Burnt Orange Report
News, Politics, and Fun From Deep in the Heart of Texas
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Burnt Orange ReportNews, Politics, and Fun From Deep in the Heart of Texas |
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October 16, 2005Burnt Orange Report from the 4th FloorBy Karl-Thomas MusselmanIt's that time of year again. The time when no one else except those most closely involved in UT's Student Government start having their private thoughts about running for student body president (or vice president) come out into the open. You may remember last year's post, which created quite a stir, well I promise that this one will be much shorter. Interestingly, this year's prospective candidates are not the ones that I would have guessed after the election results were released this past spring. At that time, the buzz was all about Grant Stanis and Courtney Livingston creating the traditional insider ticker. Since then of course, Grant has denied interest (which I believe) and Livingston has now resigned from the Assembly. So that leaves an internal power vacuum. With the changes in ticket rules this year, as well as the filing of 'letter of intent' which were supposed to have already been submitted, it may seem like thing have gotten off to a slower start. But that's not to say that there are not already two teams in formation. So I present what is the best information I have about who's planning on what, starting with the more stable prospects first.
This combination is certainly more progressive than the current leadership or the prospective alternative which may make it of interest to many readers here. Of course, this is balanced by the fact that there are certain whispers claim the team has already picked off major support from the more conservative clubs and organizations who are comfortable with the leadership offered by this pair. The second team is a bit harder to describe at this point, in part, because the two top candidates haven’t even settled on who is going to run as the other's vice, and vice versa. That's a bit unsettling to anyone who would be trying to make early decisions about who to support, which makes me think they are farther behind on candidate recruitment and organization. In any case, prospective presidential or vice presidential nominees as of now are current Two Year at Large Rep Michael Windle and current One Year at Large Rep Jessica Fertitta.
Politically, a Windle/Fertitta ticket of any combination would be more conservative. Fertitta interns for Republican Attorney General Greg Abbott, and Windle is publicly listed as 'moderate' on the facebook and quite honestly seemed to start showing up at UDems meetings only after last spring's elections. That's all I know for now, or at least are willing to share without making me the sworn enemy of Student Government (if only), so feel free to comment, correct, or forward on this post in silence. As one parting tidbit, I'd like to include some UT Facebook Friend Numbers. 965- Danielle Rugoff 339- me Comments
There's a rumor of a Grube/Livingston ticket. That sounds crazy, but so is Grube. Posted by: matth at October 16, 2005 05:51 PMYou can take my name out of the mix. LOL. I'm not running. The Grube/Livingston ticket was a joke from a Tuesday night at Cain & Abel's. :) COURTNEY!!! I hoped to keep the joke going. Hope all is well. Posted by: matth at October 16, 2005 07:13 PMThanks for saying hello Courtney! Sorry to hear you got out of the Assembly, then again, I did to, so maybe not so sorry... Posted by: Karl-T at October 16, 2005 07:13 PMThe Grube/Livingston ticket was a culmination that jokingly came about from a few too many Miller Lights one Tuesday evening. The other candidates should have no reason to fear such a dominating and intimidating ticket anymore. To our diverse array of supporters, we apologize for getting your spirit and hopes up for a fun year that we know would have ensued. While the outlooks of a loud mouth fraternity boy and a good looking sorority girl coming together on a “shock and awe” ticket will not be conjured up this election cycle – I encourage all you believers and nonbelievers alike to get involved in a campaign. God Bless UT, I wish to comment on the Tejas fatigue comments and some falty facts by Karl-Thomas. I am friends with Brian, but must tell you that Brian Haley is not in the Tejas Club. Check your facts. I would also suggest you check your facts on Tejas fatigue. I don't know who your "secret inside source" is, but Tejas serves campus and we have done everything but slow down. Tejas does not try to control Student Government. That is ridiculous. As the President of the Tejas Club I can tell you that our members are very active on campus in many different areas. We are not all about Student Government. There are indeed more things to life. We just raised $30,000 for Safeplace in one month and have won best Social Organization the past 5 out of 8 years. Ronnie Earl was a member of the Tejas Club along with members of the Democratic National Committee and the