Former Travis County District Attorney, Ronnie Earle, appears ready to swell the ranks of the Democratic field vying to be the Party nominee for governor of Texas. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported this weekend that Earle is "leaning toward" running for governor. Should Earle join the field he would be competing with former Ambassador Tom Schieffer, former candidate for Agriculture Commissioner Hank Gilbert, humorist Kinky Friedman, Garland therapist Mark Thompson, and school teacher Felix Alvarado.
In a telephone interview, Earle, 67, said he hasn't set a timetable but will probably make a decision "sooner rather than later." Earle served as Travis County District Attorney for 37 years until retiring in December of 2008. His office came under fire from Republicans for its investigation of DeLay, which ultimately resulted in DeLay's resignation from Congress after he was indicted in 2005 for violation of campaign laws.
In the same report, Earle claimed that because of his "deep roots" in Fort Worth that he feels he can compete in Tarrant County, which former Ambassador Tom Schieffer considers home base. Not only is Tarrant County Schieffer's home base, but he also feels he can compete and potentially flip it if he were the Democratic candidate.
I'm not certain why Earle feels he could gain traction in Tarrant County. The vast majority of Democrats that I socialize and work with here said, "who?" when I first mentioned to them that Earle was considering a run for governor. Many of the movers and shakers in Tarrant County have already quickly lined up behind Tom Schieffer too.
The fact that Earle made it a point to mention his Tarrant County roots indicates that he feels Schieffer is the man to beat early on in this primary campaign. It would appear Earle plans on defining himself as the anti-Schieffer candidate upon entering the gubernatorial race. This is a vastly different strategy than Hank Gilbert, who has entered the race and essentially ignored the other Democratic candidates and has effectively assailed the Republican candidates from day one of his campaign.
Just as a side note, this past Thursday Kinky Friedman made an appearance at the Colleyville-Grapevine-Southlake Democrats meeting. Friedman made a point to plug his book multiple times while he plugged his website zero times. Nor did he pass out any campaign material, ask for money, or ask for votes. Considering this isn't Friedman's first rodeo as a candidate for governor I don't know how much more amateur you can get when you don't at least ask for votes. Then again, perhaps his real motives were revealed in simply plugging books.
At least that is the impression you get after reading the editorial from the Lubbock-Avalanche Journal from this past Saturday. In reality though, they are correct. A number of politicos---both Republican and Democrat---are waiting in the wings for Kay Bailey to decide what exactly she wishes to do with her political future.
Upon her resignation from the United States Senate, Hutchison will trigger a special election that already has two Democrats and a number of Republicans vying to fill a vacancy that doesn't exist. If she resigns---and that is a really big if---you're likely to see a few more Republicans with larger financial war chests enter the race. But I'm beginning to think that Kay Bailey won't resign from the United States senate, which would foil a lot of plans and political futures of several Texas politicos. It must be so cool to be Kay Bailey Hutchison right now, holding the whole wide world in your hands. But maybe that much power and attention is pissing off a lot of people too, particularly within your own Party.
I mean think about it. David Dewhurst is eagerly waiting for Hutchison to resign so he can begin to run for her seat, if not fill it by means of a gubernatorial appointment by Perry. He has already corrected his rather suspect financial statements and disclosed his investment funds. Much like an individual or politician suddenly losing weight, correcting ones' statements and disclosing your riches is a sign of someone itching for a position higher than the one they currently retain. Dewhurst runs, then someone wants to run for his spot, maybe Attorney General Abbott, and then someone wants to run for his spot, and so on and so forth. Democrats are just as eager to play this game too. We've heard Senator Royce West for Attorney General, maybe Kirk Watson for Lt. Governor, or even governor. It's a snowball down hill effect. That process hasn't been triggered yet though and I'm not confident it will, thus foiling the political futures of a lot of folks.
As many of you know by now, former Ambassador Tom Schieffer launched his gubernatorial campaign for the Democratic nomination last week in Fort Worth. The process of hiring full-time staff is still ongoing and many are watching as to whom he surrounds himself with. Many in Dallas County are particularly dumbfounded as to this announcement:
Susan Hays, a partner in Geisler Hays in Dallas and a former chairwoman of the Dallas County Democratic Party, has signed on to serve as general counsel to Schieffer's campaign.
