_UPDATE: Originally I mentioned “apparently fake twitter account.” I’ve learned (after lots of research) that I was mistaken. I’ve removed that statement. Please continue reading. My carelessness was completely my own. _
I agree with Ted Cruz. And welcome Big Government readers.
Senator Cruz said, “Katrina Pierson is an utterly fearless principled conservative.”
That was just two years ago. Katrina Pierson was challenging Pete Sessions for Congress.
I also agree with Ted’s dad, Rafael Cruz, who said of Katrina, “Sheâs a strict constitutionalist. Sheâs a strong conservative and she wants to do whatâs right.”
I also agree with Glenn Beck who introduced his radio audience to Katrina this way:
Katrina Pierson is running against Congressman Pete Sessions here in Texas⌠To call Pete a massive disappointment is a massive understatement. And you should get to know Katrina. Ted Cruz, who doesnât throw these things around lightly, called her an utterly fearless principled conservative, which I think is about the highest praise you could get from Ted Cruz. (Source: glennbeck.com)
I even agree with (in carefully measured doses) this Dave Weigel story in Slate from 2014:
Piersonâs claim on the Cruz brand is more intimate. Nanoseconds after she announced for Congress, she was endorsed by FreedomWorks, the D.C.-based Tea Party powerhouse. FreedomWorks has warred for its own Cruz pixie dustâwhen Sen. John Cornynâs campaign hired the groupâs old grassroots coordinator Brendan Steinhauser, FreedomWorks insisted that he âwas not in charge of our political efforts in 2010 or 2012.â
Steinhauser strayed, at least in the view of FreedomWorks. Pierson did not. Sheâs a pure Tea Partier, one of the shrinking group of conservative activists who gained unimagined political stardom, compared to the average freshman congressman, thanks to media interest in the movement, especially from Fox News. Sheâs biracial, which she insists will drive the left batty when (never âifâ) she wins. âYou could call me a racist,â she says. âGood luck with that! You could say Iâm out there pushing the war on women. Good luck with that, too.â
Dave Weigel covered the Tea Party movement for Washington Post and Slate since its earliest days. He knows who was there.
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I Figured She Was a Prima Donna #
I’ve known Katrina Pierson since 2009, but I first met her in 2010. She and many Tea Partiers from Texas came to St. Louis for the September 12 event under the Arch. I knew Katrina was a star of the Texas tea parties, and I expected her to be a prima donna. But I quickly learned otherwise.
It was hot. I was playing host by escorting a group of VIPs on foot, about eight people in total. We had a few of blocks to go. The women were mostly in heels walking on rough pavement in downtown St. Louis.
A big, black SUV came along, recognized a few of the faces, and offered a ride. “I have room for six,” the driver said.
Some of us looked around. A few people simply jumped into the SUV. Katrina said, “It’s okay. I can walk.” So I walked with her. (I was a host.) I believe one other gentleman walked with us. Prima donnas don’t give up an SUV ride.
That simple act of humility when no one of consequence was a round to see it told me a lot about Katrina.
Conservatives Gone Wild #
Today, a conservative blogger pieced together snippets of some of Katrina’s past statements to build a case that Katrina is actually a radical leftist. Â In elections, even good people often lose their minds.
But Glenn Beck took to Facebook to pile on Katrina. Without bothering to check the validity or context of the piece, he labelled Pierson “dangerous.” And that’s a shame, because Glenn once had something to offer. Like when he gave Katrina a platform in her 2014 race against the “disappointing” Pete Sessions.
As blogger Dan Riehl points out on Twitter:
Come on foks, going after Katrina Pierson like she’s Huma Abedin is small minded and pointless. Ur venting anger not accomplishing anything
â DanRiehl (@DanRiehl) January 24, 2016
Yep. Especially when Glenn Beck attacks her. Remember, Glenn is the same guy who, in 2009, said that he would have voted for Hillary Clinton over John McCain and that he expects Barack Obama will be better for the country than McCain would have been (video below).
Look, I get that elections make good people crazy. I’ll blame it on National Review. And I get that conservatives have problems with Trump. But let’s try to remember two things:
*1. There will be a tomorrow no matter how the Iowa caucuses shake out, and *2. If there is no tomorrow, Revelation tells us the good guys have won.
Katrina Pierson really is a pure tea partier, a fierce conservative, and a strict constitutionalist. She didn’t stop being those things when she became Trump’s spokesperson anymore than Beck stopped being a conservative when he declared a preference for Hillary and Obama over McCain.
Katrina is a friend and a soldier in the war on establishment values. She has lifted me up and pointed back toward the front in our war when I’ve stumbled and felt weak.
Find a way to elevate Cruz without destroying your sister-in-arms.