Since the Texas Republican Party has apparently decided that they are not going to keep the Governor's mansion based on, you know, actual issues or policies, we get treated to questions about Wendy Davis's biography and whether or not she was actually divorced at the age of 19 or whether or not letting her husband take care of the kids while she attended Harvard Law makes her a "bad mother."
And now, this.
Another bad week for Sen. Wendy Davis’ campaign for governor just got a little worse.
Davis, a Democrat who has been fighting off questions about her bio, apparently was given former Gov. Ann Richards shotgun Tuesday at a speech that most reporters were barred from attending.
It was a symbolic gesture meant to cement the tie between Texas’ last Democratic governor and the woman fighting to bring the party out of a long dry spell by following in her footsteps.
But a photo of Davis holding the gun was seized upon by Republicans who thought she looked less than natural with it.
Oh, for fuck's sake. I've never owned a gun, never plan to own a gun, and have never even held a gun. I could give a flying fuck if Wendy Davis looks "natural" holding a gun and the only people who actually do are people
who were never going to vote for a Democrat.
In any case, the Abbott campaign has done the obvious and tried to link Davis to Michael Dukakis because of course they are.
Of course, what I'm really gathering from all of this is that the Abbott campaign does not want to make this race about actual issues. With an assist from Texas's all-too-compliant print media they seem to be attempting to make this race about trivial non-issues like Davis's biography or whether or not she knows how to hold a gun.
The Davis campaign is back with a response:
Davis campaign spokesman Bo Delp fired back: “That comparison isn’t worth spit — Wendy Davis owns a gun and believes in the Second Amendment. That terrifies Greg Abbott, and it’s no surprise that Greg Abbott himself doesn’t have the guts to make the comment himself. Someone held a shotgun at a political event in Texas. The sun rises in the east, too.”
...which actually makes me want to vote for her a bit less (though of course I will) but it saddens me that the Davis campaign is not throwing in, I don't know, a reference to the fact that Greg Abbott is doing his damn well best to avoid talking about the future of Texas and why on earth he should be elected Governor.
It's only January, and already this race is getting down in the mud.