As Dallas County Chair, Susan Hays went down highly unpopular and utterly disgraced. Byron LaMasters, founder of Burnt Orange, made this post regarding one of Hays final executive meetings in 2005:
...it was clear to me tonight that the Chair, Susan Hays does not have the confidence of the vast majority of the grassroots and precinct chairs in Dallas County. Hays refused - just as she has refused for the past ten months - to accept a forum for grievances against her. Furthermore, she used continuous stalling tactics to prevent business from being accomplished. I offer this summary as evidence that Dallas County needs new leadership, and if Chair Hays will not step down, it is critical that Dallas Democrats work to elect a chair next March that will lead a united Dallas Democratic Party to victory in November 2006.
Among other things Hays upset a great number of Dallas Democrats when she endorsed a Republican judicial candidate on Dallas Democratic Party letterhead. Hays eventually resigned as Party Chair on April 1, 2005.
I've heard from a number of my Democratic friends in Dallas who say this hiring by Schieffer doesn't sit well with them. For a group of people already disturbed about his ties to George W. Bush, and insistence by Schieffer that he can "go make money" if things don't work out---making one wonder if there is 100% motivation to make a run for governor at all, there just is no room for error in upsetting the core Democratic primary base of voters which you need to secure the nomination and battle in the general election.
Ed. Note:So, yea. My video quality was terrible. But, Schieffer's website had a good version.
With a backdrop of Luella Elementary school and under a blistering hot Texas sun, former Ambassador Tom Schieffer declared his run for the Democratic nomination for governor this morning before a diverse crowd of Tarrant County elected officials, supporters, and elementary school children.
Introduced by former State Representative Dan Barrett, Schieffer channeled his neighborhood roots to declare that...
A lot has changed in the world since I went to school in this neighborhood. The economy has globalized. The best product and the best price are never more than a few clicks away on the Internet. Everything moves faster. But a lot of things haven't changed. People still have faith. People still believe in the American dream, people still want a better life for their children, and the Democratic Party still offers people the best chance to realize their dreams.
Arguably the biggest hill that the Bush era Ambassador must climb is convincing Democrats that his friendship with the former president doesn't dictate his politics or his Party loyalties:
I am a Democrat-as Sam Rayburn used to say without prefix, suffix or apology-and I think it is time we all had a governor.
Schieffer laid down the foundation, complete with some populist themes, for why he is the best candidate to succeed:
If we nominate a candidate who can appeal to the broad middle ground of Texas, if we nominate a candidate who understands the importance of education to the future of our children and our economy, if we nominate a candidate who understands the hopes and dreams of labor as well as the hopes and dreams of entrepreneurs, if we nominate a candidate who recognizes the importance of tolerance and civility to our society, if we nominate a candidate who will ask our citizens to put the interests of Texas above the interests of politics and personal gain, then we can win the governor's office in 2010.
With the announcement yesterday by Senator Leticia Van de Putte that she will not challenge Schieffer for the Democratic nomination, yet float Senator Kirk Watson as a potential worthy opponent, the former baseball executive has a very short window to gather momentum for his campaign and fend any opponent away from this particular race. If he fails in that effort this field will become crowded, whether it be Watson or anyone else. If he succeeds then it could be an easier road toward the nomination for Tom Schieffer.
Former Ambassador to Australia and Japan, Tom Schieffer, will declare Wednesday morning, June 24th, that he is seeking the Democratic nomination for governor as he kicks off his campaign in his hometown of Fort Worth. Schieffer confirmed his intentions to run this morning on Inside Politics, which airs in the DFW market on WFAA channel 8.
In a wide ranging interview with WFAA reporter Brad Watson and Dallas Morning News reporter Gromer Jeffers, Schieffer declared that Texas suffers from a crisis in leadership:
Texas is at a critical point right now. I worry that we are falling behind not only the rest of the country but the rest of the world and we live in an increasingly globalized economy and we have to be a part of it. I think there is too much thought and too much talk about withdrawing into ourselves and I don't think that will serve the long-term interests of Texas.
Schieffer is the first real serious candidate to step forward to run for governor as a Democrat so far and knows that he'll have to answer tough questions about his time as ambassador during the George W. Bush administration:
I've never voted in a Republican Primary and I've always been a Democrat. In fact I didn't realize it until I started running for governor but I've never missed voting in a Democratic primary since I was old enough to vote in 1968. The president asked me to serve as an ambassador first to Australia and then to Japan and I told him that I would be honored to serve the country but that I didn't want to become a Republican. He said he was not asking me to serve the Republican Party he was asking me to serve the country, and I did. I think I did a good job. I would be proud to be the Democratic nominee for governor.
