FROM LEFT: Nelson, Powell, Sauer, and Smith
Photos by Nelson Campaign, City of Amarillo, Sauer Campaign, and Smith Campaign
By Thomas Warren III, Editor-in-Chief
We are officially in election season, and the Amarillo City Council incumbents’ empty promises are already on full display. You are hearing things from Ginger Nelson, Tax Increase Eddy Sauer, and the rest of Amarillo Matters’ elected minions about how they will improve this city after neglecting various departments and issues for four straight years. Their promises are coming to you in the form of polished websites, professional Facebook graphics, and more.
Even though the incumbents are trying to pull off a magic trick this year by making local voters forget the past four years, Amarillo citizens must not take the bait. The past four years at City Hall have been plagued with mismanagement, higher taxes, and less accountability. Meanwhile, Nelson, Sauer, and Council members Freda Powell and Howard Smith have turned a blind eye to the the problems facing this community, instead choosing to reward their campaign donors and friends while the rest of Amarillo suffers.
Nelson, Sauer, Powell, and Smith have voted to raise your taxes four years in a row. Even as Sauer claimed to be a “champion for low taxes,” and Nelson claimed to support keeping taxes low, the elected officials in Amarillo have turned up to City Hall annually to raise taxes while the economy suffers.
This same establishment dream team also issued debt without voter approval while the Amarillo economy was grinding to a halt at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. This Council has pushed record tax increases, cast citizens out of City Hall, and lashed out at political opponents.
While local businesses were shutting their doors and people were losing their jobs last year, Nelson chose to ignore the problems in our community by pushing a proposed record bond election that was handily defeated. Despite the numerous people out of work and struggling financially in our community, Nelson could not see how local citizens could oppose yet another tax increase, and pointed her at local businessman Alex Fairly and billboards for the result of the election. Instead of focusing on the problems in our community, Nelson chose to wage a war against a political rival, leading her constituents to suffer because her ego was too big to transition from an electoral defeat to solving the problems in our city.
But that’s not all. People in our community are still struggling and many business storefronts are now empty. Yet, your taxes have gone up for another straight year, with your tax dollars being sent to Austin to cover the salaries of wealthy lobbyists who do not even understand the issues facing our own community.
It’s not exactly surprising that Nelson, Sauer, Powell, and Smith would prioritize wealthy lobbyists over hardworking taxpayers in Amarillo. Shortly after taking office, this group set its sights on slashing the budget for valuable community departments and services, while directing more funding to the bureaucrats’ favorite departments at City Hall. Nelson looked citizens in the eyes at City Council meetings and heard their pleas about keeping libraries open, while funneling additional tax revenues into the budget for city manager Jared Miller’s department. Nelson, Sauer, Powell, and Smith have prioritized growing government and empowering bureaucrats while leaving valuable community services on the chopping block.
Over the past four years, Amarillo has seen disastrous mismanagement, brought to you by the same group of people who claimed to support bringing stability and a new tone to City Hall. I have to say, it’s not exactly surprising the mismanagement that has taken place under Nelson’s terms as mayor, considering the mess Nelson oversaw at the Amarillo Economic Development Corporation when she chaired its board.
Establishment cronies, campaign donors, business partners, and bureaucrats have been put in the driver’s seat at City Hall over the past four years, having been handed the keys by No Shame Nelson, Tax Increase Eddy Sauer, and their band of Amarillo Matters PAC compadres.
Still, even after the chaotic mess Nelson and the City Council have left behind over the past four years, they are now promising they will take care of business and make changes at City Hall.
If you believe that, then I’ve got a nice beach house in Wyoming you need to take a look at.
The truth is, Nelson, Sauer, Powell, and Smith have mislead citizens and bamboozled taxpayers twice. In 2017, they made lofty promises about leadership and stability, but they never delivered. In 2019, they made promises about low taxes, and they totally let citizens down.
Your freedoms have been stripped away and your taxes have gone up under Nelson and Amarillo Matters PAC team. Are you going to let it happen for two more years?
This year, Amarillo voters have good options on the ballot. Businessman Michael Hunt has brought new ideas to the table as the mayoral candidate for all of Amarillo. City Council candidates Hobert “Gunny” Brown, Jason Foglesong, and Tom Scherlen are also bringing important ideas forward about fixing our city. This does not even mention the other good conversations being had by other candidates for City Council who want to dump Amarillo Matters and the Nelson big-government, higher-tax agenda.
Nelson, Sauer, Powell, Smith, and Amarillo Matters PAC will do their best to make your forget the problems of the past four years during this year’s election. They will make you promises and claim to be with you and for you. Yet, Amarillo voters needn’t look further than the vacant businesses across our city and their own empty wallets to see the damage this crew has caused in our community.
Amarillo needs to move forward with new leadership and representation. But, we can only do that if voters first make the City Council own its record by voting them out this May.
Don’t be swindled by the Amarillo Matters PAC lies. Your Mayor and City Council have neglected this city and have continued to reach into your wallet for more and more money over the past four years. Are you really going to give them a free pass to wreak more havoc for another two years?
Let’s take back our city. Vote for new representatives on May 1 and put Amarillo back on the right track.