Background on the Candidates

Jeff Wentworth:
Senator Jeff Wentworth is serving his seventh term in the Texas Senate where he was president pro tem in 2004 -2005 and where he was inaugurated as Governor of Texas for a Day on November 20, 2004. Senator Wentworth, a fourth generation Texan, was first elected to the Texas Senate in 1992 after serving nearly five years in the Texas House of Representatives. He represents the nearly one million people of District 25, which consists of Comal, Hays, Kendall and Guadalupe Counties as well as north Bexar County and south Travis County. He is chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Open Government, and serves on the Select Committee on Redistricting; Higher Education; Administration; Transportation and Homeland Security; and Intergovernmental Relations Committees. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the Natural Resources Foundation of Texas, the Board of Directors of the Austin Community College Center for Public Policy and Political Studies. Jeff’s public service prior to the Texas Legislature includes one year as a university system regent, six years as a county commissioner, two years as a city attorney, three years as a Congressional assistant, and three years’ active duty as a United States Army counterintelligence officer.

Elizabeth Ames Jones:
A sixth generation Texan born in San Antonio in 1956, Elizabeth Ames Jones was elected to the Texas House in 2000. She challenged an entrenched establishment incumbent in the Republican primary and was elected in 2-1 landslide to represent District 121, Northeast Side of Bexar County. Jones was re-elected in 2002 and 2004. During her 2nd term, Jones was elected the first woman to a leadership position in the House Republican Caucus. She was Chair of Budget and Oversight subcommittee of the Energy Resources Committee and as a member of the Appropriations Committee, she was on the front lines of crafting a budget that cut state spending for the first time since WWI without raising taxes when Texas was faced with a $10 Billion budget shortfall. She also served on the Select School Finance Committee, Local and Consent Calendars and was awarded the “Fighter for Free Enterprise” designation by the Texas Association of Business. As Republican Caucus Vice Chairman, Elizabeth was on the front lines of ensuring passage of what Forbes magazine called Texas’s “Ten Gallon Tort Reform” legislation to put the brakes on frivolous lawsuits. Because of her conservative credentials and energy expertise, Gov. Perry appointed her to an unexpired term on the Railroad Commission of Texas, the state’s energy oversight agency in February 2005. Jones was elected to a 6 year term the following year and is only the second woman elected to the energy oversight agency in 120 years. She is currently serving her second stint as Chairman of the Railroad Commission. Elizabeth is a staunch defender of our 2nd Amendment right to keep and bear arms and she knows how to use them. A 1978 graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, a Daughter of the American Revolution (DAR), Elizabeth and has been married to Will Jones, a New Braunfels native for 28 years. They have a grown son and daughter.

Donna Campbell:
Donna was born Sept. 17, 1954 in San Diego while her father was in the Navy. The family soon after moved to Oklahoma, where her father continued his public service as a highway patrol trooper and her mother worked in factories before earning her GED and becoming a registered nurse. No stranger to hard work, Donna began working at the age of 13, worked through high school and put herself through college. After earning her undergraduate degree in Oklahoma, Donna went to Texas Women’s University in Dallas and received her MS in nursing. She graduated with her M.D. from Texas Tech and completed her residency in ophthalmology at the University of Texas, Houston. She is double “boarded” (certified) in ophthalmology and emergency medicine. Dr. Campbell is emergency department medical director for Columbus Community Hospital, and periodically serves the emergency departments of other hospitals in Texas. Donna Campbell is a woman of faith who has volunteered her medical knowledge with a Christian eye ministry, performing surgeries in Africa to bring sight back to hundreds. Donna and her husband, Stan, have four beautiful daughters and live in New Braunfels.

