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[00:00:01] Thank you. Thank y'all. Thank y'all. [00:00:04] It's so good to be back in Austin, [00:00:05] Texas. [00:00:07] Thank y'all. Thank you. Thank you. Thank [00:00:10] you. Thank you to Representatives John [00:00:14] Buucy and Cheryl Cole. Thank you to our [00:00:18] next governor, Gina Inahosa. [00:00:23] Thank you to the volunteers in the vests [00:00:26] who made this event possible. Thank you [00:00:28] to all of you for showing up here on [00:00:31] very short notice. Tonight is a very [00:00:33] special night. One, I want to wish those [00:00:37] who celebrate a happy first night of [00:00:39] Ramadan and a happy [00:00:42] and a happy Lunar New Year. I also, it [00:00:46] was mentioned that my parents are here, [00:00:48] my mom and my dad. I want to wish them a [00:00:50] very happy anniversary [00:00:54] wherever they are. [00:00:57] And on this very special night, we are [00:01:01] launching our Takeback Back Texas tour. [00:01:03] We are We are hitting the road. We're [00:01:07] hitting the road. We're going [00:01:08] everywhere. We're talking to everyone. [00:01:10] We're not riding off any voter. We're [00:01:12] not riding off any community because [00:01:14] that is how we're going to win this [00:01:16] state in November. And [00:01:20] and the 24 hours before this tour launch [00:01:24] has been something else. [00:01:27] Last night I filmed a interview with [00:01:30] Steven Colbear on the Late Show and [00:01:36] as you probably know by now, Trump's FCC [00:01:40] colluded with corporate media executives [00:01:43] at CBS to keep that interview off the [00:01:46] air. [00:01:48] But I think it's safe to say that their [00:01:50] plan backfired. [00:01:55] I think I think Donald Trump and his [00:01:58] billionaire friends know that we're [00:02:00] about to take back Texas [00:02:05] and and these are the same people who [00:02:09] ran against cancel culture and now [00:02:12] they're trying to control what we watch, [00:02:15] what we say, what we read. And this is [00:02:19] the most dangerous kind of cancel [00:02:21] culture. The kind that comes from the [00:02:23] top. They went after The View. After I [00:02:26] went on there, they went after Jimmy [00:02:28] Kimmel for telling a joke they didn't [00:02:30] like. They went after Steven Cobear for [00:02:32] telling the truth about Paramount's [00:02:35] bribe to Donald Trump. Corporate media [00:02:38] executives are selling out the First [00:02:40] Amendment to curry favor with corrupt [00:02:43] politicians. A threat to any of our [00:02:47] First Amendment rights is a threat to [00:02:49] all of our First Amendment rights. [00:02:53] Whether [00:02:56] whether you're a Democrat or Republican, [00:03:00] whether you're conservative or [00:03:01] progressive, the real fight in this [00:03:04] country is not left versus right. It's [00:03:07] top versus bottom. [00:03:13] We [00:03:14] we launched we launched this grassroots [00:03:18] campaign for the US Senate five months [00:03:20] ago in my hometown of Roundrock, Texas. [00:03:22] And since then, hey, some love for Round [00:03:26] Rock. [00:03:27] And since then, we have had thousands of [00:03:30] Texans showing up to rally with us in [00:03:32] every corner of this state, from Bumont [00:03:35] to El Paso, from Amarillo to [00:03:38] Brownsville, and everywhere in between. [00:03:40] And I can't tell you how many people [00:03:42] come up to me at the end of these events [00:03:44] and whisper, "I'm not a Democrat." Like, [00:03:48] "It's some kind of secret." [00:03:50] We have recruited more than 22,000 [00:03:54] volunteers who are doing the organizing [00:03:58] work across this state to win in [00:04:00] November. And we have shattered [00:04:04] grassroots fundraising records without [00:04:06] taking a dime from corporate packs. [00:04:11] This is a peoplepowered movement [00:04:14] to take on this broken corrupt political [00:04:19] system. This is truly a campaign of, by, [00:04:23] and for the people. We We are bringing [00:04:27] people together not just to win an [00:04:29] election, but to fundamentally change [00:04:32] our politics. Our [00:04:35] our country is so divided that we can't [00:04:39] even share the Super Bowl anymore. [00:04:42] >> Two different halftime shows for two [00:04:46] different Americas in two different [00:04:49] realities. Bad Bunny, one of my favorite [00:04:51] artists, put on [00:04:54] put on one of the best Super Bowl [00:04:57] halftime shows of all time. [00:05:01] And then [00:05:03] and then and then I saw Kid Rock, [00:05:06] someone I grew up listening to. I saw [00:05:09] that he put on a counter concert, which [00:05:12] I didn't even know that was a thing. [00:05:15] What What compels people to protest that [00:05:20] beautiful halftime show? [00:05:22] >> I think I think I think it's fear. Fear [00:05:28] of the