Bosnian war hero Scott F. O'Grady, who spent six days behind enemy lines when shot down in 1995, is questioning Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill White's commitment to military voters.
O'Grady, who now lives in the Dallas area, is an active Republican and put out his statement through Gov. Rick Perry's campaign.
"As Memorial Day weekend begins, Bill White should apologize to all veterans and military men and women for supporting limited voting rights for the military ... As someone who has served overseas, I am personally offended by Bill White's belief that soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines serving their nation should be denied the right to vote for candidates seeking county, local, and state offices - including the office he is now running for. Bill White should be ashamed of his anti-military beliefs."
O'Grady was referring to a news conference White had as Texas Democratic Party chairman in 1997 in support of a lawsuit that was attempting to block the counting of military ballots in elections for local office.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Bill White tried to deny active duty military the right to vote...
Bill White has some serious problems...
As might be expected, White is doing best in his home base of Houston, though not overwhelmingly. Perry, on the other hand, is somewhat ahead in the Metroplex, while the two are neck-and-neck in the Austin and San Antonio areas. But Perry is clobbering White among Texans from “everywhere else.”
Perry holds a decisive lead among voters in each of these county types, including metropolitan counties. Perry’s lead among residents of metropolitan counties is even more impressive when we consider that this category includes respondents from predominantly Hispanic border counties such as El Paso, Cameron, and Webb, which are overwhelmingly Democratic. On the other hand, Perry’s lead among residents of micropolitan and non-core counties is huge. Truly rural voters aren’t the only reason that Perry is leading White among voters from the rest of the state, but they clearly play a role.
Uh oh... Bill White endorsed by Planned Parenthood...
On February 4, 2010, Planned Parenthood of Houston and Southeast Texas (PPHSET) issued a press release by Rochelle Tafolo to announce its glowing endorsement of Bill White for Governor of Texas. The press release was published before the March Primary Election, which helped Mr. White get elected as the Pro-Choice Democrat. Ironically, the largest abortion facility in America was being constructed in the city of Houston at the time, while he was serving as the mayor.Oops... some of the things Bill White did during the primary are coming back to haunt him... although the assumption was that Rick had moved so far to the right during the primary what really seems to be happening is that Bill White is having to disavow the left and Rick is staying right where he was during the primary... on the right...
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Attention R.G. Ratcliffe... time to admit your error...
The Texas electorate is all about Us and Them. Saying things are better in here than they are in Washington, voters think the rest of the country should look to the state as a model of how things ought to work, according to the new University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll.
Sixty-two percent of 800 registered voters surveyed say the country is on the wrong track, while only 27 percent say it's on the right track. But the state knows where its going and what its doing, they say: 45 percent believe it's on the right track and 38 percent think it's on the wrong track.
Texans are glum about the national economy, with 32 percent saying it's "a lot worse off" than a year ago and another 15 percent saying it's "somewhat worse off." About 28 percent say the country is better off, and 24 percent say it's about the same.
They feel better about themselves and their families, with 42 percent saying they're doing about as well as they were a year ago and another 20 percent saying things are better now. Twenty-five percent say they're personally "somewhat worse off" and 13 percent say they're a lot worse off.
Asked to list the most important problems facing the country, voters said the economy (22 percent put it first), federal spending/national debt (18 percent), unemployment/jobs (14 percent) and political leadership/corruption (13 percent). The most important problems facing the state? Immigration (23 percent), border security (18 percent), unemployment/jobs (12 percent) and the economy (11 percent).
More free advice for Bill White from his buddies in the liberal msm...
With the governor's race about 160 days away, and with former Houston Mayor Bill White down by nine points in the most recent Rasmussen poll, the question is: How does White, a Democrat, get back into the game?Perhaps by taking a page from the standalone playbook of Pennsylvania Democrat Joe Sestak, who last week defeated Arlen Specter, a five-term senator. White's only chance to win is to seize the anti-incumbent moment.
