Right Of Texas

ROT Moving to WordPress

2006-04-14T00:26:00.000-07:00

Thanks to all who are reading Right of Texas thus far.

It has been a great 3 weeks so far.

I am moving the site to wordpress, as the features are much, much better than blogger.

I'd encourage others who are using blogger to do the same.

The new address is...

www.rightoftexas.wordpress.com

Thanks for continuing to read ROT!

Annex's "From The Blogs"

2006-04-13T12:10:00.000-07:00

Head over to Capitol Annex and check out their "From the Blog" segment today.

Go Sessions Go

2006-04-13T11:11:00.000-07:00

"There are not a lot of other things on Americans' minds today" besides the immigration debate, Mr. Sessions said, warning that if Congress legalizes the current group of illegal residents without tightening borders first, the nation should brace for 25 million more.
"Without these parts being in place, we will find that we are overrun," he said.

-Great Quote.

I still am amazed at the protests going on around the nation. If all peoples who called themselves "immigrants" protested this...270 million people would be out there.

There should be no question here:ILLEGAL is ILLEGAL.

Tens of thousands come across our unsecured border everyday. In some states 1 in 3 of all of those incarcerated are illegal immigrants.

To be fiscally responsible, and to secure our country we need to fix the problem now.

Strayhorn Complains Again

2006-04-12T22:05:00.000-07:00

Do you remember the teacher from the Snoopy cartoon? The teacher whose voice would always be "wamp, wamp , wamp" and no clear sound would come out?

That's beginning to be all I hear out of the Strayhorn campaign.

Embattled in two lawsuits, without a definite number of petition signatures, and now she is complaining about something else...

You're about to get the hard-sell on Gov. Rick
Perry's school finance tax plan.
Some say his sales pitch could be illegal. This is just days before lawmakers kick off another special session on school finance.

Perry is getting help to promote his tax plan from a group you've probably never heard of. It will get its money from companies with millions of dollars at stake in tax reform.

"If he is not breaking the letter of the law, he is breaking the spirit of
the law," Strayhorn said.

...and as usual....Chris Bell follows Strayhorn's attack.

"Even if they've found some type of loophole to allow it that makes it legal, it's certainly not ethical," Bell said

If Bell wants to stay in this race, he needs to be going after Perry himself, instead of just waiting to jump on the Strayhorn bandwagon every chance he gets.

I don't dislike Ms.Strayhorn, but come on...lets talk about issues.

Taylor Keeps Trucking Along

2006-04-12T21:51:00.000-07:00

While In the Pink, and Capitol Annex seem pessimistic about the recent Cheney event with future Congressman Van Taylor, I have heard from various sources that it was a big success.

As I stated on Capitol Annex, in the end of the day...Edwards has to be shaking in his boots.

Check this site out.

I knew that the 17th was Republican, but I had no idea that is was the most Republican district in the country(according to '04 results) to have a Democratic Congressman.

Chet's on his way out guys.

KXAN Has Update on Petition Gathering

2006-04-12T12:32:00.000-07:00

From KXAN News:

Carole Keeton Strayhorn has no idea what number Ruben Sosa's signature is in her month long petition drive to get on the November ballot for governor.
" Carole is straightforward," Sosa said.
"We've literally got tens of thousands. We can't even stop to count them," Strayhorn said.
Neither
can the volunteers at Kinky Friedman's campaign headquarters where they're downloading signatures for verification as fast as they come in.
"I'm fully confident we'll get on the ballot. I'm not worried about that. But exactly how many, I really don't know," Friedman Campaign Director Dean Barkley said.
Both independent campaigns need more than 45,000 signatures to get on the ballot, neither will say if they've got enough yet.

I think Strayhorn, but not Friedman, will get on the ballot.

Edwards Takes Money From Ethically Challenged Colleague

2006-04-11T20:27:00.000-07:00

From the NRCC:

Will Chet Edwards Return Campaign Check from Ethically-Challenged Rep. Mollohan?

Rep. Edwards took $6,000 from West Virginia Democrat Alan Mollohan, a congressman now in the center of an apparent congressional ethics scandal

WASHINGTON – With national Democrats talking about cleaning up Washington, DC, will Rep. Chet Edwards (TX-17) only talk the talk on congressional ethics and cleaning up Washington, DC, or will he walk the walk?

Rep. Edwards took $6,000 from scandal-plagued West Virginia Democrat Rep. Alan Mollohan (WV-01) from 2002-04. But will he return the campaign contributions?

As reported in both The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, federal authorities are investigating a complaint laid upon Rep. Mollohan, alleging that he may have profited off of legislative favors given to friends in West Virginia, in the form of federal money directed at non-profit organizations.

Ironically, Rep. Mollohan is the highest-ranking Democrat on the Ethics Committee. The non-partisan Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, Roll Call newspaper, and Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert have all urged Mollohan to resign his position.

Meanwhile, Rep. Edwards has to decide whether to keep the campaign cash given by his ethically-challenged colleague.

"There's a lot of talk by Democrats about cleaning up Washington and getting rid of 'dirty money' — until it's their dirty money," said National Republican Congressional Committee press secretary Jonathan Collegio. "Now's the time for Rep. Edwards to walk the walk on ethics by returning the money given by Alan Mollohan, instead of talking up a lot of hot air."

" It is outrageous that the Democrats will talk endlessly about corruption until it affects them. Then, they have no comment."
– Melanie Sloan, Executive Director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) ( CNS News, 3/10/06)

Remember...

2006-04-11T08:30:00.000-07:00

From the Harris County GOP:

If you have not already voted early, this Tuesday is the Republican Primary
Runoff Election.
You can vote in person only at your local precinct.
Polls are open from 7am to 7pm.
Click here for a list of voting locations
Please make certain that you turn out for this important Republican election. Just a
handful of votes could decide these races and determine which candidate
will represent our party on the ballot this fall.
Remember that you can vote
in the runoff even if you did not vote in the March Primary. Only those
who voted in the Democrat Primary are ineligible for this election.
Please encourage your family and friends to vote on Tuesday!
Click here to forward this message

From the RPT:

Dear Fellow Republican,
Please don't forget to cast your vote in the
Republican Party Primary Runoff Election for the candidate(s) of your
choice!
Election Day is Tuesday, April 11th. Polling locations are open
from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. To find polling locations in your county contact your
local Republican Party County Chairman.
Sincerely,
Tina BenkiserChairman, Republican Party of Texas

I have to do a little traveling over the next couple of days, but will still be updating..just not as often.

When I return, I will make some maps of the various election results.

Dick Cheney Event

2006-04-11T08:19:00.000-07:00

Any word on the Cheney Event?

A Look Into Texas' 24th Congressional

2006-04-10T13:41:00.000-07:00

In 2004 Kenny Marchant was elected to Congress to represent the new 24th Congressional which was previously held by Democrat Martin Frost.

Frost went on to run against Pete Sessions, losing by 10 points.

He beat Democrat Gary Page and Libertarian James Lawrence with 64% of the vote.

See Marchant's campaign website here.

Other ROT Congressional Maps:

1st
6th
17th
22nd

Caption Contest Winner

2006-04-10T13:02:00.000-07:00

Caption Contest Winner:

Sedosi "Shortly after the signing Kinky went on to demonstrate
"de-wussification"

Honorable Mention:

Texas GOP"Why the Hell Not"

Great Website

2006-04-09T12:34:00.000-07:00

While searching the net I found a website that should be interesting to all politicos.

It is a "neutral predictor" for races across the country.

The organization itself makes a prediction..and then lets the readers have an impact.

Here's a few of their graphs:

So for this graph, they believe there is a 54% chance that Edwards retains his seat.

They believe there is a 90% chance Rick Perry will hold onto the Governor's mansion.

Head on over here, sign up and start putting up your estimates.

The percentages really aren't based on anything..but it's a little fun.

Edwards Wants His Cake...

2006-04-09T00:34:00.000-07:00

From the Waco Tribune:

Their intended audience includes Waco’s Democratic congressman, Chet Edwards, who voted last December for
a House immigration bill that has stirred outrage by seeking to criminalize
illegal aliens and those who aid them.
“I hope Congressman Edwards and the rest of Congress start
paying attention to the will of the American people,” said Ernesto Fraga, the El
Tiempo publisher and an organizer of the march. “They need to be aware that a
vote like last December’s cannot happen again without an outcry from the
community.”

Congressman Edwards wants to have his cake and eat it too. He voted for the bill, but when the pressure is on now says

"The House bill went too far in making it a criminal penalty for Catholic
charities to provide soup and food for hungry children and families,” he said.
“I didn’t vote for the House bill because I supported every provision. I voted
for it because I think it’s important that we provide congressional legislation
to secure our border and have an immigration law that is enforceable.”

