US Senate Endorsements as we Wait for Fundraising Numbers

by: Michael Hurta

Thu Oct 08, 2009 at 05:50 PM CDT

Van de Putte is a legislator and politician that we all respect here at the Burnt Orange Report, and she is someone we all wanted to run for a statewide office.  That said, I take her opinion on John Sharp seriously as a reason not to rule him out, despite KT's convincing Special Comment,

That said, the Van de Putte announcement elicited a few reactions for me:

• I hope Senator Van de Putte is thinking purely about policy ability rather than campaign ability.  I think in policy, one can easily flip a coin between Sharp and White as to which man is distinctively better.  On campaign ability, though?
• Is John Sharp trying to cover for another bad fundraising quarter?  We will see in due time, but it's hard to imagine a getter reason for the announcement's timing.
• The two thoughts above, though, assume John Sharp's fundraising successes will continue the negative trend that we saw the last quarter.  Instead, John Sharp could be leading us to a surprise with a strong fundraising quarter.  I doubt this, but if he reports high numbers, he could make a solid case for momentum.

Meanwhile, Bill White isn't leaving us waiting for his money reports as if that's all he has going for him.  Besides the revelation that Warren Buffett is among his donors, he recently announced the endorsement of nine members from the Texas Legislative Black Caucus.  The group includes Alma Allen, Garnet Coleman, Dawnna Dukes, Harold Dutton, Helen Giddings, Barbara Mallory Caraway, Ruth McClendon, Sylvester Turner, and Marc Veasey.

It was useful to group them together so White could use the Black Caucus' name in a press release, but observers should note that most of this is not new.  His page of endorsements from Texas representatives listed most of these names before the announcement was made earlier today.  In reality, it seems only Representatives [Turner,] Dutton and Giddings can be counted as "new" endorsements.

Either way, both Bill White and John Sharp have added names to their endorsement lists.  As lackluster as Sharp's campaign has looked, he has faired alright in gaining names for that list.  Unfortunately, endorsements are not all that matters.

We will learn more when we see fundraising numbers.

Update: I messed up with some of the Bill White endorsements.  Chris Turner had previously endorsed White, but Sylvester Turner had not.  So add Sly Turner as a new endorsement.  Bill White spokesperson Katy Bacon also pointed out to me that the new endorsements mean that Bill White has received endorsements from a majority of Democratic State Representatives.  That in itself is an accomplishment.

Senator Kirk Watson Remains Uncommitted for Statewide Run

by: Matt Glazer

Wed Jun 24, 2009 at 10:39 AM CDT

David Mauro speculated on the Travis County shake up and a couple of us even started a draft Watson facebook page.

While all this was going on, one thing still remained unclear.  Will Watson even run.

The inside Austin speculation has always been Watson would be a strong and formidable candidate and was seriously looking on when and if he should run for statewide office again.

Peggy Fikac caught up with Senator Watson and put the Senator on the clock. Watson has stated he won't make a decision until the end of the summer which should be around the time a special session concludes.

He went on to tell Peggy...

I am very flattered by Senator Van de Putte's confidence in me, and I strongly agree with her about the need for improved leadership in Texas.

I have a job I enjoy greatly, which is representing the citizens of Senate District 14. Over the next several weeks, I will evaluate the role I intend to play in serving Texas after 2010. That service may include running for and serving in another office or running for reelection. I intend to give this issue serious consideration, and I do not anticipate making any decisions in this regard until at least sometime after the end of the anticipated special session of the legislature, and probably not until the end of the summer.

With Senator Van De Putte's announcement yesterday, even though it was a decision not to run, expect the statewide roster to begin solidifying over the next 60 to 90 days.

Leticia Van De Putte Opts Out of Statewide Run, Urges Kirk Watson to Enter Race

by: Matt Glazer

Tue Jun 23, 2009 at 11:55 AM CDT

Texas Senator Leticia Van De Putte has released a statement regarding the rumors about a possible run for Governor any other statewide office.

A few weeks ago, Senator Van De Putte sat down with Phil Martin and discussed the race and her thoughts on the 81st session.

