Hi gang,

I’ve taken on a lot of fights in my life, and on Women’s Equality Day I wanted to talk about some of the biggest ones and why they matter in this Senate race. I’m also going to ask you for a contribution to my campaign, and I hope this will help explain why. (If you don’t have time to read all the way through, you can pitch in here.)

I dreamed of being a pilot ever since watching Star Wars as a little girl. I was often dismissed with claims that “the front is no place for a woman,” but that wasn’t a good enough reason for me to let go of my dream. So, I became a commissioned officer in the Air Force, qualified for the Air National Guard, and went on to serve three tours in Afghanistan as a combat search-and-rescue and medevac pilot.

During a rescue mission, my helicopter was shot down by the Taliban, and I was injured by enemy gunfire. I was honored to have received both the Purple Heart and the Distinguished Flying Cross with Valor for my service.

But my fight wasn't over. While I could no longer fly because of my injuries, I wanted to keep serving. But the reality was, no matter what I had proven along the way (and who I had proven wrong) women weren't allowed to compete for elite combat jobs because of the Ground Combat Exclusion Policy.

The rule wasn’t only unjust, but a detriment to military preparedness. So, I took the fight to DC and advocated (to members of both parties) to overturn the policy and open up hundreds of thousands of jobs for women in the military.

It was during this fight that I got a firsthand look at how broken Washington is -- and it left me with a lot of concerns about the dysfunctional mess we were leaving for our children. And that’s why I decided to take on my latest fight -- running for the U.S. Senate.

That’s why I’m asking for your help. Will you pitch in to my campaign so I can keep up the fight?

The dysfunction and blatant obstruction plaguing Washington is not good enough for the people of Texas, and frankly, it’s beneath us as a country. I’m running to break the bottleneck that’s blocking any constructive progress in Washington from coming to reality, and to take this Senate seat from special interest control for the people of Texas.

It’s time for a change, and that’s why I’m fighting -- and why I’m asking you to fight with me.

Thanks,
MJ

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