District 67 candidates share their conservative message

More than six months after announcing their candidacy for House District 67, Jon Cole and Jeff Leach have emerged from a pack of five candidates and will face each other in a runoff election on July 31.

Cole, a local businessman, and Leach, an attorney, both consider themselves strong conservatives, and with no Democrats seeking the seat, the winner of the runoff will likely cruise to a win during the November general election.

Fresh off their 1-2 primary finish on Tuesday, Cole [32 percent of the vote] and Leach [30 percent] took the time to answer a few questions from the Plano Star Courier about their candidacy, what the biggest issues facing the state are, and what to do about education spending.

Plano Star Courier -- What does it mean when you say you are a conservative?

Cole -- A true conservative means having a proven record and a history of standing up for conservative causes, not just during the election, but before the election. What it means to me is having limited government, personal responsibility, a belief in the rule of law and believing that we need to live up to our constitution and our conservative core principles.

Leach -- I think being a true conservative means that you realize government has its role, but that role is very limited. I believe in limited government with lower taxes and less spending. I believe government works best when it is serving its role, but where the freedom really lies is in the hands of taxpayers, parents and business owners. To a large degree, our government at the state and federal level has outgrown that role and taken on a larger role than it was intended to have.

PSC -- What experience do you have in your past that qualifies you for this office?

Cole -- I am the only business owner in the race. I am also a former aide in the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, where we focused on drug cartels such as the ones in DFW and the rest of the country. I am also a former aide in the state House to the chairman of the appropriations committee. With the budget arguably the No. 1 issue in our state, I am the best prepared to tackle it. More than that, I have been involved in this county and been appointed to task forces to try and ban K2, and I have been involved in the Legislature passing bills, killing bills, amending bills and successfully winning on all these counts as a private business man.

Leach -- I am running for a seat which encompasses the place that I was born and raised. I have lived in the area nearly all my life. My wife and I have deep roots in the community. In terms of specific experience, I have worked at the White House, worked with the Republican National Committee in Washington and worked on political campaigns for a number of years. I have been a practicing attorney and businessman in the area for nearly four years and have a family, and I think family experience is very important. I think while experience is important, people also care deeply about the vision and values and principles and I think that is what separates me from Jon Cole.

PSC -- What is the biggest issue facing the state? District 67?

Cole -- It is all about our budget. I have been an aide for the chief budget architect of the Texas House of Representatives. I know what we are doing and what we are not doing. The No. 1 issue for the county also deals with the budget, but specifically it is infrastructure -- both water and transportation -- as well as education.

Leach -- The biggest issues both statewide and with respect to District 67 all revolve around the state budget. When you talk about issues that directly impact District 67, it is public education, water and transportation, all issues that are directly tied to the state budget. I believe that we can, and must, work to have a great school system in the district, provide water as necessary and build the right roads, while maintaining the ones we have got. We must do that without raising taxes.

What steps need to be done to help fix the problem the state is facing with educational funding?

Cole -- We need to absolutely end "Robin Hood." Equity should not be our goal with any school finance system. We need to prioritize Plano and Allen ISD. What happened last session is they raided the hold harmless dollars. The funds were not raided so they could be redistributed, they were raided because the Legislature couldn't set priorities and balance the budget in a successful way so they came after those dollars, which was like a second "Robin Hood" on PISD and AISD.

Leach -- Some people will say that conservatives don't care about public education, but that is simply not true. I am a product of Plano schools and my children will grow up in Plano schools. I want to make sure first and foremost that our tax dollars are being efficiently and effectively spent. I think we have a great school system and great teachers and administrators in this district. I think a big part of that is restoring local control to districts to make sure Plano and Allen can do what is in the best interest of Plano and Allen. What "Robin Hood" does is take from great school districts, give to lesser school districts and then establishe a level of mediocrity statewide. I think it is a serious problem that needs to be done away with.

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