Today, Van De Putte has announced she has opted out of running for any statewide office and further announces her support for Texas Senator Kirk Watson.  Watson is not a candidate for Governor or any statewide office at this time, but with this release and strong statement of support, Watson will be someone to watch in the upcoming special session.

Here is the complete release:

"Five months of speculation  regarding the possibility of me running for Governor has, quite frankly, been surprising. It started with nothing more than me not immediately saying 'no,' unlike in past election cycles, when asked if I would consider such a run. The reactions of thousands of Texans who encouraged me to give it serious consideration has been flattering.

"I have, indeed, given it very serious thought, and while I would love to believe, tongue firmly planted in cheek, that this pent-up desire on the part of so many Texans for me to run for governor is solely because of some perceived superior leadership ability and vast intellect of mine, I have to reluctantly admit that it's not as much about me as it is about Republican failures.

"This is about Texas' stunning lack of current leadership. Large and growing numbers feel betrayed by the Republicans they voted into statewide office, and who can blame them?  While Texas families remain concerned about genuine priority issues, Republicans led by Rick Perry continue to instead obsess about hyper-partisan issues, in order to grab more power for themselves.

"Texans still pay the highest homeowners insurance premiums in the country. Texas still has the highest percentage in the country of those without access to health care. Texas still has the second highest rate of teen pregnancy in the nation, and the highest rate of teens with a second pregnancy. And after years of Republican 'leadership,' not only has Rick Perry failed to address these challenges, but he and his minions have done everything they can to avoid addressing them in any meaningful way. Rick Perry, Kay Bailey Hutchison, and others in the Republican leadership have turned their backs on 25 million Texans, instead opting to curry favor with a handful of fringe Republican primary voters.

"If I believed for a second that it would result in a healthy debate of the issues of most importance to Texas families, I would today be announcing my candidacy for Governor of Texas. But we have all watched over the years as Perry, Hutchison, and other Republican politicians have launched their scorched earth 'say anything to win' vicious attacks against political opponents. To mask their utter lack of leadership, they'll do so again, and I decline to put my family through it. That I am a Latina would only serve to amplify their attacks.

"I will gladly work hard to ensure that a Democrat prevails in the election for Governor, so that Texas families can have a better shot at having a state government focused on the needs of Texans, instead of state Republican leadership obsessed with their own political futures, at Texans' expense.

"Prominent Democrats must put personal ambitions aside and very pragmatically nominate the person best equipped to win in November. Just because one can win the Democratic nomination for Governor doesn't mean one should, unless he or she is best positioned to defeat the Republican nominee in the fall.

"That's why I think Senator Kirk Watson should raise his sights and run for Governor. I've watched as Senator Watson has emerged as a leader in the state Senate on the issues of most importance to Texans. While staying true to Democratic values, he is a bipartisan pragmatic leader solidly focused on addressing the priorities of all Texans. I intend to lobby Senator Watson to run for governor, and I'll wholeheartedly support him if he does. But if he declines, Democrats should recruit and support someone who, like Watson, is energetic, pragmatic, focused, and smart; and who can fully energize Democratic supporters while also attracting a broad range of independent voters in every region of the state.

"The Republicans have had their day, and Texans have realized that the Republicans can't lead. I will be working hard to elect a Democrat to the Governor's office."

There are more than a few rumors circulating about when the Special Session will occur.  The most common rumor is it will start in the first or second week of July.  Once the special session is over, expect Watson and others to announce their attentions to either run or not run statewide.

Update:  A statement from Tom Schieffer on Van de Putte's decision.

Senator Van de Putte has been a respected member of the Senate for many years. She would have been a formidable opponent in the Democratic primary. I am grateful she will not be running for governor this year. I look forward to sitting down with her to discuss my candidacy because I believe I can be the kind of candidate she can support, both in the Democratic primary and the general election.

