*By Christian Smith*
It's an honor to receive former President Barack Obama's support for his Congressional bid, said Colin Allred, but really it's a recognition that the Texas Democrat has run a campaign that can win.
"We've built a grassroots movement of folks getting involved who haven't been involved before," Allred said in an interview Thursday with Cheddar. "It's kind of the legacy, I think, of President Obama's political brand, and I think that's what we're carrying forward here."
Allred is challenging Representative Pete Sessions, an eight-term incumbent, in Texas's 32nd congressional district north of Dallas. Sessions hasn't faced a Democratic opponent in a general election since 2014.
The Cook Political Report lists the race as a ["toss-up"](https://www.cookpolitical.com/ratings/house-race-ratings) despite the 32nd district's R+5 PVI rating, which means it leans moderately Republican in presidential races, though voters there went for Hillary Clinton by one point in 2016.
That's a good sign for Allred, who is running to represent the area where he was born and raised. He was a stand-out football player at Hillcrest High School before going on to play linebacker at Baylor University and with the NFL's Tennessee Titans.
When his football career ended, Allred went to law school to become a civil rights attorney, and worked in the Obama Administration as a special assistant in the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of General Counsel.
Allred said that some of his former Hillcrest High teachers and coaches have been involved in his Congressional campaign, and their involvement is as important as Obama's endorsement in getting new voters to the polls in November.
"We're reaching out to Independents and Republicans who might feel like this version of the Republican party led by Donald Trump doesn't represent them," Allred said.
For more on this story, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/former-nfl-player-colin-allred-in-tight-congressional-race-with-16-year-incumbent-pete-sessions).
Vice President Kamala Harris received impressive amount of media coverage in January for making history. However, the media attention waned significantly and some are now even saying she has almost disappeared from public view. Reecie Colbert, founder of BlackWomenViews Media, joined Cheddar Politics to discuss more.
If you thought you heard the last of the Mueller report back in 2019, you'd be wrong. While the bombshell report was the biggest story in Washington for years, much of the report remained redacted. Our friends at BuzzFeed News weren't satisfied, so they sued to have certain passages unredacted. They notched another win when a federal appeals court ordered ten passages from the report to be released.
Matt Topic, BuzzFeed's attorney in the case, and Jason Leopold, reporter at BuzzFeed News, join Cheddar Politics to discuss.
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Priti Krishtel, co-founder and co-executive director of the Initiative for Medicines, Access & Knowledge, joins Cheddar Politics to discuss.
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Jessica Mason Pieklo, senior vice president and executive editor of Rewire News Group, joined Cheddar Politics to discuss Wednesday's hearing.
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Jonathan Adler, Law Professor at Case Western Reserve University, joined Wake Up With Cheddar to discuss Tuesday's ruling and provide legal context to recent battles over vaccine mandates.
Carlo and Baker wrap up the week talking about the Biden economic boom that no one seems to notice, a verdict in the Jussie Smollett case, the first Starbucks union in America and the pleasures of the "dude nod."
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