Representative Babin gets it

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God bless Texas.

I’m going to admit, I wasn’t fond of Texas when I first started traveling with George. My first real trek all the way across the state was done in July, when Texas officially becomes hotter than Satan’s blowtorch. I may have made a snap judgment on my initial dislike for Texas, because every time we got out of the truck, my skin evaporated immediately. (Y’all remember – I grew up in Georgia. It gets hot there, but it’s a wet heat. You puddle. In Texas, you shrivel and blow away.)

As I accumulated miles traveled in the truck, I noticed states that seemed to be more trucking-friendly than others. Texas was one of those friendly states. George actually prefers running Texas over pretty much anywhere else, and because it’s about 95 gabillion square miles, we’ve spent a lot of time (and money) in Texas.

Just this week, Texas proved again that it’s trucking-friendly, and a place we don’t mind helping along with their economy, because they seem to understand the need for trucking in their state. Congressman Babin put forth a bill asking for a delay in the implementation of the ELD rule, not just because he’s concerned with the cost. Congressman Babin has actually driven a truck for a living.

I wonder if he’d think I was weird if I sent him a Superman cape …I wonder if he’d think I was weird if I sent him a Superman cape …

You heard me. He knows what the inside of a truck looks like, specifically 10 ton trucks he learned to drive in the military, and lumber trucks he drove later in civilian life. In a Land Line podcast recorded yesterday, Representative Babin made this statement: “We can’t see how in the world this ELD is going to affect safety,” and I almost fell over from the surge of apoplectic joy I felt. He understands that it’s a clock, and clocks don’t have magical powers to keep people safe. He also understands that money doesn’t appear out of thin air for small businesses. He may be my new hero.

Now, I hate to sound like a broken record, but y’all know what to do. Representative Babin said specifically: “Call. Tell your congressman/woman you’re a taxpaying citizen, providing this country with goods they need, and you’d like them to support house bill H.R. 3282. It’s as simple as that.”

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It really is. And since we have the golden unicorn of a Representative in Texas who has really been inside a truck, used one to make a living, and knows what the HOS is, we should definitely make an effort to let him know how very much we appreciate him.

One more thing: Don’t get all hung up on the fact that this is a request for a delay and not a full repeal. Mick Jagger once said, “You can’t always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, you get what you need.”

Make the call. Do it today.