In the 17th race, only Van Taylor has stuck to his position. Sometimes I think we forget the key word in the phrase "illegal immigration"is ILLEGAL.

In November’s election Edwards
is facing a Republican opponent, Van
Taylor, who supports a crackdown on illegal immigration by
building a wall, beefing up border patrols and punishing illegal
immigrants.

Congressman Barton Gets Upset at the Justice Department

2006-04-09T00:03:00.000-07:00

The Gadsden Times reports:

"We keep trying to cooperate with the Justice Department and the F.B.I.," said
Representative Joe L. Barton,
Republican of Texas, the chairman of the full committee. Speaking directly to
William W. Mercer, a United States attorney for Montana who testified at the
hearings, Mr. Barton said: "You
folks seem bound and determined to be as uncooperative as possible. I'm going to
call the attorney general one more time, and we had better get the people we
want to testify."

I agree completely with Congressman Barton. The exploitation of children online is a serious domestic issue in this country. Trash websites are too easily available to America's youth, who are easily enticed into a secret online world.

The Bush administration needs to be cooperation on this issue...

1st Weekly Caption Contest

2006-04-08T00:34:00.000-07:00

I want to start something this week, a Caption Contest.

Every weekend I will put up a picture, and leave up the picture until Monday.

Monday, the best caption wins!(you win nothing except self-satisfaction)

Leave captions in the comment section.

This is Getting Ridiculous

2006-04-08T00:00:00.000-07:00

State Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn is now suing Attorney General Abbott.

From News 8 Austin:

State Comptroller Carole Keeton
Strayhorn filed a lawsuit against state Attorney General Greg Abbott.
The lawsuit involves Abbott's decision that Strayhorn must turn over state employee
birth dates under the Freedom of Information Act.
The question arose in
November, when the Dallas Morning News asked the comptroller's office for a
database of state employees—including names, job titles, salaries, and birth
dates.

First she sues the Secretary of State, and now this!???

Texas' First Congressional in '04

2006-04-07T15:34:00.000-07:00

In 2004 Louie Gohmert won with 61% of the vote against Democrat Max Sandlin and Libertarian Dean Tucker.

Gohmert is running this year against "Southern Democrat" Roger Owen.

Owen, who has quite possibly the worst website I've ever seen, has little chance of beating Gohmert in the far Eastern portion of the state.

Other ROT '04 Maps

The 6th
The 17th
The 22nd

Budget Plan Finds Little Support

2006-04-07T11:34:00.000-07:00

From the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram

A proposed state rule that would require public school districts to spend
at least 65 percent of their budgets on instruction would do little to punish
noncompliant districts.Some area educators also say the proposal released
Thursday by Texas Education Commissioner Shirley J. Neeley is a waste of time
and creates needless interference in local school districts.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry issued an executive order
in August requiring that all public school districts meet the 65 percent
spending threshold, criticizing the state Legislature at the time for not
enacting such a rule on its own.

A Conservative's Thoughts on DeLay

2006-04-06T13:00:00.000-07:00

Here's the second part written by me:

Republicans Will Hold the 22nd

Congressman DeLay's
rapid fall from Majority Leader, to a regular Congressman, to citizen of
Alexandria was a Christmas gift for the far-left throughout Texas, and America.
While DeLay's actions and associations with
Jack Abramoff are inexcusable, the fact remains that Abramoff associated with
many in Washington. If we are to be fair, and sink
DeLay with Abramoff, why not also Senate Majority Leader Nevada
Senator Harry Reid who was also in dealings
with Jacky boy? Or Former Senate Majority Leader Tom
Daschle?

With DeLay stepping aside, I have no doubt
that a Republican will continue to represent the 22nd District of Texas.

Polls in the district continued to indicate that the constituency would support
Lampson, or another candidate over
Congressman DeLay. These poll results
should not be mistaken to mean that the district is Democratic, or liberal
. In a Zogby poll conducted in DeLay's
district within the past year, when asked if they would vote for
DeLay or another candidate, the constituents
responded 38% for DeLay and 45% for another
candidate. In the same poll, questions were asked about Terri Schiavo. The
country as a whole agreed with the removal of the feeding tube by a large
margin, but Texas' 22nd District did not. DeLay's
constituents said 44% to 35% that they opposed the removal of the tube. When
asked if DeLay's religious faith should play
a major roll in shaping policy, 48% felt it should, while 45% felt it shouldn't.

This district has a huge base of Born Again
conservative Christians, who will come in droves to vote for the candidate of
higher "morality". I believe the reason Congressman
DeLay was not doing well in the polls, is because his actions (the
suspected bribes ect.) were seemingly un-Christian to his hard-right
constituency.

Former Congressman Steve Stockman , and
Sugar Land Mayor David Wallace are already
eyeing the seat, as well as former primary opponent Tom
Campbell. I don't believe the Republican base will support
Campbell, as running against incumbent
DeLay was a slap in the face. I think party
leadership will turn their heads to Campbell
also, simply on his previous run. I believe DeLay's
war chest will go to his handpicked successor in the district, as well as spread
across different races in the nation (or into his legal defense fund!)

I can only imagine Former Congressman Nick Lampson's
reaction to this was not a happy one. While open seats are usually harder to
defend, in this case it's easier to defend for Houston area GOPers. The district
was designed for the purpose of electing a Republican, and the results have
proven so. It has gone Republican in the past, and it will go Republican
again in November.

A Liberal's Thoughts on DeLay

2006-04-06T12:34:00.000-07:00

Vince Leibowitz and I both wanted to let Texas readers see two differing opinions on Tom DeLay's resignation, and the possible outcomes.

Here's A Liberal's Thoughts:
Tom DeLay's Stunning Announcement: What Will The Aftermath Bring?

Though the media continues to examine the "whys" related to Tom DeLay's recent announcment that he will end his campaign for another term in Congress and resign from that body, the real question on the minds of most people in Texas isn't why DeLay did what he did. It is, rather, what the aftermath of the announcement will bring.

I suspect two things: First, that any coming special election will be an expensive, multi-candidate battle. I would not be surprised to see five or more total candidates vying for the seat. Second, I don't believe that DeLay's impending departure from the political scene will truly make a difference in whether or not Democrats win in CD-22 or in other districts around the nation where DeLay allies are being hounded because of their connections to the indicted soon-to-be-former Congressman.

It is already rumored that the field to replace DeLay will include candidates ranging from now independent former conservative Republican Congressman Steve Stockman to the mayor of Sugar Land and State Senator Kyle Janek. A bloody special election battle (including a likely special election runoff) will leave whomever the winner is bloodied, bruised and vunerable going into the November elections.

Why do I think this will not make a difference for Lampson in CD-22 or others? Because, just as the Republican Party continues to tie Democratic candidates to the shenigans of Bill Clinton, Texas Republicans of the present political era will not be able to wiggle out from under the mantle of being the party of DeLay for years to come. Whomever among them that attempts to assume DeLay's seat (and there are rumors that a hand-picked successor exists), they will have to spend more time proving they aren't made in the DeLay mold than they will spend expounding upon their own ideas.

DeLay very well may have made his decision to resign in an attempt to thwart Lampson's campaign. In fact, he probably timed it in order to have the maximum negative impact on Lampson: funding three election day campaigns is far more expensive than just paying for a general election campaign. But, though the district does lean Republican, it has become clear that the people in Congressional District 22 want new leadership. And, by new leadership, I don't mean another Republican. DeLay and his party have proved to the residents of this District (and, indeed, to everyone in the nation) that they are not effective leaders and that their entire party is tainted by a "culture of corruption" not seen on either side of the aisle since the days of Watergate.

Will Lampson have a tougher time against another candidate? Perhaps. However, all he must do is effectively coin his new opponent as DeLay's successor, and do everything he can to paint him or her as a continuation of the "same old, same old," DeLay machine.

No matter how pristine the replacement player for DeLay may be, he will have difficulty recovering from having his photo side-by-side with DeLay's in dozens of mailers and television ads—especially if DeLay shares some of his million-dollar campaign warchest with the new nominee. If there is one thing that can taint a DeLay successor faster than anything, it's money. Any dollar from DeLay, and indeed any dollar from major DeLay contributors, can be used to Democrats' advantage.

It will be a slippery slope for both parties leading up to November. But, I believe, in the wake of the DeLay departure, Democrats can and will prevail.

Progressive Site Names Edwards In Weak Bunch

2006-04-06T09:34:00.000-07:00

According to veteran DC prognosticator, Charlie Cook, there are 36 House seats
in play. In order to prevail, the Democrats will have to hold onto 11 shaky
seats and win 15 of the 25 tenuous GOP seats. Here’s my look at how the Dems
are doing in close races.

The progressive site OpEdNews.com then broke down the tough Democrat seats into two categories.

