Larry Joe Doherty for US Congress, TX CD 10

Background:

Born in Hillsboro, TX in 1946, I was raised and educated in the public schools of Houston. As a lawyer for over 30 years, I fought to hold those who thought they were above the law accountable, both in the courtroom and in the classroom. As a legal malpractice attorney, I earned the respect of the state’s top attorneys by holding accountable lawyers who neglected their clients or abused the system. My wife and I took our commitment to the rule of law one step further by endowing a Chair in Legal Ethics at the University of Houston School of Law. Outside the courtroom, I have applied this message of doing right and accepting responsibility to my passion for the environment. As a Master Naturalist, I have cultivated our ranch into a preserve that protects animals and the environment. I have also served as president of the Washington County Wildlife society and am a director of the Texas Wildlife Association.

Goals:

I am running for Congress because I am fed up. I am fed up with the fact that by the 2008 election we will have spent over $600 billion dollars on a misguided, mismanaged war in Iraq. I am fed up with rubber-stamp Representatives like Mike McCaul, who will vote 3 times to deny children health care but will support every expenditure Bush has asked for in Iraq. I am running because its time for Washington to listen and be held accountable to the people, not to a fact-deaf administration.

Issues:

As a Congressman, my first priority will be to push for a rapid and responsible withdrawal of our troops from Iraq, not a slow roll-out to the year 2013. After that, we can apply the $720 million dollars we spend daily in Iraq to domestic issues the Bush administration has neglected for the past 8 years, beginning with fulfilling our obligation to the 1.8 million veterans who, despite their sacrifice for our country, go day to day without healthcare.
America has lost faith in government, and with good reason. My third priority in Congress will be to put real teeth in ethics law. It is time to hold those in government accountable and show that ethical lapses in Washington have the same consequences as they do everywhere else.

Grassroots Support:

Tom DeLay purposely gerrymandered Texas’ precincts to break-up communities and nowhere is this more evident than Texas’ 10th Congressional District. We will run a competitive campaign with TV and radio but the only way that we can overcome these false boundaries is by rebuilding the bonds of community. That’s why mine will be a people powered campaign using tools both online and on the ground to show what DFA has shown for years, the power of collective action.

DFA Values:

When I had the opportunity to star in a the courtroom TV series Texas Justice, my motto was, "without love, there is no justice." And I believe it. It is a fallacy to believe that socially progressive is not also fiscally responsible and the reauthorization of CHIP is a prime example. There are hidden costs when we do not provide children with health care. Parents miss work, children miss school, and everyone pays with higher premiums and even higher emergency room costs. We cannot allow the other side to force a false choice by suggesting being socially progressive means not being fiscally responsible.