSTIN - August 1, 2008 - Several Libertarian candidates for State Representative have received phone calls from former Republican Representative Suzanna Hupp asking them to drop out of their races.
Wes Benedict, Executive Director of the Libertarian Party of Texas, reports:
"I just spoke with Libertarian candidates Jason Jordan and Joe Allport. Suzanna Hupp called them this afternoon begging them to drop out of their races. She alluded to potential board seats and other enticements. She suggested that Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson would follow up with another phone call.
"When Republicans call and ask Libertarians to drop out, they almost always say, 'But this guy is a good Republican.' I guess they mean 'a fiscal conservative, unlike all the other Republicans.' The Republican Party has complete control of Texas government, but it keeps sticking Texans with ever higher taxes and spending, and more regulation of our personal lives. Republicans gave us the $3 billion cancer research debt. Republicans proposed a statewide smoking ban last session. Republicans created the horrible new business margins tax. I love Suzanna to death, but it's too late in 2008 to repent the sins of 2007.
"We're telling our candidates to stand firm. Unfortunately, our candidate in the close District 47 race dropped out last month, but we're hoping that won't happen again.
"It's no skin off my nose if Republicans lose. In fact, if they lose control of the Texas House, that might be a good thing for taxpayers. At the federal level, when the same party controls the legislative and executive branches, government grows much faster than when the control is divided. Divided government might be healthy for Texas."
The Libertarian Party of Texas (LPT) has a legislative scoreboard for the 2007 session:
http://www.lptexas.org/docs/LegislativeScoreboard2007.pdf
The LPT also has an analysis of close legislative races in the November 2008 election:
http://www.lptexas.org/docs/CloseRaces2008.pdf
With regard to Libertarians acting as "spoilers", Benedict added, "It's ridiculous to hear Republicans or Democrats complain about spoilers. Republicans and Democrats have imposed on us this absurd system of plurality elections where people can win without a majority. Libertarians would never have created an election system like this. Valid elections need runoffs, or some other alternative. They created the system--let them deal with the consequences."
Contact:
Wes Benedict, LPT Executive Director
512-442-4910
director@lptexas.org
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