Wendy Davis Fights Back
Wendy Davis strikes back after critics question key details of her life story
Just days after the details of Wendy Davis' life were called into question, the gubernatorial candidate is striking back at critics — and her likely opponent, Republican Attorney General Greg Abbott.
In an open letter sent to both her email supporters and posted on her website, Davis reaffirmed her story:
Mine is a story about a teenage single mother who struggled to keep her young family afloat. It’s a story about a young woman who was given a precious opportunity to work her way up in the world. It’s a story about resiliency, and sacrifice, and perseverance.
And you’re damn right it’s a true story.
Abbott's campaign, his supporters and the media jumped on the story in the Dallas Morning News in which Wayne Slater questioned such facts as what age Davis divorced for the first time (she was 21, not 19, as she had previously stated) and how long she and her young daughter spent living in a trailer park. (It was just a few months.)
While pointing out the factual discrepancies in Davis' personal narrative, Slater also questions how good a wife and mother she was.
He also paints a portrait of an opportunist rather than a woman who turned a life of poverty into an Ivy League education and a seat in the Texas Capitol. In her letter, Davis strikes back at this notion:
[Greg Abbott and his allies] don’t have anything to offer Texans who find themselves in the same difficult situation I was in when I was young. They would slam the doors I walked through and pull up the ladders I was lucky to be able to climb. And now, instead of offering real ideas to improve your life, they’re attacking mine.
Davis also blasted the narrative on Twitter, calling it a "sleazy political trick."
No false attack can take away my story. And no sleazy political trick will stop me from giving voice to yours. https://t.co/WmURHnVgp3
— Wendy Davis (@WendyDavisTexas) January 21, 2014Though Davis doesn't address the factual discrepancies, she does reiterate the importance of her time spent as a single mother.
The story of my life is also the story of millions of single mothers who feel alone in the world, millions of young dreamers searching for their chance to become something more than what they were born into, millions of families all across Texas who would sacrifice everything to give their children a better future.
As the campaign marches toward November, we will undoubtedly see more of these attacks from both sides. Let's just hope it's a fair fight.