1) Anti-War
2)Incomprehensible-
The candidate’s web site simply avoids talking about Iraq,

or says something so vacuous that I can’t figure out where they stand.

I’ve listed the candidates involved in tight races alphabetically.

On Texas' 17th:
Chet Edwards (Texas, 17th) is facing his

usual stiff opposition in a gerrymandered

district that is more Republican than it was before.

GOP Donor Discloses

2006-04-06T01:30:00.000-07:00

From the AP Wire:

Major Texas Republican donor Bob Perry gave a state board appointee a gift of $50,000 in 2004, both men confirmed, revealing for the first time the amount of the money that's described only as a check on ethics forms.Bill Ceverha, a member of the board overseeing the state Employees Retirement System, also received another gift of $50,000 from Perry in January 2005, The Dallas Morning
News reported in Wednesday's editions.

Lampson Will Run If Election in May

2006-04-06T01:22:00.000-07:00

From the Houston Chronicle:

Former U.S. Rep. Nick Lampson,
the Democratic nominee hoping to succeed outgoing Republican Rep. Tom DeLay next year, says he also will run in a special election to complete DeLay's current term if it is held on the earliest possible date.
That would be the uniform Election Day on May 13. But DeLay says he intends to resign officially sometime in June, making a May election impossible

A Look Into Texas' 6th Congressional

2006-04-05T16:43:00.000-07:00

Democrats save your money in this one, as it will be squandered away.

Congressman Barton's district stretching from the suburbs of Dallas , East to Trinity County, is perfect for the election of conservatives.

In 2004 Congressman Barton destroyed lefty Morris Myer, winning 66% of the vote.

Congressman Barton's new opponent, David Harris, has an impressive record as a veteran and now professor at UT Arlington.

Harris' website can be found here.
It is a step up from Congressman Barton's which can be found here.

I don't think his military service will be enough to overcome to hardright leanings of the district, and Barton's consistent great services to the citizens of the 6th.

Past ROT '04 Maps:

The 22nd

The 17th

Muslim Attacked at Baptist Baylor University NEW

2006-04-05T16:06:00.000-07:00

The Council of American-Islamic relations is angry:

The coed was attacked from behind Saturday evening as she walked to her dorm
from the Student Union Building.

She told News Ten that her attacker was
a white male who appeared to be in his 30s. She said she didn’t think the man
was a Baylor student.
She said the man grabbed her headscarf and threw her to
the ground, yelling profane ethnic and anti-Muslim slurs while threatening to
kill her if she made any noise.
The man pinned her to the ground, she said,
and dug his nails into her chest until she screamed.
When she screamed, she
said the man slapped her in the face and kicked her twice in the ribs before he
fled.

This is a tragic story, and I hope her attacker is caught.

I can't understand why Muslims pick to attend Baylor...as it is a Baptist school...a VERY Baptist school...for Christians....

...but there is no excuse for this kind of attack.

NEW
Baylor issued this on the matter.

Apparently the attack occured by Draper Hall, towards the South End of campus. The FBI Is now involved.

Barton's Opponent Talks

2006-04-05T12:43:00.000-07:00

From the Corsicana Daily Sun:

Harris is the Democratic Party’s candidate opposing longtime U.S. Rep. Joe
Barton (R-Ennis) in the November General Election.“There is a
choice out there,” Harris said Monday. “This administration and a Republican Congress that has been in control for many years has put us on a collision course for disaster. ... I think I can be a voice of reason.”He is an assistant professor teaching Military Science at the University of Texas at Arlington.

As we all know, Harris has no chance.

Perry To DeLay: "God Speed"

2006-04-05T07:57:00.000-07:00

From KLTV 7:

"Tom Delay was a very successful congressman, delivered a lot of good things for the state of Texas. We appreciate his work and we wish him great good and God speed in his next endeavor,"
-Rick Perry.

From The GOP

2006-04-04T16:48:00.000-07:00

From the Harris County GOP:

Early Voting Underway Now!Republican Primary Runoff Election
The polls are now open! Early voting began yesterday for the Republican Primary runoff.
You can vote in person through Friday of this week. Polls are open from 7am to 7pm each day.
Click here for a map of early voting locations
Please make certain that you turn out for this important Republican election. Just a handful of votes could decide these races and determine which candidate will represent our party on the ballot this fall.
Remember that you can vote in the runoff even if you did not vote in the March Primary. Only those who voted in the Democrat Primary are ineligible for this election.
Please encourage your family and friends to vote this week!

From the Texas GOP:

April 4, 2006
Dear Republican Family,
With Congressman Tom DeLay’s announcement today that he does not intend to seek re-election in November, the U.S. Congress and the State of Texas will experience a great loss of leadership. An incredibly effective leader, Congressman DeLay has been a strong and courageous voice for faith, family and freedom. Although Congressman DeLay will be deeply missed, the Republican Party of Texas will move forward upon his resignation to ensure that the 22nd Congressional District has a great Republican nominee on the ballot in November and that the district continues to have a bold conservative Republican voice in Congress.
Sincerely yours,

Tina J. Benkiser
Chairman

2000 Map of the 22nd

2006-04-04T16:06:00.000-07:00

In 2000, riding on the coattails of Governor Bush, Congressman DeLay crushed his opponent Jo Ann Matranga and won with 60% of the vote districtwide.

Remember-this was his old Congressional District which looked like this.

Maps of Past Results in the 22nd

2006-04-04T15:35:00.000-07:00

It is important to remember that not all of these counties are in the 22nd Congressional.

For a map of exactly where in the counties the district is look here.

I will upload the maps as I create them, and have analysis at the end.

The percentage shown in the first map is what Congressman DeLay received during the 2004 election.

In 2002 Congressman DeLay's district looked different than it does now. DeLay vs the World had a great post on the break down of the changes up here in January.
Click to Expand.

Wallace Launches Bid For the 22nd

2006-04-04T15:04:00.000-07:00

From Time:

Congressman Tom Delay's decision to
leave the seat he has held for 22 years may have surprised many state and even
local GOP leaders, as well as Democrats. But even before the embattled Texas
congressman was revealing his decision to TIME in an exclusive interview, at
least one potential Republican successor was already maneuvering to assume his
seat. Late Monday night Sugar Land Mayor David G.
Wallace,44, a popular second term city leader whose name is on
the ballot for a third term in the May 13 municipal elections, confirmed that he
would make a bid for the seat.

Check back in a couple hours-I will have a few maps up of DeLay's counties...

DeLay WITHDRAWS

2006-04-03T21:43:00.000-07:00

Burnt Orange here.

I think this means DeLay will cop a plea bargain, and probably take some guilty pleas but avoid jail time.

Edwards, Democrats Vote Against Students

2006-04-03T19:10:00.000-07:00

According to a Nebraska Newspaper H.R. 609 "contains many important provisions, including an increase in Pell Grant funding for high-achieving first and second year students, improving international and foreign language study programs and holding institutions accountable for excessive tuition hikes."

Sounds logical doesn't it?

Not to the ultra-left in Congress.

Waco's own esteemed Chet Edwards voted against the bill.

I don't believe many House members have two large institutions of higher learning in their districts...but Edwards managed to vote against the students that attend his(Baylor and Texas A & M).

Photo from the Baylor Democrats

Democrats Excited Over Zogby Poll

2006-04-03T13:05:00.000-07:00

The Burnt Orange Report has the latest Zogby online poll up.

The results were reported as follows:

Perry: 36.3% (-2)
Bell: 20.7% (+2.8)
Strayhorn: 19% (-1.5)
Kinky: 16.7% (+2.3)

Thes numbers must be off.

I simply don't believe that 1 in 6 Texans would vote for Kinky Friedman....

Radnofksy:The Choice of Liberals in Dallas

2006-04-03T01:43:00.000-07:00

A while back I did a post on Ms.Radnofsky's primary.

Here are her results in the Dallas area. She won every county touching the city.

The light blue is the highest percentage, the dark blue is a middle percentage, the purple is poor, and the pink is a bad showing.

Other Democratic Primary Maps:

Chris Bell's Primary

Sessions Brings Money To Dallas To Fight Gangs

2006-04-02T23:32:00.000-07:00

From the LA Chronicle:

U.S. Congressman Pete Sessions
(R-Dallas) today announced that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has awarded
the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex $2.5 million in grant funding under the
Comprehensive Anti-Gang Initiative. Under the initiative, the DOJ will devote
significant resources to defeating gang violence in the Dallas community and
across the country.

The Dallas-Fort Worth region is one of six areas
around the nation targeted by the Comprehensive Anti-Gang Initiative. Each area
received $2.5 million in funding today, for a total of $15 million in grant
funding. Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales first announced the initiative in
February 2006, as a complement to other DOJ programs designed to combat gangs
and reduce gun-related crime throughout the country.

