Valley Obama Backer Pack of One
February 25th, 2008 at 6:10 pm
Joe Ochoa, mayor of Edinburg in South Texas, says he’s comfortable being an Obama supporter in a sea of Clinton backers. “I’m not going to follow the pack,” says Ochoa. “I’m going to follow my heart instead.”
Since virtually every other South Texas political official is backing Senator Clinton, I thought I would ask Ochoa if Clinton supporters were trying to convert him. “I’m solid and my mind is made up,” says Ochoa, denying much pressure from his fellow elected officials.
Ochoa says he first read Obama’s book last year and decided he would support the candidate. “Being poor and having to educate yourself,”says Ochoa. “I could relate to his background.”
It would seem that Edinburg is Obama territory these days. State Rep. Aaron Pena took flak for showing up at an Obama rally last week after publicly backing Senator Clinton. Pena’s straying into Obama territory caused some raised eyebrows. His hometown paper the Monitor ran a story on his presence at the rally.
The New York Times reports that Clinton’s South Texas support could be softening, at least in San Antonio.
February 26th, 2008 at 8:34 pm
I am a democrat, but I am watching Glen Beck on CNN right now — and he just endorsed Hillary as the most sensible candidate. As a Republican, he does not trust McCain and thinks Obama’s economics are “the Titanic”. He also asserts that Obama would force people into unions, and quotes the Cato Institute on how Obama’s increase in payroll taxes would make the US the country with the highest tax rate in the world. Scary stuff.