Alan Grayson is one of the smartest people I know. I feel like I learn something every time I speak with him. Lately, though, he’s taken to sending me all these e-mails from candidates as examples of how horrible their appeals are, what he calls “incredible self-absorption about things that matter to the chattering class only.” I know he’s frustrated with the degree of stupidity. I am too. That’s why I unsubscribe. Instead of unsubscribing, he sends them to me, usually with some pointed fulminations.
Most of those emails— like more than 90% of them— are about the candidates, not about what the candidates want to do for the recipients. I never thought that was a good idea and neither does Grayson. I don’t want to read about a candidate’s wife's favorite recipe for poppy-seed bread or about their garden or about how Chuck Schumer's father was an exterminator.
Mike Siegel is running for the Austin City Council. Yesterday I received an e-mail from his campaign. Instead of discarding it, I was open to opening it because Siegel is a good candidate and because I liked the subject line: 3 promises.
The Austin City Council is probably not your top concern. In a presidential election year, in a state that outlawed abortion and is dismantling public education, in a climate that is increasingly hostile to human life— there’s a lot to worry about.
But for those of us here in Austin, we have a City Council that can directly improve the conditions in our community… Here’s three examples of what our City can do:
1— Confront the Housing Crisis
Homelessness in Austin has more than tripled since 2010, nurses and teachers cannot afford to live in the communities they serve, and university graduates see little hope of achieving their version of the “American Dream” here in Austin.
The City Council doesn’t have all the tools to solve the housing crisis, but there’s a lot it can do locally. I support efforts to update local code and make it easier to build housing within the city limits. We must also use every financial lever available to create affordable housing options for people at every economic level.
To make lasting progress on these issues we’re facing, the City should advocate in Washington, D.C. for new housing investments. The housing crisis is a national issue, and it’s the federal government that has the financial tools.
2— Respond to Climate Change
Hotter summers and freezing winters have shown us why climate change mitigation is needed. And Austin has unique leverage to take meaningful action. We own our own electric and water utilities and have a powerful environmental movement that has been working for decades to make Austin a renewable energy leader.
The next City Council will need to make critical decisions affecting electric and water policy. Some fossil fuel advocates want to keep Austin’s coal plant active— and even build a new natural gas power plant— but there’s a huge opportunity to pivot toward renewable energy investments including local solar grids, battery storage, and geothermal energy.
We also need to reduce water consumption, implement strategies to reclaim water, and otherwise respond to persistent drought across Central Texas. The decisions we make next year will impact our community for decades to come.
3— Resist the Texas GOP
The core job of the City is to keep the lights on, provide for public safety, pick up the garbage and pave the roads. I’m committed to supporting the basic operations of our City government— by hiring professional staff, supporting City workers, engaging with the community and providing effective oversight.
But at a time when the Texas Republican Party is constantly inventing new ways to attack the people of Texas, we need to do more. The people of this state need us to do more.
Austin has been a statewide leader on a number of fronts, like paying City workers a living wage, adopting policies to protect reproductive choice, promoting community oversight of the police, and investing in renewable energy. By enacting and protecting local progressive policies, we set an example for what would be possible statewide under a future Democratic leadership.
He closed by reminding his followers that his campaign “is committed to serving the needs of our Austin community and fighting for the change we need.” And he asked for a contribution. He signed it, “With respect and determination.” I sent him $450, which I think is the maximum a candidate can accept in an Austin city council race. But I’m sure he’d be happy with whatever you feel like sending.
Austin is a truly odd place. It has been a fairly progressive enclave in the crimson nazi shithole called texas.
At the city level, he might be able to lead some success on some of those issues. But only for Austin. If he tries to take his issues state or federal, he'll run head-first into TWO immovable parties who are BOTH paid billions not to do any of them.