For the remainder of the special legislative session, 21 days, the Texas Democratic Party will be raising $181 a day. In case you didn't do the math yourself, that equals $1 for every legislator every day of this special session. We need your help in raising this money, and every little bit helps.
Rick Perry has called the session and it will almost certainly be the fourth time in a row that the legislature has failed on school finance. Democrats came within one vote of passing their own school finance plan, one that had more money for schools, more tax relief for home owners and fewer headaches for educators. We came one vote short: let's make sure we don't have to worry about the margin next time around. We need to elect more Democrats and it won't happen without your help.
Either click on the link above, or copy and paste https://www.onlinecontribution.com/tdp/ into your browser. Every penny will help us rebuild our party from the ground up all across this state. We can win some big ones in 2006, but we'll need your support if we are going to do it. I know this is a bit more cheesy than the typical BOR fare, but this is an important time for the state party.
The belated nature of my first post owes much to the frenetic pace of the Special Session. So, I'll take this time to offer my most cordial greetings to you all. It is truly an honor and privilege to write for this most prestigious blog. I hail from the edges of Dallas County on the far fringes of suburbia. Somewhere past the familiar string of Mesquite, Plano, Richardson, and Garland lies a smaller town, Rowlett, that I am proud to call home. My adolescence was shaped by my family, faith, and convictions, which along with my last name (Clinton) led me to an early involvement with the Democratic Party.
I have continued to involve myself in Austin through an ongoing internship with Representative Richard Raymond (Webb County-District 42). Through this opportunity, I have been able to immerse myself in South Texas politics, border issues, and the legislative process. I remain active in the United Methodist Church in Austin and tend to view social and economic issues as part of my larger faith based philosophical framework. The basic preservation of human dignity should be a motivating force in the political arena.
I think that we must continue to be mindful of how policy translates into progress for American families. I remain a firm critic of the "waste of time" politics that have dominated the Texas and National Republican Party's agendas in recent years.
I am currently researching the effects of CAFTA on human rights in Central America and employment opportunities in the United States. I find that economic populism and protectionism offers the Party a chance to reclaim a large sector of the working class that has been alienated by the unholy alliance of the Republican Party with Big Business conglomerates.
I will gladly offer my prognostications and opinions on current Texas politics over the upcoming months. I welcome suggestions and questions as they arise. Hopefully, we can grow together as a community and individuals. Feel free to drop me a line, should that you need anything.
Hey friends, this is Marcus Ceniceros. I am proud to be one of the five new additions to Burnt Orange Report. Born in San Antonio, raised in El Paso, and now at school in Austin, I have seen Texas from many different perspectives and look forward to sharing my thoughts on government and politics with you.
When I arrived at UT two years ago, all of my community activities revolved around service projects. Growing up, I never really identified myself with a party, nor did I follow politics as much as some of the other writers here have. I have always admired government and know that without good, rational, unprejudiced public policy the people who need and deserve the most help will never receive it.
I joined University Democrats my freshman year and became very involved in the UT and Austin community. At the end of the year, I was elected president of the oldest, most respected political organization on campus. (I still get chills to know that great public servants like Lloyd Bentsen, Bruce Elfant, and of course, Byron LaMasters are past presidents.)
My time as president was amazing. Our members cared so much about our causes, worked hard to register over 7,000 voters, came together to host an amazing forum with Senator John Kerry, strengthened the UDems legacy on campus, and most importantly became friends that stood up for each other’s rights, just like our lawmakers should. One of my proudest moments was when we were named UT’s “Most Outstanding Student Organization” in front of thousands of people at Texas Revue.
Throughout these two years I have turned to Burnt Orange for important information about our community. I hope to help continue these conversations with all of you and inspire more people to become involved. Y espero que pueda alentar a personas que no han sido implicadas en la política previamente. (I hope to inspire people who have not been previously involved in politics.)
Please let me know if you ever need anything. Best-
To put it bluntly, my expectations have been pretty low when it comes to the Legislature actually passing a good plan for school finance reform, so if it seems like I'm behind the curve on this - I am. That said, if you haven't heard about this or read about iton one of these fine blogs the Democratic alternative plan came within one vote of passing yesterday, with 12 Republicans crossing over and forcing Speaker Craddick to break the tie in then name of opposition to sanity and progress. The House ended up passing HB2 instead, which will now head off to the Senate.
Meanwhile, I finally had an opportunity to be in the same room with Sue Lovell last night, who is running for Houston City Council place 2. Unfortunately, I didn't attend the last Harris County YD meeting, at which Lovell's fellow-candidate Jay Aiyer spoke. Although I am pretty impressed with Lovell's platform, I am still undecided in this race, largely because I've come to learn over the last year that Houston is just, let's face, a tremendously strange place, sort of like Oz.
Let's tune into Google News to see how things are going.
June 28, ca. 22:00 GMT (01:00 June 29, Egyptian time) - The United States House of Representatives rejects an amendment to cut military aid to Egypt. The amendment was offered by House Democrats concerned about Egypt's human rights record.
June 29, ca. 14:00 GMT (17:00 Egyptian Time) - Ayman Nour, the main opposition candidate, is put on trial on allegedly trumped-up charges of forgery.
June 29, ca. 15:00 GMT (18:00 Egyptian Time) - Egypt's highest court throws out the referendum, passed by over 80 percent of Egyptian voters, which would have permitted more than one presidential candidate to stand for election. The likely result is that President Hosni Mubarak, who has ruled Egypt since 1981, will be unopposed (again) for re-election in September.
Texas A&M University students will pay 12 percent more to attend classes this fall, continuing a statewide trend of escalating tuition rates. Students will pay $137 per semester hour, up from $122.50 a year ago. The increase should generate about $12.5 million for the flagship College Station campus, officials said. Soaring costs have alarmed students and parents since the Texas Legislature deregulated tuition rates in 2003. Some lawmakers sought to regain control of tuition during the session that ended last month, but their efforts failed.
Today former Congressman Chris Bell, who is exploring a run for governor, says that tutition deregulation has failed Texas.
“When tuition rises four times faster than inflation, we need to admit that tuition deregulation has failed,” said Bell. “One of my top priorities as Governor will be to put that genie back in the bottle. There is no better economic development program in the world than higher education, and the moms and dads in Texas deserve a Texas Governor who gets it.”
On Jun. 22, 2003, Rick Perry signed HB 3015, deregulating college tuition after lobbying for it. Since then, tuition at state colleges and universities has risen at alarming rates. In 2003, the tuition at the University of Texas at Austin rose 37 percent, the highest jump of any school in the country according to the Chronicle of Higher Education.
“Rick Perry says he balanced the budget without raising taxes. Well, he balanced it all right. He balanced it on the backs of every mom and dad who’s struggling to send their kid to college, not to mention the students taking out huge loans just to pay for Rick Perry’s balanced budget. Tell them that the largest tuition increase in the country isn’t a tax increase,” said Bell.
But never fear, prepaid tuition plans are here...
...but 2003 Carole Keeton Strayhorn suspended the program "for the foreseeable future … to safeguard the plan's financial integrity."
"Words are flowing out like endless rain into a paper cup,
They slither while they pass, they slip away across the universe…" "Across the Universe" by The Beatles
I've spent most of the morning trying to write this first post, and I can see, now, that my biggest challenge as a writer will be to keep my words from slipping away into the universal abyss of the internet.
I want what I say to mean something. I want to open up the mind's of those who are resigned to believe that nothing's going to change their world. Passionate persuasion -- that's my gig, because the devil's in the details, but our faith's in what we feel. Our faith asks us to be honest with ourselves, and share what we believe with those we can get to listen.
My faith comes from many places. I'm a Catholic, and I still play guitar for my church's choir. My mom teaches math at a charter school here in Austin, and my dad is a political consultant who works with Democratic legislators and candidates, party organizations, and teachers. My first job was at the best political communications company in town, Message, Audience & Presentation, where I helped edit and research direct mail pieces for the primary and general election campaigns of many of the freshmen Democrats.
To steal from my first boss, "the 'art' of political communication…is about connecting a candidate who is less known than they think, to a voter who cares less than we like to believe." Our job, then, as people who are interested in politics and who are committed to improving the lives of others, is to find a way for our words to convey our feelings of faith in a way that captures, convinces, and challenges our audience.
So that's where I'm coming from. My life experiences have shown me that our faith comes from our family, and our family have the biggest impact on the direction of our lives. Knowing this, I look forward to working with my newest family, the BOR crew, and bringing everyone the latest news and ideas about Texas politics.
First, I would like to thank the academy...er...I'm Damon McCullar and I'm reporting for...er..no..
Let me start by giving you folks a big howdy from East Texas. People often ask me what part of Texas I'm from, and I usually respond "East Texas". Without fail they go on to ask "What part". To that I say "Mt. Pleasant, Texas" and after about thirty seconds of a blank stare as they desperate try to recall all the cities in East Texas they've been to, I say "It's on I-30 about 100 miles east of Dallas". Then I get a knowing nod and the subject is dropped. I graduated from Mt. Pleasant High School way back in '96. Please don't give me any comments like "Wow, I was in 4th grade back in '96", I've heard them all. After a couple of semesters of community college I join the US Navy. I had a great time, learned a lot and saw even more. After living on the east coast for 8 years, (I've been to Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Virginia...Argh!) I got the opportunity to come back to Texas and it's the best decision I ever made...
...I'm now a physics major at the University of Texas. I'm a senior, and I will be for awhile. I've been very active in the University Democrats over the last semester. I was co-chair of the GLBT lobbying committee last semester and pending conformation (please no filibusters folks) I will be the co-chair for the Issues Committee in the fall. I have just finished interning for the Jennifer Kim for Austin City Council campaign and I am now interning for the Chris Bell for Texas Governor Exploratory Committee and also interning for Congressman Lloyd Doggett's district office here in Austin. I look forward to writing for Burnt Orange Report and thank the staff for the confidence they have shown in me.
It's not every day that we get to report on major scoops here on the Burnt Orange Report, but if an unnamed source under the Dome is correct as we are prone to believe, then this is one of those scoops.
Chatter has it that University of Texas-Austin President Larry Faulkner called the capitol today to give people the heads up that tomorrow, Thursday, he is planning on announcing his intention to resign his office.
Faulkner just recently selected Juan Gonzalez, outgoing Vice President of Student Affairs at Arizona State, to be the replacement for Dr. James Vick, outgoing VP of Student Affairs at UT-Austin. The Vice President selection process has not been with out its own controversies and withdrawn candidates documented here, here, here, and here.
Stay tuned to BOR for any developments on this story. If you have information denying or further confirming this post, contact me.
Current polls show public opinion of the war in Iraq is not as supportive as previous months. 53% of Americans feel that sending troops to Iraq was a mistake and 51% of the Americans want a timetable set for troops to arrive back home. The reason for President Bush’s speech tonight is probably because 61% of Americans feel that he does not have a clear plan and is also not handling the Iraq situation well. These numbers have jumped since earlier polling in February from the low 40’s to low 50’s and 60’s. This signals a need for change in military and republican policy. Hopefully we will see a blue Whitehouse in 2008 and a large turnover of house seats in 2006.
Rick Perry's sign-off last week from an interview with KTRK elevated him to the ranks of today's most mature high school freshmen. During an interview with KTRK reporters over his new education plan Gov. Perry let the media know how he felt about their prodding questions over his proposed education finance plan.
As a college sophomore, I thought I'd grown past the point in my life where I would run into people trying to act cool using a phrase like "adios mofo." Like a lot of Texans, I was certainly hoping for a little more out of the man in charge of fixing the education system here in our state. If Perry would really like to reach out to Texas children, he might want to fund education first and then worry about how to relate to kids. Just a suggestion, but if he wants to get college kids on his side, he might want to work on grants and financial aid, tax-free textbooks, and tuition re-regulation instead of practicing his frat house banter. And if it's the high school or younger crowd that he was trying to reach out to, maybe his time would be better spent giving teachers a pay raise or providing computers in classrooms.
Thanks to Perry's interesting use of the English language I am sure students all over the state of Texas will look at their governor in admiration as they hope for school funding and his term to end.
Somewhat serendipitously, I have before me a very recently decided case from the Third Court of Appeals (Whittington v. City of Austin, Texas Cause No. 03-03-00496-CV, decided June 8, 2005) which suggests that Texas law is already somewhat less deferential to eminent domain seizures than the standard applied by the Supreme Court last week in Kelo v. City of New London.
Again - the federal standard is a bare-minimum. In Whittington, the Third Court of Appeals reversed an inverse condemnation of some property in downtown Austin on the grounds that the City of Austin failed to demonstrate why it needed to take the property (according to the opinion, the City later claimed that the land would be used for Austin Energy and a parking garage).
The two cases are not directly comparable, but is useful for illustrating the point I asserted earlier - that Texas, and for that matter, any state, can take independent steps to protect property owners.
While it still doesn't protect property rights per se, current Texas law does at least provide a check on "corrupt" public officials by permitting a public vote. In Freeport, petitions are circulating regarding the city's attempts to condemn property the city wants to turn into a marina.
That's great. Of course, though, I worry that an anti-Kelo backlash in Texas will inspire an unwise reaction. After all, if Rush Limbaugh is beating the drums of war...
Update on the Update: Kuff that the up-to-datest up-diddly-date!
Tonight at around 9 pm CST, the Canadian Parliament will likely approve Equal Marriage Rights legislation to bring the nation in line with court orders in 8 of its 10 provinces. After approval from the Liberal Party dominated Senate, Canada would become the 3rd nation in the world to permit gay marriages after Belgium and the Netherlands (though Spain is moving towards this position as well).
Canada's more relaxed stance on gay marriage and other social issues stands in contrast to that of the United States, where President George W. Bush wants Congress to back a constitutional amendment banning same sex marriages.
"What it says is that ... we understand pretty well that the biggest challenge that all of us have is to try to find ways of getting along, of understanding the other person," Social Development Minister Ken Dryden told reporters on Tuesday...
Some Liberal lawmakers say they fear they will be punished by voters at the next federal election, expected early next year. Conservative leader Stephen Harper says opposing gay marriage will form a major part of his election platform.
But Harper's stance could also be risky, since the Liberals won elections in 2000 and 2004 in part because they were able to portray their right-wing rivals as extremists who would hack away at civil rights if elected.
So refreshing to have a country that views right-wing extremists that hack away at civil rights as a bad thing instead of leadership material.
As we have undergone these transitions in ownership I would like congratulate the Burnt Orange People for their cooperation and unwavering commitment to us. It's Hard Work being in the position I am, but I welcome it because together we will build a better, safer, freer blog.
Unfortunately, some things have not gone quite as planned. Certain target dates were not always met, and certain missions were not accomplished when we thought they were. But we do have some things to be proud of. Elections, though delayed, are now complete in the first free referendum Burnt Orange Reporters have participated in to elect a new set of writers.
There are challenges ahead but we will make it through with perseverance. Our newly elected writers will enjoy a new website within the next two weeks. Our planned withdrawal from the old site has been delayed due to unforeseen infrastructure problems that occurred in implementing the new one. We have a special operations tech man on the job who was given a no-bid contract by myself. He has agreed with me, that the direction in which we were headed was fraught with bugs and PHP peril. I may have to borrow some funds against expected revenues for the short term, but it is an investment we must afford to pay if we are all to benefit from a new, more stable Burnt Orange Report.
I ask you to bear with us and soldier on as we have been for just a couple more weeks.
Good day. And may the power of the Internet be with you.
P.S. Please join me in welcoming our new recruits.
Long awaited and greatly anticipated, I'd like to introduce to you the five newest members of our Burnt Orange Reporting Team. They will soon have logins and will each be posting a welcome message and biography in the coming days.
::Marcus Ceniceros::
Immediate Past President of the University of Texas Democrats, Marcus is well known in the University community and Travis County Democratic Politics. With vast connections to elected Austin officials and first hand experience leading our organization to Most Outstanding of the Year, Marcus will help to fill the void of the other President Emeritus on this blog, Byron.
He hails from El Paso, where he was Editor-in-Chief of his high school paper which had a 7 year run as the number one high school paper in the state. Marcus brings a huge asset to BOR and Texas Blogs in his ability to report first hand on El Paso politics. Originally added as a writer earlier this year though he never posted, he was the first Burnt Oranger of Color, breaking into what has been a white male dominated field. We are thrilled to welcome him back.
::Drew Clinton::
Originally from Rowlett outside of Dallas, Drew now is a third year Anthropology and Plan II major here at UT. He was raised on the notion of loyalty to the Democratic Party and “will die a Democrat”. He is continuing an internship with State Representative Richard Raymond from Laredo, giving him insight into border issues that are often ignored in the Texas Blogosphere, as well as South Texas connections and good relations with various editors of Texas publications. In past summers, Drew has interned with the Dallas County Democratic Party and the Jim Nickerson campaign, giving him experience with our Party in some of the most Urban portions of Central Dallas to the very rural fringe of Webb County.
Drew has a great interest in Mexican and European politics and international trade in particular. He believes the expansion of neoliberal trade policy through CAFTA deserves a greater share of our discussion as Democrats. This summer he is working on University Of Texas Professor Dr. Robert Woodberry's project, Spiritual Capital, which seeks to examine the impact of Christian missions on nonwestern societies - particularly on health, education, economic development, women's rights, ethnic conflict, colonial and foreign policy, and post-colonial political democracy.
::Phillip Martin::
Phillip, a Plan II / English Senior here at UT, has been living in Austin his entire life. Also of Hispanic heritage, we are glad to bring him on board with his experience working at Message, Audience, and Presentation, a political communications company. In those years, he helped edit direct mail for Abel Herrero, Veronica Gonzales, Yvonne Gonzalez-Toureilles, and Marc Veasey's primary and general election campaigns as well as doing research and fact-checking mail for Congressman Lampson and Stenholm’s campaigns.
With a parent that consults for the Party and his current work in the Texas Legislature, we are happy to add Phillip to our team. We can always use help keeping up with the latest Democratic Politics under the dome and the goings ons of our rural Democratic issues and politicians.
::Damon McCullar::
Having grown up in Mt. Pleasant, Damon is now 27, and physics major at UT. Damon is an outspoken Democrat and eight year veteran of the United States Navy, a powerful combination that we are lucky to have here at BOR. He started the Burnt Orange Digest in honor of this blog. He may be one of our older writers, but that hasn’t kept him from staying involved in Austin politics after his first year at The University. He is currently interning in Congressman Lloyd Doggett’s district office and worked tirelessly on the Jennifer Kim campaign for Austin City Council. He is now in conversations with the Chris Bell for Governor Committee.
Damon headed up the UDems GLBT Issues Committee’s fight against hate in the Texas Legislature this session, a tall order for anyone. He was key in gauging where our Democratic Senators stood on HJR 6 as well as lobbying them at the Capitol. He also organized the "Hate is Not a Texas Value" protest in the House Gallery which got front page coverage in the Daily Texan.
::John Pruett::
Originally from Houston, John recently graduated from UT as a History major at the age of 23. As self described 'left of center progressive who consistently votes Democratic' John has interned for some of the more liberal members of the Texas House including Rep. Lon Burnam of Fort Worth and Rep. Anchia of Dallas, and may become one of the more progressive voices here on BOR. John has some journalism background, having written articles for Znet and the independent UT student publication ISSUE, as well as having been a former columnist for the Daily Texan.
John was a member of UT Watch for 3 years where he worked on two major issue campaigns, one against UT’s bid for Las Alamos National Laboratory as well as the campaign against tuition deregulation. He has also conducted research into the UT System budget, university research projects, histories of UT student activism, UTIMCO investments, and UT System lobbying. He served with me in this past Spring’s Student Government election debate panel for KVR-TV and is also active in Student Government issues, bringing an additional UT oriented political voice to this blog.
Congratulations to each of you and welcome to the Burnt Orange Family. You will be receiving your log in information within 24 hours.
Because I have nothing better to post as I work on the new site, I provide this entertainment for your pleasure. Really, I love all the Texas blogs, but I love where this went.
PinkDomeTX : bloggers are supposed to be sexy.
BOR: well you most certainly are
BOR: you have style PinkDomeTX: at least i like to portray that image as opposed to dorks in front of a computer with conspiracy theories!
BOR: hahah
BOR: you and INPT bug me a lot you know
BOR: here we are, Texas bloggers, trying to make a respectable living off of rumor laden news and being the tipsters of texas
BOR: and you two have to come along with your capitol snarkiness and photo editing skills PinkDomeTX: bwahahaha
BOR: stealing all our traffic, no, not stealing it, using us to promote you and then end up with 3 times as much as we have PinkDomeTX: haha
BOR: making me have to deal with BOR writers that ask, can we have more pictures on the new site? PinkDomeTX: HAHAHAHAHA
BOR: I WILL NOT CAVE
BOR: we are SO TOTALLY going to corner you on the RESPECTABLE JOURNALISM front PinkDomeTX: respectable journalism? EW
BOR: Just you wait, when I lay out the new BOR 3.0 Media Relations Team, we are going to be having to get extra phone lines to handle all the reporters calls.
