Unfair Park from p4 power of our vote yet.” (While Latinos voted in larger numbers during the Novem- ber 2020 presidential elections, a growing number voted Republican.) Quintanilla said he was ready to chal- lenge Veasey on the issues facing the district earlier this month at the Dallas Examiner’s Meet The Candidates forum. Opponents for various federal, state and local elected seats debated issues before a live audience, but Veasey never showed. “There’s no reason he shouldn’t show up,” said Quintanilla. (Veasey didn’t respond to the Observer’s question about why he didn’t appear.) But Quintanilla has also got what he hopes is a more compelling argument in his favor: He pointed to Veasey’s record of PAC spending on luxury spas, high-end hotels and MLB baseball tickets to argue that Veasey doesn’t have the best interests of his constituents in mind. Since 2019, Veasey’s leadership political action committee spent more than $10,000 on baseball tickets, spas and Florida travel expenses, CQ Roll Call recently reported. It is illegal for politicians to spend normal PAC money on personal expenses. With leadership PACs, though, the rules are more complex. Spending leadership PAC money on per- sonal expenses is not necessarily illegal, but it does violate the rules of the House Ethics Manual, according to CQ Roll Call. “All of our money is raised legally and compliant with FEC guidelines,” Veasey wrote in response to the Observer’s question about his PAC’s spending. By email, Veasey said he has used his po- sition in Congress to “create jobs, expand af- fordable and accessible health care, bolster our infrastructure in North Texas, worked to protect voting rights, fought for compre- hensive immigration reform and help the constituents I serve access critical CO- VID-19 relief and resources.” ▼ POLITICS D U.S. REP. DAN CRENSHAW IS TAKING HEAT ON SOCIAL MEDIA OVER AN EXCHANGE IN WHICH HE TELLS A YOUNG GIRL TO NOT “QUESTION HIS FAITH.” BY SIMONE CARTER SUFFER THE LITTLE CHILDREN uring his time as a Navy SEAL, Dan Crenshaw fought overseas. But now, back home in Texas, the 37-year-old GOP congressman is apparently sparring with young girls. At a Montgomery County Tea Party event earlier this month, Crenshaw was asked by a young female audience member to explain comments he made on a podcast. In the March 2020 episode, he seemed to compare Jesus Christ with a fictional hero, Superman. Here’s what the youthful speaker told the 6 room full of attendees: “To anyone who hasn’t heard, Crenshaw said, ‘The most im- portant thing here is that we have important hero archetypes that we look up to. Jesus is a hero archetype. Superman is a hero arche- type. Real characters, too. I could name a thousand: Rosa Parks, Ronald Reagan.’” ▼ HEALTH CUTTING THE MIDDLEMAN M Gage Skidmore Next, she addressed the congressman di- rectly: “I can’t wrap my head around this.” “Well, I’ll help you,” Crenshaw curtly re- plied. “Put a period after the word ‘Jesus’ and don’t question my faith.” Crowd members weren’t too pleased with Crenshaw’s diss, which elicited jeers and “boos.” “Don’t talk to a kid like that, jerk!” a man yelled. From there, Crenshaw attempted to qualify his knee-jerk jab, saying that in the quote in question, he never claimed Jesus wasn’t real. “Is he the son of God?” one attendee in- terjected. “Of course, he’s the son of God,” the Texas congressman said. “Of course he’s the son of God, and of course he’s real.” Crenshaw also accused the speaker of twisting his words out of context, a move he said “is not very Christian.” From there, somewhat confusingly, onlookers screamed “let’s go, Brandon!” — Republican-speak for “fuck Joe Biden.” Following the Montgomery County event, a clip of the terse exchange went viral on social media. Some speculated that the girl with whom Crenshaw had argued was 10, but others claimed she’s actually an 18-year-old volunteer for one of Crenshaw’s primary challengers, Jameson Ellis. Regardless of her actual age, jokes soon flowed from the idea that Crenshaw had bickered with a kid. One meme posted by Republican strategist Seth Weathers shows Crenshaw as Batman striking Robin. “I’m eleven years o…” Robin says. “DO NOT QUESTION MY FAITH!” Cren-man replies, mid-slap. The exchange between Crenshaw and the speaker was certainly “awkward,” said Dr. Cal Jillson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University. Politi- cians should try to speak to a wide range of people in language they can understand, and “you just don’t talk to an 11-year-old girl the same way you do” someone who’s 40 or 70. If the young speaker is indeed 10 or 11, her question was fairly refined, Jillson said. There’s a chance that her parents helped her to dress it up a bit, although there’s no way of knowing that for sure. “I know what students sound like,” he said, “and the answer was not all that crafty U.S. Rep. Dan Crenshaw insists he’s a man of faith. or effective for an adult politician.” This isn’t the first time Crenshaw has caught flak from the public. In August, he was called a “RINO” after saying Republi- cans are kidding themselves if they think the 2020 presidential election was stolen. We had some questions for Crenshaw about the latest heckling, which we for- warded to his people. They didn’t respond, though, so we’re posting them here in case any of you plan to attend his next speaking engagement. 