Some postings I have offered on Blogs the last several days have engendered intense discussion and debate. Some of the discussion and debate has concerned how best to judge the credibility of candidates and campaigns.
The best answer to the question is one that hardly any of the comments touched upon. That is, the people themselves, acting democratically through the ballot box, are always the best judge. The people themselves acting through the ballot box are in fact the only legitimate judge. We all do still believe in democracy, don't we?
Many of you received my friend Barbara Radnofsky's Internet newsletter describing the meeting that took place on January 21 between the Texas Democratic Party Chair and some of his staff and advisors, and five of the 2006 statewide candidates, including myself.
With all due respect to my honorable colleague Barbara, her newsletter did not objectively or accurately describe the meeting. To be fair, her description may be subjectively sincere. But it conveys an inaccurate picture.
Every general election cycle, small groups of Insiders secretly handpick which Democratic Nominees who won the Democratic Primaries are worthy of Texas Democratic Party support and which aren't. This practice, euphemistically called "targeting", is profoundly disrespectful to all the Democratic Primary voters who selected the Nominees in the Democratic Primaries. It is the ugliest little secret in Texas politics. If the mass of ordinary-citizen Texas Democrats knew about it they would not put up with it for a moment. They would probably march on Austin and tear the Party office down.
The article shows the reason Ben Barnes has been backing Carole Keeton Rylander Strayhorn at the expense of Texas Democrats since fall of 2000.
Former Lt. GOY, Ben Barnes is known at the Capitol as Mr. Democrat, but he may be, backing Republican Comptroller Carole Keeton Rylander's re-election because she has made a $12 million state investment in one his affiliated companies.
Democratic comptroller nominee Marty Akins said Barnes told him last fall that a business relationship with the comptroller's office would prevent him from supporting Akins in his challenge to Rylander. Akins, who had announced as a candidate for governor, said he called Barnes after deciding to run instead for comptroller.
"He (Barnes) was most gracious. He would eagerly support me for any other race other than comptroller because he had a business relationship with Carole Keeton Rylander and the comptroller's office." Akins said in response to questions from the Houston Chronicle.
Barnes, who helped build this year's statewide Democratic ticket, said Akins is wrong.
Barnes said he supported Democrat Paul Hobby in the 1998 comptroller race because Hobby asked first. Barnes said he pledged support for Rylander's re-election three years ago because she is an old family friend.
"I've got no ongoing relationship with the comptroller's office," Barnes said in an interview.
But Barnes sits on the board of advisers of Techxas Ventures, a high-tech venture capital firm that invests in Texas companies. Barnes said his investment in the company amounts to less than 1 percent of its total worth.
Rylander's office in the fall of 2000 committed to invest $20 million of the state's tobacco settlement money with Techxas Ventures II L.P., one of the firm's investment funds.
"Oh, yeah, I remember that, now that you mention it," Barnes said.
The comptroller's office transferred the first $4 million of its promised investment to Techxas on Dec. 5, 2000.
Three days later, Barnes' adult son, Greg, gave Rylander $7,500, and Techxas board member Richard Salwen donated $25,000.
Barnes said his son is not involved in Techxas in any way.
Rylander and Bames said they never discussed the Techxas investment.
Rylander said the contributions from Greg Barnes and Salwen were coincidental because she was raising money to beat a Dec. 10 deadline. After that date, no statewide officeholder could raise political money until the 2001 legislative session was over.
Two days after the deadline passed, Techxas general partners Bruce Ezell and Michael LaVigna each donated $10,000 to the Associated Republicans of Texas. One of Rylander's personal aides is the son of the association's executive director.
Since then, Techxas has drawn another $8 million from the tobacco fund. Rylander's campaign has received another $15,000 from Greg Barnes and Salwen. [NOTE any typos occurred in transferring the text from the pdf which is apparently based on a printout from a Lexus Nexus search]
For the record I have immense respect for Governor Barnes (as a former Lt. Governor of Texas he is addressed as Governor) but agree with much of this note from reader:
There is one thing that strikes me in this ongoing debate about the Democratic Party.
The real targets are left untouched.
Who am I talking about? Ben Barnes is at the top of the list. A power broker par excellence and charter member of the Me First school of self-centered politics, Barnes long ago stopped letting the greater good stand in the way of his own personal ambition or financial gain. For him public service and partisan politics are all about which candidates can help him line his pockets - period.
As Lt. Governor in the early 1970s, he fell all over himself to help a young George W. Bush escape dangerous military service and instead get a coveted spot in the Texas National Guard. Then, Barnes spent the next quarter-century refusing to talk publicly (privately, he told anyone next to him on a bar stool who was willing to listen) about the favor his did for the Bush Family while first Pappy, then Jebby, then W. rose to power and did irreparable harm to the ideals Democrats like Barnes claim to hold dear.
Along the way, Barnes has repeatedly sold out his party and its principles when the price was right, which it often has been. He kept quiet about George W.'s military service when Bush made sure that the lucrative Texas Lottery contract would remain his. He has worked behind the scenes to keep good candidates out of statewide races by cutting off their funds. And this year, he supported Republican-turned-Independent Carole Keeton Strayhorn over potential Democratic gubernatorial candidates - including the eventual nominee, Chris Bell - to safeguard his personal business interests, which include a major contract with the State Comptroller and controlled by Strayhorn.
Don't get me wrong. Soulless lobbyists are commonplace in D.C. and in Austin. It's just that most them don't simultaneously dictate Democratic Party decisions at the highest level, from Harry Reid to Boyd Richie. Barnes does.
There are plenty of villains who make the goal of "crashing the gates" and turning the current Democratic Party structure on its head a worthy one. But none is more destructive to our long-term ideals than Ben Barnes.
And I want to make it clear that while I disagree with his actions and question his motives, I would never presume to question his service to Texas, his service to the Democratic Party or this country in the course of his lifetime.
What I am questioning is his support of Rylander Strayhorn since 2000 and his motivations for that. [UPDATE] I just got off the phone with Governor Barnes and he has agreed to sit down with me for a video interview on February 9. Stay tuned.
(A great summary of everything in the extended entry! - promoted by Karl-Thomas Musselman)
The Austin American-Statesman reports on Greg Abbott's misuse of state resources with an appropriately misleading headline. They manage to get the story right, however (bold emphasis mine throughout):
(David Van Os -- what more can we say? - promoted by Phillip Martin)
David Van Os is sprinting to the finish line on his 254-county Whistlestop Tour. This week he'll visit Fredericksburg (Gillespie) and Georgetown (Williamson) and next week he'll be at the courthouses in Fort Worth, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Austin, completing the tour.
We are in the last days of the 2006 election cycle and we need to work as hard as we can to get good candidates elected. The Bush Regime has made a mockery of America & everything this country should stand for. Music Row Democrats has put together a group of 20 songs for 20 dollars to help get good Democrats elected. The songs are fabulous and you can hear some of them on my podcast.
Time to pound the pavement, phonebank and help get some great candidates elected!!!!! We are fighting to make sure Travis County is not the only Blue County but Turn all of Texas Blue but we can not do it without your help!!!!! This weekend there are two great blockwalking opportunities to help get Candidates elected.
We are desperately trying to elect decent and caring individuals to represent Texas not only in the U.S. Senate and Congress but in State and local offices. We have thousands of people who need to be called just to try and do Voter ID. You can help no matter what state you live in.
