(I've been trying to think of how to put this in words for a long time. We need to be having this discussion, among many. Let's have a real (and civil) discussion in the comments. - promoted by Karl-Thomas Musselman)
The impending departure of TDP Chairman Boyd Richie initially offered the promise of rebuilding our state party, our party infrastructure and developing a real blueprint for a path forward towards some success at the ballot box.
Make no mistake-we have suffered a disaster. And it is way past time to begin the recovery.
To start with, Chairman Richie is to be commended for his willingness to serve at all. Party Chair isn't exactly a position for which we have a large number of willing applicants. And, for the record, I don't question for one second that he did the best job he was able to do.
His announcement creates both a dilemma and an opportunity. The dilemma is that we are going to be starting over again. The opportunity is that we are going to be starting over again.
There are two main points that all Texas Democrats should be intently focused on at this critical time: adding top-notch staff, and ensuring that the 2012 election cycle is the first step on the long journey to becoming viable and electable across Texas.
And these two main points must be considered in the most basic, simplistic framework: you cannot rebuild and recover from a disaster until you have a period of demolition...get it down to the frames and start over.
Normally this news would want to make me go bang my head against the wall slowly. But I half to admit that I wasn't really expecting much from the state party anyways until a new chair is elected at the 2012 state party convention. Of course, somebody has to fill in until then. Best of luck to outgoing ED Ruben Hernandez on his next venture. And best of luck to Bill for taking on a thankless job.
(Austin, TX) - Today, Texas Democratic Party Chairman Boyd Richie announced that he will appoint Bill Brannon as TDP Executive Director, effective July 1. Outgoing TDP Executive Director Ruben Hernandez will transition out at the end of July.
"I've thought long and hard on this decision, and I'm very confident that Bill will do a tremendous job at the helm of the TDP," said Boyd Richie. "Bill has spent a lifetime working to foster inclusion, coordination and cooperation in Texas Democratic politics and he works well with grassroots organizers, officeholders and major donors, all of whom are important to Democratic success. Bill's leadership will allow the TDP to continue and strengthen its fundraising, political, organizational and communications tasks."
"I cannot say enough about the job Ruben Hernandez has done for the Texas Democratic Party," Richie added. "In six years as Executive Director, Ruben's guidance has enabled TDP to build an infrastructure that is second to none among state Democratic parties, and he has earned the respect and appreciation of Texas Democrats."
Bill Brannon has been professionally involved in politics for over 30 years. He has been part of over 150 campaigns at all levels and in virtually all positions. As an administrator, Bill has directed numerous campaign staffs and has over ten years experience as the District Director for two congressional offices. Bill has participated in the Texas Democratic Party at all levels - as an activist, Precinct Chair, County Chair and SDEC member.
Bill currently serves as Deputy Political Director for Party Operations. He lives in Sulphur Springs with his wife Vali and will relocate to Austin.
Join us below for an ongoing update of today's State Democratic Executive Meeting in Austin, Texas. This is the second full meeting of the SDEC since the 2010 November elections.
BREAKING: Boyd Richies announces that he will not seek another term as TDP Chair and will continue to serve to provide a smooth transition over the next 14 months until a new chair is elected at the State Convention in June of 2012. I have posted his full statement below the live blog.
Letter from Chairman Boyd Richie on not seeking re-election.
Dear fellow Democrat,
I want to share with you the following statement I've just released.
"Every day, as both state and national Republicans wage war on working families, the vital nature of our mission becomes more obvious.
"Knowing how important our work is - it is a very real and special privilege to be Chair of the Texas Democratic Party. I've enjoyed wonderful experiences, met scores of remarkable people, and I've learned a lot.
"As a three-time candidate for Party Chair, one of the things I've learned is that there is always a little friction between running for the position and doing the job. And frankly, we don't have time for that.
"Betty and I have reached the difficult but honest conclusion that, at this point in time, our Party needs a Chair who is not encumbered by also being a candidate.
"Therefore, I have two announcements today. First, I will not seek re-election. Second, and perhaps more importantly, I will dedicate the next 14 months to working with you to build the strongest, most prepared Texas Democratic Party possible
"Now more than ever, Democrats must unite, because a Republican political agenda that threatens to shut down government, schools and nursing homes is one that has turned its back on the people.
"I have faith that our Party will meet that challenge. We have work to do. Given what's at stake, we can afford to do no less."