unknown. [00:05:30] fear of change, fears that we all [00:05:33] struggle with. But there was nothing to [00:05:36] be afraid of in that halftime show, just [00:05:40] joy and unity and love. [00:05:44] Because in the words of scripture, love [00:05:48] casts out fear. Or or in the words of [00:05:53] Bad Bunny, [00:05:55] the only thing more powerful than hate [00:05:58] is love. [00:06:03] That [00:06:05] that word [00:06:07] that word love is maybe the most [00:06:10] important word in the English language. [00:06:12] It's certainly the most important word [00:06:14] in all of our lives. And yet we rarely [00:06:17] hear it spoken in our politics. My [00:06:21] granddad was a Baptist preacher in South [00:06:23] Texas. And he told me when I was real [00:06:25] little that we're supposed to follow [00:06:28] Jesus's two commandments, to love God [00:06:31] and love neighbor. Jesus could have told [00:06:34] us to love our immediate family members [00:06:37] or our close friends. Those would have [00:06:40] been easier commandments to follow, but [00:06:43] he told us to love our neighbors. And [00:06:44] that's inherently a public thing. It's [00:06:48] what led me to public service. first as [00:06:51] a public school teacher on the west side [00:06:53] of San Antonio [00:06:56] and now [00:06:58] and now as a public official. [00:07:02] Eight years ago, I launched my very [00:07:04] first campaign for the Texas House back [00:07:06] home in Williamson County. And back [00:07:08] then, I was told the race was unwinable. [00:07:12] I was told flipping a Trump district was [00:07:14] impossible. I was told I was too young. [00:07:17] I was told I didn't have the money or [00:07:18] the connections to win. I was the [00:07:20] underdog in that race. But my neighbors [00:07:23] and I, many of whom are here in the [00:07:25] room, we ran we ran an aggressive, [00:07:30] authentic, unorthodox campaign that [00:07:33] brought people together. And on election [00:07:36] night, we flipped that district with 51% [00:07:39] of the vote. [00:07:43] And as a [00:07:46] and as a legislator, I have passed major [00:07:49] bills to lower the cost of housing, [00:07:51] lower the cost of child care, lower the [00:07:53] cost of prescription drugs, including [00:07:55] insulin. I am trying to love my [00:07:58] neighbors through public policy. I'm [00:08:01] trying to make my neighbors life a [00:08:03] little easier and a little better. But [00:08:06] that kind of love in our politics is [00:08:09] getting harder and harder to find. [00:08:13] The reason our politics sucks right now, [00:08:18] it's not any one politician. It is the [00:08:21] system itself. Think about think about [00:08:23] who was sitting behind the president of [00:08:26] the United States on inauguration day. [00:08:29] Think about who owns the 24-hour [00:08:33] corporate media that treats news as [00:08:35] entertainment. [00:08:37] Think about who owns the social media [00:08:40] algorithms that keep us angry and [00:08:42] divided. A handful of billionaires have [00:08:46] redesigned our politics for their own [00:08:48] profit. Us versus them, trolling, [00:08:53] owning, name calling, winning at all [00:08:55] costs. It's professional wrestling. And [00:08:58] I like professional wrestling, but not [00:08:59] in my politics. [00:09:02] We all keep watching. We all keep [00:09:04] scrolling. We all keep fighting and they [00:09:07] keep getting rich off of it. They divide [00:09:09] us by party, by race, by gender, by [00:09:15] religion [00:09:16] so we don't notice that they are picking [00:09:18] our pockets, that they are closing our [00:09:21] public schools. They are gutting our [00:09:23] healthcare. They're raising taxes on all [00:09:25] of us while they cut taxes for [00:09:27] themselves. [00:09:29] They they have they have literally [00:09:32] transformed how we talk to one another, [00:09:36] how we learn about the world. It's the [00:09:38] reason you and your MAGA uncle, who you [00:09:41] used to get along with just fine, you [00:09:44] both now live in completely separate [00:09:46] realities. [00:09:47] Politics shouldn't feel this way. [00:09:50] Politics is just another word for how we [00:09:52] treat our neighbors. And we should treat [00:09:54] each other a lot better than this. We [00:09:57] can [00:10:01] We can transform [00:10:03] this broken, corrupt political system. [00:10:07] They may have the money, but we have the [00:10:09] majority. [00:10:11] >> But it will require it will require us [00:10:14] coming together across all these [00:10:16] manufactured divisions. Fight the [00:10:18] system, not your neighbor. [00:10:21] There there is something deeply broken [00:10:24] in America. Our political system is [00:10:28] broken. Our economic system is broken. [00:10:31] Even our relationships with each other [00:10:34] feel broken. And that's because the most [00:10:37] powerful people in