Wendy Davis interviewed on The Rachel Maddow Show

Wendy Davis says she feels very good about her chances to be Texas Governor

Wendy Davis appeared on the Rachel Maddow show last night to promote her new book “Forgetting to Be Afraid: A Memoir”. One of the first questions Rachel Maddow asked her was of she could win. “I feel very good about my chances,” Wendy Davis said. “And I think its because there are people all over our state that feel that their values have not been reflected. And what’s been going on in the failed leadership we’ve seen in the last decade or so. And we have built an energy and an enthusiasm like nothing I have ever seen in our state.”

Rachel Maddow then asked why Texas’ civic participation rate was so low. It’s the lowest in the country, and I attribute it to a couple of things,” Wendy Davis said. “One, we haven’t had a really hotly, general contested, race in Texas since Anne Richards lost in 1994 and we also aren’t in play in presidential elections. And so over time, when you are not having general election conversations with your electorate, you’re not developing an understanding and a buy-in, and a tuning-in to civic electoral politics and the civic engagement that comes as a consequence of doing that. When I decided to run for governor, that was part of my goal: Making sure that we drove a conversation for people to see what our values are and to really consider, are they being reflected in the leadership that we’ve had. Or is it time, as we look forward to the future of our state, is it time for us to enter that 21st century future path. Is it time for change?”

Rachel Maddow asked a few  questions about Wendy Davis’ book. She then asked if she wanted to respond to Conservative who questioned the veracity about her book. She told Wendy Davis she did not have to answer. Wendy Davis of course did. “What I would respond,” Wendy Davis said. “My family would give anything for this not to be a true story in our lives. We would give anything for that.”