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February 28, 2005Tired of SG Endorsements Yet?By Zach NeumannI'll make this really brief because I know everyone is tired of hearing about this crap from Andrew, Karl Thomas and myself. I agree with most of the endorsements up to now (as well as the justifications for them). Overall, I tend to support the Ignite ticket-- and I really hope they win. However,for all you people out there who could care less about SG, here are the names of the active Democrats who are running. If anything, vote for them tommorrow to boost their advocacy power on campus. Jessica Rice-- President Thats about it. If I left anyone who is active in the party out, I apologize. Voting starts tommorrow. Here is the link. Doing a Favor For Jon MureenBy Andrew DobbsWith all this talk about SG, I forgot to mention that my one time nemesis Jon Mureen called me the other day. Jon ran for SG President my freshman year and I gladly helped Brian Haley beat him. Jon's a nice enough guy I suppose and we became rather cordial after it all was over. Now he's apparantly at the University of Virginia law school and did a Google Search of himself to see what future employers would find. He claimed that the first thing were some comments some trickster left on BOR claiming to be him saying crazy things. The search didn't turn this up, and someone had removed the posts, probably Byron. I wanted to put the posts up so everyone could see what Mureen was so worried about, but now I can't. What I CAN do is put up the rather silly email that Jon sent me threatening me to take down the posts. Here you go:
Well Jon, we didn't slander you- if anything we were libelous seeing that libel is written and slander is spoken, but we weren't even doing that. See, we run a website and anyone can put whatever name and write here. We didn't say anything about you, so we couldn't have libeled or slandered you. If I owned a truck stop and someone put on a bathroom wall "For a Good Time, Call Jon Mureen 434-906-04**", could I be sued for insinuating that you would show some lonely trucker a good time? I think not. And this unknown webperson didn't really "steal your identity" so much as s/he portrayed a parody, a satire- protected speech under the First Amendment (I'm sure you'll cover that in law school at some point). So bring your attorneys on, Mr. Mureen. I don't know what this shows- that Mureen will be a good attorney because he is an uptight prick or a bad attorney because a) his knowledge of the law is feeble at best and b) he is such a weak-willed type that he is worried that a few silly BOR posts will keep a graduate of the University of Texas and UVA law out of a job. Either way, the email was a bit on the silly side. The posts are down and this suggests to me that there will likely be no reason for me ever to talk to Jon Mureen again, which makes me rather happy. I hold no grudges, I kicked his ass once already and got my jollies then. Hope Mr. Mureen can let it go sooner or later as well. SG Debates TonightBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanTonight at 9:30, I'll be on the local tele since I was a panelist for the KVR cable news debates for the Student Government elections. Plus you can watch the rather bizarre lightning round which lead today's Texan coverage. You can watch it online here when it gets posted later on. But if you live in the Austin area, it's Channel 16 on Cable, Channel 15 in the dorms, and Channel 9 for Antenna at 9:30 pm tonight, and again at 9:00 pm tomorrow night. Chris Bell to Speak in Austin on WednesdayBy Byron LaMastersAUSTIN - Chris Bell, the congressman who filed the ethics complaint against Tom DeLay, will give the first speech by a potential statewide Democratic candidate this year to an Austin gathering of Democracy for Texas. Chris is exploring a Democratic bid for Texas Governor. An informal media availability will take place after his remarks. He can also squeeze in individual interview requests if scheduled earlier. WHAT: Chris Bell speaking to Democracy for Texas My SG EndorsementsBy Andrew DobbsSo Karl-T and the Daily Texan have spoken, now its time for the guy who almost got into this mess to speak up about who should be in the new Student Government. I'll only make endorsements in the races I can vote in- President, VP, Two-Year At Large, One-Year At Large, Liberal Arts, Communications, Union Board and SEC. I'll also throw in some info about a few other people that should be supported. President- Jessica Rice, Ignite. This one was the toughest for me because I think that they would both be decent presidents, but for different reasons. Omar Ochoa is a natural politician and can schmooze legislators and other powerful people with the best of them. Furthermore, he is a staunch Democrat and SG would be a good foot-in-the-door for a future elected official. He's tough and knows about organizing, so he wouldn't be a bad choice. But I choose Jessica Rice. To be honest, part of it is because she is a friend of mine and has always treated me well, even when I worked against her last year. But a larger part of it is that she is just as smart as Omar, perhaps not as experienced or tough, but she is much less prone to the mendacity that Omar has demonstrated to me. He showed up, uninvited, to a party my friends were holding and when I asked him later who had invited him he lied to me without blinking, without pausing for a second. A good skill for a politician perhaps, but only for the wrong kind of politician. Jessica Rice is a better person, and in the end, that is all that matters. VP- Colby Hanks, Ignite. This one was tough as well, but very similar to the Presidential race. Elizabeth Brummett is a tough gal, smart and well-organized. Hanks' strength is in her almost unlimited charisma. But Brummmett has a couple of things that make me say no. First, I have the unique distinction of having been severely beaten by Elizabeth Brummett in last year's election. That didn't figure into this at all- I knew I was going to lose and if anything her popularity makes her a good choice. But one thing she was a part of in that campaign did- the effort to portray me as a sexual harrasser and misogynist. A friend of mine later hung out with one of the girls who filed the charges and she confirmed what we had always known- they put on an act to make me look bad so that we would lose. They pretended to be all upset and to speak a lot of jibberish to ruin my reputation. When charges of sexual harrassment are politicized, it makes it infinitely harder for real victims to get a fair hearing. Elizabeth Brummett is a part of that shame. But she is not someone I dislike, I understand why she did it. A much more pertinent reason to vote for Colby is that she is truly an independent with no baggage. Brummett has a lot of committments to some special interests that I think get too much money from students- namely the Multicultural Information Center and other bottomless pits of irrelevance that suck down student fees. I like Colby because she'll take these people to task. Finally, Colby has guts. Brummett is the type to vote for inane resolutions because she is afraid of hacking off various leftish interests on campus. Colby leaned towards me and told me during one meeting when I asked her if she would support such nonsense and said "That's why I'm running- to stop this stuff." That gets my vote any day of the week. Two Year At Large: Michael Windle, Connect I only ensorse three out of 4 spots because I don't know who any of these other people are, though many seem like they have some great ideas. Many of them are from the same handful of groups that dominate these sorts of things- spirit and greek organizations. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but it just seems to promote the student council mindset of student government- an unwillingness to take responsibility. So I'll go with the three I endorse. Courtney Livingston is a rock star. From the first time I met her when she was a freshman with about 3 classdays under her belt she impressed me. She is tireless, devoted, driven and has big ideas. She will set the world on fire some day and she will bring the kind of strength and leadership SG needs. Michael Windle is a good guy as well. He is one of the smartest guys in the Assembly and has a lot of great insight into issues important to students. He knows how to get things done and he'll be a great leader for students. Anjali Fleury I don't know. But from what I've heard she is a great environmental activist that seeks ways to make the university more sustainable and environmentally aware. Perhaps a single issue focus, but you need that from time to time and I think she'll be a good conscience for the Assembly. One Year At Large: Kunal Das I don't know, but he sounds like a great person to have in the Assembly. He started a successful online small business here at the University and has some great ideas about how to improve funding for student groups with a single application. Leadership and vision, that is what we need and this guy's got it. Jessica Fertitta I don't know either but I've read enough to know that she has at least some level of expertise in activism regarding the legislature and tracking important legislation. That is important in this session so she gets my vote. Plus, she's a Terry Scholar like me and poor smart people gotta stick together. Bekah Hotze is a friend of mine and I think that she would be a great leader in the Assembly. She is friendly and charismatic with a history of family activism in Republican politics, she knows how to communicate with legislative leaders. She is a good person and deserves the position. Danielle Rugoff is a very dear friend of mine and is one of the most impressive people I know. A tireless activist for Israel and other important issues, particularly in the Jewish community, she has interned in Washington DC and has a lot of friends here in Austin. She is an organizer, and someone that will be an important person one day. She ought to be in the Assembly. Liberal Arts: Katie Naranjo, Ignite I only endorse three people out of five slots because I don't know many of these people and a quick look at their qualifications make me think that they are simply going to be part of the problem. Katie Naranjo is one of the most impressive people I've met in a long time. She came to this university this year and set it on fire. An officer in the University Democrats, an intern for my old boss Rep. Jim McReynolds (D-Lufkin), someone with enough charisma for 10 people she is going to be someone someday. She also let me use her tire iron once and I've broken the law with her so I think I owe her. I don't know Clint Adcox or Andrew Solomon but they both sound like great candidates. Anyone who says he doesn't care what his unelected college council says, he's going to vote his conscience gets my vote- so go Clint Adcox. Andrew Solomon is a Terry Scholar. Other than that I don't know, but once again T-Scholars gotta stick together! Communications: Amy Salek, Ignite. Freshman year it was funny- every single organization I was in, Amanda Johnson ended up being in also. Terry Scholars, UDs, Student Government, Communication Council- we were always around one another. She is smart, charismatic, unflappable and driven. She will provide great leaderhip in the Assembly and will be an independent voice for Communications students. Amy Salek is probably among the most specificially qualified people on the ballot. She's on the Dean Selection Committee for the College of Communications, meaning she will personally know and in fact have some leverage over the new Dean of the Communications school. She is also active in many other organizations in the college making her an effective and representative voice for the students of the University. Union Board- Wes Carpenter, Ignite. Interestingly enough, I looked over the pages for the Connect candidates and while both of them seem like good enough guys, neither have ANY experience with Union facilities listed. So I figured I'd vote for the people who know what they are doing. Wes is an old friend and has worked with the Distinguished Speakers Commmittee, Fallon is apparantly on the African American Culture Committee- the chair in fact. So they get my vote. Still, I would like someone who is going to kick out Taco Bell for their atrocious labor practices, but I suppose that's wanting too much. SEC President- John Grube The UDs endorsed him, Zach says he knows him and is voting for him, that's all I need in a race I'm not too informed on. Julio Vela looks impressive and I've been told that the opinion of one other whose opinion matters most to me in this regard (who will remain nameless) is supporting Vela. So Grube or Vela- vote twice if you can. So that's everything. Just one last note- I'd vote for Grant Stanis of Connect and Paul Albrecht of Ignite if I were in the Business School. Grant is a rock star- someone who doesn't take shit from anyone and who has a passion that makes SG more effective. Paul is a great guy who knows the needs of business students. I'd vote for Jan Carroll in the Social Work school for her work on GLBT issues. Mario Sanchez for Engineering Rep wants to get rid of the ticket system, a cause near and dear to my heart. He's running on the Connect Ticket. Finally, Jack Waite is an independent in the LBJ school. Independence is a good thing and seeing as the small and graduate college reps on the big tickets are usually just placeholders who do nothing, a guy who is psyched enough about SG to start his own campaign is clearly going to be a good representative. Other than these, check out the other endorsements from people more knowledgeable than me and don't forget to vote! Open ThreadBy Byron LaMastersI won't be posting until later in the day, but yall are welcome to use this as an open thread, since we haven't done one in awhile. Feel free to talk about the Oscars last night, or about BOR's mention in two daily newspapers today, the Dallas Morning News and the Daily Texan, or whatever else you'd like. Texan Splits- Endorses Rice / BrummettBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanAn interesting combo defined more by weaknesses than strengths which are all explained online here in the Texan's full list of endorsements. Plus the awesome chart of the Panel's decision is avaiable here (just for today) on page 5 (PDF). All of the panelist's individual commentary is located here. Laura Gladney-Lemon has a Progressive list she put together in hers as well. As a service that I hope the Panel does not mind, I have uploaded all the candidates who returned the Texan Questionaires to a central organized location. Information is power, so here is some more. SG EndorsementsBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanSaturday saw me in the Daily Texan basement for 16 long hours, interviewing candidates for Tuesday and Wednesday's Student Elections. Today I slept, wrote commentary for each and every race, and served on the KVR Presidential Debate Panel (which will be on Monday and Tuesday nights, I'll post specifics tomorrow). Actual voting is Tuesday and Wednesday online here. I believe that this Panel was one of the most intensive, in-depth, and comprehensive reviews by a group of people for whom each and every member I will champion. I personally look forward to the others' conclusions, few of which I know or can even gauge, (this panel was of that high of quality). And I hope that candidates would have realized the importance of returning their questionaire or showing up for their interview for the Panel. In some races, I think that single factor could determine whether they win or lost due to the Texan endorsements (since Ben Heath the editor was also of course, on the Panel) There is no election for Pharmacy Rep. as Connect's candidate has dropped out, bringing Ignite's automatic representation in the next Assembly to 2. Following is my personal Endorsement List following ballot order, with commentary on each race in the Extended Remarks in the same order. Overall, my endorsements split about 60%/40% Ignite over Connect. If you seen me wearing an Ignite T-Shirt in the next few days it is due to this split and the vote in the Pres and VP races. I still plan to vote this ballot as published here. Websites: Ignite and Connect *President* *Vice-President* *Two Year At-Large* *One Year At-Large* *Architecture* *Business* *Communication* *Education* *Engineering* *Fine Arts* *Graduate* *Law* *LBJ* *Liberal Arts* *Natural Sciences* *Nursing* *Social Work* *Union Board* *Student Events Center President* President- Students are fortunate that in the unlikely event of a ticket sweep this year, either President will be able to fully serve their interests. From particular student initiatives to larger legislative or university concerns, neither candidate is lacking in their ability to pursue solutions to which students will be amiable. That said, Ignite’s Jessica Rice represents the first half of a vision which her running-mate fulfills-- truly connecting students at large to the representative governing body which does affect their lives by making it more open, accessible, and responsible to student concerns. Rice’s desire to have the Assembly respond to student led concerns instead of tabling them is refreshing. Her non-standard entrance into this race driven by the concerns of students around her, instead of the traditional methodically planned advancement many presidents have followed, is also refreshing. Having worked on the executive committee of SG handling the appropriations process to student groups, Rice knows first hand the diverse range of activism, seen and unseen by the rest of this 50,000 member community, that many times is forgotten about or not known by the Assembly. As Rice has said, it is time to see “an element of service and humility restored to Student Government.” Vice President- Vice Presidential Candidate Elizabeth Brummett has a lot of experience and a lot of knowledge of Student Government. In fact, many candidates who have run in this and past elections have a lot of experience and knowledge of Student Government. But even so, it seems the same issues and complaints return year after year and little changes in the perception of SG by students at large. While reformers have tried to gain a voice, they often are shut out of the Assembly, most recently by landslide elections. The opportunity to begin to break this perpetual recycling is now. The opportunity for bridge the gap between insider knowledge and outsider dissatisfaction lies with Ignite’s Colby Hanks, who brings to the second highest elected level of student representation, the voice of over 70% of this campus that will find out in next year’s election why they should have voted in this one. She is right in saying that when “one has been with something a long time, they can become insulated by it.” The Vice President has the chance to set the tone of the Assembly room as the chair of SG meetings. It is time to shift the tone for the benefit of student engagement at large in SG. Two-Year at Large- Michael Windle of Connect stands out among those running for this position. His work on issues in this assembly, including that done without recognition, should give us confidence in his commitment to fulfill the workload demanded by the office for which he is running. Steven Hardt is one of the “big thinkers” which any assembly needs. His personal drive to investigate the restructuring of the entire upper/lower division class structure at UT is certainly a worthwhile multi-year project which would befit both Steven, and the office for which he is running. Anjali Fleury of Ignite could fulfill the activist progressive voice which should be present in any assembly considering the make-up of the UT campus. This role is best served at the at-large level than lower on the ballot where a self ascribed social activist may have a harder time representing a narrower slice of students. Deven Fletcher of Ignite rounds out the two-year at large endorsements by being someone interesting in serving as an advocate of underrepresented populations, including those beyond his own. In an Assembly always short in the representation of the African-American voice on campus, Fletcher would be a powerful addition. At an at large level, students should have full confidence in Fletcher’s statement that he will “continue to do what I need to continue to empower my people.” One-Year at Large- As one of the strongest candidates on last year’s failed RepreZent campaign, Danielle Rugoff, now of Ignite, would be one of any Assembly’s more active participants. Having worked for the past year in SG’s Agency and Director’s community, Rugoff would help to bridge the gap of understanding and respect that sometimes exists between that group, the representatives, and executive committee. Connect’s Kumal Das brings the issue of funding application standardization for student groups to the table. As a business major and someone who currently runs his own company, Das would be well served to kick start discussion about an issue that would reduce stress and confusion among student group leaders and allow groups to spend more time on events than red tape. Tiffany Jan of Ignite would initiate discussion as to the lack of a coordinated council for Asian student groups (as well as other categories) similar to the Latino Leadership Council which has served to unite and empower that community. In addition, her proposal to improve Fine Arts practice rooms, extension of room hours, and the tuning of pianos would bring issues to the Assembly not being brought by actual Fine Arts candidates. Connect’s Jessica Fertitta, as the incoming head of the University Pan-Hellenic Council, would best serve the interests of the Greek community, from the timing of Rush to complaints of SG interference with West Campus life. In an election that could see fewer than average wins by Greek students at lower levels on the ballot, Fertitta as an at large member would balance this absence. Though Jessica Hart of Connect will serve as a solid representative if elected, she receives no specific endorsement due to what seems to be a dependence on past work and a lack of a particular new or defining issue or quality that separates her from these four endorsed candidates. Architecture- In a race marked by similar candidates with similar concerns and similar platforms, it is difficult to choose the best candidate for Architecture Rep. Though the current Architecture Rep is supporting Ignite, it is Lane Sealy’s academic involvement and honors (compared to spirit involvement) that give her the edge she needs to garner this endorsement in this race. Business- Though often one of the most controversial members of the Assembly and certainly one of the few active conservative voices, Grant Stanis of Connect has served the interests of Business students in the assembly and deserves re-election to the seat he currently holds. Paul Albrecht of Ignite brings connections from both outside and business organization at UT and his logical take on issue and good relationship with Stannis would be a major asset to productive work in the Assembly on business issues. While students would be well served by Ignite’s Ruth Yen, Connect’s Maria Rivera receives the third endorsement due to her personal work on initiating a comprehensive updating and unification of campus resources into a more accessible Resource Guide, which with SG attention, would be widely beneficial to all students. Communication- While all the candidates understand the major issues facing the College of Communications, Ignite’s Amy Salek and Amanda Johnson have a major edge in one important area, the search for the next Dean. Salek, serving on the Dean search committee brings an unparalleled edge to the understanding and connections needed to make sure her college will be in good hands for years to come. In addition, Johnson appears to have a better understanding of this particular subject as well as others in comparison to her opponents. Education- Though both candidates are fairly similar and would do a good job, Connect’s Rebecca Frankel appears to have more specifics on her agenda for representing the College of Education, from free student printing to nightly parking passes to more study lounge space. Engineering- The first of the three votes that should be cast in this race must go to Chris Wayman of Ignite, current President of the Engineering College Council who is the stand out best candidate for this college. Jessica Bradley of Ignite is involved in her college community organizations and would bring a fresh and needed perspective as a woman in engineering. Mario Sanchez of Connect is aware of the issues in his college and was the lone voice among candidates for any position in speaking out against the Ticket System of elections, a voice that should not be silenced. Fine Arts- Henry Baker of Ignite is endorsed less because of his own qualities but of his opponent being out of step. Connect’s Bryan Kettlewell, also involved in the medical community, focused on issues outside the realm of the fine arts school, from Top 10% to Affirmative Action (which for the most part he is against). Graduate- Sadly, it appears next year’s assembly will lack the intensity, dedication, and representation that Paul Navratil, Laura Gladney-Lemon, and Yamissette Westerband have given in the last few years. It is hard to endorse in this race considering only 1 in 10 candidates was interviewed by the panel and less than half even returned their questionnaire. Only five even have active profiles on the campaign’s websites. That being said, two of the “more qualified” candidates are Ignite’s Alex Pekker and Charlotte Allmon, both of whom are involved in their school councils. As a member of GLBT grad, Pekker may be most likely to continue in current Grad Rep Westerband’s footsteps in advocating issues concerning that particular community on campus. Connect’s Mariana Del Sol and Chris Seaberg receive an endorsement due to at least some level of interest or commitment visible by returning their questionnaires. Ignite’s Mike Scholfield’s membership in the Malt Beverage Appreciation Society will give representation to the often ignored legal consumption of alcohol segment of the student population and his claim to make all of our “wildest dreams come true” should not be dismissed as pure campaign propaganda! Law- In a race not marked by any standout qualities or candidates, Chris Lee of Ignite garners this endorsement. His service to communities outside of the University and representation of the Korean community in and outside of law would be beneficial to the assembly. LBJ- Often viewed as an independent college on the East edge of campus, it is only fitting that the single Independent candidate in all student elections receives this endorsement, J. Waite. He says it best in that he may not be “old and wise, but brings more perspectives than the average student” to the assembly. Liberal Arts- Ignite’s Katie Naranjo brings an impressive level of involvement and knowledge for having been at UT only one semester. In addition, her connections to the state legislature and internships past and current would give SG yet another avenue of access to outside bodies it deals with. Clint Adcox, also of Ignite, brings his connection to the Liberal Arts Council which would be a plus in the ongoing concerns between that body and SG. Nawal Abdeladim of Ignite would like to see more four year planning for Liberal Arts in advising, in idea that should be explored considering the enormous size of the college. Such planning could help decrease the years spent by Liberal Arts majors as UT as well as the rate of major changing. Connect’s C.J. Ginn personal idea to push for non-dorm residents to buy into the Dine-In dollar meal plans is one that should be represented in the Assembly. Meg Clifford of Connect speaks well for her ticket’s plank for more Liberal Arts student space on campus. Though this issue may not be the most important to Liberal Arts students, her energy to seek out a solution would benefit SG. Natural Sciences- Toyin Falola and Eric Longoria of Connect define the issues for their college and provided the most detailed concerns and plans for Natural Sciences making them Representative quality. Kim Skrobarcek of Ignite would bring a needed grassroots oriented style and aggressive role to SG by pushing SG to be more active in its resolutions while standing up communities outside of her own, such as GLBT students. Nicole Trinh, though not the same quality candidate as Falola or Longria, would work well with their plan of action. Her endorsement is due in part though, simply to the lack of interest or information available about the remainder of her opponents. Nursing- In this race Connect's Nicole Capriles presents a much stronger background of involvement and is on top of her college's issues. Little else needs to be said. Social Work- With a tradition of activist representatives in past assemblies, Social Work would be best served in electing Jan Carroll of Ignite. She will most certainly be an outspoken advocate of her college as well as the often underrepresented GLBT community on campus. Union Board- Wes Carpenter and Fallon McLane of the Ignite ticket deserve your vote. Each has more experience with the Union and SEC than either of the other candidates, who lack a certain level of competence and understanding of the job. SEC President- In various endorsements running up to this election, three different candidates have gained this writer’s vote at various points. Today, that endorsement readily goes to Julio “JV” Vela due to his grander vision punctuated by specific answers and ideas for the SEC. The GOP's Reframing Of The DebateBy Vince LeibowitzI recieved an email today with a link to a Think Progressive that discusses conservative Political strategist Frank Luntz's 160-page "playbook" (download it here) which devotes a lot of discussion to reframing the debate on a myriad of issues. Evidently, someone acquired a copy of the book and scanned it and made a PDF of it. It first surfaced on DailyKOS earlier this week, and was followed up with subsequent posts, both linking to Think Progressive's posts. I haven't had the chance to read the entire thing yet, but I did find some interesting tidbits. First, this little tidbit:
God, I think I'm going to be sick. I actually decided to Google the bolded phrase above and, in a Google news search, the State of the Union transcript actually came up first. Though Bush doesn't use all of that language or the exact same language, he follows the "adverb" rule:
And, he used "innovation," but not exactly in the reccomended context:
At any rate, the document, which is evidently entitled "The New American Lexicon," since that appears in the footers of several pages, covers just about everything a conservative should know when it comes to "reframing the debate." There are sections (which include "do"s and "don't"s to say) on ANWR, energy policy, tort reform (which should never be called that, according to the report), healthcare, Social Security privitization (which should be called "personalization" by Republicans, the report notes), the tax code and on and on and on. There are even sample speeches in the document you can take, personalize, and deliver to the local Rotary Club! While this is all very interesting, what I'd really like to get my hands on is a Texas version of a "playbook" like this, specifically the pages that deal with "tax relief" and "education reform." I'm sure some Texas consultant (probably Royal Massett) has written one. I'd also love to know the Texas GOP's "buzz words" they'll use when they have to justify leagalizing casino gambling as a means of funding education. Instead of saying "casino gambling" they'll probably say something like "speculative enterprise lyceums," or "recreational monetary venture facilities." February 27, 2005Van Os Announces For AGBy Vince LeibowitzSan Antonio attorney David Van Os announced Saturday he will be a candidate for Attorney General in the 2006 Democratic Primary. Van Os' announcement came during the annual meeting of the Texas Democratic Progressive Populist Caucus in Houston. A public announcement is expected early next week. Van Os' Saturday announcement wasn't entirely unexpected. In an e-mail sent by Van Os Sunday night, he noted:
Van Os, known across the state for his populist, firey, no-holds-barred style of campaigning and oratory, ran for Texas Supreme Court in 2004 and in 1998. As an attorney practicing labor law, Van os has served as Associate Counsel for the National Treasury Employees Union; In-house counsel for District 12, Texas, Communications Workers of America; and as General Counsel for the Texas AFL-CIO. Presently, he heads up David Van Os & Associates, P.C. in San Antonio. In 2003, he sought the unexpired term of Chairman of the Democratic Party of Texas along with former Land Commissioner Gary Muaro, State Rep. Garnett Coleman and Mary Moore when Molly Beth Malcom vacated the seat. Van Os is the second Democrat to formally announce a 2006 candidacy. Houston attorney Barbara Radnofsky announced earlier this year--after a year-long exploration--that she would seek the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate next year. Also, former U.S. Congressman Chris Bell announced earlier this month an exploratory effort to examine the possibility of running for Texas governor. It is unknown when or if Bell will turn his exploration into an actual candidacy. With announcements for marquee positions on the 2006 ballot begining so early, it remains to be seen whether or not other Democratic officials who previously sought statewide office will throw their hats into the ring. Likely contender for governor, John Sharp, has been exceedingly quite over the past few months. Ex-state senator Ted Lyon has also mentioned a possible run for the seat, but has reportedly made no decision. Ron Kirk, who ran for Senate in 2006 reportedly will not run at all this cycle and it remains unclear if Ken Bentsten, who finished third behind Kirk and Victor Morales in the Democratic Primary, will try to run against fellow Houstonite Radnofsky. Morales, who has almost earned Gene Kelly's "perennial candidate" status has also been mentioned in some circles as a possible candidate again. Ex-Austin Mayor Kirk Watson is also rumored to be considering another run for statewide office--possibly Lt. Governor or Governor. Tony Sanchez is reported to be leaning against a rematch with Perry in 2006. Former U.S. Congressman Jim Turner of Crockett is also reportedly eyeing the Governor's mansion, but will not be considering a Senate run as many believe. Ex-Congressmen Charlie Stenholm (D-Abilene) and Max Sandlin (D-Marshall) have also been mentioned as possible contenders for statewide office. Agricultural policy advocate and rancher David Cleavinger of Deaf Smith County announced last summer he may seak the post of Ag Commissioner. East Texan Tom Ramsey may also run for the post again. In The Trenches: My Visit With The Wood County DemocratsBy Vince LeibowitzOn Friday night, I was surprised to see about 35 Democrats gathered in my hometown of Mineola for the Wood County Democratic Party's monthly meeting. I had been asked by my counterpart in that county, Dr. Charles Thompson, to speak to that group about some of the things we've been doing in Van Zandt County as well as to offer my take on the Legislative session and (basically) whatever else I wanted to talk about. Needless to say, I couldn't resist such an invitation, especially when it meant showing off some of the great ads our PAC ran last cycle. For those of you unfamiliar with Wood County (where I lived most of my life and graduated high school before going to college and eventually coming to Van Zandt County), it is a very, very, very "red" county. However, during the last election cycle, they made some good gains for Democrats, and almost won the Sheriff's race there, which was quite an accomplishment given the way people in that county tend to vote, which is "straight ticket R." Right before I spoke, Charles updated the group on two local officeholders, one recently re-elected County Commissioner and one recently elected constable, who just switched parties and became Republicans. Since we had a little experience with that here in 2001, when one of our commissioners turncoated, I opened by telling the people there that it wasn't the end of the world, and that they just had to do everything within their power to defeat those guys in the next election cycle. After talking about our plan of action for the 2004 election and our plans for the upcoming cycle in 2006, I talked a little about the Lege, specifically school finance, and gave my humble opinion that gambling would be the Lege's poison of choice with regard to school finance, pointing to a Lone Star Survey that shows over 50 percent of Texas voters have no major opposition to large-scale casino gambling in Texas. I noted that, though the GOP may talk a big "morals" game on this, in the end it is what they will end up for a number of reasons. I also told the Wood County Democrats about all of the lovely work their State Rep, Bryan Hughes (R-Mineola) is doing in Austin, including introducing one of the session's dumbest bills to outlaw nudist youth camps in Texas--all while there is real work to be done on school finance. I also got a lot of good questions from the Democrats who are, arguably, more conservative than the "hometown crowd" I'm used to here in Canton. Specifically, I was asked about abortion and the Platform. One elected official present noted that many of his GOP friends are constantly throwing the party platform in his face and claiming how "liberal" Democrats are. So, I pointed him to the masterpiece that is the Texas GOP platform and told him that the next time they did that, to remind him his own party was so far to the right they were advocating things like the dissolution of the United Nations, among other crazy stuff. On the abortion issue, I advised everyone to discuss the issue as a matter of constitutionality and not religion. I also said that it's best to talk about it in terms of being for or against the "right to choose" as opposed to being for or against abortion. I also noted it wouldn't hurt to point out the GOP's hypocritical stance in that area. They essentially insist every child be brought to term and raised by the mother all the while slashing or eleminating programs that would help that child get off to a good start in life. Clearly, that's not a very good "family values stance," for the GOP. At any rate, I think the talk was fairly well recieved. I got several laughs talking about GOP hypocrisy and some of the dumb bills legislators are filing all the while we've got school finance staring us in the face. Too, the crowd (that big that soon after an election) should tell everyone in Wood County that there is hope for the future. Considering the GOP increased its number of voters in the Presidential election my more than 30 percent (while the Dems did so by about 2 percent), I think it's safe to say that the GOP has about plateaued in terms of the number of new voters it can attract in that county. And, given the behavior of some of the elected officials in that county, hopefully the GOP will actually start losing some votes in the next cycle. Vince Leibowitz is County Chairman of the Democratic Party of Van Zandt County. Craddick Avoids TestifyingBy Byron LaMastersShocker! Craddick cuts a deal:
What Republicans Want, but are Afraid to SayBy Byron LaMastersDick Armey isn't afraid to point out the real agenda though (emphasis mine):
Is Dick Armey in La-la-land? Oh, wait, is the Pope Catholic? Besides the obvious idiocy of Armey's remarks, and his utter inability to comprehend poverty and understand the working class in America, Armey's remarks are very telling. The Republican agenda on Social Security is not one of minor tweaking, or of harmless "personal accounts". They want to dismantle the entire program. Not all at once - it'll be a piecemeal process, but have no doubt, that is their aim. Just ask the Pennsylvania young Republicans... "Hey Hey, Ho Ho, Social Security has got to go"! Meanwhile, Tom DeLay notes that only one-third of GOP congressmen tried to sell the GOP Social Security plan during the congressional recess - typically with little success. The other two-thirds? They didn't even bother trying:
NoteBy Jim DallasOne thing I'm absolutely tired of is the perception that Democrats' "cultural problems" are issues which pertain specifically to the South, and modest changes will result in restored competitiveness throughout the entire South (as if it were a monolithic voting bloc!) Look, about the only places in this great country where we might not be at risk of losing votes because of being identified with the cultural left are a few precincts in San Franscisco, New York, and Boston. This includes black precincts, white precincts, poor precincts, white precincts, holy-roller boxes and secular boxes. Just a small adjustment - a dozen votes in every precinct worth of adjustment - in message would have made the difference in Ohio, New Mexico, Nevada, and Iowa - and none of these states are in the South. And it was is those four states that John Kerry lost the presidency. Yes, I think Mudcat Saunders has some good points; but I think the most apparent benefit of moderating on some cultural issues isn't that we'll start carrying Southern states. We won't: Southern conservatism runs a lot deeper than just "God, Gays, and Guns," and the assumption that we can win the South (outside of Florida, Virignia, and urban centers) just by appealing to economic populism is probably bunk. The first sign we're doing something right will be that we'll be able to carry the rest of the country with substantial enough margins such that losing the South won't matter. A more important concern than winning, though, is always the ultimate issue of morality. I very consciously used the term "risk" above because I think it accurately sums up my thinking: we take risks by standing up for what is right, but the risk itself doesn't justify inaction. At any rate, "the South" is turning into a McGuffin: instead of thinking about maximizing our vote totals among those 12 or 13 voters per precinct that would have delivered us the White House; or even those places in the South which really are competitive now; we've fixated on an entire region of the country which is probably going to be rather hostile for the forseeable future. There's only so much good that "positioning" can do. In the end, the only effective way to return the South to the "D" column (on the national level) is community organization and shifting the entire national political discourse to the left, and not by treating this big amorphous monolithic South as just another special interest. Kevin Drum has some thoughts here. Also, read Ed Kilgore's take on this. Bush... wins?By Jim DallasGeorge W. Bush was awarded the Golden Raspberry for
If I'm ever awarded a Raspberry, or win an election for that matter, I intend to channel Sally Field. February 26, 2005Democracy in Egypt?By Zach NeumannRecently, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called off a visit to Egypt to protest the imprisonment of Al-Ghad opposition leader Ayman Nour. It looks like Hosni Mubarak is attempting to mount a response. I don’t know how sincere this is, but it seems that Egypt might be considering democratic reform.
