ustxtxb_obs_1980_09_05_50_00014-00000_000.pdf

Why Not a Legislature Of a Different Color? Our state legislature has for too long been dominated by selfish special interests. The last session was among the worst. Passage of legislation gutting the Consumer Protection Act, raising the ceiling on interest rates and imposing a “documentary fee” on car buyers told interested Texans just how powerful special interest lobbyists had become. “Too powerful,” a lot of voters seem to say in the spring primary elections. We, in organized labor, believe that the voters spoke clearly when they turned out of office men like Senator Bill Moore of Bryan, who was the classic spokesman for the special interests. We believe also that candidates who are more concerned with the public interest than they are with private interests can win with the help of a coalition of concerned Texans who are willing to spend their time and maybe more importantly their money on behalf of their candidates. Organized Labor the Texas AFL-CIO, its affiliates, the Auto Workers and the Teamsters worked together in a project we called “Eyes on the 80’s” this spring to encourage union members all over Texas to spend their time and money in campaigns of candidates who are concerned about the public interest. Other concerned Texans did the same. And winning coalitions were formed throughout the state. Now, with radical changes in the population of the state having taken place over the last decade, we’re convinced that we have the opportunity to break the special interests’ hold on the state legislature. Redistricting will increase representation for working people, minorities and, yes, Republicans. It will decrease representation from areas which traditionally have sent to the legislature men and women who became dominated by the lobbyists. The decade of the 80’s can be a rewarding time for Texans whose primary concern is the public interest. It may be the decade in which we finally see an independent legislature, free of lobby control. With your help, it can be. Labor Day 1980. TEXAS CAFLNCIO Harry Hubbard Joe Gunn President Secretary-Treasurer 14 SEPTEMBER 5, 1980