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    Democrat drops out of race for Texas Senate seat

    By CHRIS TOMLINSON | AP – Fri, Dec 16, 2011

    AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Retired Lt. Gen. Ric Sanchez, the sole major Democratic candidate in the race to replace Republican U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, said Friday he is dropping out of the Texas race because of "pressing personal challenges" and a lack of funds.

    In an email to supporters Friday afternoon, Sanchez thanked those who had encouraged him to run but said he needed to put his family first.

    "I am very grateful for the strong support and encouragement I have received from supporters across the country and the wonderful Texans I have met in every part of our great state," Sanchez said. "However, pressing personal challenges, coupled with the recent loss of our home due to fire and lagging fundraising numbers make a statewide election campaign impractical for me at this time."

    While the Republican field to replace Hutchison is extremely crowded, Sanchez was the only major candidate from the Democratic party.

    Hutchison announced earlier this year that she was retiring.

    Many Democratic strategists hoped that Sanchez, who was born in the Rio Grande Valley, could marshal votes from the state's growing Hispanic population. But many liberals felt he was a flawed candidate because he was the commanding general in Iraq when the abuses against Iraqi detainees at Abu Ghraib prison took place.

    The official filing period for prospective candidates ends Monday. But because of ongoing litigation over political redistricting in Texas, the filing period will reopen after a federal court approves a final district map, likely in late January, and remain open until Feb. 1.

    A new Democratic candidate could emerge once the courts decide the districts for the Texas House, Texas Senate and U.S. Congress. If the court's decision hurts Democratic chances for Congress, some of those politicians might consider switching to the Senate race.

    No Democrats hold statewide office in Texas, and the predominantly Republican state is unlikely to elect a Democrat to the U.S. Senate in 2012. But Democratic leaders had hoped to run at least a mildly competitive candidate to force Republicans to spend money on the Senate race.

    The Texas Democratic Party had no immediate comment Friday evening.

     

