Sarah Self-Walbrick: Let's start, just introduce yourself. Tell us more about you.
David Glasheen: Sure. Well, my name is David Glasheen. I was born and raised here in Lubbock. And now my wife, Mary, and I are raising our own family here in Lubbock. So, after law school, I served on active duty in the Marine Corps as a judge advocate, where I was a prosecutor, and I specialized in prosecuting Special Victims crimes like rape, domestic violence and child abuse. Now I'm back home in Lubbock, been back for a while and I practice civil law.
Sarah Self-Walbrick: Wonderful. Tell us about a politician past or present that you look up to.
David Glasheen: I still have a big soft spot in my heart for Ron Paul because he really articulated for me, as a young person, the view of limited government, and how personal liberty and personal freedom lets people live their best lives. It lets them build what they created with their own hands. It lets them create a future for their families, because no one can make a better decision for yourself than you.
Sarah Self-Walbrick: Why are you running for House District 84?
David Glasheen: I love my hometown of Lubbock. And this is a really important time for our community because we are coming into our own. But we were facing some really serious challenges with rising crime, with the future of Texas Tech in the legislature going to be a big question in the next session. I think that we need someone who's got strong leadership and advocacy skills, and I can offer that.
Sarah Self-Walbrick: What experience do you have with statewide politics? And did you follow the most recent legislative session?
David Glasheen: I don't have experience with statewide politics. My experience is more on the legal side where we deal with a lot of consequences of the legislature. But I did follow the most recent legislative session pretty closely.
Sarah Self-Walbrick: You're running for a position that's been held by a well-respected Republican for a decade. As a fellow member of that political party, how would you be different?
David Glasheen: My goal is to bring a more active approach to leadership in Austin, because we're facing an uphill battle just with the population differences between West Texas and Texas east of I-35. And I think that when Houston, Dallas and Austin sit down, Lubbock is not part of that conversation. And they're not thinking about our needs out here in West Texas. So I want to be a constant advocate for what Lubbock County, what Texas Tech, needs from the legislature.
Sarah Self-Walbrick: If elected, what legislation would you prioritize?
David Glasheen: My top priority in the next session is to try to end the Permanent University Fund, and get equal funding for Texas Tech.
Sarah Self-Walbrick: Let's talk about that a little bit more. For those who aren't familiar, the Permanent University Fund, or PUF as it's kind of casually called, takes money largely generated in our part of the state, and gives it to the University of Texas and Texas A&M University systems. But only those two schools. How would you like to see that change? What's the process you would take to do that?
David Glasheen: Well, I think it's bad public policy for public land and public money to be monopolized for the benefit of such a small geographic area. And so we're going to change that by changing the conversation about the Permanent University Fund. It's not a vote contest between the alumni of A&M and UT, we have to look at it in terms of the geographic parts of the state that are not being provided equal educational funding. So all of West Texas, all of North Texas, the Gulf Coast – which includes Houston – those are all regions that need fair educational funding. And so we're going to lead the charge with that and it's going to benefit Texas Tech.
Sarah Self-Walbrick: To keep on with education, public education issues have dominated statewide news lately. What are your priorities there?
David Glasheen: I'm really passionate about public education, both as a graduate of Lubbock High and I have three young kids who are going to be in public schools until the year 2039. I'm pretty invested. But we need to make sure that parents are in the driver's seat when it comes to education. That they know what their children are being taught. They choose how their children are learning. And then, with the appropriate curriculum, we're allowing teachers to engage and challenge children.
Sarah Self-Walbrick: Lubbock largely avoided the effects of ERCOT’s power failure last year, but has since joined that electric grid. And a lot of area voters have concerns about that. What changes would you like to see with the state's electric system?
David Glasheen: I think that we need to have a higher degree of confidence in the grid emergency preparedness. And we need to make sure that we are not cutting corners, or letting things slip through the cracks when it comes to providing the robust winterization that the grid needs. My other concern goes back to, you know, them not thinking about us here in West Texas. I am going to make sure that Lubbock and West Texas in general, is going to be a priority when it comes to restoring power in the event of a major statewide outage. I don't want to be last in line after Houston, San Antonio, Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth.
Sarah Self-Walbrick: Since there are no democratic challengers in this race. The upcoming primary election is really important. For our final question, why should voters cast a ballot for you?
David Glasheen: I have deep, deep roots here in Lubbock. I have a proven record of leadership with my time in the military. I bring outstanding qualifications with my legal background, with my military service. And I have proven character for the Republican primary with the way that I walked blocks in support of Lubbock’s “Sanctuary City” ordinance. Voters can count on me to be a champion for West Texas.
Have a news tip? Email Sarah Self-Walbrick at saselfwa@ttu.edu. Follow her reporting on Twitter @SarahFromTTUPM.
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