[SNIP]
White and his staff may be too Houston-centric. As a three-term mayor of Houston, White was extremely popular, with 80 percent approval ratings. But that adoration may be causing him to misread the mood of the rest of the state. He has to sell himself in 254 counties and 27 media markets, and he has to find his grass-roots game.
He has a good story to tell, but he's not telling it well. The son of two San Antonio schoolteachers, he's a lawyer, a husband, a Sunday school teacher. He also started two energy-related businesses and was deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy.
White's approach to telling it, including at a recent fundraiser in San Antonio, is modest, brainy and low-key, as if he and his staff assume people know who he is. They don't. His name identification is decent but does not compare with Perry's 100 percent. Solution: Hire a gifted speechwriter with a rapier pen and a sense of humor who can help him re-imagine his story.
As Hutchison did in the primary race against Perry, White is struggling to find the right message that will appeal to moderate Republicans as well as Democrats.
Alton Easton explains why he will not vote for Bill White...
I will not vote against Bill White, because he cannot understand the problems of the average on the street/ranch/farm Texan.
I will not vote against Bill White, because he is a liberal trial lawyer that made it big in lawsuits and backroom deals.
I will not vote against Bill White, because he turned Houston into a sanctuary city.
I will not vote against Bill White, because he was a member of the Washington’s Elite serving in the Clinton Administration.
I will not vote against Bill White, because he has not made any commitment not to raise taxes.
I will not vote against Bill White, because he established a policy that vehicles on Houston freeways and highways that incurred flat tires or a mechanical break had to be towed by the first tow truck on the scene.
I will not vote against Bill White, because he has refused to release his federal filed tax returns and complete personal financial disclosure.
I will not vote against Bill White, because he spent millions on massive expansion of parks, libraries, and public clinics.
I will not vote against Bill White, because some retired Ernst & Young accountants conducted an unofficial audit of Houston's finances and determined that the former Mayor White may have led the City to the brink of bankruptcy.
I will not vote against Bill White, because he left Houston with the bill on 7-years spending-spree.
I will not vote against Bill White, because he spent taxpayer’s dollars on “Green Modernization” of Houston Metro. As mayor, he controlled the make-up of Metro’s Board of Directors. The Houston Metro made a major change in the direction to concentrate dollars and efforts on a rail system that has been more expense than the bus system, serviced fewer citizens, increased fees to riders, and ignored promises stated in the approved bond election. Mr. White’s involvement in “Metro-gate” has yet to be determined.
I will vote against Bill White for Texas Governor, because he earned $2.8 million dollars as an active member of the Board of Directors for a public traded Energy Company, BJ Services Co, while serving as mayor of Houston. In my opinion, it is only logical to state this commitment was stronger than that as Houston mayor earning $1500 a month.
A lot of new things there... how true are all of them... I don't know.
Enough already with these liberal advice columns for Bill White...
The White campaign has launched a website to continue pounding on the audit issue. Perry's spokesman Mark Miner told me last week that White ought to apologize for criticizing a program that has meant thousands of jobs for Texans.
As a campaign issue, the Texas Enterprise Fund is probably less a breakthrough moment than it is a slow tear, less a quick rip than a worn place on the seat of the pants that slowly becomes a hole. Maybe. As an issue, it could be a yawner.
For White, a more promising breakthrough moment -- think of Claytie Williams refusing to shake the hand of Ann Richards in 1990, Michael Dukakis perched atop an Army tank, Ted Kennedy unable to offer Roger Mudd a rationale for his 1980 presidential quest -- could be the rent-a-mansion issue, the $10,000-a-month home in West Austin the Perrys are occupying while the Governor's Mansion is being rebuilt.
It could be, that is, if the White campaign is adept enough to pounce like a cat and pummel the issue for all it's worth. We'll see.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Why 39% is not a big deal...
The governor's race isn't over by any means, but for now, Perry is well-positioned to win a third term.