Political Snowbirds: The Case for Sen. Leticia Van de Putte for Texas Governor

by: MeanRachel

Mon Jun 08, 2009 at 09:48 PM CDT

Are the property taxes in Florida on the upswing?  If so, it might begin to explain why Texas Democrats are currently staring down the barrel of two primary candidates (three if you count glory campaigner Mark Thompson) who most accurately could be described as political snowbirds.  Wikipedia defines snowbirds as Northerners who seek winter warmth somewhere south of the Mason-Dixon line.  In the case of Former Ambassador Tom Scheiffer (really, Texas?) and The Artist Formerly Known as an Independent, Kinky Friedman (Purple Drought - one of his classic little-known hits), the two are hoping to bask in the warmth of the new Texas Democrat.  Oh, and to become Governor of Texas.  Do we know how to pick 'em or what?

On second thought, don't answer that.

One or both of these men have spent a little too much time in the humidor.  The Texas Democrats that picked up Texas House seats, flipped a Texas Senate seat, and voted for Barack Obama are not looking to elect someone who's running for Governor as a retirement plan (try my self-employed dad's approach - bank on the heart-attack).  And, as much as the establishment fantasizes about one or both of our milquetoast big spenders luring the disenchanted Republican vote, we can't lose sight of what happens after they become Governor.  We've learned that one the hard way.

One potential candidate who has yet to decide whether or not to run has the opportunity to benefit Texan's future if elected Governor.  But - and this is where it gets different - it's not her future.  It's not even ours.  It's our children's.  And, incidentally, it's also her grandson's.

State Senator Leticia Van de Putte has been on the fringe of running since before local activists started lining up to work and volunteer for her.  The San Antonio Current profiled her back in February talking about "Julian's Agenda," Van de Putte's future-planning proposals to make the world a better place for her grandson Julian.  She spoke of marketing "education and green-energy programs to Republicans as economic, return-on-investment ideas rather than as moral or environmental imperatives," strategies that cross partisan lines in a different way than Scheiffer's of being buddies with the former President - those are strategies of a leader.

It's this very leadership with a conscience that Texans deserve - her mindset is not that of a divisive partisan focus or of a political high-risk investor, ready to gamble his millions on a run for the roses.  Her leadership was developed through experience - leading a minority in the Senate, serving as co-chair at the 2008 Democratic National Convention - but a conscience requires a diverse, outward-looking perspective.  Van de Putte's desire to benefit generations beyond her own reflects a life that wasn't lived promoting oneself in front of bright lights or in a board room.  A mother of six grown children, a working woman for 28 years as a pharmacist before running for office after the encouragement of her husband, and the representative of roughly 800,000 Texans as State Senator, her constituency - the people and the life that she represents - defines her conscience.  

Political snowbirds go Democratic when the weather gets good.  But we need someone who's not looking to run because the sun's finally shining on Texas Democrats.  Texas needs a Governor who will see her constituents through the storms.

Legislature Adjourns Sine Die, Refuses to Pass Top Perry Priority

by: Matt Glazer

Mon Jun 01, 2009 at 09:31 PM CDT

Here is the long story.

The Texas Department of Transportation and the Texas Department of Insurance are under threat of sunseting before the next regular legislative session.

The next session won't start for a little under 2 years, but both agencies begin the sunset process in a little over a year and a half.  The gap required legislators to discuss a Sunset safety net to fix the gap.

The House put a quick and dirty solution together and voted out HCR 291.  HCR 291 was the proposed solution to keep TDI and TxDOT operating until next session since HB 1959 didn't get through the deadlines.

When the Republican led Senate couldn't figure out what to do in response to the Republican led House, Republican Troy Fraser made the motion to simply adjourn the Texas Senate Sine Die without fixing the problem.

According to Quorum Report, Leticia Van De Putte opposed the idea and told her colleagues in the Senate exactly what she thought.

San Antonio Democrat Leticia van de Putte was not satisfied with the response.  She pointed out that the Department of Insurance is also in danger of being sunsetted.

"What happens to consumers should be leave here with out authorizing the continuance of the Texas Department of Insurance (and TxDOT)?" Van de Putte asked.

[...]

"I'm afraid that we are shirking our responsibility. Just because the House has acted irresponsibly, does that mean they have to drag the Senate into it, too?" Van de Putte said.  "We are possibly facing legislative suicide with those two agencies."

