Perez in TX: “The Party Of Lincoln Is Dead.”

October 7, 2019

On Saturday, DNC Chair Tom Perez joined Texas Democrats in Austin — highlighting once again how the state has become a major defensive liability for Republicans in 2020.

Here’s what they’re saying:

Spectrum News: DNC Chair Attends Fundraiser in Austin for Texas Democratic Party

  • DNC Chair Tom Perez said that this year, the national Democratic Party has funneled an unprecedented amount of resources into Texas to help Texas Democrats win up and down the ballot.

  • “I think there is opportunity everywhere here,” said Perez. “We weren’t going to wait until October 2020 to have an ‘aha’ moment that we might be able to win in Texas, the work we do now is going to in large measure determine our success later, which is why we’re helping with these early investments.”

FOX7: Annual Texas Democrat fundraiser focuses on flipping Texas blue

  • Democratic National Committee chair Tom Perez says the party plans to target more traditional Republicans who may feel disenfranchised in the Trump era.

  • “We have a lot of party of Lincoln Republicans who are voting Democrat because the party of Lincoln is dead,” he said.

  • “We have so many emerging communities, African American, Latino, API communities — that, where we have many eligible voters, we gotta get ‘em out in some cases. We gotta register ‘em, that’s a formula for success.” Perez said.

The Austin Chronicle: Texas, D.C. Dems Raise Funds and the Roof at Johnson-Jordan Dinner

  • If you had any doubt that Texas is IN PLAY in 2020, let Tom Perez and Gilberto Hinojosa clarify your mind. The chairs of the Democratic National Committee and Texas Democratic Party, respectively, fired up electeds, donors and activists at the TDP’s annual Johnson-Jordan Dinner Saturday night.

  • Perez told reporters, “We’ve already [since 2017, when Perez took the DNC reins] increased our investment here well above what has ever been done before.”

  • Hinojosa added that “We’ve gotten more money from the national party this year than under the last three [DNC chairs] put together.”

The Texas Tribune’s Patrick Svitek: