"Go Coogs," State Rep. Rick Noriega said as he answered the phone.
After discussing the Cougars’ defeat of the University of Alabama-Birmingham’s football team, chocking up the first half to a lack of rest after the East Carolina game, Noriega, a UH alumnus and the Texas Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, said his campaign mirrors the University’s mission of giving back and bettering the community.
"I want to put the focus on the people of Texas and take the spotlight off of the Washington and Wall Street elite," he said.
Noriega will go head to head in a debate with incumbent Republican Sen. John Cornyn tonight for the second time, and said with the economy and health care still on everyone’s minds, he plans to focus on those issues.
"The economy comes first," he said. "People are scared right now, and I am concerned about the everyday people."
Noriega attended UH on an ROTC scholarship and received his bachelor’s degree in journalism in 1984 before attending Harvard University, where he received a master’s degree in public administration.
Noriega said because he had to work hard to attend college he believes every Texan should have the opportunity. For this reason, he said, he voted against statewide tuition deregulation, calling it "a tax on the aspirations of millions of middle-class Texans."
"We invest in commodities in this country, and we need to take the return on that and invest in education," he said.
Noriega joined the Army in 1979 and later became a lieutenant colonel in the Texas Army National Guard. After the 9/11 attacks he served as deputy garrison commander of the KMTC training facility in Kabul, Afghanistan.
"It taught me that life is short, and I felt the need to step up," Noriega said.
After serving as a staff member for the Texas State Senate, Noriega was elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 1999, where he has served two terms.
Noriega has sponsored or authored numerous legislative pieces, including those involving economic development, automotive title services to reduce fraud, financial aid for custodial grandparents and tuition assistance for Texas Army National Guard members.
But Noriega said he feels most inspired by his opportunity to work with Texas Health and Human Services to help build a wheelchair ramp for a disabled child.
"The most rewarding aspect of my career is knowing that I can make a difference in someone’s life who really needs it," he said.
An Oct. 1 Rasmussen Reports telephone survey showed Cornyn leading 7 percent among likely voters, with 50 percent favoring Cornyn and 43 percent favoring Noriega.
PBS will broadcast the debate between Noriega and Cornyn at 8 p.m. Video of the first debate, held Oct. 9, can be viewed at www.kvue.com.