Needless to say, the nearly 2/3rd Republican chamber voted to adjourn without fixing the problem.

Now, Rick Perry has to decide whether addressing the agencies before the sunset really is a top priority of his or not.  If it is a priority, his only solution is to call a special session. If it was all political pandering and posturing, then say goodbye to TxDOT and TDI.

Regardless, this is what failed leadership looks like on every level.  This a failure of the House, Senate, and the Governor.  There wasn't a leader at any level and because of it, Republicans decided to go home instead of working through the problem.

Windstorm insurance was a huge priority for Rick Perry.  The hard work and push doesn't mean much without the Department of Insurance.

Clearly, more on this story as it develops.

Senator Leticia Van de Putte: Will Announce Decision on Statewide Run Soon

by: Phillip Martin

Fri May 29, 2009 at 02:36 PM CDT

Ed. Note: The policy stuff is above the fold, the politics is below the fold. 

Key Quote: I have not had the opportunity to visit one-on-one with key members of my family; my son will be in town this weekend, and hopefully I'll be able to speak with him and his wife then, but I'll probably be making a decision within the next week or so. [...]

Could it happen in Texas? It might be me, and if it's not, I'll work hard for whoever. If there's no one else, though, then I need to work with my family and say, "this is my life for eighteen months."

But this is possible -- we could win. I'm going to do a lot of praying and soul-searching, and I had a very wise person tell me, "you're never 100% certain." It's a leap of faith. At some point, you just got to jump.

This morning, I had an extended interview with State Senator Leticia Van de Putte. We talked about the policies she's championed this session -- including a landmark anti-human trafficking bill she worked on with Rep. Senfronia Thompson and other members -- as well as the $1.9 billion new funding she helped secure for school finance. We talked about how the 2/3 rule change Republicans championed came back to haunt Republicans in the final days. And we talked about her statewide interest in a potential run for Governor.

Here's the quick news: in the next two to three weeks, and maybe sooner, Senator Van de Putte intends to announce whether or not she will run for Governor. Her answers to my questions (which are below) remain balanced and measured, and she still stressed that she does not want to announce anything until after the end of the Session.

But her attitude has shifted; it's not something I can quantify with a reproduction of the text of our conversation, but for someone that has stayed up until the wee hours of the morning for four days straight working on a huge range of legislation, she certainly was eager and engaged in the discussion. I'd characterize it as a test balloon when I interviewed her in early March, whereas this felt more like a test blimp (if that makes any sense). I still have no idea if she will run, and Senator Van de Putte was perfectly clear that she's not deciding anything yet.

But now we know -- we'll all know for sure soon enough.

Below is the highlights from our conversation. The policy is upfront -- because everything that matters most right now is policy.

What is going to happen to the CHIP expansion legislation? Is it dead?

We are going to do everything we can to save it, but it will be hard.

Last week, when the chubbing was happening, there had been an understanding that there would be at least two critical bills that the House would put above voter ID. CHIP, everybody wanted to do something on, and eminent domain, everybody wanted to do something on. Then, when the third reading chubbing began, we found out that several House Republicans were upset about it, but that the deal was still OK and CHIP and eminent domain would still be on the table. That, unfortunately, never happened.

So we needed to figure out the quickest way to move the CHIP legislation, and that was with the [Rep. Paula Pierson] bill. Last Wednesday, Senator Deuell -- who is my counterpart leading the Republican caucus in the Senator -- and myself and our Senator Pro Tempore met with our counterparts -- House and Democratic leaders -- to discuss moving CHIP on this legislation. At the time, that was the plan. What we didn't find out until yesterday was this "strict enforcement" that several House Republicans have fought and asked for, which brings us to where we are today.

Couldn't you bring up Rep. Coleman's CHIP expansion legislation, which has sat in Senator Ogden's committee?

We could have, yes, but now the timelines are too strong against us. This has nothing to do with the House versus Senate thing -- it's just the timelines. The bill would have to lay out 24 hours in the House, but that will no longer work. What we're going to ask for, now, is that the House sent the bill we sent them to conference committee, where we can work on a solution. But now, that's not going to be possible.