    45 comments

    • kiumars
      kiumars  •  5 mths ago
      I saw on the CBS evening news that they were boasting about how rapidly the economy is improving, and that good news was based on the figure put out by the labor department that only 366.000 first time unemployed filed for unemployment benefits in more than three years! It means 366.000 more people had lost their jobs on top of the existing unemployed, so were is the improvement? we should be thankfull to the Obama administration for the shrinking number of people who still losing jobs!? Where are all those jobs they have created or have saved??? That George Bush still making people lose their jobs.
    • kiumars
      kiumars  •  5 mths ago
      General Sanches we are very sorry that you droped out of the senate race, you had the support of all the good spelling people and folks with excelent grammers, wasn't that enough to win?
      • tired-of-it-all
        tired-of-it-all 5 mths ago
        "excelent" and "grammers" - who are you kidding about good spelling people?
      • kiumars
        kiumars 5 mths ago
        The banks will accept dollar bills even if part of it is missing, why not those spelling cops can't accept my comments with few misspell?
    • lobo
      lobo  •  Overton, United States  •  5 mths ago
      Are teaxansans reallly that stupid, well just look at there elected state idiot. that boy aint got the brains of road killed armadillo.
    • lobo
      lobo  •  Overton, United States  •  5 mths ago
      teaxis must love being poor stupid invertabrates. and thats the nice parts of living in teaxis.
    • William
      William  •  Gouldsboro, United States  •  5 mths ago
      The billions of illegal mexicans will continue to support Perry for free college.
    • William
      William  •  Gouldsboro, United States  •  5 mths ago
      I wouldn't support Perrry either.
    • Tex
      Tex  •  Conroe, United States  •  5 mths ago
      Ive lived in Texas my entire life and have always had a very good paying job. I'm a small business owner and the job market is so good I have to pay more just for entry level employees. If you live in a state that isn't doing so well all I can say is sorry for your bad luck.
    • LOCAL
      LOCAL  •  Mililani, United States  •  5 mths ago
      Hard to appeal to a bunch of hillbillies & hay-shakers.
      I was fortunate to live in the south for 4 yrs....in so called redneck hillbilliy country .......and all I got to say to ya'all..... DO NOT UNDER ESTIMATE THSES SO CALLED REDNECKS AND HILLBILLIES ....TRUST ME THEY ARE SMARTER THAN MANY ELITE HARVARD TYPES ...
      AND WHEN OTHER DISASTERS HAPPEN .. i DEFINATELY WOULD RATHER BE IN THE COMPANY AND THE SAFETY OF THESE HILLBILLIES AND REDNECKS ....
      • Larry Pool
        Larry Pool 5 mths ago
        im glad you left yankee boy dont come back
      • LOCAL
        LOCAL 5 mths ago
        not a yankee ..but a true southern hawaiian ....look at your map ...look at texas ..then look at hawaii and see we're on the same plain .......
    • Loving
      Loving  •  5 mths ago
      Texas just keeps getting worse, does not promote American or civil values. I say let Texas leave the Union and try and stand on their own. They aren't American.
      • james b
        james b 5 mths ago
        texas promotes that American values used to be before we had a kenyan in the WH.
      • Larry Pool
        Larry Pool 5 mths ago
        i wish we would leave yakee boy
      • chris talley
        chris talley 5 mths ago
        I'd go with ya, Larry.
    • Jay
      Jay  •  5 mths ago
      He probably got sick and tired of the corruption in government.
    • A Yahoo! User  •  Sacramento, United States  •  5 mths ago
      yeah Texas.....Not a Commie in statewide office in Texas.....Way to Go........
      • Master Picker
        Master Picker 5 mths ago
        no one who has not molested a small boy either
    • Ron
      Ron  •  Miami, United States  •  5 mths ago
      Hard to appeal to a bunch of hillbillies & hay-shakers.
      • Larry Pool
        Larry Pool 5 mths ago
        your mama sure liked us hillbillies
    • Pat
      Pat  •  Sunnyvale, United States  •  5 mths ago
      There aren't enough iQs above room temperature in texas for a Democrat to have a fighting chance. Hopefully, they'll secede soon.
    • Dr. Hootie Brown
      Dr. Hootie Brown  •  5 mths ago
      He probably saw how bad democrats SUCK and felt ashamed of himself.
    • I_speak_Colt
      I_speak_Colt  •  Easton, United States  •  5 mths ago
      So running out of money is one reason for dropping out? It confirms that only a rich person can obtain(or buy) a political office. Step right up folks for the ebay election auction - highest bidder by November of 2012 wins their chair in the whitehouse.
    • HECTOR
      HECTOR  •  San Antonio, United States  •  5 mths ago
      talk about hopes being dashed...those tea baggers were not going to ruin this great man, may be you shoul reconsider,
    • NAFA
      NAFA  •  5 mths ago
      Best way to deal with the large number of illegal immigrants, give Texas back to Mexico.
    • NAFA
      NAFA  •  5 mths ago
      One way to dramatically improve this great country - let Texas succeed.
    • Nels
      Nels  •  5 mths ago
      ....... 35 Reasons to Vote OUT the Obama Regime .....
      1 - Fast and Furious - Operation Gun Runner
      2 - G.E sending 36000 Jobs Overseas,(Obama handpicked G.E. CEO to head his Jobs Committee)
      3 - Solyndra
      4 - Lightsquared
      5 - Increased our deficit over 40% in 2/12 years
      6 - The harassment of Gibson Guitars
      7 - The Drilling Moratoriums
      8 - Soaring FOOD and Gas Prices
      9 - NO Shovel Ready Jobs
      10 - The Downgrade of America's credit rating ( First time in American history)
      11 - First time in American history over 42 MILLION Americans are living in poverty
      12 - Never passed a BUDGET ( First time in 34 YEARS)
      13 - America drops to 5th place in GLOBAL COMPETITIVENESS
      14 - Over 400,000 small businesses closing every year under Obama
      15 - Our Debt has increased $4,247,000,000,000 in just 945 days! . (That's the fastest increase under any president ever!)
      16 - No Summer Recovery
      17 - Fed Suing States and States suing Feds
      18 - Pressured Retired General Shelton to ALTER his testimony
      19 - Enable the LARGEST number of HOME FORECLOSURES
      20 - Turn America into the LARGEST FOOD STAMP NATION
      21 - Start another War WITHOUT CONGRESSIONAL APPROVAL
      22 - Force a Trillion dollar disaster down our throats called Obamacare WITHOUT EVEN READING THE BILL
      23 - Create OVER 25 million UNEMPLOYED
      24 - Appoint a TAX CHEAT for Sec. of the TREASURY!
      25 - Appoint over 34 UN-ELECTED CZARS
      26 - Eric Holder turns a blind eye to voter intimidation by the Black Panthers then justifies with racial comments
      27 Eric Holder pardons Mark Rich! (indicted on charges of tax evasion and illegal trading with Iran.)
      28 - First President to File Lawsuits Against the States He Swore an Oath to Protect
      29 - First President to Terminate America's Ability to Put a Man into Space
      30 - First President to Tell a Major Manufacturing Company In Which State They Are Allowed to Locate a Factory
      31 - First President to Propose an Executive Order Demanding Companies Disclose Their Political Contributions to Bid on Government Contracts
      32 - First President to Withdraw an Existing Coal Permit That Had Been Properly Issued Years Ago
      33 - First time in American history a President with a Socialist radical anti American past gets elected, with the help of ACORN and the Black Panthers and gets away with it!
      34 - Beacon Power, another Obama solar company, goes bust.
      35 - First President to Encourage Racial Discrimination and Intimidation at Polling Places
    • ElGatoMagnifico
      ElGatoMagnifico  •  5 mths ago
      A large number of Texas Republicans used to be Democrats. Witness Gov. Perry himself.
     Post a comment
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