BOR: Shut you down, out of service, run out of the capitol. PinkDomeTX: well just talk about gay sex. that will work!
PinkDomeTX: eh. i've got a real job. and I hate politics. i'd still write PD if only three people were reading
BOR: Yeah, well be prepared for that, after the BOR onslaught!
Do blogs have personalities? Sure they do. Though I think BOR will have a nice case of schizophrenia when we increase to 13 writers.
The first of two decisions expected today on the constitutionality of displaying the Ten Commandments in public buildings came down. The Washington Post is reporting that the Kentucky case, which involved the display of the Decalogue in two county courthouses was ruled to be unconstitutional. The majority opinion by Justice David Souter noted, in part, the "predominantly religious purpose" of the display.
No word yet on the Texas case, but many are suprised that the two decisions were split. Keep tuned to BOR for your Supreme Court news.
UPDATE: The ruling went the other way in the Texas case. The Court ruled 5-4 that the monument on the Capitol grounds did not violate the Constitution. The judgment in the other case was also 5-4, Sandra Day O'Connor provided the swing vote.
I have important news. No, not the 5 new Burnt Orange Report writers that have now been selected after a long but thorough process. No, not the fact that the new site is nearly complete and nearing launch. More important than that, it’s made me break my traditional barrier to paying attention to any and all sports.
The Texas Horns has won its sixth title in the College World Series of Baseball.
Sometimes there isn’t much else to say except, Hook ‘Em.
Update: Damn you Jim! Making break my oath to be duplicative!
For those of you still reading tonight, we are going to be transferring the Burnt Orange Report domain from Byron to myself. Expect downtime throughout the night as it is released and recaptured.
Following that, we will be moving over the webmail accounts as well. Following that, we will be prepared to launch BOR 3.0 and deal with the ensuing uproar of 'OMG, this site is now dead' comments that I'm sure are awaiting me.
Once I get Katie and Vince's comments in tonight (fingers crossed) I'll be able to introduce our new writers, of which we now have 4 of the 7 that have been approved by the current Burnt Orangers. I've elected to wait until I can announce them all together, but I think the wait will have been worth it.
Just a reminder for those of you who want to know if Air America has a dial near you. The following are the current Texas Station, for full listings across the country go here.
The Canadian Province of New Brunswick has ruled that marriage rights must be extended to it's gay citizens, after Judge Judy Clendenning found that the province's current definition of marriage violated their rights.
The ruling leaves P.E.I., Alberta, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories as the last jurisdictions in the country that do not recognize same-sex marriage.
It gives New Brunswick a 10-day grace period to get the new marriage definition into place.
Premier Bernard Lord has said he personally believes in the traditional view of marriage. But he said the province wouldn't put up a fight if the courts or Parliament ordered it to make a change.
I bold that last paragraph to highlight a difference between our Northern neighbors and the US governing party. They calmly state that they don't agree, but respect the ruling of the courts. Here, we state we disagree but attack the judicial system, attempt to strip it of powers, or change our constitutions to override them.
With commentary and votes in from almost all of the BOR writers, save one and a half of another, we have 3 new Burnt Orange Reporters already selected out of the applicant pool. A couple others are teetering on the edge of approval as I await the final word. So I may be able to get the post out tonight after all for the whole crew. Otherwise I'll announce the first bunch and the others this weekend if there are more.
Then, next week I'm going to ask each of them to put together an introductory post for themselves so you can get to know them and their background. I, as well as the BOR team, have been very impressed with you as a community stepping up, engaging in our debates in the comments, e-mailing us tips, and even putting us on your press release list when we don't ask to be on it. :)
The other big news, not timed or inspired with the overhaul going on over at dKos, the Burnt Orange Report looks like it is set to become more of a community based site. That likely means letting go of Movable Type. It has served us well and helped grow this site to what it is today under Byron's leadership, from its beginning (when we moved to our current domain from livejournal) and what soon will be, not an end, but the close of a chapter.
I have a new platform in mind, (not Scoop, but similar and open source) but want to hear what you would like to see changed about site design, platform, user interface, tools, functionality, and how to better interact with that which is the Burnt Orange Report.
This land belongs to you and me... until the city condemns it to build a strip mall
By Jim Dallas
Lots of smart people (like Kuff) have already commented on the Supreme Court's ruling this week in Kelo v. City of New London. Unfortunately, I still haven't had a chance to read the opinions in full, or comment on them. Moreover, I'm still at work and can't type up a wonderful dissertation on Kelo right now. So let's get busy with the quickie hit-and-run rant:
(1) First of all, this is not an activist decision (I've already run into freepi who insist otherwise). Look, people, the Kelo majority, love it or hate it, is basing it's decision on judicial deference, not activism, when it continues to apply a threshold "rational relations" standard in assessing whether a taking is for a public use. Basically, they're saying they don't want to impose their judgment as nine black-robed judges on the states (and by extension, municipalities). After all the whining after Roper v. Simmons ("the tyrants are telling us not to fry seventeen year olds!!!!"), the Court finally throws a bone to the states rights crowd. Beggars can't be choosers, you know.
(2) That said, we're Texans, and if there's one thing we hate, it's France. If there's two things we hate, it's the French, and the government taking away our private property (do you realize hurricane evacuation orders were not mandatory in this state until just this last month?!?)
But of course, since we've still got our states rights, the Legislature can protect us from eminent domain abuse. Enter, stage right, Rep. Frank "All your uterus are belong to us" Corte (R - San Antonio), who is championing a constitutional amendment to protect our private property, insofar as by private property one does not mean "private parts."
Frankly, I have no idea how the proposed amendment relates to school finance, but I'm hopeful that it or something like it will prevent the Communist Terror from taking over Freeport.
(3) Finally, the incomparable SCOTUSBlog argues that Justice Kennedy's concurring opinion - which argued that eminent domain seizures where the "public use" is merely pretextual may not meet the rational relations threshold - should be interpreted as controlling. This will create a lot of work for land-use attorneys in the next few years. Luckily, I've been giving some thought to going into this field if I can survive another two years of school and pass the bar.
Scott Henson over at Grits for Breakfest has some interesting comments from a panel hosted by Campaigns and Elections magazine. It's a good read so head on over there to read about blogs, blogging, and the fair use of them.
The Statesman reports that the Texas Association of Business (co-owner of the Texas Republican Party) has released the contents of it's multi-million dollar direct mail campaign for the 2002 elections after being ordered to do so by the Texas Supreme Court (owned by the Texas Republican Party).
For tactical reasons, Wood did not seek the identity of the corporate donors, avoiding a showdown over that issue — and whether the names are protected by the First Amendment guarantee of freedom of association — for now.
The association's answers, however, gave a glimpse of the scope of its mailing effort that touted Republican candidates and criticized their Democratic opponents.
The documents show 42 donations given to the association between February and November of 2002.
Some of the corporations might have given more than once, and their total contributions might exceed the single largest donation of $250,000.
The money came from both members and non-members of the business group. Fourteen of the 42 donations, including the $250,000 contribution, were from non-members. Three donations accounted for almost one-third of the $1.9 million spent on mailers.
Wood also noted that the total spent on mailers exceeded the association's $1.5 million budget. He argued that it shows the association was operating as a de facto political committee.
"It confirms our theory of the case," Wood said. "These answers clearly show large amounts of money were solicited from a small number of for-profit corporations."
Rep. Terry Keel, of HD 47 in Southwest Travis County, has officially filed his paperwork to run for Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, setting the stage for a primary battle with incumbant Charles Holcomb.
An Austin lawmaker who was instrumental in the failure of a bill that would have given judges a pay raise said Friday he will run for a seat on the Court of Criminal Appeals.
Republican Rep. Terry Keel said he is seeking the position currently held by Justice Charles Holcomb, a Republican.
Holcomb began his term with the court in 2001, and his term expires in 2006. His office said he will seek re-election.
The Court of Criminal Appeals is the state's highest court on criminal issues, and justices are elected by a statewide vote.
In a statement, Keel said he believes he can bring a unique background to criminal law, including his experience as a prosecutor, criminal defense attorney, sheriff and lawmaker.
Keel passed up a chance to run for a lower level, closer to come court such as the 3rd Court of Appeals anchored by Austin, where Democratic Justice Jan Patterson won by a few thousand votes last year and Democrat Diane Henson came up a few thousand short of gaining a seat. It would be a competitive district, but Keel probably recognizes that a Republican primary statewide would be easier. Plus, as competitive as the Governor's race may be, it is unlikely that Democrats will win any of the Statewide judicial seats, as they are more or less simply decided by the base vote of each party. Dems are gaining a point or two a cycle for those, but they are mostly out of reach for now.
Fine by me, it just opens up HD 47 for being a top tier target in Central Texas, where Dennis Speight, Gregg Knaupe, Son of Laney, Son of Earle, and probably others are all 'considering' it. If someone announces, please let us know in the comments.
KUT, our radio station here, has an audio report on DemFest. There was also an Austin Chronicle and News 8 Austin report on it, located here.
Also, just to note, the Democratic nominee for CD 22 against DeLay is now 99% officially former Rep. Nick Lampson as Houston city councilman Gordon Quan has said he's not going to get in the race and is endorsing Lampson, who currently has a June fundraising "star" on his website.
Quorum Report is a bit behind of us on this one, but has some background info to add to the mix.
Add Dennis Speight to the list of Democrats considering a run for Terry Keel's (R-Austin) soon to be open House seat.
Speight served as the finance director for the Partnership, an apparatus designed to help Democratic House members. Speight helped raise $1.3 million for the 2002 campaign. He now serves as the vice-chair for finance of the Texas Democratic Party. He also serves as Rep. Chuck Hopson's (D-Jacksonville) legislative aide. Speight was also president of the Texas Young Democrats for three years and has lived in the district for four years.
Over in HD 48 against Baxter, Democratic candidate Andy Brown is already starting to lob press releases at the incumbant. In addition, he's hired much of the campaign staff that he needs at this point as well as a top notch Austin fundraiser. The campaign staff met with one of the same tech people that met with John Courage this Wednesday. Look for integration of various components and coordination of technology and volunteers in HD 50, HD 48, and CD21. We're hoping to get HD 47's nominee into the same system, whomever that may end up being. So please don't tear each other aparty down there in a primary guys.
Chris Bell has a new Podcast up. Which give us an excuse to talk about the Governor's race on the Dem side. Comments heard by this BOReporter this week suggests that John Sharp is giving the race serious consideration.
Let the flame wars ensue. This is an Open Thread for the Governor's Race.
First off, check out the story in yesterday's Daily Texan about the continuing efforts of the owners of Player's Restaurant to keep the University of Texas from using it's eminent domain powers to seize the land to make way for it's campus hotel and parking garage.
The petition to Save Players is located here and you can sign it at the actual location if you stop by. As the website says...
The University of Texas at Austin is intending on purchasing Player's and replacing it with a parking garage. Across the street, UT is purchasing the stripmall that includes IT Copy and Radio Shack. Apparently, we really need a hotel there.
IT Copy or Radio Shack- we care not about. The hotel could be a great thing for the campus. However, once they try to take away a Player's Combo with cheese and no tomatoes with a strawberry shake, The University has gone too far.
Of course, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 today in a case very closely related to this, the Kelo v. New London case. The New York Times has a good report on what happened. In short, the more liberal Justices upheld the taking of property by governmental authorities to redistribute, even to private developers, for demolition and redevelopment.
The majority concluded on Thursday that public use was properly defined more broadly as "public purpose." Justice Stevens noted that earlier Supreme Court decisions interpreting the public use clause of the Fifth Amendment had allowed the use of eminent domain to redevelop a blighted neighborhood in Washington, to redistribute land ownership in Hawaii and to assist a gold-mining company, in a decision by Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes in 1906.
"Promoting economic development is a traditional and long accepted function of government," Justice Stevens said, adding, "Clearly, there is no basis for exempting economic development from our traditionally broad understanding of public purpose."
In a dissenting opinion, Justice Sandra Day O'Connor objected that "the words 'for public use' do not realistically exclude any takings, and thus do not exert any constraint on the eminent domain power."
Justice O'Connor said, "Under the banner of economic development, all private property is now vulnerable to being taken and transferred to another private owner, so long as it might be upgraded."
Justice Stevens, examining the New London plan in light of the majority's general analysis, said the plan "unquestionably serves a public purpose," even though it was intended to increase jobs and tax revenue rather than remove blight.
...
Justices Stephen G. Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Anthony M. Kennedy and David H. Souter joined the majority opinion in Kelo v. City of New London, No. 04-108. Justice Kennedy also wrote a separate concurring opinion to emphasize that while there was no suggestion in this instance that the plan was intended to favor any individual developer, "a court confronted with a plausible accusation of impermissible favoritism to private parties should treat the objection as a serious one and review the record to see it if has merit."
On the opposite side is an interesting coalition, with whom I more closely agree, which I'm sure is one of the few cases in which I agree with the likes of Scalia, Thomas, and Rehnquist.
Justice O'Connor's dissenting opinion was joined by Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist and by Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas. She wrote that rather than adhering to its precedents, the court had strayed from them by endorsing economic development as an appropriate public use.
"Who among us can say she already makes the most productive or attractive use of her property?" Justice O'Connor asked.
She added: "The specter of condemnation hangs over all property. Nothing is to prevent the state from replacing any Motel 6 with a Ritz-Carlton, any home with a shopping mall or any farm with a factory."
Both Justice O'Connor and Justice Thomas, who also filed his own dissent, said the decision's burden would fall on the less powerful and wealthy.
"The government now has license to transfer property from those with fewer resources to those with more," Justice O'Connor said. "The founders cannot have intended this perverse result."
Justice Thomas, who called the decision "far reaching and dangerous," cited several studies showing that those displaced by urban renewal and "slum clearance" over the years tended to be lower-income minority residents.
"The court has erased the Public Use Clause from our Constitution," he said.
It seems that the Conservatives and I are joined by Ralph Nader of all people. From his press release.
Hundreds of abuses of eminent domain have occurred during the last few decades, with municipalities playing reverse Robin Hood‚ taking from ordinary citizens and giving to powerful individual developers or corporations. In many cases, the alleged public benefit is a transparent cover for what amounts to legalized theft.
With today's decision, the Court has abdicated its role as guardian of the Constitution and individual rights. This decision authorizes courts across the country to allow self- defining misuses of "public use" and "public benefit" requirements.
So Austinites, Save Players. If for anything, to stand up for the little guy and greasy onion rings.
In the category of Great Shakes and Stunning Announcements comes Republican Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson's declaration that he's running for re-election and that he would "like to have an opponent." To which Mike Lavigne of the Texas Democratic Party responded, "He will".
Of course, who is still totally unknown continuing the TDP's strategy of "Mum is the Word" on what we are up to. Let's just home the word doesn't stay mum much longer. Any of you want to break your mumness in the comments?
Hutchison didn't want to challenge Perry, this we all know. But the big question is why. We assumed that she felt she couldn't win the primary, or would damage the political capital that she has. The latter would have probably ended up true, but the Statesman shows us today that the former wasn't true at all.
U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison would have been a strong front-runner among likely Republican voters if she'd challenged Gov. Rick Perry one-on-one next year, according to a survey conducted by a firm hired by her campaign.
A memo summarizing the April survey and obtained by the Austin American-Statesman says that, at the time, about 59 percent leaned toward Hutchison, with 33 percent favoring Perry.
The numbers might dampen speculation that Hutchison avoided running against Perry out of concern that he'd steeled support among GOP activists. It likewise leaves in question why she didn't try and suggests that Perry has ground to cover with voters.
Only 15 percent of the surveyed voters said they would definitely re-elect Perry, though another 23 percent said they would probably prefer him over a new Republican.
So Perry isn't popular with voters, but for Perry not to be popular with Republican Primary type of voters by that kind of margin... that's something to give hope to the likes of Carol Keeton McClellan Rylander Strayhorn who can run on simply "not being Perry". While I still lean towards those that say Perry wins the primary due to his ownership of the base, I sincerely believe that as the Perry camp realizes how vulnerable it is, it will lash out negatively, harshly, and without forgiveness.
Oh, and there are rumors of none other than Lance Armstrong running for Texas Governor. Though not in 2006. Good thing, we wouldn't want the race to get any more weird than Perry, Carol 4-Names, Chris Bell, the Kinkster, and Jennifer Gale. And Sheryl Crow as first lady? Anita would throw a fit.
Let's not get all starry eyed and actually think that Democrats have any leverage in the State House as far as HB 2 and 3 go, but as was pointed out to us today by a faithful reader, Republican Rep. Anna Mowrey signed on to the Democratic Education Plan as a co-sponsor.
This comes a day after we heard rumors from the capitol that Perry is taking a gander at the Dem Plan even as he campaigns, I mean, takes his plan around the state. From a reader...
...word around the capitol today is that Perry has been in meetings w/ Hochberg and Democrats all day and may sign on to their school plan in order to win bipartisan points and win moderates and women back from Strayhorn. Plus, he wont get blamed as much if the whole thing goes down in flames.
If that were true, it would tickle us pink. But of course, Perry can take the time to tour around the state because the Lege isn't actually meeting, it adjourned on Tuesday within 45 minutes of opening until next Monday. Which should give Sen. Troy Fraser, my hometown Senator, some time to convince Perry to add Telecom Reform to the Special Session agenda, since he's already filed the legislation.
Yes, because restarting the Cable v. Telecom wars is the best thing one could think of proposing in order to stay focused on Education and Tax Reform. Well I guess Sen. Fraser just wants to make sure more people have a chance to see how miserable the Republican Party is at actual legislating these days.
All the media have been atitter with Howard Dean's faux pas and Dick Durbin's statements on the House floor regarding Gitmo, yet it seems that the really horrific rhetoric is coming from the Right. Exhibit A was outlined yesterday, calling Democrats anti-Christian.
Exhibit B: Karl Rove:
Karl Rove came to the heart of Manhattan last night to rhapsodize about the decline of liberalism in politics, saying Democrats responded weakly to Sept. 11 and had placed American troops in greater danger by criticizing their actions.
"Conservatives saw the savagery of 9/11 in the attacks and prepared for war; liberals saw the savagery of the 9/11 attacks and wanted to prepare indictments and offer therapy and understanding for our attackers," Mr. Rove, the senior political adviser to President Bush, said at a fund-raiser in Midtown for the Conservative Party of New York State. (...)
Told of Mr. Rove's remarks, Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York, replied: "In New York, where everyone unified after 9/11, the last thing we need is somebody who seeks to divide us for political purposes."
Yeah, Rove, we were such wusses when it came to 9/11. Sure there were some elements of the rather far-Left that wanted to enter into quiet introspection, but there are some elements of the far-Right which claim that you flew the planes by remote control for some crazy conspiracy purpose. Both were wrong, and when the votes were cast on what we should do, every Congressional liberal but one voted to go to war. Wrap your mind around that-- Bernie Sanders, Sheila Jackson Lee, Dennis Kucinich-- they all voted to go to war. Rove repeats the blood-libel against liberals that we are weak against terror and it is shameful. He should either apologize or resign.
Exhibit C: The Truth About Hillary Clinton, a new rag from conservative imprint Sentinel by hack Ed Klein. Among its more vile accusations is that because Hillary Clinton is actually a "radical lesbian" she and Bill never had sex, so he raped her in order for them to conceive a child. I'm sure most of you have heard this before now, but now Rush Limbaugh and Peggy Noonan are arguing that the whole book is part of a Vast Left Wing Conspiracy. What a bunch of despicable people.
Exhibit D: "Adios, MoFo." Turns out our lovely governor felt the need to lob a 9th grade half-assed vulgarity at a Houston reporter for daring to ask about the details of the school finance plan Perry was about to foist upon us. Perry claims he was just joshing with his press secretary, but watch the video-- it is pretty clear that he was bitching about the reporter. Now, I say the full-fleshed version of that particular word quite frequently, but I've never done it on television. This ranks below the other three, but still betrays the right's vicious rhetoric.
In the end it is all about a lack of decency. The whole political culture is infused with hate, but the GOP adds in the lovely tactic of fear-mongering. I'll be the first to say that shrill Democratic rhetoric pisses me off. I find Daily Kos unreadable for the most part nowadays because it is just a non-stop hatefest it seems. But the GOP has the same shrillness and throws in a vicious dose of perdition and demagoguery.
