A new PAC is in town. (The town of Washington, DC.) They’re called Courage for Democracy, and after the election, they’re starting a new Caucus in Congress. I met with them yesterday, and their program is really exciting.
Every candidate they back has pledged to file articles of impeachment against Donald Trump on day one. Not “explore our options.” Not “let the process play out.”
Day one. Tyranny, treason, and obstruction of justice.
While they had about 150 candidates in the primary, only 26 advanced to the general election, including FOUR Texas Democrats. Coincidentally, all in North Texas.
TX03: Evan Hunt
TX04: Jason Pearce
TX05: Chelsey Hockett
TX06: Danny Minton
All four of these Democrats are taking on Republican incumbents, and all four have signed a code of ethics with Courage for Democracy. If enough of them win, they become the Courage Caucus, or whatever they decide to call themselves.
What’s the purpose of this caucus? The same idea as the Freedom Caucus, and to punch above their weight in a narrow House margin. Just no evil, because the Freedom Caucus was evil. The Courage Caucus WANTS Congress to do its job.
This PAC calls itself “nonpartisan,” but the platform reads like a progressive wish list. And maybe it’s time to talk again about progressive values in an upcoming article.
Gina Hinojosa gave a fantastic interview with Politico recently, where the discussion of her being a progressive came up (timestamp 19:50). And you have to hear how she framed it.
She said her positions haven’t changed, but she now calls herself an “economic populist,” not a progressive. She said that people associate “progressive” too much with culture war issues and that economic populists focus on economic issues.
Okay. Semantics. She’s doing that for the election and the moderate vote. But progressive policies have always been about the economy and making sure it functions for the working class. However, if we want to call an apple a Granny Smith, who cares?
And I say that because, under their nonpartisan title, they’ve built a platform that includes only issues that poll well with Americans. Not just Democrats, but all Americans. You and I might look at their platform and say, “That’s progressive,” but when we look at national polling on these issues, it’s more middle, and Congress hasn’t been listening.
Reminder: Lone Star Left takes no PAC money, including theirs. This is an introduction because I’m genuinely excited about what they’re building.
Every single Courage Candidate was told in the beginning that they had to pay to play or sit down. I get the same deal as an independent political writer. The big outlets and paid influencers answer to the people who fund them, and it’s never “the people.”
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What is this group about?
Courage for Democracy didn’t start as a PAC. It started as Citizens Impeachment, a grassroots outfit that spent 2025 calling Congressional offices and asking members to do their jobs. And when Congress declined, they went out looking for people who would.
In November 2025, it began recruiting congressional candidates, then registered with the FEC in January 2026. The price of admission wasn’t monetary; it was a pledge. The pledge is that every Courage Candidate promises to file articles of impeachment against Donald Trump on day one for tyranny, treason, and obstruction of justice. They also signed a code of ethics.
The platform rests on five planks:
Pro-impeachment
Anti-corruption
Anti-oligarchy
Anti-authoritarianism
Anti-ICE
Anything else joins the platform when two-thirds of the candidates back it. They voted on more than 100 policy positions, and the PAC says every one that made its policy matrix cleared 80%.
The endgame is a voting bloc committed to responsive government.
The math.
I know some of you are thinking, “What can a handful of freshmen do in a 435-seat House?”
Some of you may remember this guy:
In January 2015, nine Republicans founded the House Freedom Caucus. By September, they led the charge to oust Speaker John Boehner. In 2023, the same faction made Kevin McCarthy sit through 15 ballots to get the gavel. Nine months later, Republicans voted with Democrats to take it away from him.
In a narrow House, a small bloc willing to vote together needs the margins and a little bit of elbow grease, and they can make big things happen.
The left ran a simialar experiment at a smaller level with the Squad. Is the Squad technically Justice Democrats? They’re growing this year, too. But their membership is still smaller.
Desk HQ gives Democrats a 77 percent shot at the House and projects them at 235 seats. A majority that size can lose 17 votes and shrug. To block anything, the Courage Caucus would need 18 members voting together.
That also goes for what passes, including impeachment.
Of course, none of this happens unless they win. Which is why we have to make sure the Texas four make it over the finish line.
The platform.
The Courage candidates agree on a lot. Their policy matrix lists 15 positions with unanimous support. Including:
Ban Citizens United.
Ban Congressional stock trading.
Enforce antitrust laws.
Close corporate tax loopholes.
Protect LGBTQ+ people.
Nationwide paid family leave.
Another few dozen passed with nobody voting no. Some voted “present.” Those include universal healthcare with dental and vision, the Green New Deal, taxing the wealthy, and universal background checks.
The Texas four.
TX03: Evan Hunt vs. Keith Self (R). Cook rating +11R. Hunt is an Air Force officer and former defense and aerospace executive based in McKinney. Keith Self quotes Joseph Goebbels.
TX04: Jason Pearce vs. Pat Fallon (R). Cook rating +12R. Pearce is a UNT graduate from Plano whose progressive platform goes far beyond the coalition consensus. Pat Fallon is a Massachusetts grifter.
TX05: Chelsey Hockett vs. Lance Gooden (R). Cook rating +10R. Hockett is a progressive mom from Kaufman County who recently sought the local DSA endorsement. Lance Gooden is the biggest liar in Texas and one of Trump’s top soldiers.
TX06: Danny Minton vs. Jake Ellzey (R). Cook rating +11R. Minton spent his career training doctors and supporting patients with breast cancer and Alzheimer’s. He lives in Arlington with his wife and two sons. Jake Ellzey doesn’t live in Arlington, but made sure an Arlington post office got named after a January 6th traitor.
Ten, eleven, twelve points. Taylor Rehmet won by 30-ish. Not saying that means they’ll all flip, but they all have potential this year, in this environment, with this big blue wave (fingers crossed).
Texas isn’t a red state. It’s a non-voting state. And the day we become a voting state is the day these districts stop being red. And all four of these candidates are betting that Texans are tired of not voting.
These four Texas candidates signed a pledge.
They promised to earn your vote, and not just be less shitty than the other guy. And they promised on day one, they’d do the thing most of Congress has spent years explaining why it can’t.
None of this is guaranteed. The Courage Caucus may wind up with eighteen members. It may wind up with three. It all depends on us getting to the polls.
Early voting runs Monday, October 19, through Friday, October 30. Election Day is November 3. Find your polling place at VoteTexas.gov. Bring your ID. Bring a friend. Bring two.
Courage is contagious. So is voting. Be patient zero.
19 days until the November election!
First Day of Early Voting: October 19, 2026
Last Day to Apply for Ballot by Mail: October 23, 2026
Last Day of Early Voting: October 30, 2026
Election Day: November 3, 2026
Did you know you can find links to all the previous Meet the Candidate articles on these lists?:
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DJT and the entire regime must be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. no immunity due to official duties. The law is the law. If history is any indicator the entire regime will walk. Dubya walked for war crimes when Obama refused to prosecute. This Nuremberg treatment cannot pass. DJT needs to be impeached, removed, and prosecuted.
Hi Michelle,
I just looked up voting locations for my area (Leander, Tx ) ,and I noticed that there are 6 early voting locations and 75 locations for Nov. 3rd. I think this ratio doesn't seem the best for both the voters and poll workers, especially if there is an expected early voting turnout. Are the distribution and numbers of polling locations a partisan decision? What are your thoughts on this?