GOP United Around Taylor

2006-04-02T00:40:00.000-08:00

Dan Genz at the Waco Tribune Herald has been covering the 17th Congressional race closely. Unlike many political writers, his articles thus far have remained very unbiased.

He continues his coverage with an article discussing the unity of the GOP behind Van Taylor.

Taylor’s campaign recently touted the endorsement of all 12 county conventions as a sign that the party is coming together.
In a new development, former congressional candidate Dot Snyder also has endorsed Taylor, after she supported Anderson in the primary.
In 2004, her hotly contested and combative primary and run-off elections with state Rep. Arlene Wohlgemuth was blamed by many
in the party for Wohlgemuth’s 9,000-vote loss to Edwards.

Everything continues to fall in place for the Taylor campaign.

The Kinkster, Strayhorn, and Bell Slam Perry To Educators

2006-04-02T00:25:00.000-08:00

KLTV 7 Reports:

Democratic nominee Chris Bell and independent candidates Carole Keeton
Strayhorn and Kinky Friedman spoke to the Association of Texas Professional
Educators' annual convention. They peppered their speeches with jabs at the
governor. Perry was invited but declined to attend because of a scheduling conflict. Spokeswoman Kathy Walt said Perry was in Texas but out of town
on personal business.

As most of my family are educators, I am familiar with the conundrum of being a Republican heavily involved in educational policy.

Contrary to popular belief, not all educator's are liberal. The ones that aren't are also very passionate about their beliefs, which is why I believe strongly that Governor Perry should have been at the event.

Even to swing voters, meeting someone as nuts as Kinky Friedman can only improve their thoughts of the Governor.

I think we conservatives sometimes get our minds off of the bigger picture issues like transportation and education, and instead focus too much on push-button issues just to stay in office.

Governor Perry's tax plan is not a bad one, and he should be out there defending it to educators.

14th Congressional Paul/Sinatra Primary

2006-04-01T13:30:00.000-08:00

Cynthia Sinatra ran against incumbent Republican/Libertarian Congressman Ron Paul on a platform to bring more funding back for services.

As quoted on her campaign site "We all stood in shock as our Congressman voted against emergency federal funding to help our neighbors, friends and families that were so tragically affected by hurricanes Katrina and Rita."

14th District Republicans were obviously very happy with Paul, as he crushed Sinatra winning every county by more than 64% of the vote.

Other ROT GOP Primary Maps:

17th Congressional

3rd Congressional

Our Lt. Governor Pulls A John Kerry

2006-04-01T12:33:00.000-08:00

Don't get me wrong, I like Lt. Governor Dewhurst, but his quick change since yesterday is worth noting:

Lieutenant Governor David
Dewhurst did an about-face today -- just a day after saying he
would prefer a tax on business income rather than gross receipts.The Republican
said in a written statement today that he has always opposed a business or
personal income tax.

He told reporters yesterday --quote-- "I think I'd rather see a tax that's
based on income -- you earn money, you pay something, you don't earn money, you
don't pay anything."

Perry Being Courted On A National Stage

2006-04-01T01:02:00.000-08:00

This article in the Denton Record-Chronicle should come as no surprise:

Potential GOP presidential candidates Rudy Guiliani and Sen. John McCain have written fundraising letters for Perry. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and
Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, also possible contenders, have met with Perry or appeared at events with him. Virginia Sen. George Allen's aides have contacted
Perry's staff.
Political operatives from both parties say much of that
attention comes because Perry, if re-elected, could help the Republican
presidential nominee win a big state in a year in which Texas could swing to
either party after Bush's reign.

The last line seems a little absurd to me, as I would bet my right arm that Texas will vote for the Republican nominee again in '08. While Perry may be getting calls, and letters from prominent national Republicans...they are repeatedly visiting Iowa, South Carolina, and New Hampshire...not Texas.

It is the elected Republicans in the primary states which these elected are really focusing on, but I guess it is still good to hear that they are thinking about us.

What Is Chet Doing in Washington?

2006-03-31T14:15:00.000-08:00

It appears Congressman Chet Edwards was one of only two Congressmen to vote against an amendment offered up by fellow Texan Louie Gohmert. The amendment was to higher education bill H.B. 609.

193 Democrats voted in favor of the amendment, as well as socialist independent Congressman Bernie Sanders.

The other Congressman to vote no was Ms.Musgrave.

...more to come.

A Kinky Advertisement

2006-03-31T09:25:00.000-08:00

Either this is an advertisement, or the Tyler Morning Telegraph is making stories into advertisements:

Smith County 4 Kinky volunteers
will be at three locations this weekend to give registered voters a chance to
sign the petition to get independent candidate Kinky
Friedman on the ballot for Texas governor.
There will be a petition drive from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the gazebo in downtown Bullard. The event will feature live music from the Big Bar Hair band, and all musicians are invited to come out and jam, said Kristi Morgan Turner, Smith
County coordinator. Kids and dogs are welcome.
Petition circulators will set up a booth from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday at Gilbert's El Charro No. 2, 2623 E. Fifth St.
Registered voters can also sign the petition from 5 to 7 p.m.
Sunday at the Smith County 4 Kinky
headquarters, 3322 Fifth St. Computers will be available for circulators to look
up voter registration numbers, and a notary will be there to notarize petitions
that circulators have completed. All petitions must be notarized before they are
sent to Austin.

Alternative Fuel

2006-03-30T20:27:00.000-08:00

From KTEN:

Drivers will soon have the option of using homegrown ethanol-based fuel in
Houston and Dallas.Kroger -- in a collaboration with General Motors -- will
begin offering the alternative fuel known as E-85 at their supermarket pumps
starting in May. E-85 is a blend of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent
gasoline. It's a high-octane, domestically produced renewable fuel that's
typically made with corn. Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst today took part in an event in Austin to promote use of alternative fuels.
Dewhurst says renewable energy plays an
important role in protecting the environment and helping the state meet its
future energy needs.
image from aldiatx.com

Half A Million To Fight Golden Algae

2006-03-30T17:32:00.000-08:00

Our beloved Congressman Edwards made the Hood County News:

U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards (D-Waco)
obtained $500,000 in the 2006 federal budget to develop water quality education
for local stakeholders and conduct research on controlling golden algae.

Annex's Link Dump

2006-03-30T16:49:00.000-08:00

Check out today's Capitol Annex link dump...it's a great assortment around the Texas political blogosphere.

The 17th in 2004

2006-03-30T13:37:00.000-08:00

In 2004 incument Congressman Chet Edwards managed to narrowly win against Arlene Wohlgemuth with 51% of the vote.

Wohlgemuth had been involved in a very divisive primary, which after her victory, still divided Republicans.

Ontop of that Clyde L. Garland, a 3rd Party candidate was in the race as well.

The colors on the map look completely different for President George W. Bush in the 17th. Now as it is Bush's home district, one would expect he would carry every county..which he did.

Bush carried McLennan County with 66% of the vote, and Edwards stronghold Robertson County with 56% of the vote.
Chet Edwards is an anomaly to the entire state, and has been able to skate by pretending to be a moderate.

I don't think that will happen again this November...

Perry Releases His Own Tax Plan

2006-03-30T00:00:00.000-08:00

It's amazing how some of the different news agencies are spinning Perry's plan..

KTRE News from Nacogdoches says:

Governor Rick Perry is praising the
Texas Tax Reform Commission for its work and said he wholeheartedly supports
the commission’s plan, which would provide a record $6 billion property tax
cut while overhauling the state’s antiquated business tax structure.

I don't see any mention of the cigarette tax increase in the article.

KWTX in Waco reports:

Gov. Rick Perry is praising a tax
plan unveiled Wednesday that would give Texas homeowners a property tax
break paid for by new taxes on smokers and businesses, but Texas physicians
are balking at a proposal to tax health care services and Democrats
questioned Perry’s commitment to improving public schools.

News Channel 8 in Austin reports:

The cigarette tax would increase by a $1 from 41 cents to $1.41 per pack. That
would bring in about $800 million

I have to give the Perry campaign credit for spinning the 4 Billion Dollars in new revenue as a "restructured business tax".

As seen on the Burnt Orange Report, it seems that ultra-left opponent Chris Bell doesn't think the plan is too far off..(just 1 billion dollars!)

"at least his tax plan is pointed down the right road. A broad-based business
tax to raise money from the business community "

I am sure hearing that Bell thinks Perry is going "down the right road" brings warmth to every fiscal conservative's heart.

Info. on the Taylor/Cheney Event

2006-03-29T14:37:00.000-08:00

I was forwarded these from one of my relatives

As always, click to expand.

This is great news for the Taylor campaign, as they continue to outshine Chet Edward 's previous GOP opponent Arlene Wohlgemuth.

