Interview with John McLeod for State Representative - District 64

John McLeod is a fascinating and personable guy who is spending a lot of time these days selling himself and his vision for Texans in the 64th district. He's running for State Representative against incumbent Myra Crownover for the seat which represents most of Denton and The Colony and cities in between. John is a husband and father, living in Denton with his wife Carabeth and their daughter Mackenzie. John currently works as a mortgage banker, and his wife Carabeth is a middle school teacher.

Frustrated by the Texas legislature's inability to solve the problems with our public schools, he threw his hat in the ring this year, and he has a good chance of winning. His opponent, Myra Crownover doesn't really have her heart in the job, and didn't file for re-election until the last minute. She's not entirely embraced by members of her own party, as evidenced by the website www.dumpcrownover.com.

I don't want to spend a lot of space here going into the background of the race, and Ms. Crownover's less-than-stellar record. These topics are covered in better detail in the links at the bottom of this article. Rather, I want to get right into the interview, because John has a lot to say, and I must say that I'm impressed by his candor and I hope you will be too.

John McLeod: I appreciate the opportunity.

John McLeod: I am very proud to be a lifelong Democrat, from a family of lifelong Democrats. My father and Texas Democratic Party Chairman Boyd Richie were U.S. Senate pages under Senator Ralph Yarborough. My uncle Jim and Ann Richards ran Sarah Weddington's successful campaign for the Legislature. My Dad's father was the mayor of McAllen and my mother's father was a city councilman. My great grandfather was in the Texas Agriculture Commission and Farm Bureau. My great, great uncle was in the Texas Legislature, and his brother was the President of the University of Texas who led the impeachment of Gov. Ferguson. These were all humble, kind people who were not only committed lifelong Democrats but also deeply involved with their communities, families, and churches. I am blessed to count myself among them. I am a Democrat because they instilled our party's values in my heart by their example every day of my life.

John McLeod: My Mother, Jobeth McLeod is a Presbyterian minister in Alpine, TX. I was actually talking to her last night and she is in the middle of planning a fundraiser and meet-and-greet for Chris Bell incidentally.

I don't think that I can separate my political beliefs and my spiritual beliefs enough to really say where one begins and the other ends. In my mind public service, servanthood, spirituality, and being a good Democrat were always the same thing. When I volunteer with a soup kitchen it's both because I believe we're are all God's children and it's my Christian duty to do so, but also because as a Democrat I believe that we have a mutual responsibility to support one another. To whom much is given, much is required. As to having a monopoly on God all I can only say is that no one can truly say that God is on their side, only that they are on God's side.

John McLeod: I like your father-in-law already. No, the vast majority of Texans, myself included, generally support maintaining the status quo in terms of firearms laws. I am also a gun owner, skeet shooter, and hunter. The only new gun law I'd consider at this point is restricting the Vice President from handling a firearm within a three mile radius of me.

John McLeod: Many people have been critical of the Vice President over the entire incident, including the editors of Field and Stream magazine. The bottom line is that firearms are deadly, and the consequence of failing to take the proper precautions will sometimes end in accidents that have the potential to kill. If you don't believe me ask any game warden and they can tell you some terrible stories. In Texas, we require hunters under a certain age, and encourage everyone, to take a one day hunter safety course from Texas Parks and Wildlife. It is worth noting that though the Vice President is an avid hunter and fisherman, he has never attended this course. Had he done so, he would have learned that some of the things he and his hunting partners were doing that day were a bad idea including:

• Not purchasing the correct hunting license.


• Consuming alcohol before using firearms.


• Not establishing and clearing lanes of fire.


• Moving forward through the field in an organized manner, so as not to allow hunters to fall back and the other hunters to loose track of them.

I have the benefit of hindsight, but I believe that had proper procedures been followed this accident might have been avoided. Even within the hunting world there is an ethical debate ongoing about the rapid increase in canned hunts. When I was growing up I never even heard of them, mostly because my family didn't find them consistent with our sense of sportsmanship and never participated in one.

