Campaign Update: The Good and the Bizarre

Dear Readers,

Just a short update on the campaign to keep you apprised. First of all I have rceived several on-line campaign donations. I want to thank those people who have so generously given to me and I will be thanking them individually by a thank you note.--Right now I am buying yard signs and bigger signs for business locations. A fifty dollar contribution buys quite a few signs. Every dollar helps. I was also offered the use of a rather large billboard owned by a business on Montana street. The owner is a friend and supporter of mine. The sign I need to hang there costs $800.00. Any help toward this expense would be a tremendous boost for me. Thousands of people pass this business every day. If eight people gave me a hundred dollars or 16 people gave me fifity, it would be paid for.

Secondly, I knocked on doors all day yesterday. I went to over a hundred houses in central El Paso. With the exception of one woman, everyone I came into contact with was polite and many were excited to meet me and wanted to vote for me. The feedback was extremely positive. People were angry that Esparza has already been in office for 16 years and now wants four more. They're also very upset about the corruption scandal and that he did nothing about it. People are sick about the scandal. Voters were even asking for my signs to put in their yards. My crew will gladly go back and hammer in signs where requested.

As I was walking down the sidewalk on Bliss street, a woman in a vehicle stopped me and told me that she lived on the east side and had just received my second mailout. She found it very informative. She said she had forgotten that the Times had said all those things about Esparza. She liked the detail of my letter. She told me she was going to vote for me. I was happy to see that the mailouts are wending their way through the community and having a positive effect. Her thoughts were that the newspaper was unfair to me.

Lastly and on a somewhat funny note but definitely a strange one, at around 3:00 p.m. I was knocking on doors at the 4600 block of Trowbridge when I looked over and who did I see standing directly across the street in front of a house (the house belongs to an employee of his and she has put up one of those corporate sized Esparza signs in her yard) with his hands in his jean pockets glaring at me? That's right, my opponent. At three in the afternoon on the same street but opposite corners happened to be the two candidates running for DA in the 34th Judicial District. But only one was campaigning, me-- I thought it was funny and I smiled and waived at Esparza but he didn't smile and waive back. I then got into Stuart's car so that we could go down to the 4400 block of Trowbridge, on the other side where we had some houses to hit. We went our way and then parked. The system is that Stuart waits and follows while I walk. As I was coming from a home, Esparza drove by on the opposite side of the street, whipped a U-Turn and then actually parked behind Stuart by half a block. Esparza sat in his car behind Stuart for about five minutes. Doing what if anything we don't know. He then backed up against traffic on Trowbdrige, which is heavy, and backed around a corner onto a side street and then backed down the side street (Marr Street).--Where are traffic police when you need them?--Is this Esparza's idea of campaigning? Following me around and trying to intmidate me and driving down streets backwards. 'Tis a very strange strategy if it is. His car also had no Esparza signs on it. I guess he thinks he doesn't need to campaign. He can just throw up a few corporate sized signs, put "integrity" on them and try and fool the people for another 16 years. And there you have it.

Remember, a week from today is the KVIA debate before the State of the Union address.

If you want to help, want a yard sign, etc. please call 566-0229.