Perry ran in 2006 against three major opponents — one (Chris Bell) who reaped the benefits of Democratic straight-ticket voting, one (Carole Keeton Strayhorn) who was a decade-long statewide officeholder and spent more than $13 million, and one (Kinky Friedman) who was such a celebrity that he garnered segments on "60 Minutes," Don Imus' radio show and "The Late Show with David Letterman."
Perhaps more importantly, Hurricane Katrina and the Iraq war had put Republicans into a national free fall in 2006, the year they lost control of the U.S. House and Senate. Even Texas Democrats felt a jolt of momentum, making major gains in the Legislature and big cities, particularly Dallas.
Metro Gate heats up... Bill White getting burned...
One of Houston Mayor Annise Parker's most visible goals since taking office in January has been to shake up the agency that oversees buses, rail and other forms of transit in and around the city.
Parker's criticisms of the Metropolitan Transit Authority (known as Metro to those who speak Houston) have been music to the ears of Republican Gov. Rick Perry, who is trying to hold off a November challenge from Parker's predecessor, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill White.
Through press statements and Web videos and under the predictable mantra of "Metrogate," Perry's team has packaged Parker's criticisms with a series of unflattering stories about the agency in the Houston media in an effort to question White's managerial acumen.
White's campaign boasts often that Houstonians re-elected him mayor by huge margins in 2005 and 2007. But widespread criticism of Metro over the past couple of years — amplified by Parker — could present a chink in his political armor.
Bi-partisan trashing of PolitiFactTexas...
Gardner Selby is practically the same guy as Al Franken, just with a fraction of the good looks and humor, and twice the made-up vocabulary.
The bandwidth on the Statesman website occupied by PolitiFact Texas would be better used for slideshows of readers' cat photos.
PolitiFact Texas is the end-all, be-all final arbiter of all political truth in Texas, and certainly not merely a few random people's opinion.
Bill White moves sharply to the left...
Democrat Bill White is pinning this squarely on his rival in the gubernatorial race. “Because of Rick Perry's mismanagement of the state's environmental agency, our state is now losing our ability to make our own decisions about air quality and the economy,“ White said in a statement. “While Perry will likely try to make this into a partisan issue, the truth is that the state was repeatedly warned, beginning in 2007 under President Bush, that its permitting program violated the law that granted Texas the authority to issue air pollution permits.”
Rick unifying party... congealing support from Kay supporters...
Hutchison supporters raising funds for PerrySome of U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison's biggest local supporters are now helping Rick Perry's re-election campaign.
On Wednesday, Dallas developer Harlan Crow, who supported Hutchison's failed effort for governor, is hosting a fundraiser for Perry at his mansion.
The host committee for the event includes Dallas Cowboys legend and businessman Roger Staubach, also a major Hutchison supporter. Businessmen Louis Beecherl and Ray Hunt are co-hosting the reception.
Perry beat Hutchison in the March 2 Republican primary. He faces former Houston Mayor Bill White in November.
White, a Democrat, has been trying to woo Hutchison supporters and independents for his campaign.
But Wednesday's fundraising shows that most of Hutchison's North Texas base is rallying behind Perry.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
POLITICO sez threats to lawmakers are up... no wonder Rick is packing heat...
Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) were threatened with assassination. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Rep. Ciro Rodriguez (D-Texas) were threatened with bodily harm.[SNIP]In February 2009, a man left voice mail messages for Stabenow in several of her Michigan offices.
“We’re gonna [expletive] get you,” he said in one message. “We’re gonna get you with a lot of [expletive] bolt action. Like we did RFK; like we did MLK. We know who you are. We’ll get you.”
FBI agents tracked the calls to a 54-year-old Texas man who lived alone — and who at one time had owned a 20-gun arsenal of handguns, shotguns and rifles. According to the documents, he told officers that he was “really, really drunk” when he made the calls. He said he was just “venting” — taking out his frustrations after hearing a discussion of the Fairness Doctrine and becoming concerned that the government would attempt to abolish the radio shows of Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh.
Bill White injects politics into the State Board of Education...