the world want it [00:10:39] that way. I mentioned that my faith [00:10:42] teaches me to love my neighbor as [00:10:43] myself. Not just my neighbor who looks [00:10:46] like me. Not just my neighbor who prays [00:10:49] like me. Not just my neighbor who votes [00:10:52] like me. I am called to love all of my [00:10:55] neighbors the way I love myself. And [00:10:57] that [00:11:01] and that's because [00:11:04] despite our many differences, despite [00:11:06] our many disagreements, we all want the [00:11:09] same things. A safe neighborhood, a good [00:11:13] job with good benefits, a highquality, [00:11:16] well-funded public school, and the [00:11:19] ability to see a doctor when we need [00:11:21] one. [00:11:24] I am [00:11:26] I am so tired of being pitted against my [00:11:30] neighbor. I am so tired of being told to [00:11:34] hate my neighbor. It's been more than 10 [00:11:37] years of this kind of politics. Politics [00:11:41] as blood sport, politics as total war. [00:11:46] It tears families apart. It ends [00:11:48] friendships. And it leaves us all [00:11:50] feeling terrible all the time. As I [00:11:53] travel this state, I get the sense that [00:11:56] across the political spectrum, there is [00:11:58] a deep hunger for a different kind of [00:12:02] politics. Not not a politics of hate, [00:12:06] not a politics of fear, not a politics [00:12:08] of division, but a politics of love. A [00:12:13] love for this state, a love for this [00:12:15] country, and a love for all of our [00:12:18] neighbors. a love that can heal what's [00:12:20] broken in America. When I was in [00:12:25] When I was in Laredo [00:12:28] I was in Laredo, Texas, my mom's [00:12:30] hometown, just a few days ago, and a man [00:12:33] stood up and asked me a question. He [00:12:35] said, "Isn't love too weak for this [00:12:38] moment?" And I I thanked him for asking [00:12:42] that question because I think some of us [00:12:44] have the same thoughts sometimes. I told [00:12:47] them that in my faith, love is the [00:12:49] strongest force in the universe. Love is [00:12:53] not love is not passive. Love is not [00:12:56] neutral. [00:12:58] Love is not weak. Love sometimes [00:13:01] requires that we stand between the [00:13:03] bullies and the bullied. [00:13:06] Love sometimes requires that we look [00:13:08] evil in the eye and not blink. Love [00:13:12] sometimes requires that we flip over the [00:13:15] tables of injustice. Love is [00:13:21] that that kind of love has always been a [00:13:24] threat to the powers that be. That kind [00:13:27] of love is revolutionary. [00:13:30] That kind of love is radical. That kind [00:13:32] of love is creative. Hate is boring. [00:13:36] Hate is predictable. Hate can't lower [00:13:40] our energy bills. Hate can't teach a [00:13:43] child how to read. Hate can't build a [00:13:46] future. But what hate can't do, love [00:13:50] can. Love can turn a student into a [00:13:56] scholar. Love can turn an enemy into a [00:14:00] friend. Love can turn a campaign into a [00:14:05] movement. We [00:14:10] We will not we will not defeat the [00:14:14] politics of division with more division. [00:14:18] We can't win that game. We have to [00:14:20] change the game. This campaign is rooted [00:14:24] in a fierce aggressive love for this [00:14:28] state, for this country, for our [00:14:30] neighbors. And in my experience, when [00:14:32] you when you extend an open hand rather [00:14:36] than a closed fist, you'll be surprised [00:14:38] by who takes that hand. If you hate [00:14:42] politics and you've never voted before, [00:14:44] you have a place in this campaign. If [00:14:47] you have voted for Democrats, but you're [00:14:50] tired of DC Democrats always folding, [00:14:53] you have a place in this campaign. [00:14:58] And if you voted for Donald Trump, but [00:15:01] you are fed up with the extremism and [00:15:04] the corruption in our government, you [00:15:06] have a place in this campaign. [00:15:11] Uh [00:15:13] a a new a new kind of politics is [00:15:17] possible. It's waiting to be born [00:15:20] through all of us. And a movement that [00:15:23] radiates that kind of love is [00:15:26] unstoppable [00:15:27] and it will win. And we have a moral [00:15:30] imperative to win. As we speak, we are [00:15:34] seeing the consequences of losing [00:15:35] elections all over this country. We have [00:15:38] a secret police force terrorizing our [00:15:41] neighbors here in Texas and across [00:15:43] America. ICE [00:15:46] ICE [00:15:48] ICE shot a mother in the face. ICE [00:15:52] kidnapped a five-year-old boy. ICE [00:15:56] executed a man in broad daylight on our [00:15:58] streets before our very eyes. It is time [00:16:03] to tear down this secret police force [00:16:05] and replace it with an agency that is [00:16:08] actually going to focus on public safety [00:16:09] for all of us. [00:16:13] It is past time. [00:16:18] It is