Again, I want to emphasize how skeptical I am about Mubarak’s sincerity. He has made it fairly clear on several occasions that he wants his son to succeed him. Moreover, all he has offered at this point is some feel good, pro-democracy rhetoric (perhaps to assuage the concerns of the United States). I’m going to keep following this one… Dallas Democrats Prepare for Executive Committee MeetingBy Byron LaMastersLast week, I reported that for the first time in memory, the Dallas County Democratic Party will be holding an executive committee meeting called not by the chair, but by petition of 51% of the executive committee (precinct chairs). While there were runors that the Chair would attempt to challenge the legality of the meeting, notice of the meeting is now on the webpage of the Dallas County Democratic Party. The meeting will be Monday, February 28, at 6:30 p.m. at the Communications Workers of America (CWA) Hall. I plan on attending the meeting in order to keep an unofficial record of the proceedings. Both supporters and opponents of Chair Susan Hays have sent a series of emails and letters this past week. Much of the criticism of Susan Hays is related to her letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee last year in support of Bush judicial nominee Michael Schneider. I wrote at the time that I didn't think that the letter was that big of a deal, but there are a few issues of concern which I was not aware of at the time. First, the fact that Susan Hays wrote the letter on a Dallas County Democratic Party letterhead implied that she was not only speaking for herself, but for the Dallas County Democratic Party. That apparently was the assumption made by Senator Cornyn who said the following in the Senate record:
Also of concern is the fact that this appointment violated the so-called "Thurmond Rule". Sen. Leahy (D-VT) said the following in the Senate record on the Schneider confirmation:
So, while Schneider was not an egregious nominee, it could be argued that the letter by Susan Hays legitimized the violation of the "Thurmond Rule" by Senate Republicans. It should be noted that Susan Hays sent a letter to precinct chairs apologizing for using the party letterhead, but not for writing the letter after at least six local clubs passed resolutions denouncing her leadership. You can view copies of the letter and resolutions here. Four Dallas County Democratic elected officials co-signed a letter to precinct chairs this week indicating their support for Susan Hays. Here is the letter:
I would say that it is rather unimpressive that Susan Hays could only find four Dallas County elected officials willing to go on the record stating their support for her. Furthermore, her backing from Rafael Anchia is unsurprising considering Hays' role in bringing forth a legal challenge to knock Anchia's Democratic primary opponent off the ballot. Valdez's support is unsurprising as well. After the election, Hays fired the executive director of the Dallas County Democratic Party, and hired Valdez's campaign manager to fill the job. More telling is who is NOT on the list (State Reps. Hodge, Alonzo, Davis, Jones, Giddings and Judges Adams, Montgomery, Garcia and Raggio). Needless to say, the meeting on Monday ought to provide some fireworks. Update: Former Dallas County Democratic Party Chair Bill Howell shares his thoughts on the matter over at Stout Dem Blog. Craddick, DeLay get more bad PRBy Byron LaMastersOliver Willis and The Raw Story have the scoop on a story by the National Journal that will report that Tom DeLay violated House rules:
Turning to Tom Craddick, Vince reported on Political State Report that Texas House Speaker Tom Craddick has been subpoenaed to testify in lawsuit against TRMPAC for their election activities in 2002. Kuff and The Daily DeLay have more. Ben Barnes / KBH Rumor DeniedBy Byron LaMastersI posted last week on rumors that Ben Barnes would be heading up "Democrats for Hutchison" in the 2006 Governor's race. Rick Perry vs. the World reports that both Barnes and KBH have denied the rumors with Barnes speculating that Perry was behind it. No surprise here - I failed to see the logic of how Ben Barnes could help KBH in a GOP primary, and it certainly would make sense if the story was floated by the Perry campaign as an attempt to tarnish KBH's GOP credentials. A Close Look at CD 23By Byron LaMastersI read Charles Kuffner's post on the looming primary fight in CD 28 (currently held by Henry Cuellar, previously held by Ciro Rodriguez, and eyed by State Rep. Richard Raymond). Kuff (among others) has pointed out that Richard Raymond should take a serious look at running in CD 23 which would be open if Henry Bonilla runs for the U.S. Senate. I started writing a comment, but an hour of typing and research later (yes, I'm a big dork), I developed a detailed analysis of Democratic chances in CD 23. The DPI (Democratic Performance Index) of CD 23 (based on 2002 data - pdf file) is 43.2, whereas the DPI of CD 28 is 58.9. That begs the question of how much can an intense voter persuasion campaign shift the DPI? I decided to take a look at the 2002 DPI of the six congressional races with well funded Democrats, and compare that with the 2004 election results. Here's what we get: Data District 1 (Sandlin) District 2 (Lampson) District 17 (Edwards) District 19 (Stenholm) District 22 (Morrison) District 32 (Frost) Analysis In four of six races, the Democratic candidate ran 7 points or better ahead of the DPI - the margin a Democrat would need in order to win in CD 23. A well-funded Democrat running an intense voter persuasion campaign has a real shot at winning an open CD 23 in 2006. However, several other factors should be considered as well. First, it is very probable that the DPI of CD 23 decreased in 2004. Webb County (Laredo) turned out very heavily for Tony Sanchez and the Democratic ticket in 2002. The turnout was only slightly higher and decidedly less Democratic in 2004: 2002 U. S. Senator 2002 Governor 2004 President/Vice-President The abortion issue obviously hurt John Kerry in Webb County with the high profile campaign in the Catholic Church made against Kerry. Webb County is overwhelmingly Hispanic and Catholic. Other down-ballot Democrats significantly outperformed Kerry: 2004 Railroad Commissioner 2004 Justice, Supreme Court, Place 9 2004 Judge, Court of Criminal Appeals Place 6 From these numbers it is clear that John Kerry’s performance is an anomaly, and that a generic Democrat can expect to receive a sizeable margin from the county. Hispanic candidates of any party run very well here. Perhaps most instructive is to look at the Supreme Court race where there were two White candidates. If Van Os’s total is what a generic Democrat can expect out of Webb County, then that would peg the DPI in the high sixties – still a nearly 20 point drop from 2002. Conclusions Even though only half of Webb County is in CD 23, the massive drop in Democratic performance in 2004 in the county severely reduces the DPI of the district as a whole. Finding the exact DPI of CD 23 in 2004 would take a bit of time and research, but one can reasonably conclude that the DPI decreased in 2004 from the 2002 DPI of 43.2. Another factor to consider is what kind of candidate would be best for Democrats to run in an open CD 23. Would someone like Richard Raymond – who took a very high profile and partisan role during the 2003 redistricting fight, be the best candidate to run in a GOP-leaning district? Should a more conservative candidate be recruited? The ideology of the candidate didn’t seem to make that big of a difference in the ability of a candidate to run a successful voter persuasion campaign. Martin Frost was a prominent member of the Democratic leadership for many years and had a voting record in the mainstream of the Democratic Party and still ran 8.3 points ahead of the DPI. On the other hand Blue Dog Max Sandlin ran only 0.7 ahead of the DPI. Conservatives Charlie Stenholm and Chet Edwards ran very successful voter persuasion campaigns as well. I would argue that the candidate mattered less than the campaign. Chet Edwards, Martin Frost, Charlie Stenholm and Richard Morrison all ran campaigns where swing voters were highly targeted and many GOP-leaning voters crossed over to vote for them. Looking at the tactics used by those campaigns should give us insight as to how those efforts could be replicated in a district such as CD 23. February 25, 2005SG: Fun with Facebook!By Karl-Thomas MusselmanNo, this has nothing to do with me and facebook, but rather, funny things I have found on Facebook related to SG. As far as group membership goes at this point... Connect: 425 That last group had a very clever picture which I've posted here. In addition, I found it slightly amusing that one of the few Connect "groupies" was none other than Jessica Rice, Ignite's Presidential Candidate. (being a group's groupie means you have x number of friends in that group but you aren't in it yourself). So all the connect supporters that log in to view their group page, see this most every time. (pop-up) And not to forget the SEC President Race!!! Voting Justin Burniske For Sec President: 1 (himself) I don't know how much this says about the SEC race momentum wise, but I would say that it seems like Mr. Grube is in a good position. Joy seems to be very popular in the gay community for some reason (must be our natural attraction to black women?) and Justin is winning in the "I have the most overexposed pictures of myself on my posters" category. (Does anyone else find those slighty disturbing besides me?) Equal TimeBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanFirst off, look for Daily Texan endorsements on all the student elections on Monday. The Texan editorial board issues it's own endorsement, separate from the panelists, though we'll be on our own page. (I'm looking forward to the 12 hours of interviews we have tomorrow, I kid you not!) After today's little scuffle noted in the Texan, both campaigns have since sent out e-mails to their listservs, so I have posted the relevent info in the extended entry. Oh, and Dusty Mangum, UT's hot Rose Bowl kick winning Kicker will be appearing at the Ignite Rally on Sunday 8 PM on the main mall. Daron Roberts, former SG president four years ago, will also be an invited guest according to one of the thousands of SG ticket related flyers I've run across this week. I've had no word yet on the level of 'campaign activites' that Connect will be hosting this weekend as I'm sure everyone is still sorting out today's ruling. So with that, to the extended entry! First, a short note from Ignite.
Fairly short, professional, and self-explanatory so I'll move on to Connect.
If anyone else has comments or a response that's in addition to what was already said in the last post, please post them. Connect Ticket Faces 2 Day BanBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanWhoa. This is huge. The Texan article explains it, but it seems the Connect ticket (which was challening my panel status yesterday) is now banned from campaigning entirely until elections start next Tuesday. And this is a result of new charges, not any of the ones filed last week from what I can gather. I've got class so I'll comment more later. February 24, 2005Questions Avoided, Constables Called at Hensarling Townhall MeetingBy Byron LaMastersThis morning U.S. Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Dallas) had a townhall meeting in Forney, TX (just east of Dallas in Kaufman County). For some reason, not one, but three Constables arrived at the peaceful town hall meeting of 25 after some tough Social Security questions were asked (which Hensarling did his best to avoid). Read the full story at 100 Monkeys Typing. Yay! Gannon/Guckert/whatever is Back!By Byron LaMastersHow cute. Gannon's website is back up ready to "battle the Left", while the Talon News website has taken a hiatus. Nothing like watching a few right-wingers give fuel to a story that would otherwise be dead or dying. Blogging Out Loud explains it in sexual terms, and of course, America Blog covers all the details. A Question of my Panel StatusBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanSubmitted in response to a charge against me by one of the tickets. As one of the Student Government involved students on the Daily Texan Panel, it would be irresponsible to state that myself, the two current SG Reps, or SG Executive member are blind to the individuals and personalties that this year's Student Election Tickets consist of. My work and experience with members of the Assembly and various Committees and Agencies has allowed me to become familiar with many of the candidates that are already running and view this as a strength for each of the SG involved students on this Panel. In regards to recent concerns made by one of the campaign's members with whom I've worked in the Assembly: Questions were asked about my membership in regards to particular "The Facebook" groups. My membership in these groups was made early in the campaign season as I was invited to join them and being one interested in the promotion of Student Government as an entity and Elections as a practice for democracy. Had I been invited to join any other related SG or SEC or Union Board or Co-op Board election groups I would have been more than happy to confirm them, especially due to their lower visibility. This follows with my philosophy of elections and is why I am in such groups like "If You are a City Council Election Ballot, I Will Fill You Out" and "I Love my Constable". Any such groups I have joined have been due to invitation only. To alleviate any such concerns over the "appearance of corruption", I have removed myself from all Election related groups, even those that are unrelated to tickets but may contain candidates. Being a panelist, I would rather have the option of being invited to all the groups in order to keep up with campaign news and activities to make a more informed decision. In fact, I have been on the Connect campaign listserv a full week longer than the Ignite campaign listserv. I take making an informed vote seriously and less information makes that more difficult, but if either campaign has a problem with this action, they may remove me from their lists. As the University Democrats Webmaster, I am charged with notifying our membership of any endorsements made by the collective membership at endorsement meetings. My notification to the UDems members listserv of the body's vote to endorse Ignite and Grube for SEC president was made as part of my job description as outlined in the UDems constitution which is available on our website, www.udems.org. Nothing more, nothing less. I notified the two leaders of each campaign about this action before the vote was held, and such action would have been taken if UDems had decided to endorse Connect. As a blogger for the Burnt Orange Report, I have been covering SG politics since last August. My recent coverage of the SG campaign season is nothing new, as I reported on it last year as well. I notified both of the leaders of the campaigns of my coverage in that publication with the understanding that I would report and comment on the race, positive or negative for either ticket, and viewed coverage of SG politics and the promotion of the institution through that venue as nothing but beneficial to the Body as well as my readers, many of whom vote at UT. Neither side has responded with any complaints to this outlined statement. Every day this week I have been visiting the campaign tables, at both the West Mall and Jester. I have talked with various people from each ticket, about the SG election, as well as socially as I have friends campaigning for each ticket. I do not feel I have to explain my presence or conversation with any particular candidate or person and my presence spent at either table should not be taken or viewed as an endorsement of that particular campaign or platform. Knowing that the Panel will be spending MANY hours reviewing applications and interviewing people, I wished to get a bit of a leg up in advance so as not to have to scramble at the last minute developing opinions in one 24 hour period. As a result of the great deal of work and self-education and research I have made to date, I, as I am sure other active panelists, may hold certain leanings in particular individual contests, any of which are by no means set, as the next 2 days will see an explosive growth in our collective knowledge of this year's election. But this is not a result of any one of us trying to influence or "stack" the panel, but rather a natural result of being actively involved participants on par with the thousands of students who have educated themselves and joined a campaign to date. To have a Panel of 8 truly unbiased, independent, non-opinionated members would be nearly impossible to assemble- for any such people, at this point, would have to be so far out of the loop or anti-elections to begin with, that the recommendation of any such panel would be meaningless. I am sorry that my active involvement in this effort has been taken as an indication of subversion or impropriety. I will work to correct this misconception while working to produce an educated "bi-partisan" opinion in the Panel's efforts this weekend. Respectfully submitted, Our House, Is a Very, Very, Perry-fied HouseBy Jim DallasThe Houston Press has an article on Perry Homes' business practices, which is a bit one-sided because Perry wouldn't respond to the Press's questions. That said, the article makes clear that Perry Homes is, "by no means the worst home builder in Houston. In fact, building inspectors interviewed for this story described Perry's construction quality as slightly above average." In fact, it seems the only reason why they are even remarkable is that (1) they're one of the region's largest builders and (2) Bob Perry's political activities. And in the end, there almost seems to be a bit of a Greek tragedy involved in all this. Bob Perry (no relation to Rick Perry) has a great bio, at least from what we can gather from the public record. And as noted, heads a multi-million dollar respectable business. Why then would anyone think ill of him? The answer, I think, is two-fold. First, any major contributor to the GOP is pretty much persona non grata round this here blog, because we are, let's face it, given to partisanship and occasionally even outright hackery. That's the honest truth, and I don't see any sense in spinning that. But, secondly, and more importantly, there's a certain kind of arrogance that seems to underlie his company's policies. To wit:
Almost all home-builders, like most professionals, tend to believe that they should be treated with a higher standard. After all, they are crafting with their hands and skills and tools - from nothing! and at the most affordable price! - a new home in which families will grow, prosper, and live. And the result is that they tend to look at lawyers as deal-breakers and at regulators with disgust; who are they to tell the builder what to do and what not to do? Mix in that gut feeling with millions of dollars and the cultural over-the-top ostentatiousness of Houston and you've got a very explosive political situation. And let me emphasize the cultural aspect of this; the article does a wonderful job of doing so:
For the price of all the lawsuits and all the regulation, the consumer (in the long-run) ends up getting a higher-quality product. And as the article mentions, the cultural shift away from holding builders accountable (in the form of binding arbitration) is resulting in lower-quality work. And the creation of the TRCC (to give builders cover) will probably only make things worse. But that's only half the tragedy (albeit the one you and I will primarily be suffering through). Afterall, I called this a Greek tragedy, so there has to be a hero's downfall. Right? So what's the downfall? Bob Perry is the go-to man in Austin, a millionaire, and would appear to be living out his days relatively happy. The downfall is, I think, that Perry has a product that he wants to take pride in (after all, they do make a big deal about their attempts at quality control) - and takes too much pride in. And this isn't good for business. First, you lose business when half of Houston thinks you're a jerk. Second, the fact is that for every Perry home that falls apart, there are many, many more crap homes constructed by lower-quality contractors. Quite frankly, if I were in Bob Perry's position, I wouldn't be screaming for de-regulation. I'd be screaming for more regulation (1) because home-building is a bond of trust with the consumer and his family and God and America and apple pie, but also because (2) I'd stand to gain considerably from regulation which drives my inferior competitors into the ground. Really, as far as I can tell, all this business conservatism and shirking of responsibility is the result of bigotry: the soft bigotry of low expectations. And not just from El Cheapo Houston consumers. Bet He Misses Stenholm Now...By Andrew DobbsSaw this post on Kos today, about how Bush's Social Security package is starting to founder because of a complete unwillingness on the part of Democrats to back him up on the matter. Now, I have expressed an openness to the idea of Social Security choice in the past, and I still feel that way. But the opportunity to derail his administration like Republicans did to Clinton following his health care proposal is quite appealing. The sad thing for Bush and those of us who would like to see a reformed Social Security system is that it needn't be this way. One of his top allies in the effort to change Social Security was Charlie Stenholm. A solid Democrat who was nonetheless a conservative, Stenholm could be counted on as someone who would work with both sides of the aisle. He was and is a good man and was a great congressman, but Tom DeLay targeted him and George W. Bush worked to defeat him, campaigning with his opponent even though Bush needed to campaign in the Panhandle like Kerry needed to campaign in Berkeley- he had no possible chance of losing there. Stenholm would have stood with Bush on Social Security reform and would have brought several other Democrats over with him. Now that Tom DeLay's lust for power has gotten rid of him, Bush might just be sunk. The shortsightedness of this administration isn't just in its policy, but in its tactics. The desire for a single-party country with only a weak and meaningless opposition has rotted the soul of a party that used to boast men of vision and compassion. And with my party slowly selling its soul to the academic and European Left- a nihlistic group that sees America as the source of all the world's problems and sides with dictators over their own elected representatives- the GOP might just get their wish. America needs two strong parties that the people can trust, but this whole episode just goes to show that Bush has poisoned American politics in a way that we never could have foreseen. What is the Democratic Nomination for TX Guv Worth in 2006?By Byron LaMastersWin or lose, it is critical that Democrats unite to support a strong statewide ticket in 2006. I strongly discourage Democrats from voting in the 2006 Texas Republican primary with the goal of electing the "lesser of two evils". Even if Texas Democrats fail to win statewide in 2006 again, having a strong Democratic message with full backing of the rank-and-file that local candidates can embrace is critical to long-term Democratic efforts to take our state. To that effect, Chris Bell sends this to his email list today:
The rest after the jump...
Air America Radio Coming to AustinBy Byron LaMastersIt's about time! The Austin Chronicle reports:
I'm surprised it's taken this long to get liberal talk radio in Austin. Either Air America Radio or Ed Shultz would certainly do well here. After all, Travis County gave John Kerry a 50,000 vote victory (PDF file) - by far his largest margin in Texas, yet we still have all the right-wing quacks on our radio dial with no alternatives from our side. DeLay Raises $1,000,000 for Legal Defense, Gets Ethics Advice from GingrichBy Byron LaMastersRichard Morrison tells us what Tom DeLay has been up to recently:
Speaking of Tom DeLay and ethics, he couldn't be asking a more qualified guy for advice:
Wow. Newt Gingrich is making sense. Maybe I should buy his book, or perhaps I should just let the House GOP self-destruct from their over-indulgence in corruption and complete mockery of ethics. Raymond and Cuellar Trade Barbs on Social SecurityBy Byron LaMastersI guess you could call this the opening shot of the likely 2006 primary between CD 28 U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Laredo) and State Rep. Richard Raymond (D-Laredo). The San Antonio Express-News reports:
For a minute, I thought that I needed to send Josh Marshall an email about another potential member of the "fainthearted faction" of Democrats supporting the Bush privatization plan. Alas, Cuellar's on the record opposing Bush (although, by being the only Texas Democratic congressman not to sign Raymond's resolution, he only makes it more of an issue, which makes little sense). Here's what Cuellar said to the Express-News:
The primary ought to be interesting to watch. Bill White Really Is PopularBy Jim DallasI went to the HCYD meeting last night because I figured it was about time to start getting involved in city and county politics around here, something I've been delinquent at. Conversation arose regarding the November city elections, which, to be sure, I've been sorely ignorant of. I was somewhat surprised and skeptical to hear that Bill White was really very popular. First, going through the last two national and state cycles has taught me to be very wary of be overenthusiastic. Second, the city has gone through a couple of debacles recently (most notably, SafeClear). So I wake up this morning to find two things. First, it's raining cats and dogs. Second, that HCRP chair Jared Woodfill may need to change his undergarments:
There hasn't been any polling recently (the last poll had White's approval at 76 percent, but a Rice University prof estimates its fallen since then). But when even Michael Berry has nice things to say, I think it's fair to guess that White is cruising towards re-election. UDs Endorse Ignite for SG / Grube for SECBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanAt tonight's University Democrats meeting, the membership voted to endorse in campus elections. Student Government Student Events Center The top three candidates were closely bunched, reflecting the otherwise "non-stand outish-ness" of any particular candidate in regards to UDems. In the Run-off, John Grube went from being one net vote behind Justin, to one net vote ahead, and won the endorsement of the University Democrats. Who says one vote never counted. The announcement of UDems endorsements has been sent out to the 1600 people on our listserv. I will not announce my personal choice for the SEC race as I believe those of us on the Daily Texan endorsement panel (yes, I'm on it) will also be reviewing the SEC candidates this weekend along with all those on the SG tickets. Grits for Breakfast Wins Best Single Issue Blog AwardBy Byron LaMastersCongrats to Grits for Breakfast - a local Austin blog focused on Texas Criminal Justice System for winning the highly prestigious Koufax Award for "Best Single Issue" blog. Congrats to all the other winners as well. Mitt in 2008?By Karl-Thomas MusselmanNot with his flip-flopping on Gay Marriage, Civil Unions, and Constitutional Amendments. Best quote in reponse to his changing position?