“Obviously, I would pick a chair who would try to undo some of the damage that is being done as quickly as we can,” White told the Houston Chronicle.[SNIP]Yes, Bill White wants to take the politics out of Texas textbooks — right after he uses it for political gain.
If you're going to criticize the new social studies curriculum adopted by the Texas Board of Education, you'd better quote it.
Or at least link to the text. And if you choose to paraphrase and not even link, and I have to look up the text myself, and your paraphrase is not accurate, it is my job to embarrass you by pointing that out.
The left started this war by attacking what was for years taken for granted about America, most especially that we are an exceptional country. The proof is the number of people who want to come here and the selflessness displayed by our citizens in the treasure we've spent and the blood we've spilled on behalf of others.
Too many on the left seem embarrassed by America's prosperity and standing in the world. The right seems just as committed to tearing the country down, literally and figuratively.
When liberals rewrite textbooks, inserting their own spin on history, they are said to be engaging in academic freedom. When conservatives attempt to do the same, they are called censors, bigots, anti-scientific and worse.
Rick coming out with a book...
In FED UP, Governor Perry argues that expansion of the federal government is occurring exponentially and injuriously. Bailouts, spending increases, and a reengineered health care system are just a few ways Washington politicians have launched a major expansion of the federal government in response to our recent economic turmoil, and Perry shows how an increasing concentration of power in Washington will lead to further unsustainable debt, greater limits on opportunity and success, and a permanent dependency class -- adding up to a potentially failed nation, and one of the very sort that the Colonists fought against.
In spelling out the danger of federal intrusion and the ways that states can better approach our future, Perry issues a persuasive rallying cry for Americans to rise up and demand that power be returned to the people and the states. "I am pleased to partner with Little, Brown in writing about a subject that will determine the very future of our nation. Interwoven with America's founding principles, state sovereignty as enshrined in the Bill of Rights has actively contributed to the vitality of our union. Washington's ongoing efforts to undermine these rights pose a legitimate threat to America's continued leadership of the free world. It is no surprise, then, that citizens across the nation are so Fed Up. I'm convinced that the burgeoning grassroots energy and widespread concern can restore balance to our system and invigorate our nation in the decades to come. It's the Governors from both parties who must lead this fight," says Perry.
"Governor Rick Perry is one of the clearest thinkers in the nation on the importance of individual rights and state powers. When he speaks millions listen. This book will help shape the important discussions leading up to this Fall's midterm elections and long after," says Michael Pietsch.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Paul Burka on the new poll...
This observation by UT government professor and pollster Daron Shaw pretty much sums up the state of the race: “Anecdotally, off the top of your head, if a Democrat runs against a Republican in the state of Texas, what’s the spread? Twelve points. This looks pretty much like a statewide election in Texas looks. It doesn’t look like some huge Republican tide, but it doesn’t look like a Democratic renaissance, either.”
Twelve points! That is a huge spread. Mike Baselice has generally put the Republican advantage at 9, which is what the poll reflects. The Democrats are in for some dark days.
Texas Democrats are pretty cocksure that they will take over the state in the next few election cycles... and over the next couple of decades at the worst... Obama may have set them back by a few election cycles...
Green Party buzz... that won't help Bill White...
Today, the Green Party of Texas will submit its ballot access petition to the Texas secretary of state. This is potentially bad news for Bill White and the Texas Democratic Party in two respects.Most immediately, it signifies that White (along with Republican Rick Perry and a Libertarian Party candidate who will be selected in June) will be joined on the November ballot by a Green Party gubernatorial candidate. The Green candidate, who will be selected at the party's June convention (Houstonian Deb Shafto is the odds on favorite), will draw much of his or her support from the same group of voters as White, and will undoubtedly reduce White's overall share of the vote, something that could affect the outcome of the election in the event of a close race.In addition, if White is unsuccessful this fall, Green ballot access this year could complicate his 2012 U.S. Senate bid. The Greens will automatically receive ballot access for 2012 if they get on the 2010 ballot and win at least 5 percent of the vote in a statewide race. The party is virtually certain to meet this requirement via the candidacy of Edward Lindsay for the post of state comptroller, where the Democratic Party failed to nominate a candidate to compete with Republican incumbent Susan Combs -- the person responsible for April's appliance rebate fiasco. A Libertarian also is running for comptroller.White is faced with the dilemma of whether or not -- most likely via surrogates -- to challenge the signatures on the Green Party's petition with the goal of keeping the party off the ballot in the fall. The secretary of state may, but is not required to, verify the signatures on its own accord.
New poll... Texas Tribune has Rick up by 9 over Bill White...
Republican Rick Perry leads Democrat Bill White by nine percentage points — 44 percent to 35 percent — in the 2010 race for governor, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll.
[SNIP]
Perry's stronger with Anglo voters, leading White 55 percent to 25 percent. White is stronger with African American voters (69 to 5) and with Hispanics (43 to 32). Perry is ahead among both men (48 to 34) and women (40 to 35).
Even Bill White's allies the Dallas Morning News have a Come to Jesus moment with him...
After five months of campaigning, White still hasn't given Texans a clear vision of where he wants to take their state.
Voters may be picking up on what Houston's former mayor doesn't like about Perry's decade in the Governor's Mansion, including his handling of the Texas Enterprise Fund. As this newspaper's Wayne Slater reported last week, White is raising many of the same questions about Perry that Kay Bailey Hutchison did in their GOP primary battle.
But we doubt there are many Texans who could give you the White vision, just as Hutchison failed to provide a clear idea of where she would lead Texas. Even some top Democrats we talked to last week were stumped about White's major priorities.
Bill White needs to give some specifics... yet when he does give specifics he seems to be stepping in all the wrong places...
When he bashes the SBOE he is really bashing the voters who put them in power... when he bashes the Texas Enterprise Fund he is really bashing a major job creation tool...
He is so boring that he can't really come out and give an exciting Obama speech and make peeps forget that he has no actual ideas... Bill White even prides himself on being a policy nerd... yet he has yet to really offer any real ideas.
At the same time Rick is going around telling the story of Texas being better than California, and that is all he needs to say...
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Is cap and trade Bill White's version of bailouts?
The governor did bring up White -- and Harris County -- toward the end of the rally, when he took off on cap-and-trade. "I just want to say thank you to Harris County," he said. "On March the second, you all sent a powerful message. Fifty-nine thousand more of you voted for me in my primary than that other guy got in his primary."
Perry reminded his listeners that he and White have their differences, and cap-and-trade is front-and-center. "Let me tell you, the cap-and-trade legislation that they're talking about in Washington, D.C., will devastate this country, it will destroy Texas and if there is an epicenter to that destruction, it is in Harris County and Houston and the energy industry that we have," he said.
"My opponent in November of 2008 sent a missive to the White House, to President Obama-elect, and said, 'Here's how you need to sell cap-and-trade to the American people.' Let's send Bill White a message out of Texas that we don't want his cap-and-trade. Let's send a message that we don't like what's going on in America, and we're going to do something about it."
The crowd rapturously agreed.
I think this new evidence of Bill White bragging that he advised Obama on energy policy, and then this memo that shows him trying to prove to Rahm Emmanuel that he was worthy of the role of Energy Secretary by "rebranding" cap and trade... Bill White is toast.
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Bill White has a "Come to Jesus" moment in the Valley?
Was it a Rio Grande Valley "come to Jesus" meeting for Bill White on Monday night (una venga a la reunion de Jesus?) Or was it one in a series of getting-to-know-Bill gatherings the White campaign has been conducting throughout the state, nothing more than an opportunity for the candidate to rally the troops and to plan a future Valley fundraiser and a get-out-the-vote effort?
An anonymous Republican operative characterized it as the former, as an opportunity for White to address concerns among skittish supporters that his campaign is not coming together.
