What up everybody welcome to the Michael Steel podcast on Michael Steel it is always a pleasure when you drop in the house to hang for a little bit in conversation about what the hangout is.

Tell us going on out there you know it's crazy we are less than three weeks from voting we're about to change up the game and you are an essential part of that and as you go about the business of planning your vote right you're going to plan the vote don't forget to wear the damn mask.

I don't want to have to look at you and go you stupid so do the right thing do it smartly do it well so as I mentioned we are in the campaign season and that's always a good time for me is an old political hand.

I'm who've been doing this going back to my days back in DC where I grew up and so this time of year I always get excited because gives you a chance to sort of really drill down particularly in the last few weeks of the campaign of some races out there that you may not have thought about or overlooked don't know that much about outside of you know where they're running and like to kind of showcase some of the real smart talent that's out there on the campaign trail and this is one brother that

I've gotten to follow a little bit and get to talk to and know over over a period of time and I think he's going to make an excellent congressman from the 30th congressional district in the great state of Texas he's none other than doctor doctor I like to emphasize that doctor Trey penny the group in the inner city of Houston and learned a lot both in his home and on the streets of that city watching

what was transpiring in his neighborhood during the war on drugs era and that that experience led him to make a commitment to service to the people where he lived and so he began that service by working and serving in the United States Army and he served there for four years graduating with an associate's degree in administration and

of justice from how to do a little community college right yeah how to do a community college and then just took to the streets and has been doing a yeoman's work in that in that area of community advocacy social change and in the process became the executive director of three nonprofit organizations designed to assist families

of police officers killed or critically injured in the line of duty again paying back the service to his community and in 2018 instead of taking up a presidential appointment to the White House brother decided he wanted to make the ultimate commitment and join the United States Congress so put his name out there on the ballot so he can serve the people of his district directly he is currently running the state of the state of the state of the state

and he is currently running for the United States House in like I said Texas in the 30th congressional district and this is the benefit of his platform he's seeking to fight for the interest of the people ensure greater accountability and reducing crime enhancing education growing the economy and improving the lives of all constituents in Texas in the congressional district there welcome tray or adopt like to say

no thank you so much for having me on I really appreciate it. Nah it's good to have you brother and there's a lot to get into but let's start with some important business up front so folks know where they can find you what's your campaign website?

Penny for Congress so this PE and IE for congress.com. Alright folks Penny for Congress and I like I like my friends who are who are following me and and have been a part of the podcast to help a brother out as we like to say I love them but don't do so until after this I want you to because I want you make that commitment you're going to know why you're making that commitment because he's the real deal.

So how do you feel about where things are right now before we get into the you know the specifics of your campaign and what you're seeing on the ground this sort of a top line view of where you see the country and where you see Texas.

Before we get into where you see things on the 30th 30th congressional district you're candidate at a time of COVID a civil unrest flatline economy how is that shaped your view of the country and where you think the country needs to go.

Oh man I mean you hit a lot of a lot of hard points I mean look we're dealing with an unprecedented crisis right now like you said all those issues are we're seeing all these issues come together at one at once and unfortunately it appears that no one has as a solution I mean I'm just you know I'm just baffling looking at history and some of the things that we've come through in the past I mean I actually going to look at the great depression.

And all the crises that were going on then and how as a country we were able to come together with the new deal and put forward ideas to with public works projects to get people working again.

I'm just surprised that we hadn't you know we hadn't taken that position now we have this conflict going on between the federal state and local governments this idea of federalism is just I mean we've just seen it come apart at the seams and I'm just you know I'm a pragmatic thinker you know I'm just a little bit more careful.

I'm just a pragmatic thinker you know I like to look for solutions like to find ways to fix things and look I'm on the ground with the people you know whatever works for the people I want to be there and unfortunately you know the there's so many communities that are getting left behind I mean we see the big picture you know we see what's happening in you know suburban America and let me tell you it's a suburban America they were cold unfortunately you know the same resources that you see in other places that that's not happening in the city.

I'm just you know I'm there every day and this is I'm telling you it's completely different to different worlds and look I want to bring ideas of fix it and that's why I'm here right now.

So when you look at your district give us give us a sense of what the 30th district looks like in October of 2020.

Oh man well 30th district what we have right now is I'm sorry my screen.

Yeah so basically what we have right now is like you said you have a lot of the social justice issues going on we just came on for a lot of riding we've had look this is Southern sector Dallas County so you have it's the inner city anyway right so you have the inner city you have a few pockets of suburban areas.

But but if you think about it this is just like other majority minority districts in this country that are classified the majority minority districts that basically they're comprised of majority ethnic and racial minorities right there 121 of these districts across the country.

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