Senator Wentworth opened his remarks attacking Railroad Commissioner, Elizabeth Ames Jones, through her husband, Will, an Austin attorney, whom he accused of being an unregistered, paid lobbyist, and creating a conflict of interest that would cause permit applicants to the Railroad Commission to be intimidated because Will’s wife was chairman. He attacked Jones’s residency as not being in the 25th District, since she has a home in Austin.
Commissioner Jones countered that her husband was not a paid lobbyist and not required to register as such. (See below for my interview of her after the debate on this subject.) Jones cited Constitutional lawyers who said that she met the requirements of living within the District.
Dr. Donna Campbell said she is against Obamacare, is pro life, and a conservative.
Senator Wentworth identified himself as conservative, anti Obamacare, and “not pro abortion” but supporting a woman’s right to choose. He says he prefers adoption over abortion. On other issues, Wentworth is in favor of term limits, a line item veto, and the right of nullification if 2/3 of the states disagree with a federal law.
Commissioner Jones favors block grants and state compacts to let states control medical costs. She favors term limits at the ballot box.
The three candidates were asked about gambling as a revenue producer for Texas. Wentworth favors local choice. Jones favors job creation to generate revenue, not gambling. Campbell is against gambling based on constitutionality, unreliability, and the risk of union influence.
Regarding toll roads, Senator Wentworth says he wants to reduce congestion without toll roads. He claims credit for killing the trans Texas corridor. Commissioner Jones stated that the gasoline tax should not be “peeled off” for other uses besides roads. Campbell is against toll roads and regards toll roads created on existing right of way constitute double taxation. She went on to say that if a toll road is authorized, it should be built and operated by a domestic contractor.
Regarding illegal immigration, Wentworth attacked Jones for favoring a tax subsidy to illegal immigrants in education. Jones countered that The Supreme Court requires public education K-12 be provided to all. She says that the federal government should be living up to its obligation to secure the border so that Texas does not have to pay the price for Washington’s failure also enforcing the immigration laws on the books. She does not favor giving illegal immigrants subsidies and she admonished Wentworth for being in the legislature for so long and doing nothing to curb the existing in-state tuition benefit that in 2001 generally had no restrictions regarding residency of Texas school children when they were accepted at a Texas university. She said the in-state tuition fee schedule needs reforming as it gives too many groups the tuition break that should be reserved for Texans. .
Campbell agrees about no subsidies to people here illegally and wants to secure the border.
Asked what is the most corrupt or dysfunctional state agency, Senator Wentworth said redistricting was dysfunctional and should be handled by appointed representatives of the Parties. He said TxDot was the most dysfunctional agency. He does not favor election of the TxDot director.
Commissioner Jones believes that redistricting is an inherently partisan process and the outcome represents the will of the voters through their elected Representatives in the Legislature. She disclosed that California’s appointed redistricting board has a high level of legal challenges as well and that appointing a board to draw the lines is no less complicated but there would be no accountability. She thinks that school financing through property taxation is the most dysfunctional aspect of our state tax code. She says we need property tax appraisal reform. Regarding electing the TxDOT Chairman, she recognized the concerns but was not convinced would solve the problems. She feels we can control the Transportation Commission within the Legislative process and with their funding and must hold our elected Governor- who appoints the TXDOT Commissioners -and members of the Legislature accountable.
Dr. Campbell favors auditing TxDot, rebuilding TxDot , and electing the director.
In conclusion, all were asked why they felt they were the best candidate for State Senator. Wentworth claimed endorsement of himself by the NRA. He cited his seniority and committee chairmanship as valuable to retain. Commissioner Jones favors zero based budgeting and voted for tort reform. She said she is running for a cause, not an office. Dr. Campbell presented herself as a conservative candidate with fresh ideas and not a “career” politician.　

For more perspectives, other San Antonio Tea Party supporters in attendance were George Rodriguez, Sharon Hall, Steve Baysinger, and Bruce Ballio. It is a good thing when Tea Party representation at events like this debate signify to the parties, candidates, and the general public that we are watching and voting.

I welcome and invite your comments.　