Liberals call Bush a war-monger liar, conservatives called Clinton the same thing but also claimed that he was a murderer, a rapist, a Communist spy traitor and everything else under the sun. Liberals will whine on about the rather underwhelming Downing Street memo, but Republicans call Democrats Christian-hating Osama Lovers who want to burn flags. The fact of the matter is that the really atrcious stuff is coming from them, and unless we do something NOW, the rhetoric could turn into something far worse.
Sometimes on here I put up a little disclaimer saying that I do not speak for the Party, the Chairman, the Staff or Officers of the Texas Democratic Party. Today that is unnecessary, because I am speaking as a staffer for the Texas Democratic Party and a friend of Charles Soechting, its Chairman.
Apparantly Houston Democrats and Greg's Opinion are reporting that Texas Democratic Party Chairman Charles E. Soechting is resigning as Chairman. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY UNTRUE. I talked to Charles yesterday, talked to our Chief of Staff about 2 minutes ago and have talked to the Chairman's personal assistant. He is still the Chairman, he will be the Chairman until June of 2006 and he is planning on running for reelection at the convention at that point. Charles will serve out his entire term, and he is in perfect health.
I won't name any names, but I will say that it seems that some Craddick Ds are the ones who got this whole rumor started in the hopes of making it come true. This session Democrats have been more disciplined and more poised to take back the state than any time in recent memory. All of this boils down to the fact that our leadership has finally been gutsy enough to stand up to powerful Democrats who have a bad habit of selling out the party. Charles Soechting has become one of the most respected state chairman in the country as a result, and he’s not going anywhere when we are closer than ever to our ultimate goal.
So just as a recap-- Charles Soechting is still the Chairman, will be the Chairman for the next year and will, barring some unseen and dramatic event, be running for another term as Chairman. To those who'd rather have someone who will stay quiet in the face of DINOism, I'm sorry to disappoint.
One War the GOP Thinks Dems Are Strong On: The "War on Christians"
By Andrew Dobbs
This came up on Monday, but I haven't had time to put it out there. Here's the quote from the Washington Post:
Business on the floor of the House was halted for 45 minutes yesterday after Rep. John N. Hostettler (R-Ind.) accused Democrats of "denigrating and demonizing Christians," prompting a furious protest from across the aisle.
The House was debating a Democratic amendment to the annual defense appropriations bill that would have required the Air Force Academy to develop a plan for preventing "coercive and abusive religious proselytizing."
Hostettler, speaking against the amendment, asserted that "the long war on Christianity in America continues today on the floor of the House of Representatives" and "continues unabated with aid and comfort to those who would eradicate any vestige of our Christian heritage being supplied by the usual suspects, the Democrats."
"Like a moth to a flame, Democrats can't help themselves when it comes to denigrating and demonizing Christians," he said.
Rep. David R. Obey (Wis.), ranking Democrat on the Appropriations Committee, protested the statement, saying: "I move that the gentleman's words be taken down." (...)
Yesterday, Hostettler had a choice: to agree to withdraw his words, or to stick by them and face a ruling from the chair that he had violated rules against disparaging another member on the floor. If the member's words are taken down, it is considered a serious offense and the lawmaker would not be able to speak for the rest of the day.
Eventually, Hostettler rose and read a sentence that had been written out for him in large block letters by a young Republican floor aide: "Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to withdraw the last sentence I spoke."
Nothing makes me sicker to my freaking stomach than hearing "Christian" politicians bellyaching about how much Christians are persecuted in the US. You want to see persecution of Christians? Why not swing by East Timor where Henry Kissinger facilitated and supported the liquidation of 200,000 Christians by the Muslim government of Indonesia. Then take a stop in the Sudan where George W. Bush has been content to occasionally lob rhetoric at the government he should be dropping bombs on for slaughtering 2 million Christians. Maybe make a stop in to visit our "ally" Saudi Arabia, whose leader the President holds hands with as the man continues to enforce laws that make it a crime to be a Christian. You could swing by the People's Republic of China after that, where the same government whose premier gets to cool his heels in Crawford breaks up house churches that seek to escape the stifling politics of official state churches. Not being able to threaten some underclassman cadet into joining your prayer group is hardly persecution.
I'll be the first to say that some liberals probably are too comfortable with bashing Christianity for my taste. I consider myself to be a Christian and I believe all the ins and outs of Christian dogma. But these pander bears like Hostettler who wave the Bible in order to rally votes around them are modern-day Pharisees more interested in legalism and personal comfort than the sanctity of their own faith. Church/state separation is the best thing to ever happen to Christianity-- the lack of official sponsorship for any church meant that they all had to compete for members. This made them far more responsive and much more interesting than the staid old churches of Europe. The result was a long-standing and vibrant evangelical movement that makes the US the most religious country in the entire Western world.
But Hostettler and others think that boo hooing that the very thing that makes their careers possible (don't see too many "Christian conservatives" over in European countries with state-sponsored religion) is the way to go. Do they not realize that without church state separation the two would become intermingled, and that if the church is a part of the state the people would have a right to control or restrict it? Do they not realize that "the people" in this country are represented by Congress, Legislatures, the President and Governors? The moment that the First Amendment were to go out the window would be the moment that government regulation of religion would begin, because whether they like it or not the state will always be more powerful in the short run than the Church. Hostettler and his allies are the mortal enemies of the Christian faith, and they ought to be ashamed of themselves.
If there is any war in this country against Christianity, its frontlines are unwittingly stocked with hordes of supposedly devout Christians tearing down the bastions that have protected the vibrancy of the faith in this country and the world. It is time for Republicans to stop using the message of Christ-- which is above, beyond and without politics one way or the other-- to cravenly advance their political gain. Otherwise, their judge might not be the voters, but someone far more serious.
The Houston Chronicle reports this lovely statement from Congressman Tom DeLay:
"You know, if Houston, Texas, was held to the same standard as Iraq is held to, nobody'd go to Houston, because all this reporting coming out of the local press in Houston is violence, murders, robberies, deaths on the highways," DeLay said.
Well, OK, but I don't remember this, this, or this happening in Houston recently. And I live in the Third Ward.
SB60, the life-without-possibility-of-parole bill, was signed last week by Governor Perry after the Guv sent out some mixed signals. The bill also makes Texas law compatible with the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision Roper v. Simmons by prohibiting executions for offenders under the age of 18 at the time of the crime.
Will this new option reduce the number of executions? Death penalty opponents hope so. Anecdotal evidence from other states, like Virginia, suggest that in the short-term, there was a drop-off in death sentences. Nonetheless, a look at the sentencing statistics shows that Virginia juries handed out an average of 5.3 death sentences per year between 1995 and 2003, which is only slightly lower than the average of 6.4 in the nine-year period between 1986 and 1994 (when life without parole did not exist in Virginia).
Nationally, the overall sentencing rate has dropped considerably, with about half as many death sentences handed out in the early 2000s as in the early 1990s. This may be, in part, due to the fact that just about every state now has a life without parole statute. But it probably has more to do with the fact that the underlying homicide rate has also fallen by about 50 percent. Moreover, juries may be less inclined to vote death for other reasons (as the Houston Press noted a few weeks ago, Harris County DAs haven't been getting death sentences like they used to, and this was of course before the life without parole bill was passed).
I don't think that the new life without parole statute will end up making much of a difference. A much better way of ensuring that Texas Death Row is truly for the "worst of the worst" would be to create a half-decent statewide public defender program so that we don't have any more horror stories about sleeping, drunken, or otherwise incompetent defense counsel.
Pink Dome says "no"; I'd be tempted to agree with them if I didn't still believe I was correct when I told a reporter recently that the answer is probably "yes".
So let's make a deal - 3:1 odds on Perry winning in an average-or-low-turnout primary; slightly worse if turnout goes higher.
(By "open" primary I meant a Louisiana-style primary, but I think that was lost in translation.)
The first openly gay elected official in San Antonio, Elana Guarjardo, is now holding office and a SAEN piece on her bring some things to light.
During the campaign, Guajardo neither kept her lifestyle at arm's length nor made it a central issue of the race.
But now that she's poised to take office, it remains to be seen how she will be received by the larger San Antonio community, which may be moderate politically but is more conservative on social issues, Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff said.
"I think the city itself is philosophically a little left of center, but when it comes to gayness it's a different story," Wolff said.
Her near Northwest Side district is heavily Hispanic and Catholic, a demographic that doesn't often take a progressive view of controversial topics like homosexuality and abortion.
And while the District 7 campaign was a largely polite affair, it was marred by a crass mailer sent to prospective voters.
The unsigned postcard sought to inform residents of certain issues with several council candidates, including the fact that Guajardo is a lesbian.
But the issue apparently had little currency with many voters, said Maria Berriozábal, a former councilwoman and candidate for mayor in 1991.
"I had older ladies, mexicanas, telling me, 'Y eso que tiene que ver? (What does that have to do with anything?)'" Berriozábal said. "People would say to me, 'Es independiente (She's independent).'"
It's good to see that the reactionaries weren't out in force in her election. Maybe it's a sign of changing times, maybe it is a sign of a safe Democratic seat. It looks like others have an eye on her, in a good way.
Guajardo's candidacy caught the eye of the Washington-based Victory Fund, which tapped her as part of a long-term orchestrated offensive against what they see as an increase in threatening legislation, such as restricting the rights of gay and lesbian adoptive parents.
"It is one of our goals to return openly gay representation to the Texas Legislature," said Robin Brand, vice president for campaigns and elections of the Victory Fund.
Brand said the group's efforts aren't unlike those of many other political action committees — grooming candidates at the local level in the hopes they'll be elected to higher office to promote their viewpoint.
"We were excited about Elena's run because she's the first openly gay elected City Council member in the eighth largest city in the country," Brand said.
Although Guajardo said it's way too soon to even begin speculating about a future legislative run, she likely will be someone that organizations like the Victory Fund keep an eye on.
To say the least, BOR will be keeping an eye on her as well.
A very interesting Express News article gives us some hints as to what is happening in Senator Madla's seat. The first question is, will he even run for re-election?
State Rep. Robert Puente said Madla told him this week that he will announce his re-election campaign June 28 at the Holiday Inn Downtown.
But Madla backed off that Friday because of the likely announcement that Gov. Rick Perry will call a special session of the Legislature as early as Tuesday.
"There are a lot of variables," Madla said. "Am I going to run again? It's possible.
"But it's also possible that my heart could tell me to get on my horse and ride toward the sunset."
I'm hoping that he rides off into the sunset, but barring that, the second questino is raised. Primary Challenge and by whom?
Assuming that Madla does enter the March Democratic primary, the question remains: Will someone from his own party oppose him?
Gallego said flatly, "I would never challenge him."
Puente, who admitted he likes to kid around with Madla "about the great retirement package he would receive if he retires," was also matter-of-fact.
"In my opinion, that's Frank's district until he retires," Puente said.
That leaves Uresti. And unlike his colleagues, he left the door open.
"It's too early, I haven't really given that much thought to it," Uresti said.
Those who follow South Side politics say Uresti is serious about a Senate bid. Uresti is said to believe his name identification is strong coming off the effort to reform Child Protective Services after several child deaths.
But fundraising will be his challenge, as Madla will use his decades-long influence to cut off major funding sources in Austin.
Strayhorn didn't ask her son, Bush's Press Secretary to come home to manage her campaign. Though some may say that the White House is in a bit of a hard place with wanting to support Perry ideologically but having family ties to Strayhorn, I think this is more of a case of Mamma just knowing not to push the issue. From the Statesman...
White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan says he loves his mom but he is not planning to leave his post to return to Texas to work in her gubernatorial campaign.
...
"I don't have any plans beyond what I'm doing right now," said McClellan, who has been the chief White House spokesman since July 2003.
McClellan has worked in three previous campaigns for his mom and takes credit for creating the "one tough grandma" theme she uses.
Asked about the difficulty in choosing between the president and his mother, McClellan joked, "Well, the president always says listen to your mother, so I heed his advice."
McClellan said his mother had not asked him to leave his White House post to sign on with her campaign.
...
In Austin on Monday, Strayhorn spokesman Mark Sanders said she had turned elsewhere in her family for a campaign manager. Brad McClellan, one of Scott's three brothers, will take that job. Until recently, Brad McClellan worked as an assistant Texas attorney general.
To anyone who doesn't think the Republican Primary for Governor is going to be bitter and bloody I offer you this.
Perry Campaign manager Luis Saenz said:
"It should come as no surprise that Ms. Strayhorn is running for governor because she has been doing that for the last two years as she neglected her duties as comptroller. What is surprising is that she announced as a Republican since she has aligned herself with personal injury trial lawyers and prominent Democrats like Ben Barnes, who partnered with Dan Rather in a nationally televised attempt to bring down George W. Bush's presidency.
This primary will offer clear differences between the strong, principled conservative leadership we have today, and the big spending, Democrat agenda the comptroller has pushed on behalf of her special interest backers."
At the moment I have to say that RickPerry.org looks much better than carolestrayhorn.com
The day after Austin's 3 newest City Council folks were sworn into office, the State House will be abuzz with activity.
With Perry cutting basicly all education funding for the state of Texas with his line item veto, he'll attempt to force the hand of Craddick and company to do something about school finace, as well as to buy some political cover against CKMRS (Carol 4-Names) as she goes on the warpath against him.
From mySA.com
Republican Gov. Rick Perry said Monday that he will propose a school funding compromise plan that would give teachers a pay raise and homeowners more than $7 billion in school property tax relief over the next two years.
Perry, who forced lawmakers into special session by vetoing the state's public schools budget, will deliver his plan to the Legislature on Tuesday, the first day lawmakers come back to Austin.
...
"It was a very principled decision to call the members back in here," Perry said. "I just couldn't in good conscience sign that bill that left a substantial amount of work undone."
While critics accused Perry of playing chicken with the children of Texas, the governor said he's confident lawmakers will reach a conclusion in time for schools to open their doors.
"Schools will be open in the fall," Perry said. "The funding will be there, as sure as the sun comes up in the East tomorrow."
The $7 billion in property tax reductions Perry proposed is significantly less than one-third reduction lawmakers initially put forth. Cutting school property taxes by a third, would have cost the state about $11 billion over two years.
...
"I went to Dublin, Texas, and a lady stopped me after a run and said, 'Hey, I'm a public school teacher; get 'em back into town and get my pay,' " Perry said.
I can tell you that my father, a teacher as well, would probably suggest the same. So here's to hoping they stop CradDicking around and legislate solutions. Democrats are proposing some... (via QR)
At a press conference devoid of partisan rhetoric, Democratic leaders announced they had filed House Bill 15, authored by Rep. Scott Hochberg (D-Houston), which closely tracks the "Learn and Live Plan" education plan introduced during the 79th Legislature.
Democrats said the bill gives teachers a $4,000 pay raise over the biennium, provides almost 100 percent equity, restores meaningful discretion to school districts reduces property taxes to $1.25 per $100 valuation, and triples the homestead tax exemption to $45,000.
"We stand ready to move Texas schools forward," said Rep. Jim Dunnam (D-Waco), chair of the House Democratic Caucus. "We face in Texas a public policy challenge. Not a political challenge, a public policy challenge and it demands a responsible public policy solution. Not political solutions."
I attended Carole Keeton Strayhorn's event today, and things seemed impressive. There was a moderate turnout, and people seemed content to stand around waiting in our beloved Austin heat until she took the stage at 12:45. Her most vocal supporters there seemed to be the Anti-Toll/Anti-TTC crowd, though judging from the placement of the majority of the applause -- that is, when she talked about health and education issues -- I'd hazard a guess that there were a few closet progressives present, too.
She said some hard-hitting, mean things about the Governor, which went over well with everyone. She cornered him at one point, proclaiming that no leader should have had to call a special session at this point, that no leader should even consider forcing schools to open late and that threats are no way to get things done in this state. So it looks like she's got two lines of attack for her campaign: If he doesn't call a special session (haven't looked yet to see if he has), she'll say he bowed out on school finance reform, and if he does call one, she'll point out that he had to because he couldn't get Dewhurst and Craddick in line. And if he threatens to line-item veto, she'll go ballistic on him.
Interestingly, there was a scripted, 30-second non sequitur completely independent of the rest of the speech in which she praised KBH. (Can we expect an endorsement from the Senator?)
Also, she said that her campaign will be a time of "sincere conversation, deliberate debate," etc. Given Perry's threats to any challengers -- also mentioned by CKS -- this will be a fun race to watch.
Currently, LGRL is assembling a broad-based coalition as the nucleus of a statewide campaign against the proposed constitutional amendment on marriage. This coalition includes national, state, regional and local groups who, working together, will wage a smart and strategic campaign. An announcement of the coalition's formation and its membership will be forthcoming. The interest in the coalition has been tremendous, and we want to make certain all our allies are included.
Simultaneously, LGRL is providing a substantial sum of seed money to conduct a search for a statewide campaign manager. Several top prospects have been identified, and an announcement of the hiring of the campaign manager is expected very soon. A portion of the seed money is also earmarked for the retention of a pollster, and upon hiring of the campaign manager, polling research will commence to assist the campaign in messaging.
What can you do now? Organize within your local community to bring every stakeholder to the table. Endorsement forms are available on our website at www.lgrl.org
This comes at the same time that LGRL Executive Diretor Randall Ellis moves on from the organization.
The announcement comes 2 ½ years into what has been an extremely productive term for Ellis. The organization has seen substantial growth and maturation under Ellis’ leadership. Ellis says he’s looking forward to some time off. “I am going to take a few weeks break. The first thing I plan to do is plant and keep my lawn alive this summer,” Ellis said.
“Next, I am going to finish working on my thesis for my master’s in public health as I contemplate my next move. I already have a few projects lined up to make sure we continue to elect progressive candidates at the local, state, and federal levels. My time at LGRL has been an incredible experience. I believe we will look back upon this era as the turning point in our movement. I am glad to have played a role in LGRL’s incredible growth and in our battle for equality.”
If you are looking for a good, overall in depth run down of events at this weekend's Demfest, I'll point you to this Kos diary from one of our Williamson County neighbors to the north.
Also check out this hilarious post from the KosatDemFest blog.
The 79th Legislature's bungling of education issues was a disaster created by bad leadership, ego and an unwillingness to consider common sense policies. The school finance crisis got the most press, but Rick Perry's failed leadership was just as evident on the issue of higher education. As families across the state get ready to send in tuition checks for the fall semester, the strain of higher tuition rates, textbook costs, and shrinking grant programs have burdened many Texas families with new financial hardships.
Instead of the traditional worries about moving away from home and succeeding academically, more college students now have to worry about how they're going to pay for housing and food after their checkbooks get depleted by high tuition rates. During the session, legislators had the opportunity to pass legislation to require a study on tuition revenues and college spending. This would have enabled students and parents to view where their money is going by making school financial records public.
The tuition rate at UT has risen 37% since 2003. Why such a hike? Where is the money being spent and why? Cuts in higher education from the legislature totaling $8.5 million could be one reason for the hike. UT President Larry Faulkner has stated there needs to be a 7% increase in higher education funding from the state just to maintain the spending levels due to increased enrollment.
The politicians in Austin promised to focus on education, but their inaction has shown where their real priorities are. Some people just don't get it.
It is a gross oversight on the part of all of us BORers that we forgot to put up a note about the passing of Congressman J. J. "Jake" Pickle. The 32 year veteran of the House retired in 1994 and died this Saturday at 7:30 in the morning. Pickle was one of only 5 congressmen to serve the 10th District in the course of 105 years (until redistricting mangled the district). Those men were Albert Sidney Burleson (who went on to serve in Woodrow Wilson's cabinet), James P. "Buck" Buchanan (who became Chairman of the Appropriations Committee and one of the most powerful men in Washington), Lyndon B. Johnson (the President), Homer Thornberry (nominated to the Supreme Court, though never confirmed), Jake Pickle and Lloyd Doggett. He was a superb representative for Austin, a tireless advocate in Congress and a lifelong and unwavering Democrat.
Some friends of Pickle's, who at the age of 91 died a peaceful death after an honorable and eventful life, have joked that his death was just a way of upstaging Carole Keeton one last time. Readers may not be aware that Strayhorn was a Democrat and mayor of Austin until she decided to switch parties in 1986 and make a run at Congress against Pickle. Pickle disposed of her quickly and thoroughly, and his death pushed Strayhorn's gubenatorial announcement below the fold in Central Texas. For a man with a keen political instinct, a rich sense of humor and effortless timing it was the only way to go out.