With the national media attention Taylor continues to receive for his honorable service in Iraq, his personal wealth, and the ever reddening 17th District.... Edwards is in his last year of Congress.

WARNING:Poor Smokers To Get Hit The Hardest

2006-03-29T07:44:00.000-08:00

From the Houston Chronicle:

The plan would cut school operating taxes by as much as one-third in the
next two years in exchange for an expanded business tax and a $1-per-pack
increase in the cigarette tax, which currently is 41 cents. About $1 billion in
surplus state money and strengthened tax compliance measures also would help pay
for the property tax cut.
Smokers would be net losers under the proposal, but Perry has said, in recent speeches, that a higher cigarette tax could encourage a healthier lifestyle.
Texans earning less than $14,042 a year would get a net tax cut of 1.4
percent, according to the report, while people making $14,042 to $33,190 would
save 0.9 percent.
Texans making $146,804 or more a year, the wealthiest
category, would see an average savings of 3.3 percent.

Short Lived Battle of The Johnsons

2006-03-28T17:59:00.000-08:00

There are few other Congressmen I respect more than war hero Sam Johnson.

Congressman Johnson is a champion for the conservative cause , whose 7 year stint in a Vietnamese POW camp makes him a rare commodity in Washington.

Bob Johnson did not share my liking of the Congressman, and decided to primary him for his pro-Iraq war stance.
Well from the results I would say that Republicans in the 3rd Congressional District agree with me.

Congressman Johnson crushed "the other Johnson" ,winning both Dallas and Collin counties by more than 80%.

There's no one I can think of trusting foreign policy more to than a Vietnam veteran who spent 3 years of his life in solitary confinement.

Judge Recuses Himself in Strayhorn Case

2006-03-28T17:40:00.000-08:00

It seems independent candidate Carol Keeton Strayhorn has some friends in high places...but they can't help her here!

From KTEN News:

U-S District Judge Sam Sparks of Austin recused himself because he and his
wife both signed the petition to place her name on the November ballot. That's
according to the judge's staff.
Sparks said in a statement that he and Strayhorn have been lifelong
friends.

DeLay Wants His Permit Back

2006-03-28T13:00:00.000-08:00

News 8 Austin Reports:

U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay is fighting to regain his Texas concealed handgun permit
after it was suspended because of his indictment on felony charges.
A Fort Bend County justice of the peace suspended DeLay's license after he was indicted by a Travis County grand jury on charges of conspiracy and money laundering last year.

Give the man his permit back!

Strengths Outweigh Weaknesses for Taylor

2006-03-27T22:13:00.000-08:00

CQ Politics takes a close look at Iraq veterans running for congress, and Texas' own Van Taylor was mentioned:

Van Taylor- Republican
• District: Texas 17 (East central — Waco, College Station, Bryan)
• Strength: A Marine veteran, he’s running in territory that takes in President Bush’s Crawford ranch; Bush carried the district with 69 percent in 2004.
Taylor is personally wealthy and has proved adept at fundraising in his first bid for office.

• Weakness: Democratic incumbent Chet Edwards already has a strong base of
veteran support. He’s better funded than ever and knows how to win a tight race;
he was held below 52 percent in 2002 and 2004.

1st Congressional Primary

2006-03-27T12:08:00.000-08:00

Democrats recently had a contested primary for the right to take on(lose to) incumbent Louie Gohmert.

Self described "Southern Democrat" Roger Owen narrowly beat Duane Shaw.

Shaw's website can be found here, and Owen's here. Both websites are substandard and Owen's is a complete disaster.

The race was very close, with Owen's largest percentage of 68% coming from Cass county, and Shaw's in Rusk with 64%.

In the end, Owen beat Shaw 53% to 47%

Other ROT Democratic Primary Maps:

Chris Bell's Primary

Barbara Radnofsky's Primary

click to expand

Respectable Libertarian Enters 22nd Race

2006-03-27T00:55:00.000-08:00

From the Galveston County Daily News:

The race for the District 22 congressional seat became a bit more crowded over
the weekend. The Libertarian Party nominated Bob
Smither, founder of the Friendswood-based Laura Recovery Center,
to be its candidate for the seat now held by Republican Tom DeLay.Smither edged out Stan Norred an operator for BP for the nomination Saturday by seven
votes. To be eligible to nominate at the convention registered voters must not
have voted in either the Democrat and Republican primaries.The engineering
consultant is known for the tragic case that involved the kidnapping and murder
of his daughter Laura Smither. The 12-year-old Friendswood girl was out for a
jog in April 1997 when she was abducted.Her body was found a 17 days later in a
pond not far from her home

It looks as though DeLay received a fairly big endorsement as well...

NASA director Michael Griffin asked those in the space community to send DeLay back to Washington.

"I Need the Closet Space"

2006-03-26T13:40:00.000-08:00

Our own Kinky Friedman recently told a reporter for the Star-Telegram that his reason for running was because "I need the Closet Space".

This guy just doesn't get it does he? He's running to be Governor of the one of the most populous states in the America, and he continues to act as though the position is a joke.

The article in the Star-Telegram also points out that Chris Bell was recently pulled over and ticketed for speeding(he wasn't driving).

Bell, who is a first-time statewide
candidate and who before running for governor was a rather obscure one-term
ex-congressman whose Houston district was disassembled by the GOP three years
ago, said he was careful not to commit the same faux pas that Perry, then lieutenant governor, did several years back.
"I decided it would not be a good idea to ask the officer
to 'let us get on down the road,'" quipped Bell, mimicking remarks by Perry that were captured on a trooper's videotape during the traffic stop. Perry also asked the trooper, "Do you know who I am?"
Reporters asked Bell whether he did the same.He replied that he did not, largely because he feared the answer would be "No."

At least he's modest.

Sad Day for College Basketball in Texas

2006-03-26T12:27:00.000-08:00

Yesterday two Texas teams went down in their respective NCAA Tournaments.

The University of Texas mens team fell 70-60 to LSU in the Atlanta Regional Final

Defending champion-Baylor University's Lady Bears lost to The University of Maryland 82-63.

Bad Form Strayhorn Campaign

2006-03-25T13:00:00.000-08:00

"We don't want special treatment, we want fair treatment, and what is he afraid
of? What is Rick Perry afraid of? We
think they're afraid of Carole Keeton
Strayhorn getting on the ballot because they know when she's on
the ballot he's going to lose the office of governor," campaign worker Mark
Sanders said.

This quote comes off vicious and petty.

Tsk. Tsk.

Full article here.

If the Strayhorn campaign wants to play with the big boys, they need to cut out the charades.

Radnofsky:The Urban Candidate

2006-03-25T01:23:00.000-08:00

Barbara Radnofsky seems the choice of most liberal Texas bloggers....

The primary results for Ms.Radnofsky show that her strength is undoubtedly in urban and suburban areas, as in most of rural Texas she was crushed by opponents Darrel Hunter and Gene Kelly.

In Austin, Houston, and Dallas/Ft.Worth Ms.Radnofsky ran very strong and carried counties such as Travis with 76%, Montgomery with 58%, and Dallas with 52%.

In rural Texas, her percentages were often less than 35% of the vote.

In the maps below- very dark blue is a solid majority for Radnofsky. The light blue is a strong showing, and the dark blue is a good showing.
The purples are around 30%. Pinks and dark pinks, such as in King County where Radnofsky only received 12.5% of the vote(only 56 votes were cast), are poor showings.

Also see a map of Chris Bell's results here.

Click to Expand.

The Right State on Edwards' Voting Record

2006-03-24T13:06:00.000-08:00

The blog The Right State has a great summary of some of Congressman Chet Edwards' liberal votes.

I see that knowing it's an election year Edwards' has decided to bring home some pork for his constituents...

From the Waco Tribune-Herald

The office of U.S. Rep. Chet
Edwards, D-Waco, released a statement saying that Edwards since
2004 has secured $3.6 million for research programs at ACT-I.

His ability to get 200,000 for the Mammoth site is also still getting him credit.

Baylor University and the city of Waco will each contribute about $100,000
toward a study that could determine whether Waco’s historic mammoth-kill site
should be designated as a national park.
Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco, secured $200,000
last year for the study and preservation efforts.

Chet Edwards is not fiscally responsible.

Republicans Campbell, Darby Answer Questions

2006-03-24T02:39:00.000-08:00

From the San Angelo Standard:

A leader is someone who is passionate about the job, Darby said. A leader should be
enthusiastic and engaged in public debate, he said.
''You need somebody that
will vote with the advice and consensus of the district and not simply by the
permission of the (GOP) leadership,'' Darby said.
''You need someone to be
your voice in Austin. You only have one voice on the Texas House floor, and you
need to elect someone with passion.''
Both candidates agreed that
school-finance reform in one of the most-pressing issues facing the Legislature.