Nice. Bill in 2008?By Karl-Thomas MusselmanNo, not Clinton, but I wouldn't be shocked to see Bill Richardson (current Gov of New Mexico) take a stab at a run. I've had my eye on him, and Western Democrat has an interesting find as to his Foreign Policy cred. February 23, 2005Most Humorous BlogBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanThe Koufax Bloggin awards are out, and in the most humorous category we get Jesus' General, who brings us this most wonderful cartoon which by far beats the anti-AARP ad. AhahahahahhaBy Jim DallasAccording to a New York Times poll, Hillary Clinton has a net approval rating of 9 points - among New York Republicans. Her overall net has risen to 70 percent, roughly comparable to Kay Bailey Hutchison's numbers in Texas. Maybe Hillary '08 wouldn't be the disaster I've feared. Moreover, the professional scam artists on the GOP side have pretty much used up all their ammo, and could very well end up looking like petty fools. If HRC could potentially replicate this success outside of New York... which is, admittedly, a little different... then I think I will have to seriously reconsider my Hillary position. Everlasting Kitching ApplianceBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanThe Lasso (Statesman Blog) has the scoop on the Fridge that won't die. Kelo v. New London Calling: Eminent Domain... F*** Yeah!By Jim DallasThere's nothing we love over here at Burnt Orange Report more than our rights to life, liberty, and property. Especially property. Especially if said property is the last bottle of beer in the cooler. While I can't speak for my Burnt brethren, I've been following the Kelo case (1 | 2) with great interest, and not merely because it could potentially make everything I'm learning in Property about "public use" obsolete. Oral arguments were yesterday, and the inimitable Dahlia Lithwick writes up the whole story in Slate. SCOTUSblog reports that the city of New London will probably win this one... big... and governments everywhere will have unbridled authority to turn your living room into a Wal-Mart. But, thankfully, the American Prospect pitches an idea to use all of this awesome power for good instead of evil. At least until the administrating agency is captured by the pharmaceutical industry:
I had this idea about a month ago, but I thought it was too crazy to even consider asking the Prof about (and after all, I'm supposed to be learning about real property, not intellectual property). Maybe my initial gut feeling was right -- it's so crazy, it might just work. Remember, the number one top reason why drugs are so expensive is because the government aids and abets the monopolistic instincts of Big Pharma. A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Blog CommentsBy Jim DallasA surreal thing happened today in the blogosphere. I can't really describe it, so just read these two posts: First. Second. Look, ever since the beginning of politics and journalism (the second and third oldest professions, respectively), there have been hierarchies which has tended to disregard input from the bottom ranks since the folks at the top tend to generate much, much more noise. That isn't to say that it's purely a power relationship; there's a rational reason why the top dogs get to the top. Still, the stratification of power tends to have a rather suppressive tendency. And when issues of concern do wind their way up the food-chain, it's usually in a highly-digested form (with credit not always going to where it is due). I guess it was only a matter of time before this latest experiment in dot-communism eventually resulted in such blow-ups. That said, some forms of organization are considerably more permissive of bottom-up percolation. Bets may now be placed on how long, if ever, the blogosphere will take to organize itself into an optimal information-synthesizing institution. February 22, 2005The Real AARP - DFA RespondsBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanThere has been a bit of discussion across the blogs about the upcoming attack on AARP by the old Swifties for Truth crew with their otherwise ridiculous ad. On of the main concerns is that that Democratic Party won't tackle it head on (like Kerry let the Swifties go). Well, I'm glad to see that Democracy for America has raised the issue to their membership (meaning that the DNC isn't far behind I would imagine, with Chairman Dean being there now :).
So if you want, sign the DFA petition. Campus Election LinksBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanStudent Government Campaigns Student Events Center President I forgot to mention the other day that the Ignite ticket has already 'won' one seat in the assembly due to Connect's Engineering candidate Melvin Ike being removed last week for some unknown reason. Today's News in the Guv RaceBy Byron LaMastersChris Bell, who is exploring a run for governor sent out this email today about HB 23, a bi-partisan proposal to end credit scoring.
More at Texas Watch, the Brownsville Herald, Blue Texas and Greg's Opinion. On the other side, Governor Rick Perry announced his Harris County Steering Committee via the Quorum Report. The list includes the following elected officials:
Spreading FirefoxBy Byron LaMastersKarl-Thomas and I were chatting last night while we were working on posts, and we made an observation. While using Internet Explorer, Karl-Thomas noticed that some links on BOR were opening slowly and/or incorrectly. On the other hand, I was using Firefox and had no trouble with the links in question. So, he tried opening the links on Firefox, and I tried opening the links on IE, and sure enough Karl-Thomas had no trouble with the files on Firefox, while I experienced the slowness of opening the files on IE. I've been using Firefox as my Internet browser almost exclusively since the beginning of the year, and I would highly recommend it to all of our readers. Firefox blocks more spam / pop-up ads than IE, downloading files is more user-friendly with Firefox, and as someone who almost always multitasks while online, I find the tabbing feature of Firefox to be very useful. Finally, I've noticed that many websites - including BOR run faster with Firefox. I must say that I'm surprised that 30% of BOR readers already use Firefox 1.0. That's quite impressive considering that Firefox 1.0 launched barely three months ago. Already, Firefox has attained nearly a 5% market share. It makes sense that blogs would show Firefox with a larger browser share as blog readers are more tech-savvy than your average Internet user. I think that BOR's focus as a UT-student based political blog gives us a younger audience than others - also increasing our Firefox share. Here's the Firefox Share of some other blogs I read frequently (although these numbers seem to vary by a few points either way each time I reload): Off the Kuff - 15% Anyway, I would certainly encourage all of you to get Firefox (it's free) if you haven't yet:
Gannon Song!By Karl-Thomas MusselmanWonkette discovers a music tribute to our favorite White House pimp. What would we do without the blogosphere? Some Texas Blogs I've found RecentlyBy Byron LaMastersRio Grande Valley Politics and Dos Centavos... Richard Raymond StatementBy Byron LaMastersSeveral days ago, we reported that Richard Raymond was planning a run for Congress in CD 28. Yesterday, Raymond issued the following statement:
SG Campaign Misconduct?By Karl-Thomas MusselmanSay it ain't so! Part of the annual tradition of Student Government campaigns is to try to one-up your opponent when it comes to legal charges, which can result in opposing campaigns losing the right to campaign or at worst, removing candidates from the election. Ignite has UDems Vice President Ali Puente as their legal point person (who learned a heck of a lot last year when she worked for RepreZent). I don't know who Connect's legal person is, but Ali is formidable. Last year the Focus ticket did a fairly good job at disgracing the RepreZent campaign in the Daily Texan thanks to the actions of our very own Andrew Dobbs, which of course were blown out of proportion but such is the nature of the beast. But it was effective in lining up internal SG support at the time and killing the little momentum that RepreZent had. This year, it seems that the first wave of effective 'misconduct' charges are against the CONNECT ticket according to today's Texan coverage. My commentary is in between...
Ok, names on chalkboards are pretty silly, but it is important to note that the first day of elections is March 1, not March 2 as well as the fact that not being able to campaign in a building on election day is significant. Since campaigns usually set up mobile voting centers in building on election days (online voting on laptops), giving turf to the other campaign gives a point to Ignite in this case.
Besides the use of a double negative in that quote, this is the kind of actions that turns people off. And as far as I know, no one is using true "A-frames" but rather big boards that lean, as you can see from Connect's pictures or Ignite's pictures. I can only guess that this is an Election Code wording argument. Regardless, having any of your supporters destroy large scale campaign signs in West Campus should not be acceptable, I don't care what campaign you are. If I was CONNECT I wouldn't be arguing about the definition of "is" when I should be condemning any such destructive actions. I believe this is the most visible and potentially damaging of the allegations in this article to regular Daily Texan readers because it's not something that could be accidental like chalkboards or signs on kiosks or something, which can be forgiven.
I happen to believe in proper and honest reporting of campaign expenditures. After digging around in Texas Ethics Commission data last fall, I believe that if you are going to go ahead and allow in-kind gifts of any kind, they should at least be made clear and reported. So if Ignite was trying to cover anything here, shame. Chris Kennedy has some thoughts on that. At the same time, hacking someone's website, if true, is petty and shows bad taste. And so I will take this opportunity to comment on their websites. Ignite's is very professional, like their signs, and many of their candidates in my opinion. It would help if they could have duplicated their campaign logo online as well. CONNECT's has gotten better over the past week, but when first launched was more reminiscent of a student council campaign quality operation. And that Lime Green and Blue color scheme, ouch. I'll agree with Chris Kennedy on that one in saying it hurts my eyes. And Chris has website recommendations you can read! I'll skip the Texan's comments on whisper campaigns because unless someone's going to say what's being whispered, I've got nothing to say.
If this is the best charge that Connect can lob at Ignite (other than the website reporting) then Ignite is either running a clean campaign or Connect is lacking the legal or public relations team to put charges forward. Since I doubt it is the latter, I'll argue the first until proven otherwise. But if we are going to make an issue out of campaign signs in dorms (which I wouldn't have had a clue about had it not been for this article) then it makes me wonder about the legality of the three CONNECT signs that are posted on boards in hallways here in the Honors Dorms (two of which are not even close to being near actual student living quarters). So I took pictures, which you can see here, here, and here. In short, I would agree with Chris Kennedy that coming into this, Connect has the advantage from an organizational standpoint. With the support of FLO (Freshman Leadership Organization), the production line for SG candidates and volunteers in past elections, Connect does have an advantage in visibility. But today’s Texan article takes some wind out of their sails, giving Ignite their first ‘real’ opening, since neither side won any points with the Texan coverage of the platforms yesterday. I agree that the platforms are not going to move many votes, and this election will be won on personality, turnout, endorsements, and social networks. Trivia!By Jim DallasDown in the comments of an earlier post, I was called on referring to Gary Polland as a "big whig"; apparently the correct spelling is "big wig." Only it turns out that in my crazy over-stuffed mind, I managed to accidentally correct a linguistic fluke:
Only it also turns out that there is another interpretation!
So there you have it. Two perfectly plausible explanations. Although for the second there appears to be quite a bit of confusion over when the term arose, although it would have been at some time during the 18th century. Incidentally, one suggested origin for the word "Whig" is that it meant "country bumpkin" in the 17th century. This being Texas and all, maybe "big whig" is more appropriate after all? At any rate, I think there seems to be a pretty settled etymology for "O.K." Incidentally, it appears that it originated as a slur against Andrew Jackson by... the Whigs:
Watering the GrassBy Jim DallasChris Bowers of MyDD wins the Dallas Award For Best Use of The Word "Ontological" with this post. I adhere to the theory that each individual voter is cross-pressured, and has many different components of his/her identity that are politically relevant. Engaging different voters involves hitting them in the right identity "sweet spot." Taking a one-size fits all mentality runs the risk of swinging... and missing, like the Iowa Perfect Storm did. These "network" theories of organizing are interesting to me. Fact: for most Americans, politics is intrusive and disruptive. That's why it used to be good manners not to talk about politics in mixed company. Now that it's all too easy for voters to simply turn the channel (mentally speaking), expanding our campaigns is going to be necessary. One concern, though, is how far you want to take this. If it's done ham-handedly, it'll come off as oafish. If it's done too effectively, people will worry that the traditional seperation of the public and private sphere that we value in a liberal society such as ours has been breached. Chris titles his post "How Democrats Can Seize The New Civic Space." The problem is that "civic space" is a very blurry concept to begin with, and any attempt to replace the traditional institutions which have defined "political space" with ones that extend politics into "civic space" (one which, while still conceivably in the public sphere, is considerably more intimate) inevitably will step on some toes. Anyway, this is probably the future of politics; the subversion of the Democratic Party as an institutional hierarchy and a new reality of the party as a community of communities. Get used to it. On second thought, I'm wondering why I thought this was all so revolutionary: there's a far-left-wing wannabe-academic inside of me that's screaming that this is more confirmation of the effects of late capitalism or post-modernism or whatever. On third thought, I am reminded that, even after stumbling across some nutshell summaries of Habermas's Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere years ago, I have yet to get around to checking out a copy from the liberary and attempting to read it. I'm probably not smart enough to understand it, but it might help me pick up hot dates. February 21, 2005Ben Barnes to Join the KBH Campaign Effort?By Byron LaMastersSave Texas Reps reports:
I don't particularly see the logic in this on either side. I don't see how the support of Ben Barnes helps Kay Bailey Hutchison in a Republican primary, and it certainly doesn't help Ben Barnes in Democratic circles. Some Democrats are likely to vote in the Perry/Hutchison primary race, but I for one, will strongly urge Democrats to not participate in the 2006 GOP primary. Greg offers up some thoughts that I'm inclined to agree with. Sarah reminds us that KBH is no moderate. Compared to her Senate counterparts Phil Gramm then John Cornyn, yes, KHB is a relative moderate. But a relative moderate in the Texas Republican Party is still a right-winger on the national political spectrum. On the other hand Rick Perry vs. the World reports receiving this information via email:
We'll see how this all sorts out sooner or later, I suppose. Goldilockboxes and the three barsBy Jim DallasMatt Yglesias:
We know that Matt is a Harvard Man and a member of the coastal illuminati... etc., etc., but yes, Matt, you will. It was only four years ago, after all, that the Texas Republican Party endorsed abolishing the Federal Reserve and going back to the gold standard. You're going to have to explain this slowly and clearly, just so that reasonable people can understand just how insane that is. (The TxGOP has since moderated the language to "audits" of the Federal Reserve). P.S. Gary Polland, who is a big whig and former county chair here in Houston, still adamantly supports returning the gold standard. Party like it's 1899! "Makeover" Proposed For Corporate Campaign Giving LawsBy Vince LeibowitzA bi-partisan bill to prevent union and corporate money from being used in attack ads launched within 60 days of a general election--and require the disclosure of contributors to last-minute attacks--has recieved a warm welcome from watchdog groups but a lukewarm reception from some state officials, the Houston Chronicle reports. The measure is sponsored by Rep. Craig Eiland (D-Galveston) and Rep. Todd Smith (R-Bedford), who say the bill will bring Texas law more in harmony with federal election laws. The Chronicle notes Campaigns for People, Public Citizen, the AARP of Texas and other groups are already on record praising the proposal, including a lobbyist for the Baptist General Convention of Texas. [I had no idea the Baptist General Convention of Texas had lobbyists.] The Chron notes:
On a particularly interesting note, Smith says the legislation will cover the various types of ads aired in the Senate District 1 Special Election last spring, in which Rep. Tommy Merritt (R-Longview) was targeted as he ran against former Tyler Mayor and now State Senator Kevin Eltife (R-Tyler). Merritt was attacked with "radio ads before the election from undisclosed corporate funds, Smith said. The ads asked listeners to call Merritt's office, not to vote against him." Twenty-six other states have a ban on corporate and union campaign spending, Eiland said. Though Texas has one, the lawmakers evidently believe it needs clarification, though they aren't trying to impact or comment on a Travis County grand jury investigation into campaign spending in 2002 state legislative races and that their proposed law would only affect future elections. Prosecutors are examining whether $2.5 million in corporate money was illegally funneled to Republican state House candidates. Under the proposed legislation, non-administrative employees of companies could not be asked more than twice a year about donating to a corporation's political action committee. Also, corporate money for PACs could be used only for specific administrative expenses, such as office space, computers and telephones. Disallowed expenses would include political consulting fees, telephone banks and political fundraising--some of the areas Texans for a Republican Majority tried to claim were "administrative" during the 2002 election. The bill got mixed reception from the leadership in both chambers and from Perry. House Speaker Tom Craddick (R-Midland, said he wasn't supporting or opposing the campaign finance bill. However, he said he believes there are problems with interpretations of the existing law. Sen. Juan "Chuy" Hinojosa (D-McAllen) and Sen. Robert Duncan (R-Lubbock) are backing the proposal in the Senate, ahtough Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst said he doesn't think a tightened ban on corporate and labor spending is needed. And, even if the bill passes, Governor Perry could veto it. Perry spokesman Robert Black said the governor will take a "wait-and-see approach," but that he has always favored increased campaign disclosure. Count Us InBy Jim DallasI think I speak for everyone here when I concur heartily with Kuff in endorsing the Count Every Vote Act. (That said, we might not all agree in endorsing Senator Clinton in 2008; but this is now and that is then.) Man of the House; How EmbarrassingBy Zach NeumannI don’t know if any of you have been following this, but on Friday the Burnt Orange is going to be looking pretty bad. Why you ask? Because the administration decided that it would be in the best interests of the University to allow Tommy Lee Jones and Cedric the Entertainer to film a movie centered around the UT cheerleading squad. Though I haven’t done much plot research, I get the impression that the story is as follows: 1. UT cheerleaders witness a crime (a murder I think) 2. They are being threatened because they are witnesses 3. A gruff, yet kind hearted Tommy Lee Jones is assigned to protect them 4. Hilarity ensues. I know this provides publicity for UT, but at what cost? When Will Joe Nixon Learn To Shut Up?By Vince LeibowitzRemember Joe Nixon? One of Texas Monthly's "Worst Legislators" of the 2003 session? Well, he's at it again. In spite of all of the flack he took for his own mold-settlement boondoggle, Moldy Joe is singing the praises of Texas' tort reform in the bastion of unbiased reporting on the insurance community, Insurance Journal:
In what state do you live, Joe? How do you prove patients are "experiencing better access to healthcare? If physicians and hospitals are saving so much money because of tort reform, why don't you challenge them to take care of the 150,000 kids you kicked off the Children's Health Insurance Program for free? Surely, if they are experiencing such massive savings ($20 million for one hospital system?--read on), they should be able to do some charity work and help all the kids you, Arlene Wholgemuth and the rest of the anti-tax, anti-consumer, anti-poor people legislative crowd screwed, right? Or, perhaps, they should save that money for campaign contributions? Also, I haven't heard a single doctor talk about lower liability costs until I read this industry propaganda. Why? Because, even though the amount paid out by insurers in settlements remained roughly the same from year to year (and there are statistics to prove this, I just can't find them on the web at the moment), they raised their rates anyway. Why? To make a profit. The need for "tort reform," was all smoke and mirrors built on one industry's flimsy excuses! Yet, you continue to note:
Where did you get them stats, Joe? Maybe you got them from the Texas Department of Health (or whatever agency it's now under thanks to you and your buddies wonderful government reorganization back in '03). I couldn't find them. And, if these are official state stats, how do you know these aren't recent medical school grads from right here in Texas? Surely all these people didn't come to Texas to practice just because of Prop 12? The article continues spewing forth:
Ohhh! Five Percent! I'm positively giddy with the thought that my dad's urologist can buy a new coffee table for his waiting room with such massive savings! As for the other stuff, where do you get these stats? I've read many a "Texas Judicial System Annual Review" report over the years, and never once did I see a line item for "suits against doctors." Also, how in the hell do you figure that doctors "won" 85 percent of the suits against them? Did you just make this stuff up? Did you personally go to all 254 county courthouses in Texas and research this? Or are you just borrowing your stats from whatever lobbyist happens to be standing in the corridor when you leave the Capitol restroom holding a shiny binder? Furthermore, if the medical community won 85 percent of suits after Prop 12, they'd have likely won 85 percent before Prop 12, meaning there was no need for Prop 12 in the first place. If anything, the suits that were filed and made it to trial under the farce you call tort reform would have been more air-tight than anything filed before. Finally, could it be, if you are indeed correct about the reduction in number of lawsuits being filed, that more people are settling out of court before ever filing lawsuits? Sure, that may mean there are less lawsuits, but not less money going out the door for insurance companies. And still more:
You said it. Seldom is legislation successful. Just because these people talked a big game before the Holy Civil Practicies and Remedies Committee does not mean they're actually going to do what they said. Oh, and, by the way, if they don't, what are you going to do? Is "contempt of legislative committee" an offense in Texas? Southern StrategyBy Vince LeibowitzThe New Orleans Times-Picayune has an interesting article regarding Democratic party strategy and the South. In particular, the article focuses on the desire of some Democrats to "write off" much of the South entirely. The article notes:
I think Dean's right about alignment of beliefs, but the people don't know it. Clearly, since the South is ripe with poverty, unemployment, and with states generally regarded as being some of those usually considered "near the bottom," in areas like healthcare, education, and what not, the average voter should realize that his or her beliefs, wants and needs are most clearly aligned with or will most likely be met by the Democratic Party. However, the "3 Gs," (gays, guns, God--not necessarily in that order) tend to shift those people over to the R's column on election day. And, he's right about people voting Democrat "if we knock on their doors." During the last election cycle, heavily Republican Smith County had more than 3,000 new Democratic voters for president than in the previous cycle--likely thanks to serious "knock and drag," efforts by the Congressional campaign of Max Sandlin--which I believe clearly had a role in the number of "up ballot" Democratic votes cast. As for Bush winning 85 percent of the Southern counties, those stats are a little skewed. I'm not sure how many counties Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Virginia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, and the other Southern states have a piece, but Texas probably has at least one quarter--or perhaps more--of all the counties in the South within its borders. With this being the home state of Bush, it's no surprise that many of our counties went Bush. So, that "85 percent," stat is probably a little misleading. And, even in the President's home state, we had counties like Hays County which made tremendous gains and Rockwall County--a huge GOP stronghold which also made good gains in terms of numbers of new Democratic voters over 2000. The article continues:
Though the "36 House seats and 11 State Senate seats," sounds pretty dire, Texas alone lost at least half that number of house seats in 2002, after redistricting. Plus, he's made no allowances for competitive races--like several we had in Texas but didn't result in Democratic victories. And, there is no mention that in the GOP stronghold of Texas, we actually gained more seats (one) in the House than we have in more than a decade. Schaller also doesn't evidently turn his eye to some statewide races in which Democrats were competitive (and perhaps more competitive than they were in recent years) even though they didn't win. Too, in Texas, in races that could and should have been much closer like the Glaze/Hughes race in HD 5, where "independent voters" who would have voted for Bush but for downballot Dems like Sandlin, Nickerson or Hughes, we had the GOP sending out mailers coupling their GOP opponents with President Bush and intimating that if a voter was voting for Bush, they should also be voting for the other guys with their smiling faces right along his. If a marketing study were done on this, you'd better believe this does alter voting patterns. As for "folding our tents and abandoning the South," that's a pretty dumb idea--and certainly not a way to regain control of statehouses, much less put Southern electoral votes in the Democratic column come November, 2008. The entire reason the South is in the shape it is in is because the national party--though it didn't fold its tent, did evidently put up a big "out to lunch" sign, resulting in us being written off when it comes to national campaigns. Remember that national campaigns often generate the momentum necessary to win or make competitive down-ballot races. When Southern Democrats know that their vote in a Presidential election has no impact whatsoever, there is at least some desire among a select portion of the voting age populous not to bother to go to the polls at all. Too, keep in mind that (at least in my experience), most people who are going to vote for a Democrat for President in the South are going to vote a straight Democratic ticket. More:
I'm not sure how the "Party of the South" argument would really work, and I'm not sure it's worth a try, either. The good folks who go to the honky-tonk on Saturday and then sit in a Baptist church on Sunday morning are so easily brainwashed with "moral" issues (abortion, etc.) that we could do everything possible to point Republican hypocricies (and, by the way, using "the GOP voted against Civil Rights" as a "wedge issue" in the South is still about 15 years ahead of its time--the generation who wouldn't vote for Ron Kirk because he's black and Tony Sanchez because he was Latino is still alive) and still not come out ahead. Until we're able to reframe the debate on abortion and the "Three G's," and discipline our candidates from the top down to deliver the party's message consistently in that regard, we could have some trouble. Reframing the debate--especially over abortion--is essential to our survival in the South. The debate has to shift from "baby killers" vs. "The Godly Saints of Christianity" to "government telling you what you can and cannot do with your own body" vs. "the people who think they know what's best for your uterus". And, this is where Democrats--especially in Texas and at all levels--fail miserably. Dozens of Democrat I've heard on the stump or in a debate have botched questions about this that they should have been able to answer better. Instead of answering with a "it is not the government's place to decide what's best for a woman, period," they go into long, drawn-out, spiels about "I'm a Christian and I don't believe in abortion but..." and end with either a "if we make them illegal we'll have people in back alleys with coat hangers" argument, or a "that's what the Supreme Court says we've got to do, and I'll uphold the law if I'm elected," type argument. Both are no-gos, period. Too, far too many Democratic candidates want to get off the issue quickly and say something like, "What I want to focus on is all the kids without healthcare, etc.," while Republican candidates will use all of their alloted time talking about the evils of abortion. We look like we're running from a question where we should be standing our ground. It wouldn't hurt for us to point out that this isn't a "religious" issue, it's a constitutional issue. Anyway, more from the TP:
Makes sense, but I don't think that's all of it. I think message had more to do with it. And, inasmuch as I've become no fan of the DLC message of late (I guess I'm getting more liberal, if that's possible), I do think it was the message that put Clinton over the top. After all, though he may have been able to sing 100 hymns verse by vers sans a hymnal, Hillary, sadly, was no help to him here. She was bashed relentlessly, and not just for the infamous "cookies and tea" remark. And, likely as Teresa Heinz Kerry did to her husband, it cost Clinton votes. (Yes, no one likes to admit that a politician's spouse could cost him votes, but remember, sometimes voters do make up their minds based on strange things). More from the article:
What the hell is "values centrism?" Sounds like an herbal supplement you get at 7-11. Seriously, though, while some of that is perhaps appropriate (if we look at the country as a whole, the majority do fall in the "middle," and not necessarily on the far left or (we hope to God) on the far right. We've also done exactly what he said about guns. Clinton did it. It's already been done, and proven to work. But, do we go so far as selling out everything our party stands for to be adopt an attitude of "values centrism?" I think not. The Republican Party is a prime example of why such selling-out is a bad, bad idea. A lot of rank-and-file, non-radical-right-wing Republicans I talk to recall a time a few decades ago when their party focused on things like budgets and stuff, and not the fire-and-brimstone, Pat Robertson-esque garbage they're focusing on now. Why did they change? Because they knew playing on religious values would get them more voters. Should we change because we know it's going to get us more votes? The jury's still out on that one. Do we sacrifice to be able to serve, and ultimately do more good in the long run? I mean, Clinton ran on the DLC platform, and still did more good (and promoted liberal ideas after getting in office) than Reagan, Bush I, Bush II, and perhaps even Carter combined. After all, a lot of Democrats in Texas already do this by necessity. You run to the right of the middle and go to Austin or DC and come back with a voting record that gets you hammered come November because, by God, you voted your consience, your party and what's really best for the people you represent. Vince Leibowitz is County Chairman of the Democratic Party of Van Zandt County. SG/Senate Issues Again!By Karl-Thomas MusselmanI got the greatest letter today from SG President Brent Chaney, one of those so called "inside circle" memos that the Texan talked about last week. It is in regards to the Voting Student on the Board of Regents issue which was been discussed here and here before. The letter is awesome (Brent could be a blogger) and I suggest you read it in full if you like UT stuff. Hey Everyone, The last UT System Student Advisory Council Meeting was held on Friday and Saturday before making our recommendations at the May Board of Regents Meeting. It is important you know what happened because students were poorly represented again. Day One: I arrived Friday afternoon having already sent in the Voting Student Regent letter to all of the members receiving only an e-mail from Nick saying it looked good. The meeting had been going on for three hours and Nick [Staha, Senate of College Councils chair] still had not shown up leaving UT Austin represented by only me. I finally called him and he said he was sleeping. Nick came to the meeting only to block the letter from leaving his committee. I was glad I called to remind him of the meeting while he was sleeping. The current Chair and Advisor for UTSSAC moved the letter away from my committee and gave it to Nick’s committee. Of course I had a problem with this and protested, but they insisted citing that Nick’s committee had very few recommendations (They actually had the most recommendations). Nick’s committee dropped the letter. I was not allowed there or to have any say. Then nominations for next years UTSSAC exec begins. The UT Tyler President and I were nominated for Chair. Nick was nominated for Administrative Assistant and Vice Chair. The problem with two UT Austin students getting recommended is that next year there would be no new members from UT Austin because there can only be two representatives from each component school. I shared with Nick that I would resign if we both were elected because I believe there needs to be new blood on the council every year. He disagreed strongly and said we can both serve without a problem. Day Two: The time for voting comes and the Administrative Assistant on Exec calls for a secret vote. I challenge the secret vote on the grounds that one person should not be able to make that decision. The Chair conveniently had the page already turned in front of him and read the rule for me. A number of Student Body Presidents then made motions that the vote not be secret and the Chair ignored the motion due to the secret ballot papers already being passed around. There went accountability. Student Regent lost by a vote of 10-9 with one abstention with a secret ballot. It was sad to see the interests of students of our University and the system get thrown away by ridiculous arguments. Nick is quoted in today’s Texan citing the reason why he was against it that “Most that voted thought getting a student as a member on the board was a good idea but not for us to ask the regents to do something that was illegal” It is amazing how asking the Board of Regents to write a letter of support for a student being on the Board of Regents is illegal, but the tax-free textbook recommendation which pointed out certain bills that the Regents should support had nothing wrong with it. Nick is wrong. The elections for Exec happened next. Nick was also nominated for Chair. I was elected Chair and will serve the students of our System next year. UTSSAC will not have anymore secret ballots or misappropriated recommendations. If you have any questions about what happened please let me know. Students deserve better. For those wondering about a Voting Student Regent, this will not slow anything down. One student from our University will not ruin what everyone else believes in. The students of UT System are for a Voting Student Regent. UT Austin will continue to take the lead for student representation. I hope you all had a great weekend and as always please let me know if there is anything I can help with. Best, February 20, 2005Geez, those PowerLineBlog Republicans are real A**holesBy Byron LaMastersRead this and you'll see why. Update: I've been asked to note, via email, that the blogger in question, John Hinderaker has apologized for the email in this post here. It's clearly written to try and shift the blame back to his opponents on the left, but it's an apology nonetheless. NAES: 63 percent of Texas voters are not RepublicansBy Jim DallasState-by-state breakdowns of Party ID from the 2004 National Annenberg Election Survey. The Texas GOP did have a seven point advantage in party-ID, however. This is roughly equivalent to the distribution in Arizona or Indiana. Jerry Brown Has A Blog?By Vince LeibowitzI can't remember now how I stumbled across the link, but it seems that Oakland Mayor, former California Governor, and several-time Democratic Presidential Candidate Jerry Brown has a blog. It's a Typepad blog, is pretty plain-jane and only has two posts. But, it is interesting that public officials are taking to the Blogsphere. My question is why don't more elected officials have blogs? Maybe they should read this article on how blogs could be used to better inform their constituents. Of course, the problem with any elected official writing anything is that their staff usually will end up writing it for them. However, with Brown's blog, I thought surely he must have done it himself, or else it might have been a little more flashy. Even if written by "staff," blogging would be a good thing for the Texas Lege. Except for press releases and lots of stats, most of their websites are pretty useless. At least one Rep has already attempted to harness the power of blogs, Rep. Aaron Pena. I mean, seriously, if you've ever been in the gallery of the Texas House or Senate you know there is a lot of "down time," so to speak. So, why not sit there and send your constituents a little note about what you're doing, via blog. Or, heck, "liveblog" some of that lovely debate such as we witnessed in 2003 over tort reform. If I was in the lege, I'd tend to try to throw some humor into my blog, and would then probably get screwed come election time after the opponent's consultants sent out a mailer with what I wrote. For example, if I were in the House, I might write...