Chief of Staff of very prominent Congressmen. It is sad to see such a great Democratic blog miss facts and let personal bias get in the way. The Tejas Club is one of UT's best. Come and join us on Thursday night for our coffee at 9 PM. Prominent professors and community leaders come and speak to us at coffee and everyone is welcome. We will also have a party on Friday night at our house at 26th and Rio Grande. Everyone is welcome, but you must wear a costume. The Tejas Club is not a Student Government pipeline, we are a diverse group of men from different parts of campus that work hard to serve the University in our respective organizations and as a Club. Come to a coffee and you will see what we are about. No offense to Karl-Thomas (I have a lot of respect and look up to you in many ways), but I hope this clears up what was written about Tejas. Posted by: Brent at October 17, 2005 01:48 AMIt's always fun catching these posts after a few comments have been made. Here are a few comments, and I'll try and state biases when possible. Preface: Generally one's political views don't matter in leading Student Government. Most people just don't want an extreme activist from any shade of beleif, and more importantly most students don't want state or national politics to bleed into SG at all. Importantly, Democratic and Republican stances don't often even translate to campus affairs. With that said, I feel that all candidates mentioned so far should pass any political litmus test that BOR or any other group tries to impose on them (immaterially). First, Tejas indirectly supported the last female SG president - Katie King (Ogden). I say this to counter the tacit implication that Tejas supports males. In fact, many current and recent-past SG people first got involved in the Achieve ticket with Katie. Furthermore, the current and last administrations had female VPs, chosen because they could garner the respect and power to control the assembly. Second, I appreciate the recognition that KT gave Tejas members in their SG involvement and achievements (note: past 3 campaigns, not 2). However, the last three elections could not have been won without capable candidates, loving volunteers and supporters, and of course free t-shirts. Third, here are a few additions that I know of. Marcus of course helped organize the John Kerry visit to UT this past year. This summer, Windle interned for the Red Cross and the EPA while in DC. Also note that Windle is Filipino, as you made and effort to note similar aspects of Danielle and Marcus. Just for fun-- I happened to be doing some facebook research today, so here are the top 15 non-alumni facebook users at UT for comparison: 1. 3255 - Mack Brown I may only have 327 friends... but they're the best damn 326 friends one could have at UT (sorry Jocelyn). That being said. Please add me, I'm way cooler than Omar, better looking than Brummett (all Brummetts, actually), I dance better than Colby, I don't know who Noel is but I'm certain that I smell better, Danielle wishes she was me, Homie has a better name than me, JRice isn't as funny as I am, and Courtney, Jessica and Sarah need to stop asking me out (it's getting embarrassing for everyone involved). Posted by: matth at October 17, 2005 09:50 AMBrent, thanks for adding to the record. I know that Tejas is more than just SG, but it's integration and influence in it is way out of proportion to the rest of the campus, why not then does the Indian Student Association have 10-12 people involved in the SG structure considering it is far larger in size. Part of it has to do with what each organization's interest is. It is likely the fact that Tejas is in SG because it is made of highly involved students who care about the university, which isn't a bad thing, it's just that there is more than one way to help build community on campus. JW, good points, I'm appreciative of your filling in some of the gaps from the Achieve v. Envision year, which I wasn't here for but watched from Fredericksburg. Chris, is that really Mack Brown or is it someone parading as him. I mean, Jesus Chirst is on facebook at least twice.. Posted by: Karl-T at October 17, 2005 10:09 AMKT, thanks for giving some press to SG. I have missed your reports from the floor. Keep up the good work. Some solid research figures from CKen as well and some nice color commentary from MattH. Posted by: Strayhorn '06 at October 19, 2005 12:15 AMHow can there be a "power vacuum" in an utterly powerless organization? Wait, I forgot--they made the street signs burnt orange and changed their name from SA to SG. Brilliant! Posted by: Deaf Smith at October 19, 2005 03:47 PMHere is a selection of the many accomplishments Student Government at UT-Austin has had over the years: I'll admit, I'm a first timer here to burnt orange report....prop 2 stuff dragged me here. but nonetheless, i enjoy hearing people argue about SG. it makes my day. Posted by: Sowa at November 9, 2005 10:06 AMPost a comment
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Windle, active in the Assembly and also from the world of 
