"It was a rally for local Democrats seeking election in 2018, and Our Revolution, a grassroots organization built on continuing the policy messages of U.S. Senator and former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. Our Revolution must truly be taking this message everywhere, because 66 percent of Lubbock County voted for President Donald Trump in 2016. And 66 percent for a Republican candidate in West Texas is on the low side in recent years."
"Sanders, who did not take questions from the media during his visit, gave the speech with a few local Democrats running in 2018 standing behind him. Holding signs at the back of the stage were Miguel Levario, running for Texas’ U.S. House District 19, candidates for County Commissioner T.G. Caraway in Precinct 4 and Nick Harpster in Precinct 2, and Texas House candidates Samantha Fields in District 84 and Ezekiel Barron in District 88.
T.G. Caraway, member of Our Revolution Texas, introduced the speakers and the candidates and tied the whole event back to local politics.
“We’ve just begun to fight here in Lubbock, this year,” Caraway said. “As we know here in Texas, we’ve lost more battles than we’ve won, but I’ve never looked at this as a game of winners and losers. This will always be a fight about what is right and what is wrong... the days of us succeeding these races to the party of ‘no’ is coming to an end.”
Saturday’s event served as a rally for progressives all across West Texas.
Melissa Yarbrough came from Amarillo to listen to Sanders, and described it as refreshing to hear this sort of progressive talk in West Texas, let alone from the person who’s become the leader in this new progressive movement.
“The past couple of years have just sort of been, not debilitating, but just kind of wearing me out. This was motivating,” Yarbrough said. “That’s kind of what I wanted when I came — the call to action and to hear again what we’re striving for and to hear that other people want the same things we do.”
Jimmy Moses of Lubbock said he believes half the battle for Democrats is getting voters to actually vote, so people like Sanders coming to speak are significant.
“Sanders kind of put the burden on us and said, look, if you want change then bring your friends, bring your family, or bring a few people to the polls,” Moses said. “The only way we’re going to change anything is if we go out and vote.”
J. Leon Williams, also of Lubbock, commended Sanders for coming to Lubbock. He said Democrats shouldn’t be afraid to speak up in conservative districts, and Sanders clearly isn’t.
Sanders arrived in Lubbock early Saturday afternoon, gave his speech, and then was scheduled to leave later that evening, according to a representative of Our Revolution. Sanders sat down with CNN’s Jake Tapper at a SXSW event Friday afternoon in Austin and held a rally in San Antonio Friday evening. He flew out of Lubbock Saturday to be at a rally Sunday morning in Phoenix.
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