Category: Politics

A Campaign Diary: Brian Aldaco

Brian Aldaco is a freshman at SHSU and a LEAP Ambassador.  After a fun and education filled first year at SHSU, Brian got a call asking for his help with a Republican congressional campaign in New York state.  Showing the adventurous spirit, Brian took the offer and set off on a 30-day learning experience.  This is the first of two blog entries from him on the trip and work.

The call came late in the campaign season.  Would I fly to New York to work on a campaign?   With only four days notice, I didn’t have much time to think.  Fortunately, I didn’t need much time to think.  Yes!

As with any far away trip, my travel began at the airport. I was to fly from the Houston Bush International Airport, transfer planes in Atlanta, Georgia to finally arrive at the Albany International Airport.

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At 10:00 at night, already having crossed over to the eastern time region, I arrived at my destination in the gorgeous (not-as-much-as-Texas) state of New York.  It was only my second time in a plane, and it was my first time in New York.

The campaign was for Andrew Heaney, a Republican who is running for US Congress in the Albany region of New York state.  My job was to be part of the many volunteers and staff on hand to help him win.  This includes: block-walking, phone calling, assisting with events, and other duties.

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The day after I arrived, the rest of the block-walking brigade and I, a total of six students, woke up early in the morning to get a short briefing by campaign mangers Joe Williams and David O’Connell. As very experienced professionals in Get Out To Vote (GOTV) strategies, the managers delegated areas of the state’s Congressional District 19 to us. Hence we were deployed from our hotel in the village of Colonie, pumped up and ready to meet voters on behalf of candidate Heaney to ensure his victory in this June 28 Republican primary.Heaney_Signs_Web

Riding through the various towns and villages of the district has been a pleasure. As a lover of nature’s wooded paradise it has been delightful to see the congressional district composed of the counties of Ostego, Montgomery, Schohaire, Greene, Rensselaer, Columbia, Delaware, Sullivan, Ulster, and Dutchess. Amidst woodpeckers thumping in trunks, chipmunks trailing through every garden, beavers bravely rocking across the streets, and the occasional rabbit bouncing through the green fields, the Heaney block walkers have toiled through the week to encourage residents of this gorgeous country side of New York State to support us.

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Tasked with this endeavor, I have met along the way a wide variety of people along with the different tempers they offer when either rooting for our candidate or shrugging us off as if we were pesky soliciting salesman. I might add, however, that regardless of resentment for our candidate from some of the houses, there is still a sense of polite generosity whereupon most of these nay-sayers will end their farewell with a sincere “good luck.”

By traveling through these small upstate New York villages I am getting a better sense of the northern culture. This small community feel was not so much different from a town like Huntsville, for example, where it is always pleasant to visit the town square and enjoy a lunch. This first week this is how we all spent our midday breaks…

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by enjoying such delicacies as Ruben wraps, Philly cheese steak sandwiches,

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classic dinner hamburgers with fries, small town coffee-shop espressos and tea, and much other delicious treats that help illuminate the delightful taste of the different communities of New York’s 19th congressional district.

However, the highlight of the week was having the chance to meet with Mr. Heaney on Wednesday in the city of Oneonta, located in Ostego County about an hour’s drive south of Colonie. There, a debate would be held between Heaney and his opponent John Faso. With the temperature dropping to 45 degrees along with menacing rain clouds trailing along the mountain tree tops which surrounded the city, we were eager to go inside the city’s theatre production center where the debate would be held. The debate between the two New York Congressional candidates was diplomatic with minimal hostility.

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At the end of the debate we were able to shake hands and meet with Mr. Heaney. He shared how impressed he was with our work thus far, which motivated us to work even harder. This motivation would later be demonstrated when block walking through Saturday’s rainy morning. Nonetheless the evening of the debate we chose to relax over an all New Yorker pizza in Oneonta’s very special Italian restaurant Joe Ruffino’s.