Pickle was one of the last of that era-- he entered Congress in 1963 and left his seat to Doggett in 1995. He was the driving force behind Social Security reform that made the system stronger while protecting the benefits for working people. Even more honorable than that, he was one of only six representatives from the South to vote for the 1964 Civil Rights Act, and he voted for it as a freshman up for reelection who had run as a conservative Democrat. He helped send millions of dollars to the University of Texas, which he loved deeply ever since he worked as a milkman and night watchman at the Capitol to pay his way through in the Depression. During his time here he rose to be Student Body President, and helped his campaign manager follow him in the job a year later-- John Connally. He was rewarded for his more than 60 years of dedication to the University with an endowed chair and the Pickle Research Laboratories in Northwest Austin.
I am saddened by his death because I never got to meet him. I had heard all the stories and somehow it never worked out. He was a great man, and I have yet to hear a single soul ever say anything negative about him. He is survived by his wife of 44 years Beryl, his daughter Peggy, brother Joe, sister Judith Pickle Lancaster, two stepsons, six grandchildren and four great-granddaughters. God Bless Jake Pickle-- they don't make them like that anymore.
PS-- There will be a viewing tomorrow at the Weed-Corley-Fish Funeral Home, 3125 N. Lamar Blvd. from 9 AM to 8 PM and a memorial service at 4 PM at his longtime church, First United Methodist Church, 1201 Lavaca St. His burial in the State Cemetary will be closed to the public.
I'll be up in the morning to try to give a re-cap of DemocracyFest 2005. Overall, it was quite a success, with no large scale complaints or organizational failures which is impressive when managing 1000 people all over Austin. I know I personally made some connections, talked to candidates, and plan to start setting up some organization among the blogs as well as the Texas Blog Network to help support our state candidates.
Look to this space in the upcoming weeks for some guest posts from announced candidates for State House in Williamson County to Austin's north, as well as from Senate candidate Barbara Radnofsky. One of the biggest personal projects this weekend was the level of commitment and organizing that has already been pledged to the John Courage for Congress campaign. I have a meeting with him and Mark Strama's tech person this Wednesday. I'll start putting together a profile of the district and some analysis, building on some that I've seen GregsOpinion work on.
So, to the whole fibbing thing I mentioned in the title. The new BOR writers will not be announced tomorrow. I got one more application in today from someone I met at the Dean fundraiser last night and I need to have all 8 current writers vote on the applicants this week. So, the new date for announcement will be this Friday. That much I promise you now. In addition, the domain will be moved over to my account this week so you will notice that little re-direct thing going on to bor.musselmanforamerica.com go away. Also, a site redesign and a new platform will be implemented within the next month. BOR is ready to move to a more community oriented site, with polls, registered users, and other features.
If you have any ideas, or suggestions, comment or remarks, leave them in the comments. I will be making another more "official" post about the transition in BOR ownership from Byron to me in the next week, my expectations and direction for this community, and projects that I'd like to see Texas bloggers work on for the 2006 elections cycle.
So, for all the work, hubbub, and action that this weekend was, I say to you, that the District Sleeps Alone Tonight (lame pun for all you Postal Service fans).
The following Letter to the Editor by me was printed in yesterday's Daily Texan and I was called by the San Antonio Express News letting me know that it will be run soon as well, which I just noticed, meant today.
In Wednesday's Nation Briefs, I found the results of Terri Schiavo's autopsy to be a bit ironic. The tests showed that she was not only irreversibly brain damaged but blind as well.
This goes to show that Republican "Doctor" of the Senate Bill Frist should have refrained from his expert diagnosis from the Senate floor where he questioned her vegetative state status by saying, "I question it based on a review of the video footage which I spent an hour or so looking at last night in my office. She certainly seems to respond to visual stimuli."
So if Frist can make the blind see, maybe he can try to raise the dead as well, bringing Terri back to life just in time for the next election.
Karl-Thomas Musselman Government junior
I like the headline that the SAEN gave it, "For Frist's Next Miracle.." Haha, thanks guys.
Just a short note to say that we were happy to see all the bloggers at the bloggers caucus, one of the most interesting of the day. Shout outs to A Little Pollyanna and Pink Dome who I was thrilled to chat with in person. Saw Tim McCann from the Chris Bell blog, but didn't have a chance to say hi. Also, I'd like to direct you to the Kos at DemFest blog.
I also wanted to point out that Judge Charlie Baird, formerly on the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals and one of the last Democratic judges elected to statewide office, is a candidate for the 299th Judicial District Court in Travis County, and has hired Austin political guru and former Texas Dean campaign director Glen Maxey.
In addition, it was brought to my attention a candidate against Mike Krusse up in Williamson County is Karen Felthauser, who last ran as a write in in 2004. This time she will actually be on the ballot as a Democrat and has a kick off reception on June 22 (next Wednesday). So all you Williamson County folks, check her out and help us make a Democratic takeover of Central Texas.
In addition, I ran in Lorenzo Sadun, of the Write In Sadun campaign for CD 10 which ended up without a Dem on the ballot last year. He reports that he is working with a candidate from out in Harris County on building his contacts here on the Austin side (yes, Houston and Austin in the same congressional seat) and to make sure that the Travis County folks are on board and energized. He's back to teaching Math here at UT but is still making sure that the voters of the 10th have a choice and know about it come November 2006.
Throughout the night, recently elected Fredericksburg SuperStar Tom Musselman has been talking to a lot of people, speaking at the non-urban caucus in particular. He also spoke to Jim Dean, Howard's brother who is now the Big Dog over at Democracy for America, which just broke their first post Dean bat, again, at $100,000. Traded some business cards, exchanged some words and strategy, all in the middle of Threadgill's where everybody who was anybody was tonight (meaning like all of DemFest!)
Save Texas Reps confirms a primary challenger to Rep. Al Edwards, one of Texas Monthly's 10 Worst that was floated to me by a certain state rep I chatted with last weekend.
A Young Democrat, Marlen Whitley, 29, was a former UT Student Body President and is now an attorny in the district.
Though Mr. Whitley is young, he already has a great deal of experience working with state government. He has previously worked in state government addressing issues and legislation related to higher education, and worked for the legal redress division of the Texas N.A.A.C.P. on matters involving racial profiling and employment discrimination. Mr. Whitley has also served on boards engaged in community revitalization. In 1998, Whitley was an invited speaker at the State Democratic Convention where he delivered an address on education.
I don't know the area all that well, but my primary concern is to replace Al Edwards. It's good to see that those coming out to challenge him are high quality candidates that appear to have strong ties to their community.
The Governor will announce the special session tomorrow, Saturday, at 11:30AM. Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn will have her event at 12:30. The Legislature will convene Tuesday at noon. The House will pass its legislation on Tuesday. The Senate will pass its legislation on Thursday. Then it is off to conference. This has not been confirmed by the Governor's office but it is what legislators are reporting. Could be wishful thinking.
And with KBH staying in the Senate, this may make things a lot easier, with fewer offices to play the GOP Guessing Game with. That is of course, unless Carol 4-Names is announcing for something else tomorrow, like Lt. Gov. Or Senate. Or that she will be Kinky Friedman's running mate.
NOTE: Bonilla has now announced, just hours after KBH's reports, that he is just going to sit pretty and run for his Congressional seat again, abondoning plans to run for US Senate. For shame, an open Senate seat would have made life for Democrat Barbara Radnofsky much easier and might have opened up that Congressional seat to be competitive.
ALSO NOTE: Richard Morrison, last fall's challenger to Tom DeLay stated at today's DemFest Blogger Caucus that he is setting up a PAC, Texans for Economic Prosperity to become the "Democratic version of the Swift Boat Veterans". He also announced that he will fundraise for it, and beging setting up plans to run for office in 2008. Now as to which office, that's going to require a bit more arm twisting from me this weekend.
MORE TO NOTE: Gregg Knaupe, former Austin City Council Place 3 candidate, who lives in HD 47 (Keel's Seat) plans to run, is making phone calls, and is attempting to clear out the rest of the field. Sources at DemFest say that Son of Laney is out of it, and Son of Earle may not be far behind. In addition, Andy Brown, candidate for HD 48 (Baxter's Seat) was at the Bloggers caucus hanging out with Rep. Mark Strama, likely to build a webteam and looks to be the stronger more organized candidate in that primary so far, barring Hugh Brady stepping out. I'm not against Democratic Primaries, but for those two seats, I think it would be nice to have consolidation and funnel our money on the general election, rather than a pointless primary fight, regardless of the free media that it may generate.
IN OTHER NEWS: John Courage, candidate for CD 21 against Lamar Smith has been one of the most popular and sought after candidates at today's events. Austin bloggers are already approaching his campaign about organizing web projects and fundraising, some Austin tech people are meeting with him to talk about integrated online projects to really connect volunteers to their precincts.
Word is that Courage, a veteran, former teacher, and group leader in his church, who already has some decent name recognition in San Antonio, will be setting up his primary office in Austin, with the other main one in San Antonio, with addition field offices in Blanco and somewhere undertermined in Hays County. The good news here is that a lot of CD 21 overlaps the competitive State House districts here in Travis County (most all of Keel and Baxter's seats, as well as some of Strama's and Naishtat's).
In addition, I've run into two people so far that say they have contacted Courage directly and signed up to help his campaign, which is barely in campaign mode yet, because of last week's post I made. To that, I say thank you. In addition, he's cleaned up his website some and has a new bio page which you should read. As one attendee tonight put it, "Courage is so American, he just about bleeds Apple Pie."
That's it for tonight, plenty of hobnobbing, blog organizing, and candidate meetings for me this weekend (in addition to the regular schedule of events). I may try to live blog tomorrow, we shall see.
U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison announced today that she will run for a third Senate term, ending months of speculation that she would challenge Texas Gov. Rick Perry for the Republican nomination in 2006.
An e-mail distributed by Hutchison's campaign said she would make the formal announcement on June 27, when she would provide details on her decision and "why she believes it is in the best interest of Texas."
Well, it looks like we'll see a Perry vs. Strayhorn battle at last. We shall find out tomorrow...
Leave it up to Perry to steal Carol 4-Name's Thunder this Saturday. What could overpower a Block Party with Hot Dogs? The announcement of a special session AND threatening to start line item vetoing the education budget to force the Lege to deal with the issue.
"The courts aren't the only ones with a gun here to get school finance reform done," said one source. "This way, the Legislature will have to come up with a budget for the schools. School finance reform should be a natural byproduct."
Perry advised Dewhurst and Craddick earlier this week of his plans to veto the public schools budget and to call lawmakers back into a special session.
According to other sources familiar with ongoing negotiations, House and Senate leaders have moderated their positions somewhat during the past two weeks — the Senate on upping the sales tax, the House on changes to existing business taxes and exemptions.
Dewhurst and Craddick reacted coolly to the veto threat. A House source said House leaders are more willing to await a state Supreme Court decision on school finance, but two sources said Dewhurst believes legislative leaders are close to a deal on school finance.
Of course, if none of this works and the schools shut down in the fall, then expect all hell to break loose with every school board, teacher, and parent in the state up in arms. Then again, it would be a huge opening for the GOP to that 18 year old demographic.
10 BEST
Dianne Delisi, R Temple
Sen. Robert Duncan, R Lubbock
Dan Gattis, R Georgetown
Charlie Geren, R Fort Worth
Fred Hill, R Richardson
Sen. Steve Ogden, R Bryan
Jim Pitts, R Waxahachie
Mike Villarreal, D San Antonio
Sen. John Whitmire, D Houston
Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D Laredo
10 WORST
Sen. Gonzalo Barrientos, D Austin
Dwayne Bohac, R Houston
Mary Denny, R Aubrey
Al Edwards, D Houston
Sen. Mario Gallegos, D Houston
Kent Grusendorf, R Arlington
Sen. Chris Harrıs, R Arlington
Terry Keel, R Austin
Phil King, R Weatherford
Robert Talton, R Pasadena
More later, I'm headed out to DemFest and the Bloggers Caucus at 5.
Million stories, but reliable source says proclamation imminent
We are going out on a limb here, but a source that has traditionally been reliable tells us that members are recieving the heads up that the Governor will call a special session to convene at noon on Tuesday.
The situation is fluid and could change and if we have to eat crow, we will. Nevertheless, the best information we have says Tuesday.
Could this be called the Perry response to Strayhorn sucking up political oxygen, killing her news cycles and focusing the world back around "Mr. Problem Solving Perry"? It's almost too fun to watch...
Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn personally asks you to BE HERE for a MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT this Saturday. June 18th at 12:15 - 16th & Congress (Just North of the Capital). Free Hotdogs, Free Drinks and Music. She says to bring the Family!
It's almost enough to want to make me skip out on part of DemFest, but seriously, probably not quite enough. But if you go, let us know how it was. E-mail me and I'll put it up here, or leave a comment.
For those of you familiar with Austin politics, I'm sure you are already rolling your eyes at this point. But in the stragest of places tonight (meaning Kinky Friedman's blog), there is rumor that Gale will make her 18th(?) bid for public office, by running for Governor as a Democrat.
A Jennifer Gale of Austin does plan to run, but I believe in may be on the Democratic ticket.
Watch out Chris Bell, looks like you might be defeated in a few key precincts in Austin, Texas. Gale most recently ran for Austin City Council, gaining 9% of the Place 4 vote. You have to admire her for trying, even if she "don't get no satisfaction".
UpdateThe comments tell us of a News 8 Austin story that says she's trying to get on as an Independent. Ok, that will be a fun race to 45,000+ signatures to watch.
Off the Kuff brings us an introduction to Janette Sexton, Democratic candidate against Robert Talton (R-HJR 6). I liked her words which I've syndicated below. Rock on Janette!
I am a woman, a mother, and a grandmother. I consider myself an ordinary person who feels called to action during extraordinary times. My three main campaign issues are education, the environment, and affordable healthcare for all, but I also have strong convictions about campaign finance reform, insurance reform, a woman’s right to choose, an increase in the minimum wage, and equality for all Texas' citizens (proponent on all issues).
The bottom line is that my opponent is attempting to legislate his prejudices into law. He was a co-author of House Joint Resolution 6 (HJR 6), the Anti-Gay Texas Marriage Amendment, which would write unequal treatment for gay and lesbian Texans into our Texas Constitution by permanently banning marriage for gay and lesbian couples. It would deny thousands of Texas families access to health care, fair inheritance and survivor rights, and the ability to make medical decisions for loved ones, but I feel sure you are well aware of the details of this amendment.
On March 9, my opponent voted for House Bill 2, the abominable education bill that could have been the beginning of the unraveling of public education in Texas. Companion bill, House Bill 3, did little to mitigate the shortfall in funding for our children, their schools, and their teachers. The bill proposed raising taxes on those who could least afford an increase and protected the wealthy. We are fortunate that the education and school funding bills did not pass.
This was the year Republicans in Texas were supposed to have proved they could govern, but, instead, they failed miserably. We can do better, and we must do better. Our Democratic legislators in Austin need reinforcement. Each additional Democratic vote is crucial. I want to be on the front lines...voting to keep bad bills from passing and, hopefully, putting forth legislation that will benefit my constituents, as well as all citizens of Texas.
I am in this race to win, but it will be difficult to unseat an entrenched Republican incumbent. Talton is in a leadership position, and I believe he is a deacon in his church. If the Republican machine believes Talton is vulnerable--and he is-- it will pour millions into his race. I will need to raise a minimum of $100,000-150,000 to run a credible campaign.
I want to be the voice of the under-represented in my district and throughout Texas: the old, the infirm, the young, and the working poor. I want to be your voice!
Challenge everywhere. Their weak, their leaders, their icons. Challenge it all. And to quote Andrew Dobbs who left the following comment on a different post of Kuff's...
State House Districts that had Democratic opposition in 2004 saw a 5% increase in Democratic performance while districts without opposition had none. Running candidates in every single district is the secret to winning statewide.
No, not THE Pete Laney, but his son-- J. Pete Laney of Austin. According to Capitol Inside (subscription required), we can add yet another name to the growing list of potential candidates for Keel's seat:
By this time next year, however, there's a chance that voters in southwest Austin and the nearby hills to the west might realize that former House Speaker Pete Laney has a son named J. Pete who lives in House District 47 and might be its next state representative. J. Pete Laney - not to be confused with James E. "Pete" Laney - is being mentioned as a potential candidate for the seat that Republican State Rep. Terry Keel plans to vacate at the end of next year. (...)
A possible Laney candidacy could have a significant bearing on what the final field looks like in the 2006 Democratic primary for the House seat in southwest Travis County. The pedigree alone would bring instant credibility in a district that tilts slightly Republican but is still within the Democrats' reach. The former speaker, who still represents the Panhandle in the lower chamber, had been a House member for two years when his won was born 30 years ago. In other words, Rep. Laney has been a legislator every day of his son's entire life. The ex-speaker and his wife, Nelda Laney, also have two daughters.
The younger Laney is a member of an Austin law firm that specializes in defending clients in personal injury lawsuits. Laney, who followed his dad's footsteps to Texas Tech University before getting his law degree at Baylor, practices law with Hull Henricks & Macrae, whose senior partner was a key advisor to the Republican sponsors of medical malpractice liability reform during the regular session in 2003. The legal position might help insulate Laney from being bashed as a member of a party associated with trial lawyers who represent plaintiffs in civil court cases.
So why all the interest in this seat? Because it is Austin. This is a town built on politics full of ambitious people who want to see the other side of the legislative process. As soon as any office that looks like it can be a springboard to something else opens up, there is a mad dash to fill it up. HD 47 will see a very healthy Democratic field, including several (Laney for one) who don't even live in the district yet. Right now the best job in Austin is a realtor with a lot of nice houses and apartments in the HD 47 area, because there's a whole lotta people looking to run in that seat.
I have no idea whether or not this will actually be seen by anybody, because this whole "rebuilding" thing confuses and scares me, but I'll give it a shot anyways.
Many people are paying close attention to Southwest Texas right now, as longtime State Senator Frank Madla has worn out his welcome with many. His district, anchored in San Antonio, cuts a huge gerrymandered swath across the Big Bend area of West Texas. Madla has served for years, but many are tired of his status as "furniture" and his bad votes on some key Democratic issues. State Representatives Carlos Uresti and Robert Puente (both key members of Craddick's leadership team) are taking a look at the race, but all the oxygen in the political scene is taken up by one man: State Representative Pete Gallego.
Gallego was first elected to his seat in 1990 and has served with distinction. The immediate past chair of the Mexican American Legislative Caucus, he also served as Democratic Caucus Leader for a spell. His face is among the most familiar for Texas Democrats who watch the legislature-- he, Garnet Coleman, Jim Dunnam and Scott Hochberg form the core of Democratic leadership in the House. He is eloquent, driven and progressive. And he would immediately make a phenomenal Senator. Many expect him to run for statewide office, most expect that he would do very well. A State Senate seat would be a strong first step in the right direction.
The problem is that Gallego is from West Texas (one of the few remaining West Texas Democratic officials) and the district is dominated by the corner of San Antonio that it takes in. To win he would have to do well in SA. Last night he held a reception in San Antonio where he took down the house. A friend of mine (who asked not to be named, due to the fact that he works in the Capitol) told me that "Gallego was fantastic... I love it when a pol has the balls to walk into the room and call it like it is." I couldn't agree more.
Gallego is starting to look better and better for this race. Let's hope some smart people start pushing him in the right direction.
In accordance with the transfer of day-to-day site operations from Byron to Karl-Thomas, the account hosting the site is also changing. Over the next few days, burntorangereport.com will redirect to bor.musselmanforameria.com. All links to burntorangereport.com, including those to specific pages, will continue to work. Please continue to link to burntorangereport.com instead of the temporary address to insure that your links continue working after the transition. The permalinks below each entry will also continue to fulfill their namesakes.
E-mail addresses hosted at burntorangereport.com will also continue to work through this transition.
The ability to add new comments will come online for each entry as the site rebuilds.
Please email any problems you encounter with the new site to transition@burntorangereport.com. Include the address of the page having the problem.
Thanks to all of those that submitted their interest and information to us in regards to writing for BOR. At this time we will close the application process and begin the deliberation and voting process. I hope to have this wrapped up by next Monday when we will announce those that will be joining us on BOR. Accounts will then be created and the new writers will be asked to introduce themselves.
Reliable sources tell QR that Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn will announce her candidacy for the Republican nomination as Governor this Saturday.
We have not yet received direct confirmation from her campaign office but have enough confidence in our sources to run with this story.
Plans may change, but what we have confirmed are that calls are being made giving supporters a heads up about the pending announcement.
