Endorsement: Retire Chip Roy, send Wendy Davis to Congress
U.S. Rep. Chip Roy is known to break from the pack. That could be an admirable quality if Roy was off charting a better path or notching bipartisan wins. Unfortunately, Roy’s breakaway moments tend to be misguided stands.
Consider the Hays County Republican’s decision in March to oppose a vital coronavirus relief package because it was unveiled on short notice — a concern not shared by the vast majorities in both chambers that delivered the bill for the president’s signature. Or his procedural stunt last year delaying billions of dollars in emergency aid, including more than $4 billion for Texans recovering from Hurricane Harvey, because Roy objected to holding a vote while so many members were absent.
To his credit, Roy has been a fierce advocate for small businesses suffering in the coronavirus economy, and he worked with Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota to provide greater flexibility to those getting Paycheck Protection Program loans. Little else indicates Roy can break through the partisan gridlock, though. Last year Roy had the third-worst rating in the entire U.S. House on the Lugar Center’s Bipartisan Index, a reputable measure of officials’ efforts to work across party lines.
Democratic challenger Wendy Davis is the superior choice for U.S. House District 21, which runs from Austin to San Antonio and includes six Hill Country counties. Of course, the former state senator is best known for her own act of protest, a 13-hour filibuster at the Texas Capitol in 2013 over an anti-abortion bill. But Davis also passed dozens of bills in her six-year tenure, including measures to assess the rape kit backlog, determine the effectiveness of Texas’ events trust fund and improve public access to government information. All of those bills required bipartisan support to pass in the GOP-controlled Capitol.
Perhaps most importantly in this age, Davis treats the coronavirus as a real health threat, while Roy, who continues to campaign in person, says the virus has been politicized. In fact, the freshman congressman raised skepticism with us over the “200,000 people that are being alleged to have died of the virus.” He noted those Americans “died with the virus,” insinuating other factors might have led to their graves. That's our congressman adding fuel to the dangerous conspiracy theories suggesting the U.S. COVID death toll has been overblown.
Texans in District 21 don’t need any more of Roy’s independence from reality. The alternatives include Democrat Davis, Libertarian Arthur DiBianca and Green Party candidate Tommy Wakely. We urge voters to retire Roy on Nov. 3 and send Davis to D.C.
Make your call
The Statesman has been publishing endorsements all week in select local, state and federal races. Early voting runs from Oct. 13-30. Election Day is Nov. 3. For information on polling locations visit votetravis.com for Travis County and hayscountytx.com/departments/elections in Hays County. Visit facebook.com/statesman and click on “Videos” to watch our interviews with the candidates.