The Texas ATM Machine
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“I know that I’m going to upset some of my Democratic friends by saying this, but I am tired, tired, sick and tired of the DNC using Texas for a bag drag,” Juanita said this morning.
For the past 22 years, some state Democrats complain, the national party has used Texas like an ATM. The national party’s constant suck of money out of the state without reinvesting in Texas has given Republicans an advantage in state elections, they say.
“If they’d invest this money in Texas, we’d be a blue (Democratic) state,” said long-time party consultant Glenn Smith. “They (national party leaders) come down here and drag the sack and spend the money on themselves.”
During the 2008 election cycle, the Democratic National Committee raised $6.5 million from Texas donors and left $204,000 behind with the state party, according to data kept by the Center for Responsive Politics.
“It is my humble belief that they ought to have to leave 25% of what they raise here. If they had done that in the past, Texas would be a blue state,” Juanita say with certainty.
“Now, nobody is more excited than I am that President Obama is going to speak at UT. But, $5,000 a person to attend the fundraiser that follows – well, that money scampers out of Texas for somewhere like Michigan. Uh, the DNC boys need to buy a pocket calculator. Texas has twice as many electoral votes as Michigan.”
“Let us have some table scraps, Boys. If you elect local Democrats in Texas, we’ll teach the voters why everybody should vote Democratic!”