# Wendy Davis for Governor of Texas? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [July 5, 2013, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685 "2013-07-05T02:59:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 13
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/241 "2014-05-02T16:26:51Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Ronald McDonald would qualify, if those are the criteria. More so, probably, Mr. McDonald being big in the beef industry… ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/242 "2014-05-02T17:37:48Z")
> [@Ca3799](#): > > "The village has been settled by Mr Stephen Austin… :smack: I was trying to figure out when the Six Million Dollar Man had become a conservative icon. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/243 "2014-05-02T17:49:03Z")
> [@LonghornDave](#): > > Perry is not running. It will be Greg Abbott, who is a big upgrade over Perry. In what respect? ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/244 "2014-05-02T18:42:58Z")
Not an Aggie. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2014, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/245 "2014-05-04T00:55:21Z")
Here’s more on the Dem. Gov. Assn. chair’s blunt remarks about the Texas race: [Democratic governors group lacks faith in Wendy Davis campaign](http://www.latimes.com/nation/politics/politicsnow/la-pn-democrats-spurn-wendy-davis-20140429,0,6613180.story#axzz30OtwgvPG) ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2014, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/246 "2014-05-04T01:05:20Z")
I’m sad of course that a Democrat doesn’t stand a snowball’s chance in… Texas… of winning a statewide office, yet. But I’m glad the governor’s assoc. won’t be wasting their time and money on an unwinnable race. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2014, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/247 "2014-05-04T02:50:14Z")
The various polls show that Abbott is leading by about 11%. That’s not unwinnable. It is far enough back though that there are candidates in other states that would be a better investment of the Democrats’ limited campaign funds. Politics, like anything else, is about using your finite resources wisely. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2014, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/248 "2014-05-04T12:20:14Z")
THink of the medical concept of triage here. When there’s a disaster and hundreds of people are taken to the hospital, the doctors and nurses divide the patients into three groups: 1. Those who have relatively minor injuries and will probably be okay 2. Those who will probably die if they don’t get immediate attention 3. Those who are probably going to die no matter what treatment you give them. Doctors concentrate their efforts on group #2, and then take care of group #1 afterward. It’s NOT that doctors are heartless and want anybody to die- it’s just that they only have so much in the way of personnel, plasma, drugs and other resources, and they can’t afford to waste them on people who won’t survive or on people who are probably going to be all right. You have to concentrate on the people who can survive with immediate help. Same principle. BOTH parties have to make cold blooded decisions. A liberal Democrat running for governor of a safely Democratic state won’t get much money from the national party organization, because he/she will almost surely win without it. A liberal Democrat running in a solidly Republican state won’t get much money because it can’t help. Best to concentrate on close races where your money MIGHT make all the difference. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2014, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/249 "2014-05-04T19:28:17Z")
And wendy davis is no liberal democrat, but the brand here is so tainted, she still doesn’t stand a chance. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2014, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/250 "2014-05-05T02:05:41Z")
Here are a couple of things that list Wendy Davis’s political positions. It appears to me that by most standards she’s a moderately liberal Democrat. Please go through her positions and show us that she isn’t a moderately liberal Democrat even by national standards. The question isn’t if she isn’t less liberal than you but less liberal by national standards: > **[Wendy Davis (politician)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wendy_Davis_(politician))** > > Wendy Russell Davis (born Wendy Jean Russell; May 16, 1963) is an American lawyer and Democratic Party politician from Fort Worth, Texas. Davis represented the 10th district in the Texas Senate from 2009 to 2015. She previously served on the Fort Worth City Council. > On June 25, 2013, Davis held a thirteen-hour-long filibuster to block Senate Bill 5, a measure which included more restrictive abortion regulations for Texas. The filibuster played a major role in Senate Democrats' success in dela... > **[The Voter's Self Defense System](https://justfacts.votesmart.org/candidate/108093/wendy-davis)** > > Vote Smart provides free, unbiased, in-depth information about current officials, candidates, issues, legislation, and voting. Non-partisan and nonprofit since 1988. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2014, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/251 "2014-05-07T03:51:28Z")
