OFFICIAL ENDORSEMENT: Bryan Hughes for Texas House Speaker!!!

"When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; when a wicked man rules, the people groan."  Proverbs 29:2

What would you say if I told you that the man who the Texas Constitution grants near dictatorial power over half of the Texas Legislature views economic growth exactly the same way as Barack Obama?!?

Sadly, he does.

In October 2011, Texas House Speaker Joe Straus told the El Paso Times "you can't cut your way to prosperity."  The previous June, Barack Obama said the exact same thing.  That Joe Straus deliberately echoes Barack Obama's core economic philosophy should tell you everything you need to know about Joe Straus.

But there's more, a whole lot more.

Joe Straus is in the Texas Legislature for two reasons: to spend the people's money and to enrich his family's cronies in the corrupt casino gambling industry.  Due to an unexpected surge in oil and gas revenue, Texas is blessed with a modest amount of extra cash, which Straus wants to blow on pork-barrel projects.  Joe Straus also dogmatically refuses to support the Texas Budget Compact, the most important step the 83rd Legislature can take to defend Texas' economy.  This shouldn't be surprising, considering that in the 82nd legislature, Straus chose to prostitute himself to the usual suspects of corporate welfare johns instead of minimizing the burden on Texas taxpayers.  Joe Straus' Obama-esqe crony socialist 'leadership' is an economic risk Texas cannot afford.

Fortunately, there's a declared alternative.  Bryan Hughes, Straus' opponent in the Speaker's race, supports the Texas Budget Compact.  That's good enough for me.  An across the board fiscal and social conservative, Bryan Hughes has been endorsed by Concerned Women for America, Freedomworks, and Young Conservatives of Texas.  He's also been endorsed by Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, but that endorsement only counts for half because Michael Quinn Sullivan is a dirty Aggie.  Bryan Hughes is committed publicly to the economic reforms Texas needs to survive the coming storm.

Last summer, Texans witnessed a U.S. Senate primary between an establishment insider, and a guy who had taken on the insiders and won.  The Texas House speakers' race is exactly the same.  An assault is about to come out of Washington, and to have any chance of withstanding it, Texas must have our own house in order.  Given the near dictatorial powers the Texas Constitution grants the Speaker of the House, the speaker's race could determine if the 83rd Texas Legislature passes the Texas Budget Compact.  For that reason, Cahnman's Musings unapologetically, unconditionally, and unreservedly endorses BRYAN HUGHES FOR SPEAKER OF THE TEXAS STATE HOUSE!!!