The Culture War is the war that never ends. One side is hell-bent on denying American citizens their rights to bodily autonomy, gender identity, even books, and a decent education. To this end, the National Republican Congressional Committee unveiled its first Texas ad of the general election last week, accusing U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-McAllen, of pushing “sex changes for kids.”
Their claim is absurd and untrue, but in today’s post-truth political environment, candidates and their mouthpieces spew false claims and routinely get away with it. Of course, getting away with it and making it work for you are two different things.
According to the Human Rights Campaign, “Anti-trans sports bans risk further marginalizing young people who already face tremendous challenges in school. Proponents of these bans suggest that trans athletes are pretending to be trans in order to do well at sports – ignoring entirely the incredible stigma trans youth face.”
Cruz Has His (Offensive As Usual) Say
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, also unveiled Tuesday his campaign’s biggest ad buy yet for two ads accusing challenger U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, D-Dallas, of supporting legislation that allows men to use women’s restrooms and not knowing “the difference between boys and girls.”
The scale of the ad buys indicates that Republicans view the message as a major pillar of their electoral strategy. The Cruz campaign said the two ads are part of a $6.7 million ad buy in coordination with the Republican Party of Texas — the biggest ad buy by the campaign so far.
The strategy is not limited to Texas. U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley from Missouri released an ad this week featuring Riley Gaines, a competitive swimmer who has advocated against trans women participating in women’s sports.
Allred’s campaign blasted the ads as a “disgusting, false attack, and another example of how Ted Cruz only wants to divide Texans.”
Cruz will “say anything to distract from his dangerous abortion ban that is putting women’s lives at risk, trying to raise the retirement age for Social Security and Medicare, and fleeing to Cancun during a deadly winter storm,” Josh Stewart, an Allred spokesperson, said.
Colin Allred Is Offering Something New
Allred’s point of view, his tone of voice, his background, and his concern for the people of Texas are all welcome changes. Let’s look at his advertising too. It’s far superior to his opponent’s.