Michael Moore, White's chief campaign strategist, characterized it as the latter. "It was an opportunity to meet with Valley leadership," he said. "We fly out to do these meetings all the time."
White's supporters urged him to "put the campaign in fast-forward" and to reach out to Mexican Americans from the Valley down to Brownsville. "He might be doing well in Houston with Mexican Americans, but it doesn't necessarily mean that he's doing well statewide," he said.
"He's got a long way to go," Leo said. "Rick Perry is a pit bull, so he's got to be aggressive."
Friday, May 21, 2010
California versus Texas... coyote policy....
The Governor of California and the Governor of Texas are both jogging along a marked trail in their home states, accompanied by a pet dog. A coyote jumps out and attacks the dog. Here is what follows:
California:
#1. Governor starts to intervene and then realizes he should stop; the coyote is only doing what is natural.
#2. Calls animal control. Animal control captures coyote and spends $200 testing it for diseases and $500 relocating it.
#3. Calls veterinarian, who collects dead dog and bills $200 to test it for diseases.
#4. Governor goes to hospital and runs up a bill for $3500 to get bite wound cleaned and bandaged, as well as being tested for possible diseases from the coyote.
#5. Jogging trail is shut down for 6 months while State Department of Wildlife Services conducts a $100,000 survey to make sure the area is clear of dangerous animals.
#6. Governor allots $50,000 to start a state-run coyote-awareness program for people who live in the area.
#7. State legislature spends $2 million on a study to investigate how to better handle rabies and make recommendations to eradicate animal-borne diseases.
#8. Governor’s security agent is fired for not stopping the attack and for allowing the Governor to try at first to intervene.
#9. State spends $75,000 required to train a new security agent for the Governor.
#10. California State Employees Union files a lawsuit demanding re-hiring of prior security agent.
#11. PETA files lawsuit to protest forced relocation of the coyote.
Texas:
#1. Governor expends one .380 ACP Gold Dot Hollow Point, previously acquired for $1.23 at his own personal expense.
#2. Governor and dog happily keep on jogging.
Does anyone wonder why California is broke?
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Bill White advised Obama on cap and trade...
Both the White and Sharp campaigns played down the absence of Obama from the candidates' recent pitches to voters and donors.
White spokeswoman Katy Bacon pointed out that White has advised Obama on energy issues and visited the White House as mayor. And she recounted a story from White's appearance in May before Obama supporters in Austin, where the mayor said a consultant once advised him not to run for mayor because his ears were too big for TV. White then "slow-mo" walked over to an Obama poster and pointed at the president's noticeable ears — drawing laughter, Bacon said.
In White's 2008 email entitled "Energy Policy at the Beginning of an Administration" to Rahm Emanuel, who now is White House chief of staff, White outlines some of his standard policies for reducing the nation's energy use:
* Use consumer tax credits to promote vehicles with fuel efficiency above 40 miles a gallon.
* Fund a national program to retrofit low-income housing to cut electricity consumption. This was done in weatherization programs and energy efficient appliance rebates that were included in stimulus funds.
* Promote natural gas electrical generating plants. Perry has backed coal-fired plants.
* Promote programs such as smart meters for electricity or rooftop solar energy.
Now, here's the kicker: "Avoid during 2009 wading into the mire of cap-and-trade or user taxes on carbon BEFORE (my emphasis added) the new Administration and Congress has made progress on the above four items."
Rick's peeps with new laugh track ad...
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Is Bill White a good tactician?
The challenge before White is that he has no experience running a statewide campaign against a guy who knows how to keep his opponents off-balance by constantly poking them in the chest. Perry certainly doesn't expect White to respond to each poke, but he also knows he can lure him into his trap with some of them.
From White's perspective, finding the right cadence will be crucial. He could drain his campaign of energy if he tries to respond to every poke. But he also can't let Perry define him, as the governor did with Hutchison in the primary. How White handles this challenge will tell us if he can outfox Perry.