Social Security and by extension Medicare have often been called one of the three legs of the Democratic Party yet some in the media are reporting that our President is planning to call for cuts to those very programs in his State of the Union address. Let's all be clear regardless of the findings of the Deficit Commission, Social Security and Medicare are not the cause of the deficit. We all know that Social Security is paid for by taxes dedicated directly to it and not out of the general fund. Social Security is not now and will not be in the next few decades in danger of default.
Considering the level of Democratic voter apathy in Texas due to the poor economy I believe it is incumbent the Democratic Party and our elected officials to show by word and deed that we intend to protect Social Security and Medicare from cuts. It is high time that the message of the Party and our elected officials focused on the moral issues of our day and one of those issues it protecting the weak and less fortunate among us. It is above all necessary that the Party return to its roots as the party of the people. If the leadership of the Democratic Party makes the mistake of accepting the conservative frame on this issue it will mean the end of the "social safety net" and the Democratic Party.
I urge you in your capacity as the leader of the Texas Democratic Party and spokesperson for Texas Democrats to use all your resources to insure support for Social Security and Medicare among the Democratic members of the Texas Congressional delegation. I also call on you to bring to the attention of the Democratic National Committee and the President the urgent need to protect Social Security and Medicare from cuts.
I respect any person or elected officials that has the courage to stand up for their convictions and face the public. This philosophy is why I respect so many elected officials (even when I don't support them).
Before and after elections, candidates and incumbents have to face political and constituent pressures to "do the right thing".
This is why I supported Kirk England and Arlen Specter when they switched parties before the election season. They stood by their beliefs, faced their constituents and declared, you have the decision to keep me or fire me. Simply, they announced before an election and not afterwards.
Alan Ritter did the exact opposite. He filed as a Democrat. Won re-election as a Democrat. When the going got tough, he betrayed the people who less than a month ago voted for him. Even though House District 21 voted for Democratic PAC Chair and Democratic candidate Alan Ritter, they elected a turncoat who open lied.
House District 21 should have the right to either approve Ritter's cowardly choice or reject him. Instead, as it stands now, the people who voted for Ritter, gave him 2 years to serve a false constituency. Sadly, unless Ritter does the right thing, they can't hold accountable one way or the other.
Yesterday, Texas Democratic Party Chairman Boyd Richie issued a statement that I wholly agree with.
Dear fellow Democrat,
This past weekend, I was extremely disappointed to learn that a Democratic Texas House Member, Allan Ritter of Nederland, has told colleagues that he plans to switch parties to become a Republican. His announcement comes just weeks after he was elected to serve another term as a Democrat, and his immediate party switch shows contempt for the voters and is certainly not a principled decision.
I've issued a statement to the press, expressing my view that if Rep. Ritter does intend to switch parties, he should show the voters enough respect to immediately resign and seek election as a Republican. I will make the same call to any other Democratic lawmaker who considers switching parties now, because switching parties immediately after being elected is a disingenuous slap in the face of the voters who put that legislator in office.
As I said in my statement, Texans will soon see the impact of failed Republican policy on our state and local economy, our schools and our communities. Those who switch parties to join Republicans now will be held accountable for every action that harms our public schools and universities, our children's health, and our economic future, not to mention the attacks we expect on our right to vote freely in fair and legal districts. In the case of Rep. Ritter, we pointed out how Republican policy is harmful to his constituents, and we will do the same with anyone else who abandons his own voters by switching parties.
In the Democratic Party, there is room for principled officeholders without regard to labels. We are united by our willingness to stand up to special interests and do what is right for our community. Those who switch parties now are not acting on principle, and we will hold them accountable. Thank you for your commitment to the common sense principles that define our party. Together, we can and will hold the Republicans, both old and new, accountable and restore responsible government in Texas.
Ritter, along with any other person who switches parties immediately after an election, should offer to return campaign contributions and resign to run in a special election.
Voters should have a voice and hold someone accountable. Instead, Ritter has 2 years in office and has already shown his political ambition is more valuable than being open and honest to his constituents.
To be clear, I could care less if people switch. Democrats are going to pick up nearly a dozen seats in 2 years because of the gross over correction in 2010. If Ritter, or any other Democrat, wants to paint a giant bulls-eye on their back, I can't stop someone from committing political suicide. At the end of the day though, voters should have rights. It appears Ritter simply doesn't believe that.
