Mission Statement
Our mission is to educate and organize citizens regarding public policy and founding principles, and to support the election of local, state and national candidates who share our core values.
Core Values
Constitutionally Limited Government: We believe – as the Declaration of Independence outlines – that governments are instituted among men to protect our Natural Rights, and as such, derive their power from the consent of the people. Government should therefore be restrained by the Constitution from growing in power and infringing on the rights of the people to live in a free society. The rule of law should be elevated above the rulers, with liberty as the highest end.
Fiscal Responsibility: As Ludwig von Mises said, “in public administration there is no connection between revenue and expenditure.” Our federal government – as well as our state and local governments – spends taxpayer dollars recklessly, and has placed us in dangerous levels of debt. Governments have specific and vital functions for which they should frugally and efficiently spend our money, but every dollar the government spends after that is a dollar that is better spent by the people. Onerous tax burdens and a monetary policy of inflation makes people poorer, disrupts the common man’s ability to save, and holds people back from living their life to their fullest potential.
Free Markets: Free enterprise is the best possible way to lift people out of poverty and promote prosperity for all of society. As Milton Friedman said, “the most important single central fact about a free market is that no exchange takes place unless both parties benefit.” Freedom of association and freedom of exchange necessarily result in peace, liberty, and prosperity. Economies are most prosperous and stable when economic decisions are left in the hands of individuals. Central planning by the force of government only disrupts people’s ability to improve their own state of satisfaction and is the cause of economic stagnation, recession, and depression. Free markets empower people and give their business affairs meaning by setting up a system where people are incentivized to provide for the needs and wants of others with the best possible product for the lowest price. People acquire and retain wealth only by serving consumers. In a free market, consumers can make poor people rich and rich people poor. Government favoritism in the forms of policies, regulations, licensing, bailouts, and prohibitions create barriers to entry that serve to inhibit people from moving up the ladder and make it easy for those on top to stay there.
About the Texas Patriots PAC
Our organization began and still serves as the tea party organization for the Montgomery County / North Houston area. On April 15, 2009, led by our organization’s founders Suzanne Guggenheim and Julie Turner, we hosted a tea party rally in Rob Fleming park in The Woodlands. The overwhelming attendance at this rally prompted several more rallies across the Houston area, where we filled parks and stadiums and hosted guest speakers such as Andrew Breitbart, Michael Berry, Greg Abbott, Dan Patrick, Ted Cruz and Jim DeMint.
After participating in the Taxpayer March on Washington on September 12, 2009 with hundreds of thousands of other tea party activists across the country, we were disappointed to see politicians, including those of the Republican Party, continue about “business as usual.” They weren’t listening to our demands to rein in spending, limit the size of government, and allow the free market to create prosperity. This led to the transformation of our organization into a Political Action Committee because we realized that in order for politicians to respond to the demands of the people, their jobs must be challenged at the ballot box. Becoming a PAC allowed us to raise and spend money in support of candidates for office who share our values. We took the energy from our rallies and packed it into an office where we could organize and truly change our governments for the better. We are not in support of any specific political party, nor are we supported by any political party or otherwise influenced by special interests. Rather, our goal is to elect to office candidates who share our core values of constitutionally limited government, fiscal responsibility, and free markets.
Since becoming a PAC, we have been called one of the most effective, well-organized tea party groups in the State of Texas and “a force to be reckoned with” in Montgomery County elections. Our efforts have aided the election of many liberty-loving office holders at all levels of government, including Senator Ted Cruz, who said of our efforts:
The philosophy behind our endorsements for public office closely follows the Buckley rule: we support the most conservative candidate with a viable path to victory. We hold our candidates to a high standard when it comes to doing what it takes to win an election, and will not ask our volunteers to work hard on behalf of a candidate who is not working hard themselves. It isn’t enough to be a conservative. Our candidates must also be serious about winning to deserve our support, and have a game plan that does not solely rely on endorsements to carry them across the finish line. While raising money is crucial to any campaign and political expenditures have skyrocketed in the past decade, conservative underdogs have more of an advantage to challenging establishment candidates than ever before thanks to social and alternative media, as well as better technology to aid in grassroots “sweat equity” – something the establishment has a hard time tapping into. Before we make an endorsement in a race, we extensively analyze all aspects of a candidate’s path to victory before we commit our organizing efforts to providing the “thumb on the scale.” By holding our endorsement process to this standard, those who look to us for information can trust that our candidates are true conservatives worth throwing their weight behind.
Candidates who receive an “endorsement” are the most conservative candidate in their race with a path to victory, as well as a record that proves they are more than just talk. Candidates who receive a “recommendation” may not yet have a public service history or voting record they can point to, or may simply be the best option for conservative voters. Endorsed candidates in past elections to win office include Senator Ted Cruz, Lt. Governor Dan Patrick, Attorney General Ken Paxton, Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller, Texas Supreme Court Justice Don Willett, State Senator Brandon Creighton, State Representative Steve Toth, and director Gordy Bunch of The Woodlands Township. Past endorsement does not imply future endorsement; we continually follow actions taken in office.
Montgomery County is one of the most populous red counties in Texas, making it a significant player in statewide elections. The runoff election of Ted Cruz and David Dewhurst in 2012, as well as the runoffs between Dan Patrick and David Dewhurst and Ken Paxton and Dan Branch in 2014 show that turnout in Montgomery County can win or lose an election. We were proud to organize the county in each of these elections ensuring a record turnout of conservative voters and the victory of our endorsed candidates.
Besides statewide elections, Texas Patriots PAC also gets involved in local races in Montgomery County as well as any state or federal district race – or special districts such as the Lone Star College System - that includes Montgomery County within its boundaries. The local level is where the grassroots not only can have the most immediate impact, but where principled conservative candidates can get their foot in the door of the political system. If we want to see positive change happen at the federal level, investments must be made at the local level.
Texas Patriots PAC holds regular monthly meetings and our meetings are open to the public. Check our events calendar frequently for upcoming events in your area. Subscribe to our email list and follow us on social media for the latest updates.
PAC Leadership
Dr. Julie Turner – President, co-founder
Julie Turner is the co-founder and President of the Texas Patriots PAC, a group recognized statewide and nationally as having won more elections than any other tea party in Texas. Since 2009, Julie has been actively supporting the election of candidates who believe that the government should do its job and no one else’s, that entrepreneurs supply the best solutions to our problems, and that our rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness come from God. Political activism is a hobby for Julie – her real job is raising two sons with her husband, Tim. Julie has a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Texas A&M University.
Suzanne Guggenheim- Co-founder
Suzanne Guggenheim, along with Julie Turner, co-founded the Texas Patriots PAC.
Jon Bauman – Vice President
Jon Bauman is the Vice President of the Texas Patriots PAC. He is a retired major oil company executive and an attorney by training.
Cindy Gaskill - Treasurer
Bill O’Sullivan – Treasurer Emeritus
Bill O’Sullivan served as the treasurer of the Texas Patriots PAC for the first 10 years of our existence. He is a retired insurance executive, Marine Officer, and Vietnam Veteran. He ran for Congress in 1980, and understands the nuts and bolts of campaigns. He frequently writes in the Courier of Montgomery County as Kerryman.
Contact
Texas Patriots PAC
P.O. Box 130184
The Woodlands, TX 77393
julie@texaspatriotspac.com