Just got another fundraising letter from her. I’ll send it to any other U.S. Doper, free of charge, if you PM me with your snail mail address. First come, first served. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2014, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/252 "2014-05-07T05:12:12Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > Here are a couple of things that list Wendy Davis’s political positions. It appears to me that by most standards she’s a moderately liberal Democrat. Please go through her positions and show us that she isn’t a moderately liberal Democrat even by national standards. The question isn’t if she isn’t less liberal than you but less liberal by national standards: > > [Wendy Davis (politician) - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wendy_Davis_(politician)) > > [Vote Smart - Facts For All](http://votesmart.org/candidate/108093/wendy-davis#.U2bv3rcU_b0) A fair question, but of course in my last post I was just going by my own personal definition of what I consider a “liberal politician” (Bernie Sanders for example). So all I was saying is she is no Bernie Sanders, and not that she is not as liberal as the median politician. She is admittedly more to the left than a centrist. And _way_ too left for Texas. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2014, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/253 "2014-05-07T07:33:23Z")
“. . . _way_ too left for Texas . . .”? Um, look, you live in Texas, so you know that Texas isn’t universally conservative. As has been clear for decades, the big cities in Texas are moderately liberal, while the suburbs, small cities, and rural areas are pretty conservative. This mix is such that a moderate liberal like Davis is likely to lose the election, but it’s not that she is more liberal than virtually everyone in Texas. She’s sufficiently liberal that the majority in this election probably won’t vote for her. One estimate is that she has less than a 6% probability of winning: [http://elections.huffingtonpost.com/pollster/2014-texas-governor-abbott-vs-davis](http://elections.huffingtonpost.com/pollster/2014-texas-governor-abbott-vs-davis) ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2014, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/254 "2014-05-07T16:35:43Z")
Given the demographics of Texas, if I were one of Wendy Davi’s friends or advisors, I would NOT have suggested she run for governor. I’d have told her to run for Congress. She CAN’T win the governor’s mansion in Texas, but she COULD win a Congressional seat in her Fort Worth district, and that would give her a national platform. Maybe she could even parlay that Congressional seat into a Cabinet position some day. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2014, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/255 "2014-05-07T16:54:16Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > Given the demographics of Texas, if I were one of Wendy Davi’s. FYI- the possessive of _Davis_ is _Davis’s_ ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2014, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/256 "2014-05-07T17:16:54Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > “. . . _way_ too left for Texas . . .”? Um, look, you live in Texas, so you know that Texas isn’t universally conservative. As has been clear for decades, the big cities in Texas are moderately liberal, while the suburbs, small cities, and rural areas are pretty conservative. This mix is such that a moderate liberal like Davis is likely to lose the election, but it’s not that she is more liberal than virtually everyone in Texas. She’s sufficiently liberal that the majority in this election probably won’t vote for her. One estimate is that she has less than a 6% probability of winning: > > [http://elections.huffingtonpost.com/pollster/2014-texas-governor-abbott-vs-davis](http://elections.huffingtonpost.com/pollster/2014-texas-governor-abbott-vs-davis) See [_Made in Texas,_](http://newamerica.net/publications/books/made_in_texas) by Michael Lind (a native Texan), arguing that alongside its “extractive economy” and conservative tradition, the state actually has a very old and strong progressive and “knowledge economy” tradition, which has accomplished a great deal. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2014, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/257 "2014-10-03T03:20:07Z")
Well, _I’ve_ voted for her. I mailed in my absentee ballot this week. Back when my father was still alive and I had to go see about him in Texas, I obtained a Texas driver’s license, my Hawaii license having expired. That put me on the voter rolls there. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2014, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/258 "2014-10-03T03:26:38Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > FYI- the possessive of _Davis_ is _Davis’s_ _Davis’_ is also acceptable. ETA: Shit, that post was five months ago! ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2014, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/259 "2014-10-03T03:35:03Z")
I believe Davis’ versus Davis’s is another American usage versus British usage issue. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2014, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685/260 "2014-10-03T03:52:45Z")
Abbott will defeat her by a convincing margin. She simply doesn’t appeal to enough voters. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685.md?page=12) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wendy-davis-for-governor-of-texas/662685.md?page=14)