GOLDMAN on Speakers Race: Conduct Vote as Laid Out in the Texas GOP Platform

Why the Speakers Race Needs a Dose of Reality By State Rep. Craig Goldman AUSTIN Texas (Texas Insider Report) Ronald Reagan one of the most quoted conservatives of our time popularized whats known in the GOP as the 11^th Commandment: Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican." Ironically Reagan is also one of the most quoted conservatives when other conservatives choose to publicly criticize fellow Republicans for not falling in lock step with conservative ideology.   You can imagine my surprise then when a fellow Tarrant County state representative recently came under fire for speaking the truth in front of a group of people who helped elect him. Asked by his local Tea Party group whom he would support for speaker in the upcoming legislative session State Rep. Giovanni Capriglione (left R-Ft. Worth) said out loud what everyone in the   Legislature already knows: There is no race for speaker. Not the answer the group expected or wanted to hear. The hateful retaliation against Capriglione has been swift and unyielding. Ive been appalled by the efforts to publicly destroy the character of someone who is guilty only of speaking the truth. And the truth is over 70 Republican House members (and growing) have already publicly announced their support for Speaker Straus. By my count Representative Scott Turner (R-Frisco)  who has vowed a public floor vote in his challenge to incumbent Speaker Joe Straus  has the support of about a dozen current members and a handful of incoming freshmen. We will be 98 Republican members strong in the Texas House next session. Texas is a diverse state and every member represents a unique district so there will certainly be differences of opinion. But we can differ respectfully while working to uphold conservative principles and that will require unifying our party. To do so we must stop the public and personal smear campaigns and conduct a vote for speaker as laid out by the state GOP platform.

House Republicans should convene in caucus to determine by secret ballot their candidate for Speaker of the House" reads the platform which was adopted earlier this year at the state GOP convention. Rules should be instituted … so that members may vote without risk of retribution by the prevailing party."

Convention delegates from across the state saw the potential damage of publicly fracturing the party so the platform calls for House Republicans to vote as a unified body for their selected speaker candidate." Because I was entrusted with representing the citizens of House District 97 and because I will continue to do everything in my power to see that their values are upheld and their rights are protected I will support Speaker Straus when our caucus convenes in January and brings the issue to a vote. Im hopeful that a resolution will be reached in caucus but should the vote be taken to the House floor Ill stand with my fellow Republicans and vote to re-elect Straus. By my count Turner has the support of about a dozen current members and a handful of incoming freshmen. If I thought that supporting Scott Turner would lead to the passage of more conservative legislation I would gladly support him. But thats not that case. As Ive told my constituents if youre so inclined to spend your time effort and money campaigning for Mr. Turner to be the next speaker thats your right. But after the election I hope you direct that same amount of time effort and energy into participating in the legislative process. Work with your representative and conservative delegation to help introduce and pass conservative legislation. The challenge lies not in crafting the next 140-character criticism of your fellow Republican but rather in actively participating in the process and understanding how newly proposed laws will impact Texas. Rather than campaign against your fellow conservatives who have chosen to publicly endorse someone other than your preferred candidate let us commit to pushing for a more unified Republican Party in the state of Texas. As President Reagan said:

Within our tent there will be many arguments and divisions over approach and method and even those we choose to implement our philosophy. Seldom if ever will we raise a cheer signifying unanimous approval of the decisions reached. But if our philosophy is to prevail we must at least pledge unified support of the ultimate decision. Unity does not require unanimity of thought."

State Representative Craig Goldman a 5th generation Texan and 4th generation native of Ft. Worth was elected in 2012 to represent House District 97 encompassing the southwest portion of Tarrant County Texas.