A new Rasmussen poll released today confirms what I have been saying for several weeks now: Kay Bailey Hutchison best resign now and return to Texas to build a whole new Texas Republican Party if she is truly serious about running for Governor of Texas this time.
In a head to head match, Rick Perry enjoys a secession motivated bounce from the far-Right at 42%, which catapults him over Kay Bailey Hutchison and her 38%. The spread is within the polls 4% margin of error with a 95% confidence interval, so technically it is a statistical dead heat.
These new poll results continue and demonstrate a steady climb for Governor Perry who has increasingly amended his platform and rhetoric to appeal to the extreme far-Right, Rush Limbaugh led, and Fox News motivated Texas GOP voter. Hutchison, on the other hand, has kept comfy in Washington DC, apparently not feeling the pressure at all to come back to Texas and campaign for a Republican gubernatorial primary.
As I have said before, Hutchison has sucked up to Republican politicos here in Texas before and given the impression in the past that she would run for governor only to back out at the last minute. Is Kay Bailey Hutchison doing it again? Is she once again basing her political decisions on which way the political winds are blowing? I mean, how else can we explain the fact that she doesn't feel the need to campaign for the very same voters that Rick Perry is pandering before at secession rallies.
The fact is, Kay, that if you are truly serious about running for governor against Rick Perry you have to make it through the Republican primary first. And because you consider yourself a "moderate" Republican, which hardly describes the average Texas GOP primary voter, than your job is to build a whole new Party. You need at a minimum 1/3rd of the Republican vote, 1/3rd of the Independent vote, and 1/3rd of the disenchanted Democrat vote if you stand a chance in a head to head match with Good Hair.
Frankly, I'm fine with you not taking on Rick Perry in the gubernatorial primary. That makes any potential Democratic candidates that much more likely to win if Good Hair is the GOP choice. The problem is, Kay, you can't perch yourself in Washington DC and expect that you can appeal to Republican primary voters in Texas, especially without building yourself a new Party to get out and vote for you. It takes more than a year to build a whole new Party.
I think it's high time that Kay Bailey Hutchison put up or shut up. Resign and come back to Texas and run in the Republican primary against Rick Perry or disappear till 2012. What say you, KBH?
7:20pm Update by Phillip
Todd Hill just e-mailed me this news from his mobile phone:
Was just at a Bill White meet and greet in Tarrant County. He said that Hutchison has assured him that she'll resign in a fashion that will lead to a May 2010 special election. She'll likely resign after Houston elections in November.
Why would Hutchison say that to White? Provided that it's true, of course...
Does she favor White? She's a moderate Republican -- maybe she would want to give him a heads up. (Glad to see White is sharing the information, then -- again, provided that this is true).
Has Hutchison finally recognized that Perry is slugging her to death (hence the catch up in the polls) and that she can't play footsy in D.C. any more?
Swing State Project has released its initial set of gubernatorial race ratings for 2010 and has Texas as a "race to watch."
Texas - Rick Perry (R): RTW
If Kay Bailey Hutchison decapitates secessionist incumbent Gov. Rick Perry in the Republican primary, this race will likely be all but over. But if Perry somehow fends off her challenge, a Democrat like ex-state Rep. Tom Schieffer just may have an outside chance, although the most recent polling suggests that Dems would still start off behind the 8-ball.
Kay Baily won't beat Rick Perry in a GOP primary because she hasn't flown down from her perch in Washington DC to start building a whole new Republican Party in order to defeat Good Hair and his secessionist followers. Hutchison has to build a new Texas GOP if she has a snowballs chance in hell of beating Perry and last time I checked it takes more than a year to build a political party. Now that Kay, as BOR writer David Mauro rightly points out, doesn't have the pressure to stay in the senate to prevent a filibuster proof, Democratically controlled senate from coming to fruition, she might swoop back to Texas and get to work sooner rather than later.
I'm liking a Democratic candidates odds with every passing day for the reasons above and more. Whether it is Schieffer, or another quality Democrat like Senator Van de Putte on the ballot, it has been a long time since a gubernatorial race in Texas has been listed as one to watch and it certainly creates some excitement for us as we head toward '10.
Aside from all the developments so far, the one race Cornyn brought up unprompted in a lengthy interview with The Hill was Texas, where Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R) is aiming for the governor's mansion and could vacate her seat at any time, paving the way for an open, no-primary free-for-all in the Lone Star State.
Indications lately have been that she will remain in her seat, which isn't up until 2012. But her Texas colleague made it clear Monday that he's not counting his blessings just yet.