John McLeod: I'm pretty utilitarian. All I current have is a Mossberg 12 gauge pump. It works well for me in just about any situation, and isn't a gun that I'm going to worry about beating up. I'd love to own an over-and-under for skeet, and currently have my eye on a Beretta 20 gauge automatic. I'm not as athletic as I once was and I'd appreciate the reduced recoil the 20 gauge offers. After shooting a couple of boxes of 12 gauge shells at clay targets I usually have to pick my shoulder up off the floor before I head home. However I'm a married man and have a 10 month old baby at home. When push comes to shove I enjoy buying her toys and my wife a new pair of shoes more than getting myself a new shotgun. A wise man once told me that hunting season comes around every year, but you only get one chance to be a good husband and father. So for the time being I'd expect to have more Nike and Fisher-Price in my house than Berettas.

John McLeod: I believe we need to make changes in both areas. There is a pretty clear consensus across the state that our schools simply do not have the investment they need to get the job done. Our schools are also suffering because their instructional curriculum is the product of a political process. Since George Bush was elected governor we have seen the trained educators with a lifetime of experience in the TEA replaced by politicians without formal training in education. In the past our leaders asked our teachers what resources they needed to teach our children, we worked hard to make that investment, and we all thrived. Now our politicians tell our teachers what to do. That makes about as much sense as having me write instructions on how to perform a heart transplant. I may have all the best intentions in the world, but if I don't have the proper training to do that the patient isn't going to make it. Sadly that's exactly what's happened in Texas. We've gone from having one of the best education systems in the world to the worst in the country. Let's put the professionals in charge again, give them what they need, and get out of their way.

John McLeod: I think you may be giving the Legislature more credit than they deserve. The only thing that seems to have been solved during the last special session was putting a Band-Aid on the problem to prevent the court from shutting down the schools. All the effects of the legislation are still coming to light but here are a few:

• The largest tax increase in the history of Texas.


• Creation of an impending budget crisis when we don't have a surplus to spend.


• An inequitable business tax where only businesses that didn't have lobbyists pay at the highest level.

What did we gain from this legislation? The average Texas homeowner should save around $6.00 a month on their property taxes, and not even one new dollar was invested in our schools. At this point I'd be happy to give back my $6.00, throw this bill away, and start from scratch on something that might actually work.

John McLeod: I like the enthusiasm, but I'd have to sell my house if anyone doubled my property taxes. The good news is that nothing that extreme is required. [Education] is the issue this election cycle to the vast majority of people you speak with. The bottom line is our kids deserve better, and if the people of our community send me to Austin, I will focus all my attention on it.

John McLeod: For the near future at least, I think much of our revenue will continue to come from these two sources. Several times over the last 100 years there have been some serious attempts at creating a state income tax, most notably by former Lt. Gov. Bob Bullock. The proponents argue that this would be a more equitable funding solution. While that may be true, the overwhelming majority of Texans strongly oppose its creation. As long as that's the case I wouldn't expect the status quo to change. As to Fair Tax, I've never thought that there is anything fair about it. This is just another regressive tax plan that's got a new name and the same old problems. We need to create a revenue system that is fair and equitable to all Texans, not just ones who can afford lobbyists.

John McLeod: I really feel that the theme behind all the issues in this election cycle is how our leaders have stopped serving the public interest, and are now serving their own interests. If they really had our interest at heart we wouldn't have crumbling schools, wouldn't have cut hundreds of thousands of children from the Children's Health Insurance Program, and wouldn't have a new lobbying scandal every time we open a newspaper. I don't think those are partisan issues, they are just common sense. However, as I am a committed Democrat I can understand how an equally committed conservative or Republican would hesitate from crossing party lines. I'm a pretty moderate person both in my political and personal life, but I don't think that anyone should have to hold their nose to vote for me.