Campbell said it's critical
Texas schools provide the ''best education we can for our children all over the
state.'' School financing ''is a topic we have been addressing in the
Legislature for a couple of years now.''

Is Austin Really THAT Weird:Part Four

2006-03-23T20:13:00.000-08:00

For Part Four, I have gone back to a clash of ideas-the gubernatorial election in 1994.

Powerful incumbent Governor Ann Richards ended up getting destroyed by George W. Bush 45.9% to 53.5%.

In the Austin metro area, most counties went for Bush by large percentages, but the popular vote in the area was very close.

Richards crushed Bush in Travis County, winning with over 38,000 more votes.

Since 1994, Republican percentages have gone up on average in every single county in the area, even Travis County where Rick Perry managed to garner 47% in his last election.

Caldwell was once a swing county, but has trended Republican in the 2002 Gubernatorial, and 2004 Presidential by significant margins. It still remains behind neighbors Bastrop and Hays, but there is no doubt that it is becoming more Republican.

Part One
Part Two
Part Three

Capitol Annex's Radnofsky Column

2006-03-23T17:41:00.000-08:00

Senate candidate Barbara Radnofsky has dropped by Capitol Annex to give her thoughts on education, and other issues.

Check it out here.

Should Everyone Be Allowed To Sign?

2006-03-23T13:45:00.000-08:00

The Texarkana Gazette has an interesting opinion piece out today. They discuss the view that all Texans should be allowed to sign independent peititions.

While gathering signatures, independent candidates are not yet on the ballot for
anything. They are merely asking for the opportunity to run. By signing a
petition you are not casting a vote, or even showing any actual support for a
candidate, but merely adding your agreement that someone should be allowed to
join the race.
This law is in place to protect the power structure of the
Democrat and Republican parties, and only serves to hamper democracy by making
the ballot nearly inaccessible to those candidates operating outside the party
system.

While I do not disagree with the obvious-that the law is in effect to protect the establishment parties, I am conflicted on support.

How do you feel?

They Keep Kicking While He's Down

2006-03-23T13:03:00.000-08:00

I guess anyone ever associated with the former Majority Leader can be ridiculed now...

From The Hill:

The Democratic National Committee took aim yesterday at the reputation of
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) as a
campaign-finance and ethics reformer, blasting the presidential hopeful for
hiring a GOP operative linked to the criminal case against Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Texas).

Nelson was working as deputy
chief of staff at the Republican National Committee (RNC) in the fall of 2002
when, according to the September criminal indictment filed against DeLay in Travis County, Texas, DeLay employee Jim Ellis delivered a check
to Nelson
for $190,000 in corporate contributions.

Liberals at work...

Gubernatorial Catfight

2006-03-23T10:40:00.000-08:00

From the Chronicle:

Comptroller Carole Keeton
Strayhorn halted payments to one of the state's lobbyists
Wednesday, saying she has reason to believe taxpayer money has been misused for
political purposes.

Gov. Rick Perry's office
accused Strayhorn, who is running as
an independent against him, of taking the action for political purposes.

Strayhorn launched an audit of the Texas
Office of State-Federal Relations after the Houston Chronicle reported that the
firm of Cassidy & Associates spent $7,600 to host a reception for U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay's Americans for a
Republican Majority within days of receiving its first $15,000 monthly payment
from the state.

Come on Republicans! We are going to rip ourselves to shreds and give Bell the Governor's mansion if we don't stop targeting each other.

As also seen on the Burnt Orange Report and Capitol Annex.

Chris Bell's Primary

2006-03-22T16:45:00.000-08:00

I spent an hour creating this map of Chris Bell's primary results, so I hope you all enjoy it!

Chris Bell crushed opponents Bob Gammage and Rashad Jafer.
Five counties had no recorded votes-those counties appear in white.

Bell ran weakest in the Central Texas area. 12 of 15 counties in which Bell received less than 50.9% of the vote could be found in this region.

It should be no surprise that Bell ran strongest in the Houston metro area, carrying many of the populous counties with over 77% of the vote.

Around Texas

2006-03-22T13:45:00.000-08:00

Texas Safety Forum looks into a recent appearance of Congressman DeLay and Senator Hutchison.

Governor Perry has requested a hurricane evacuation plan:

Gov. Rick Perry issued an executive
order requiring state officials to develop more detailed hurricane evacuation
plans on Tuesday.
The proposals must include opening major highways to
one-way outbound traffic.
The changes are meant to prevent another chaotic
evacuation like the one last September prompted by the approach of Hurricane
Rita.

Common Sense has the scoop on a planned campaign stop for Dick Cheney-Texas' 17th Congressional.

Baylor, Harvard in USA Today

2006-03-22T07:37:00.000-08:00

USA Today Reports:

Last month's resignation of Harvard President Larry Summers after a faculty
mutiny is adding fuel to the simmering tensions, and could slow long-sought
reforms in higher education across the USA.
The Harvard meltdown is "probably the most-discussed presidential leadership change in history," says Baylor University President John Lilley, who took the helm in January after professors rebelled over his predecessor's aggressive management style.
At Baylor, Lilley is calming faculty over former university president
Robert Sloan's push to turn the Texas school into a research powerhouse. Yet,
trustees aren't backing down; they endorsed Sloan's Baylor 2012 plan anew when
they hired Lilley.

Van Taylor in Today's Washington Post

2006-03-21T19:32:00.000-08:00

At one point, there were a dozen veterans vying for House seats, but two --
both Democrats -- have dropped out. There is one Republican among the veterans
still campaigning for the House -- Van Taylor, who won the March 7 primary in the Texas district that includes Bush's Crawford ranch.

Another veteran of the Iraq war, Paul Hackett, ended his quest to unseat Sen. Mike DeWine (R-Ohio) when it appeared he could not match the fundraising of another Democratic challenger, Rep. Sherrod Brown (Ohio).

Read the full article here

Prosecutors Try To Reinstate DeLay Charges

2006-03-21T19:14:00.000-08:00

From USA Today:

Prosecutors will try to persuade a Texas appeals court Wednesday to
reinstate some of the criminal charges against Rep. Tom DeLay, who is trying to win re-election to Congress while under indictment.

In December, a judge threw out some of the conspiracy and money laundering
charges against the former House majority leader, saying the conspiracy law DeLay allegedly violated did not exist at the time.

Prosecutors say that it did. Both sides will argue their cases before the
Texas 3rd Court of Appeals. DeLay will not attend.

Okay guys...you've had your shot at the Congressman. You've successfully smeared his reputation across the nation, and had him drop his leadership position.

Lets move on now.

Harris County Republican Report

2006-03-21T18:49:00.000-08:00

HCRP March 2006 ReportBy:
Jared Woodfill
Chairman, Harris County Republican Party

Dear Harris County Republicans,I want to thank the many of you who helped keep our party strong and growing by turning out for the March Republican primary. I also want to thank everyone who participated in our recent Reagan Day Dinner - it was an unqualified success and helped us raise much needed funds for the campaign season ahead.Senatorial District conventions are coming up this weekend. If you're a delegate, please make sure you attend and make sure your voice is heard. It is through this process that we help make sure we have one of the strongest state parties in the country. Our grassroots are the backbone of all our efforts and will be the backbone of our campaigns coming up this Fall.As always, the party stands ready to assist you in your community and party building efforts - please don't hesitate to contact us. Sincerely,
Jared Woodfill
Chairman, Harris County Republican Party

Read the rest of the letter here.

Is Austin Really THAT Weird:Part Three

2006-03-21T10:22:00.000-08:00

Austin is very weird when it comes to voter turnout.

In the 2002 gubernatorial race the statewide turnout was 36.24%

Every County in the Austin metro area had a turnout higher than the state average, with even densely populated Travis county reaching 40%.

Caldwell County was the closest to the state average, but managed to garner 36.32%

^Click to Expand

Other ROT Austin Maps:
Part One
Part Two

Edwards:The Misleading Continues

2006-03-21T01:00:00.000-08:00

Incumbent Congressman Chet Edwards has an entire section on his website dedicated to "Tax Relief for Working Families".

THE FACTS:
Edwards voted NO on eliminating the Estate Tax(H.R. 8, 107)
This cut had the support of many Democrats, and passed with a margin of 274-154.
Edwards voted NO on $958 Billion in Tax Relief over 10 years(H.R. 1836, 107)

Edwards vote against the most important tax vote in a generation-the extension of the Bush tax cuts..

Come on Congressman, it's time to stop hiding as a wolf in sheep's clothing. Admit to the citizens of the 17th that you are no tax cuter.

Strayhorn Beats Bell on Another Issue

2006-03-20T22:40:00.000-08:00

Burnt Orange Report, Capitol Annex, and Common Sense all have posts up about Democrat Chris Bell's vision to raise teacher salaries by $6,000 (aka raise taxes).

