Texas Candidate MJ Hegar Thinks She Can Turn a Red State Blue
*By Max Godnick*
House Representative John Carter (R-TX) hasn't won a race by fewer than twenty points in a decade, but this year might be different.
Enter MJ Hegar, the Air Force veteran and Purple Heart recipient running for Congress in her native state's 31st district. Back in 2012, she sued the Department of Defense and won, leading to the repeal of the unconstitutional Ground Combat Exclusion Policy. Now, she's got her sight on the Republican incumbent.
"He's never faced somebody like me," Hegar told Cheddar's J.D. Durkin in an interview on Monday.
The self-described "motorcycle-riding, Texas Democrat" won her party's primary in March and is mobilizing her supporters to turn one of the Lone Star State's most reliably red districts blue.
"We are putting together a campaign that's unlike anything \[Carter's\] seen," she said. "We're just going to out-raise him and outwork him."
The hard work is already starting to pay off. In June, Hegar released a campaign video called ["Doors"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zi6v4CYNSIQ) that quickly skyrocketed to viral success - racking up over two and a half million YouTube views in just a week, and over four million views across all online platforms. The video features slick and professional production techniques to tell the candidate's story by focusing on the many important doors in her life.
"What ended up happening was a really amazing, resonating video that has touched people all over the country," Hegar said.
Democratic candidates from across the nation would be wise to look to the video's success as a source of inspiration toward finding a new and effective way of reaching out to and engaging with voters. Hegar noted that the ad's content is not explicitly political, something she thinks can help other candidates from her party.
"People don't ask if you're a Republican or a Democrat anymore these days in my district," she said. "They ask, 'What are you going to do?' 'Are you going to answer your phone when I call?' 'Are you going to shut your door on me?'"
Hegar hopes her candidacy will be a part of a national "blue wave" that carries Democrats from around the country to victory in both House and Senate races. While everything might be bigger in Texas, voter turnout isn't. The state had the country's lowest voter turnout in the 2014 midterm elections. Hegar says part of the battle will be teaching voters that Democratic success in Texas, while rare in recent years, is not unprecedented.
"We're doing our best to remind people that this is the state of LBJ, Anne Richards, Barbara Jordan," she said. "Some strong, kick-ass Democratic women."
For full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/inside-the-democratic-congressional-campaign-gone-viral).
Following the surprising big beat on estimates for the January jobs report, William M. Rodgers III, vice president and director of the Institute for Economic Equity at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, joined Cheddar News to break down the data. “We ended 2021 with a strong crescendo to a recovery that had taken hold, and we started 2022 in good fashion." He also discussed the dueling pressures of wage growth and inflation.
Jessica Mason Pieklo, senior vice president and executive editor of the Rewired News Group and co-host of the podcast. "Boom! Lawyered," joins Cheddar Politics to discuss Justice Stephen Breyer's retirement, legacy and potential replacement on the Supreme Court.
The Biden administration delivered a temporary win for student loan borrowers this year by extending the moratorium on federal payments for a few more months. That moratorium is coming to an end on May 1st and borrowers will again have their monthly loan payment plopped in their lap.
Stephanie Vanderslice, a creative writing professor paying off debt through the Parent Plus program, and Mike Pierce, executive director of the Student Borrower Protection Center, join Cheddar Politics to discuss.
2022 was already going to be a big year for the Supreme Court. We have decisions on major issues like abortion and gun rights on the way. Then, Justice Stephen Breyer announced his retirement and that set up a major confirmation fight for later this year. Amy Howe, co-founder of SCOTUSblog, joins Cheddar Politics to discuss.
The Labor Department released a better-than-expected report of 467,000 jobs added in January. Heather Boushey, Council of Economic Advisers Member for President Biden, joined Cheddar to tout the administration's handling of the economy amid the pandemic and the upward revisions for the previous month. "It also shows that, because of the revisions, the economy was stronger over the past couple of months," she said. "I don't think that this can be said enough, but economic forecasting during an historic pandemic is extremely difficult." Boushey also addressed issues involving wage growth versus the rapid rise of inflation.
The Labor Department's January jobs report showed 467,000 jobs were added, compared to the 150,000 that were projected, a sign that employment is continuign to return to pre-pandemic levels. Lindsey Piegza, chief economist at investment bank Stifel, joined Cheddar to break down the report, noting the big gains but adding a note of caution. "Remember, even with this morning's stellar report, we're still millions below that level that we had reached prior to the onset of COVID-19," she said." Yes, we are recapturing jobs. We still have further ground that needs to be made before we can talk about reaching that previous peak." Piegza also discussed the role of the Federal Reserve going forward as the employment figures turn more positive.
As President Biden's poll numbers fall with Black voters, Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass. 7th District) joined Cheddar to discuss what she feels could help the embattled administration: deliver on policies. Pressley pointed to stalled legislation such as new voting rights laws and Build Back Betters and canceling student loan debt, which would go a long way to improving his standing with Black constituents. "President Biden has the authority and the power to alleviate this burden, which would also help in closing the racial wealth gap, and he can do it by executive action with the stroke of a pen," she said. "And it doesn't require one vote from Congress. So, the Biden administration just needs to deliver to Black America in a tangible and impactful way."