On December 4th, the San Antonio Tea Party hosted a Christmas party and fundraiser called “Home for Christmas” at Pedrotti’s North Wind Ranch for the Military Warriors Support Foundation. About 200 persons attended the event and tribute to our men and women in uniform. Lieutenant General Leroy Sisco (USA Ret.), MWSF founder and CEO, provided an overview of the foundation’s mission and specific programs designed to help the wounded warrior’s transition to civilian life—including their “Homes4WoundedHeroes” program. Mr. Jonathan Wheeler, a wounded warrior, gave a personal account of the injuries he suffered in service to his country. He also told the gathering how MWSF had helped by providing a new home for him and his family.

“Home for Christmas,” choreographed by long-time supporter Jon Kaplan, was an inspiring retrospective on the contributions of our fighting men/women since the founding of our Nation. The theme speaks to the soldier’s longing to return to the warm embrace of family and loved ones after defending America’s interests around the world. The program opened with a beautiful rendition of “Jerusalem” performed by recording artist Greg Flores. An impressive group of young people showcased their talents and lifted our spirits: the Clark High School JROTC presented the colors, Brandeis High School Samantha Serrano sang the National Anthem, and Paulina Gomez (age 10) captured our hearts by reading her short essay “The Gift of America.”

At the conclusion of the event, the SATP collected more than $1100 in donations for the Military Warriors Support Foundation. To those who were able to give, thank you for your generosity. To those who were not able to join us, it is never too late to contribute to this worthy organization. Please send your tax-deductible donations directly to the Military Warriors Support Foundation  which is headquartered right here in San Antonio.

CLICK HERE to see videos from the event…

San Anotnio Tea Party Meeting – January 15th, 2012 – Part 1

San Anotnio Tea Party Meeting – January 15th, 2012 – Part 2

George Rodriguez and Ken Bennight Address the SATP Meeting – December 4th, 2011

LTG Leroy Sisco (USA Ret.) and Jonathan Wheeler – Military Warriors Support Foundation

Dr. John Vanderpool as Thomas Jefferson – December 4th, 2011

Robin Juhl Reads the Gettysburg Address – December 4th, 2011

Greg Flores – Jerusalem – December 4th, 2011

Hector Melendez – The Code of Conduct – December 4th, 2011

San Antonio Tea Party September 18, 2011 meeting

Justice Hilbig:

Michael Quinn Sullivan – Empower Texans:

George’s State of the Tea Party Address:

San Antonio Tea Party Mid-Summer meeting August 7, 2011 – Guest Speaker Kevin Jackson

San Antonio Tea Party Senate Candidates Forum – Tom Leppert

San Antonio Tea Party Senate Candidates Forum – Ted Cruz

San Antonio Tea Party Senate Candidates Forum – Elizabeth Ames Jones

San Antonio Tea Party Senate Candidates Forum – Glenn Addison

San Antonio Tea Party Senate Candidate’s Forum – Lela Pettinger

San Antonio Tea Party Senate Candidate Forum – Andrew Castanuela

April 17th, Event

Video from SATP President, Ken Bennight, on the new structure for SATP.

Application

You may fill and send the Application Online if you choose, otherwise click  Application to print out this application, scan and e-mail it to Sharon Hall, sharon@sanantonioteaparty.us . If you prefer, Fax: 210-568-2962or snail mail it to: San Antonio Tea Party, 10650 Culebra Road, Suite 104 PMB 548,  San Antonio, TX  78251

Back to Basics Rally, Capitol in Austin, July 31, 2010

If you love America and want it to remain

“the land that we love”, these videos will bring

tears to your eyes.

Please share our website with your friends.

A video by Eric Adam was introduced to an inspired crowd. To view click here.

Pictures of the event, here

These are videos from different San Antonio Tea Party events as well as from protests and meet your representative meetings.

New! From SATP’s Health Care Protest on December 16th – with music!