The Senate could suspend all of our posting rules, but because of the House Republican actions, they don't have 2/3 to suspend the necessary rules. I think we're going to send a resolution over to them, and encourage them to just go to conference...but, right now there are lots of tensions for Republicans and Democrats, because of voter ID. When we first did voter ID at the start of session, things were horrible on our side. Tensions were tough, but now we've had two months to heal -- the House is still dealing with the tensions of those issues, so we will try to do what we can, but it's not looking good.

The 2/3 rule was circumvented for voter ID earlier in the session, did you have any idea it would lead to what we've seen happen in the last week?

Absolutely. Absolutely.

My comments in public then and recently has been that the idea that House Democrats chubbing is an issue -- I had to remind everyone that had the Senate and Senate Republicans never changed the rules, the House would be rocking and rolling right now. For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. They knew how uncomfortable we all were and how tense it was when we did voter ID here, and we told them, "you're going to reap what you sow."

And it wasn't just Democrats -- if you look at what Senator Carona said, he said we should get voter ID passed, but we shouldn't change the rules to do so because this will come back to haunt is. Well, here we are.

What would you define as victories this session so far?

Well, if it survives, the work we began eight years ago and every session since on the anti-human trafficking omnibus bill. To think that modern day slavery occurs in this country is unconscionable. It is not a huge statewide issue because not a lot of people know about it, but the work I did with Rep. Senfronia Thompson -- and it was a bipartisan issue, but Rep. Thompson was wonderful -- that means a lot to me.

Can you talk about the policies in the anti-human trafficking bill?

The policies are the result of recommendations from a task force with the AG's office and HHS. We do a lot -- one of them is to form a state agency task force to educate people about the issue. On the law enforcement side, people don't necessarily recognize it when they hear about it. It could come in the form of a domestic violence call, or an unpaid worker complaint, or prostitution, and the law enforcement often take the victims and charge the victim as the criminal. When they take the layers off, they realize that it's not the victim's fault -- it's human trafficking. Its a victim services bill.

The bill has training for health care professionals, mandatory training for law enforcement on T-Close certification. Training for DA's, training for local officials. Training for immigrants to learn how to petition the judge so they can stay in the country. Posting in public places where there have been these violations -- so the number about human trafficking is present. There is a great civil cause of action section in the bill, getting to the money side of these things. I'm very excited about this bill -- it's not something that I think someone would say, "this has major state implication."

But the fact that humans are still in bondage just is terrible.

Other issues on "Julian's Agenda" that you've worked on?

I was focused on education, the environment, and the economy.

I was real sad that the issues I worked on with the economy -- especially with the UI rules changes -- died. The environmental stuff -- the solar in schools -- (crosses her fingers) we attached it to something else, but we aren't sure if it's going to survive. It died in the House, but we tacked it onto a bill and we're waiting to see if it is germane. There are other great environmental stuff -- plastic bags, RPS stuff -- and we just don't know the outcomes of that yet.

On education, though -- I got $1.9 billion into the public school system. We're on the conference committee right now, and I need to work with Rep. Hochberg on the issue, but it's in there, the money is in the budget, and we didn't even need a court order! This is the first time that we've had extra money beyond enrollment growth money in the bill without needing the Supreme Court to tell us to do so. This began a year ago with my talks with Senator Ogden, and I couldn't have done it without him. But the House and Senate passed a unanimous school finance bill this session -- that's great stuff.

Do you think the acrimony in the final week will drown out the good things that have happened?

I think superintendents know about the money, and school people know. But, the general public doesn't yet because the press is pretty focused on the disharmony and the dysfunction. We could save things in the next three days, but its dependent on the work of the small group of people that have stayed awake until 3am for a week.

Sometimes, though, you can measure your success by what you're able to defeat -- that really hurtful ultrasound bill, for example. Voter ID. Vouchers was never even discussed. The McElroy nomination. And then we made some headway on big issues -- the House passed the energy bill, we've got some great work done this session on the judicial system, and even getting issues through one chamber are good victories. We don't have as many full-fledged victories as we like, but we're almost there.