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With a week of block walking through beautiful and quirky New York villages it has been a great pleasure to have this great opportunity to be a part of an amazing campaign. Even though at times the steep mountainous roads have caused us consternation, (especially when the pavement ends) it has been rewarding to enjoy the picturesque landscapes. With so much country beauty it’s hard not to get lost in the rolling fields and piny woods of upstate New York from which I have to shake off its trance and continue on this northern grass roots mission to success.

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A Capitol Education: The Texas Legislature

We had a dual-view day ahead of us, when we awoke.  Our morning hours would be spent examining the governing side of Texas politics.  Our afternoon and evening hours would be devoted to the campaigning side of Texas politics. Both were rewarding, and both informed and enriched our understanding of the other.

We began with a tour of the Texas Capitol.  Our tour guide was informative, providing us with a nice overview of the capitol while also highlighting interesting side features.

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In the Capitol’s rotunda, for example, visitors can stand in the center, speak, and hear an echo that those around them cannot hear.  Or, did you know that the door hinges weight 7.5 pounds?  These are just some of the interesting facts that a tour will provide.

On a more macro-level, we visited the Texas Senate…

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…where we saw the vivid paintings “Dawn at the Alamo” and “The Battle of San Jacinto,” both by Henry Arthur McArdle, who offered a heroic interpretation of the quest for Texas independence.  Speaking of which, we showed our state pride by taking a photograph with the portrait of Sam Houston, who not only led troops to victory at San Jacinto, but went on to serve Texas as President, Senator, and Governor.

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We completed our capitol tour with a visit to the underground annex, where we admired the window view of Goddess of Liberty, which towers atop the capitol dome.

Following a brief visit to the Capitol Grill—we would later be told, “don’t ever eat at the Capitol Grill, not ever—we journeyed the extension to find the office of SHSU Alumnus Representative Will Metcalf.  There we met Chief of Staff Zachary Stephenson, who provided us with a rewarding presentation on working in the legislature.

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Given the long work days, he said he looks for employees and interns who maintain a positive, professional attitude; avoid excessive participation in Austin’s thriving party scene; can remain productive over the course of the session; and will represent the office well.  It was good advice to students who are interested in the possibility of interning during the upcoming session, and we are thankful for his time and wisdom.

We continued our education on the legislative process with the help of House Parliamentarian Chris Griesel and the Deputy House Parliamentarian Shalla Sluyter.  The House floor is currently under renovation and is closed to the public, but that did not stop us from getting a photograph…

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…or from learning more than we could have ever known to ask about how legislatures work.  Griesel and Sluyter demonstrated their exemplary knowledge of both the history of Parliamentary Procedure and how the legislative process unfolds.

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Parliamentarian Chris Griesel Explaining Parliamentary Procedure

For example, did you know, that because the British upper-class spoke in French during the time of the Magna Carta, the concept of an assembly body fell under the French word for speaking, evolving from parley to Parliament.  Moreover, rather than address all the representatives from the assembly, the King would designate one person to speak—the speaker—a designation that evolved into the U.S. “Speaker of the House.”

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It was interesting speaking to these attorneys, both of whom shared their admirable intellects while discussing drone policy, the legislative process, our careers, and Mae West legislation—a proposed bills designed to get a specific audience to “come up and see me sometime.”

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We should also add that Mr. Griesel very generously gave us two copies of Profiles in Courage, John F. Kennedy’s Pulitzer-Prize winning biographies of US Senators.  When we got back to the car with gifts and opened the book, we noticed that he had marked the chapter featuring Sam Houston.

Although our morning only covered the governing portion of our dual-view day, our learning went well beyond statesmanship.  From the history of the English language to the art of H.A. McArdle to the literary efforts of a former President, we left the Capitol more well-rounded than we entered.  With such a productive morning, we could only speculate on what the evening would hold at our first-ever New Politics Forum Campaign Bootcamp.