Rick Noriega, The Citizen-Soldier

From the Star-Telegram:

As battalion commander of an infantry unit in the Texas National Guard, [Lt. Col. Rick Noriega] has led troops in Afghanistan and guarded the southern U.S. border.

Noriega said he's running partly because of his warrior ethos, which demands you leave no soldier behind.

"We have 160,000 brothers and sisters right now who I think are being misled by civilian leadership that has never walked the walk," he said.

Noriega claims that his experience at the front lines and the border gives him the expertise to formulate policy based on the realities of war and diplomacy. After five terms as state representative from District 145, he said he's ready to go to Washington to help fill the leadership void.

Turning his attention to immigration, Noriega claimed that Sen. John Cornyn was the administration's first lieutenant in supporting every policy introduced in the Senate except for comprehensive immigration reform. Instead, he said, Cornyn joined the ideological extreme and became an obstructionist.

[Noriega's] five months serving along the U.S.-Mexico border taught him something valuable: "There are bad guys over there doing bad things," he said. Those "bad things" include human and drug trafficking.

Noriega recognizes that as long as the enormous economic difference exists between the United States and Mexico, the flow of undocumented immigrants will not end. He said that "people will continue to do risky things for $15 an hour."

"They may make $8 an hour, but they won't take the risk or leave their families to do something treacherous." he said. Noriega's comprehensive plan would address the supply-and-demand side of the immigration equation.

At the end of his remarks, he offered to take his Democratic audience on a run.

If Noriega wins the Democratic Senate nomination, the citizen-solider will certainly give the Republicans a run for their money.

Read the Full Article at The Star Telegram.