| The mainstream media is mostly ignoring Texas elections, except for an occasional reference to our governor's race. State legislative races are getting almost no attention at all, but they are a crucial part of the larger battle for control of the state legislature , which is where the real fireworks will be come January, when the state legislature convenes, and redistricting will be the main item on the agenda. At stake are U.S. Congressional districts, which could change dramatically if Republicans gain control of the Texas House. This diary focuses on one of the most competitive Texas House races, District 17, where a feisty Democratic challenger, Pati Jacobs, is turning up the heat on her freshman incumbent Republican opponent over the issue of water.
Last time redistricting came up in the Texas legislature in a controversial mid-decade redistricting in 2003 , outnumbered Democrats fled to New Mexico in a futile attempt to block Tom DeLay's plan to disenfranchise Democrats and elect Republicans. Remember the infamous "fajita strip" congressional district which stretched one county wide from Austin to the Mexican border that Lloyd Doggett was placed in? Fortunately this egregious example of Republican gerrymandering was eventually thrown out by the courts, but if Republicans are in control when redistricting happens again in 2011, we can expect to see similar shenannigans. Ever since the last round of the resdistricting battle, Democrats have been fighting to increase the odds, and the number of Democratic legislators has been growing steadily. Democrats are currently within 3 seats of a majority in the Texas House, but the election of 2010 could change all of this.
This diary will focus on a swing ditrict, Texas House District 17, a race that has been named one of the most competitive Texas House races. The Republican freshman incumbent, trial lawyer Tim Kleinschmidt, won this previously Democratic seat in a close election in 2008. This time around he faces a feisty Democratic challenger, local rancher Pati Jacobs who is running a smart, effective grass-roots campaign, and may just pull this off.
District 17 encompasses 5 counties, most of which are rural, and most of the economy here is based on agriculture- cattle ranching. The largest county is Bastrop, one of the fastest growing counties in Texas. Largely Democratic, Bastrop is one of the "donut counties" that border Democratic Travis County, and many Bastrop County residents actually work in nearby heavily Democratic Austin. District 17 has been mostly represented by Democrats until it was narrowly won by a Republican in 2008. Since then freshman Republican Tim Kleinschmidt has distinguished himself mainly by being chosen by Texas Monthly magazine as a recipient of its Furniture Award which is given to
lawmakers with a level of participation that was well below average, indicating that they were indistinguishable from their desks, chairs and inkwells
Besides the fact that he has little to show for his time in the legislature, Kleinschmidt has another problem this time around, and it involves water. Water is evolving as a key issue in Texas, and about to become big business, as water marketers try to buy up and lease water rights from areas that have abundant water to sell to thirsty cities along the I-35 corridor like San Antonio. Bastrop and Lee Counties sit right on top of the Simsboro Aquifer, which local ranchers rely on water they get from wells for their ranching operations, and local communities rely on for household water. It's no surprise that water marketers have their sights on the Simsboro. If they get their way, taxpayers will be paying to construct a water pipeline to ship water sucked from the Simsboro to sell to cities like San Marcos. Many fear the Simsboro pipeline is a forerunner of a trans-Texas water highway of pipelines. Not surprisingly, many residents here are furious.
If you add up all the numbers, the pipeline would take virtually all the water that's currently permitted - leaving everyone high and dry
Pati Jacobs is a rancher who raises grass-fed beef on the Bastrop County ranch where she grew up. Since early in the campaign she has emphasized the importance of protecting resources in order to allow for future economic development in our district, and has pledged to fight the Simsboro Pipeline. Kleinschmidt on the other hand has tried to waffle on this issue, probably because, unlike Pati Jacobs, Tim Kleinschmidt leased out his water rights to a water marketer. At a recent forum on water, Tim Kleinschmidt was booed by contituents when he avoided answering questions on how he would protect the aquifer.
The reason for Kleinschmidt's reluctance to declare his position on the water pipeline becomes clear after looking at who is supporting him. Special interests who stand to benefit from the Simsboro Pipeline have contributed generously to the Republican campaign, and Kleinschmidt is raking in cash from lobbyists. Remeber homebuilder Bob Perry who was a funder of the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth? Bob Perry gave $30,000 to Tim Kleinschmidt's campaign. Another prominent donor, who is Trevor Reese Jones, one of Forbes 400 richest Americans last year, who might also be familiar as one of the 7 figure donors to Karl Rove's American Crossroads. Trevor Reese Jones gave $10,000 to Tim Kleinschmidt's campaign , which so far has raised 2 1/2 times what Pati Jacobs has raised- a cool $378,000 for a job that pays only $7,200 a year.
Kleinschmidt has been running a smear campaign similar to the one he waged against his previous opponent. He's even using the same talking farm animals on his flyers he used last time, falsely accusing Pati of not paying her county taxes. In fact, Pati has receipts to prove these charges are untrue, and attacks don't seem to be gaining much traction with voters. One constituent even complained in a letter to the editor in the Bastrop paper that she would never vote for Kleinschmidt because he was wasting so much money on sending out multiple flyers that he couldn't be trusted to use taxes wisely.
What Pati Jacobs' campaign has that Kleinschmidt's doesn't is grassroots support. She is running a smart, effective grassroots campaign. Yesterday I helped with phone banking at her headquarters on Bastrop's historic Main Street, right across from the Bastrop County Republican headquarters. She has been endorsed by the Sierra Club, the Texas Federation of Teachers, and Annie's List, and Independent Texans, and her campaign attracted energetic volunteers from a very active Bastrop Democratic Party who are blockwalking and doing phone banking. So far her campaign has made over 24,000 phone calls, and voters have even been surprised to get a call from Pati herself. She has been campaigning tirelessly since the primaries, her bright little yellow and green trailer with her instantly recognizable PJ brand appears all over the district.
That said, special interests are pouring in the cash to elect Kleinschmidt. if you want to help send a great candidate to the Texas Legislature to stand up for the people of Texas, and help us stop Tom DeLay style redistricting of congressional districts in 2011, you can find Pat on Act Blue or on her website at patijacobs.com |