And this incrementally improving policy trend parallels what's going on with politics -- as Democrats start winning more and more...

I think that Democrats' message is resonating very well in rural and suburban areas.

And that gets me to the question all of our staff wanted to ask: when can we endorse you, and for what position?

I have not had the opportunity to visit one-on-one with key members of my family; my son will be in town this weekend, and hopefully I'll be able to speak with him and his wife then, but I'll probably be making a decision within the next week or so.

[To continue reading, click "There's More" to go below the fold].

20 Republicans Vote Against Helping Active Duty Soldiers, Families

by: Matt Glazer

Tue Apr 07, 2009 at 01:11 PM CDT

The bill is intended to provide support to the men and women who have served our country and are ready to go to any of our public universities.

According to the bill analysis:

Currently, veterans who are not Texans but who want to attend a public college or university in Texas are required to pay out-of-state tuition and fees until they have lived in Texas for one year. Non-Texas veterans who may be interested in settling in Texas may  be hesitant to attend college here because of the out-of-state tuition costs.  Senate Bill 297 would deliver real support to veterans while helping strengthen Texas' economy by attracting and keeping talent in the state.   Expanding in-state tuition benefits to military veterans and their spouses and children is a fitting way to recognize those who have served, led, and protected our country.

SB 297 would allow veterans and their spouses and children to pay in-state tuition and fees without regard to the length of time they have resided in Texas.

Democrat Marc Veasey offered an amendment during the House debate to extend these benefits to the children of active duty soldiers fighting in Iraq or Afghanistan.

It's not surprising the amendment and bill easily passed.  However, it is surprising nearly two dozen House Republicans voted against tuition benefits for the kids of soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Who were the Republicans who opposed helping children and our military?

• Fred Betty Brown
• Warren Chisum
• Joe Crabb
• Tom Craddick
• Brandon Creighton
• Gary Elkins
• Dan Flynn
• Kelly Hancock
• Will Hartnett
• Charlie Howard
• Ken Legle
• Debbie Riddle
• Ralph Sheffield
• Mark Shelton
• John Smithee
• David Swinford
• Vicki Truitt
• Randy Weber
• Beverly Woolley
• John Zerwas

To be clear.

A Democratic State Senator from San Antonio and a Democratic State Representative from Fort Worth authored and amended a piece of legislation to help military families get an education in our public universities. The amendment is projected to have little fiscal impact on the state budget, but it will improve the lives of families who have made huge sacrifices for our state and country.  It overwhelmingly passed, but 20 Republicans felt so strongly opposed to the amendment they decided to create a 13% minority and oppose active duty soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.  

As the right wing of the Republican Party continues to be marginalized and Democratic gains continue, expect that percentage to decrease.

Update: According to Vince Leibowitz, Chief of Staff for Rep. Sheffield, Molly B. Quirk, is saying he is changing his mind.

The  Rep. Sheffield did not vote against the amendment.  The unofficial tally is online, he changed his vote to aye. He is a co-author on the amendment to the amendment.

Update: Rep. Veasey's office had the following press release to elaborate on the amendment.

State Representative Marc Veasey (D-Fort Worth) today passed an amendment to Senate Bill 297 that will exempt the children of US Armed Forces personnel who are deployed in a foreign combat zone from tuition costs associated with attendance at a state institution of higher education during semesters when one or both of their parents are so deployed. The amendment passed with a vote of 125 members for to 20 members opposed.

"The purpose of this amendment is to honor the sacrifices made by our soldiers and their family members during times of war. Many of these soldiers have been deployed in Iraq or Afghanistan for years at a stretch, and the personal and economic costs to their families can be severe. This tuition exemption is a small way that we as a state can give back to these families who have given us so much," said Rep. Veasey.

Over 150,000 Americans are presently deployed in the Iraq and Afghanistan warzone, including many thousands of men and women from Texas. The Veasey amendment will open doors of opportunity for the college-age children of those soldiers deployed from Texas by sharply reducing the cost of higher education - a particularly important benefit during this time of economic hardship.

