John,
Thursday night in Houston, folks packed the room for our town hall:
I met John, who told me at age 15, he doctored his birth certificate to pass for 17, his mom signed his enlistment papers and he was off to Korea. He told me that he wants to make sure we protect the Constitution he swore an oath to, that he was willing to give his life for. Pretty damn inspiring.
I met Benjamin, who drove in from Wharton. He drives a truck for a living, keeps a vegetable garden at home (he told me when I asked how do you stay in such good shape driving a truck) and wants Democrats to listen to people and fight for them.
I met Steve-o who screwed up when he was in high school, got 6 months in state prison, worked his way back up and out, from fast food jobs to bartending to working for a property management company. This was his first town hall or political event he had been to. He sang us some Woody Guthrie: “This land was made for you and me.” And he asked, what can I do to help?
I met an amazing woman who told us at 72 she’s the sole caretaker for her husband who’s 77 and has Parkinson’s. Her best hope is that she outlives him because, what’s gonna happen if she passes first? And now Trump is cutting research dollars to help people with terminal conditions out of spite and vengeance. And with tears in her eyes she says she’s gonna fight back with all she’s got.
I met so many amazing, beautiful, and fierce people. These town halls bring us together, allow us to share stories with one another, and encourage us to take action to make things better.
I don’t take a salary from Powered by People. But putting gas in the car, renting spaces to meet, giving our teams the tools they need to connect with voters—all of that costs money.
We’ve got a tough road ahead. I’m proud to be in this fight with you,
Beto