Well, I probably wouldn't blog anything quite like that (then again, maybe I would), but you get my point. By the way, all of that is fictious except the thing about the Blue Bell Ice Cream and the cell phone. My State Representative told me that about the Blue Bell a couple of years ago, and I thought it was neat. But, the stuff isn't free. I think they have to pay like a quarter for it or something. As for the cell phone thing, I saw it happen on the floor, but of the Senate, back in 2003 when I was on the floor where the "credentialed media" congregate during Van Zandt County Days. Seriously, though, who in the Blogsphere can't see the potential for the state of Texas buying a giant MT license package and letting every state-level elected official have a blog? Supreme Court Justices! Railroad Commissioners! The Speaker! Heck, MT might even give it to the state gratis just for all the publicity they'd get. Now, think what would happen if every member of the Lege had a web cam attached to those handy little laptops on their desk. Oohhh, the possibilities... Vince Leibowitz is County Chairman of the Democratic Party of Van Zandt County. February 19, 2005Sin Taxes & What You Could Buy With Your "Tax Relief"By Vince LeibowitzAn increased cigarette tax, one of the "ultimate sin taxes," Texas could impose to raise revenue for public school education, was the hot topic at the House Ways and Means Committee meeting Thursday. The proposed $1.00 per pack increase could bring in as much as $800 million in additional revenue per year. Naturally, folks on both sides of the issue liked up to testify:
Far be it for me to agree with the filthy cigarette lobby, but it seems they may be right: it's not a stable revenue source. Not only would the revenue from the tax go down as more Texans stop smoking, but revenue would also decrease in tough economic times when Texans have less disposable income to spend on the nicotine delivery devices of choice. And, on the subject of taxation, the El Paso Times had an interesting article which noted:
My question is, how do you consider $340 a year tax relief? Sure, in every single poll that comes along, everyone says they want "tax relief." But, let's be realistic (and I think may be making an argument of Ben Barnes' here, but couldn't find reference to where I thought it was online, so bear with my version of it): if Texans knew how little tax relief they'd actually recieve, and what good that money could do, wouldn't they just say "to hell with that?" Let's see. $340 dollars of tax relief. What can you do with that, especially when it's not really a savings you "see" in your pocket like your IRS refund? You could: •Pay part of your car/house payment, or all of it if you have cheap car payments, for one month. Of course, those are just some numbers I crunched on my handy calculator, so they aren't nearly as sophisticated as anything anti-tax advocates would use. I just thought it would be interesting to illustrate exactly what $340 could buy, since the figure was thrown out there. Jennifer Kim wins Firefighters EndorsementBy Byron LaMastersIt's not as big as the Central Labor Council endorsement of Gregg Knaupe, but the endorsement of Jennifer Kim by the Austin Association of Professional Firefighters gives her some momentum in the race. Medical Marijuana Bill has Bipartisan SupportBy Byron LaMastersThe Dallas Morning News reports:
Science and medicine are increasingly on the side of proponents of this bill and medical marijuana. Any bill that can get the support of ideological opposites such as Elliott Naishtat and Suzanna Gratia Hupp has a shot. We'll have to watch to progress of this bill. Smoking Petition / City Council PoliticsBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanThe Daily Texan Reports today that the Austin Smoking Ban Petition is on the edge of making on the ballot. The campaign filed 36,000 signatures, though not all of them counted, missing the mark and only hitting 33,438 of the 36,764 required signatures. Much of this is being supported by the various Health and Cancer groups and societies AMA, Texas Lung Assoc., etc. Now it is true that Austin political guru Glen Maxey has been aiding this campaign and usually gets petitions on the ballot when he tries. The problem this time was not that Glen didn't do it, but rather that Glen wasn't primarily in charge of getting the job done until late in the game. But I would not be surprised if he managed to pull another 3000 signatures out of the air this weekend (if he hasn't already collected them over the past week or so). So assuming, that, we head off into the debate over whether or not the City of Austin needs a stronger smoking ban like El Paso or New York City (heck, I think Fredericksburg's is close to being that tough). It's an issue that will split Liberals along personal freedom / public health lines and could very well play into the city council race. Ruminations have it that the Margot Clarke campaign could come out for it should it make it on the ballot (which wouldn't surprise me since Maxey's is one of her consultants and it would play well with her base turnout groups- Central and South Austin progressives). I'm already fairly sure that the Gregg Knaupe campaign will be against it considering Mr. Vice President of Public Affairs for the Texas Hospital Association's consulting group seems to be heading up the Anti-Ban forces. As one of the members of the new Travis County Hospital District Steering Committee, it must make things more difficult because there is a very convincing case for either side, which may be why candidates are hoping that it just doesn't make it on the ballot to begin with. Just as a side note, since it has been on my mind...and believe me, I'll write another City Council entry very soon about all the candidates so don't feel like I'm singling anyone out. It's just that the Knaupe campaign has been very aggressive in positioning itself and I wouldn't be surprised to see them in a runoff and they have a blog, so well, I spend some time on their site. Though I'm sure that working for the Texas Hospital Association is a nice plus on the résumé, and that Knaupe isn't tied to their political expenditures departments... but since I did a study last semester on Proposition 12 related PAC donations to the Texas Legislature following the 2002 election through 2003... HOSPAC (Texas Hospital Association PAC) Total Donations (House): $47,700 HOSPAC was one of the heavy hitters in the Pro-Prop 12 Coalition (with 4 of the 10 Democrats they donated to voting for the enabling legislation, HJR 3) which Travis County gave a 62% NO vote to. I mean, if it was my candidate, and most of the politically active people that vote in City Council elections are also the types that drag their butts out to vote in Constitutional Amendment elections, and maybe, just maybe associate the Texas Hospital Association with something bad rather than good.... I might stop mentioning it. Otherwise snarky bloggers will write posts like this. If you want the actual data I collected in reference to this, it is all available here in excel. Row Boat Veterans for TruthBy Jim Dallas
Steve Clemons, on his excellent Washington Note blog, noted a poll this week pitting president number 43 and president number 1:
Indeed it doesn't. Let's remember that George Washington was a big government tax-and-spend "elitist" flip-flopper who married a wealthy widow, who claims to have seen real combat. Sure, his supporters might try to claim he's likable and not boring, but what do they know? P.S. Seems like somebody beat me to this punchline. But they don't have my pictures of Hanoi George. February 18, 2005Richard Raymond Running for CongressBy Byron LaMastersState Rep. Aaron Peña (D-Edinburg) writes on his blog:
Via Latinos for Texas blog and Kuff. CD28 is currently represented by Henry Cuellar (D-Laredo) who defeated the incumbent Ciro Rodriguez (D-San Antonio) in the 2004 Democratic primary. The district changed dramatically in redistricting - changing from an urban Bexar County district to a district stretching from the urban areas of San Antonio and Laredo with rural counties in between. Cuellar won the contested election by a few hundred votes with a huge turnout out of Laredo, and a relatively low turnout out of San Antonio. Cuellar endorsed George W. Bush for President in 2000 and served as Secretary of State under Governor Rick Perry. I would support either Richard Raymond or Ciro Rodriguez in a primary against Cuellar. Raymond was one of the "Killer D" leaders in 2003 and previously ran for Land Commissioner, losing to David Dewhurst in 1998. Rodriguez formerly served as Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and had a strongly Democratic voting record in Congress. CD 28 is solidly Democratic. Perry Approval at 51%By Byron LaMastersWhich is the best it's been in three years! That makes sense to me - for the first time in about three years, Governor Perry has gone several months without saying or doing anything remarkably stupid. Congrats, Guv! I don't have the full poll, but here's what I've managed to dig out of several articles. The poll - a "survey of 1,000 adults was conducted Jan. 27-Feb. 14 by the Scripps Research Center and has a margin of error of 3 percentage points". President Bush: Approve 61%, Disapprove 33% That Jeff Gannon thing...By Byron LaMastersI finally decided that I should at least make a mention of the story that has taken the lefty blogosphere by storm this past week. For those that haven’t followed the story, here’s the Cliff’s Notes version. Jeff Gannon, the "White House Correspondent" for the right-wing news website Talon News asked President Bush a loaded softball question at his press conference last month (... how can you reach out to Senate Democrats when they have divorced themselves from reality?). The question prompted Democratic bloggers to investigate as to who exactly is Jeff Gannon, and what the heck is Talon News? Well, it turns out the Jeff Gannon’s real name was James Dale Guckert, Gannon is gay, owned the website hotmilitarystud.com among others, had profiles at several gay escort sites including an active one, and had dozens of nude pictures of himself taken for those profiles (details here). Also read the Washington Post story for an overview of the matter. Among articles written by Gannon include an October 2004 article entitled; "Kerry could become first gay president" – designed to demonstrate John Kerry’s pro-GLBT record in a highly unflattering manner to the conservative readers of Talon News. To me, there are two key issues at stake here... First, is of the hypocrisy of Jeff Gannon / James Guckert. It’s utterly disgusting that a closeted gay man (gay escort at that) used anti-gay scare tactics to advocate for the election of President Bush. I have mixed feelings about public outings of closeted gay people, and of delving into the personal lives of public figures in general. Gay public officials and opinion leaders who choose to remain closeted, but who do not take anti-gay positions, or use anti-gay scare tactics should have their privacy respected. However, complete hypocrites like Jeff Gannon should and ought to be exposed for what they are – Uncle Tom’s and whores. Second, and much more critically is the issue of how Jeff Gannon got access to the White House and to the president. On one level, I disagree to an extent with many others who have written on the topic. The fact that Gannon worked for a right-wing website, or wasn’t a true "reporter" doesn’t bother me too much on the surface. The media is evolving, and non-traditional sources of media are on the rise. I would one day like to see a media culture where the leaders of the blogosphere – both left and right – such as DailyKos, Atrios, PowerLineBlog and Instapundit would have the opportunity to ask questions of the president. The key issues should be balance, creditability and transparency. There should be relative ideological balance among people able to participate in presidential press conferences, those people should have creditability among their peers, and there should be full transparency to the public of who has access to the president. Unfortunately, there's much more to the story. Not only did Jeff Gannon use a pseudonym, but he received press credentials before becoming a reporter for Talon News. This is where the Bush administration must be held accountable. Does a reporter using a pseudonym approach the level of creditability expected of reporters that cover the president? What security measures and background checks were in place? How did a man not affiliated with ANY news organization receive access to the president and the president’s spokesman? Were Jeff Gannon and Talon News involved with the leaking of the identity of Valerie Plame? Was there any relationship between the White House and Jeff Gannon – financial or otherwise? With the recent revelations that the Bush administration paid reporters to promote their agenda, it is certainly reasonable to conclude that there might have been some sort of arrangement between the White House and Jeff Gannon. Democrats in Congress and the mainstream media must demand answers to these questions. A Gas Tax Increase?By Byron LaMastersThis Houston Chronicle article yesterday spurred quite a reaction among Texas blogs:
Kuff says that it's an "idea to consider", while Greg and Save Texas Reps are decidedly negative to the idea. Rick Perry vs. the World on the other hand, takes a look at the proposal in the context of the looming GOP primary for Governor, while In the Pink, Texas offers up a laugh. My two cents on the idea? Frankly, I think that increasing the gas tax is a good idea for Texas. Texas has by far the most highway mileage of any state in the country, so one might think that we'd have a high gas tax in order to maintain that structure - well, no. Texas 's twenty cent gas tax ranks us #36 in the nation. On the other hand the three other "megastates", New York, California and Florida rank first, third and eighth in their gas tax respectively ($0.392, $0.359, and $0.306). I generally oppose regressive taxation, but there's a very clear differentiation between gambling and a gas tax. Whereas gambling has negative social effects, a gas tax has positive ones. Higher taxes on gasoline discourage driving, encourage public transportation and carpooling, and reduce pollution and traffic congestion. Also, as far as regressive taxes go, a gasoline tax is less regressive than most. Low income people are more likely to use public transportation, whereas high-income folks are more likely to drive gas-guzzling SUVs. All in all, a gas tax increase wouldn't be my first choice, but of the options that have been seriously considered thus far, it's definitely one of the better ones. Greg Moses on Andy Taylor's Law LicenseBy Byron LaMastersGreg Moses of the Texas Civil Rights Review tells us that Andy Taylor's Law License Should be revoked:
Read the rest. February 17, 2005Something Stirs in MordorBy Jim DallasChris Elam informs us that Dark Lord Looks like Frodo failed... again. (It's an old UD joke). Hat Tip to Kevin at blogHouston. Social Conservatives and the Income TaxBy Andrew DobbsNote: Nothing I express here should be interpreted in any way to represent the views of the Texas Democratic Party, its chairman, staff, officers, executive committee or contractors. These are my views, and my views only. Thought I should put that up there because I'm about to grab onto the third rail of Texas politics- the income tax. Let's start out by laying out the things everyone agrees on. Texas schools need more money. Property taxes are too high on too many Texas families and with caps in place, there is no where local districts can turn for money. State taxes today do not give us enough to even maintain services, let alone add in new ones for education, child protective services, health care and so on. Even with changes in the franchise tax or some tinkering with property taxes, we won't have enough, so some other source of revenue will be needed. So those are the things people can agree on, and the controversy lies at what other revenue sources will be used. Right now the only thing that has been seriously offered up is expansion of casino gambling. House Speaker Pro Tem Sylvester Turner (DINO-Houston) has filed a bill that would allow VLTs (Video Lottery Terminals- a fancy word for slot machines) at horse tracks, greyhound tracks, Indian reservations and 9 "VLT Centers" (read: casinos) around the state. It was nice for one of Craddick's favorite Democrats to offer up this bill, as it gives Texas GOP Chairwoman Tina Benkiser the ability to bash the bill as a "corrupt Democrat scheme" even while the leaders of her party are pushing it through the lege. But gambling failed in the special session on school finance because a large part of the GOP is so intensely opposed to the idea- social conservatives see it as sinful. Now a large number of liberal Democrats are joining them as new studies on the state lottery find out that the poorest Texans are the most likely to play the numbers, making it what we told them in would be- a tax on the poor (and by we, I mean Democrats, not me as I was a child when the lottery was introduced). Anyways, gambling is not acceptable to social conservatives, but something's gotta give. Could this be the perfect opportunity to get some conservatives to jump on the income tax bandwagon? Liberal Democrats and socially conservative Republicans both oppose gambling, both want more money for education. Why shouldn't they both support an income tax? With it we could virtually eliminate the vast majority of local property taxes and taxpayers could take an extra half hour on their taxes to itemize and write off their state income taxes. In the end most taxpayers would actually see a pretty significant tax cut, even while we generate more money for the state. All this and no gambling? Almost sounds too good to be true, but it ain't. So why shouldn't the social conservatives jump on this bandwagon? Democrats could even offer to make it a flat tax rate and to perhaps consider a pilot voucher program for a decade, just to see what its effects were. Thanks to the Bullock Amendment it only takes a simple majority to get an income tax on the ballot for Texas voters. Between a handful of liberal, anti-gambling Democrats and conservative anti-gambling Republicans could we cobble enough votes together? With the promise of lower taxes and better services could we get enough voters to support the plan? Who knows... I doubt it would work in a million years as these GOPers would fear primary voters back at home. But with a little bit of courage and a whole lot of creativity we could solve a lot of our problems all at once. Just my two cents... Broken Clock Strikes Again!By Jim DallasWhen was the last time you heard Rick Perry and the American Prospect singing the same tune? Perry:
The American Prospect's Robert Kuttner (a liberal's liberal):
Is Rick Perry a big government liberal? Inquiring minds want to know! (Functioning minds, on the other hand, know that the answer is "no"; it's just that our nation's health care system is dysfunctional to the point of universal shock and awe. OK, universal except for the Bush administration.) Texas DNC Memer David Holmes on Mae Jackson, Baylor DemsBy Byron LaMastersMae Jackson was a true friend to all Democrats and a personal friend of mine. I first knew of her when my mother served with her on the Governor's Commission for Women under Mark White. Mae was always very active in Party politics in addition to all of her other activities. Year after year I sought her advice on just about everything I did in the Party. She was very wise and always able to cut through peripheral issues and take me to the heart of the matter if I was missing it. She chaired the committee where I was first elected to the DNC. Unfortunately, I missed her funeral yesterday. But tonight I went to I talked with them about working for Representative Hubert Vo, my service on the DNC and about issues facing the legislature. Representative Dunnam from Waco was there as was former Representative Mabry. The most exciting aspect of the event for me was the number of Young Democrats in attendance - there were about 15 Baylor Democrats there. They gave me a great shirt that I can't describe near as well as it speaks for itself.
