Married to
Melissa Noriega

January 8, 1958

Reading, jogging, cooking, handyman, outdoors/yard, scouting with son

Politics, policy, sports, movies, military history, UFC, enjoying family & friends

Classic Rock, Jazz, Tejano, Classic Country

Casablanca; Lillies of the Field

There are always several on my bedstand that are my favorite…currently I have Guns, Germs & Steel by Jared Diamond; Chain of Command by Seymour Hersh; An Inconvenient Truth by Al Gore; Founding Brothers by Joseph J. Ellis

Andy Griffith Show, Seinfeld, Sopranos, West Wing

"Democracy, disciplined and enlightened, is the finest thing in the world."
- Mahatma Gandhi

" If a man is called to be a street sweeper he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the host of heaven & earth will pause to say, here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well."
- Martin Luther King

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind…you shall love your neighbor as yourself."
- Jesus

"I belong to no organized party. I am a Democrat."
- Will Rogers.

As a young man from the working class neighborhoods of Houston, I enlisted in the Army to serve our country in the wake of the Iran hostage crisis.

In a military career spanning more than twenty-five years, I have served our country abroad in Afghanistan, at home on our national border, and in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, commanded shelter operations for hurricane evacuees coming to Houston.

Today, I have taken on a new mission - as a candidate for the United States Senate. I believe it's time to pull our country out of a misguided war in Iraq and reclaim our position as a global economic and humanitarian leader.

This is a daunting endeavor in a multitude of ways. When someone exhibits leadership, they invite attention. Melissa, myself and our children are a regular family that has grown into leadership and responsibility through a commitment to public service. We aren't perfect and we don't want to hold ourselves out as perfect.

In Texas, we tell our children that if they work hard and play by the rules, they can do anything. We are about to find out if that is true. We are regular Texans like you, answering a call to service.

Today is the right time for all of us to stand up and say that there has got to be a better way. When our forefathers created this country, they risked their lives, their families, their property and their futures. This is going to take all of us, all of you--our time, our treasure, our patience, our faith. I am asking you to join me in answering the call to serve.

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