When you make a decision who to vote for in the race for State Representative, you are choosing your representative in Austin. It's vitally important that you understand where your potential representative stands on the issues that face our state. Some candidates try to dodge the issues under the pretense of "listening to voters." Don't be deceived. That'a ploy to avoid taking a stand lest they might offend someone.

At the other end of the spectrum is the concept of leadership. Leadership points the direction forward and rallies others to the cause. David Watts is a candidate who will lead. He has a clear record of articulating his views on the issues that face Texas. You can agree. You can disagree. But you'll know with full transparency where David stands.

 

David's views:

 

Abortion

Abortion is the murder of unborn human life. There is no moral argument for murdering innocent unborn life. The Texas Legislature must continue to work to reduce and eliminate abortion, until such time that we have a Supreme Court that will overturn Roe v. Wade.

 

Illegal Immigration

We must secure our southern border against illegal crossings. Since the Federal government won't do it, Texas must continue to deploy forces to the border in order to curtail illegal immigration. Beyond border enforcement, we must end the benefits that draw illegal immigrants across our border. We must end in-state tuition for illegal immigrants. We must directly confront Plyler v. Doe (the 1982 Supreme Court decision which mandates a tax-payer funded K-12 education for illegal immigrant children) and mount a legal challenge to this irresponsible Supreme Court decision.

 

2nd Amendment

The 2nd Amendment did not so much grant us a right to keep and bear arms, as it recognized the right to keep and bear arms as a pre-existing fundamental human right that the government must not infringe on. We must continue the fight to protect this vital human right. Texas should pass legislation respecting the principle of constitutional carry, insofar as law-abiding Texans should be permitted to carry firearms openly or concealed without registration, fingerprinting, or mandatory training requirements.

 

Education

Texas must have a well-educated workforce. As citizens we demand it, and companies relocating to Texas demand it. But in achieving this we must not forget that it is the fundamental right of parents to determine the best method of education for their children. That method may be a private education, public education, or a home school education. No state agency or any arm of the state may interfere with that fundamental right of parents.

Regardless of which method of education parents choose, Texas deserves a world-class public education system. Teachers and administrators make it clear: we need DC out of our education system. But they also make this clear: we need Austin to get out of our education decisions as well. Each school district in Texas has a vested interest in delivering a high quality education. State education requirements should be as minimal as practically possible, so that local districts and local parents are empowered to make the right decisions for their unique requirements and students.

 

The Role of Government

Government has expanded its role significantly in the past twenty years. Government must focus its work and spending on meeting those foundational and core expectations of government. Among these core requirements are such activities as: punishment of law-breakers, public education, essential public services (e.g. Fire and Police), and core infrastructure (Roads and bridges). With government's expansion and regulation of virtually every facet of our lives, we find our rights continually eroded. It is time for the Texas Legislature to aggressively restrain the role of government.

 

States and the Federal Government

We must remember that it was the States which created the Federal government, not the other way around. And as such, the States enumerated certain responsibilities to the Federal government and all of those not specifically enumerated were reserved to the States. Our Federal government has strayed very far from this standard. But the States have been complicit in this corruption as well. The States have been complicit insofar as they have failed to exercise the Constitutional correction mechanisms which they instituted within the Constitution. Namely, the States have failed to use an Article V Convention of the States to modify the terms of the relationship with the Federal government. Such a process is not a renegotiation, as that implies the States and the Federal government must negotiate and agree to new changes. Rather, an Article V Convention of the States is a single-sided process by which the States determine which changes they will make to the balance of power between the States and the Federal government and they proceed without any agreement from Congress, the President, or the Supreme Court.

It is time for two-thirds of the States to call for such a convention, propose amendments to the US Constitution, and then begin the process of ratification by means of three-fourths of the State Legislatures.

 

Government Spending

The government, at all levels, spends too much of our money. At the state and local level, governments are far too willing to happily suckle at the sow of the Federal government. Many state and local politicians believe that a Federal grant represents an outstanding opportunity to provide a service to their constituents at "no cost." But such views are folly, for the federal dollars belong to all tax-payers. And this attitude typifies what is wrong with politics as usual: it is the taking of money from the people, and redistributing it on pet projects so the local politician can proudly thump their chest as having "done something" for the people of his district.

Government grants must be directly related to the fundamental role of government. To often, local politicians secure such grants and spend millions of dollars on pet projects that would never be sustainable in the free market. They are projects that people don't want and wouldn't pay for. And perhaps most clearly, they are pet projects that if the people of the local community had to agree to fund with their own tax dollars, they would choose not to fund such projects.

 

Gay Marriage

Marriage is a sacred covenant between a man, a woman, and God. Marriage, defined as one man and one woman, finds its roots in the Holy Bible. Before there was ever a Jewish nation, and before Christianity was established, God defined marriage as one man and one woman. And throughout thousands of years of human history, diverse nations and races have embraced the concept of marriage being between one man and one woman.

Despite the Supreme Court's recent decision, the definition of marriage has not changed. Politicians in Texas will consistently denounce the decision, but will then slowly and quietly begin embracing the decision as "settled law." But Supreme Court decisions are not "settled law." The Dredd Scott decision wasn't settled law, and as a people we're grateful it was not viewed as "settled law." Roe v. Wade should not be seen as settled law. The infamous Kelo decision which authorized communities to take private property so the community could redevelop it in view of greater tax revenue, should not be considered "settled law."

People of faith across Texas must continue to reject the Supreme Court's failed ruling on gay marriage.

 

Leadership of the Texas House

For too long, Joe Straus has served as Speaker of the Texas House. Joe Straus is neither a leader, nor is he working for conservative solutions to the problems Texas faces. By relying on Democrats to keep him entrenched in power, he is beholden to their interests and their agenda. As a result, Straus continues the mistake of appointing Democrats to chair important committees in the Texas House. These liberal chairs defy the will of the people of Texas and block important conservative solutions. Straus is complicit in this rigged system.

David Watts will not vote for nor support Joe Straus to continue to serve as Speaker of the Texas House.

Politicians who give money to Joe Straus and support his efforts need to explain their actions to conservative voters.

 

Property Taxes

The Texas property tax system is broken and corrupt. An army of bureaucrats attempts to imagine your home's value using incomplete data and slanted numbers. Regardless of your ability to pay, you owe Texas perpetual rent for property you may very well own free and clear. This sort of perpetual rent to the government is immoral and must not stand.

We must end the property tax system and move to a consumption type of tax. Such a tax will immediately eliminate an entire layer of state bureaucracy in the form of Appraisal Districts. Additionally, the added sales tax (to replace the property tax) will be visible to voters with every purchase they make. Every purchase will remind voters of the money Texas takes from them and with this constant reminder, voters will become far more aware of wasteful spending by politicians in Austin. Whereas the current property tax is often hidden in a nebulous escrow amount, the replacement tax will be directly in front of us and will no doubt provoke more citizen concern about high taxes and wasteful spending.

But until this can be achieved (and there are powerful forces that will resist this change), there is an interim step we must take. Each Chief Appraiser is hired by an Appraisal District Board of Directors. Guess who appoints the Board of Directors? It's the very taxing entities that want your money: the city, the county, and the school district.

In truth, the very people who have an insatiable demand for your tax dollars control the entire process of property valuation and taxation. This must end. Under David's proposal, the Chief Appraiser and perhaps even the Board of Directors become elected positions whereby the people directly hire and fire those who manage the appraisal process.