San Antonio Tea Party Protest

Listen to Julia and Jeanne Haden talk about the San Antonio Tea Party  01-san antonio tea party

San Antonio Tea Party In D.C.  9-12-09

San Antonio Tea Party In D.C.  9-12-09

San Antonio Tea Party In D.C.  9-12-09

San Antonio Tea Party In D.C.  9-12-09

San Antonio Tea Party In D.C.  9-12-09

Michael Knowles Interview With MSNBC (sorry for the poor quality,  I’m trying to get a better copy)

Tea Party Express At Alamo Plaza 9-3-09 Video 1

Tea Party Express At Alamo Plaza 9-3-09 Video 2

Tea Party Express At Alamo Plaza 9-3-09 Video 3

Tea Party Express At Alamo Plaza 9-3-09 Video 4

Tea Party Express At Alamo Plaza 9-3-09 Video 5

Tea Party Express At Alamo Plaza 9-3-09 Video 6

Tea Party Express At Alamo Plaza 9-3-09

Health Care Rally Outside Ciro Rodriguez’s Office 8-22-09

Ciro Rodriguez Coffee – Helotes July 2009

Ciro Rodriguez Coffee – Helotes July 2009

Ciro Rodriguez Coffee – Helotes July 2009

Just Say No Rally- Austin, TX 8-9-2009 Video 1

Just Say No Rally- Austin, TX 8-9-2009 Video 2

Just Say No Rally- Austin, TX 8-9-2009 Video 3

On Wednesday, June 1, 2011, Tea Party supporters from San Antonio, New Braunfels, Seguin, and McAllen met with four representatives of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service (ICE) at the Lion & Rose Pub in San Antonio.  Allen Tharp, Lion & Rose owner and Tea Party supporter, hosted the group in a private room with a sumptuous buffet.

Harold Hurtt, assistant director of the Office of State, Local and Tribal Coordination for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Washington D.C., introduced himself and described his background as a police chief who had been in law enforcement for 41 years. He opened with a statement of ICE’s priorities: ICE prioritizes enforcement, focusing first on removing criminal aliens convicted of the most serious crimes, such as murder, rape, kidnapping, major drug offenses and threats to national security.

ICE is responsible for interdiction of violent criminals, human/weapon/drug traffickers, and money launderers; interdiction of those intent on doing harm to the United States of America, i.e., terrorists; and enforcement of laws against employer hiring of illegals.  ICE holds frequent meetings with other governmental organizations, such as state, local, and Mexican law enforcement.  According to Mr. Hurtt, ICE has good cooperation and coordination with these agencies. He also said that he likes to meet with local groups, such as the Tea Party, to have a two-way dialogue to gain feedback from the grassroots level and keep the lines of communication open.

We also heard from ICE Special Agent in Charge Jerry Robinette, another former police chief, who operates out of the San Antonio office and covers the entire south Texas border with Mexico. He described his role as enforcement of the objectives previously defined by Mr. Hurtt.  Referring to ICE’s limited resources, he said the agency was doing a good job nonetheless. For example, he described ICE’s Secure Communities Program.

Fingerprint records taken by local law enforcement during booking are automatically checked against the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) immigration records, providing the ability to accurately identify aliens in custody. When fingerprint submissions match immigration records, local ICE officers are notified and promptly determine if immigration enforcement action is required. This information sharing capability is currently activated in 1,315 jurisdictions in 42 states. By 2013, ICE plans to use this capability nationwide. California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Florida all have 100% of their jurisdictions participating in the Secure Communities program.

Since this Secure Communities capability was first activated in 2008, information sharing has helped ICE identify and remove more than 72,000 convicted criminal aliens from the United States. For Texas the number of convicted criminal aliens arrested or booked into ICE custody through the Secure Communities program was over 27,000. Of these, the convicted criminal aliens removed from the U.S. were over 20,000. Bexar County has been a part of the Secure Communities program since June, 2009.

