Over the last month, I have had the opportunity and privilege of getting to know Congressman Chet Edwards well, both personally and legislatively. The letter published last Thursday, though, demonstrated neither of these familiarities.
First, Chet Edwards was attacked as “nothing more than a liberal.” If you look at his legislative record, you would see a different story. Chet Edwards is a fiscal conservative, placing the United States’ fiscal responsibility as one of the main points of his platform. He even sponsored a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
Chet Edwards has been a major proponent of national defense and security in his 13 years in Congress. He has worked tirelessly to support military personnel and their families at Fort Hood, while others have tried to take away their education and health care funding.
Chet Edwards was also attacked as just “trying to pander to Aggies.” Nothing could be further from the truth. Chet Edwards is an Aggie who shares Aggie values and is very excited about having the opportunity to represent Aggies in Congress. The same cannot be said for his competition. One of his likely challengers, as a state representative, voted for tuition deregulation, which is costing Aggies money they don’t have.
Texas A&M is lucky to have the opportunity to support such a dedicated and proven leader. In the past, Chet Edwards has had the support of democrats, independents and republicans, due to his bipartisan leadership.