The convention is over. For disclosure purposes, I was working every day to help re-elect Boyd Richie to be our state party chair and was a floor captain charged with whipping votes, distributing information and be an on site resource for the Chairman's re-election.
That's not what this post is about though. No, this is a detailed reflection on what the chair's race looked like from an inside perspective.
While Boyd Richie won a decisive victory over challenger and schoolteacher, Michael Barnes, the race was intense. The final vote was 5,891.4 to 1,555.6, but that's not the end of this story. The reality is, Barnes ran an aggressive campaign. He mailed post cards, sent e-mails, called delegates, and had a strong campaign at the convention.
For that, Barnes should be applauded.
The reality is, Boyd has delivered as chairman of our party. The House is nearly evenly split. He defeated Tom Craddick. And, a recent PPP Poll has the race for the Governors mansion tied.
This convention seems to be a referendum on continuing down the path of organizing and focusing not on a structural shake up but on flipping the state.
Barnes' aggressive campaign had some momentum. He won the endorsement of the Hispanic caucus and put together a list of supporters from across the state. Not to mention he won 3 senate districts (the exact districts escapes me currently, sorry). Barnes' full court press motivated us on the floor to work tirelessly to promote the Chairman and get fair and exact counts on delegate support district by district. As one friend put it, if we work as hard we did re-electing Boyd Richie, the Republicans better be nervous.
At the end of the day, the chairs' race wasn't as exciting or close as the first one I ever worked on (Glen Maxey vs. Boyd Richie), but Barnes was a formidable opponent focused on the right thing... winning in November.
There's a reason Texas has a tightly woven set of campaign finance laws. It ensures that the public can see who writes the checks to political candidates and parties to affect the outcome of elections.
Today, the Texas Democratic Party joined the Dallas Morning news and legal experts in their criticism of the Republican Party's unethical actions.
According to a release from the Party, the Texas Democratic Party asked a State District Judge to issue a temporary restraining order to prevent the certification of Green Party candidates pending a fast track discovery process to gather facts that will determine whether laws were broken by out-of-state Republican operatives.
The Republicans secretly funded and organized a ballot petition operation that may have been funded by illegal, anonymous contributions, according to reports published this week by the Dallas Morning News. The TDP was forced to take legal action because those involved with this dubious secret Republican-Green Party scheme have refused to be upfront with Texans about the nature of this political contribution, and legal discovery would serve the public interest by shedding light on a murky transaction. As the Dallas Morning News stated in an editorial yesterday, "the legality of the money behind the Green petitions needs to be tested in court."
"That corporation cannot make contributions to political parties in Texas. And to do so is a felony," he said. "It is also a felony for a political party to accept a corporate contribution."
Green Party state coordinator, Kat Swift, isn't even sure where the money, gathered by Tim Mooney,originated, who the donors are, or how it was bundled. To be clear we aren't talking about a little money. The money given to the Texas Green Party amounts to $200,000 or one third of the money Rick Perry has spent on the his taxpayer funded rental mansion.
Green Party state coordinator Kat Swift said the group intends to report the Missouri corporation as the donor of the in-kind contribution.
She said she didn't know who actually provided the funding, and Tim Mooney, the Arizona operative who arranged the effort, declined to say. He estimated the cost at about $200,000.
Wood said that while an individual donor could legally bankroll petition drives to put a party on the ballot, corporations cannot.
This alone is grounds for the temporary restraining order.
"Even the Green Party has acknowledged the likelihood that the funds originated from an illegal source. For them to depend on the word of shady out-of-state Republican operatives to determine whether this is illegal would be like depending on the word of BP to determine responsibility for the oil spill," said Texas Democratic Party Chairman Boyd Richie. "If the Green Party is truly concerned that no laws have been broken, they will welcome this judicial review."
[...]
"Texans need to know the truth about Rick Perry's involvement in the Republican/Green Party petition scam," said Richie. "When the truth is known, we hope voters - especially sincere Green Party supporters and candidates - will realize that their integrity rests on how they address the improper nature of how their candidates' eligibility was bought and paid for by out of state right wing operatives and donors."
Now, before the attacks come. Let's be honest on two fronts. One, in 2000, I voted for the Green Party in Texas and was part of the organized vote swaps for swing districts. So any argument that BOR doesn't want people to have their voice heard or kick people off the ballot is silly. Second, any political party that will sell itself like this in order to harm its greater cause is foolish.