past time to impeach Secretary [00:16:22] Christy Gnome. [00:16:26] It is past time to prosecute agents who [00:16:30] have abused their power. [00:16:35] And when we win a Senate majority, we [00:16:37] will haul these masked men before [00:16:40] Congress so the world can see their [00:16:42] faces. [00:16:46] These masked men, [00:16:48] these masked men are waiting in school [00:16:52] pickup lines. They are lurking in [00:16:55] hospital waiting rooms. [00:16:57] This is not law enforcement. This is [00:17:00] something else. They say they say it's [00:17:03] about law and order, but they're waiting [00:17:05] outside courouses [00:17:07] arresting people who are following the [00:17:09] law and showing up for their immigration [00:17:11] hearings. They say it's about the [00:17:14] economy, but they're deporting the very [00:17:16] people who keep our economy running. [00:17:21] >> They [00:17:23] They say it's about illegal immigration, [00:17:26] but now they're going after American [00:17:28] citizens. This has never been about [00:17:31] immigration. This has always been about [00:17:34] control. The The best way to control a [00:17:38] population is to keep people afraid. [00:17:40] Keep them looking over their shoulder. [00:17:42] Keep them in line. Don't draw attention [00:17:45] to yourself. Don't criticize the state. [00:17:48] Don't speak your mind. Otherwise, you'll [00:17:50] be disappeared or even killed. [00:17:53] No more secret police. No more masked [00:17:57] men. No more disappearing people. [00:18:02] This this [00:18:06] is the United States of America. We're [00:18:08] not supposed to fear our government. Our [00:18:10] government is supposed to fear us. [00:18:18] I wanna [00:18:21] I want to y'all know that in addition to [00:18:24] my public work as a public official and [00:18:28] as a candidate for office, [00:18:30] but you may not know that I'm currently [00:18:32] a student in seminary, studying to [00:18:35] become a minister like my granddad one [00:18:36] day. So, I I know we've covered in this [00:18:40] program some heavy topics and I know [00:18:43] things are dark right now. So, I thought [00:18:44] I would leave you with just a little bit [00:18:46] of pastoral care. [00:18:49] There's a there is a a lyric from a [00:18:53] great American songwriter that I've been [00:18:55] thinking about. John Prime wrote [00:18:59] he wrote, "I really love America. I just [00:19:03] don't know how to get there anymore." [00:19:06] That's enough to break your heart. And [00:19:10] when I'm feeling this way, there's a [00:19:12] verse of scripture that I return to, and [00:19:14] I hope it can be a gift to you, whether [00:19:16] you're religious or not. It's in the [00:19:18] Gospel of Luke when Jesus says something [00:19:21] really strange. [00:19:23] He says, "Blessed are you who weep." [00:19:28] And that's a strange thing to say [00:19:30] because how can someone who's weeping be [00:19:33] considered blessed? [00:19:36] In our culture, we tend to avoid grief. [00:19:40] But I think we forget that grief can be [00:19:43] fertile soil. [00:19:45] Sometimes we see the world most clearly [00:19:48] through our tears. [00:19:50] If your heart is breaking right now as [00:19:54] you watch what's happening to our [00:19:55] beloved country, it means you still have [00:19:58] a heart. I want you to trust that. I [00:20:01] want you to protect that because that is [00:20:04] what's going to get us out of all this. [00:20:08] There [00:20:12] there has never been a more important [00:20:14] time to be a human being. [00:20:18] Resistance starts right here by refusing [00:20:22] to mirror the hate and the violence and [00:20:26] the inhumity that surrounds all of us. [00:20:28] In a time of shadows, we must shine our [00:20:33] light. [00:20:35] The fact that all of you showed up here [00:20:38] speaks volumes. Like many of you, I'm [00:20:40] tempted by hopelessness. [00:20:42] But then I look out on this crowd and [00:20:46] suddenly I feel a little bit of hope [00:20:47] again. [00:20:48] And a little bit of hope is a dangerous [00:20:51] thing. [00:20:53] The fact that you're all here, [00:20:55] the fact that you're all here, it means [00:20:58] you haven't given into hopelessness. And [00:21:00] that means the bullies haven't won yet. [00:21:06] Action is the antidote to despair. You [00:21:10] can't ring your hands when you're [00:21:12] rolling up your sleeves. We have a lot [00:21:15] of work to do, Austin, but together we [00:21:18] will win this election. We will take [00:21:21] back our state and we will take back our [00:21:23] country [00:21:26] because [00:21:28] because because [00:21:33] in the words of Bad Bunny, [00:21:36] >> the only thing more powerful than hate [00:21:39] is love. Thank y'all for being here. God [00:21:42] bless you. Thank you for being in this [00:21:43] fight. Let's go win this thing. Thank [00:21:44] you.