Already the state’s single largest Democratic donor this campaign cycle, the Houston attorney has pledged to contribute at least $3 million to the party and its causes this year and has no intention of turning off the faucet. The man behind the Back to Basics PAC’s “coward” ad sat down with the Tribune last week to talk about why he feels the need to give, the influence of money in Texas politics, how “trial lawyer” became a perjorative and what he really thinks of the Democrats’ chances this fall.
The governor depicted by Democrats as a coward in statewide newspaper ads last week doesn’t seem nervous.
In fact, Rick Perry looks pretty comfortable, though he says he’s taking his Democratic challenger, Bill White, seriously and expects the last two months of the general election campaign to be at least as much work as his primary battle earlier this year against U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison and Republican renegade Debra Medina.
HOUSTON (KTRK) — Harris County election officials are scrambling to come up with plan for the midterm elections after a fire at a warehouse destroyed nearly all of the county’s voting machines.
Top 50 House Races For 2010; 46 Of Them Are Held By Democrats
Among those vulnerable Democrats is Rep. Chet Edwards who “represents a district in East Central Texas that went 67 percent for McCain” (Political Junkie)
The poll, conducted Aug. 22, shows Perry leading White, 49 percent to 41 percent. Three percent of the respondents said they prefer another candidate, and 7 percent were undecided.
The results are similar to Rasmussen polls in June and July, which showed the governor leading the former Houston mayor by 8 and 9 points, respectively.
White faces a tough race in a state that trends conservative Republican, especially given the national electoral mood.
Seventy-six percent (76%) of Texas voters consider Perry a conservative. Forty-two percent (42%) view White as a liberal, while another 29% describe him as a moderate.
Despite the perceived differences in ideology, 51% of voters in the state describe Perry’s political views as mainstream, and 52% say the same of White’s views. Thirty-three percent (33%) brand Perry’s views as extreme, and 29% think White’s are extreme.
Rasmussen polled 500 likely voters. The poll’s margin of error is +/- 4.5 percent.
by Morgan Smith, The Texas Tribune August 20, 2010
Alberto Gonzales isn’t joining his Republican colleagues in calling for a review of the 14th Amendment’s birthright citizenship provision.
In an interview with KRLD NewsRadio in Dallas, the former U.S. Attorney General and Texas Supreme Court justice told host Scott Braddock that it would not be wise to “tinker” with birthright citizenship — and that a repeal of the amendment would not “be effective in addressing the immigration crisis.”
by Ross Ramsey and Sarah Adler, The Texas Tribune August 18, 2010
Is controversy contagious? Some in politics sure hope so. The mud-throwing season is under way, with candidates on both sides working overtime to sully their opponents, often through a kind of taint-by-association.
Democrats are pushing anchor-baby videos of state Rep. Debbie Riddle, R-Tomball, and U.S. Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Tyler, as reasons voters should shun the elephants. Republicans, meanwhile, want their Democratic foes standing closer to President Barack Obama, especially since his remarks about building a mosque near the site where the World Trade Center towers fell on 9/11. They’re hoping his low approval ratings will rub off.
“Both sides have folks who do what they do,” says a rueful Texas Republican who doesn’t want his name next to those of his party’s outspoken officeholders.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
by Morgan Smith, The Texas Tribune August 16, 2010
No single document does more to warm the cockles of the Republican heart than the Constitution. Yet of late, the Texas GOP has evinced a special disdain for a particular constitutional amendment: The 14th, which contains the birthright citizenship provision.
U.S. Sens. John Cornyn and Kay Bailey Hutchison support a “review” of the amendment. Fifteen of Texas’ 20 Republican congressmen have signed on to legislation that would restrict it. One of them, U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Surfside, has opposed it since 2002. State Rep. Leo Berman, R-Tyler, has in each of the past two sessions proposed legislation that would effectively do away with it — and vows to do it again in 2011.
Public Media Texas is based in Austin. We embrace our local presence in Austin with our hyper-local East Austin site 78702.org. We contribute to the discussion of the environment in the Southwest and the state of politics in Texas. We also seek to understand the dynamic between the U.S. and Mexico along our shared border. Along the way we search for artistic expressions that reflect and provide more perspective on the Lone Star state.
