Let me set the stage for you all.
According to a reliable source, Republican State Assembly candidate Justin Moralez recently walked into Rollie’s Tap in Cudahy to collect signatures to get his name on the ballot. While attempting to garner some signatures, Moralez regales patrons with stories about how his mother and father are both Democrats, how he was raised as a Democrat, and how he himself was a Democrat until very recently.
Now keep in mind Moralez isn’t running for the State Assembly as a Democrat; he’s running as a Republican, which makes his comments all the more unusual, given how ideologically pure Republicans want their candidates to be.
In the interest of hearing Moralez’s side of the story, I reached out to him for comment, and here’s his unedited response.
Hey Zach,
Of course I don’t mind filling you in. I just ask, being that anything I say is highly susceptible to misinterpretation, if it ends up on the blogs you at least quote me in full.
Last week after the block watch meeting, I was invited by one of CTH’s newer, and more enthusiastic posters, to stop down at Rollie’s on their final night and give her a couple nomination papers to circulate. I had just met her the week prior at the community garden meeting and she was all excited to help, so why turn down the offer right?
Now, I’m not naive. Rollie’s is a legendary worker’s bar and even had your campaign sign in the window forever, so I didn’t go in there thinking I was going to be on friendly turf.
I truly don’t mind that though because I don’t see people with different political affiliation as an enemy, I just don’t. I actually enjoy talking with them because the world is a much more interesting place when you can keep an open mind and learn from other’s experiences. If you surround yourself with only people that think, look and act just like you, there’s no opportunity to grow or progress. It’s also boring as hell.
I talked at length with a couple that own property in town and were life long dems and retired union members.
It was in that conversation that I did explain my parents are both dems and that I was pretty much raised that way all my life. There is no shame in that and I would never hide from it. In fact, just due to the nature of the work I’m in and circles of friends I keep, a vast majority of the people I interact with regularly would probably be considered democrat.
That said, I’ve never really considered myself a democrat any more than I did a republican. I never joined a party and even though I follow politics religious, it is legitimately hard to subscribe to either, because they both have good and bad points. Not even bad necessarily, just things I might not personally understand or see the logic in. I’ve leaned more Republican as I’ve gotten older but that might as well have been either team A or B. I care more about the individual issues more than party politics.
What I find telling is the last line of Moralez’s response.
“I care more about the individual issues more than party politics.”
I can’t help but think Asssembly Speaker Robin Vos, who from what I’ve heard has made assurances of support to Justin Moralez, absolutely will not tolerate a member of his caucus who doesn’t vote in lockstep with Republicans, because Robin Vos and the rest of the Republicans in the State Assembly strike me as the kinds of individuals who value party politics (loyalty) above all else. Republicans like Robin Vos won’t tolerate fellow Republicans raising money for Democrats, and they surely won’t tolerate independence from Justin Moralez if they help get him elected.
While Moralez has explained why he talked about his Democratic upbringing in a bar known for its Democratic leanings, the cynic in me thinks Moralez realizes he can’t win in a district as heavily Democratic as the 20th Assembly district without attempting to siphon off Democratic voters, and his foray into Rollie’s Tap was an attempt to do just that.
Well this is an interesting find….i happened to be there that night. Your sources recap of the story is incorrect.
Although they were quit intoxicated (if your source is the couple who complained about potholes and how they wanted to sell their house on morris ave, but could not due to condition of the street). Regardless who your reliable source was….they were not so reliable in this case.
Justin did talk about his parents and explained his bipartisan (to which he was asked what that meant) approach to politics. As you can see with his stance on gay marriage. He does not hide his beliefs.
You set the stage wrong on this one. I was a sober witness to it.
In fact it was the first time Ive ever seen something like this. One women was willing to sign the petition until she found out he was running as a Republican. She pointed to the Union sign in the window. Very strange to me. I guess some people do not care about issues…they just follow party doctrine.
I am much more conservative than Justin is….but I thought I should set the record straight on this one.