Van Duyne campaign = GOP's opportunity on Housing

"And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us,
And establish the work of our hands for us;
Yes, establish the work of our hands."
Psalm 90:17

Fantastic:

Former Irving mayor Beth Van Duyne has left her post at the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development’s office in Fort Worth.

She confirmed she is running for the 24th Congressional District after Rep. Kenny Marchant announced he’s retiring.

Van Duyne said she’ll make a formal announcement soon.

In 2015, we called van Duyne our "Texan of the Year."  It was a one-time award, designed for specific circumstances.  But we've been following her for awhile.

Over the past few years, during her time at HUD, van Duyne has come through town several times.  Thus, we've had several occasions to discuss the dysfunctional nature of federal housing policy.  None of the conversations were Earth shattering, but van Duyne knows her stuff.

It's not a secret that this website has been harping about housing costs for YEARS.  It's the largest item in most household budgets.  Reducing them is one of the lowest of the low hanging pieces of economic fruit.

Unfortunately, for whatever reason, Republicans are oblivious.

We'll defer to the candidate on policy.  There are a number of worthwhile possibilities.  Off the top of our head: HUD, the Federal housing administration, and Fannie/Freddie could all use significant reform/scaling back/outright elimination.  We're not sure where to draw the line between what we really want and what's realistically achievable.

Bottom Line: It's hard to think of a candidate better suited to address the largest item in most household budgets....