1. Here’s the quote the girl was referring to: “The important thing here is we have societal hero archetypes that we look up to. Jesus is a hero archetype. Super- man is a hero archetype. Real characters, too. You could name a thousand, you know? Rosa Parks, Ronald Reagan. All of these peo- ple embody certain attributes that the American people think, ‘This is good.’” Still, you tried to say the girl was twisting your words out of context. How so? 2. Superman is a fictional hero. By listing Superman and Jesus ahead of Ronald Reagan and Rosa Parks, your wording seems to imply that the former two are not, in fact, “real.” Can you see why someone would read it that way? 3. If Jesus is indeed a hero akin to Super- man, would he belong to the Marvel or DC universe? Why? 4. Many have condemned the way you talked to the person asking the question. Is that how you speak to all constituents with whom you disagree, or just young girls? 5. What’s your opinion on the Establish- ment Clause? 6. After getting booed and “Let’s Go Brandon”-ed, how did the rest of the night go? Do you think you won over any voters? 7. What do you think Jesus would say about gerrymandering? 8. Where do you go to church? 9. What’s your favorite Bible verse, or is it too personal? 10. WWJD? Crenshaw probably won’t care for these questions, judging by how he reacted to that 10- (or maybe 18-) year-old speaker. Then again, as one of the preemi- nent leaders in the war on cancel culture, maybe ol’ Crenny’s skin will have thickened before his next challenge. MARK CUBAN LAUNCHES ONLINE PHARMACY TO PROVIDE CHEAPER MEDICINE. BY JACOB VAUGHN ark Cuban’s Cost Plus Drug com- pany launched its online phar- macy last week, offering 100 different generic drugs, ranging from can- cer medication to mental health medicine. The company’s focus is to help shield peo- ple from inflated drug prices. About 18 million people in the U.S. were unable to pay for at least one pre- scription medication for their household, according to a September 2021 Gallup poll. Additionally, some 10% of Americans have skipped doses of medication to save money. The Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Co. and its online pharmacy are trying to make med- ication more affordable and put a dent in these numbers. Toward that goal, the com- pany is set to complete construction on its own pharmaceutical factory in Dallas by the end of the year. The retail price for a drug like Imatinib, which treats leukemia, runs upwards of $9,500 per month, according to a press re- lease from the new company. The lowest price you might pay with a common voucher is $120 a month. But Cuban’s com- pany says it brings that down to $47. “We will do whatever it takes to get af- fordable pharmaceuticals to patients,” Alex Oshmyansky, CEO of Cost Plus Drug, said in the press release. “The markup on poten- tially lifesaving drugs that people depend on is a problem that can’t be ignored. It is im- perative that we take action and help ex- pand access to these medications for those who need them most.” With the launch of the online pharmacy, people can save thousands on medicine for things like mental health disorders, asthma and even cancer. All people need to do is find their medication on the site ask their doctor to send Cost Plus Drugs a prescrip- tion, and they’ll fill it for you. Since the company is a registered phar- maceutical wholesaler, it can bypass mid- dlemen and markups that make some medications so costly. Prices at Cost Plus Drug reflect the actual manufacture prices with a flat 15% margin and pharmacist fee. Because the company doesn’t pay third- party pharmacy benefit management com- panies, the online pharmacy has to be a cash-pay venture. Cost Plus Drug got into the pharmacy benefit management industry in November hoping that if they’re more transparent in their own pricing negotiations, drug prices may go down. Pharmacy benefit management compa- nies act as an intermediary between drug companies and pharmacies. These compa- nies help negotiate rebates and discounts for employers, health insurers and government health programs. In recent years, these companies have received backlash for not being open about how much they’re making off re- bates or how much they’re actually saving customers. The problem is that these re- bates can give pharmacy benefit manage- JANUARY 27–FEBRUARY 2, 2022 DALLAS OBSERVER CLASSIFIED | MUSIC | DISH | CULTURE | UNFAIR PARK | CONTENTS dallasobserver.com