"Time and again, we've asked these men and women to put their lives on the line. I'm glad to see such a strong majority of my fellow representatives join me to provide what help we can to these soldiers' families," said Rep. Veasey.

Leticia Van de Putte to Speak at UDems Meeting

by: David Mauro

Wed Mar 25, 2009 at 10:20 AM CDT

State Sen. Leticia Van de Putte (D-San Antonio) will be the featured speaker at tonight's University Democrats meeting at the University of Texas in Austin. More information on the event, which begins at 8pm and is open to the public, is available here.

As a creator of the Draft Van de Putte for Governor group on Facebook, I have received messages from several people wondering if Sen. Van de Putte's presence at a UDems meeting is an indication she may be very seriously considering running for statewide office.

After all, they reasoned, U.S. Senate candidate Bill White recently visited with UDems to boost his candidacy.

While I do believe Sen. Van de Putte will be a candidate for statewide office, whether it is next year, in 2014 or further down the road, I would not read to much into this one appearance.

A press release from the Senator's office says she will be "discussing changes to the Top Ten Percent plan [and] legislative efforts to limit the rising cost of tuition and textbooks. She will also participate in a question and answer session with those in attendance."

Sen. Van de Putte's presence at tonight's UDems meeting is a consequence of her becoming one of our Party's unquestioned leaders and rising stars. Whether that will translate into a gubernatorial run next year remains to be seen, but it is great to see a Senator taking time to listen to the student concerns about higher education.

Is Schieffer the Guy for Democrats?

by: Todd Hill

Wed Mar 04, 2009 at 00:25 PM CST

What some Democrats haven't figured out yet is that Schieffer brings two potential gifts for the state party:

He can raise enough cash to discourage Democratic challengers, keeping the party's March primary positive while Republican Gov. Rick Perry swaps mud with challenger U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison;

And he can bring business moderates, particularly those who support public schools, back to the Democratic side.

I guess I'm one of those Democrats who hasn't figured it out yet.  Let me first tackle the fundraising angle here.  I think it truly remains to be seen what type of fundraising skill that Schieffer has.  I don't believe for one minute that he will scare away any potential challenger.  Somehow I don't believe the Schieffer name is sending shivers down the spines of the Senator Van de Putte's of the world.  Moreover, I believe that the vast majority of Democratic, moderate money will flow toward the senate race with White and Sharp so that means slim pickings for whatever candidates are in the Democratic primary for governor.  White has already proven that case with the numbers he has been posting.  Having said that, Schieffer wouldn't have entered this race if he wasn't promised some money from somewhere.  

BOR Interview with State Senator Leticia Van de Putte

by: Phillip Martin

Tue Mar 03, 2009 at 06:00 AM CST

Ed. Note: The first half of the interview is policy-based, because I think you can learn more about an elected official from how they approach policy than anything else. However, I also know what most readers want. To read the political side of the interview -- and her answers to the 2010 statewide questions -- go to the second half of the interview immediately by clicking here.

UPDATE: Follow Senator Van de Putte on twitter: http://twitter.com/leticiavdp

Texas State Senator Leticia Van de Putte made a big splash a couple weeks ago with an incredible profile in the San Antonio Current, and a subsequent post here on BOR by regular reader and Bastrop precinct chair Robert Ryland making the case for why Leticia Van de Putte she should be Governor generated dozens of comments from the community. As of this posting, a Facebook group that wants to draft Senator Van de Putte for Governor had over 530 members.

Senator Van de Putte's record on progressive issues lends credence to the attention she has received. A former President of the National Conference of State Legislators, Senator Van de Putte received her most recent bit of national attention as Co-Chair of the Democratic National Committee Convention in Colorado last summer. A little over a year ago, she gave the Spanish State of the Union response. She is the current and long-standing leader of the Texas Senate Democratic Caucus, a group that was thrust into the national spotlight in 2003 when she helped lead her colleagues to New Mexico for a month to help fight Tom Delay's unconstitutional mid-decade redistricting map.

