Here is a letter I received today from the chairman of the Texas Democratic Party:

Dear fellow Democrat,
Today, Governor Perry announced that he intends to turn down $555 million in stimulus funds that would provide additional benefits for unemployed Texas job-seekers who are trying to get by in the wake of layoffs caused by the Republican recession. After his announcement, it was clear the Governor cares about only one job - his own. First, he compared out-of-work Texans to junkies, and now he's using them as political pawns to appeal to the talk show bosses that drive the agenda of his Republican base. We don't need a right-wing candidate masquerading as Governor; we need a leader who will work with mainstream Texans in a bipartisan effort to rebuild our economy. It's shameful that Rick Perry would rather play politics to keep his job than help Texans who have lost their jobs. In these tough times, Texans should be able to count on our elected officials to look out for our best interests. But we're not getting any help from Gov. Perry -and our U.S. Senators, Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn, have refused to condemn Perry's destructive actions. Call on U.S. Senators Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn to oppose Gov. Perrys' stunts. Sen. Hutchison's Washington D.C. Office: 202-224-5922Sen. Cornyn's Washington D.C. Office: 202-224-2934Here are the latest facts on our unemployment crisis in Texas. According to the Texas Comptroller and the U.S. Federal Reserve: * The Texas economy will lose between 180,000 to 300,000 jobs in 2009* The Texas unemployment rate is expected to rise from 6 to 8.2 percent by October * 26,000 Texans are filing new unemployment claims each week* The unemployment fund is already running low and will reach zero by October 1st
Your fellow Democrat,
Boyd L. Richie
Chairman Texas Democratic Party