This might be the worst possible thing to happen to Kay Bailey Hutchison. I'd say that Strayhorn's chances of winning the GOP nomination are slim to none, but she'll suck off a sizeable chunk of moderate voters and suburban women who are the treasure trove for KBH. KBH is the worst thing Strayhorn could face as she's more popular with that same crowd.
Of course, Rick Perry will likely have to deal with two primary opponents bashing him, an independent and a handful of Democratic candidates all running against him. But with his base in the evangelical community (a sizeable chunk of the GOP primary) and rural voters (another nice demographic to hold) he should be able to make it to a runoff at the very least and will likely win outright. He needs to start attacking now and establishing his credibility. Were I him, within a week of the veto process ending, I'd announce my candidacy and run my first campaign ads.
Things are heating up... stay tuned to BOR for all your 2006 rumors and news.
If you want to see DNC Chairman Howard "My Party is not as White as Yours" Dean this weekend, he will be at an Austin fundraiser downtown titled "Don't Mess with Dean". You can buy tickets here. He will also be in Houston and Dallas on Friday.
I didn't make the Chris Bell Conference Call last night with Texas bloggers as I was still finishing up a late dinner here at the Co-op where I'm living this summer, but the Panhandle Truth Squad was there as well as In The Pink Texas (ITPT as she is going now, total rip off of BOR, IMHO =) ) as well as StoutDem so check them out.
And just to clear things up, I poke fun at Bell's campaign at times, just like I do for everyone else. I believe that the instant politics lacks it's "fun factor" the little hope there is, will be lost forever. Also, while we all make cracks about Bell's perpetual "exploratory phase" one of the primary reasons is due to certain medical issues in the Bell family that won't be fully known/resolved until the end of next month. And because of the respect that Bell has shown for that family member, I think we can offer him that much respect in return by not demanding him to enter officially.
Al Edwards, one of the Texas House's longest serving Reps, and most widely known for his Anti-Booty Bill. Save Texas Reps points out why, other than the obvious fact that it's time for a more Democratic behaving Rep to hold his Democratic seat, it may be a ripe time for us to support a primary challenger, like Borris Miles.
Greg makes the very succinct point that...
"I'm sure that once Borris Miles hits the campaign trail in earnest, there's going to be a fascinating debate over issues, ideology, and public service (ala Wilson v Allen). But for now, Borris Miles gets a good deal of street cred for the sole reason that he is not Al Edwards.
I respect his humble nature, and his fights in past years for civil rights. But I think he's forgotten those days, especially with comments calling homosexuality a "social ill".
But about Borris Miles. A little web investigation tells us that he owns an Insurance Agency, supports Peter Brown for Houston City Council At Large Place 1, and donated to a lot of Houston Dems, including about $3350 to none other than Chris Bell back in his Congressional Days. Barak Obama and Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee also got a couple thousand. Now those are some Black Democrats I wouldn't mind hanging with.
Chris Bell: $25,072 of his $30,000 mini-goal reached so far. Donate before tomorrow night.
Barbara Radnofsky: $450,000 of her $500,000 first quarter goal reached so far. What the heck has that gal been doing? “Trial Dialing” for dollars is my guess. Maybe the rest of the campaign staff will be soon to follow, heh.
Kinky Friedman: $12,000 goal fully reached to build his campaign "hat" trailer.
David Van Os: No idea about his fundraising status, though thank goodness his site is going under a makeover. You can donate here if you please.
Texas Young Democrats: $755 of $5000 for the 5K in June campaign. Please donate!
This morning I had a chance to catch some coffee with Chris Bell blogger guy Jason Stanford on the Drag here in Austin. Being a bit late thanks to a cantankerous alarm clock, I didn’t recognize him at first but figured that it was one of the two guys sitting outside by himself.
In any case, it was refreshing to chat with him, about the nature of the Bell campaign, Texas strategy changes in this elections compared to last, and the importance of not taking the base for granted in Texas statewide elections anymore. I’ll be the first to admit that I’m more of a liberal Democrat when it comes to campaign candidates, styles, and strategies. I’m the kind of person that is attracted to campaigns that are innovative, grassrootsy, and maybe odd. I was a Deaniac, the closest thing to a Margot Clarke supporter on this blog, and someone who will sign Jennifer Gale’s ballot access petitions at 1:30 AM in the middle of the Drag for whatever race she may run.
But having spent some time around Byron and Andrew, as well as many of the Austin politicos, I have a greater respect for some of the more old-fashioned Democrats and campaign styles. It’s not that I think they are wrong; it’s just that I think that we keep trying them and losing. (See 2002 as Example A-F) In small local elections, be it out in the Hill Country or East Texas, getting some old LBJ family member or Texas legend to run and win can work and should be done. But the days are fading where we can continue to do that on a statewide level and hope that our never-changing strategy of huge turnout in the Valley and Urban Counties will give us a win over the other 230 counties in the state. Why? Because those two regions would be our base, and when campaigns are set up the way they have been, we offer very little for our base to get out and vote for.
Since the old way isn’t working, and we can only wait around so long for demographics to turn our way (while the GOP eats away into our traditional Hispanic support), why don’t we try something different? Let’s run against corruption in a mainstream to populist way (in a slightly less “Van Os”ian way). Let’s run Bell against Perry (like Kinky is). Let’s run a Courage against Smith. Let’s run primary challenges against turncoat/Craddickrats. On the state and federal Texas elections, let’s run on reform and good government. That’s not liberal or conservative. It’s just Good and Right. Run on that and you won’t have to worry as much about the social politics which always dog us.
Because Social Security is such a hot topic these day, not, Republicans offer up their latest idea to save the not-broken system.
Raise the retirement age to 69.
Though with proposals like this, I've always wondered if they hurt the 62-67 year old age cohort who would otherwise be looking forward to retiring. Would they be a blip in opposing the policy based simply out of their own self interest? Probably. But I doubt that this is going anywhere now that SS has been backburnered for a while.
Democracy Fest, to be held this weekend in Austin with about 900 people from all over the country (and world), will have a segment aired on C-SPAN on Saturday. Tune in around 3:50 CST for the training segment called the "DeLay Factor".
SurveyUSA has polls. Hutchison is among the nation's most popular senators with a 64-26 percent approval spread; Cornyn's approval remains in the abyss, at 40-36. That's actually a lower raw approval rating than Rick Santorum in Pennsylvania (although Sticky Rick's 45-44 spread is technically worse).
Could Cornyn be vulnerable to a strong challenge in 2008? Redistricted Congresspersons, I'm looking at YOU.
Hutchison added as a cosponsor to the anti-lynching resolution
By Jim Dallas
I had no idea that Senators could sign on as cosponsors after the fact, but Senator Hutchison has. The resolution passed last night by unanimous consent; as Kos explained, technically nobody voted against it. Which is good.
Senator Cornyn, however, remains on the Wall of Shame.
Neither Senator from Texas is one of the 78
cosponsors of the Landrieu-Allen resolution apologizing for the Senate's unwillingness to pass an anti-lynching law in the middle part of the last century. At the time of the vote, at least twelve Senators (not known which) were reportedly opposed to the apology.
So where, exactly, do our Senators stand? If the two senators from Texas couldn't find the moral courage to stand with the overwhelming majority of their peers in casting a symbolic vote against hate seven years to the week after the death of James Byrd, Jr. in Jasper County, then why should they deserve anybody's vote?
UPDATE: The 18 late-comers did not include Hutchison or Cornyn. A full list of cosponsors after the jump.
Sen Akaka, Daniel K. [HI] - 2/7/2005
Sen Allard, Wayne [CO] - 2/7/2005
Sen Allen, George [VA] - 2/7/2005
Sen Baucus, Max [MT] - 6/13/2005
Sen Bayh, Evan [IN] - 2/7/2005
Sen Biden, Joseph R., Jr. [DE] - 2/7/2005
Sen Bond, Christopher S. [MO] - 6/13/2005
Sen Boxer, Barbara [CA] - 2/7/2005
Sen Brownback, Sam [KS] - 2/7/2005
Sen Bunning, Jim [KY] - 6/13/2005
Sen Burns, Conrad R. [MT] - 6/13/2005
Sen Burr, Richard [NC] - 6/9/2005
Sen Byrd, Robert C. [WV] - 6/7/2005
Sen Cantwell, Maria [WA] - 6/8/2005
Sen Carper, Thomas R. [DE] - 6/9/2005
Sen Chafee, Lincoln [RI] - 6/13/2005
Sen Chambliss, Saxby [GA] - 6/13/2005
Sen Clinton, Hillary Rodham [NY] - 6/9/2005
Sen Coburn, Tom [OK] - 6/7/2005
Sen Coleman, Norm [MN] - 6/7/2005
Sen Collins, Susan M. [ME] - 2/7/2005
Sen Corzine, Jon S. [NJ] - 2/7/2005
Sen Craig, Larry E. [ID] - 6/7/2005
Sen Dayton, Mark [MN] - 2/7/2005
Sen DeMint, Jim [SC] - 6/8/2005
Sen DeWine, Mike [OH] - 6/13/2005
Sen Dodd, Christopher J. [CT] - 2/7/2005
Sen Dole, Elizabeth [NC] - 6/13/2005
Sen Domenici, Pete V. [NM] - 6/8/2005
Sen Dorgan, Byron L. [ND] - 6/9/2005
Sen Durbin, Richard [IL] - 2/7/2005
Sen Ensign, John [NV] - 2/7/2005
Sen Feingold, Russell D. [WI] - 2/7/2005
Sen Feinstein, Dianne [CA] - 2/7/2005
Sen Frist, William H. [TN] - 2/7/2005
Sen Graham, Lindsey [SC] - 6/9/2005
Sen Hagel, Chuck [NE] - 2/7/2005
Sen Harkin, Tom [IA] - 2/7/2005
Sen Inhofe, James M. [OK] - 6/13/2005
Sen Inouye, Daniel K. [HI] - 6/9/2005
Sen Isakson, Johnny [GA] - 6/13/2005
Sen Jeffords, James M. [VT] - 2/7/2005
Sen Johnson, Tim [SD] - 2/7/2005
Sen Kennedy, Edward M. [MA] - 2/7/2005
Sen Kerry, John F. [MA] - 2/28/2005
Sen Kohl, Herb [WI] - 2/7/2005
Sen Lautenberg, Frank R. [NJ] - 2/7/2005
Sen Leahy, Patrick J. [VT] - 2/7/2005
Sen Levin, Carl [MI] - 2/7/2005
Sen Lieberman, Joseph I. [CT] - 2/7/2005
Sen Lincoln, Blanche L. [AR] - 2/17/2005
Sen Lugar, Richard G. [IN] - 2/7/2005
Sen Martinez, Mel [FL] - 6/13/2005
Sen McCain, John [AZ] - 2/7/2005
Sen McConnell, Mitch [KY] - 6/13/2005
Sen Mikulski, Barbara A. [MD] - 6/7/2005
Sen Murray, Patty [WA] - 6/7/2005
Sen Nelson, Bill [FL] - 2/7/2005
Sen Nelson, E. Benjamin [NE] - 6/9/2005
Sen Obama, Barack [IL] - 2/17/2005
Sen Pryor, Mark L. [AR] - 2/7/2005
Sen Reid, Harry [NV] - 2/7/2005
Sen Roberts, Pat [KS] - 6/13/2005
Sen Rockefeller, John D., IV [WV] - 6/13/2005
Sen Salazar, Ken [CO] - 2/17/2005
Sen Santorum, Rick [PA] - 2/17/2005
Sen Sarbanes, Paul S. [MD] - 2/28/2005
Sen Schumer, Charles E. [NY] - 2/7/2005
Sen Sessions, Jeff [AL] - 6/13/2005
Sen Snowe, Olympia J. [ME] - 2/7/2005
Sen Specter, Arlen [PA] - 2/7/2005
Sen Stabenow, Debbie [MI] - 2/17/2005
Sen Stevens, Ted [AK] - 2/7/2005
Sen Talent, Jim [MO] - 2/7/2005
Sen Thune, John [SD] - 6/13/2005
Sen Vitter, David [LA] - 2/17/2005
Sen Warner, John [VA] - 6/13/2005
Sen Wyden, Ron [OR] - 6/13/2005
Ellen Cohen, the President and CEO of the Houston Area Women's Center has decided to challenge incumbent Republican Martha Wong. Cohen will be filing her papers and naming her treasurer around the first of next month.
Huzzah for that. Just like I belive Kelly White's similar background would have made a great addition to the legislature, I hope that Ellen Cohen will incorperate that into her campaign. This should be an exciting woman on woman battle in which the gay community in that district should be heavily involved.
Democrats promptly appealed last week's redistricting decision to the US Supreme Court, leading to much speculation among those who follow such cases.
Republicans would like to close the case, noting that every objection was struck down by the court not just once, but twice. Democrats look forward to the next hearing. Austin Attorney Renea Hicks, who represented the City of Austin and Travis County in the court case, said he appreciated the fact that the court took up the "one person one vote" issue of mid-decade redistricting off older census numbers.
I'm not all that confident that the Supremes will decide any differently on this, but I'm not a lawyer. Any insight dear readers?
Kevin Anderson, who collected about 3,000 votes running as a Libertarian for Congress in the fourth district against Republican Ralph Hall and "very, very conservative" Democrat Jim Nickerson, is thinking about running again in 2006... as a Democrat. This could make for an interesting primary race should Nickerson try again (although I haven't heard anything to that effect).
Also, there is the Chris Bell conference call tonight, at 7 p.m. If you blog and haven't gotten the e-mail, zip me a note at jim - dot - dallas - at - gmail - dot - com before, oh, five or so and I'll forward the information.
With Keel's abdication of the increasingly competitive HD 47 has come a deluge of potential candidates. Initially three Democrats-- attorney and former Glen Maxey and Jim Dunnam staffer Hugh Brady, health care lobbyist and former City Council candidate Gregg Knaupe (pronounced "Nap" for the uninitiated), and Democratic activist and attorney Duffy Keever-- were rumored to be considering the hunt. Now two more have been rumored, and reporting rumors as fact is our business here at BOR .
The first is Texas DNC member David Holmes-- one of the youngest members in the history of the Committee and a tireless advocate for Texas' needs on the national Democratic level. He is also Hubert Vo's chief of staff and a great young Democrat. Having said that, as of right now 4 of the 5 rumored potential candidates are friendly acquaintences (or in a few cases, outright friends) of mine so I'll be keeping my cards close to my chest.
Second is Texas Democratic Party Vice Chair for Finance Dennis Speight. Speight is also a staffer for State Rep. Chuck Hopson and former president of the Texas Young Democrats. He lives in the district (I'm not sure about David, of the other three only Knaupe lives in the district), he and his wife are involved in local community organizations and he can raise money very well. He too would make an exciting candidate and great representative. He is also a friend of mine, so at the risk of sounding obsessive, I'll remind everyone of my caveat. I don't support anybody, I don't oppose anybody in this race at this point, particularly since no one is actually running.
Obviously my sources in regards to the GOP are rather paltry-- I have to read what the papers say. Gerald Daugherty (Travis County Commissioner) and 1992 HD 47 candidate Bill Welch (who, blast from the past, lost the GOP nomination to Susan Combs whose life in the Southwest Austin suburbs qualified her to be Ag Commissioner) are tinkering with running. We'll see how the race shapes up.
Keep tuned to BOR for all the news you could ever want on this and other developing 2006 races and be sure to let us know what you think about the proposed candidates.
UPDATE: I have been criminally remiss in not mentioning one of the biggest and earliest names floated, which slipped my mind until I was just reminded-- Jason Earle. Earle is the son of Travis County DA Ronnie Earle and head of community relations for Girling Health Care here in Austin.
Quorum Report is also dropping the name of former NFIB (National Federation of Independent Businesses) director Jeff Clark. I am assuming that he would be a Republican (though if he is not, I'll be the first to say a Mea Culpa).
If you would like to write for BOR, remember, we'd like to see your application really soon. Tonight was to be the last night, but if you need a little extra time, send an e-mail to us to let us know it's on the way. But at the least, let us know your intent today. For those that have applied, we will be in touch soon. ~Karl-Thomas
We have received several applications for new writers on BOR, and both Karl-Thomas and I spoke last night on how we are pleased with the quality of the applications thus far. We would both like to add new writers as soon as possible, but we want to give people who are considering applying a few more days. Unless anyone objects, let's make the deadline this Sunday, June 12.
For those of you who missed the application post, click here for details.
We've got some exciting news. We're pleased to announce that Congressman Max Sandlin will be joining us for Sunday's house party conference call as a special guest. Rep. Sandlin served with Chris in the U.S. House until both were gerrymandered out of their seats by Tom DeLay. He stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Chris when Chris filed the ethics complaint against DeLay, and we couldn't be happier that he will be joining us on Sunday to share his own perspective on the need for an ethical renewal in Texas politics.
Chris's friends will be coming together from Chicago to Tulsa, from Austin to Arlington to Amarillo, from Waxahachie to Washington, DC, so don't miss out on your chance to join in. The house parties are part of Chris's commitment to reforming the way Democratic campaigns are run in Texas, but they're also the cornerstone of our drive to raise $30,000 online by midnight on Wednesday, June 15
Chris is committed to running a true grassroots campaign to restore the great Democratic values of fairness, responsibility, and accountability, and this fundraising drive will send a clear signal that the grassroots is responding to Chris's message and is ready to give Chris the support he'll need to win in 2006. So if you can't attend a house party on Sunday, you can still help Chris reach his goal.
There are a lot of chapters left in this book, but we know how it ends. Voters around the state are tired of Rick Perry's failed leadership. A politician who chooses divisive partisanship over progress doesn't share the values of the New Mainstream, and that's why Chris is going to beat Rick Perry in 2006.
Democratic Governor of Virginia Mark Warner, term limited out of office, has mentioned that he will likely set up his PAC/Exploratory team to run for the 2008 Dem Nomination for President.
The tax victory -- and Sen. John F. Kerry's loss in states such as Virginia in the presidential race -- helped propel Warner to national prominence. He is often mentioned along with Sens. Kerry (Mass.) and Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.), former senator John Edwards (N.C.) and Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico as possible Democratic contenders.
"Mark is seen as one of the most thoughtful, promising leaders we have in the party," said Simon Rosenberg, head of the New Democrat Network, a centrist group.
For the past year, Warner has been chairman of the National Governors Association, a position that gives him the freedom to travel the country.
Last week, he went to Iowa to prepare for the association's annual meeting in July and make the rounds of the state's top Democrats. In Iowa, Warner criticized Kerry for failing to appeal to moderates, according to the Associated Press. "I can't tell you where he ever broke with anything in Democratic orthodoxy," the AP quoted Warner as saying.
Warner would face significant disadvantages in a Democratic primary: He is little-known nationally, he is a centrist in a party where liberals dominate primaries, and much of the party establishment is lining up behind Clinton.
He's also hired one of Gore's top staffers, Monica Dixon. I guess there isn't a whole lot of that Gore v. Clinton love going on there, since we all know Hillary is giving it the eye...
Election results are in for Austin City Council elections and 2nd place finished Jennifer Kim (in the first round) pulled through to become the 1st place finisher in Saturday's Run-off by a 7 point margin in a 9% turnout election. From the Elections Dept..
Jennifer Kim / 19,527 / 53.52%
Margot Clarke / 16,956 / 46.48%
I need to see tomorrow what regional patterns there are beyond the expected Margot advantage in the Central City. I'll try to make up a precinct by precint win map (if any reader can direct me to a great city of austin precint map, that will really help me with this project, link to it in the comments.)
I couldn't vote in this election as my registration was back home in Fredericksburg. I'm not particularly bound to either candidate and thought both of them would have done a fine job for the City of the Austin. Congratulations to Kim, even though Campus precincts had miserable turnout, the two oncampus did go for Kim. One of them by a 2-1 margain. As in 2 votes for Kim, one for Margot. Less than 1% turnout in an area that saw 99% turnout last November. Students are more focused on national politics over local, and were also not anywhere near polling locations in this election.
The Houston Press has a cover story this week on the alleged problems with UTMB Galveston's prisoner care program.
UTMB having problems is not exactly news. I used to believe that the Houston media was biased against UTMB, acting as sort of a permanent run-away jury in the World's Largest Frivolous Malpractice Suit. But there's only so long that you can be a part of a community before recognizing that it's problems are, in fact, problems. And UTMB has problems.
I'm about as close as one can get to an institution with UTMB as one can get without being an insider. My brother and sister were born there (as were countless friends), my parents have worked there for decades (as have countless friends-parents), I did several school projects with the support and in UTMB labs.
So I'm going to try to be generous in dissecting UTMB's problems, and proposing what I think may be the only solution to put health care in south-east Texas back on track.
To Boldly Go...
The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston is not "a hospital." This is a mis-conception that needs to be clarified out front.