John McLeod: There are no easy answers to be had in terms if the disparity between districts. The Texas Constitution in effect does not allow for the creation of a state wide property tax, which could potentially resolve both the problems of parity and equity. The ultimate solution to this and many other problems will be to draft a new state constitution. While this has nearly 100% support from Texas history teachers, it has doesn't have much anywhere else. Until we can create a lasting solution, the Legislature will need to continue to create and adjust short term plans.

John McLeod: I have no doubt that drafting a new state constitution would have lasting benefits for all Texans. There are a variety of challenges that would need to be overcome before the Legislature could begin the process with any hope of success. I am an optimist, and would be very proud to look back and know that I contributed in some small way. However, I'm the first person who's going to tell you I am a very regular guy. Some truly great men and women, giants in the history of Texas, have tried and failed to push a new constitution through. I'm not ready to give up on it, but I've got my feet on the ground.

John McLeod: There are lots of things that I'd love to work on, but I plan to focus initially on two crucial areas. First, we need to ensure access to affordable healthcare for all Texas children. This is going to require the immediate restoration of the Children's Health Insurance Program funds that Gov. Perry threw away, and then the creation of a new statewide program to cover every child. We can't build a better state without children's healthcare because sick kids can't learn. Ask any teacher. Second, we must create legislation to end the pay to play lobbying system in Texas, and give the Texas Ethics Commission the tools and directive to enforce the law. Our representatives must strictly honor their commitment to serve the people, and only the people. When they fail to do so there must be consequences or our state will continue to be for sale to the highest bidder.

John McLeod: I just finished reading former Lt. Gov. Ben Barnes memoir and even he was complaining about the salary in the late 60's. I do believe that the low salary has contributed in several ways to the problems of the Legislature. First, it deters well qualified people who want to serve their communities from doing so if they are not personally wealthy or are not fortunate enough to have a very understanding employer as I do. Second, in an environment with limited ethics enforcement and fairly lax campaign finance laws, it just opens up the doors for corruption. No bank in their right mind would pay someone $7,200 a year to guard all the money, have no oversight system in place, no enforcement system in place, and expect none of that money to disappear. When you combine personal financial stress with the opportunity for personal enrichment without a reasonable expectation of consequences, good people are much more likely to make bad decisions. I have read studies that hypothesize by increasing the Legislative annual salary to the nationwide legislative average of $50,000, strengthening campaign finance laws, and giving the Texas Ethics Commission teeth we would increase salary expenses by about $5,600,000 a year, but could reduce graft and overspending by tens of millions annually. Clearly this is an idea that deserves some consideration, but it is hard to implement as no one ever likes the idea of lawmakers giving themselves a raise no matter how good of an idea it is.

John McLeod: The first person that ever expressed concern to me on the Trans-Texas corridor was Denton County Farm Bureau President Tommy Calvert. To their credit farmers have been pushing and sustaining the opposition to this development and others. I think this is a bad idea, a misuse of funds, and a misuse of eminent domain. We do need to continue to develop our transportation infrastructure but this is not the way.

John McLeod: I always tell people who live outside my district that it is never too late sell your house and move here. If you don't like that idea I'd ask to do three things: First, vote and make sure all your family members and friends do the same. Tell them about what important issues are being decided and how their vote can help make things better. Studies show this is the most effective and persuasive way to make changes. Second, volunteer your time with our campaign. You can help in person or online, for as short or as long as you can. Every little bit counts. Third, please make a campaign donation of any amount. We've only made it this far thanks to the generosity of our donors, mostly in $5 donations.

John McLeod: The easiest way to contribute is by visiting our website at www.mcleodfortexas.com, and clicking "Contribute". If that doesn't work for you we will accommodate you however we need to. I assure you there is no one in this world more accommodating than people running for office.

John McLeod: You can also signup on at www.mcleodfortexas.com, email us at vote@mcleodfortexas.com, or call us at 940-580-2264.

John McLeod: Thanks, I appreciate the opportunity to talk with your readers.