David Holmes Daily Texan profiles Strama's First MonthBy Byron LaMastersIt's worth a read to see how Austin's freshman lawmaker has been spending his time in his first month at the lege. It's amusing that the one issue Strama has found success in finding a GOP co-author (Rep. Corbin Van Arsdale, R-Houston) is the resolution calling for the abolition of the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) for College Football. It worked for the Longhorns this year, but it's still a bad system that doesn't allow for the best teams in the country a shot at the national championship. Now, what the Texas legislature can do to change the BCS is beyond me, but it's nice to know that we can get bipartisan agreement on football, if nothing else. Speaking of Mark Strama, he was spotted at the 15th Street Starbucks by In the Pink, Texas last week. Geez, maybe if I'd spend more time at that Starucks, at the Texas Chili Parlor or at the Cloak Room, I might have politician sightings, too. February 16, 2005Poor Aggies, Part #3By Byron LaMastersThere's just nothing quite like completely beating the crap out of the Aggies. Fun times... it's just a shame that Adam Gracely didn't get a chance to play. Oh well, maybe next time.. Get Ready... It's SG Campaign SeasonBy Zach NeumannWell folks, it’s that time of year again. With Spring Break just around the corner, current and future SGers have taken to the West Mall to promote their respective candidacies. Bearing goofy one word names and generic t-shirts, it looks like another vanilla ice cream battle. To get election coverage started here on BOR, I have decided to review some of each campaign’s platform proposals. Hold your breath, it just gets better from here… Lets start with Ignite: Appoint a City Council Liaison: Wow, what a novel idea. Although Student Government already has a Citizen’s Affairs Committee that deals almost exclusively with the city government, it seems that Ignite wants to duplicate this. Moreover, many past SG presidents have appointed someone from the assembly to represent their interests to the city council in addition to the Citizen’s Affairs Committee. Create a Campus Safety Agency: You mean like the UTPD? Or maybe you’re referring to the APD? Even if the agency is going to “represent student” safety issues, it will still be duplicating pre existing committee structures. Student-friendly TA development: Creating a review process that better matches TAs with the students: What the hell does this mean? Maybe it means that TAs getting PhDs in a certain subject are matched with students in classes that are studying that very topic. What a radical idea… Improve the Parking Situation on Campus: Gee I’ve never heard an SG campaign propose anything like this before. While it pains me to say this, parking will never be substantially improved on campus until we have more parking spaces or a lot less people. On to Connect: Discount for Students with ID at Austin Movies and Restaurants: This is just lame. Are they going to achieve this through passing a resolution in the assembly? Or will this occur through lobbying local businesses? It doesn’t really matter as this idea does not address the serious problems that face students… (like tuition issues). Set Tuition Costs for 4 Year Periods: Though this is unfeasible (given the legislature’s disregard for higher ed. issues), I think it is an interesting and somewhat novel idea. It’s the first one I’ve seen so far on either website. Ensure Grades are Posted Online for Every Class Throughout Semester: This is impossible. Is the student government going to require tenured professors to post grades online? I doubt it. I could continue on, but I think I’ll stop for tonight. Though most of the ideas proposed (by both tickets) are fairly weak, my cursory reading of things indicates that Connect has a more significant agenda. While it is largely unachievable given the massive restraints on Student Government, at least they are trying to think big. Then again, one could argue that Ignite is just trying to be practical. Come on people now, smile on your brother...By Jim DallasIt appears that Sean Hannity has begun Stage Two of his "Piss Off The World" plan. (Alan Colmes could not be reached for comment.) Hat tip to DailyKOS reader WWGray. Where do you draw the line?By Byron LaMastersA question worth exploring came up in the comment thread of my post yesterday on a possible primary challenege to State Rep. Vilma Luna. I stated that I would support a primary challenge to Vilma Luna based on her vote for the redistricting bill in the 2003 session. Luna, along with Ron Wilson were the only House Democrats to support the Tom DeLay re-redistricting scheme. Luna is also a member of the Craddick House leadership team. She represents a reliably Democratic district, where a generic Democrat can expect to get at least 55-60% of the vote. Some commenters argue that she should be given no more of a pass than those Democrats who voted on other Republican bills such as the CHIP-cutting bill, etc. I argued that Luna voted for bills that cut CHIP as well - I disagree with her vote, and that of other Democrats on that issue, but I don't see that as grounds for defeat in a Democratic primary. Her position on the redistricting issue, however, is something that I find unforgivable. That vote not only ended the careers of SEVEN Democratic congressmen, but also chopped up my neighborhood in central Austin into three congressional districts, deprived the state of Texas of decades of seniority in Congress, and most likely will make it impossible for Democrats to regain a majority in Congress until the next redistricting cycle. That led commenter JW to ask this question:
Personally, I'm typically a proponent of the latter approach, because I find that usually - particularly considering the leadership tactics of the modern day Republican Party - those who "play the game" end up doing more to legitimize the opposition (Republicans) than they do in affecting positive legislation. Thus, in my opinion, the negative effects outweigh the positive ones. I would say that approach (a) offers a short term gain (i.e. crumbs of positive legislation), but a long-term loss (enabling and legitimizing a governing party that is not in our best interets). Whereas I would say approach (b) offers short term loss (less pork for your district or positive legislation), but is a long-term gain - as it allows to opposition to point out the abuses of power and corruption of the governing party in order to win elections - the tool that will ultimately change the equation. Anyway, I got to run, but let me know what you think... From the Department of "Revenue Enhancement"By Jim DallasPresident Bush, State of the Union address, two weeks ago:
Bush today (as reported by the AP):
Actually, this is not a truly awfuk policy flip-flop, but it perplexes me; if the solution is to tax the rich, then why not, you know, tax the rich? The current general revenue budget deficit... which could be laregely closed by repealing the President's tax cuts for the top one percent... is probably the single biggest threat to Social Security's long-term future right now. KBH is Runnin'....By Byron LaMastersFor something... The Dallas Morning News reports of a meeting over the weekend in Dallas:
I'm waiting for the anouncement... Via Rick Perry vs. the World. David Van Os and 2004By Byron LaMastersDavid Van Os has started a sort-of blog entitled A Fighting Democrat. He makes the following claim as to the election results of 2004:
I'll take Van Os's word for it on the first count, although the second claim certainly requires some investigation. Charles Kuffner, however, did investigate Van Os's former claim here. Kuff counts ten counties where Van Os won and Kerry/Edwards lost. Additionally, however, Kuff also finds 25 counties that Bob Scarborough (RR Com candidate) won that Van Os lost. I'm inclined to agree with Kuff's conclusion:
Ditto to that. Greg has thoughts on the matter as well. Taking A GambleBy Vince LeibowitzVia the Houston Chronicle, gambling interests have made $1.4 million in campaign donations in the last year to statewide and legislative candidates. No big surprise there, considering it's probably a foregone conclusion that gambling will play a big part in potential "solutions" to the school funding crisis. The Chron notes:
Guess Tina Benkiser forgot that Perry's flip-flopped on this issue, and that (duh!) he's recieved a truckload of cash fom Maxxam, as did Dewhurst. Or maybe, Ms. Benkiser though Maxxam PAC was the political action committee affiliated with the popular men's magazine. Or, maybe--and this is a novel idea--she's just blowing smoke and attempting to appeal to the party's far-right base. February 15, 2005Chris Bell Comes To TownBy Vince LeibowitzPotential candidate for governor Chris Bell came to Canton tonight for the monthly meeting of the Democratic Party of Van Zandt County. I had invited Chris to the Free State of Van Zandt last month, before his exploratory committee for governor went live, because of the notoriety he'd gained in Congress relating to his ethics complaint against U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Sugar Land). The visit was far more timely and important, however, because Chris' exploratory committee has garnered some recent press and, of course, a lot of interest in the BlogSphere. I was trying to take some photos during the speech, so I don't have any verbatim quotes to give BOR readers (plus, Chris said he was going to be talking to Byron L. soon, so I don't want to steal any of his thunder), but I can tell you he was well received. In particular, I felt that Chris had a good grasp on the issues facing Texas at the "state" level. A lot of times, I've found that Congressmen and ex-congressmen spend so much time dealing with federal problems that they aren't as well versed as they should be when they talk about state issues. Specifically, I was glad he addressed the school finance issue, and pointed out the hypocrisy of the Perry's flip-flopping on the issue of using gambling to fund public school education, and of course, the fact that gaming has helped fill Perry and other official's campaign coffers. He also mentioned the "revolving door" on Perry's office by which top-level staffers sign on with the office of the governor and then leave to pursue lucrative lobbying contracts, often hitting up their ex-bosses for support. I was particularly impressed that Chris said that Democrats don't need to shy away from the "morals" debate against Republicans. Using the popular phrase, "What Would Jesus Do," (WWJD) to illustrate some of the GOP's hypocritical stances, he noted, and I'm paraphrasing here, that it's far more likely that the WWJD thing to do wouldn't be to deprive 150,000 Texas children of healthcare. He provided a couple of other examples, but this is the first one that comes to mind. He's got a point. Republicans consistently preach "morals, morals, morals," with regard to a number of issues, but somehow think it's justified to balance the state budget on the backs of those who need government's protection and assistance the most--the poor, children, and the elderly. It's nice for Republicans to be able to say they "put prayer back in Texas public schools," but it's a sad day when those kids are praying for a hot meal, a decent place to live and healthcare. During the Q&A, Chris fielded several interesting questions. I asked Chris two things at once (like the typical ex-reporter I am, though I didn't intend to ask a double-question) and he was up to the sometimes challenging task of both remembering what both questions were and responding equally to both. I asked how he felt that many were calling him the "reform," candidate and what he thought the final outcome would be with regard to the redistricting lawsuits the U.S. Supreme Court sent back to the Fifth Circuit. Chris said that he's not bothered by the "reform candidate," moniker, but that people are already beginning to see that his candidacy is about more, because he is familiar with and has ideas to tackle some of the various problems facing the state. He also noted that, though all politicians make mistakes, he's always been about more accountability and ethics in government, dating back to his tenure on the Houston City Council when he worked on a measure to prevent high-ranking city employees from leaving employment and then cashing in on their city contacts in the private sector. With regard to redistricting, Chris said, as most do, that the outcome remains uncertain. And, that by the time it's finally decided once and for all and the appeals process is totally exhausted, it could be time for another round (this time because of new census figures). One of our visitors from Rockwall County asked an interesting question and raised an interesting point, too. He noted that Chris' approach to things was a little different than many politicians. In fact, the guy used the phrase "doom and gloom," noting that Chris had outlined a lot of problems facing the state absent some of the more boisterous rhetoric commonly used by candidates. Chris responded by noting that the current situation facing the state is somewhat gloomy, and that it's important to present the facts about the various situations in as accurate a manner as possible, which sometimes isn't too rosy. Other questions included some about the makeup of the race on the GOP side. Chris said what I've been saying for almost two years, which is that, even if she enters the primary, Kay Bailey Hutchison will face an uphill battle because so many GOP Primary voters are on the far-right of their party and the political spectrum. He also predicted that Carole Keeton Strayhorn would stay out of the race if Hutchison gets in. All in all, it was a great evening, with folks coming from as far as Dallas and Rockwall to hear Chris speak mingle at the pre-meeting reception. And, for our party, it was quite a coup to have Chris. To date, we've had several of the up-and-coming heavy hitters for 2006--John Sharp last May, Barbara Radnofsky last August and now Chris Bell. Now, I've just got to figure out who to book for our May 7th "Night of Honor and Memories," banquet where we'll give out awards for things like "Outstanding Young Democrat," etc. Regardless of whom we end up booking to keynote, I hope we can count on folks like Chris and Barbara Radnofsky to come back for this great event. After all, 220+ Democrats in one room in Van Zandt County, Texas is a pretty captive audience, hint, Hint, HINT. Vince Leibowitz is County Chairman of the Democratic Party of Van Zandt County. He would be just thrilled if every potential statewide Democratic candidate in the state reading this would contact him to reserve their seat(s) at the dinner now. He may be reached via email here And, if you are a really, really, really big name Democrat (Martin Frost, Howard Dean, John Edwards, Ann Richards, etc.) and would like to give the keynote address, he'll throw in a Yellow Labrador Retriever puppy (a yellow dog Democrat) if and when the local Tax Assessor/Collector's lab has a new litter. And, if you can't take it back home with you (allergies, planes, spouses who don't like dogs), you can put it in the silent auction. Frost an FNC contributorBy Nathan NanceAccording to TVNewser, former Dallas congressman Martin Frost has been hired as a contributor for Fox News Channel, much like former Democratic senator Zell Miller. I don't want to get into an argument on whether or not Frost is a "conservative Democrat" and a DINO. We can save that vitriol for other places. Frost's record speaks for itself and he's no DINO. In fact, he came very close to being the chairman of the DNC. I really want to know what people think of the fact that both Miller and Frost were branded as it were (Miller for a very good reason) as "GOP-lite" and now both are contributing to FNC. I'm sure some might think that maybe we should be more lenient on some withing our party who reach across the aisle to get things done. I'm sure others will think that Martin Frost was too close to the Republicans and its good that he's not the chairman and that he's relegated to appearing on a conservative network. I'm looking for a debate here on what, exactly, you think about this. I'm also interested in hearing what you think the chances are that Frost can influence coverage that is more favorable to the Democrats on FNC. If you must have vitriol, here's more at dKos. A Primary Challenge for Vilma Luna?By Byron LaMastersThere was an interesting exchange between State Rep. Vilma Luna (DINO-Corpus Christi) and Texas Democratic Party Chief of Staff Mike Levine last week. Vilma Luna, of course, was one of the two "Democrats" who voted for re-redistricting in 2003 - the other was State Rep. Ron Wilson (DINO-Houston) who lost his primary election in 2004 to Alma Allen (where I was proud to be part of the effort that helped her raise nearly $3000 online). Ron Wilson went on to show his true colors (again) this past month in offering his legal services pro-bono to Talmadge Heflin's challenge of the election of Hubert Vo. Luna, on the other hand, was not challenged in the 2004 primary, and remains close to the GOP House leadership. The recent talk of a primary challenge became public in a February 6th Corpus Christi Caller-Times article which suggested that Nueces County Democratic Chair Solomon Ortiz Jr (and son of Congressman Solomon Ortiz) was seriously considering a primary challenge to Luna:
So, is this rumor or fact? The article cites a lot of hearsay without exploring the partisan leanings of Dya Campos. Save Texas Reps does the research:
Mike Levine, who was cited by Luna in the Caller-Times as behind the efforts for a primary challenge, shot back with this letter:
Luna was equally snarky in her response:
I'll add my own snarky aside as well in noting that the majority of Texans surely have never heard of Vilma Luna, nor would they know of her debatable efforts regarding CHIP and other programs last session. The February 13th Corpus Christi Caller-Times recaps the aforementioned letters, and Save Texas Reps has a response from a constituent of Luna's as well. What should we make of all this? It looks like a primary challenge of Vilma Luna is certainly a strong possibility, and Luna looks to be playing paranoid by attacking the Texas Democratic Party, and cozying up to Republican consultants. I believe that the Democratic Party is a big tent, and in order to win (especially in Texas), Democrats need to embrace liberals, moderates and conservatives. But voting for re-redistricting in 2003 is an unforgivable act in my book. If a primary challenge to Luna emerges, you can bet I'll do whatever I can to raise money and awareness for such a challenge. Liberals Need to Condemn Lynne StewartBy Andrew DobbsYesterday I got an email from a reader talking about one subject or another that I can no longer remember. I can't remember what it was because of something in the email itself- an image that said "Support Lynne Stewart." I knew that I couldn't take anything this person said seriously at that point. For those of you not familiar with Lynne Stewart, this is a good non-ideological starting point. In short, she is an old school radical- communist, still talks nice about Stalin and Mao, etc.- and was an activist attorney for years. Her highest profile client was Sheik Omar Abdel Rachman, also known as the "Blind Sheik" and the mastermind behind the 1993 World Trade Center bombings as well as an attempt to blow up the UN building, an FBI building, 2 tunnels and a bridge in New York City. A high profile Egyptian terrorist, Rachman's organization the Islamic Group killed 62 tourists, many American, in Luxor, Egypt in 1997. In short- he's a really bad dude who wants to kill a lot of Americans. Stewart was his attorney, which is fine. He was given the right to representation (though as a non-citizen he really isn't entitled to such a thing) and it is Stewart's job to make the state prove their case. Unfortunately, Stewart decided to do one better and to break the legal agreement she entered when becoming the terrorist mastermind's attorney and started secretly passing messages from the Sheik to his terrorist group in Egypt. One of these orders was to end the ceasefire they had declared towards the Egyptian government, meaning that she transmitted a call to war to terrorists. She also had her translator send messages from Rachman's group to the Sheik and praised groups that were perpetuating terror in the name of seeking the Sheik's release. In short, she supported, promoted and facilitated terrorism against the United States and its allies by a bunch of religious fanatic fascists. Stewart was indicted on several charges of supporting terrorism and after taking the stand and calling for the violent overthrow of the American government during a trial that made it very clear that she was quite guilty, she was speedily convicted of the crimes. That's the good news. The bad news is that now a bunch of far Left groups- the type that thought that 9/11 was something we deserved, that opposed the campaign in Afghanistan, you know the type- have started calling for her release and have actually tried to explain away or praise her work. One of those people appears to be the person who emailed me yesterday. Some Republicans are trying to stain our entire party with the inanities of a few people who typically don't support us anyways (because we are part of the corporate/capitalist/imperialist/blah blah blah system) by saying that we are the party of Lynne Stewart. Most notably the new NY State GOP Chair claimed this and has since been repudiated by several Democrats as well as the Republican governor of that state. In the end, they might succeed in making us out to be a terrorist sponsoring party if we don't speak up. The answer? Liberals need to speak out against Lynne Stewart, in support of her conviction and against the GOP slanderers who would associate a woman as far to the Left of our party as neo Nazis are to the right of the GOP with the Democratic Party. Anyone- Left, Right or otherwise- who seeks to kill innocents to promote their worldview is evil and ought to be condemned, and anyone who facilitates that and supports that ought to be called out and taken to task for this crime. Lynne Stewart is a wacky woman to begin with and when you throw in support for terrorism we must speak out. I'm proud to see the mainstream of our party standing with the mainstream of our country in condemning this woman and her actions. This isn't attorney client privelege- that exists to ensure that an attorney can effectively and confidently represent his or her client. This is an attorney abusing that sacred right in order to promote her criminal client's illegal activities. No different from a mob lawyer ordering hits from a jailed client, and the punishment should be at least as severe. Please join with me in supporting Stewart's recent conviction and in condemning her criminal activities. Unless the Democratic Party is recognized for what it is- the only mainstream party left in this country- we will continue to lose. Guilty PleasuresBy Byron LaMastersBefore I started my own blog, I often entertained myself by engaging in debate with conservatives on various blogs – notably the original Political Wire several years back when comments were enabled. Now, that I’ve had my own platform in which to write, I tend to focus on my own posts, and limit my comments elsewhere, but sometimes I still engage in the guilty pleasures of taking on the right-wingers and pointing out their inconsistencies. Yesterday was one of those days, so go ahead and read the exchange I had with Chris Elam, and some of his readers on the issue of same-sex marriage equality. So, check it out and entertain yourself. Austin City Council UpdateBy Byron LaMastersIt's too early in my opinion to declare a frontrunner for the open Place 3 Austin City Council seat, but Gregg Knaupe has received a string of key endorsements including the Austin Central Labor Council most recently. View from the Left cites this as reason enough to peg Knaupe as the frontrunner for the open Place 3 seat, but I'm still going to hedge my bets - it's still a wide open race at this point. February 14, 2005Maya Keyes Officially Comes OutBy Byron LaMastersVia Political Wire is news that Maya Keyes, daughter of anti-gay Republican firebrand Alan Keyes officially came out of the closet today. Maya's personal blog was discovered by bloggers back in September, but Maya only made the decision to publicly come out of the closet at a rally today. Two weeks ago, Maya was thrown out of her home, lost her job with her father's political organization, and told by her parents that they would not pay her college expenses (Maya was accepted into Brown University for the Fall 2004, but deferred in order to volunteer for her father's U.S. Senate campaign). When I heard of Maya's situation, I hoped that some GLBT organization would come to her aid, and offer her money for her education. Fortunately, today The Point Foundation did just that:
Good for them. Maya accepted the support at a rally in front of the Maryland State House today:
The situation is still sad and unfortunate. Maya Keyes is lucky to have a semi-celebrity status because of the well-documented, militantly anti-gay rhetoric and actions of her father, but it's important to note that for every scholarship that The Point Foundation gives out, they have to decline thirty others. This is their mission statement:
You can help them do more by donating here. Bob Jensen on Ward ChurchillBy Byron LaMastersI tend to agree with Jim's comments on the Ward Churchill controversy. Churchill, of course, made the reference to many of the victims of 9/11 as "little Eichmanns" in an essay on the topic. I decided to withhold judgment on Churchill until I had the chance to understand the context of the remark, so I watched a rally where he spoke at CU defending his remarks in front of supporters. While Churchill excludes the "janitors, food-service workers, children, rescue workers, or passers-by who were killed" from the "little Eichmanns" characterization, he includes the stock traders and other businessmen in the towers as "enablers" of U.S. foreign policy that according to him triggered 9/11. I agree with Jim's statement that there is "a fine line between controversy and idiocy". UT journalism professor Bob Jensen has argued that the foreign policy of the United States is in many ways responsible for the 9/11 attacks. While I don't particularly agree with that sentiment, it is a worthwhile topic of debate. However, blasting American voters, business leaders, etc. as enablers of the 9/11 attacks comparable to the likes of Nazi's is just idiotic and indefensible. Yes, I understand Churchill's point on the injustices done by the United States to the Native Americans, and other minority groups over the past centuries, but none of actions rises anywhere near the moral equivalence of the actions Nazis. With that said, it's interesting to take a look at the opinion of Bob Jensen - a professor for whom I disagree with, but respect - regarding Ward Churchill's remarks. Essentially, Jensen states his agreement with Churchill's central thesis regarding the 9/11 attacks, while noting that "there are points in the essay that I think missed the mark" and gives a roundabout defense of Churchill, but states that the "Eichmann" comment "even accepting that narrow construction... is still problematic". In conclusion, Jensen again states his agreement with Churchill's thesis, but urges Churchill to apologize to the families of 9/11 victims, while defending his thesis. My personal opinion is still that Churchill should go. Freedom of speech is great, but idiocy from professors at institutions of higher education is not. Recap of the DNC Meeting - Part TwoBy Byron LaMastersTexas DNC member David Holmes has posted twice on his Yahoo Group recapping the events of the DNC meeting over the weekend. I posted his thoughts from the first day here, and this post is part two of his experience over the weekend. I know that I join many Texas Democrats in thanking David Holmes for his accessibility and responsiveness to the concerns of the grassroots throughout this process of selecting a DNC Chair.
The rest after the jump.
Koufax Award FinalistsBy Byron LaMastersWe didn't make the finals in any of the Koufax Awards categories, but go support the two Texas/Texan blogs that made it in the Best Single Issue Blog category - The Daily DeLay and Grits for Breakfast - although unfortunately, you can only vote for one. Weekend Texas News RoundupBy Byron LaMastersYeah, I went on a mini-hiatus for the past four days or so. I occasionally get burnt out / writer's (bloggers?) block, and I find that the best way to deal with it is to just ignore blogs and blogging for a few days, refresh my mind, and let my co-bloggers fill in a little bit. Anyway, here's a quick round-up of some things (in no particular order) that I've missed over the past few days, so I'll be back up to speed:
Ok, so this picture DID turn out...By Byron LaMastersI mentioned last week how the picture of Karl-Thomas and I in San Antonio didn't exactly turn out, but I just noticed a picture on the University Democrats webpage of us from the February 2nd meeting. I was showing my support for Martin Frost for DNC Chair, vainly attempting to get a wireless connection, and savoring a tasty cookie - completely oblivious to the fact that someone was taking a picture, while Karl-Thomas apparently was going for the punk-ass blogger look. Anyway, here ya go: 
Donate to the DNCBy Byron LaMastersHoward Dean wasn't my first or second choice for DNC Chair, but he's the DNC Chair now, and he has my support, so if you feel so inclined, send the DNC a donation. If I had any money to donate, I'd send some to the DNC, but I promise that I will once I graduate and get a job. I'll have some final thoughts on Dean and the DNC later this week. Donate through ActBlue here: A few weeks ago, I was considering trying to find a way to get up to D.C. to liveblog the DNC race. Of course, the DNC race ended up becoming a non-race, and I lost my interest in spending money that I didn't have to liveblog the event. However, there are some recaps over at MyDD, BOP News and The American Street (continued here). February 13, 2005Early Report from the DNC MeetingsBy Byron LaMastersTexas DNC member David Holmes posted to his DNC Yahoo Group yesterday his summary of the DNC events on Friday. Here's his summary of the events:
I'm sure David will have some more thoughts on the entire weekend coming soon... An SG UpdateBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanStudents Government campaigns are only a couple more weeks away. I haven’t had as much time as I would like to keep up to date on all the activities going on, but I think it is time for a quick update on the state of the campaigns. There are only two tickets this year, and of course, they have the standard, oh-so-creative one word names. Ignite v. CONNECT Ignite is headed up by Jessica Rice and Colby Hanks while CONNECT is led by Omar Ochoa and Elizabeth Brummet. For more on these people check out this original post I made last fall. Of course, since that post, Wes Carpenter has dropped off from heading the ticket that Rice now leads. Jessica Rice is currently on the Executive Board of SG. The difference this year is that both tickets can be considered "SG" tickets. There is no major outside or reform group, though I'm sure that each may try to cast themselves that way. I haven’t seen the down ballot candidate placements (send them to me if your ticket has finalized them) but I wouldn't be surprised to see competitive placement of various SG agencies and student group leaders. Of course, it may depend on who has managed to add more of these such people to their ticket because until turnout rises, those people are important. Both groups have already had their A-Frame building parties at Frat houses, Ignite hosting theirs at the Sigma Phi Epsilon house on 26th and Pearl and CONNECT at the Sigma Alpha Epsilon house on 25th and Pearl. Both have had their first big campaign rallies earlier today which should be the initial indication of momentum in the race, so if anyone has a report on that as well, please let me know. Now as to the all important question, who is the frontrunner? (Oh, and there is no race for Daily Texan editor or Texas Student Publications Board since there were as many candidates as seats) It's hard to say. I'm tempted to say the Ignite ticket because I've just seen more of them everywhere and more of them keep in constant contact with me. Important to note as well is that at this time I would predict that the University Democrats would be more likely to endorse the Ignite ticket than CONNECT, partly because Jessica Rice has been to our meetings, partly because one of our officers is on their ticket. After last year's non-endorsement in the SG elections (beyond the UDs running), I feel the group is hungry to endorse an entire slate. And if turnout in the election is similar to last year, the 100 votes that can easily come from the UDems membership (and possibly more if we are active in the voting process) will represent 1%-2% of the vote. Nothing in comparison to having say a dozen frats on your side, which could be 1%-2% of the vote each. This is why I hope that this year's elections help set up which I think is the more important longer term goal that I mentioned in that post I linked to above. A longer term, more progressive reform oriented ticket that is not dependant on the frats but on student organizations and the everyday populace here at UT. But for now, that's my Burnt Orange Report. I very well may pick progressive back and forth down the ballot like last year. There is the chance that this year, more than the last two, there will no longer be 100% landslides. Why Is No One Raising Hell About The Bush Budget?By Vince Leibowitz[This post has been updated. Click on "read more" link for updates.] On Friday, the White House released a 233-page document detailing the impact of President Bush's budget cuts. They released the list on Friday just in time for it to get lost in the weekend news cycles. Of course, the administration didn't really want to release the details of the cuts until someone asked, via Reuters:
According to the report itself (which is actually on the OMB Website, with--not surprisingly--no link from the press area of the White House Site) notes:
Some of the actual cuts in the proposal are just downright stupid. For example, the program plans to eleminate the Safe and Drug Free Schools State Grants Program. Instead, the administration proposes increasing funding for the National SDFS program, claiming this will "support projects with measurable outcomes and strong accountability mechanisms to help ensure that Federal funding in the area produces positive results." The budget also eleminates HSRA Emergency Medical Services for Children grants, which sends money to states to help improve EMS care for kids. Evidently, though, Bush decided our children ain't healing right or something, because he slashed the program:
I'm sure emergency room physicians and pediatric ER nurses everywhere would disagree. And, of course, it wouldn't be a Republican budget without trying to screw the poor out of housing. Bush slashed the HUD program Revitilization of Seriously Distressed Public Housing, claiming it had exceeded its goals and was too slow: The 2006 Budget proposes to terminate the HOPE VI program. The
I guess, since 1992 and 2005, no existing public housing structures have become "dangerous." That's nice to know. As for putting that money in Section 8, I've always thought Section 8 was a much more expensive option for housing the poor than actual public housing or subsidized apartment complexes. Guess I'm wrong again. One cut in particular that really burns me up (no pun intended) is cuts to the Rural Fire Assistance program. I live in a rural area served by a rural VFD, as does everyone in Van Zandt County. Even the city volunteer departments are classified as such. But, Bush says:
The White House claims this program is duplicative because the Department of Homeland Security also has a similar program. If anyone in the Bush administration bothered to wander into a rural firehouse in the past decade, they wouldn't be cutting this program. Rural firefighters put their lives on the line just like paid big city firefighters do--with less equipment, old trucks, and the best training they can get/afford. And, Bush wants to cut Community Oriented Policing (COPS) grant funding, a Clinton administration program to put 100,000 new police officers on the street, saying it's served its purpose (118,000 officers):
What a load! Community policing is not a high priority program for this administration? Again, come to a town or county that has benefitted from these programs, Mr. President. Furthermore, given the fact that 9/11 has happened and his administration has previously said all local police agencies share in the homeland security burden, is it really wise to cut this program? This program is a drop in the budgetary bucket. The budget also cut a Department of Labor program, Reintegration of Youthful Offenders, which helped offenders under 35 get job training. It replaces the permanent program with a four-year program. What is so dumb about this cut is that in the very document explaining the reason why the program is cut...