He described the process of interviewing suspected illegals in local holding cells, building a case, and turning them over for removal.

We also heard from Michael J. Pitts, Field Office Director, Enforcement and Removal Operations.  Mr. Pitts is responsible for 11 Texas detention centers.  Mr. Pitts spoke of work being done in detention centers in Raymondville, Pearsall, Los Fresnos, and Laredo, Texas.

Both Robinette and Pittman said that enforcing immigration laws is a federal function that must be done according to the Constitution without profiling or improper legal procedure. They went on to say that half of the public support and agree with their efforts and half do not. They said that they do not get involved in the politics of immigration–only in the enforcement of existing laws with limited resources at their disposal. They did not speak specifically of the “287” program in which ICE trains local law enforcement to conduct interviews themselves before turning suspects over to ICE. However, they did say that, even in “sanctuary cities,” police chiefs cooperated well with ICE by inviting ICE personnel into holding cells. The flat statement was made that there are no sanctuary cities in central and south Texas.

Special Agent in Charge Jerry Robinette spoke about the Asset Forfeiture program, used by ICE to seize assets from criminal organizations or monies acquired through criminal activity. Under this program, federal, state and local law enforcement partners and foreign governments working with ICE in joint investigations can be eligible to receive a portion of the proceeds of a federal forfeiture, which fosters greater partnership and cooperation among agencies. He spoke of millions of dollars seized and given to state and local law enforcement jurisdictions.

At this point, the floor was opened to questions and comments. These included the following:

1.  Question: How do we better enforce closing the border to illegals?  Answer: Texans know how best to do this and “ask the Border Patrol.”

2.  Question: What resources does ICE need to enforce border security more effectively?  Answer: No clear answer was given.

3.  Question: Does anyone really believe certain politicians’ statements that enforcement had improved over the years?  Answer: It depends on how one defines improvement.

4.  Question: How can the Tea Party help to address ICE’s needs to accomplish its objectives? Answer: Hold meetings with your Congressmen and urge them to better support ICE.

Moderator, George Rodriguez, thanked the ICE guests, invited them to meet again on a quarterly basis, and concluded the meeting.

Several San Antonio Tea Party Executive Committee members and other patriots had a very interesting and productive meeting this week with San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro. The Mayor apologized for not meeting earlier with us and promised to meet with us periodically to discuss issues and projects. He was interested to hear about our group, particularly the Neighborhood Groups we have developed across the city. He also invited us to participate in SA2020, the community-wide project to vision what we want San Antonio to look like in the year 2020. (We have already contacted Dr. Francine Romero of UTSA, who is in charge of the project, to discuss the role we might play.) San Antonio Police Chief William McManus also attended the meeting and promised to meet with us at a later date to discuss his position on immigration.
This was only one of the continuing meetings we have had or plan to have with local and federal agency officials. Past meetings have been with US Representatives Lamar Smith (District 21) and Francisco “Quico” Canseco (District 23) and Ted Cruz, former Solicitor General of Texas and Republican candidate for the US Senate seat currently occupied by Kay Bailey Hutchinson. Future meetings are planned with officials from the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office the US Federal Reserve, and also San Antonio’s own Elizabeth Ames Jones, Texas Railroad Commissioner and another Republican candidate for Hutchison’s US Senate seat. We have also invited US Congressmen Charlie Gonzalez (District 20) and Henry Cuellar (District 28) to meet with us on local issues, President Obama to meet with us to explain his economic and immigration policies, and Congresswoman Michele Bachmann to speak to us in the Fall. We’ll keep you informed on these as they materialize.
Finally, stay tuned for more information on the US Senate Candidate Forum which the SATP will sponsor on Saturday, July 9th. Details are still being worked, but this will be one of several forums across the state to which all candidates are invited to introduce themselves and share their views. We will need volunteers to help make this a first-class event; please contact Sharon Hall (see contact list) if you can help.