The BOR overlooked Carole Keeton Strayhorn's separate plan. Undercutting Bell, Strayhorn said "teachers should get a four-thousand dollar raise in next month's special session on school funding."

Say what you want about Ms.Strayhorn, but her campaign's messaging is genius. She keeps her "moderate" appearance by still calling for a raise in teacher salary, but in true Texas fashion she one-ups Bell to the voters by seeming more fiscally conservative.

With polls continuing to show Ms.Strayhorn a closer second(31%) to Perry than ultra-lefty Chris Bell(13%) , I am surprised that Bell continues to attack just at Perry when it is infact Strayhorn that is eating away at his base.

I don't think it would be strange is Friedman actually outperforms Bell in November.

3.3 Million More for East Texas

2006-03-20T13:21:00.000-08:00

KWTX Reports:

Federal officials granted $3.3 million Monday to reimburse an East Texas
electric utility for the costs of restoring electricity after Hurricane
Rita.
Texas Senators Kay Bailey Hutchison
and John Cornyn say the money covers
costs for Livingston-based Sam Houston Electric Cooperative.

“East Texas suffered severe damage from Hurricane
Rita. This funding will directly support the efforts of this company that
quickly restored electricity to residents in the area,” Hutchison said.

So far FEMA has granted Texas $534 Million in aid for Hurricanes Rita and Katrina.

While I am not a fan of all the spending in Washington, It is obviously politically stupid to vote against funding for repairs. Especially for your own district.

Good work Senators.

Taylor/Anderson Primary

2006-03-19T19:15:00.000-08:00

The recent Republican primary between Van Taylor and Tucker Anderson produced very regional results.

It almost seems like the classic rivals of Baylor University and Texas A&M went to war over the primary.

Anderson won Brazos, Robertson, and Madison(Aggie Territory) but got destroyed in Bosque, Johnson, Hill, and McLennan(Bear Territory).

The Bears won this one, as Taylor went on to defeat Anderson 54%-46%
As always-the darker the red the higher the percentage.
The percentages are Van Taylor's results.
*Madison County is colored correct, but the written % is wrong. Van Taylor lost the county with 49% of the vote

Right of Texas Maps of The 17th:
Turnout Map
2002 Gubernatorial Map
2004 Presidential Map

Movie Review:V for Vendetta

2006-03-19T15:01:00.000-08:00

I just got back from watching V for Vendetta, one of the most liberal movies I have ever seen.

Set in England after World War 3, the movie is about a fascist English government.

America's wars in the Middle East caused Syria, Sudan, Saudi Arabia and other nations to go to war with the West. The West won the war, but at a large cost. In England, the depleted country turned to who the movie said was a "religiously conservative Christian" named Adam Sutler. Sutler was the leader of the conservative party.

As you can tell, Sutler's character resembles Hitler.

In order to secure power, Sutler's conservative party kills thousands by poison, and blames the killings on Muslims. They then win the election in a landslide by promising to take the killers to justice.

Once in power, Sutler's party anoints him High Chancellor. He immediately puts all homosexuals, inter-racial couples, and Muslims in concentration camps and kills them.

The movie, based on a comic written to make Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher look bad, ends up making all conservatives look like Hitler. Homosexuality is condoned in the movie, while those who disprove are made to look like Nazi's.

As much as I didn't like the liberalness of the movie, the plot was fantastic.

More Want Signatures than Friedman/Strayhorn

2006-03-19T13:22:00.000-08:00

The Star-Telegram has a great article on how more Texans are looking to get on the ballot than just Strayhorn and Friedman.

Isn't it great that Republicans and Democrats came together to make it extremely hard for third party candidates to get on the ballot?

Bipartisanship at its best.

NRCC, DCCC Involved In Primaries

2006-03-18T17:29:00.000-08:00

From a Wisconsin Newspaper:

However, Reynolds has jumped into other races. Reynolds said he was acting as an individual and not as chairman of the NRCC when he traveled to Texas in support of Iraq war veteran Van Taylor prior
to Taylor's March 9 Republican primary victory
over former congressional aide Tucker
Anderson. Texas Gov. Rick Perry
also endorsed Taylor prior to the primary as
the preferred candidate to face Democratic Rep. Chet
Edwards on the November ballot.
In South Carolina, Vice President Dick Cheney
headlined a fundraiser Friday for Ralph
Norman, a state legislator and real estate developer who is hoping to
unseat Democratic Rep. John Spratt. Several
days before the Cheney visit, Norman's
Republican primary opponent, Park Gillespie, dropped out of the race

While I usually do not agree with parties getting involved in primaries, in the cases above and the ones explained in the article I do agree.
As a party, I do not believe we can sit on the sidelines and allow unelectable candidates to win nomination battles.
This is a crucial year for Republicans, and if the NRCC has to expand their reach into primaries-I believe it is warranted.

In the case of the Gillespie/Norman race, there should never have been a question whom the party should have helped. Gillespie won Showtime's "The American Candidate" a few years ago, but was not a presentable electable candidate.

Is Austin Really THAT Weird? Part Two

2006-03-18T02:51:00.000-08:00

Here are the results from the 2004 Bush/Kerry race in the Austin metro area.

The percentages mentioned are what George W. Bush received in each county respectively.

For the most part the numbers dropped a few percentage points from Perry's 2002 election, but Caldwell County actually increased it's Republican margin.

The numbers in other counties went down partly because of third party candidates.

Part One is here.

Capitol Annex's Blog Roundup

2006-03-17T15:33:00.000-08:00

Capitol Annex has a great blog roundup.

Head over here and check it out.

The FACTS

2006-03-17T11:44:00.000-08:00

Tom DeLay's campaign website has a new feature up.

Head over and check out "The Facts Behind Ronnie Earle's Baseless Political Indictment".

Edwards, Taylor Agree on Iran

2006-03-17T11:30:00.000-08:00

From the Waco-Tribune Herald:

"I hope the president does not rule out military action as a last possible
response because the world will be destabilized if a radical Islamic regime that
denies the Holocaust has its hands on nuclear weapons," said Edwards, who is considered a hawk in the Democratic Party.

GOP nominee Van Taylor, an Iraq war veteran, echoes those sentiments.
"Force must be an option," Taylor said. "It is an option of last
resort, but it must be something we are willing to use to keep our families and
our nation safe. Iran is a problem of deep, deep concern for all Americans and
perhaps the greatest challenge we face."

The only difference seems to be..do the citizens of the 17th want a radio station owner, or an Iraq veteran representing their views on this issue..?

Three Schools Still Left

2006-03-17T11:05:00.000-08:00

Now that Texas Tech has been knocked off by Bush library selection committee, the 3 remaining possibilities are :

The University of Dallas
Southern Methodist University
Baylor University

I hope, and believe that the library will go to Baylor. Check out Baylor's video on the project here.

This would be big for Waco.

Is Austin Really THAT Weird? Part One

2006-03-16T16:40:00.000-08:00

"Keep Austin Weird" is a slogan we've all heard.
But how politically weird is the Austin-metro area?

Here is the first part in a series of the Austin-metro area election results.

These are the 2002 gubernatorial results for Rick Perry.

As always-dark red is the highest Republican percentage, light red is towards the middle, and the light blue is a small victory for the Democrats.

From the graph, I would imagine in this four way race that Caldwell and Bastrop will not go for Perry this year.

Thoughts?

Texas Favors Strayhorn To Perry

2006-03-16T14:01:00.000-08:00

From The Muckracker I was able to take a look at the latest poll on the gubernatorial race.

What amazed me was not the election poll, but the favorability poll.

Strayhorn is viewed favorably by 55%
of voters in Texas and unfavorable by 31%.
For Perry, the numbers are 53% favorable and 45% unfavorable.

This means Strayhorn's numbers can only improve, and that Perry might have topped out too early.

As Strayhorn and Perry continue to rip each other to shreds, I think we'll see a decline and stabilization of their numbers, and a rise in Chris Bell's.

This race is still anyones...well..except Kinky's.

Kinky Is A Nut

2006-03-16T07:59:00.000-08:00

From The Star-Telegram:

Even a skeptic has to admit that Kinky
Friedman's I-want-to-be-the-next-governor-of Texas stand-up is
pretty funny.
He draws chuckles even with many of his shop-worn riffs and the
forced quips that he has to veer across the front lawn and through the flower
beds to deliver.

"I'm not a politician at all," he says. "I've not even been indicted yet."
Gays "have every right to be just as miserable as the rest of us."
"Musicians can better run this state than politicians. I've said
beauticians can better run this state than politicians."
"You can lead a politician to water, but you can't make him think."
"Every time a bell rings, another lobbyist gets his wings."

