Warren rallies Houston supporters
Democratic presidential hopeful visits state for town hall just days before primary vote
More than 2,000 people gathered to hear presidential hopeful Elizabeth Warren at Discovery Green on Saturday, just days before they cast ballots in Texas’ primary.
Warren, who has deep ties to Texas, was among the flurry of candidates turning their attention to the Lone Star State ahead of Super Tuesday. Texas has 228 delegates, more than Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South
Carolina combined.
Last Sunday, Sen. Bernie Sanders held a rally at University of Houston, one of four Texas rallies held by the Democratic presidential candidate last weekend. Former Vice President Joe Biden plans to campaign in Houston on Monday. Former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg made a stop in Houston on Thursday.
During her speech Saturday, Warren delved into the coronavirus, calling it a public health
crisis and a threat to the economy.
“This moment is a reminder of what qualities we need in a president and what qualities are sorely lacking in the one we have,” Warren said about the rising stakes of the coronavirus. “Ultimately, that’s what this election is all about.”
Warren said she would be rolling out a plan on how to deal with the economic and health effects of the coronavirus, which includes allowing all Americans to receive testing and the future recommended vaccine for free. She also noted anyone who is showing symptoms should get full, paid off-time to get tested and treated.
Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo introduced Warren, calling her an inspiration. “If we had an ally in the White House, we could do so much more,” said Hidalgo. “That’s why I’m standing here today.”
At the start of her remarks, Warren congratulated Biden on his presidential primary victory in South Carolina, but emphasized that there were still more states that needed to vote.
She touched on her other key policy issues, including immigration, climate change and public education. She earned loud cheers when she noted that she would like to hire a secretary of education who had worked as a public school teacher.
Warren mentioned mass shootings, but said people being killed on the streets, suicides and domestic violence are also part of the gun violence problem. She noted that uniform background checks and getting “weapons of war off the street” would help, but that the problem that needs to be revisited repeatedly.
“We have to treat gun violence as the public health emergency that it is,” Warren said.
Warren acknowledged that there’s fear in the air as President Donald Trump continues to reside in office and the pending election.
“This has been a hard time,” she said. “We’ve now been three years with Donald Trump as president. We boo, but I’ll tell you there are a lot people out there who are afraid. They’re afraid for their families. They’re afraid for their neighbors. They’re afraid for their friends.”
But Warren offered Texas voters a different option instead of fear.
“Me, I’m fighting back,” Warren said.
After she finished speaking, a long line stretched of people waiting to take a selfie with Warren.
Nykeisha Bryer was among those who turned out early to the downtown park to hear Warren speak. The 30-year-old middle school assistant principal said Warren’s background in education stands out to her.
Warren graduated with a teaching degree from the University of Houston in 1970. She taught at both University of Houston’s law school and at the University of Texas at Austin.
“The fact that she’s an educator is important to me (and) one of the reasons why I’m drawn towards her….and making sure we have someone nationally that can really advocate for the issues that teachers experience, students experience, all the stakeholders experience,” said Bryer.
Bryer, who also has two master’s degrees, said her potential presidential candidate’s position on student loan debt is important.
Wes Garner was just visiting his cousin in Texas for the last three weeks but has wanted to see Warren in person at a rally. However, the 70-year-old from Massachusetts said he’s worried about Warren’s odds.
“I’m concerned about electability across the country,” said Garner. “There’s still a big stigma about women, which is crazy.”
Garner said he relates to Warren on her stance concerning women’s rights, gun control and the environment. He thinks Sanders should team up with Warren on the Democratic ticket.
“I still think before it goes any further she and Bernie should team up and just do it,” said Garner. “She’s got the smarts, he’s got the votes so far.”
AJ Albaaj, a nuclear engineer, had already voted but came out to the town hall to show support for Warren.
“My issue is the concentration of power and wealth that is happening in America,” said the 24year-old. “We have a billionaire who decides to just run last minute for a presidential campaign, and this is a problem and a gaping hole in American society. I think Elizabeth Warren is the best at cohesively explaining the issues we have with power and wealth in this country.”