About those endorsements
Committed worker
Regarding “For the 10th Congressional district: Mike Siegel” (HoustonChronicle.com, Oct. 16): Your team failed to mention some key accomplishments that U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul has delivered for Texans, specifically over the past two years.
As we enter the conclusion of another devastating hurricane season, it is a stark reminder to Houstonians of the destruction caused by Hurricane Harvey. Immediately following Harvey, I witnessed McCaul on the ground helping in his capacity as chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee and our congressman. He worked tirelessly in Washington to secure billions of dollars in disaster relief funding and held three hearings to assess the response from the federal, state and local levels.
As a fourth generation Texan, McCaul knows we must secure our southern border and fix our broken immigration system. He introduced a very strong border security bill this year. It closed legal loopholes, reformed our immigration system to a merit-based system and found a legislative solution to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
Our porous border allows traffickers to enter our country. McCaul has made this issue a top priority partnering with nonprofits to end this heinous act. He authored the DHS Blue Campaign Authorization Act, which is now law, and hosted a roundtable in Katy with victims’ rights organizations and law enforcement on how we can implement his bill in our district and throughout the country. Rebecca Fox, Katy
Third parties
Regarding “For governor: Abbott” (Editorial page, Oct. 21), in the Chronicle editorial board’s tepid endorsement of Gov. Greg Abbott to continue as governor, you bemoan the lack of better choices. However, the endorsement gives no mention to Libertarian nominee Mark Jay Tippetts.
Even if the board does not consider Tippetts a better option, the board should say so and tell us why. The same is true for all of the paper’s endorsements for 2018. Readers should expect better of a paper that, as recently as 2016, endorsed Libertarian Mark Miller for a seat on the Texas Railroad Commission.
Blatantly ignoring thirdparty candidates is an endorsement of the socalled two-party system, the partisan duopoly that has turned our nation into the world’s largest purveyor of death and destruction to enrich banks and billionaires while stealing from the rest of us. The majority of voters have rejected that duopoly. In the 2016 presidential race, the two major parties gave us a Wall Street warmonger and a white supremacist grifter. As your endorsement of Abbott puts it, we deserve better. David B. Collins, Houston
Firefighters’ pay
Regarding “Vote against Prop B” on pay parity issue for Houston firefighters, (Editorial page, Oct. 20): No small group of people can determine fair compensation rates for workers in a vocation but the labor market can. Those who work in that vocation set compensation with their feet. If compensation is fair considering the workplace environment, health risks, etc., the employer (in this case the city of Houston) will get adequate, qualified new recruits and retain adequate veterans. Conversely, if compensation is too low, there will be vacancies in the cadet classes and in higher positions.
If the Houston Fire Department is filling its cadet classes and retaining veterans, that indicates adequate pay whether or not there is parity with the Houston Police Department or any other similar group. If not, increases in vacancies are indicated at entry level, higher levels or both.
However, the proposition in this election is really about whether management will negotiate with the firefighters or if the customers (voters) will. Any business where the customers set the employer’s compensation rates and policies will not long endure. Gene McFaddin, Houston
Gray areas
Regarding “Straight-ticket voting can cause collateral damage” (Chronicle.com, Oct. 9): So straight-ticket voting is bad, but it is OK for the Chronicle editorial board to recommend that all incumbent judges fighting the bail lawsuit be removed no matter what there ratings? To base this decision on what should be acknowledged as a very controversial and complicated issue such as the ongoing bail lawsuit (lots of gray area in my opinion) is just wrong.
I have always given the editorial board’s endorsements a lot of credence, but no longer. Rickey Fisher, Sugar Land
Straight-ticket voting
Regarding “Straight GOP” (Letters, Oct. 15): Yes, the mail-in ballot is long. There are numerous choices to make, too many for the average voter to be informed about. Fortunately, the Chronicle has been doing the research for many of these races, and keeping us informed.
It is unfortunate that citizens will use the excuse of the lack of civility of individuals in either party to take the easy way out and vote a straight ticket. That’s just plain lazy. Be responsible, be informed, and vote wisely. Mary Ellen Swadley, Kingwood
Judge clarifies
Regarding “For 315th Juvenile District Court: Michael “Mike” Schneider” (HoustonChronicle.com, Oct. 20): Thank you for your endorsement in the race for the 315th District Court.
The endorsement suggests my opponent validly claimed there are “a belowaverage number of Public Defender’s Office (“PDO”) appointments from Schneider’s court.” Data show the exact opposite is true.
There are three juvenile courts in Harris County. At the time of our Chronicle interview, nearly twothirds of all juvenile PDO cases were in the 315th. The PDO has roughly three times as many cases in the 315th than one of our juvenile courts and five times as many than in the other.
I also choose to assign 100 percent of the juvenile drug court cases to the PDO. As an original and current member of the Harris County Public Defender Advisory Board, I take these PDO appointments seriously. Michael “Mike” Schneider, judge, 315th District Court