Wendy Davis needs to move away from the biography wars and into a stage of the campaign in which she is focusing on what are likely to be the major issues in the governor’s race. She has had a few skirmishes with Greg Abbott over education, and she must make herself into a champion of public education, something Abbott is most assuredly not.
The shortcomings of Texas state government are readily apparent: a lack of attention to transportation, health care, and the environment (an added layer there is the danger of earthquake damage to homes in oil-producing areas). Davis chose to attack Abbott over his financial support from payday lenders. There is no doubt that payday lending is rife with abuse and exploitation of the poor, but the average Texan doesn’t have a clue as to what payday lending is all about, and it is not going to be easy to turn this into an election issue.