Rather, UTMB is a sprawling, 85-acre, 13,000-employee, $1.3 billion-a-year campus (link) which includes six hospitals and a slew of other clinics, centers, and institutes, a product of perpetual growth.
It all started over a hundred years ago with one building: Big Red. Since then, many tens of buildings have been built, rebuilt, torn down, replaced, and so on; there are now 53 building in the UTMB campus.
While this is about half the number of buildings at the Texas Medical Center in Houston, the TMC is a conglomeration of a dozen (or so) different education systems, ten major hospitals, and dozens of other institutions each with its own independent administration and institutional focus.
Aside from the Shriners Burn Hospital and a few smaller entities, which are independent, UTMB shares a common administration and mission. It lacks, however, a clear institutional niche.
It is probably fair to say that UTMB dabbles in a little bit of everything - prison care, research, indigent care, specialty care, teaching (and not just medical students), etc. To fully grasp the enormity of the insitution, you have to look at the multiple org charts which are necessary to explain it (one alone would not suffice).
UTMB's practice is extensive for several reasons. The first is history; until 1949, UTMB was the only medical school in Texas, and for years afterward was the primary center for treating indigent. As such, UTMB had to adjust to treating patients of every age and condition.
In more recent times, however, UTMB has actively sought out new lines of work (such as caring for Harris County's prisoners). In the last ten years, the number of outpatient visits has doubled and is on track to hit 900,000 per year. Additionally, UTMB now does nearly 50,000 telemedicine consultations a year (up from none less than ten years ago).
This growth comes, in large part, because it has been an economic imperative.
I'm A Doctor, Not A Miracle Worker: UTMB and the economics of the Health Care Industry
Like many institutions of higher education, UTMB has been getting less money from the state and has been expected to "earn" more of its money, like a business.
While there was a slight-drop off in 2004, earned revenue (from patient care, etc.) now makes up about 70 percent of UTMB's income, with state funding at a mere 18 percent (it was 40 percent in 1995). In terms of actual dollars spent, state funding for UTMB has not changed significantly in the last ten years.
These numbers, however, only scratch the surface of what has happened.
In the last ten years, competition has become intense among health care institutions over prized HMO/PPO contracts. UTMB has succeeding in winning quite a few of these contracts - according to the 2000 strategic plan (which appears to be the most recent source), 56 contracts covering 165,000 people. The move away from HMOs and towards PPOs, however, has given many insured area residents more choice in picking a provider. And all too often, those who can afford not to are not chosing to go to UTMB. Often, patients who use to go to UTMB for care go to more-specialized, highly ranked hospitals such as Texas Childrens (ranked number 4 in US News and World Reports "Best Hospital" list for pediatrics) or M.D. Anderson (Ranked number 1 for cancer). UTMB wasn't even listed in the 2004 US News and World Report rankings, much less ranked.
The result of this is that UTMB is having to squeeze every last dollar out of those patients who do choose to seek care in Galveston - as well as those, such as prisoners - who really don't have a choice at all.
While UTMB trumpets the large amount (nearly $500 million worth) of free care it provides to the indigent and others, it has gotten into the practice of rationing health care for the uninsured. Moreover, UTMB's staff is seeing a lot more patients than they used to:
To be sure, the overwhelming majority of visits are outpatient. This can still lead to considerable headaches for staffers, however.
The result is that UTMB's patient demographic is shrinking into two sectors - the poor (and working class families with insurance who are still more-or-less forced to go to UTMB because of HMO/PPO rules) and those who are seeking treatment for ailments which are, essentially, not profitable to treat. This trend is basically at odds with UTMB's profit directive, and is leading to further and further belt-tightening at the further expense of overall happiness.
At the same time, of course, UTMB is still burdened with the responsibilities of bringing up the next crop of medical students, doing world-class research, and so on and so forth. There are limits to how far UTMB can go with its business-like mentality before it cuts into these very un-business-like priorities.
He's Dead, Jim: A Prescription for Reform
At the risk of being a pessimist, I am going to go ahead and concur with those I know who know best (disclaimer, I would include my dad among them) that UTMB is, frankly, caught in a death spiral. It is too large, too generalist, under-funded, over-extended, and terminally-incapable of reviving its reputation.
What UTMB needs is shock therapy. First, it needs a major increase in state funding to set its books in order. Second, it needs to do what any troubled business would do: downsize and spin-off its constituent parts. Specifically, UTMB needs to probably split itself into several institutions with clear niches and institutional goals.
Some might complain that breaking up UTMB would impede its ability to provide "holistic" care to the Galveston community, which is sort of a nice way of saying that UTMB won't be the Super Wal-Mart of health care any more, with a little something for everybody and the possibility of cradle-to-grave service. However, the fact is that one institution simply cannot provide for an individual any more, at least in an age of three-year jobs and under our employer-pays health care insurance regime.
Kevin Drum has an insightful post on the political reality of raising the Social Security retirement age.
You know, as an eager young goof-trooper, it's easy to say "aww, shucks, sure, I'll work until I'm seventy." Work, when your'e 23, is pretty cool stuff. It's what sets you apart from your younger friends, and it helps buy cool stuff (like food and rent).
Though, now that I think about it, I may really feel differently about this in forty years. So I suppose Old Man Drum is correct.
Better Late Than Never: Margot Clarke and the Toll Road Lobby
By Andrew Dobbs
So I meant to get this up before now, seeing as there are only 20 minutes are so left before the polls close. One way or the other, I think it is important that the people of Austin are aware of what's going on in this race.
Margot Clarke has been running a race that is focused largely on her refusal to take "toll lobby money." At one forum she even expressed an openness to the Austin Toll Party's attempts to recall Mayor Will Wynn, Councilman Brewster McCracken and Councilman Danny Thomas. She has flouted her endorsement by the largely Republican and right-wing Austin Toll Party and tried to make herself out to be the sole opponent to toll road expansion in Austin (though all four original candidates and both of the runoff candidates are equally opposed to toll roads).
Her proud claim to accept no toll road lobby money would be all well and good were it actually true. The Austin American-Statesman is reporting that Clarke has admitted to taking at least $1100 in toll road money and has been forced to give the money back. Furthermore Clarke has claimed that Mandy Dealey endorsed her after the first round, a complete fabrication. Her endorsement lists have contained people who did not ask to counted as her supporters, and at least some who were actually known supporters of other candidates in the race.
The fact of the matter is that Margot Clarke has run something of a dishonest campaign. I like her positions on environmental issues, but her lack of candor and her history of instability threatens the ability of the City Council to function. I didn't support her in the first round, and I'm not supporting her this time.
Its not too late to vote, find your polling place and hurry!
Burnt Orange Exclusive: Terry Keel to Announce for Third Court of Appeals Today
By Andrew Dobbs
A top-notch source has confirmed that Terry Keel, who is to be named one of Texas Monthly's 10 Worst Legislators this year, will not be running for reelection, but will announce his candidacy for the 3rd Court of Appeals at 1 PM today.
No word yet on which seat he'll seek, but remember that we already have elected two Democrats to this court and in 2004 (with George W. Bush on the top of the ballot) we reelected Jan Patterson and Diane Henson came within a hair's breadth of beating Republican Justice Bob Pemberton. We can beat Keel in this race.
In other news, at least three Democratic candidates had been in the process of organizing races against Keel for 2006 and will now most likely run for the open seat. This district is Republican, but much like Mark Strama's district it went for Sharp and Watson in 2002-- we can win it. Keep your eyes peeled about this great Democratic pickup opportunity.
More details as they come...
UPDATE: New word, some sources are saying Court of Criminal Appeals-- the statewide bench-- and not 3rd Court. This changes a lot of things, so stay tuned.
UPDATE II: From the Quorum Report:
"At the end of my current term, I will have served in the Texas House Of Representatives for 10 years. I will not seek reelection to my House seat. I intend to run instead for an appellate judicial position. I am not specifying the particular appeals court bench at this time because I have not yet completed the courtesy of personally speaking with the judges my candidacy will affect, but I will make a more detailed announcement on that later this summer."
Keel added that there are three seats coming up on the statewide Court of Criminal Appeals and two seats on the multi-county Third Court of Appeals centered in Austin. None of the seats on the two courts are currently open seats.
He mentioned that Republican Bill Welch had expressed interest in the open seat.
UPDATE III: Capitol Inside is reporting on the three Dems kicking around the race for Keel's seat: former Jim Dunnam staffer Hugh Brady, former Austin City Council candidate Gregg Knaupe and Democratic activist Duffy Keever. I'm familiar with and on friendly terms with Gregg and Duffy so I'll keep quiet on this one. Suffice it to say that my personal experience with the two I know and everything I've read about Brady lead me to believe that any one of them could win this seat.
On the GOP side Bill Welch, who ran for the seat in 1992 and lost in the primary to Susan Combs, and Travis County Commissioner Gerald Daugherty are said to be considering a run. This is going to be a fun race, keep tuned to BOR for all your HD 47 news.
My apologies for the shameless plug. For the purposes of full disclosure, I am the Vice President of Finance for the Texas Young Democrats (an elected, unpaid position). Several other members of the BOR crew are also active in the TYDs. Katie is the Region 6 Director, and Karl-Thomas is the Region 6 Judicial Representative. Jim and Andrew are also members of TYD in addition to being former officers in the UT University Democrats.
We need to raise money for our administrative account in order to fund many of our activities and programs over the coming months. We have set a goal to raise $5000 online during the month of June. Click here for more information, or check out the extended entry. We certainly appreciate any and all donations. Thanks!
Update: I just spoke with our President, Mike Apodaca, and he says that we have raised $700 in the first two days of our fundraiser.
Texas Young Democrats needs your help! We would like to fill our "donkey bank" during the month of June with $5000 to help us with administrative cost and help us the build the future of the Democratic Party!
We are pleased to write that the Texas Young Democrats are strong, active and working across the state to make a difference. Our chapters across the state show this strength such as both University Democrats at UT-Austin and El Paso winning their "Organization of the Year" awards on their campuses for their work registering and turning out student voters. The Dallas County Young Democrats worked hard on the campaigns of Young Democrats, and volunteered and raised money for Lupe Valdez, the first Democratic Sheriff in Dallas County in over 25 years. Harris County YD’s continue to make strides in Houston by assisting at home and even traveling to other parts of the nation to help democrats and our party. Our chapters around the state made a difference in 2004, and we are already making plans to improve upon our success in 2006.
We are proud of our success, but in order for the Texas Young Democrats to continue our work spreading the Democratic message, we need your help. For those of you not familiar with Texas Young Democrats, we provide several important services to the Democratic Party. We coordinate activities with our local young Democratic chapters and help plan projects. We have an internship program where we train young Democratic leaders and place them on the campaigns of Democratic candidates in the final months of each election cycle. Our local clubs reach out to students and young professionals – many of whom are just forming their own political beliefs. Polls have shown that young people are the age group most likely to agree with Democrats on the issues, so it is critical that we have the resources to reach these voters and engage them in the process.
If you agree that in order for Democrats to be victorious again in Texas by engaging and energizing the young people of this state, then we hope that you will be able to join us in our $5000 in June fundraiser from June 6th through the 30th! The money we raise will help us with administrative costs over the upcoming year. These costs include improving membership correspondence, hosting workshops and trainings, providing funds for members to attend conventions, and finally beginning plans to make our 2006 TYD convention our best ever. We ask you to donate any amount you are able via PayPal – $10, $25, $50, $100 or more to help our organization, or you can send a check.
We need your help, and with your help, we can turn our state blue!
As an East Texan, I was privileged to a rumor yesterday about who might be running for Todd Staples seat for Senate District 3. Word has it; former U.S. Congressman Max Sandlin is playing with the idea of running for Staple’s seat. Max served in the US house from 1997 until 2004, when he lost his election due to redistricting. When looking at the counties in Sen. District 3 and his results in the 2004 elections, Max has a good chance for a career in state politics if he chooses to run.
As a former staffer for him, I know he has the charm to win the republican county Nacogdoches. Angelina, San Augustine, Sabine, Polk, Shelby and Tyler are all blue counties, and Max has name recognition within these counties. This is our chance to take back East Texas. I hope this rumor turns out to be true.
Or rather, two people that you may never even be able to vote for. In the Pink teases us with hints that one of her sources (which have to about as good as the ones that said Rick Perry was a homo-sech-ual) is saying that John Sharp is considering getting into the hot Gubinatorial action on the Democratic side, which would of course, give Chris Bell something to do when not issueing press releases. (but do check out Chris's Post below.)
In other non-news, I'm posting in the extended entry the automated reponse I received from the Kinky campaign after I sent their webmaster a note asking about RSS feeds for their blog. That has got to be the only campaign where automated messages generate news.
From: info@kinkyfriedman.com
Subject: Thank you for contacting the Kinkster
Thank you for contacting the Kinkster! As you can imagine, we are awash with emails and are trying to get back to everyone in a timely manner. We do appreciate your input and will respond to everyone just as soon as possible.
If your question is concerning the petition:
We cannot start collecting signatures until after both the Republican and Democratic primaries are over. That will be sometime in March of 2006! Also, the only people eligible to sign the petition to get Kinky on the ballot are people who have not voted in EITHER the Republican or Democratic 2006 primaries, so please tell your friends not to vote in the primaries. Save the last vote for Kinky.
Where we need help most: At this time, we need everyone to spread the word about Kinky. Tell your friends, your coworkers, complete strangers on the street, EVERYONE about Kinky and let them know he is serious about being governor of Texas! Download the "Save My Vote for Kinky" pledge form and collect pledges. Encourage everyone you know to board this pirate ship, as we set sail for the governor's mansion!
Contribute to the campaign: "A fool and his money are soon elected." -
Kinky Friedman. The two major parties spent $100 million dollars in the last campaign. $100 million dollars! We need donations of all sizes to help us make this campaign a reality. Kinky's no fool. He can win it all, and he will do it wholesale.
To contribute, go to
https://www.onlinecontribution.com/kinkyfriedman/
Or, For mail contributions, please send to:
Kinky Friedman Campaign
PO Box 293910
Kerrville, TX 78029
Coming out of right field (because there is little that is left about John Cornyn) is this story that Texas Senator John Cornyn is simply "flattered" that people think he's make a good nominee for Supreme Court Justice.
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, is flattered to be mentioned as a possible Supreme Court candidate and would consider the job if it were offered.
"You can never rule out something like that, but it is not something he is looking for or something he has asked for," spokesman Don Stewart said.
Stewart said Cornyn, a former Texas Supreme Court justice and state attorney general, likely will run for re-election in 2008.
The White House has kept quiet on its choices for the Supreme Court, which will have a vacancy if ailing Chief Justice William Rehnquist steps down. The short list often includes J. Michael Luttig, a Texan on the Richmond, Va.-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, and Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, another former Texas justice.
Among the Texans thought to be in a second tier of possible candidates are Cornyn and U.S. District Judge Ricardo Hinojosa.
Of course, picking a sitting Senator (slightly better than picking your nose) helps Bush's chances of getting his nominee through, gasp, the Senate Judiciary Committee which Cornyn, gasp, is a member of! Then again, picking Cornyn means that Governor "Don't you dare run against me" Perry would get to anoint appoint a replacement. And that little issue makes this story particularly juicy, as if the Texas Republican "which office should I run for" dance wasn't complicated enough.
Maybe KBH could become Governor, and then appoint herself back to the Senate if she realized it wasn't all that it's cracked up to be. At which point Perry could battle off Strayhorn in a special election for Guv. Oh, the possibilities are endless...
Don't say you didn't see it coming, but the infamous Florida Bean counter responsible for being a major pain in the punch card is running for the Republican nomination for Florica Senate against incumbant first term Dem, Bill Nelson.
She would likely be a favorite to win the nomination, but of course, there are many Republicans that feel she may be a weaker polarizing choice against Nelson. But if she led the Republican ticket, it would be sure to galvanize the Florida Democrats who don't have much to be all that cheery about these days. Wait and see...
[This is a guest post by Chris Bell. Bell is currently the only Democrat exploring a run for governor in this state. ~Karl-Thomas}
The 79th Session of the Texas Legislature that concluded last week will long be remembered for its failures – the Republican majority's failure to govern, Rick Perry's failure to lead, and a collective failure of vision on the part of the partisans and ideologues in Austin. Rick Perry came into this session with a GOP-dominated Legislature and a mandate – from both the voters and from the courts – to revitalize a public education system that has been declared unconstitutional. Moreover, he came into this session with a golden opportunity to capitalize on the statewide focus on public education by proposing real, substantive reforms and making the investments necessary to support them.
He of course failed to achieve a school finance solution. But as the Dallas Morning News pointed out, the real failure occurred long before the last-minute negotiations broke down; it occurred when Rick Perry decided that no real investment in education was necessary and that this whole debate should be reduced to a discussion of property tax reform.
All of the education experts I've been talking to in the past few months have said that for all the shortcomings of our public schools, one major push from Austin could still put our schools back on track to being among the best in the country. Rick Perry's inability to piece together even a bare minimum fix was an embarrassing failure of leadership, but his unwillingness to even consider bold new solutions was an equally unforgivable failure of vision.
The fruits of these failures are all too visible as we look around the state. We see it in the thousands of kids who have been kicked off the CHIP rolls, in the hundreds of kids who have died of abuse and neglect because Child Protective Services is too underfunded to protect them, in graduation rates and SAT scores that continue to lag well behind national averages.
This isn't the Texas that I had the privilege of growing up in, nor is it the Texas I want my two young boys to grow up in. And if there's anything that we can take from this past legislative session, it's that Rick Perry is simply not up to the task of getting things moving back in the right direction.
Those of you who visit my website regularly are probably aware that we've launched a fundraising drive to raise $30,000 online by midnight on June 15. The deadline coincides with the first anniversary of the ethics complaint I filed against Tom DeLay last year, but the focus of this fundraising drive is looking forward, not backwards. The purpose of this drive is not only to raise funds. Certainly every dollar makes a big difference this early in the game, but just as importantly, this fundraising drive will also be an early indicator of whether Texas is ready for the type of campaign I want to run.
(more in the extended entry)
I want to run a campaign that captures the energy and the vision of the true grassroots, the mainstream Texans who aren't content to sit idly by while Rick Perry's failed leadership erodes decades of progress and growth. I want to run a campaign that draws all Texans into a true conversation about what direction we want for our state. And I want to run a campaign that firmly rejects the closed door, smoke-filled room politics of the old Democratic Party and fully realizes the potential of the new Democratic grassroots.
I launched this exploratory campaign because I needed to answer some fundamental questions before deciding whether to commit fully to this race, a decision I plan to announce in July. The first of these questions concerns Democratic viability in a statewide election, and that question has been answered resoundingly as everyone from Texas Monthly to former Republican Governor Bill Clements has started talking openly about the prospects of a Democratic revival in 2006. But the question I now need to answer is whether this growing Democratic grassroots has the numbers, the strength, and the commitment necessary to sustain a campaign through the fight ahead.
That's why I need to make a hard ask right now for you to help us reach our goal. The house parties that are being organized around the state to take place on June 12th are the heart of this online fundraising drive, but for those of you unable to attend or host a house party this Sunday, I still need your help today. I have every confidence that the progressive netroots is going to be the heart and soul of this campaign to give Texas a new direction. For this to happen, we need to send a clear signal around the state that you're engaged and committed for the fight ahead.
This is rather uncharted territory for Democratic statewide campaigns in Texas. Netroots progressives have begun to notch a few victories in local and legislative races around the state, but no statewide campaign has yet won by fully engaging this emerging community. With your help, we can change that in 2006.
I will look forward to visiting with you during the house parties this Sunday.
By almost a 10 point margin, in the reliably Democratic district Julian Castro vacated to run for mayor, voters elected Elena Guajardo, the first openly gay candidate to ever even run in San Antonio.
I didn't even know about this until researching it tonight, but her background is impressive to say the least. Elena serves as an officer in several political and community organizations including: Bexar County Tejano Democrats, League of Women Voters and Human Rights Campaign and formerly Stonewall Democrats. On top of that she was endorsed by Labor, the Sierra Club, NOW, Women's Political Caucus, SA Police Officers Association, National Association of Social Workers, Stonewall Democrats (unanimous), and Tejano Democrats (unanimous), and even posts to the Jeffersonian blog's endorsement of her! I'll take a mixture like that over the Express News any day of the week!
So congrats to Elena, and all those who supported her. It's the victories like this that give me hope, even when the GoodHair-i-nator thinks otherwise (a la HJR 6).
Keep up with the returns here at the Bexar County elections website. Original election last month has returns here for comparison.