While these quotes might be humorous, they are not something that a person who wants to be in a position over others lives should be saying. We don't want Friedman controlling our prisons, our highways, and running our emergency facilities.
When another Hurricane strikes Galveston, do we want the governor to say a comical joke?

My respect level for Friedman continues to sink-faster than Ted Kennedy's car in the Chappaquiddick.
There's no excuse for a man running for office to poke at Congressman DeLay. He has been a positive force for the State of Texas in D.C.
In November lets send Kinky back to singing at weddings, and not into the governor's mansion.

A Look Into DeLay's Primary

2006-03-15T17:23:00.000-08:00

The deeper the red, the higher the percentage.
DeLay's actually district fits on the above map somewhat like this:

DeLay should work on making sure Lampson doesn't take advantage of the weaker primary results in Fort Bend. Losing FB would be deadly..

Edwards:A Wolf In Sheep's Clothing

2006-03-15T12:25:00.000-08:00

Congressman Chet Edwards may pretend to be a moderate in Texas' 17th, but when his liberal voting record and conservative district collide-all we hear from him is excuses.

Congressman Edwards voted against a law banning the gruesome practice of partial birth abortion. After his vote, he tried to spin it by saying ""Passing
an unconstitutional bill will not save one life."

If his vote wasn't enough, we can look at who he is associated with in Congress. Within the past year he has taken money from insanely liberal Democrat Carolyn McCarthy. Check out some of McCarthy's votes:

Voted NO on restricting interstate transport of minors to get abortions. (April 2005)

Voted NO on making it a crime to harm a fetus during another crime. (Feb 2004)

Voted NO on banning partial-birth abortion except to save mother’s life. (Oct 2003)

Voted NO on funding for health providers who don't provide abortion info. (Sep 2002)

Voted YES on banning human cloning, including medical research. (Jul 2001)

Voted NO on banning Family Planning funding in US aid abroad. (May 2001)

Voted NO on federal crime to harm fetus while committing other crimes. (Apr 2001)

Voted NO on banning partial-birth abortions. (Apr 2000)

Voted NO on barring transporting minors to get an abortion. (Jun 1999)

Recommended by EMILY's List of pro-choice women. (Apr 2001)

Rated 100% by NARAL, indicating a pro-choice voting record. (Dec 2003)

Besides voting in favor of partial birth, McCarthy also did not feel killing a
pregnant woman and her child should count as two murders. She is also adamantly against the second amendment.

McCarthy has such a liberal record that she only received a 12% out of 100 from the American Conservative Union.

I would have more respect with Congressman Edwards if he just admitted to the citizens of the 17th how liberal he was...but instead he goes on rants about his moral superiority. Here is a quote where he is discussing his former opponent:

"The final one; was a home run in our campaign. It
absolutely defined her<Wohlmeguth>, and convinced people that
maybe God wasn't on her side"

......and with votes in favor of partial birth he would be on whose side!?

Oh and if anyone ever wanted to beat Congressman Edwards, they could listen to him explain in detail how he wins in a "red state".

Listen to him here.

Justice O'Connor Slams DeLay

2006-03-15T11:03:00.000-08:00

I am baffled that O'Connor is now spending her retirement slamming conservatives like Congressman Tom DeLay...

In her address to an audience of corporate lawyers on Thursday, Ms O'Connor
singled out a warning to the judiciary issued last year by Tom DeLay, the former Republican leader in the House of Representatives, over a court ruling in a controversial "right to die" case.After the decision last March that ordered a brain-dead woman in Florida, Terri Schiavo, removed from life support, Mr DeLay said:
"The time will come for the men responsible for this to answer for their
behavior."

Mr DeLay later
called for the impeachment of judges involved in the Schiavo case, and called
for more scrutiny of "an arrogant, out-of-control, unaccountable judiciary that
thumbed their nose at Congress and the president". Such threats, Ms O'Connor
said, "pose a direct threat to our constitutional freedom", and she told the
lawyers in her audience: "I want you to tune your ears to these attacks ... You
have an obligation to speak up."

I personally feel very strongly about the Schiavo case, and believe that there was no excuse for literally killing her. We as a society feed our old, and our young, so I do not understand why we wouldn't feed Ms.Schiavo. To let her starve is simply barbaric.

As for Justice O'Connor..maybe she should spend more time watching Golden Girls reruns.

Good News For Central Texas

2006-03-15T10:54:00.000-08:00

From the Austin Business Journal:

A site between Bryan and Waco will compete to become home to the U.S. Department of Energy's FutureGen project, a $1 billion public-private initiative to build the world's first near-zero-emissions coal power plant, Gov. Rick Perry said Tuesday.

This is great news for Wacoans. If the population and business trends stays steady, by 2025 Waco will have a population of roughly 143,500. This will be a big help to the local economy.

Turnout in the 17th

2006-03-14T21:13:00.000-08:00

As turnout will be key for a Van Taylor victory in November-I made a graph of 2002's general election turnout in the counties that make up the 17th.

Red is the most, pink a middle ammount, and blue is weaker turnout.

Click to Expand.

Are The Democrats Moving To The Center?

2006-03-14T20:36:00.000-08:00

As Democrats have for the most part failed nationally(except for "moderate" Clinton's victory) since the 1994 take over of Congress, I believe the party is quickly moving to the center to try and win elections.

Take Virginia where rumored presidential candidate George Allen has become a target of the DNC. Two Democrats are currently vying in a primary to take on Allen.

Harris Miller-A Northern Virginia Businessman, is running as a fiscally conservative "Mark Warner" type candidate
Jim Webb-Former Secretary of the Navy under Ronald Reagan, is running as a pro-2nd amendment, states-rights, fiscally conservative Democrat.

Elsewhere the same can be seen-
In Pennsylvania Bob Casey is running as a pro-lifer to unseat Senator Rick Santorum
In Florida Bill Nelson has consistently moved to the right on issues to hold his seat against Congresswoman Katherine Harris

I suppose if I has lost control of the Presidency, Congress, and a Majority of State Governor's that I might move to the middle...

Partisan Austin

2006-03-14T18:19:00.000-08:00

News 8 Austin has a great article about the after effects of the primary on the legislature.

So it's really no surprise that Lt. Gov. David
Dewhurst now faces a far more partisan Senate. Gone are moderate
Republican Jon Lindsay and
Democrat Frank Madla. They have been
replaced by Houston conservative talk radio firebrand Dan Patrick and San Antonio Democrat Carlos Uresti, both of whom ran, at
least partially, on not getting along with the other party.

Meanwhile, there were two big wars engulfing House Republicans.
The first was San Antonio physician James
Leininger's efforts to purge Republicans who had opposed school
vouchers. When the dust settles, we will discover that he spent close to $3
million of his own money to unseat five incumbents. He went two for five

It will be interesting to see how well Leininger's two fare in the general...

Texas Turnout in 2002

2006-03-14T16:05:00.000-08:00

In every ad I have seen for Kinky Friedman , he continues to speak about low turnout.

If the 2006 elections are as low as the 2002, individual campaigns can use turnout as a very important tool to swing elections.

If Kinky brings new people out to the polls and drives up turnout, he probably will not influence the gubernatorial, but he may has a significant impact down ticket races. Who will the Kinky voters vote for in the 22nd Congressional? In the 17th Congressional?

Here's a map of the 2002 turnout results across the state:

As will all pictures on here...click to expand.

Here's a zoomed up map of the Galveston area:

and here's a turnout map of greater Dallas:

Dallas County being 3 counties in from the right, and down three. The bright blue one.

Come on Texans! Go Vote!

2002 Gubernatorial on the 17th

2006-03-14T12:55:00.000-08:00

Here's the 2002 gubernatorial race results in the counties that make up the 17th Congressional.

Dark red means a higher percentage for Perry, while the blue in Robertson County shows a win for Sanchez.

These numbers were generally 5-10% points lower in the counties than the 2004 general.
-Click to enlarge

Again-these numbers show that incumbent Congressman Chet Edwards must be worried about challenger Van Taylor.

He has benefited from gruesome republican primaries, and weak opponents...but no more.

Good News for Congressman DeLay

2006-03-14T12:35:00.000-08:00

Congressman Tom DeLay is having a good 7 days..

last week he crushed his four Republican primary opponents..

and today it looks as though he has successfully gotten the court in Austin to hault and void some subpoenas.

2004 Presidential in the New 17th

2006-03-14T00:22:00.000-08:00

I spent some time looking up the Bush results in the counties from the new 17th Congressional District.

This is the first in series of maps I will make for specific races.

The darker the red, the higher the percentage George W. Bush received.

The highest percentage for Bush of any county in the 17th being Hood with 77%.

I understand in the case of Limestone and some other counties, that only part of the county is in the 17th Congressional..but still, the graph still speaks for itself.

Of the shaded, the lowest percentage for Bush was in Robertson County, which only has a population of 16,000.