The Green Party stands for workers rights, consumer rights, safety standards, the environment, fair pay and fair trade. Can anyone come up with a good argument on how accepting $200,000 from a party in direct opposition to these ideals helps?
Plaintiffs in the suit include the TDP, TDP Chairman Boyd Richie and John Warren, Democratic nominee for Dallas County Clerk. Defendants named include the Texas Green Party, Texas Green Party Director Kat Swift, Republican political operative Tim Mooney, Take Initiative America, and Free and Equal Inc.
John Cornyn should know better. The Civil Rights Act is not some technical piece of legislation subject to a “gotcha question.” And it’s not just some “law that was passed 40 years ago.” It is an indelible measure of our character as a nation. Anyone running for the U.S. Senate should be able to intelligently explain their beliefs about the Act that guaranteed the most fundamental rights to all citizens of our American democracy. Click here to donate $5 or more today and tell Texas Republicans we are sick and tired of backward leadership.
Later, he continued making excuses for Rand:
“Rand Paul, like every new candidate, is going to get better,” Cornyn said. Candidates “make mistakes and they misspeak.” (Bloomberg, 5/21/10)
Why is John Cornyn making excuses for Rand Paul’s ignorance? If John Cornyn needs “more detail” about the Civil Rights Act so he can be better informed on historical legislation that transformed America forever, then we’re happy to teach him all about it. I’d tell Senator Cornyn to go look up the Civil Rights Act in a textbook, but I can’t be sure if the State Board of Education has left that in the curriculum standards. He’ll just have to learn “more detail” about the Civil Rights Act from Texans directly.
As Libby Shaw pointed out, David Corn of Mother Jones said on MSNBC that endorsing Rand Paul was like hugging a hand grenade. If Cornyn continues to make excuses for Paul's extremist remarks, it will be a question of when, not if, that grenade is going to go off. The extremist views (and that's the only accurate way to describe them) of Paul and the Tea Party could ultimately alienate moderate and independent voters this November.
The sad reality for the National Republican Senatorial Committee (and Cornyn, the group's chair) is that there's more than five months until Election Day. There is no doubt that Paul will make more outrageous comments in the days, weeks, and months to come. And John Cornyn will continue be there to make excuses for Paul's views that are far outside the mainstream of America.
You can take Richie's advice by e-mailing Cornyn's office at info@johncornyn.com or calling (202) 224-2934.
Texas Democratic Party Chairman, Boyd Richie, has just sent out a statement regarding Gov. Rick Perry's decision to decline to apply for $700 million in federal Race to the Top education funds,
"What kind of Texan is not willing to compete for his children? It's widely acknowledged our schools don't have adequate funding, and hundreds of school districts were forced to raise local taxes, lay off teachers or eliminate programs due to the Governor's 2006 state education funding freeze.
"It's clear Rick Perry is more concerned with trying to be Governor for life than he is with the 4.8 million children who attend our Texas schools."
We will do our best to report on other statements as they are released.
What may have seen impossible in the immediate wake of her third-place finish in this spring's Austin Mayor race, may actually end up happening. The Statesman's Jason Embry has reported that Carole Strayhorn has had discussions with Texas Democratic Party Chair Boyd Richie about seeking the party's nomination for comptroller.
Strayhorn, who has run for office as a Democrat, Republican, and Independent, has served as Mayor of Austin, railroad commissioner, and, before incumbent Susan Combs took office in 2007, comptroller.
The Statesman's Gardner Selby had previously reported that Strayhorn had contacted Houston Mayor Bill White, the leading Democratic candidate for governor, about her possible candidacy for comptroller.
“We will rely on our voters to consider each candidate’s record and decide if they have the Democratic credentials they want in a nominee. Our role is to run a fair primary.”
While former Congressman Nick Lampson said he was considering running and State Rep. Mike Villarreal (D-San Antonio) briefly thought about entering the race, no Democrat has decided to challenge Combs yet.
If Strayhorn decides to run, she will have a lot of explaining to do for her Republican past and, given the frequency of her attempts at electoral office, she will have to also prove that she truly wants to be comptroller. Despite her negatives, she has won at least four or five statewide elections, and certainly has higher name ID than probably any other potential rival to Combs, whose campaign has $4 million on hand.
