Hunt, Caraway Discuss Schools, Affordability and TX-03 Politics at Collin County Meet-and-Greet

by R.J. Morales | TX3DNews

MCKINNEY — Education, affordability, immigration and the political divide in the TX-03 congressional race were among the topics Wednesday as Democratic candidates Angie Caraway and Evan Hunt spoke at a Collin County meet-and-greet.

The event was hosted by the Collin County Stonewall Democrats, the local Democratic Party’s LGBTQ caucus, which has endorsed both Caraway and Hunt. The group’s outgoing president said it has distributed “thousands of dollars” to endorsed candidates this cycle.

Caraway, who is running for Texas House District 89, focused much of her remarks on public education, health care and government transparency.

Hunt, who is challenging Republican U.S. Rep. Keith Self in Texas’ 3rd Congressional District, ranged from health care and immigration to money in politics before turning directly to Self and the congressman’s recent warnings about Islam.

Caraway: ‘Enough is enough’

For Caraway, a 15-year middle school educator, education came first.

“Education is my number one battle, and what I’m fighting the most for,” Caraway said. “We know that it is not working.”

She said educators are increasingly being expected to meet greater demands with fewer resources.

“I’ve been told to do more and more, with less and less, and enough is enough,” she said.

Caraway also pointed to affordability and health care.

“We have families making decisions about putting food on the table or medicine and going to the doctor,” she said. “That’s not the way it should be.”

She called health care a human right and criticized what she described as government “backdoor deals” made without regular residents being part of decisions that affect them. Caraway did not identify a specific deal during her remarks.

“This politics of division is also a politics of distraction”

Hunt’s remarks covered considerably more ground, but some of his sharpest criticism was directed at U.S. Rep. Keith Self, the Republican incumbent Hunt is challenging in Texas’ 3rd Congressional District.

“This politics of division is also a politics of distraction,” Hunt said.

He pointed specifically to Self’s recent warnings about Islam and what the congressman calls “political Islam.”

“Today, we’re picking on the Muslims because they’re the easy ones to pick on,” Hunt said.

Self has drawn a distinction between Islam as a religion and what he describes as “political Islam,” which he argues seeks to advance Sharia and poses a threat to American constitutional government.

Hunt challenged that argument Wednesday.

“Muslims are our neighbors, our peaceful contributors to our community, that are practicing freedom of religion like everybody does,” Hunt said.

‘Everybody should come here legally’

On immigration, Hunt acknowledged concerns about border security and said people should enter the country legally.

“Everybody should come here legally. That’s on us,” Hunt said.

But he sharply criticized current enforcement tactics, particularly masked federal agents and private detention facilities. Referring to agents he described as “dressing like they’re in special operations command,” Hunt said they should instead be sent to the border.

“All those people that are wearing masks or want to carry guns can go sit on the border and point their guns out,” Hunt said.

He also called for an end to for-profit immigration detention centers.

Self has supported tougher immigration enforcement and border security, arguing that the federal government has a responsibility to enforce immigration law and secure the southern border.

Dolly Parton and ‘American values’

Hunt also invoked Dolly Parton while talking about what he called “real American values,” pointing to her public message of accepting others and avoiding judgment.

He used Parton as an example while arguing that Americans should be free to live, worship and love as they choose without being judged by others.

Hunt also called for congressional term limits, restrictions on congressional stock trading, changes to campaign finance and redistricting, and 18-year terms for Supreme Court justices.

Evan Hunt says Republicans are reaching out

Hunt claimed Republicans are privately reaching out about supporting his campaign.

“Every single day, I have a Republican precinct chair, a Republican city council person, a random person, reach out,” Hunt said, adding that some have told him they are “done with Keith Self” and President Donald Trump.

Hunt did not identify any of those Republicans during the event.

He also predicted the race could be decided within five percentage points. No independent public polling currently shows the contest that close, and Self won TX-03 comfortably in 2024.

Hunt ended his remarks with a play on the incumbent’s name:

“It is time to put service before Self.”