Needless to say, Senator Leticia Van de Putte has been a hot topic among Texas Democrats over the past few weeks. I had a chance to interview Senator Van de Putte last Friday about the current legislative session, as well as what the political future may hold for her and the Democratic Party. Read the full transcript below.

---------------------------------------

Phillip Martin: It seems you've been quite busy lately. How has the last week been in the spotlight?

Senator Van de Putte: We had an incredible week in the State Senate. Things seem to be moving at a very quick pace, particularly at this time in the Legislature. Right now we want to make sure that all of the stimulus funding that is coming to our state and that will flow through the state budget gets utilized for its purposes. We're particularly pleased that we've been able to raise the importance of the unemployment insurance issue, so we can make sure that $540 million goes to workers that are already affected by the downturn of the economy.

I've read that Governor Perry changed the rules surrounding the unemployment fund, right?

Governor Perry got convinced by some of his business supporters that they needed to give relief to businesses, so they turned back the rate by which businesses pay into the unemployment fund. At the time, the unemployment insurance fund looked pretty solid. It was the wrong move, because as the downturn occurred nationally, Texas wasn't immune. Now, we find ourselves hundreds of millions of dollars short because Governor Perry, basically, decided to give it back.

However, the stimulus money that has been passed by the current administration would allow for us to draw down to the state an additional $540 million for workers who have lost their jobs. We had been hearing this rhetoric from Tom Pauken -- the former Chair of the Republican Party of Texas who is now Chair of the Texas Workforce Commission -- that he and Governor Perry didn't want to accept this money. They were saying that there were strings attached and this was not something we needed to burden Texas employers with.

Nothing could be further from the truth. What about the people who have already lost their jobs? We are very happy that on record this week Senator Kirk Watson -- who sits on the Senate Nominations Committee -- got Tom Pauken to publicly recognize the fact that, yes, we absolutely need these dollars and we need to change the law in the state of Texas to be able to get those stimulus dollars to the state of Texas.

With the change in law, you're referring -- I'd presume -- to the legislation you've filed?

Yes. And what's interesting is that Senator Lucio and I have been filing these bills year after year, because the policies are inherently unfair to workers. There's a trio of bills that we're looking at, and we've asked Governor Perry to put them on the special call for the Session. As soon as we pass these bills, we're eligible for the stimulus money.

There are a lot of folks that will lose their jobs this summer, unfortunately, and on into the fall. We haven't gotten to the worst of this economy. But we know there is money to start doing something now, and that's what the legislation is trying to do.

I know that we've seen some figures about full-time workers that have lost their jobs, but one of the growing stories across the country is the large number of part-time workers that are losing their jobs. Can you give me a sense of how many part-time workers have lost their jobs, or if there has been a growing rate in the number of reduced hours worked here in Texas by part-time, or even full-time, workers?

Well, Texas is one of the few states that does not allow part-time workers to collect unemployment insurance, so we don't have solid data on that. The bill I have filed would allow part-time workers to file unemployment insurance claims and, if they qualify, draw down some of those funds. While we don't know the statistics, though, we do know that in the down turned economy, the first to be told that they don't need to come to work the next day are part-time workers.

There are three classes of people that are mainly part-time workers. First, our young students who are either in high school or in college, but particularly college-age students. The second are working women with young children -- young moms that will work part-time, juggling family and home. The third are our senior citizens, who may be on a fixed income but still need that extra cash coming into their monthly pockets.

When we don't offer unemployment benefits to part-time workers, the ones who are affected our students, seniors, and working moms. These are folks who lost their jobs -- through no fault of their own -- but because of the downturn of the national economy and the state economy, these groups are having to go to food banks, they're going to have to ask their sisters to pay for the utilities...They're hurting, and we can only surmise that it's because they've lost the only job they have, even if it's a part-time job.

Ed. note: There is much, much more with Senator Van de Putte below the fold -- including her response to whether or not she'd run for Governor, what kind of infrastructure needs to be in place for a Democrat to win statewide, and her reaction to last week's Perry vs. Hutchison poll numbers. Click "There's More" to continue reading...