This being a conservative state, the race is Perry's to lose. And I mean that: He should win. But if anyone can beat him, it's a candidate like White who can match him tactic for tactic.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Rick's fund raising mail gets attention from Bill White...
Texas Democratic Trust has a "private" poll showing Rick up by 4...
TEXAS DEMOCRATIC TRUST POLL HAS PERRY-46%, WHITE-42%
Poll originally conducted to tweak voter files for 2010
Yesterday’s Rasmussen poll on the Texas Governor’s race made news if for no other reason than it showed Governor Perry’s lead widening from four to twelve points in just a month.
On the other hand, QR has obtained a copy of a memo about a poll conducted for the Texas Democratic Trust that would seem to confirm Rasmussen’s earlier poll. Conducted at the end of last month, the poll shows Perry at 46%, White at 42% and Libertarian Jeff Daiell at 4%.
The memo with the poll results was circulated by email today to Democratic leaders.
Another poll, another day...
In our initial trial heat – a test with no potentially biasing information preceding – Perry holds a 46% to 37% lead over Bill White, with 3% going to the Libertarian candidate and 14% Undecided.
Rick gets "thunderous" applause at Texas Southern?
Gov. Rick Perry has told more than 800 graduates of Houston's traditionally black university they are the future of Texas and the nation.
Perry gave the commencement address Saturday to graduates of Texas Southern University.
He says the graduates are better positioned to make a difference in the current economy because Texas has created more jobs than any other state in the past six months. Perry also says Texas has a lower unemployment then most states.
Perry got a thunderous welcome when the school's band played a mix of the Texas Southern University song and Texas A&M University's fight song. Perry is an A&M graduate. He punched his fists in the air, hopped around and sang along. The graduates got on their feet to join the governor.
RT @MrRealEstate713: Rick Perry is prolly one of the most entertaining speakers at TSU graduation...cool dude!
Rick Perry is a Great Commencement Speaker..... Quick and straight to the point!!!!
Dallas Morning News tells Bill White to zip it...
In any governor's race, candidates will throw out issues, just to see if they catch fire.
[SNIP]
In essence, that's what Democrat Bill White has done by questioning the practices of the Texas Enterprise Fund, which Gov. Rick Perry lobbied into law a few years ago to help him attract more businesses to Texas.
In other words... Bill White is flinging crap at the wall hoping it sticks... but his crap is just that... crap...
The rest of the Dallas Morning News editorial explains how Bill White's attacks on the unemployment insurance issue and the Texas Enterprise Fund issue are unfounded and off base... and if the Bill White Morning News is pointing it out you know it must be pretty egregious...
What is Kay up to these days? Kay is still Kay...
"When I go home, I try to catch up on all the things that need to be done that were not done over the last few months," she said last week. "So I'm getting to where I think I have a handle on it."Home?
Recent poll recap...
A recent poll by the Texas Research Organization finds incumbent Governor Rick Perry with a 16-point lead over Democratic challenger, former Houston Mayor Bill White. With nearly six months to go before the November general election, Perry leads White 46 percent to 30 percent among registered voters, with 24 percent undecided. Similar surveys conducted by Rasmussen Reports give Perry a 49 to 42 percent advantage among “likely voters” in the Rasmussen polling average.
“Governor Perry holds a sizable lead among active voter households, while Rasmussen Reports shows the race to be closer among “likely voters,” said Dr. Greg Hupp, senior research analyst with the Texas Center for Public Policy Research. “Our active voter model pulls the sample of registered voters from households with a known history of participating in a previous election.”
The numbers speak for themselves. We are seeing an instant replay of the Republican primary. Another Perry opponent has been unable to find a theme that resonates with the voters.[SNIP]You might as well pencil in four more years of the last ten years. There is only one thing that the Democrats can do to change the current political dynamic in Texas. They are going to have to win an election, something they haven’t done since 1994. Until the Republicans lose a major race–and the only major race that matters is governor–nothing is going to change in Texas politics. And it doesn’t look as if the D’s can win this one.