Why I am Supporting Joel Downs for Hurst City Council
By
James Scott Trimm
I want to say from the outset, that I am not writing on
behalf of Joel Downs or his campaign.
My thoughts expressed herein are my own. In fact I did not even know Mr. Downs until he left a pamphlet on
my door just a few days ago. I have
lived my entire life (nearly half a century) in Hurst, and I have been a
registered voter in Hurst for my entire adult life. My entire family was very politically involved, and I was raised a
conservative. In those days (back in
the 1970’s) before the Reagan Revolution, we were Democrats and Anna Holzer was our
precinct chairperson. Although we were
(and are) conservatives, and like other conservative Democrats, we crossed over
to the Republican party during the Reagan Revolution. As Reagan said, we did not leave the Democratic Party, the
Democratic Party (which had become dominated by its liberal wing) left us. We left Anna behind, as she did not
crossover, because she was part of that liberal wing of the party. I want to say that I am a conservative
first, and a Republican second. My
conservatism is non-partisan. I have
been a conservative Democrat, I have been a conservative Republican, and I
stand ready to abandon the Republican party as well, if it too rejects
conservative principles.
As a conservative I have a core set of values and beliefs
about the limited role of government, and personal liberty, which serve as my
guide. These principles are applicable
on every level of government, including municipal government. These are values that I do not believe Ms.
Holzer shares.
One of those core values is that government must live within
its means. If possible, government (on
all levels) should avoid borrowing, and even establish a “rainy day fund” for
future lean years. However, the City of
Hurst has been borrowing at an alarming rate, despite having a healthy tax
base. The city is now nearly 100
million dollars in debt, and has borrowed nearly 40 million dollars in just the
last three years! We must not let this
trend continue. We have seen what has
happened to cities that have run themselves into heavy debt. And what have we gotten for this debt? Well in the case of the recent renovation of
the Hurst Library, I cannot tell that anything I recognize as a “library” was
actually expanded. From what I can
tell, no new shelf space for actual books has been added, much of the new space
is a large, grand, lofty hallway that must now be heated and air
conditioned.
Joel Downs wants to begin the process of reining in this
debt, and this definitely resonates with my conservative values.
But Downs is hardly a one issue candidate, he is running on
a number of issues that resonate with my conservative values of limited
government, personal liberty and self determination.
One issue is the red light cameras in Hurst. I am convinced that the majority of
residents in Hurst do not want these cameras.
I do not believe that a properly limited government should press these
red light cameras upon citizens that do not want them. To me, this is offensive to my values of
freedom and self determination of the people of our city.
Joel also emphasizes personal liberty and encourages
capitalism. These are also core
conservative values which go hand in hand with limited government, and would do
much to encourage new business growth in areas of Hurst that definitely need
it.
Anna Holzer is running on her experience, she has been on
the city council since 1992. Now I have
nothing against Ms. Holzer personally.
She seems to be a very nice person, who has been very community minded
over the years. But that does not mean
that Ms. Holzer reflects my values. Ms.
Holzer is the establishment candidate, the status quo.
I make a challenge to my fellow Hurstonians. Drive down Pipeline Road all the way through
south Hurst. After you cross Precinct
Line Road (going east towards Bedford), start looking at what this area of Hurst looks like today, and ask
yourself, is Hurst better off today than it was in 1992? How many head shops were in Hurst in
1992? How many head shops are in Hurst
today?
My conservative values separated me from Ms. Holzer in the
Reagan Revolution, and they separate me from her now.
Mr. Downs is not the establishment candidate. He offers positive change. It is time for change, for new blood, and
for a course correction toward conservative values that reflect those of the
majority of the residents of our city.
And that is why I am supporting Joel Downs for City Council. I hope that you will join me.
You can Visit Joel Down's Campaign Website at http://www.downsforhurst.com
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