Texas Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis accused her conservative critics of sinking to a new low by attacking her on her personal story and family.
Davis, in a fundraising email released Tuesday, wrote that Republican opponents have “stooped to a new low by attacking my family, my education, and my personal story – playing politics with the journey that has been my life.”
The argument comes in response to conservatives attacking Davis for fudging details about her personal story, which she has repeatedly highlighted throughout her campaign for governor. That criticism was sparked Dallas Morning News report which noted that Davis divorced her first husband at 21, not 19 as she had previously said. The Morning News report also highlighted other inconsistent aspects of how Davis described her background as well.
Davis herself has admitted that she should have done a better job of describing particular details of her story.
Davis’s campaign has tried to get a better handle on the episode by accusing Attorney General Greg Abbott, her Republican opponent in the race, of fueling the criticism of her based on her bio.
Read Davis’s fundraising email below:
Dear Daniel,
As our campaign has gained momentum, our opponents have gotten more and more desperate. But now they’ve stooped to a new low by attacking my family, my education, and my personal story – playing politics with the journey that has been my life.
Mine is a story about a teenage single mother who struggled to keep her young family afloat. It’s a story about a young woman who was given a precious opportunity to work her way up in the world. It’s a story about resiliency, and sacrifice, and perseverance.
And you’re damn right it’s a true story.
Throughout this campaign, I’ve shared that story – not because it’s unique, but because it isn’t.
The story of my life is also the story of millions of single mothers who feel alone in the world, millions of young dreamers searching for their chance to become something more than what they were born into, millions of families all across Texas who would sacrifice everything to give their children a better future.
It’s those stories – your stories – that drive my campaign. But Greg Abbott and his allies don’t want to hear them. They don’t have anything to offer Texans who find themselves in the same difficult situation I was in when I was young. They would slam the doors I walked through and pull up the ladders I was lucky to be able to climb.
And now, instead of offering real ideas to improve your life, they’re attacking mine.
It won’t work. The only thing Greg Abbott and his allies have proved with these desperate attacks is that they don’t understand what it means to live a life like mine – a life like that of so many people all across our state.
They don’t know me – and, what’s more important, they don’t know you.
I’m not surprised that the Abbott campaign would resort to attacking the story of a single mother who worked hard to get ahead.
And I’m not afraid of their false attacks – I developed thick skin long before anyone knew my name.
What I am is deeply proud of the life I’ve built and the daughters I’ve raised – and deeply grateful to the many, many people who have shared their stories and offered their support as I’ve traveled our state.
No false attack can take away my story. And no sleazy political trick will stop me from giving voice to yours.
Your stories are why I’m running for Governor. And together, I know we’ll make sure that the Texas we leave to our children is a place where every young mother can build a better life for her child. . . where every family can work their way up the economic ladder. . . where every Texan can achieve their dreams and live out their own success story.
If you’re with me, click here and add your name to my letter as a sign of support. Together, we’ll break through these attacks, win this election, and make Texas even greater.
Wendy