...it expounds on the very need for such a program:
Perhaps they wouldn't return to prison if they had adequate job skills and housing? Duh! These are just a few of the program eleminations. I could go on for hours about the rest of the eleminations--not to mention the cuts. I know the privitization of Social Security is taking up a lot of media attention, but I think this is deserving of some, too. I've noticed mentions in magazines, editorials, and on blogs of late that Bush is trying to eleminate all of the good things of Roosvelt's New Deal and Johnson's Great Society. For those of you among us who also remember the 1990s and the Clinton Administration, Clinton fought for the enaction of a number of important programs like COPS. Granted, they may not have been as groundbreaking as New Deal or Great Society programs, but they are just as important to the welfare of our country. Essentially, the Bush administration is attempting a wholesale slaughter of major programs enacted by during three of the most domestic-policy progressive Democratic administrations in American history. And what are we going to do about this? Of course, we can't expect our Governor or either of our U.S. Senators to raise hell about this. They're all Bush Republicans. But, I'd think at least a few State Senators and State Reps--especially those in communities which benefitted from the very programs Bush is trying to cut--would have something to say about this. Hopefully, over the course of the next few weeks, they will. Update: Via AP, here is a comprehensive list of budget cuts:
Vince Leibowitz is County Chairman of the Democratic Party of Van Zandt County. Rep. DeLay in the Bedroom with a Candlestick?By Jim DallasIt's time to tell Reps. DeLay and Culberson to get a Clue about Houston's light rail funding needs. (Yes, I know, I am so very punny today, har har.) How 'bout some flying monkeys?By Jim DallasVince is certainly correct that Howard Dean's DNC Plan is exciting because it addresses a number of widely-recognized genuine institutional problems we've got. And naturally, if I were a Republican, I'd share Thomas Lindaman's view:
Soon? All in good time, my pretties. But while we're rebuilding our state parties and modernizing our technology, why don't we take the next logical step - training a swarm of flying monkeys? Just think about how they'd improve our operations - reduced costs for lit drops, and the ability to literally, umm, knock and drag our voters to the polls! At this point you are wondering... no doubt... did Jimbo have a little too much fun this weekend? What's the point? Is there a point? In rapid order, no, yes, and yes. The point is this: The Dean plan focuses heavily on infrastructure and institutional reform. But it seems to ignore that other key issue - persuasion. And while I certainly don't intend to join the Chicken Little Wing of the Democratic Party, I'll note that Dean's ascendency probably isn't turning on the un-evangelized. Having the best marketing infrastructure in the world isn't going to help us one iota if there's not a market for what we're marketing. This is, I think, my singular critique of the plan so far, but it's important. Our sales pitch needs work. As in, it needs to be employed. By "work," I don't mean turning tail and pretending that, by golly, if we just have enough Sista Souljah moments the people will trust us again! (and boy howdy, do I absolutely loathe re-running the same tired plays out of the Clinton playbook) but rather, that we need to work on fundamental things like the elevator pitch and... by golly... actually going out and using selling door-to-door. Howard Dean, I think, is going to do a good job as chair. But at some point we're going to have to start addressing that credibility gap (yes! It's frustrating to admit that millions of Americans still trust those assclowns in the White House!) that's putting a crimp in our persuasive ability. I'm not sure handing over message and policy to the Congressional wing of the party was the best decision... bless their hearts, despite some promising developments in the last few months... I'm still not convinced our Congressional leaders could fight their way out of a wet paper sack. Now I'm ExcitedBy Vince LeibowitzI must admit, I was among the skeptics who didn't really think it would make a difference who ended up as Chairman of the Democratic National Committee. And, though Howard Dean still has a lot to prove, as a county chairman, I was very excited to read about Howard Dean's Plan for the DNC. If you are a Democrat and don't get at least a little excited reading this, you may need to check your pulse:
I am particularly interested in this one:
Does this mean that the Texas Democratic Party can now get the fund-raising list from the DNC they used to raise something like $19 million dollars (may be wrong about that figure) from Texas? If so, this would represent a major shift in DNC policy going back at least two decades. If I were Charles Soechting, I'd call the DNC Monday morning and ask for a copy of that list. Also, I wonder if this means that county parties can get the list of DNC contributors in their counties? Just for the fun of it, I think I'll call the DNC Monday morning and ask for this list. I am slightly confused as to why Dean didn't specifically include any language mentioning county parties, the true backbone of the Party. He mentioned "community activists," and maybe it all means the same thing. Also, just thinking out loud here, since Dean is now the DNC Chairman, does this mean he would headline a major fund-raiser like, for free? I'll ask when I call Monday. It'd be great if East Texas Democrats could have a huge multi-county fund-raiser in a place like Tyler and split the proceeds. I may have to whip out the old Rolodex and get with some of my East Texas contacts to see if they'd like to do something like that--Dean or no Dean. In fact, the more I think about it, the cooler the idea sounds. I'd better stop this post because I'm already thinking about locations and designing logos in my head. Damn you, Howard Dean for getting me even more excited about being a Democrat! Missing In ActionBy Nathan NanceI want to thank Vince for taking the slack on all the posting, especially since I was no help. It should come as no surprise that I am overjoyed that Gov. Dean is now Chairman Dean. I supported him all along because I thought he would do the best job for a number of reasons which we've all gone over more times than anyone cares to remember. I won't list why Howard Dean is going to make a good chairman. Instead, I want to remind everyone why we make a great party. We are the party of FDR, JFK, Andrew Jackson and Bill Clinton. Our politics and our beliefs, as a whole, have changed a lot through all the years. While Jackson may have hated the idea of a national bank, it was Bill Clinton who signed NAFTA and ushered in the century of global free trade. While Democrats in the 1860s may have supported slavery, Democrats in the 1960s made the Civil Rights Act law. We are the oldest party that represent the newest ideas. We are always evolving, making ourselves better. We learn from our mistakes. Our friends on the other side of the aisle do not. The party of big business and of the rich and elite in the 1890s was the party of the rich in the 1990s. The Republicans do not change, do not learn. Failed economic policies like cutting taxes for the rich to the detriment of the overall economy keep getting reused without a second thought. Cold War-era policies to fight the Soviets are used to fight a much different enemy in the 21st Century. While the Republicans use scare tactics and falsehoods, we Democrats use the truth. As Harry Truman said, "I never give them hell. I just tell the truth and they think it's hell." That's what makes us great. That's why we represent what is best with America and why we are going to win. The Republicans can't hold off the inevitable. People will see through the misleading words and the bad results. Dean is the new chairman. It's his job to help us prepeare for that time so we can be ready to do what it is we do best, help America reach its full potential. Let's do all we can to help him to help ourselves and to help our fellow Americans. The title of this post is Missing In Action. It was meant not just to describe where I've been, but where we've been. Too often, some Democrats attack others because of a particular ideology or group association. I know I've taken my fair share of shots at the DLC and others have taken shots at us Deaniacs. Today is the day that ends. Today is the day when we start evolving; start to better ourselves. Today we are not missing, we are found. Today we have a new beginning. Today we are Democrats, pure and simple. Today, we start the journey, together, toward winning back our government and repairing the damage caused by the Republicans. February 12, 2005Soon, Very SoonBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanVince is right in the fact that us old guys have not been up to peak posting capacity of late. I will later tonight post my "Post" about Howard Dean as our new Party Chair. I will also have set up some fundraising links. I know some of you want to donate as soon as you got the word that Dean was Chair, but I have a feeling that all the major e-mails from all the major lists will go out soon enough and they are still coordinating how to best keep track of the dollars and not crash anybody's servers, as has already happened with the Act Blue donation page that Kos set up earlier today. The next couple of days will likly be as high traffic for donations and signing up for DNC services as during the Presidential Election so some patience may be in order. If you want, try out the Act Blue page since it is a blogosphere wide effort with the best tracking capability. If that is not working, I have set up an ePatriots donation page with the DNC which I would encourage you to use otherwise. Dean New Chairman, DNC Wants Blogger SupportBy Vince LeibowitzI guess all the regular contributors are taking a much-needed rest, digging through capitol waste baskets for their next scoops, or just otherwise occupied. (Perhaps they are at the DNC meeting?) So, since it's Saturday and I obviously don't have anything else to do until later, I'll pick up a little slack by announcing: Howard Dean is the new Chairman of the Democratic National Committee.
But, I do think it is cool that the DNC is now actively soliciting support from Bloggers, via this link. I guess if every blogger who supported Dean's presidential run were to contribute, the DNC would make a pretty penny today. While you can give to the DNC if you want, I'll instead encourage everyone to help out here in the home state first, by giving to Take Back Texas or the Texas Democratic Party. Or, visit your local party's website. Most county parties in Texas now have a links where they can accept contributions on line, too. Why not celebrate a day on which grassroots activism has taken the center stage by giving at the local level? I'm quite confident that Byron, Andrew, Karl-T or Jim will post a far suprior post to one I could write on Dean and his new position, so I'll be eagerly awaiting that. I would, however, like to know the vote breakdown. Perhaps one of those guys will have that information. Hutchison Hires Heavy Hitters, But Won't Commit To Race Against PerryBy Vince LeibowitzSmack me with a notebook like a slow-moving staffer of the state's defunct treasury department and call me wrong. Evidently my wish that Kay Bailey Hutchison will just retire and go away isn't going to come to pass. She's hiring people. Texas' senior senator this week hired two new campaign operatives--Scott Howell of Dallas and Terry Sullivan--both veterans of raunchy senate battles across the nation. Howell also worked for the Bush/Cheney campaign. The Dallas Morning News notes:
This little saga is full of contradictions. First, if she's not running for senate, why did she hire veterans of senate campaigns? Second, if she is running against Perry, it makes sense that she's not going to use the same ad people as him. Too, the hires were announced shortly after her likely opponent--were Hutchison to say in the senate--Barbara Radnofsky, announced she'd raised $200,000 in one month's time. However, more signs point to Hutchison opposing Perry than staying in the senate, in spite of the heavy hitters she just hired. On a visit to Houston Friday, Hutchison said that her new campaign hires are "normal preparation for a race," declining to say whether she was preparing to challenge Gov. Rick Perry. "I have not decided exactly what I am going to do," said the Republican, appearing at a Houston homeless shelter with federal Housing Secretary Alphonso Jackson to announce $64 million in grants to fight homelessness. "I just don't think this is the time for politics." However, I disagree with the statement by the AP that, "If she seeks re-election to the Senate, she would be expected to win easily." Even for the Breck Girl, after another two years of Bush, an economy showing no signs of recovery, and the Texas Democratic Party as active and vibrant as it is, I'm not sure any Republican statewide can say they'll win "easily." Especially not with a legitimate opponent. With Ron Kirk out of the running and Houston's Radnofsky the likely nominee at this point, Hutchison will have a tough race on her hands. Further, though Republicans like Henry Bonilla say they will run if Hutchison doesn't, look for Hutchison to have a GOP Primary opponent if she stays where she is. It is highly likely that her feud with Perry has poisioned her with many of the state's far-right Republicans, who happen to control the Texas GOP at this point. February 10, 2005Hey Ossifer, What About My Livil Ciberties?By Vince LeibowitzIn addition to some other stupid anti-alcohol legislation put forth this session, the Lege is now debating DWI checkpoints to trap drunk drivers. This issue failed in the Lege in 2003, and I doubt there is enough momentum for it to pass this time. That, and way, way, way too many legislators recieve a heck of a lot of money from beer distributors. KXAN.com notes:
Naturally, MADD (mothers against Drunk Driving) is behind this. Now, I'm all for not driving drunk, and MADD has done some good work in the past, but let's be real, folks. At what cost does all of this come to civil liberties? I'm very glad the folks over at the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyer's Association pointed out just how bad an idea this is:
Of course, for the cause of civil liberties, it might have been better if the American Beverage Institute had kept their mouth shut on this one. Though I didn't know Texas is one of only a handfull of states without this legislation, it doesn't change my view: this is bad public policy. And, MADD isn't a group that should be setting public policy in Texas, period. For one thing, though MADD mentions the "15 percent" statistic on how many drunk driving deaths they think this legislation will reduce, I'd like to see some real statistics, perhaps from those states such legislation has been passed in. I'd also like to see some statistics regarding what percentage of drivers within these checkpoints is actually found to be drunk. Unless it's a holiday or the checkpoint is set up near a bar, I'd bet the numbers are few and far between. Let's consider this further for a moment: MADD's argument is that, to save 15 percent of 250 lives, we should all be willing to be stopped, given field sobriety tests, possibly breathalizers, and generally be investigated without probable cause anywhere at any time on any road anywhere in Texas. I'm all for saving lives, but I think this is a little extreme. It's kind of like the Patriot Act and similar legislation: In order to stop one terrorist or person who may be a terrorist, the government gets free and unrestricted access to ask our local library what books we are reading. Or, that one person kept in jail for three years (without legal counsel) after 9-11 who wasn't a terrorist should willingly sacrafice those three years of lost freedom in hopes that the government snared a terrorist in its wide net cast with seemingly wanton disregard for civil liberties. It just doesn't seem right. In light of our collective loss of civil liberties after 9-11, I think the Texas Legislature should be especially careful what liberties they take away from us. I'm more willing to perhaps give up a little liberty at an airport to stop terrorists than I am to give up civil liberties on the highway to stop potential drunk drivers. Yes, I know we're all targets of drunk drivers and could be killed by one any day. I guess I'm saying I'll take that risk over surrendering my right to travel down Interstate 20 unrestricted. As for the Lege, there are a lot of people who could really piss off the liqour lobby with a "yea" vote on this legislation. The liqour lobby is a huge contributor to campaigns of Democrats and Republicans. The list of recipients, just from the Beer Allicance of Texas PAC, is huge, and flows on both sides of the aisle. You can get the list by going here and putting "beer alliance" in the search spot for "contributor." Or, you can go here and look at the Alliance's Ethics Commission reports. Once again, just to be totally clear, I'm all for not drunk driving, and all for curbing drunk driving deaths. This isn't, however, the right way to do this. TV TimeBy Vince LeibowitzI made an appearance on "Face to Face" with Neal Barton, anchor of the 5, 6 and 10 p.m. news for the Tyler NBC affiliate, KETK Region 56 this afternoon during the station's 5 p.m. news cast. "Face to Face" is a little two-minute segment Neal Barton does weekdays at five where he basically talks current events and politics with local political peoplel. Lately, they've had a lot of Republicans on, so I was asked to come and give a perspective from the "other side." Sadly, since it is a live segment, there are never any snippits of it on the station's website. And, since it's only two minutes, there is not a lot you can really get in to. I was asked about school finance and children's healthcare. I can't remember word for word what I said about school finance, but I mentioned the VLT proposal, and that I believed it would be what the Republican leadership ended up settling for after they rejected business tax hikes. I also noted that legislators need to be careful in repealing Robin Hood because so many schools in East Texas--specifically all of the districts in Van Zandt County--benefit from Chapter 41 "recapture" funds. And, of course, I noted that the majority of Texas schools are recipient schools, while a very small minority are "donor" schools under Share The Wealth. I also think I said that VLTs were an "inappropriate" way to fund public education. I wanted to use Bob Glaze's catch phrase, "gambling has always been a sleazy way to fund education," but I thought better of it and came out with "inappropriate." On CHIPS, I do remember pretty much verbatim one good quote I got in, which was, "There's only a small surplus this biennium, and it's not enough to restore all of the cuts the Legislature made last session. In spite of all of the outcry over the cuts--especially in the last election--I suspect the Republican leadership is going to try and see just how little they can actually get by with restoring." Needless to say, I was honored to be asked, and hope to be asked back again sometime in the future. Hopefully, though, they'll get my name right on the overline next time though. Right before the commercial break preceeding my segment, I was sitting at the anchor desk with Neal Barton and was actually reading his teleprompter--unaware that the camera on the far right of the studio was going to cut to me and that he was going to be voicing over a live image of me. I realized this when I looked up to the in-studio television high above the newsroom and saw my self looking up at...myself. I think I had been on screen for four or five seconds, which probably means the audience saw me look perplexed when I saw my name misspelled on the teleprompter. I think this is especially true because one of the camera men reminded me to "smile" on the break (and, of course), look into the camera if I wanted to make a point (which I did). Not sure if I smiled or not--not much to smile about regarding the Lege these days. UT Watch Responds to Commission of 125By Karl-Thomas MusselmanThe large planning and visioning process for UT had been out for a while, but UT Watch has released a very comprehensive reponse to the report which is available for you to download here. (PDF) Consolidating PowerBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanComing from the same party that enjoys having the power to chose which districts and voters should be theirs, comes yet another outright power grab. I don't usually cut large clips from e-mails but this one sums it up well...
Check out Drive Democracy's Blog post about it. Bush Library at UT? Hell noBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanOur every friendly UT Board of Regents (infamous for being a bunch of Conservative Tutition Raising Hacks) has found something else to bid on, now that they have lost interest in Los Alamos-- The George W. Bush Presidential Library! Now I know that these libraries bring prestige and scholarly research, but I'm sorry, considering we already have a far better President and Texan's Library (LBJ's) I'll pass on adding GWB's to the mix. Give it to Waco. The little space we have left here at UT should be spent on facilities or housing. Not some looming reminder that is out of place politically in this city. We few, we happy few, we band of brothersBy Jim DallasJohn Kerry's sending out e-mails asking Democrats to stand behind Howard Dean:
What America Needs NowBy Jim DallasWe need a public debate between likely Minnesota Senate candidate Al Franken and declared Texas gubernatorial candidate Kinky Friedman. February 09, 2005"Samsonite. I was way off!"By Nathan NanceYou know when they passed the Medicare Reform Bill, mor ethan half of the Republicans would only vote for it because it came in at under $300 billion. A month and half later, it turned out that the Administration had kept the fact that it would actually cost $540 billion under wraps so it would pass. But they were off by a few hundred billion dollars more. The Post has a story that the Administration's budet shows the cost of the law will be $1.2 trillion over the next 10 years. That's way off from what was originally estimated. This is fuzzy math at its worst people. These people can't even estimate how much money they are giving away to pharmaceutical companies, how in the hell can we get them to give us straight numbers on Social Security?
I don't think Bush is cognizant of the fact that he created the budget deficit and the "unfunded liability" he's talking about. This is really scary, through-the-looking-glass-type stuff. I may actually have crossed into an alternate dimension where someone thinks that Bush is actually making sense. Lawmakers Look Seriously At Trans Texas CorridorBy Vince LeibowitzI haven't read much on opposition to the Terrible, woops, I mean Trans Texas Corridor this session, but it is out there, according to this AP report. Many will remember that Governor Perry announced the $184 billion dollar TTC as an election-gimmick back in 2002 when he was running for re-election. What many don't realize about the TTC is that it will literally cut hughe swaths through some parts of the state and take, via eminent domain, thousands of acres of land all over the state. Like many Texans, I actually thought the concept of the TTC--merging rail, truck traffic, and car traffic into a state-of-the art mega highway--sounded good at the time, until I actually looked over and studied some of the plans. Here's what AP notes about lawmakers and TTC:
If you're interested in more TTC-related issues, visit CorridorWatch, one of the most comprehensive sites on the Web dealing with TTC issues. Follow The StupidityBy Andrew DobbsIn 2003, changes in eligibility for CHIP meant that hundreds of thousands of kids lost their health care. The architect of these changes was Arlene Wohlgemuth. From the Quorum Report, November of last year:
And yesterday, the Texas Hospital Association released a report saying that the Wohlgemuth-led cuts have really hurt Texas. From the press release announcing the report:
Now comes the not so funny part- according to Quorum Report today, Arlene Wohlgemuth is the new lobbyist for the Texas Hospital Association. So an organization that not 24 hours ago was decrying her work in costing the state BILLIONS of dollars has now hired her to represent them in trying to undo her seminal accomplishment- balancing the budget on the back of poor children so that her rich donors wouldn't have to pay higher taxes. Great job THA, you have proved your own irrelevance. February 08, 2005A Morning With Barbara Radnofsky: UpdatedBy Vince LeibowitzNote: I've updated the post below to include links to coverage of the trip in the extended entry. U.S. Senate candidate Barbara Radnofsky (D-Houston) is in East Texas this week, and spoke Tuesday to Democrats United in Longview, had a reception with the Upshur League of Democrats in Gilmer, and spoke to the Camp County League of Democrats tonight. But this morning, she was in Tyler after a trek up from Houston with stops in various places including Lufkin to meet various local folks and, of course, raise money. I had the honor of accompanying Barbara to her first interview with the Tyler Morning Telegraph after taking her on a few stops around the downtown area including a meeting with my friend and Smith County Democratic Chairwoman Karen Roberts. Barbara met with Karen at the ultra-hip very nicely restored offices of her law firm, Roberts & Roberts just across the street from Bergfeld Park in downtown Tyler. Barbara also got to visit with Karen's brother, Randy, who, as it happened, was an intern at Vinson & Elkins at the same time Barbara was back when they were first starting out. Barbara had a great interview with the Tyler Morning Telegraph's Roy Maynard and got to meet most of the senior editorial staff--all of whom I worked with when I was a desk editor for the newspaper several years ago. Here is the link to the TMT story. I had planned on heading over to Pittsburg to hear her speech to the Camp County League of Democrats, but after a marathon meeting of the Council of Van Zandt County Communities this afternoon at Callender Lake--which included me delivering our legislative agenda to the group and fielding questions for about 30 minutes--I was kind of tired and decided to head home. My personal favorite moment of the trip was actually getting my hands on a couple of brand new Radnofsky bumper stickers (what can I say, I'm a sucker for political memorabilia). One is generic with her name and US Senate 2006. The other is one I expect to see popping up with some frequency because of the motto it contains: "Tough Name--Smart Dame." Wednesday morning, SDEC Committeewoman for SD3 Norma Narramore will be taking Barbara on a tour of the Titus County Courthouse in Mt. Pleasant to meet some of the officials and employees there before she and her husband, Ed, head back to Houston. So, if you're in Mt. Pleasant Wednesday morning, swing by the courthouse and introduce yourself. And, for all of you political junkies out there always working on campaigns (like me), her husband Ed has one of the greatest, simple, "why didn't I think of that?" ideas to hit political literature in recent memory. If you're like me and your business cards are always scattered out throughout your car, briefcase, bag, satchel, purse or whatever, try having them fused into stacks with that waxy plastic-y stuff used to keep together paper on a note pad. They tear off just like a sheet on a note pad, and they stay together. I, for one, hadn't seen that before, but will save the idea in my memory bank for future reference. (Karl-T, your dad may want to take note of that idea for his new campaign, too.) Vince Leibowitz is County Chairman of the Democratic Party of Van Zandt County, Secretary of board of directors of the Council of Van Zandt County Communities, and a frequent guest contributor to Political State Report and Burnt Orange Report. Bush Budget WasteBy Byron LaMastersBoth Vince and I wrote on the study showing that the abstinence education program in Texas actually increased teen sex rates. So, one would think that a sensible budget-cutting president would realize that the program isn't working and either cut the program budget or demand results. Well, not really. What does the Bush administration do? They increase abstinence-based "sex education" by 24%. What a waste... Another Capitol BlogBy Byron LaMastersFor an in-depth look at the goings-on of the lege sans the pink, check out Inside the Texas Capitol. Chris Bell Exploring Run for GovernorBy Byron LaMastersThis has pretty much been an open secret for the past several months, but the talk is now accompanied by a website, so check it out. Tom Musselman for Fredericksburg City CouncilBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanJust yesterday, my father Tom Musselman officially filed to run for the City Council of Fredericksburg, Texas. I have been working for the last day on his campaign website, part of his efforts to better connect with the citizens of Fredericksburg. I invite you to check it out at www.TomMusselman.com. Read the bio, keep up with the latest news, and also, if you live in Fredericksburg, please Join the campaign! If you know people that live in the city, please forward the website to them. If you have a blog, please link to it in order to get his rankings a bit higher when people go to look for it on the web. He has to compete with my own name as it is right now. Tom Musselman for Fredericksburg City Council We will have a blogad up here on Burnt Orange within the week and I'll be keeping you up to date with news on the campaign. The filing photos should be ready in the next day or two. Ads are already running on the air and the first print ad will be in this week's Wednesday paper. February 07, 2005Another Sign The Economic Recovery Isn'tBy Vince LeibowitzWhen most people think of indicators that tell us what the economy is really like, we think of retail sales, unemployment statistics and the like. However, foreclosures are a pretty good indicator, in my mind, of how well the economy is really doing. After all, if lots of people can't afford to make their house payment, are we really in that much of an economic recovery? While using Google News to perform my nightly search for new Texas news stories, I came across a startling factoid via a real estate news site: Texas leads the nation in foreclosures. And, nationwide, things aren't much better. Though the number of new foreclosed residential properties dropped 41 percent nationwide from December to January (a common thing from the end of one year to the start of the next) 20,279 new foreclosed residential properties were listed for sale during January, and the total number of residential foreclosure properties available for sale in the U.S. during the month of January was 78,694, according to Inman Real Estate News"
Sadly, Texas led all states in its total number of foreclosed properties for sale, and total new foreclosures in January. Somehow, amid all the unemployment figures, retail sales figures, and the usual economic indicators we hear so much about, foreclosures seem to take a back seat. Nevertheless, they are not only an important economic indicator, but also a sad commentary on just hoe bad things have become, even in Texas Take, for example, this article from the Houston Business Journal (via Foreclosure.com) on foreclosures in Harris County:
Oddly, this article I found in a North Carolina paper sums it up best:
Comments Working AgainBy Byron LaMastersComments are now working again. My apologies for taking so long. It has been a frustrating four days, but everything is working now, so go ahead and start commenting again. If you're interested in the full story for our comment problem, take the jump to the extended entry. I have to say that in my 20 months of using Dreamhost, this was the first time where I was genuinely perturbed with their service. Apparently, a week ago, Dreamhost made an announcement requesting that MoveableType users upgrade to version 3.15, or otherwise be subject to a stoppage of some services. Unfortunately, since I only received the "Level 5" or "most urgent emails", I don't recall receiving that notification (I've since signed up to receive level 2-5 emails from Dreamhost). Then on Friday, Dreamhost disabled my mt-comments.cgi file, thus disabling all comments. I read through the latest Dreamhost announcements, noticed the request to upgrade to MT 3.15 (I was using MT 3.121), and upgraded. Then, I emailed Dreamhost back asking them to enable my mt-comments.cgi file. Dreamhost usually responds to support requests within 24 hours, but it took them nearly 60 hours to fulfill this request. They finally responded to my request stating that the comments should be working, so I checked, and the comments still were not working, and I promptly filed out another support request last night. This afternoon, I finally decided to go into my ftp program and look at the properties of the mt-comments.cgi file. Sure enough, the permissions were set at 200, so I changed it to 755, checked to see if the comments worked, and sure enough they did. Overall, I've had a great experience with Dreamhost, but this was quite frustrating. Still, I'd recommend Dreamhost - it's $10/month, their service is generally pretty good, and until our traffic increases by a factor of ten, we won't have to pay any more for additional bandwidth. Heflin Withdraws Election ChallengeBy Byron LaMastersDetails to follow... Live Stream of the Heflin press conference here on live stream 8. 4:40 PM: Heflin is withdrawing his challenge of Hubert Vo's election... 4:47 PM: The press conference is over. All I can say is that it's about frickin' time. Time for Andy Taylor and Ol' Talmadge to pack their bags and go home. Heflin's political career for all intents and purposes is over - good riddance. 5:35 PM: Houston Chronicle story here. Heflin vs. Vo Findings Highlights & Coverage RoundupBy Vince LeibowitzI finally got some time to read the entire 60 page report released this morning by Rep. Will Hartnett (R-Dallas), Master of Discovery to the Select Committee on Election Contests. There were some very interesting things in there, including the mention that Heflin and his attorney, Andy Taylor, presented no credible evidence of fraud. Here are some of the highlights: From the Summary
This was particularly interesting, and Hartnett addressed it further when considering the case of one of the deposed voters, Franca Ejiofof:
In discussing guidelines used in making the determinations regarding contested votes, Hartnett was very clear that a heavy burden of proof had to be met:
And, since Heflin didn't show that, Hartnet concluded:
This was a very close election decided by only a handful of votes out of more than 41,357 cast. After months of discovery, the detailed review of the voter files of 259 persons, and hours of examination and analysis of voter files by the parties and the master, it is the opinion of the master that the Contestant has failed to meet his burden of proof. The master concludes that Representative Vo retains his seat by not less than 10 votes and not more than 20 votes, depending on the impact of the five votes that may still be counted. In a nutshell, that is the report. It did, of course, contain a great deal of information dealing with exactly what guidelines Hartnett used in making his conclusions, a re-hashing of what both sides submitted to the panel, and a great deal of dissection of exploration data, and divided up votes/voters in questions into various categories and discussed persons in those categories who were deposed. As for a "coverage roundup," In The Pink Texas has some of Andy Taylor's comments on the situation. Kuff has an updated round-up including breaking stories on it, and a link to the report. Save Texas Reps has a link to some hearing transcripts, asks the question about whether or not Andy Taylor committed fraud, and has Vo's statement</>. Time to tap the kegBy Jim DallasOr was that uncork the bubbly... Kuff: Vo "wins". P.S. Nonetheless, don't stop working! For Houston area readers, consider heading over to Greg's Opinion and asking Old Man Wythe about the many opportunities for party-building. The full Hartnett report is here (PDF file). Things are Getting PinkBy Byron LaMastersIt's another week, and it's another pink Texas blog - this one is In the Pink Texas, not to be confused with the Barbie homepage, InThePink.com. That makes two weeks in a row where Texas blog readers have been treated to a new "pink" blog. Last week we found Pink Dome. In the Pink, Texas will be blogging on the Texas legislature from the capitol, so I look forward to the reporting. February 06, 2005Pictures from YesterdayBy Byron LaMastersUnfortunately, the picture of Karl-Thomas and I did not turn out, but here's some other pictures I took yesterday: 
Give Dean A Fair ShakeBy Jim DallasThere've always been intraparty feuds, but the sky-is-falling rhetoric over Howard Dean's apparent success (here and otherwise) in winning the DNC helm is way off the charts. Howard Dean was not my first choice to be DNC Chairman; my first choice was Simon Rosenberg, because I believed he'd be the most capable leader/manager/guru. But that isn't to say I thought anyone would be patently incapable of the job, with the exception of Tim Roemer (whose unfavorables among the Democratic intelligensia probably surpass Dean's by a considerable amount). I share the anxiety of many people about Dean; like most of us here, I was in Iowa last year. If the Dean DNC will look anything like Dean for Iowa, then every quote in Garance Franke-Ruta's piece in the American Prospect will look prescient. (At the same time, from what I've heard, the New Hampshire organization was brilliant). On the other hand, Franke-Ruta, who covered the Dean campaign last year, felt compelled to back-peddle from the shrill Dean-bashing in the recent pieces by Jon Chait and Ryan Lizza. I can't agree with Greg that there's anything amiss with giving money and power to state Democratic party's. Look, the next four years could validate every fear of the Stop Dean caucus. On the other hand, it could very well shake things up. And on the third hand (I don't really have three hands, but you get the gist), it could end up meaning very little. I, for one, choose to be an optimist, or at the very least, a realist. And if I could say "let's give Bush a fair shake" (I did, by the way; he just kept acting like a jackass, so that was the end of that experiment), then I ought to be able to say the same thing about Dean. (Or, for the cynics, I am beholden to take my talking-points from the editors of the American Prospect (also here), instead of from the editors of The New Republic.) Through The WireBy Jim DallasHouston TV station KHOU informs us on one interesting idea for funding indigent health care:
I happen to think that funds-transfer taxes are a generally good idea; but I must ask, would such a tax (if levied by the state of Texas) be an unconstitutional state export duty or un-WTO-tional trade barrier? Moreover, as the story suggests, wouldn't such taxes disproportionately fall upon guest workers and immigrants? UPDATE: Kuff points to the elephant in the room. Spector LosesBy Byron LaMastersIt wasn't that close. I'll have more thoughts on all this in the next day or two, but I am proud of the fact that Spector only lost by three votes in the precinct where Karl-Thomas and I worked. Here's the results: State Representative District 121 - Unexpired Term Paul Silbert IND 401 2.76% Total Votes Cast 14,555 February 05, 2005Rose Spector and HD 121By Karl-Thomas MusselmanByron and I are headed down to San Antonio today to help get out the vote for Rose Spector in today's special election. If you are in the area, either vote or volunteer or drop her some jingle to help out. Polls close at 7 pm and results will be updated online here at that poin. Records Link TRMPAC, TABBy Vince LeibowitzThis is quite the bombshell, via the Austin American Statesman. Normally, on something like this, I'd try to rephrase and digest the article for the benefit of the readership, but it's so good, well-written and clear, I'm just going to post a link and a few snippits: (but check the end for my comments)
First, I've got to say, Cris Feldman, you rock. Second, I've got to say, "gotcha!" to Bill Hammond, Tom DeLay, and all of the TRMPAC/TAB scandal fokls. Now that I've managed to (temporarily) stop celebrating this new development with tremendous glee (and I have no champaign, iced tea will have to do) I'll note that this could be the ultimate nail in the coffin for these folks. If nothing else, if Hammond or any of these folks have made any of these "denials" under oath, it's perjury at the very, very, very least. Second, this will have a tremendous impact not only on the civil suit, but also on the criminal investigations being run by Ronnie Earle's office. I'd write more, but I've got to go to a fund-raiser, where David Van Os will be guest speaker. Believe you me, I intend to get our little crowd RILED UP by announcing this. I only wish I actually had a real Austin American Statesman to wave around in my hand while doing it. Because Terrorism & Traffic Tickets Are SO related...By Vince LeibowitzWith Byron and Karl-T in the Alamo City today working for Rose Spector, I thought I'd help pick up the slack with this little post, which I'm sure to be hammered by law-and-order-types over. At any rate, it seems that five counties along the Gulf Coast "will soon be able to share information about everything from domestic disputes to traffic tickets. Now, that doesn't sound sinister at all. In fact, I thought most counties already did that through the DPS's databases. Here's where I think things start getting "iffy:"
"Vast ranch land" is now a terrorist threat? No, really. I know what they mean, the writer of the Chron article, however, could have phrased it better. Seriously, though, it sounds like this U.S. Attorney is afraid of a terrorist threat to these bases, coming through Mexico or somewhere else, and that's legitimate. But, read on:
Several problems. First, weren't those so-called "barriers" between agencies sharing data erected for a reason? Like so J. Edgar Hoover wouldn't come tramping through your town everytime some alleged Pinko got a traffic ticket? Weren't those barriers also erected for privacy reasons? Does the federal government really need to know if a college kid got a ticket for public intox on his 21st birthday on 6th Street? To me, that much information sharing makes the system wide open for abuse. Of course, they also say that information not "critically sensative" won't be fed into the database. Anyone who's ever listened to Donald Rumsfeld's disjointed ramblings for even five minutes anytime after 9-11 knows that what types of information that could be important to a particular case changes on a case-by-case, minute-by-minute basis. So, how does one know--and more importantly, who judges--what information is "critically sensative"? For example, is the fact that I sometimes get speeding tickets "critically sensative" information? Should your teenage son/daughter be entered into such a massive state/federal database because they were loitering outside the local Sonic one Saturday night? I don't think so. And, though the following statement could be true, it's further alarming:
Now, unless you happened to give a speeding ticket to an actual terrorist, someone who stole a terrorist's car, or a terrorist's relative, I'm not sure how this could be useful. It could provide this kind of information if you stop the right person, which you might do maybe 1 out of 100 times. Otherwise, is a traffic ticket now going to be like checking baggage at the airport, to wit:
Of course, this could also open up a whole new window on "racial profiling." Whereas conventional wisdom used to be that law enforcement stopped African Americans in nice cars to look for drugs, will it now be that they stop anyone who doesn't look "American," to see if, perchance, they're a terrorist, even if it's just to get them in the database? While I grant you that my examples border on the far end of the spectrum, it is clearly obvious that there are dangers associated with this type of "information sharing," as well as benefits. After all, who wants to be in a terrorism database just for, say, getting a traffic ticket? Ron Kirk Joins V&E; But Will He Run Again? Read This To Find Out!By Vince LeibowitzFomer Dallas Mayor, ex-Texas Secretary of State and 2002 Democratic nominee for U. S. Senate Ron Kirk has joined the Dallas office of the prestigious Texas law firm Vinson & Elkins, LLP. Kirk left Gardere Wynne Sewell after 10 years for the new post, which he enters as a partner. In the very brief story the Dallas Morning News ran on the swicth, Kirk noted:
V&E, of course, was equally as pleased:
But, what neither the DMN story nor the V&E press release mention is whether or not Kirk is considering a run for U.S. Senate again. Although Kirk notes in the V&E press release, "I have long admired V&E's commitment to its clients and the communities in which it practices, and the way the firm's lawyers are so involved in public service," nothing specific is mentioned about public office. Which, I must say, you should thank your lucky stars for Burnt Orange Report! (Now, aren't you glad the headline made you read the rest of the story?) Today, through three separate and independent sources, one of whom is close to Kirk, and another who is close to V&E, and another who defies classification but is always a good source for all political stuff in Dallas County, I understand Kirk has told V&E he will not run for U.S. Senate in 2006. Whether he'll run for anything else, who knows? All I know is that my sources say he's not going to be in the race for U.S. Senate. Oh, and one more thing, call it a "fun fact:" Did you know Ron Kirk wasn't the only ex-Texas Secretary of State at Gardere Wynne Sewell? If you did, brownie points for you! If you didn't, can you guess who the other is? Ok, Ok. I'll tell you: Elton Bomer, who joined the firm as a "consultant" last October. And, no, even though I am brilliant, I did not know that prior to tonight. I found it out thanks to the scrolling news-ticker thing on the Gardere website. But, this makes me want to start looking up other exes and has-beens from state politics and see where they are now. I may just get ambitious and do that, so keep on the look out for it! Vince Leibowitz is County Chairman of the Democratic Party of Van Zandt County and a semi-frequent guest contributor to Burnt Orange Report. He has a Rolodex, MS Outlook address book, cell phone, business card file, address book, and lots of scraps of paper full of contacts any blogger would love to have. Fowler, Rosenberg Endorse DeanBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanThough Rosenberg already endorsed Dean the other day, his statement got a bit jumbled. Fowler just announced his late today. Donnie Fowler said, "Today it became clear that Howard Dean has the votes to become DNC chairman. "I got in the race because I wanted to see change in the Democratic Party. I know from experience that local people know better and that strong state parties and successful elected officials should teach the rest of the Party their best lessons. I want to see the DNC get back to its real mission: to help each candidate and assist state and county parties to achieve new standards or performance. "With Howard Dean as its next chair of the DNC, the Party will have someone who not only understands change, but knows how to make it happen. "As a presidential candidate and as a candidate for Chair, Dean has brought with him a grassroots movement that will reinvigorate the Democrats with new activism and new voters. As a former governor and former Chair of the Democratic Governors Association, Governor Dean also knows the value of respecting and including those who are most loyal to the Party. It's the best of the new and the traditional. And the Democratic Party will be better for it. "This is why I endorse Governor Dean for DNC Chair and hope to contribute to his and the new DNC's successes." "I am honored to have Donnie Fowler's support to be chairman of the Democratic Party. Donnie should be proud of the integrity, momentum and energy he brought to this race," said Dean. "The support he was able to achieve from all levels of the Democratic Party and all regions of the country is a testament to his political skill and commitment to the grassroots. I hope to be able to count on Donnie's help in the future as I work to build our Party so that Democrats can win elections again." And Simon Rosenberg... "Effective today, I am ending my campaign for chair of the Democratic National Committee. I am grateful for the opportunity I have had to share my vision with Democrats around the country, and I remain encouraged by the depth and thoughtfulness DNC members have brought to this important process of picking our next chair. Today, I am endorsing Governor Howard Dean to be the next Chairman of the DNC. While we have not always agreed on every issue, I believe his passion for our Party, his remarkable fighting spirit, his direct and powerful way of speaking, and his commitment to bringing regular people back into our Party will allow him to revitalize our Party and help us win again in the 21st century. I call upon my supporters, and Democrats from all parts of the Party and all parts of the country, to join me in supporting Governor Howard Dean as the next DNC chair. Though my campaign is ending, my work and my commitment to the Party that I love will continue at NDN. There I will continue to focus on the three priorities for our Party that I spelled out in the campaign - crafting a better agenda for our Party, investing in and building a better infrastructure for our politics, and leading a new national commitment to nurturing the grassroots. If we can do these three things and do them well in the years ahead, we can once again become a vibrant, dynamic and winning Party. Finally, I want to thank my staff and my supporters across the country. Their faith in me inspired me each day to fight just a little harder in this important and tough race." I didn't say it...By Byron LaMastersKinky on Ricky:
I'm no fan of Kinky, but if he spends the majority of his time going after Rick Perry and the GOP, I don't think I'll complain too much. February 04, 2005Objection Hearsay!By Jim DallasI can't say I have personal knowledge of this, but I spoke with a representative of a local non-profit today who suggested that there may be not one, but two special sessions in the mix; one on education, the other on child protective services. The education reform ball is rolling with the filing of HB2 yesterday; and the Quorum Report suggests that it could be up for a vote as early as next month. But will the school funding issues that crashed last year's special session still throw a monkey wrench into the gears? Meanwhile, CPS overhaul is getting talked about. Moreover, the income tax is apparently getting discussed again, since all these reforms are going to need to be paid for, somehow. Again, I can't verify any of this independently, but it seems like a plausible scenario, which is why I offer it. Dean Over the TopBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanAfter first seeing this morning that the Georgia Delegation is on board, and that the New York delegation is on board, I get word that as of this morning, Dean has secured enough votes to become the next chairman of the DNC. Stay tuned for an endorsement from Simon Rosenberg today. Update: (This is now in the extended entry)(ABC's The Note has already published the fact that Rosenberg is making a "major announcement" on a conference call with reporters at 1pm Eastern; my source tells me it's going to include an endorsement of Gov. Dean.) It's over folks (and that includes you, the overconfident Mr. Fowler). For the first time in my five years of political awareness and involvement, I can experience what it's like to have my guy win.... Gore, John Courage for Congress, Dean, Kerry... Dean. Let a New Day for Democrats begin, god knows we need it. Statement from Simon Rosenberg on the Campaign for DNC Chair
Today, I am endorsing Governor Howard Dean to be the next Chairman of the DNC. While we have not always agreed on every issue, I believe his passion for our Party, his remarkable fighting spirit, his direct and powerful way of speaking, and his commitment to bringing regular people back into our Party will allow him to revitalize our Party and help us win again in the 21st century. I call upon my supporters, and Democrats from all parts of the Party and all parts of the country, to join me in supporting Governor Howard Dean as the next DNC chair. Though my campaign is ending, my work and my commitment to the Party that I love will continue at NDN. There I will continue to focus on the three priorities for our Party that I spelled out in the campaign - crafting a better agenda for our Party, investing in and building a better infrastructure for our politics, and leading a new national commitment to nurturing the grassroots. If we can do these three things and do them well in the years ahead, we can once again become a vibrant, dynamic and winning Party. Finally, I want to thank my staff and my supporters across the country. Their faith in me inspired me each day to fight just a little harder in this important and tough race." Gooble-gobble, one of us, one of us!By Jim DallasSenator Evan Bayh has been promoted for voting against Condoleeza Rice and Al Gonzales. And if, as Greg and others imply, Sen. Bayh thinks that pandering will increase the chance of him getting our votes... well, he'd be correct. That is all. Dean Dean, yeah, you knowBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanI havn't been keeping up with every endorsement that has been coming out for Dean now because I think that today or tomorrow he is going to exceed 224 votes for the win. But I did want to note that the United Steelworkers endoresed Dean, the Young Democrats of America (3 DNC votes) endorsed Dean, the NEA endorsed Dean, and I'm wondering how long it takes for the College Democrats of America to follow suit (3 votes). MyDD has the latest vote totals up, with Dean at 215 of the 224 needed to win. Unless there is an unexpected blast of Roe-mentum, the only momentum is Ho-mentum at this point. For da shorteezBy Nathan NanceSince Rep. Henry Bonilla has stated his intentions to run for KBH's senate seat if she makes a go at Gov. Perry, I thought it would be fun to link to this clip. It's from his appearance on The Daily Show this summer. Jon Stewart asked him about the National Journal ranking of Sen. Kerry as the No. 1 most liberal senator. It seems like such a long time ago, but that was a talking point so that they could say that "he's to the left of Ted Kennedy" and get away with it. Stewart asks him where this ranking came from and (no official count) Bonilla says "trial lawyers" like a dozen times. He gets caught in some kind of circular logic that trial lawyers and other liberal interest groups ranked him as liberal so he should be proud of it and call himself a liberal. Stewart drops the bomb on him that he knows Bonilla is full of crap by telling him it is the National Journal ranking. He then asks him if that No. 1 ranking is from his whole career, to which Bonilla says "yes". Wrong again. The ranking was just from 2003, when Kerry had been away campaigning. If he had missed one more vote, he wouldn't have been ranked at all. Over his senate career, Kerry is well within the moderate range. I could never decide if Bonilla was fibbing on purpose, or if he just spouts off talking points without knowing where they come from like a parrot. Either way serves not the people of Texas, but his own partisan interests. Just something to keep in mind when the 2006 election comes around. February 03, 2005Austin City Council Horseracin'By Byron LaMastersRead the Austin Chronicle article today for the latest. Liberty for SomeBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanIt's one of the most concise posts I've seen over at dKos and it sets up a really good contrast when talking about "Liberty".
Volunteer for Rose SpectorBy Byron LaMastersAs Karl-Thomas noted below, we'll be driving down to San Antonio on Saturday to volunteer for the Rose Spector campaign. I spoke with their campaign today, and they NEED volunteers to work at the polls and to phonebank. Anyone in the Austin area interested in joining us on Saturday is welcome. The plan is to caravan from the UT campus area around 10 AM. If you're interested, email me: Byron AT BurntOrangeReport DOT com for details. I'm time-dating this forward a bit to make sure that as many Austinites as possible see this. This is a tough district for Democrats, but special elections are all about turnout, turnout, TURNOUT. Together, we can make a difference in that department. Finally, if you want to help, but can't make the trip, send Rose Spector some last minute cash. She'll need it, especially if the race goes into a run-off. CommentsBy Byron LaMastersThe comments are down due to a spam attack this morning which caused my hosting service to disable my mt-comments.cgi file. I don't have time to work on this problem this afternoon, so hopefully, I'll be able to take care of it tonight or tomorrow. Senate TriviaBy Jim DallasI knew the U.S. Senate was an old boy's club, but... ¡Dios mio! The Chronicle tells us that Sen. Martinez's (R-Fla.) three sentences in Spanish constitute the first bilingual Senate floor speech. Ever.
Frankly, the Spanish used appears to have been so elementary that even I got the gist of it... without translation. Maybe the fact that the Senate stenographer didn't get it ought to make kids who are struggling with Spanish feel a little better? That said, it's too bad that Martinez is using his maiden speech to play the conservo-race card on behalf of Alberto Gonzales. (Cross-posted from texasyojimbo.com) Gregg Knaupe BlogBy Byron LaMastersI haven't decided who I'll be supporting for the open Place 3 on the Austin City Council, but I must say that I've been impressed with the work of Rick Cofer over at the Gregg Knaupe blog. Good stuff there. Kinky FriedmanBy Byron LaMastersIt's official. He's running for governor. Personally, I don't plan on paying much attention to him. It looks like a vanity campaign that will probably provide a bit of comic relief, but as far as serious candidates are concerned, he's not among them. Kuff has more. February 02, 2005SOTU LivebloggingBy Byron LaMastersNate liveblogged it over at his blog, Common Sense. Liveblogging.org has a full list of other bloggers that liveblogged the speech. I frankly didn't give a shit about what Bush had to say, so I found other ways to entertain myself tonight. I'll catch the details on the Daily Show. Update: The Red State also Liveblogged the speech. Rose Spector UpdateBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanOff the Kuff has a nice update on the House Special Election down in San Antonio that Democrat Rose Spector is trying to win. Included are some early vote turnout number and local endorsements. Byron and I (and I'm sure that he will be posting on this soon enough) will be headed down there this Saturday for election day volunteering so look out for that in the case that you can help (and maybe even meet a Burnt Orange Reporter or two!). Movie With A Gay Character? Can't Shoot It In Our Town!By Vince LeibowitzI hardly ever post more than once--let alone twice--a day, and a third time is very unprecedented (and maybe not allowed), but I've been waiting for our local newspaper to update its Website so I could post about this brouhaha, which is so typical of small-town politics. I finally saw the story on there tonight. Anyway, last week, an independent film was supposed to be shot in Canton. All seemed well and good until the Powers That Be found out that one of the primary characters led an "alternative lifestyle." Then, all Hell broke out and the blame shifting began, to wit: [This story is very disjointed, but keep in mind it was published in a very "conservative" paper and was probably severely edited for content without regard for style]
Now, given that Phyllis Diller and one of the Lawrence brothers were supposed to be in this movie, I find it hard to believe that the production company didn't bother to give the city a heads-up on what, exactly, they'd be doing--especially since the city Mayor's hardware store was to be one of the shooting locations. However, in defense of the city, street/sidewalk closure does require a city permit. I've been in charge of the July 4th Parade in Canton for going on five years now, and every year I have to appear in person before the council to get approval for the street closing. Personally, as a citizen of Canton, I think it would have been nice for a movie to have been shot here. It would have helped the economy and potentially led to more movies coming to town. Our downtown would lend itself nicely to movie filming. And, though I'm not gay and don't lead an "alternative lifestyle," I for one was not bothered by the fact that a movie with such a character was being shot here. Who cares? This is 2005, and I think we should be a little bit past that by now. Though I'm not surprised by the city manager's reaction (he was formerly a city council member who gained his seat with the support of our former county judge, Jeff Fisher--former head of the Texas Christian Coalition and now Executive Director of the Republican Party of Texas), I am surprised by the school district's reaction. I covered Canton ISD for years and have attended at least four dozen of their board meetings, and met with the superintendent countless times. I can only assume they were bending to the wishes of their constituents and aren't so narrow-sighted to realize that, after all, it is just a movie. Vince Leibowitz is the County Chairman of the Democratic Party of Van Zandt County. Tom DeLay is Outraged...By Byron LaMastersThat some "elite colleges" refuse to allow military recruiters on campus. Ya know, cuz it hurts American military preparedness in wartime. That amuses me, because for some odd reason, I must have missed the outrage from Tom DeLay when critical Arabic and Farsi translators were discharged from the military in wartime for committing the heinous crime of being gay. So, it leads one to wonder, what does Tom DeLay really think? The Daily DeLay finds this priceless DeLay quote from 1988 where Tom DeLay defended Dan Qualye's lack of military service at the GOP convention:
What else can I say? Just Say "No" To Nudist Youth CampsBy Vince LeibowitzSince I both despise Rep. Bryan Hughes (R-Mineola) and love writing abour zany, bizarre bills, I just couldn't pass this up:
I can see the point about nude pedophiles, as Van Zandt County is unfortunate enough to be home to the "Ponderosa Naturist Retreat" (a nudist colony) on State Highway 64 in Myrtle Springs, and a few years back there were several people from there charged with all manners of inappropriate acts, but don't Legislators have other things to worry about than whether a nudist youth camp might come to Texas? School finance, perhaps? Either way, this is about par for Hughes. During his last campaign, almost every speech he gave centered around three things: 1.) He made it legal for kids to pray in public school 2.) he made it a requirement for kids say the pledge to the flag in school, and 3.) He is against gay marriage. Not just a terrible amount of substance there, but then again, what do we expect from the single largest recipient of TRMPAC funds in the entire state? But, since Hugues is at it, I wish he'd get the legislature to prevent the local nudist colony's landscaper from mowing the outer lawn of the "retreat" right along the highway in a thong and nothing but, because, if you're unfortunate enough to drive by when that's going on, it just ain't right. Vince Leibowitz is County Chairman of the Democratic Party of Van Zandt County Cracker Barrel Cracks, Cops Deal With DABy Vince LeibowitzTravis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle Wednesday aggreed to drop illegal campaign contribution charges against Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc., in exchange for the company's cooperation in connection with the ongoing investigation into illegal campaign practices during the 2002 elections. Cracker Barrel is the third company to have charges dismissed in the case, AP notes. Previously, Sears, Roebuck and Co. and Diversified Collections Services Inc. accepted similar deals. Eight companies and three individuals were indicted back in September in connection with contributions to the Tom DeLay-founded political action committee, Texans for a Republican Majority, during the 2002 election cycle. The use of corporate money for political purposes is illegal in Texas. Cracker Barrel was accused of making a prohibited corporate contribution of $25,000. As in the previous two agreements with indicted companies, the one entered Wednesday with Cracker Barrel requires the company to cooperate in the ongoing investigation. AP notes that the Cracker Barrel agreement stated (according to a company statement, that "there was no intent on the part of (Cracker Barrel) to violate any laws."
