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Conservative Leadership for District 101
Republican Thomas Latham - Conservative
Solutions for Tough Issues
| "The politicians in Washington have not done their
job of protecting Texas¹
borders, so it¹s our responsibility to take charge
and protect our families.
Currently, illegal immigrants are overwhelming our public
schools, hospitals
and social services costing taxpayers hundreds of millions
of dollars.
Whether it is with troops on the border or prison time
for illegals, we need
to do whatever it takes to protect our borders. And,
we need to develop a
more efficient manner of managing LEGAL immigration,
to best help those who
come here legally to contribute to our society, help
our business community,
pay taxes and assimilate into our culture. Since Washington
has failed,
Texas needs to get tough on ILLEGAL immigration. It¹s
a matter of personal,
state and national security." |
| - Thomas Latham |
The following is a summary of Thomas’ positions on:
Law Enforcement
When I was growing up, our community was a place
where we could count on our neighbors, often as much as we
could count on our own families. Kids could ride their
bicycles down the street and folks would call out to say hello
or tell them to get home. Adults knew whether kids were where
they were supposed to be…or not.
The Mesquite of my childhood was a place of family and community,
where people had respect for each other, and for authority.
If you asked a child to draw a picture of something
he wanted to be when he grew up, he’d draw a police
officer, a fireman, a soldier or an astronaut. Children
revered people who served and sacrificed; courageous people
with strong moral compasses. Those were my values and
my heroes growing up.
in August 1966, I made a decision to become a police officer.
That was the day Charles Whitman ascended the tower
at the University of Texas and opened fire on innocent people
while officers struggled to bring down a villain who had them
out-gunned and out-maneuvered.
M y uncle, who was in law enforcement and knew what I would
be getting myself into, wasn’t pleased when I announced
my career choice. So he asked me flat out, “Why
do you want to be a police officer?” I said, “Somebody
has to be willing to go up into the tower after the John Whitmans
of the world.”
Today, after having served 30 years on the Garland Police
Force, I know that the community of my childhood has changed.
Our neighborhoods aren’t as secure as they were 30 years
ago, and we don’t know our neighbors like we used to.
Police officers have their hands full making sure our streets
and homes are safe.
After three decades of service and leadership in a police
department, I have developed some ideas about how our legislature
can help police officers serve and protect you. And
I have already started working on legislation to do just that.
For example, I have a plan to help police officers keep track
of registered sex offenders, and make sure they are living
at the addresses they are required by law to report to the
public. A Dallas
Morning News article pointed out that as many as
1 in 6 registered sex offenders is “hiding behind phony
or outdated information”.
The article states:
“A Dallas Morning News investigation into
the state (registered sex offender) database, which parents,
school districts and neighborhood associations increasingly
rely on, found that roughly one in six North Texas sex offenders
does not live at the addresses to which they're registered.
In all, 46 percent of the sex offenders in The News'
study could not be located through a combination of certified
mail and phone calls. Dallas County and the city of Dallas
had the highest percentages of incorrect addresses among
their North Texas peers.”
I have already begun meeting with legislators and officials
at the Attorney General’s office to develop legislation
that would pay police officers overtime to locate registered
sex offenders and make sure they are living where they claim
to be living. Currently, police agencies can only confirm
offenders' home information about twice a year, at best.
I want them to check far more often.
Our district is one of the fastest growing areas of Dallas
County, and we need to keep up with the growing public safety
concerns. I want to make sure our own children and grandchildren
can play outside in safe and secure neighborhoods, like we
did when we were young.
Education
To compete in the global marketplace for good jobs and smart
citizens, we need to better finance education – not
the band-aid approach promoted down in Austin. That
means listening to the people on the front lines –-
teachers and local administrators, parents and students –
and working with people on both sides of the aisle to develop
reasonable, practical solutions to fairly support and improve
our schools. To succeed, we need people with the courage
and leadership to listen and act. The first
step is to reduce the state’s reliance on local property
taxes, giving tax relief to Texas homeowners.
We also need to:
- maintain local control of our schools;
- cut burdensome paperwork on teachers;
- ensure that more state resources end up in local classrooms;
and
- reward innovation and excellence in our schools.
Taxes and Limited
Government
We must reduce taxes by cutting spending and limiting the
size of government. As a Councilmember for the Town
of Sunnyvale, that’s exactly what I did. My fiscally
conservative approach reduces government waste and keeps Sunnyvale’s
budget lean and responsible. As a result, our tax rates
remain among the lowest in North Texas.
In contrast, it seems that some are always talking about
higher taxes – especially a state income tax –
and more spending. I strongly oppose efforts by liberal
politicians to increase the size of government and raise taxes
to fund unnecessary and wasteful programs.
Family Values
I am a proud, dedicated pro-family conservative. When
liberals in Austin start pushing their radical agendas, they’ll
have a fight on their hands. You can count on me to
stand firm for Texas families and the values that have made
our state great.
Jobs and Economic Growth
I will provide the leadership Austin needs to bring new jobs
and economic growth to our community. Working with leaders
in the Mesquite and Sunnyvale business communities, I will
make sure we keep burdensome government regulations in check,
and get our fair share of transportation funds to reduce traffic
for commuters. I will fight unfair taxes on Texas businesses
and promote fair funding for education to ensure we’re
creating high-skill, high-wage jobs and our economy remains
strong.
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