Addressing the American Legion State Convention

Took time to stop in McAllen at the state convention of the American Legion. It is not that often that you see a gathering of military veterans from around the state in the Valley.

I was invited, along with McAllen Mayor Richard Cortez, to address the convention. I expressed my appreciation and gratitude for their service and continued my pledge to work with them on the issues that confront our veterans and members of the active military.

Gov. Rick Perry was also on hand and spoke of some of the legislation we enacted this session for their benefit and that of their families, "Disabled veterans are now exempt from property tax, in-state tuition has been expanded to eligible family members of servicemen and servicewomen, and tuition has been waived completely for children of deployed service members", he was quoted in the Monitor as saying. He also spoke, as he did at the Penitas Walmart dedication, of the relatively good economy Texas enjoys in relation to other states in the union.

The governor's visit came a day after Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Schieffer made a campaign stop in the Valley. As I made note on my Twitter page, gubernatorial candidate Tom Schieffer paid me a surprise visit at a Dress for Success social on Thursday. U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison is also expected to place her name in the running.

My thanks to the members of the American Legion for their visit to deep South Texas and for allowing me to address them.