But as of 10:06 pm, in total votes, the race has narrowed enormously from the early vote numbers which put Hardberger over Castro, 58-42, about an 8500 vote margin. But now he leads 52-48, though Red State has just reported that they hear it's because Castro's boxes have come in first (Castro is leading by 6000 votes in Election Day totals.
Now, IF the runoff followed the regular election, there should be just over half (51-52%) cast on Election Day compared to early vote. And IF Castro's Election Day margin (60-40) holds out for the rest of the ballots or even weakens a bit, he would pull the vote deficit and win. But of course, that does not take into account the fact that not all precincts are equal and if have already come in to a greater degree, then it looks less bright for the Castro campaign. And remember, Republicans vote early, Democrats prefer Election Day, so that would explain the results so far if those Republican voters are indeed following the endorsement of their vanquished candidate. Of course, that may also mean that the hardcore active, "I'll do what's best to Stop a Hispanic" crowd has already voted, leaving Hardberger possibly weak in turnout in his better precincts today.
Of course, the runoffs for District 6 and 7 look to be headed to a larger turnout in the runoff than on Election Day, and those are both on Castro's turf.
Update: Hardberger’s lead shrinks to 1467 vote, down from his 8476 lead in early vote. Castro picks up 7000 votes against him as of now on Election Day, puling 58.4% of the e-day total. Margin now 50.79 - 49.21 with about 55% reporting. We could see higher turnout on e-day comparative to the original election, which helps Castro at this point.
Likely winners now in District 6 and 7, each leading by about 11 points, are...
6- Delicia Herrera (endorsed by the Sierra Club and Stonewall Democrats) beats Ray Lopez (endorsed by Mayor Ed Garza, the Express-News, and Police)
7- Elena Guajardo (involved with Stonewall and Tejano Democrats) beats Noel Suniga (also endorsed by the Express News, his website banner includes "family values" and "taxpayers" so I'm going to guess he was the more conservative of the two.)
Looks like a good night for those two races at least, even though I haven’t paid attention to them until now. If anyone has some info, post a comment.
I think Kevin Drum more or less nails it, but I'll add that there's an element of class warfare in this as well. Before Roe, the well-heeled could travel to more liberal jurisdictions to get abortions their way, while the rest either were stuck (either literally, as with back-alley abortions, or figuratively). Given our crazy-quilt of abortion laws in this state, that's essentially the case for many women, like Ms. Flores.
Results from the San Antonio Runoff will be coming in tonight. Though I won't likly be able to get to the computer until 9 pm, there will be some people following the news.
RedState will be liveblogging so that may be your best bet. For a short primer on what is going on, look to Latinos for Texas post from the Express News.
It's to be a close race tonight (though I hope Castro pulls it out). Kuff points to a mySA.com column that brings up some interesting points that could help Castro overcome his 5 point deficit in the last round of polling.
It would help if there were a City Council runoff on Schubert's turf. There isn't.
It would help if there were no runoffs in Castro's backyard. There are two.
It would help if Castro had a weak grassroots organization. He doesn't.
It would help if Hardberger and Schubert were not political opposites. They are.
It would help if Hardberger could count on a heavy turnout of Schubert supporters. He can't.
The candidate who probably can count on a heavy turnout is Castro.
The last time there were runoffs in Districts 6 and 7, more people voted in Round 2 than in Round 1.
That's one reason I give Castro a slight edge in the runoff. There are others.
The Jeffersonian says otherwise though... We shall see who is right soon enough.
While I will be posting much less frequently, all BOR writers want this blog to build on the success that we have had over the past two years. In order to do this, we will need fresh faces and energy to ensure that BOR continues to be professional, progressive, Democratic and student-led. We are seeking 2-4 people that can join the BOR team, and blog on a regular basis. Here are some of the things that we are looking for in potential candidates. These are not necessarily requirements, but rather things that we are specifically looking for:
Candidates should have a passion for writing. Blogging should not be a chore, but rather should be something that is fun and enjoyable. Bloggers joining our team should commit to writing a minimum of 3-4 posts most weeks, and perhaps as many as several posts a day.
Candidates should be a Democrat. Although our bloggers vary in our ideology, we are all Democrats and BOR is a Democratic blog.
In addition to being a Democrat, candidates should regularly follow Texas politics. Candidates with experience attending political events, fundraisers and volunteering are preferred.
Candidates should also be in Texas. Our niche is Texas politics from a student Democratic perspective. Ideally, candidates should be students (UT or UT system students preferred) as well.
Candidates should be interested in writing primarily about Texas politics. We cover national politics, but our main focus is Texas politics.
Candidates should have basic HTML skills. While blogging does not require a great deal of HTML knowledge, candidates should know the basics – links, posting images, blockquotes, italics, bold, etc.
Previous blogging experience is a big plus. Whether it be a previous or current blog, or simply Kos or MyDD diaries, this experience is valuable to anyone interested in writing for BOR. Absent blogging experience, regular readers, people who have previously written for their high school or college newspaper and BOR commenters will also receive strong consideration.
Candidates with specific interest and detailed knowledge of local politics are strongly encouraged. I would like to find someone to take my place writing frequently about Dallas, and we can certainly use people with in-depth knowledge of local politics in San Antonio, El Paso, Houston, the valley and west Texas.
Women and minorities are strongly encouraged. We are all aware that the blogosphere is overwhelmingly White and male. This shouldn’t be intended to discourage anyone from applying to write for us, but we would simply like to strongly encourage female and minorities that have an interest in blogging to consider applying.
If you believe that this may be you, then we hope that you will apply to join our team. Writing for BOR is a great opportunity to become more involved in politics and activism. BOR is read by about 60,000 visitors a month, and blogging for us is certainly one way to get yourself read and known by leaders and activists in the Texas Democratic Party.
If you would like to apply, please email the following to: Apply@BurntOrangeReport.com
Please tell us about yourself in a paragraph or two. This should include your name, age, hometown, school attending/attended, major, party affiliation, political experience, blogging/writing experience and interests (political and otherwise).
Please tell us why you would like to write for BOR, and what you believe that you can specifically add to our community.
We would also like candidates to include a minimum of two writing samples. If you have previously blogged or have articles online, send us the two or more that you believe are best reflective of your work. If you do not have any of your work online, we would like you to write at least two samples of the type of posts that you would contribute to BOR. These samples can be quoting a news article and including commentary, writing an opinion piece about a specific issue or writing your thoughts on any recent event – the end of the legislative session, school finance, the looming 2006 GOP primary in Texas, news and results from local municipal elections, or anything else.
I hope to see a lot of applications, and I don’t want to put up a deadline yet. We would like to be able to start making some decisions by next week. We’ll make an announcement in the coming days on when we will be closing the application process. If we have more quality submissions than we are able to ask to join our team, then we may ask our readers to get involved by posting the samples and asking our readers to share our thoughts via comments or email.
If you have any questions about the process, please email us at: Apply@BurntOrangeReport.com. Jim, Karl-Thomas, Andrew and I all have access to this account, so all four of us will be reviewing applications.
A little catch up on some news from the past few days. I think we are all getting ready to adjust to our Post-Byron led era. I'll have some comments on that soon enough, after I get my grubby hands in control of this little weblog. Just kidding- don't expect any titanic shifts right away. Though there are some things I'm pondering, nothing is to be done without the usual consultation of writers that goes on normally. If you want to join the team, be sure to check out Byron's post. I was asked to come on board because I lurked in the comments the spring and summer before I came to UT.
So, now to a couple headlines- As has been reported today, Governor Good Hair was busy not governing as usual, leaving him with the all important business of filling in as poster boy for the choreographed triple love fest for the conservative Christian base, signing parental consent bills and double secret constitution killer gay marriage amendments at a place of high holy Christian worship. Talk about overkill.
Perry to Hutchy and Carol 5-Names: You can't touch this (base).
Also, for Austinites, this Tuesday marks the last day to vote early for the High Octane City Council Runoff between Chair Tossing "the Hulk" Margot Clarke and Developer $$$ SugarMomma Jennifer Kim. Please note the overblown sarcasm. The Texan reports that a whopping 3% of Austin has turned out so far, less than 12,000 voters. That means that University precincts (which had 4-6% turnout in the double digit turnout initial round), will be left with exactly the UDems officers casting votes. And for shame, I'm not even registered here because I voted in Fredericksburg for my father. But I'd vote for Clarke if I was here, so make of that what you will. Maybe Byron will tell us who he voted for???
Have you yet?
But if you want to vote for Kinky for Guv (who makes news by attending the dullest of events, a book signing no less) "save yourself for kinky" because he's going to need about 50,000 signatures to get on the ballot next spring from people who DON'T vote in the primaries. As to some actual positions? The Texan sayeth...
Friedman plans to redefine the job and be more available to the constituents by having a listed phone number, he said. Education, energy, animal rights, criminal justice and border issues are among his concerns, along with the end of political correctness, or the "de-wussification" of Texas. He wants to end teaching to standardized tests in schools, outlaw the de-clawing of cats and instate life-without-parole as a possible alternative to the death penalty in order to cut down on executions of innocent people. Friedman also expressed his view on gay marriage.
"They have every right to be just as miserable as the rest of us," he said. "On a serious note, I believe love is bigger than government."
Sounds good to me. Why can't we have Democrats run like this? Why can't Kinky run as a Democrat. In any case, we do have Chris Bell, whose blog is fun to read if not for the Gwen Stefani references. The Bell campaign passed $5,000 in its fundraising goal today as well. Maybe you will want to have a House Party for them or attend one on June 12th.
The other week I got a most suprising e-mail in my inbox that I hadn't expected. One of the Democrats that helped to inspire me along my political path looked like he was at it again, to run against my hometown Republican Congressman. Oddly enough, even after moving to Austin, Lamar Smith did too and remains my Representative. I look forward to the chance to try to beat him once more with a known foe of his, John Courage.
In the extended entry I have included the letter from John, now that he has started an Exploratory Committee to run in the 21st against Lamar Smith. As he notes in the letter, the race would be no small feat and about $1 million would need to be raised. But Mr. Courage ran back when the district had 3 times as many counties as now, and was by far, more Republican, and even still, rasied $150,000. That campaign helped jump start some of the energy in local Hill Country parties that have lead them to become the much more active force they are today. The one to two county summer picnics have now expanded to a 21 county Hill Country effort that should draw close to 1000 people this year.
John Courage, after running 4 years ago, most recently ran for County Party Chair in Bexar county, but because of the way that Bexar County likes to divide itself up, by ethnicity and region, he did not succeed. His wife Zada, was victorious in gaining a seat on the SDEC at the last State Convention, and the two continue to be active in progessive causes and Democracy for Texas. John is a former educator and veteran if my memory of his campaign material serves me well, two issues that beneficial in a district that has a heavy military population and where Education is certainly a strong factor (UT, Texas State, etc.)
I'm personally looking forward to this exploration period, and as the University of Texas populace and campus is in this district, I know that many University Democrats will jump at the chance to have a real Congressional race we can get involved in that isn't already set one way or the other (McCaul or Doggett).
Though I've heard of one other possible candidate mentioned, nothing confirmed in the least. Until then, I hope that you all can offer your comments, insights, tips, or otherwise and get in touch with John if you want to offer some help at johnc @ democratswithcourage . org
Dear friends and fellow Democrats,
I am writing to you because I value your opinion and I am considering running against Lamar Smith for the 21st Congressional District seat once again.
My consideration arose after having had numerous Bexar County friends and supporters ask me if I were going to run against Smith again. Many of those who asked encouraged me to do so. Recently some good Democrats in Austin have expressed their interest in having me run, and have been encouraging as well.
I have over the last week or two been talking with my family and some good Democratic activists and have received some very positive feedback. Of course having my best advisor, my wife Zada standing with me side by side is one of the best signs of encouragement I can have, but hearing from you will also be important.
Some of the questions that require thoughtful answers are:
Why should I run, and why now?
Others have answered these questions for me by saying –
· Lamar Smith needs to be challenged,
· I have developed good name recognition and can run a credible campaign,
· The Democrats need to run strong candidates to build the party,
· Lamar Smith may be very vulnerable now because of issues like Social Security, the War in Iraq, the Terri Schaivo debacle, and his close relationship to Tom Delay.
What has changed in the 21st District since I last ran?
When I first began my race 4 years ago this month, the 21st was comprised of 21 counties stretching from San Angelo to Seguin. Six months later it was reduced to 14 Counties due to redistricting, but still ran from Junction, to Marble Falls, to Alamo Heights, and included a portion of Austin for the first time. That is the district I ran and lost in. However, due to the last round of redistricting, the Republicans, being cocky and over confident about Smith’s incumbency, reduced his District down to five counties, from Bexar, up Hwy 281 and I-35 to Travis county, including Comal, Blanco and Hays counties and increasing the Austin population in the District.
I made a decision not to run for this position in 2004. The Democratic nominee, who did run for the 21st, ran a very weak and poorly funded campaign, but still got 46% of the vote in Travis County. Today Travis County has more registered voters in the 21st Congressional District than Bexar County does, and the Democrats in Austin and Travis County are very well organized (they carried Travis for Kerry last November) and they are very eager to get rid of Lamar Smith. They are still smarting over the redistricting in Travis County.
So basically the landscape is considerably different in this election than it was four years ago.
To me the two most important aspects for mounting another campaign at this time are, fundraising, and establishing a strong, coordinated campaign organization from San Antonio to Austin.
In my first campaign I raised over $150,000 which was no small sum, but I recognize that I would have to raise substantially more in another campaign to unseat Smith. My goal for this campaign would be to raise 1 Million dollars. I would capitalize on the lessons from the Dean, Clark and Kerry Campaigns and would build a strong web based Internet giving program, as well as the tried and true practice of calling and talking with everyone about giving their financial support.
Part of the fundraising campaign would be to set some contribution targets, for example finding 1000 Democrats to pledge giving at least $25 per month and another 1000, pledged to give at least $10 per month and finding 200 Democrats who would contribute the maximum $2000. Achieving these goals would allow the campaign to go toe to toe with Smith on getting our message to the voters.
The key component of a strong organization relies on major volunteer efforts. I believe we proved at the San Pedro campaign office in the 2004 Campaign, that you can run a great campaign through the dedication of committed volunteers. This along with some professional support can produce a successful team in this next election
To make this work my campaign would need people who are willing to step forward and commit to doing these jobs from Travis to Bexar County:
· Demographics Researcher and Writer
· Database Specialist
· Issues Researcher and Writer
· Internet Webmaster
· Fundraising Specialists
· Scheduler
· General Volunteers
· Volunteer Coordinator
· Media Coordinator
· Fieldworker Coordination
· Campaign Management
I will be traveling the district this month, conducting a ‘Listening Tour’ to determine what the people in the 21st are looking for in their candidate for Congress, and to reintroduce myself to the District.
I welcome your input and advice and of course most of all your help. I have established the John Courage Congressional Exploratory Committee and can accept contributions as I continue to “explore” a campaign effort over the next few weeks. I expect to make a decision before the end of June.
Please feel free to contact me at this address if you have any questions, advice or to lend me your support.
It has been almost a year, but it will be worth the wait. Television's best drama, HBO's Six Feet Under, is finally back. I had heard good things for a long time, but finally started watching last season and I was hooked. If you can watch an episode of two of the ongoings of the Fisher and Diaz Funeral Home and not want to see the entire season (it's last, sadly), you are a stronger person than I am.
Show starts at 8 PM Central on HBO. Get the skinny on the characters here (though their bios skip over the last season), and catch up on old episodes here. And if anyone calls me between 8 and 9, do not expect an answer.
U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) today urged Gov. Rick Perry to call an immediate special session to fix school finance, give teachers a pay raise, and provide property tax relief.
Speaking outside the Texas Supreme Court after attending the swearing in of Justice Priscilla Owen to 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, Hutchison declined to say what her future political intentions were. However, she said Texas needed "leadership to be shown now more than ever" to do what was right for the state. (...)
Perry also attended the Owen event but did not hold a press conference. Responding to Hutchison's comments, Perry spokeswoman Kathy Walt said Perry was "glad" Hutchison shared the Governor's "displeasure" that the Legislature failed to reach agreement on important school reform and property tax relief. (...)
Asked to comment about her political future, Hutchison said she was in the "home stretch for making the decision for what's right for Texas." She said she had tried to "stay out of the fray" during the 79th Legislature so that lawmakers could make progress on important issues. "I am disappointed like everyone that school finance and especially relief for the property taxpayers of our state were not addressed," Hutchison said.
I'd put more of KBH's quotes in, but it sounds nauseatingly like a campaign ad. "Texas is the greatest state in America and I want us to be the example of how to do things right. I want other states to look to us to be the state that has the creativity and the innovation" blah blah blah. Still, the Hutch-o-meter must have swung back up to the upper 90s by now...
The signal is still hard to pick up, but it's good to hear Outlaw Dave again on the radio on KIOL (103.7 FM). Apparently, it's not as difficult to pick up on the east side of downtown as it is on the south side.
This blog has perhaps been a bit lax in its coverage of the San Antonio mayor's race, and I apologize for that. We have a couple of Houston natives, a couple of Dallas natives, most of us still live in Austin and so everywhere else is a bit foreign to us. San Antonio politics can be a bit enervating, but this is a great race and deserves one last look before Election Day.
The candidates, of course, are City Councilman Julian Castro and former Judge Phil Hardberger. Both are progressive Democrats, both are good guys so I won't publicly pick a horse in the race. Julian Castro could be the kind of guy who sets Texas on fire in the near future, and a friend of mine his helping to run Phil Hardberger's race. This is, of course, a runoff after the first round ended with Castro garnering 42% of the vote, Hardberger 30% and 26% for the race's only Republican-- Councilman Carroll Schubert. Schubert, after running a race primarily against Hardberger, forgot all the nasties and endorsed the judge. 87% of Schubert voters say they'll support Hardberger, which led to Hardberger leading Castro 50% to 47% in a recent poll (though the numbers were still within the margin of error).
Several factors are going into the runoff. Schubert support is one of them. Castro needed about a third of Schubert's voters to support him, Hardberger about two thirds. Hardberger has won that battle on paper, but the question is whether or not they will turn out to vote. Many of Schubert's high-profile supporters such as Red McCombs have stood united behind Hardberger in the runoff. Schubert's supporters tend to be North Side, Anglo Republicans-- the kind most likely to turn out to vote-- but with weeks of their man bashing Hardberger as a "liberal trial attorney" one has to wonder whether or not they'll buy his sudden turn around. If they do, Hardberger wins. If they choose to stay home Castro is the man.
The second factor is the Latino vote, of course. Castro gets the lion's share of Latino support, but some observers suggest it isn't enough. Castro "only" has about 67% of the Latino vote, but the only other Latino mayor since Cisneros-- incumbent Ed Garza-- received just under 97% of the Latino vote his first time around. Even with strong Latino turnout, it might not be enough to put Castro over the top.
While both of these factors work in Hardberger's favor, Castro has a big one working for him-- downballot races. Two districts have runoffs, both on Castro's turf. One is actually Castro's old seat, and the other is in a predominantly Hispanic district with an exciting grassroots campaign underway. Both of these districts could see higher than average turnout, enough to push Castro over the top perhaps.
Then we come to the war of words and the gut feelings. Castro is seen as a kind of Ed Garza clone by many-- he is young, attractive, Latino, ambitious and comes from the City Council system. That is not enough to draw the comparison in my mind, but Garza is highly unpopular and has had a miserable reign at City Hall. The mental image might be enough to weaken Castro's support. Knowing this, he has resorted to sullying the image of the rather grandfatherly Hardberger, who has thus responded largely in kind. Hardberger-- who helped found the Peace Corps, was Sargeant Shriver's right hand man, was a successful attorney and popular judge-- has no experience in City Government. Still, he sounds at home talking about the Edwards Aquifer and budget issues. On the surface, many might prefer somebody not associated with the Garza era over Castro.
In the end, the race is going to be close and turnout looks to be high-- 46,000 have already voted early in only 4 days of early vote. Depending on where this turnout comes from, this could be anybody's race. Keep tuned to Burnt Orange Report for details from SA tomorrow!
June 17th - 19th Democracy for America is expecting almost 1,000 participants at their Dem Fest convention. The main event is Sat. June 18th at Stubb's. Doors open at 7:30 pm. Gov. Howard Dean will be speaking along with Molly Ivins, Jim Hightower with musical appearance by Joe Ely and more. Tickets are on sale at www.frontgatetickets.com for $20. See ya'll there.
As a Democrat the 79th Legislative Session was painful to watch, although there were a couple of moments to enjoy. Among the lobbyists, interns, staff and Reps there are those who stood out in the crowd as major moment creators.