What I am concerned about is that it will be a special election that will be held perhaps as early as May 2010," Cornyn said. "I don't want this to turn into a situation where we elect a Democrat in Texas and further erode our possibilities."
Democrats hold 58 votes in the Senate - a figure that is likely to hit 59 once the Minnesota Senate race is certified. A special election in Texas could bump the number up to 60.
Wow, such a defeatist attitude coming from the Chair of the RSCC. So much for Republican Congressman Pete Sessions efforts to mold the GOP into the Taliban. Although Sessions might consider hiring Fox News to help him round up some tea party cell groups and maybe that'll energize the Republican base enough to be a more optimistic 'insurgency.'
Cornyn is rattled by the fundraising numbers that former State Comptroller John Sharp and Houston Mayor Bill White raked in for the first quarter of 2009. He is also nervous, and knows from memory, that Hutchison makes decisions based on which way the political winds blow. First she is in a race, then she is out of a race. First she says this then she does that. "FLIP FLOP!" If a Special Election occurs it is assuredly a different electoral ballgame and Cornyn knows that. He already has the daunting task of maintaining what the GOP has left without losing even more senate seats and giving up ground to a Democrat majority that is close to filibuster proof. But to lose one on your home turf of Texas would be extra embarrassing for junior in his new gig.
Hutchison will need to resign soon. She can't keep allowing Perry to hop across Texas unanswered jazzing up the core of the Republican base. If she is serious about running for governor she has to get her head out of the DC clouds and start breathing some environmentally toxic Texas air again. She's got to build a whole new Republican Party if she wants to win a primary and that is no cheap or easy task to accomplish within a winnowing timeframe. She'll have to resign her senate seat if she truly intends to run for governor, build a new Republican Party, and compete in a general election for the mansion. She can't do that in DC.
Make no mistake about it ladies and gents, Rick Perry had himself a "crazy good" time at his "teabag" parties yesterday. I'm glad he had a crazy good time; goodness knows he was in good company all day long.
There sure has been a great deal of secession talk lately hasn't there? The first time I heard it I really brushed it off. Maybe even giggled because it just seemed like such an incredibly far-fetched reality that it didn't really deserve thought. Then you had the Chuck Norris and Glenn Beck drive to create cell groups across the nation to organize against the government. Rallies dating back to the McCain/Palin days, coupled with Fox News driven organizing efforts, have brought a great deal more open talk about secession. Rick Perry, Governor of the State of Texas---you know, the 28th state in the Union, had this to say at a "crazy good" tea bag party:
In Austin earlier Wednesday, Gov. Rick Perry told an anti-tax "tea party" the federal government is "rampaging through the halls of Congress" with big-spending programs and only states' rights can stop it.
"We will not stand our pockets being picked, our children's future being mortgaged, our rights being taken away," the Republican governor told a cheering crowd of 1,000 people outside Austin City Hall.
Perry told reporters following his speech that Texans might get so frustrated with the government they would want to secede from the union.
"There's absolutely no reason to dissolve it. But if Washington continues to thumb their nose at the American people, you know, who knows what might come out of that."
I thought I heard "Dixie" playing in the background when I read that article, one of my favorite tunes, but I suppose it was my imagination.
The pizzas weren't the only hot item on the menu at the monthly meeting of the Mid-Cities Democrats. The 2010 campaign season blew into Hurst like a spring thunderstorm last night before a group of almost 100 Democrats from various counties in North Texas. John Sharp, candidate for U.S. Senate, and Tom Schieffer, exploring a run for governor as a Democrat, made arguments that they are the best guys to win their respective races.
Sharp went on to discuss his political accomplishments including the creation of the Lone Star Card and the Texas Tomorrow Fund. The former Railroad Commissioner and Comptroller explained the importance of having at least one Democratic senator with a Democratic controlled Congress and why he's the candidate to win in a special election for the seat currently held by Kay Bailey Hutchison - he's come the closest to beating a Republican than any other Democratic candidate for state wide office since 1998.
Former Texas Rangers president and Ambassador Tom Schieffer told the group how he has melded good business with good ethics in his career since serving in the Texas Legislature. One guest asked how he would aid Texas' disabled population and Schieffer retold the creation of the first Americans with Disabilities Act compliant baseball park with the Ballpark at Arlington.
Schieffer told the gathering of North Texans that he is a hometown boy and that fact will help him beat out any other Democratic candidate in Tarrant County.