The Tennessee-based company agreed to never again make a contribution like the one in question and to disclose all corporate political contributions on its company Web site for the next two years. In addition, the company agreed to donate $50,000 to support a nonpartisan, balanced and publicly informative program at the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas. Officials with the DA's office remain tight-lipped on the details of the investigation, or regarding whether more companies might reach similar agreements. Also indicted in September and now awaiting trial are Jim Ellis, who heads Americans for a Republican Majority, U.S. House Majority Leader DeLay's national fund-raising committee; John Colyandro, former executive director of Texans for a Republican Majority; and Warren RoBold, a Washington consultant who helped raise money for both the Texas and national PACs. Ellis was charged with money laundering; Colyandro was indicted on 14 charges, including money laundering and unlawful acceptance of corporate political contributions; and RoBold was indicted on nine counts of unlawful acceptance of corporate political contributions. DeLay (R-Sugar Land), whose national committee helped establish the Texas committee, was not charged with any crime. DeLay has previously denounced the Travis County investigation as politically motivated by District Attorney Ronnie Earle, a Democrat. Grand jurors have been examining whether TRMPAC and the Texas Association of Business illegally funneled $2.5 million in corporate contributions to Republican state House candidates during 2002. That election led to the full takeover of the Texas Legislature by Republicans and, ultimately, passage of a GOP-pushed redistricting bill that gave Republicans a commanding hold on the state's 32-member congressional delegation. It Isn't Vietnam...By Andrew DobbsIf you don't read Christopher Hitchens, you are missing out. A strange bird- a radical Leftist of the Marxist variety who whole-heartedly supports the War in Iraq- his writing is among the most articulate and interesting you can read. From urging the imprisonment of Henry Kissinger for war crimes to lauding Susan Sontag, from arguing in a special Vatican proceding that Mother Teresa was a bad person to celebrating Paul Wolfowitz, you can almost certainly find something to agree with in his writing, and if you can't it is still interesting reading nonetheless. Much better than the reflexively propagandistic nature of most conservative writing and far more intelligent than the insipid sloganeering of the Left, he should be on everyone's reading list. This week he has a thought-provoking piece that tears apart the "Iraq is the new Vietnam" meme limb by limb with devastating insightfulness. I'll quote just a bit before adding my own ideas on the matter:
Hitchens was (and is) a committed opponent of the Vietnam War and supports the action in Iraq, so his commentary is a bit more enlightening than the Leftists who oppose both for bad reasons or Right wingers who support both for even worse ones. It basically boils down to the point that in Vietnam you had a popular nationalist movement that had the materiel and military support of two superpowers that was invaded by a misguided United States after they had already won and before they had really done anything worth invading them over. In Iraq, on the other hand, the "insurgency" is an unpopular minority of a minority (only a handful of tribal groups among the Sunni minority, really) that has no real territory of its own and has only pittance support from an impoverished Iran and an al Qaeda that is a ghost of its pre-Afghanistan War power. Furthermore, rather than fighting for an independent Iraq, they are fighting for a return of either Saddam Hussein or the establishment of a non-Kurdish Sunni theocracy- not something the 80% of the country that is either Kurdish, Shi'ia or Christian are really down with. And finally the insurgency and their two icons- Abu Musab al Zarqawi and Saddam Hussein- are both guilty of grievous crimes against their neighbors and the United States. Insurgencies only win when they convince a sizeable portion of the population to support them, when they have steady sources of arms and other resources and territorial bases to launch their campaign from. The Baathist/Sunni Supremacist axis in Iraq has none of these, and with the successful conduct of elections this past weekend the people of Iraq have an outlet for their concerns that is far more peaceful and infinitely more effective than the insurgency. It is just a matter of time before they run out of fighters, out of weapons, out of money, out of patience and out of time. This Iraqi election was no propaganda ploy as 1967 Vietnam's was, and this "insurgency" is no Vietcong. We're going to win this one, and it'll be something we can all be proud of. Memories of Da 'BurghBy Jim DallasIn a strange coincidence, Kos made a slight boo-boo in a post today:
In my previous post I made a subtle joke about Bobby Bonilla, the retired baseball player. Why? Because Bobby Bo was one of the stars of the Pittsburgh Pirates in the late 1980s (along with Barry Bonds). I lived in Pittsburgh for a few years, and I was a huge Pirates fan. Incidentally, during the same time Bob Casey Sr. was governor of Pennsylvania, and I remember him being in the news a lot. Almost brings a tear to my eye, all these childhood memories. February 01, 2005My Decision on the SG President MatterBy Andrew DobbsAlright, well, I thought about it and I really appreciate all the emails and posts. It was something I battled with and I'm still not completely satisfied about, but I doubt that I ever would be. I'm not running. I just don't have the time, the energy, the money or the stomach for the whole experience. I drew up a press release announcing that I was going to run and then I just couldn't do it. The thought of skipping work for standing around on the West Mall, of skipping sleep for late night strategizing, of skipping class for various campaign duties and skipping time with the people I care about for a lonely and ultimately unsuccessful effort just pushed me away. I wish I had more people who could help me, but it would be a lonely experience- most of my good friends just can't do it right now and others are already committed to one of the major campaigns. I can't ask them to turn their backs on the friends they've already committed to, so I would be by myself in this matter. I can't do it by myself and so I have to say no thanks. I will still talk about the issues I care about, talking to the various campaigns and writing in this forum and perhaps seeking a column in the Daily Texan. I hope that the candidates in the race are up to the job, and I respect them for the work they are about to put into a campaign that will be tough. Jessica, I know you said that you read BOR, which makes me very happy. I wasn't trying to be rude about Colby, I just couldn't for the life of me remember her last name and I didn't even know where to begin looking it up. Can't really use the directory if all you have is the first name. She impressed me when I talked to her and you impress me as well. Can't say you have my endorsement yet, but I'm sure you would be a good President. All of the candidates are good people and I'll keep you up to date with everything as time goes on. Thanks again for all the support and let me know what you all think. Ideology, SchmideologyBy Andrew DobbsToday Howard Dean sewed up his election for chairman of the Democratic National Committee, and frankly I'm disappointed. Two years ago it would have been among the happiest days of my life, but now I can't say that. And I have a good idea why. My old arguments to my quite Left wing friends in support of the admittedly more-moderate-than-he-looks Dean was "it isn't the man- it's the message and the movement." In other words, it isn't important who the candidate is, it is important the message he is spreading (make the Democratic Party more Leftist) and the movement of people he has attracted. Now that argument has turned on its head, or perhaps I have turned on mine. His message is mistaken and his movement is destructive, and I think that there is a good chance Democrats will suffer as a result. I am not giving up hope yet, but without some signs in the right direction soon, I'll have no other choice. His message is my primary problem. It seems that Dean and his college of sycophants believe that the reason Republicans win is because they are wholly, universally and unwaveringly committed to a far-Right philosophy and Democrats aren't similarly committed to a Left wing alternative. This is the source of Deaniac bellyaching about Frost's Bush-friendly commercials, their constant mouthing of Paul Wellstone's "Democratic Wing of the Democratic Party" quip, the origin of their hostility to "DINOs" of all varieties. His supporters wish to play amateur political consultants, and they are very bad at it. They are bad at it because they are completely wrong. They are incredibly wrong about the GOP. The GOP is the master of adapting their message to the place where they are running with enough in common everywhere for national candidates to rally around. In the Mountain West they run Barry Goldwater libertarian-conservative types- not terribly interested in social issues, more interested in a hands-off approach. In the South they tend to run religious right types. in the Northeast they run moderate to liberal Republicans. They pick their battles and shift their message accordingly. In places with strong Unions they run labor-friendly Republicans (Rudy Giuliani), and in places with weak unions they run labor-not-so-friendly Republicans (Dick Armey). In places with mostly pro-choice people, they run mostly pro-choice candidates (Mitt Romney), and in places with mostly anti-choice people they run mostly anti-choice candidates (Roy Moore). In places with a lot of environmentally friendly people, they run environment friendly candidates (Chris Shays, Christine Todd Whitman), and in places where people don't like hippie tree-huggers they run people who hate the Earth (Tom DeLay). In places where people are cool with gays, they run candidates cool with gays (Arnold Schwarzenegger) and in places with people who aren't into gays, they run gay bashing candidates (Bob Dornan, for example). In other words, they are flexible. Furthermore, they have some serious ideological strain in their own party- much like ours. Business conservatives and social conservatives don't tend to get along. Business conservatives want cheap labor, so they like the status quo with immigration, social conservatives don't like immigrants so they don't like the status quo. It is a brewing battle that might just blow up in their face in the next 4 years. Social conservatives don't like vice, while virtually every big vice- booze, cigarrettes, gambling, corporate porn- has an even bigger lobby that gives lots of money to the GOP. That is a source of strain here in Texas. So the GOP is hardly the picture of ideological rigor that the Deaniacs fancy it as. The issue isn't ideology- Democrats need not move to the Left (as the soon to be crowned King Howard III would say), nor to the Right (as the disgraced Duke Tim would argue). The issue is organization, structure and money- three things Dean has little to no valuable experience in and which my guy, Frost, had in spades. The GOP has a strong state organization in EVERY SINGLE STATE. Don't believe me? Name a state with a weak GOP. Illinois? Short term hiccups because of some personality problems. Massachusetts? They have a GOP governor. California? Ditto. In fact, there is only one state- New Jersey- without at least one Republican elected statewide. There are several, including Texas, that don't have any Democrats. The Republicans have a great national organization, Democrats don't and that is the problem, not that we are too liberal or too conservative. If ideology were our problem, Dean would be perfect for the job. With a distressingly large army of nihlistic Bush-hating Leftists he could push our party to the Left better than almost anyone. But as it stands, his record is not good at handling our real problems- resources, organization and strategy. In his presidential campaign Dean burned through $40 million bucks like Paris Hilton tears through overpriced god-awful skanky couture. In fact, we might want to see if that is where the cash went, because god knows it didn't go to winning votes- he could only eek out a win in a state he had been elected to statewide office in 7 times. $40 million bucks and nothing to show for it- even the Cowboys can do better than that (well, actually...). In that same bid he managed to get more volunteers and more organization than any other campaign in Iowa by several orders of magnitude. Yet in the comparably simple task of winning Iowa (as opposed to the 49 other states and District of Columbia), he couldn't close the deal. He had more money, more people and better support from more important figures (Tom Harkin, Al Gore, AFSCME and SEIU etc.) than anyone else and he came in a rather distant 3rd. If he can't use an unprecedented and unparalleled organization to convince a plurality of 100,000 committed Democrats to rally around his cause, what makes us think he can get a majority of 100,000,000 mostly hostile people to do the same? And in terms of strategy, his campaign was very good at this from time to time. Unfortunately it had nothing to do with Dean. Before Joe Trippi, Howard Dean was an anonymous candidate with no money, little organization and a Kucinich of a chance of winning. After Trippi came on, the emails started rolling in, the cash was flowing and his name was on everyone's lips. Save for peaking too soon things might have worked out differntly. But Dean is obviously not the genius, Joe Trippi is. And Trippi endorsed the now former-candidate Simon Rosenberg. Furthermore, when Dean decided to keep his campaign list annoyed (or enraptured, as the true believer caucus seems to have done) and form Democracy for America, his candidate selection process was nothing if not senseless. David Van Os got his support- who had absolutely no chance of winning. But so did some candidates who had absolutely no chance of losing. In fact, the only real strategic consideration that seems to have been taken into consideration was paying back people who supported him in his race for the Presidency. As a result an insignificant minority won and almost all of them would have won anyways. The rest recieved little more than a mention on his website and few small donations from supporters who couldn't possibly contribute to all of the list of Dean's Dozen. Ask Katy Hubener how well his endorsement did- she lost and Dean's support made little to no difference. Strategy is clearly not Gov. Dean's strong suit. In the end Dean is uninspiring, but not quite distressing. What he says to the people on the inside is different from what he says when the cameras are rolling. Not contradictory, nothing controversial, just his rhetoric is toned down and his proposals are a bit more specific. More money to state parties, funding much of their core staff, etc. Many of these ideas are worth listening to and I hope that they work out for the best. Indeed, it seems that his followers are a bit snowed over- Dean is hardly the Wellstone-esque crusader for ideological purity, the dot-com-age William Jennings Bryan that they envision him. Rather, he is a typical urban pol done good. He knows how to fire up a crowd in the front and cut a deal in the back. He knows just what words will rally the masses to his standard even as he rubs shoulders with the CEOs and millionaires in back. This isn't an indictment, quite the contrary, but it is a much-needed dose of reality for his starry-eyed cadre of communicants. Don't get your panties in a wad over the good governor. In the end, our party does need to do what the GOP has done- learn how to create a viable national message that can be adapted to the ideological proclivities of particular constituencies and disseminate it with 50 states' worth of first class organization. Texas should have pro-life candidates, Minnesota probably shouldn't. Alabama should have candidates who are less than vocal for their support of gay marriage, California probably shouldn't. Candidates in Mississippi don't need to be 100% union all the time, candidates in Ohio a bit more so. You have to compromise because without 218 Congressmen you don't have shit, without 51 Senators you don't have shit and without 270 electoral votes you don't have shit. We have to build a national coalition and being extremist just won't do it. What will unite us is a message that we are the party of the American Dream- if you work hard, play by the rules and want a better life tomorrow than today and a better world for your kids than this one, you can have it, and we can help. It should be disseminated by neighbors, co-workers and members of your church. It should be on the radio and on the TV, in people's yards and on their cars' bumpers. It should be unavoidable and undeniable until everyone interested in the continued magnificence of this country stands up and asks to be counted with the Democratic Party. If Howard Dean can manage to achieve that he will go down as the best DNC Chair in history. I'm willing to give him the chance, and I pray that he does. Roemer Is OutBy Andrew DobbsI didn't see the page for a while today, but I just wanted to let everyone know that we got a call at work today from Roemer's camp saying that they were dropping out but didn't want to conflict with Frost's announcement. So Fowler and Dean essentially, and after this Politcal Wire post today, I suppose Dean is the best we can do. Liveblogging the SOTUBy Nathan NanceI'm planning on liveblogging the State of the Union Address tomorrow over at my blog, Common Sense. Come on over, it'll be fun. I'll pop some popcorn and bring some licorice. Really, it'll be great. From what I understand, the speech will be divided evenly between foreign and domestic policy. That should make it interesting since I'm more of a domestic policy wonk, and not a foreign policy specialist. For those of you who were thinking of skipping it, I have a way to make it fun: a drinking game! The rules are very simple.
This way, everybody can enjoy the SOTU... and Jenna won't have to yawn during the speech. I should probably put in a disclaimer that this game should not be attempted by anyone, since it is almost sure that he will use each of these phrases several dozen times in the 40-minute speech. You'll get alcohol poisoning before he's done talking about his privatization scheme. More from SudanBy Zach NeumannThe U.N. has reached definite conclusions about the violence in Sudan. The NY Times reported today that:
Many prominent politicians and academics have condemned the U.N. commission for its refusal to brand the tragic events in Sudan as constituting genocide. Though I can understand their dismay, I feel that the U.N. commission made a wise, if not popular, decision. The term genocide was devised by Samuel Lemkin in the 1940’s to describe “a coordinated plan of different actions aiming at the destruction of essential foundations of the life of national groups, with the aim of annihilating the groups themselves.” In creating the word genocide, Lemkin was attempting to give a specific label to the phenomenal crimes of the Holocaust. By all accounts, he was successful. Genocide was quickly adapted into popular usage and came to describe the routinized destruction of specific national and ethnic groups. In recent years, Lemkin’s “word” has taken on unintended meanings as it has been used by policymakers to describe widespread violence against civilian populations. While I think it is of the utmost importance to capture the horrors that occur when a state makes war against its people (or against those of another state), such descriptions must be distinguished from act of genocide. In my mind, genocide is a crime that’s magnitude far exceeds that of massive slaughter. Tainted by fanatical racism, genocide represents the potential elimination of entire cultural and language groups—a loss to human civilization that has implications that extend far beyond physical death. Getting back to Sudan, I do not think that the atrocities in Darfur constituted genocide. While I agree (with the U.N. commission) that the actions of Bashir et al. entailed violence on par with genocide, I think they took a bold step in making a distinction between tremendous slaughter and the systematic extermination of an entire national/cultural group.
Ruminations: Roemer & Rosenberg OutBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanFrom a source in the know, "Roemer and Rosenberg are out now too. That leaves just Fowler still pecking around the barnyard. Also, I'm not sure if this has hit the press yet or not, but the DNC Hispanic Caucus voted this afternoon to endorse Dean." Of course the DNC Hispanic Caucus has endorsed Dean before, back in 2003 for President. Update!: After another e-mail from said source, I am willing to put my weight behind it that Roemer and Rosenberg are out of the race and it is just a matter of time before this hits the public media and confirmations pop up here in the blogosphere. This person has been ahead of the curve of every development in the past week and it was only my class schedule that didn't allow me to get things out such as the Webb endorsement and such in advance. Will Donnie mount a last man standing challenge? Will there be a sudden surge of Mary Beth Malcolmentum? Give us a few more hours and this whole thing could be over. I doubt Fowler will stay in with the whole Michigan debacle now hitting the mainstream press in that state as of right now. It's not a smear campaign, it's something that has been developing over time, but it could hurt his chances of party leadership under the Dean banner if he is stained by it, which is a shame because I think he and Rosenberg would make a couple of really great organizers for the DNC. UPDATE:: First confirmations coming out. Donnie Fowler himself lets one cat out of the bag on his blog, saying that only Dean, himself, and Roemer remain in the race. And to think that he thinks he's ahead of the curve... heh, we'll see.
Charles Soechting Endorses Dean for DNCBy Byron LaMastersTexas Democratic Party Chair Charles Soechting has endorsed Howard Dean for DNC Chair. Soechting had previously endorsed Martin Frost along with 13 other members of the Texas delegation. Martin Frost withdrew from the DNC race today. Read Soechting's letter to his fellow DNC members in the extended entry: Dear Fellow DNC Members: It's no secret I think we need a major shakeup at the Democratic National Committee. For too long, the DNC has treated Texas like an ATM machine, raiding our most generous donors for millions of dollars while we struggle to remain competitive here in state and local races. We need to change this attitude in Washington. And that's why I'm supporting Gov. Howard Dean for DNC Chair. He believes in a 50-state strategy, which is the only way we will ever Take Back Texas -- and our country. Gov. Dean's message of mainstream values is all about helping the people we fight for and represent improve their lives. His political career is all about change. And he agrees with me that our party must change, too -- not to forget our principles, but to fulfill them. Many of you may have heard by now that former Congressman Martin Frost is dropping out of the DNC chair race. Martin ran a strong and clean campaign that made all Texas Democrats proud. Now I hope you will join me in giving your enthusiastic endorsement to Gov. Dean to lead our national party in the years ahead. I'm convinced that he is the best candidate to reflect our commitment to securing our future, balancing the budget, providing health care to every eligible child, protecting the environment, and making sure Sincerely, Frost WithdrawsBy Byron LaMastersSTATEMENT OF MARTIN FROST WASHINGTON - Today, former Texas Congressman and Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chair Martin Frost released the statement below. Withdrawing from the race for DNC Chair, Frost did not endorse any candidate. "I am calling my supporters to thank them and to inform them of my decision today to withdraw from the race for DNC Chair. I have also called Governor Dean and congratulated him for running a strong campaign. The challenge ahead for Governor Dean will be to unite the Party, rebuild the DNC and win elections in every region of the country. "This campaign was never about me or any other candidate. It was about rebuilding the Democratic Party so that we can better present to the nation our strong, hopeful alternative to the dishonest, corrupt and elitist Republican Government that keeps selling out the nation in order to reward its few, privileged friends. "Make no mistake, Democrats are the party that can best meet America's challenges - challenges like keeping our people safe and winning the war on terrorism, stopping the Republican attack on Social Security, solving the health care crisis, and ensuring that all Americans have good jobs and the opportunity to build a better "With a strong, unified Democratic Party, a real 50-state party structure, and a commitment to working together and speaking directly to Americans' concerns and values, I am confident that we can and will elect Democrats at all levels and in all parts of the country. I look forward to continuing to play a constructive role in those efforts." ### Leland Drops Out, Dean +53 DNC votesBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanThough the far bigger news is the departure of Frost from the DNC Race, David Leland is out of the race for DNC and has endorsed Dean for Chair.
Democracy for America has also announced 53 new votes publicly for Dean in an expansive list. That includes six entire state delegations, 12 state chairs, 12 vice-chair as well as Mayor Wellington Webb, a voting member. The six states are Colorado, American Somoa, Minesota, Nebraska, and Oregon Henry Bonilla is "in"By Jim DallasThe Houston Chronicle:
No comment from me. OK, one. I'd vote for Bobby Bonilla if he decides to run. Was the GOP the Real Culprit in HD 149?By Andrew DobbsAnybody who watched last weeks's Heflin/Vo hearings felt kind of let down- after months of Republicans screaming about fraud and widespread Democratic attempts to steal the election Andy Taylor admitted that only about 15 votes could be attributed to fraud and that at least one of them cast their ballot for Heflin. In other words, there was no conspiracy- Taylor, Heflin, Benkiser, etc. had been lying to us since November. But now the tables seem to have turned and there might have been fraud after all, but not like the GOPers were claiming. An article in Counter Punch suggests that some of the evidence presented suggests that Republican operatives were re-registering African-American voters from HD 149 into other districts without their knowledge. Essentially, they were doing a classic vote fraud scheme in reverse- rather than registering dozens of people into a single house inside of a district so that they can all vote in an election, they regsitered all of them in a place outside the district so that they couldn't legally vote in 149. From the article:
I would encourage you to read the entire article, despite the fact that it is in a publication I would usually steer clear of. The facts presented speak for themselves and they raise some disturbing questions about GOP officials in Harris County and statewide. Donna Brazile to Dean: It's Healing TimeBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanIn what seems to be a cascade of events right now... Donna Brazile, Gore's campaign manager, basically says it's over and gives some tips on how to unite the Party. I have pulled the best quotes out and bolded them and such, but I really advise you to read the whole thing into the extended entry. This is one of the most amazing open letters I have ever read. February 1, 2005 Dear Governor: Since announcing your candidacy for chairman of the Democratic National Committee, you've been the talk of the town. Everywhere I go, people (not just Republicans, but even some prominent Democrats) are asking me how the Democratic Party could turn to Howard Dean after John Kerry's defeat last year. My simple answer, as a neutral observer in the race for chairman, is "because we can reconstruct our party to stand for something again." Now that you have secured the endorsement of the state party leaders, it's time to heal old wounds. The truth is, the race for party chairman should never have been about you. But unfortunately the defeated, the dejected and the delirious wings of the Democratic Party have made this, like the 2004 presidential primaries, an "anybody but Dean" race. For whatever reason, your candidacy left a mark and the wound continues to fester. In going forward, win or lose, take some time and care to make sure it heals. After listening to the candidates for chairman and vice chairmen this past weekend in New York City, I truly believe you have the ability to become a great leader of our party and could shake things up enough to make sure Democrats lay a foundation for future elections. But the chance, like in 2004, may elude you because of what you stand for. As I write this column, some labor leaders are still debating the merits of your candidacy. At a time when Democrats were demoralized after losing control of the Senate and for failing to win back Congressional and gubernatorial seats, your candidacy gave Democrats a much-needed jolt and got our hearts beating all over again. Your candidacy caught fire, a new generation of activists found a way to be players and used the Internet to create a buzz. And, man, did you make fundraising seem easy for a party dreading the impact of McCain-Feingold. Suddenly, you were on the cover of major newspapers and magazines. Political pundits followed your every move as you electrified the masses yearning to have a voice at the table. Your name was on every tongue inside and outside the Beltway. This led some people to suggest that Karl Rove was salivating at the prospect of the party nominating an ultra-left, anti-war liberal to take on a wartime president. But just as you appeared to be on the verge of catching fire in the Iowa caucuses, the winter turned harsh. People loved you in their hearts, but they became frightened of what it would mean for the Democratic Party to have you serve as our standard-bearer. Some of those same people are now involved in a last-ditch effort to stop your candidacy. Your youthful, tech-savvy supporters were new to the game of hardball presidential politics. They were playing in a league where the rules change based on who's in the game. Soon, some party insiders flush with cash went to work to cool your jets. You haven't quite been the same since the moment they made and paid for a video comparing you to Osama bin Laden. Perhaps this time you will make it to the top. But, as you have experienced, the climb up the ladder from ex-governor, ex-presidential candidate to chairman can be steep. The hurdles now, like the obstacles you confronted in the Democratic primaries, are mainly about ego. For all its talk about inclusiveness, the Democratic Party is extremely turf conscious. Thus, it's incumbent on you to reach out and bring these people, the very ones who went to the mat to stop you, into the fold. The bigger fish in the Democratic pond (the party is still swimming upstream) are truly bottom feeders eating away their young, casting aside callously their base and ignorant of the sharks circling our old coalitions. They have dismissed an entire generation of potential leaders when they held power by failing to lift up those who were coming behind. With you, some of the people who have been kept down found their voice. No matter what happens next week, keep fighting for them. Following a bruising loss in 2004, I am truly ashamed of my party for making the most important decision facing it a contest based on who not to support rather than who can help us rebuild. But, luckily, the state chairmen have temporarily put an end to the "anybody but Dean" crusade. No matter what happens to Dr. Howard Dean, M.D., I urge you to continue to heal the wounded. Stay positive and just try to remember why some of us are still loyal Democrats. ### More on Frost and Dallas DemocratsBy Byron LaMastersSome of the final comments on my thread detailing the effect that Martin Frost had on the success of the 2004 Dallas Democratic Countywide candidates got buried, so I wanted to do one more post on the topic to highlight the comments of former SDEC member of the 23rd Senatorial district, and well-known Democratic freebooter Gary Fitzsimmons - who crunched the numbers in Dallas County of which my analysis is based, and also the comments of a Dallas County Precinct 1811 Chair, Anthony Pace who was active in the campaigns of both Martin Frost and State Rep. candidate Harriet Miller. My original post can be found here and you can download the PowerPoint Presentation of which my analysis is based here. I did my best to paraphrase the commentary that Gary Fitzsimmons, but it's not the same as using his own words. Their comments in the extended entry (this exchange is probably more relevant to those of you interested in Dallas County politics, Gary Fitzsimmons writes:
Precinct 1811 Chair Anthony Pace writes:
Ewww... yuckBy Byron LaMastersJust when I was starting to warm up to the probability that Howard Dean will be the next DNC Chair, I read this Roll Call article on Kos:
No, no, no! Tim Roemer is great to speak for Democrats on National Security, but he shouldn't be in charge of day-to-day opperations. If Dean wins, he should put Rosenberg or Frost in charge of that. Both of them actually have experience running a Democratic organization, and would be able to hit the ground running. It should not be a patronage position to Nancy Pelosi's friend Timmy. DNC: DFT Poll and the AFL-CIO Non-EndorsementBy Byron LaMastersThe organizers of the DFT poll of state convention delegates claimed that they contacted via email each state convention delegate as to their preference for DNC Chair. According to a post on Texas DNC member David Holmes's yahoo group, that was not the case:
I'm sure that if this delegate did not receive the DFT survey, then there are surely many others who did not receive the DFT poll as well. I doubt that there was a concerted effort by DFT to exclude those who did not support Dean, but it's common sense that DFT would have the most accurate contact information for DFT members, and their contact information of non-DFT members was probably significantly less accurate - thus skewing their poll heavily towards Dean. Finally, here's a teaser... I just got word from one source that the AFL-CIO has just declined to endorse in the DNC race. Good news for Dean, bad news for Frost. Look for it to hit the AP wire soon.... Update: Ok, it's hit. The San Francisco Chronicle reports:
Thinking Outside the BoxBy Jim DallasPaul Krugman hits what has now become one of my favorite reasons for why privatizing Social Security is unlikely to work as promised: that the comparisons between a privatized system and promised benefits under the status quo involves a little bit of economic hanky-panky. But just as my precious meme hits the big time, I've realized that there's an escape hatch for the privatizers on this one. At the core of Krugman's argument is an assumption which does not bear out - that the only rate of return that matters is the rate of return for American corporations in the American economy. Investors can send their dollars overseas and get higher rates of return as the developing world "catches up." Under the status quo, however, payroll tax revenue is tied to the good ol' USA. It's possible that you could earn 6.5 to 7 percent abroad even if you couldn't possibly get such a return in U.S. equity markets. That's the escape hatch I am postulating. The thing is, do privatizers want to admit that their plan necessarily will involve high-risk-for-high-rewards investing in foreign countries? (Or in more politically-charged language, "outsourcing"?) Well, good.By Jim DallasWard Churchill is taking a demotion (why not more?). Granted, we're all here for academic freedom. But there's a fine line between controversy and idiocy. And if making it clear that we don't tolerate idiots involves partaking in the kabuki dance of disassociation, then, let's boogie down. One of my favorite professors at UT is Bob Jensen. You may not like Bob, but he's a nice guy. He's controversial to a hilt, but he doesn't say things just to upset people. (And Prof. Churchill makes Bob look like Captain America by comparison.) Can You Say "Birth Control?"By Vince LeibowitzThanks to a taxpayer funded study, we now have conslusive proof that teens are still having sex--and more of it in some cases--in spite of those lovely Republican abstinence-only sex education programs. According to a state-commissioned Texas A&M University study, abstinence-only sex ed had no impact on teen behavior in the Lone Star State. Reuters notes:
It sure is great to spend taxpayer dollars to have written on paper (likely complete with colorful graphs and statistics) a conclusion that most parents (and teens) came to decades ago (and perhaps as far back as the beginning of time). But, before I actually get into some of the interesting stats, I thought it was very funny that the Abstinence Clearinghouse have already declared the study a victory for Republican sponsored abstinence-only education, via USNewswire:
I know just about every Aggie joke every written goes against my thinking this, but surely the folks at A&M--where they have actually managed to clone living animals--are smart enough to have had a "control group." Anyway, back to the stats. Here are some snippits:
To clarify, I'm not in favor of teen sex (what politician is), but I have though abstinance should be included in regular sex ed, and that it shouldn't be the "only" sex ed there is. I'm hoping to find a copy of the study online, because I'd be curious to know if it also tracked teen pregnancy among the groups studied. Surely, if teen sex increased that much, teen pregnancy (not to mention SDTs) had to increase, too. And, if the kids weren't being taught about safe sex but were sexually active, it stands to reason that at least a decent percentage (perhaps the percentage that hasn't seen the varied PSA all over MTV) was having unprotected sex. Vince Leibowitz is the County Chairman of the Democratic Party of Van Zandt County. Who did YCT Offend this week?By Byron LaMastersIt's always someone... This week, it was Hispanics and Immigrants (pictures here)! Via The Daily Texican, the North Texas Daily reports:
So what exactly is their point? That ordinary citizens should go up and approach people that look like they might be illegal immigrants, form a vigilante police force and perform a citizen's arrest? The broader concern here is the tone of YCT. Illegal immigration, and immigration policy is not a "game". Pete Sessions probably thinks it's a game (since he believes the war on terror to be one), but most rational adults take the issue a bit more seriously. It's great that YCT's want to have a debate about immigration policy, but their tactics (just as their "racist bake sale" tactics) seek to offend rather than engage in reasoned debate. That's not very productive. |
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