Rep. Jim Dunnam from Waco has consistently proven to be insightful with his knowledge of parliamentary procedure and his weapon of choice the point of order. Although he has a stern and hostile exterior, he is perhaps the most intelligent democrat on the floor. Rep. Senfronia Thompson received praise for having the most attitude at the mike. When chubbing other representatives before the midnight deadline to hear all new legislation in the house, she was dubbed a chub snub.
Rep. Warren Chisum (yes he is a republican) is known for his resolution HJR 6, which attacks homosexual marriage. Although small in stature and general size, he is dubbed the bully of free love. Rep. Sylvester Turner approaches the mike as he would a pulpit, and in most cases treats the other representatives as his sheep to lead. Turner has provided some of the best sermons on top Ten Percent and Education Finance that will be remembered.
The Freshman of the year in my book is Mark Strama, a friend of college issues and UT U-Dems. Al Edwards has created the most memorable moment for the 79th session by introducing his cheerleading bill to ban sexually suggestive performances. “Go Edwards you’re so fine, you’re so fine you blow my mind go Edwards clap clap go Edwards!”
Republican lack of leadership and effectiveness has presented Texas Democrats with many issues to spin for the 2006 midterm elections. Though in power, Republicans were unable to reform education finance, provide Texas children with insurance, or increase pay for teachers. This session has fallen behind in volume of bills presented to the Governor, with Tom Craddick and David Dewhurst in a pissing match for power. The Senate has disregarded house bills and the house has failed to support a vast majority of Senate lead legislation. Altogether the session was uneventful, but it still had its
Perhaps a little late, since everyone's already seen the Revenge of the Sith, but here's one more cheap shot at the folks, both right and left (examples here, here, and here) who went bonkers over Star Wars being "anti-Bush."
To be sure, George Lucas made a few comments which added fuel to the fire (perhaps knowing that it would sell movie tickets), but given that the entire back-story for Star Wars was kicking around in Lucas's head thirty years ago, it's perhaps a bit of a stretch to read the movie as a critique of the Bush administration. Sometimes, a cigar is just a cigar.
That said, I found this old Saturday Night Live skit (episode guide | windows video), which while conceived and written fifteen years ago is nonetheless clearly a political statement about the current conflict between the moderate, Schwarzenegger wing of the GOP and the religious right wing lead by Senate Majority Leader Bill "Pussy Cat" Frist.
I've been wondering when the President's permanent campaign to meddle with Social Security would come to an end recently. There had been, if I recall correctly, some talk of it finishing back in March or April, but it got an extension.
When George W. Bush first started talking about Social Security, virtually everything he said was false, and virtually nothing he said was challenged by reporters. Then Democrats, bloggers, etc. started a big hew and cry and all of a sudden it was getting challenged. Then everyone got bored with the whole thing. But Bush just kept on plodding. Now he's still saying all the same stuff that was discredited months ago, but isn't getting challenged on it as much -- either from liberals or from the press. So even though just about everyone in the world except me seems bored by this issue already, I still think it's crucially important not to lose focus.
Yglesias's fears are underpinned by the well-established theory that if you repeat something enough times, it'll become accepted as truth. And the well-documented pattern of this President employing this strategy. Watching the Bush team in action is like watching a small-town high school football team run the option play on every down: extremely predictable, almost tedious, but maddeningly effective, particularly when the other guys don't keep their eyes on the ball.
I'm reminded of some accidental Bushian wisdom right about now...
Quroum Report now reports that after Combs announcement this morning, Senator Staples is going to run for her old spot as the Ag Commissioner. Though that will open up a Senate seat (which seem not to change often in Texas unless they do become open, it's 63% RPI and Staples didn't have even a token challenger out there in East Texas the last go round. Not partiucularly sure who might be stepping up on either side for that seat, but it would be nice to see someone like Charlie Stenholm run for the Dems for Ag Commissioner.
Most of the stories about the end of the legislative session have rightfully focused on the GOP's inability to accomplish any of their main goals this session. But a much more important topic has been ignored-- the success of Democrats in stopping much of the worst legislation and their unprecedented unity.
In 2003 a handful of Democrats stood by Craddick's side the entire session. Not only did they support tort reform, health care cuts and robbing education and social services for cash, they even stood behind him as he gerrymandered Democrats out of Congress. The session was a bleak one as Republicans failed at next to nothing and steamrolled our party with the help of a handful of turncoats.
But something changed after that session. New leadership entered the Texas Democratic Party and these leaders promised that things would never be this way again. Several Craddick D's-- most notably Ron Wilson and Glen O. Lewis-- faced primary challengers that were actually endorsed by the Chairman of the TDP. People were stunned that a party chair would actually endorse in primary races. Chairman Soechting, who was roundly criticized at the time of his election on this blog for being "more of the same", shocked and awed true Democrats all over the state by standing up for core Democratic values. Wilson, Lewis, and at least three other Craddick Ds were defeated in the primaries.
The lesson was made REAL quick-- you screw us over, you aren't going to be in office any more. One of the biggest unreported stories from this session is Sylvester Turner's return to the fold. Battered in the Houston Mayor's race in part because of his sell out of the Party and facing threats of primary challenges this time around, Craddick's top Democrat (now that Wilson is gone) has changed tunes. He gave among the most impassioned speeches against the school finance plan, the tax plan and other efforts to hurt the people of Texas. While he wasn't 100%, he improved this session. Vilma Luna started out the session in her old ways and just the hint of a primary battle scared her straight. Al Edwards is still problematic, and there are some mossback Dems who haven't accounted for their sorry votes, but on the most important issues of the session-- school finance, tax reform and health care, Democrats were united.
The united progressive front helped Democrats kill some bad bills this session. Democratic Senators blocked many of the worst proposals from making it into law, and a concerted effort to expose the school finance and tax plans for what they really were (unfunded mandates crushed on the brow of Texas schools and the largest tax increase in Texas history) made it hard for Republicans to vote for the bills. As it stands Texas was let down by this session, but they can thank Texas Democrats for the fact that they won't be saddled with a host of other terrible fates.
Republicans failed Texas this session, but the only thing standing between working Texans and an even worse disaster were Democratic lawmakers united and fired up by strong Democratic leadership. If we can keep this united, this passionate and this disciplined 2006 could be an exciting year for Democrats across this state.
One of the big questions I've had during all the DeLay scandals was how long it would take to finally reach George W. Bush.
Wait no longer.
The Texas Observer is reporting that criminal lobbyist, DeLay crony and Bush "Pioneer" Jack Abramoff strong armed the Coushatta Indian Tribe (the same tribe he bilked for $82 million) into donating $25,000 to Grover Norquist's Americans for Tax Reform in return for a private meeting with Bush. Abramoff also got the tribe to donate $1 million at the same time to a nonprofit started by the lobbyist. Essentially, Grover Norquist used his corrupt friend Abramoff to turn the White House into a pay-for-play amusement park. Whether Bush knew about the situation or not is still up in the air, but there seems to be no denying that he was the bait for an elaborate scheme to fish for campaign cash.
From the Observer:
Four months after he took the oath of office in 2001, President George W. Bush was the attraction, and the White House the venue, for a fundraiser organized by the alleged perpetrator of the largest billing fraud in the history of corporate lobbying. (...) Abramoff was so closely tied to the Bush Administration that he could, and did, charge two of his clients $25,000 for a White House lunch date and a meeting with the President. From the same two clients he took to the White House in May 2001, Abramoff also obtained $2.5 million in contributions for a non-profit foundation he and his wife operated.
Abramoff’s White House guests were the chiefs of two of the six casino-rich Indian tribes he and his partner Mike Scanlon ultimately billed $82 million for services tribal leaders now claim were never performed or were improperly performed. Together the six tribes would make $10 million in political contributions, at Abramoff’s direction, almost all of it to Republican campaigns of his choosing. (...)
According to a source close to the tribal majority, Chairman Poncho recently “revisited that issue” of his visit to the White House. He had previously denied it because he thought he was responding to press inquiries that implied he had a one-on-one meeting with Bush. He now recalls that he in fact did go to the White House on May 9, 2001. Tribal attorney Kathryn Fowler Van Hoof went with him, although she did not get into the meeting with the President. That meeting lasted for about 15 minutes and was not a one-on-one meeting. At the meeting, Bush made some general comments about Indian policy but did not discuss Indian gaming. Abramoff was at the meeting—for which he charged the Coushatta Tribe $25,000. The change in Poncho’s position is odd in light of the fact that he and his spokespersons have maintained for more than a year that he did not meet with President Bush in May 2001.
Norquist has not responded to inquiries about using the White House as a fundraiser. It is, however, a regular ATR practice to invite state legislators and tribal leaders who have supported ATR anti-tax initiatives to the White House for a personal thank-you from the President. A source at ATR said no money is ever accepted from participants in these events. The $25,000 check from the Coushattas suggests that, at least in this instance, Norquist’s organization made an exception. The $75,000 collected from the Mississippi Choctaws and two corporate sponsors mentioned in Abramoff’s e-mail suggests there were other exceptions. Norquist recently wrote to the tribes who paid to attend White House meetings. His story regarding that event is also evolving. The contributions, he told tribal leaders in letters that went out in May, were in no way related to any White House event. That doesn’t square with the paper trail Abramoff and Norquist left behind, which makes it evident that they were selling access to the President.
The White House press office has not responded to our questions about other visits Jack Abramoff might have made to the White House or about Norquist using the official residence of the President to raise funds for Americans for Tax Reform. None of the political contributions Abramoff insisted the tribes make as yet have been returned.
Either President Bush is a dupe who didn't realize that his political allies were using him and abusing the White House in order to make money for themselves, or he has put the "people's house" up for the highest bidder. Either way, this scandal dwarfs any of the nonsense the GOP crowed about all during the Clinton years.
Bush needs to answer some questions, and Abramoff needs to go to jail.
Making it official, Republican Ag Commissioner Susan Combs says she is now running for Comptroller, currently held by One Tough Gramma Carol 5-Names, who is being coy as to what office she may run for.
"She has been aware that I was running for this office," Combs said. "I’m in the race to stay. I’m in the race to win."
Combs calls herself a committed conservative who believes that government "must do more with less."
She has a background in ranching and a law degree from the University of Texas at Austin. She likes to repeat former Gov. George W. Bush’s description of her: "He said that I was a woman of high energy, even making coffee nervous."
At the same time, Quorum Report sayeth that Rep. David Swinford, R-Dumas who has previously stated he would run for the now officially open Ag Commissioner seat, has backed down and endorsed Sen. Todd Staples (of redistricting and HJR 6 fame).
Of course, this is mostly expected dancing, the big shift up and down the ladder will happen when/if KBH says whether or not Perry looks tasty enough to take a bite out of.
As you all may have noticed, my posting over the past weeks has decreased as I have undergone the process of transition from student to life after college. I recently received my undergraduate degree at UT-Austin with a B.A. in government and history, and I have spent much time over the past months considering what to do next. While there is a good chance that I will eventually continue my education, I have decided that after spending the vast majority of my life as a student, I would like to take some time to focus on my career.
Those of you who know me, and those of you who read BOR on a regular basis know that my passion is politics. I live and breathe politics. And I have desired a career in politics where I will have the ability to work with candidates, consultants and most importantly, help elect Democrats to all levels of office. Fortunately, I was offered a job in this regard with the Tyson Organization, and I have accepted their offer. Tyson is a Democratic political consulting firm in Fort Worth with a national client list, and I will begin working for them next Wednesday, June 8. I am very excited about this opportunity, and have committed to work for Tyson through December 2006.
Due to nature of blogging and political consulting, it will be impossible to continue blogging in the same manner as I have in the past. I have consistently sought to maintain the highest standard of ethics at the Burnt Orange Report in regards to disclosing any potential conflicts of interest, and I do not want there to be any doubt regarding my intentions. Since it will be impossible to include full disclaimers of the many Tyson clients on BOR, I have decided to limit my blogging on BOR. Effective Wednesday, I will no longer blog on any topic that would present a possible conflict of interest with the Tyson Organization, or place myself in such situation. In this regard, I will no long post on Democratic primary elections, municipal elections or elections involving Tyson clients. I still plan to post occasionally on issues that I care about, and on the silly things that Republicans often do from time to time, but my blogging will be greatly reduced.
Furthermore, I will be selling the Burnt Orange Report to Karl-Thomas Musselman in the coming weeks (I have consulted Jim and Andrew on this as well). Karl-Thomas and I have agreed to a basic framework of a sale, and we hope to finalize everything in the next week or two. I have decided that this is the best decision for me, my future employer and the blog. I want Karl-Thomas, Andrew, Jim (and all other current and future writers) to be able to write their conscience about Democratic primary races and municipal races without regard to my employer. The best way to do this, in my opinion, is to remove ownership, editorial discretion and future advertising and revenue rights from my control.
Having said all of this, the Burnt Orange Report has been an important part of my life for the past two years, and more than anything, I desire its continued success. In the next couple of days we will lay out a process to add new contributors to BOR. All founding members and frequent contributors will take a leading role in ensuring that BOR continues to be professional, progressive, Democratic and student-led. We will lay out an application process for new writers to BOR. We would like to add at least 2-4 new regular contributors, and perhaps some less frequent guest posters as well. If you are interested in writing for BOR – especially if you are a Democratic UT student, or frequent commenter, I hope that you will consider applying to join our team.
Finally, thank you all for your support, your loyal readership and your informed feedback. I am very excited to be entering a new stage in my life, and I know that the future of BOR is bright with Karl-Thomas at the helm.
Thank you,
Byron LaMasters
Byron AT BurntOrangeReport DOT com
Last Wednesday Chris Bell met with over 150 Austin Democratic activists to discuss his potential race for governor in 2006 and his infamous ethics complaint. The discussion was laced with humor, policy ideas, and humility one looks for in a good leader.
The focal point of Bell’s message was the New Mainstream, which encompasses a view of politics not through class warfare or hidden agendas, but rather the common good of the people. Chris also discussed the tuition increase at UT Austin, which is the highest in the nation. The power of the message climaxed when Chris said, "We have all lost our seat at the table," referring to notion that common good of the people is no longer being the focus of state politics.
Chris proved his courage when he filed the ethics complaint against Tom Delay, when traditionally both parties looked the other way as a courtesy. As Chris fielded questions he showed his ability to engage people and then let them engage him. He proved to have an impressive grasp on Texas issues and provided solutions for problems that have surfaced during the current governor's administration.
I am volunteering for Chris Bell because I think he kicks a$$ so if my future posts involve him you will understand.
This has nothing to do with politics, but I felt that we should have a post today. I love writing for this blog because it offers me the opportunity to speak my mind on a variety of subjects.
Right now I am reading William Faulkner's masterful The Sound and the Fury in part because I had never read it (I'm not much of a novel reader), but largely to make up for the literary sin I committed this weekend. This weekend I read the best-selling hardback novel in history-- Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code. It was just sitting there and I was bored, so I innocently picked it up. And though it was atrocious, something about it kept me reading. Perhaps it was the fact that I could read the thing in two sittings and I wanted to see what all of the hype was about. All I can say is that it is the absolute worst book I have ever read cover-to-cover.
To begin, the writing is horrendous at best. Written to a 6th grade reading level with all the literary power of a Harlequin Romance Novel, The Da Vinci Code has a paucity of character development and is filled with two and three page chapters full of "excitement." The characters are supposed to be among the most brilliant people around-- a Harvard professor, a French crack cryptologyist and a former British Royal Historian-- who are so incredibly inane that you feel yourself screaming at them when they fail to solve one of the puzzles for a dozen pages. The prose is vile, the story unbelievable, the pace paradoxically frenetic and boring at the same time. It is filler, a book for an air plane that will occupy your time coasting over the Atlantic and will fit nicely in a trash can once you reach your destination.
But the writing is not what worries me. It is the fact that this book is seen as a masterpiece by a whole class of undereducated Oprah-lovers across middle America. Apparantly the book's outlandish claims regarding Christianity are shaking the faith of these once good Christians. You see, the basic crux of the book is that members of Opus Dei-- a real-life conservative Catholic group-- are murdering members of a secret society known as the Priory of Sion (also real, but rather than going back to the Middle Ages it was most likely started in the 1950s or so) in order to get at the Holy Grail. So far, so contrived. But Brown shakes things up by cribbing heavily from the 1980s book Holy Blood, Holy Grail which claims that the Holy Grail isn't actually a cup, but is in fact the "vessel of Christ"-- his wife Mary Magdalene, who gave birth to his child and whose bloodline exists to this day-- and that they wish to return the world to a time of Goddess worship. This worship apparantly flourished in early Christianity, which did not view Christ as divine until the EEEEEVIL Council of Nicea in AD 325 pulled a fast one and made Jesus god, destroyed the "true" gospels which claimed that he was just a dude kickin' it with his wife Mary and brutally snuffed out Goddess worship.
Now, this story is so clearly fictional that you would think that no one could POSSIBLY believe it. But you would be wrong. Brown made his book a bit more interesting by putting a page in the front that says "FACT" and proceeds to inform us that all of the history in the book is accurate. And since many Americans will only read a history book if it has the word "NOVEL" plastered on the front of it and is sold in an airport, people are starting to believe it. The New York Times reported on April 27, 2004 (the article is no longer available online, I found it on Lexis-Nexis):
One reader, Rob Bellinger, 22, who was raised Catholic and attended Jesuit schools in New York City, read ''The Da Vinci Code'' and said, ''I don't believe it's 100 percent factual, but it did get me thinking about a lot of things.''
For example, Mr. Bellinger said, ''if you just look at the contemporary church, it's really hard not to raise questions,'' like why no women are priests. (...)
There is evidence that Mr. Brown's novel may be shaping the beliefs of a generation that is famously biblically illiterate. Michael S. Martin, a high school French teacher in Burlington, Vt., said he decided to read the novel when he noticed that his students were reading it in Harry Potter proportions.
''We like conspiracy theories, so whether it's J.F.K. or Jesus, people want to think there's something more than what they are telling us -- the they in this case being the church,'' Mr. Martin said. ''The church has a long and documented history of really trying to crush the whole feminine side, the pagan side. I think that's really hard to debate.''
Alright, now for the people who are as stupid as these two guys. Brown claims that before the fourth century there were no writings that claimed the divinity of Christ. I'm sure that would have surprised Paul, who was a contemporary of the original apostles and a prominent leader of the early Church. His epistles predate the gospels and were written from about AD 48-62 (with several attributed to him probably written after his death in the late first and early second centuries) and are chock full of references to Christ's deity. So for Christians worried that that evil woman-hating sonofabitch Constantine foisted Christ's divinity on all of us, don't worry-- Christ's contemporaries were claiming the same thing long before then.
Secondly, the claims that Mary Magdalene and Jesus were married has scant evidence in its favor. Holy Blood, Holy Christ was based largely on documents from French archives that turned out (unbeknownst to the authors) to be hoaxes. There are two or three passages in non-canonical gospels discovered in the Dead Sea Scrolls and at Nag Hammadi that claim she was his "companion." Yet these same documents also say at one point that women must "make themselves male" to enter heaven (a ridiculous and meaningless verse that largely explains why these books were rejected from the canon) and say absolutely nothing about their bearing a child. The books that were chosen for the canon were the ones most widely used among Christians already. Furthermore, a quick read of non-canonical gospels will make it clear that they are full of ridiculous statements and contradictory information. It had nothing to do with Constantine's efforts to eliminate goddess worship.
So don't worry fellow Christians, Dan Brown is a fiction-writer. He is a very bad at it, yet mysteriously successful. You can go back to church, I promise it is not a gigantic millenia-long hoax based on suppressing women. The book reminded me of another wildly popular yet atrocious book from a few years back-- The Celestine Prophecy (bet you hadn't thought about THAT one in a while). The fact of the matter is that every few years some piece of horrendously written New Age clap-trap hits the shelves and a bunch of overweight and undereducated housewives in sweatpants and sensible shoes run out to read it up between loads of laundry and episodes of their favorite soap operas. In four or five years everyone will have forgotten The Da Vinci Code and will be replaced with some other over-hyped piece of garbage. The whole thing is much more a sign of the apocolypse than any dramatic murders in the middle of the Louvre, and unfortunately a bunch of middle school level word puzzles won't save us all this time.
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I have important news. No, not the 5 new Burnt Orange Report writers that have now been selected after a long but thorough process. No, not the fact that the new site is nearly complete and nearing launch. More important than that, it’s made me break my traditional barrier to paying attention to any and all sports.
By almost a 10 point margin, in the reliably Democratic district Julian Castro vacated to run for mayor, voters elected Elena Guajardo, the first openly gay candidate to ever even run in San Antonio.