Haldenwang on Monday attempted to present Harper-Brown with an invoice for $11,370 in mileage reimbursements the incumbent received for traveling on state business since September 2007. Haldenwang said public money should not have been used to pay for the wear and tear on a car that Harper-Brown doesn’t own.
“We’ll give her the gasoline reimbursement, but the money she’s not entitled to, we want back,” Haldewang said.
Harper-Brown was in Austin on state business Monday and could not be reached for comment. Her campaign manager said that the reimbursements were for legitimate wear and tear.
Wait a minute -- wear and tear? Doesn't that only matter if you own the car? Let's go to the statute. From the Government Code:
Sec. 660.041. REIMBURSEMENT REQUIREMENT. (a) A state employee is entitled to be reimbursed as provided by this subchapter for the employee's use of a personally owned or leased motor vehicle.
Rep. Linda Harper-Brown said Tuesday that she has stopped driving a luxury car owned by a company that makes millions through state contracts.
Rep. Linda Harper-Brown got caught in another big, big lie. Haldenwang called her out for it in a release. Here's her statement and campaign video about the latest scandal:
“She can’t have it both ways,” Haldenwang stated.“On one hand, Linda Harper-Brow told the Dallas Morning News that the $55,174 Mercedes she has been driving doesn’t belong to her (“Linda Harper-Brown of Irving has quit driving Mercedes linked to Durable Enterprises,” 6/30/2010), but on the other hand she is claiming it is a personally owned vehicle by making taxpayers write her a check for $15,000.”
“Even if you give her the benefit of the doubt that she drove more miles than it takes to drive around the world — on the equator — Harper-Brown owes taxpayers at least $11,370.22,” Haldenwang added
Ed. note: The following is one of twenty races we are featuring in the Texas Political Report. Annie's List provided research and analysis for this race.
Meanwhile, Harper-Brown only won last cycle by 18 votes against a candidate with minimal resources. District 105 encompasses almost the entire city of Irving, just to the west and northwest of Dallas. A mix of middle class and working class voters, Irving also is home to a growing but not yet mobilized Latino population, a trend that has accelerated since the 2000 census. Obama won the district with 51.5% of the vote in 2008, showing taht the district can be carried by a Democrat. A strong candidate in Loretta Haldenwang could be our chance to take back the seat.
Why Democrats Can Upset Harper-Brown
Haldenwang has had a campaign manager on the ground since 18 months out, and she’s working hard to win over voters in her district. With such a slim margin of victory in 2008, and with an even tougher opponent this year, ethically-challenged Harper-Brown has the deck stacked against her if Haldenwang can get her message out and turn out her voters. If putting state license plates on a car you never paid for and never reported after it was given to you by a company that profits from legislation you sponsored and argued for before your committee and the House isn't enough to get a Republican beat in a swing district, then what will?
Candidates and elected officials are held to a higher standard in terms of honesty, integrity, and character. However, an emerging and rather disturbing trend among Texas Republican candidates and elected officials give reason for many voters to question whether possessing those qualities and upholding those standards are an integral part of the GOP candidate vetting process.
Voters are beginning to ask a fair question, which is whether the Republican Party cares about not only vetting candidates that live up to high standards that we as citizens expect of our elected officials, or if the Texas GOP simply takes for granted what power they hold as a Party and suffer from a dual case of incompetence and arrogance about who they are and what they stand for. We have no choice but to presume the latter based on the following evidence:
From a candidate perspective, the challenger to Representative Paula Pierson, Republican Barbara Nash, had serious questions raised about whether she was less than honest to voters about past business affairs nor was she forthcoming about horrendous allegations of elderly abuse at nursing homes managed by companies she and her husband owned. All of this leads one to question the character and integrity of the individual seeking to be a Texas Legislator representing House District 93. If you attempt and hide troubling allegations, attempt and hide questionable business affairs, and potentially falsify state documents in answering questions related to those allegations and business affairs, do you really believe Republican Barbara Nash is capable of being honest with District 93 voters?
Yet another candidate, Stefani Carter, the Republican challenger to Representative Carol Kent, raises questions about her character and integrity when she was caught on tape plagiarizing President Barack Obama's famous 2004 Democratic Convention speech. Republican Carter also embellished on her resume. If Republican Carter isn't original enough to articulate her own viewpoints without copying and pasting, or fails to be honest about her real background and work history, can voters in House District 102 expect Carter to be honest with them?
And finally the character and integrity of Republican Linda Harper-Brown, the State Representative from House District 105, is questioned because she was driving a $55,000 luxury car compliments of a highway contractor headquartered in her district. This contractor, with the help of Republican Harper-Brown, received over $12 million dollars in business with the state of Texas. Republican Harper-Brown is being challenged by Democrat Loretta Haldenwang. Can voters in House District 105 honestly say that Harper-Brown possess the character and integrity they expect from their elected officials?
Enough evidence has come forward to suggest that Republicans care little about the high standards and overall qualities that we as voters expect in candidates and elected officials. The ideas that politicians should be honest, possess integrity, and have moral character worthy of the office they seek or hold, are bedrock principles that Texas voters not only demand, but deserve. So far this election cycle a handful of Republican candidates and elected officials have fallen well short of voter standards.
Republican State Representative Linda Harper-Brown admitted she is involved in her husband's business and that she may be under criminal investigation today in the Dallas Morning News. The story -- "Rep. Linda Harper-Brown says she's given up company's Mercedes" -- lays out the following:
Harper-Brown told The Dallas Morning News that she was directing her husband to rework his compensation package from the company to exclude the cars. In theory, Brown would instead receive cash and then buy vehicles on his own. He said he could end up with the cars, but they would be in his name.
[...]
The Texas Values in Action Coalition, a group that pushes Democratic Party causes, has turned over information about Harper-Brown and Bryan’s companies to the Travis County District Attorney and the U.S. Attorney’s office in Dallas.
Harper-Brown fought back tears when she discussed dealing with perceptions that she was acting unethically by driving the car.
And she conceded that there could be a criminal investigation or one by the state ethics commision and that she would cooperate with authorities.
The Texas Values in Action Committee (TEXVAC), who initially filed the complaints, issued the following statement:
“This is clearly an admission of guilt by Linda Harper Brown that she illegally took a Mercedes from a company that benefitted from her role as a state legislator and has over 10 million dollars in state contracts. She can’t un-ring the bell, un-drive the Mercedes, or un-accept a bribe.”
“Once again, Linda Harper Brown is failing to address the serious issues at hand here, she can’t un-drive the car and think that the taking of it in the first place was ethical or legal. That’s like trying to give back the money after you’ve been caught robbing the bank."
WFAA television in the Dallas/Fort-Worth media market reports that Republican Linda Harper-Brown, currently the State Representative in District 105 in Irving, drives a $55,000 Mercedes Benz owned by an influential highway contractor that does over $12 million dollars in business with the State of Texas. Harper-Brown sits on the highly influential Transportation Committee.
The Texas Values in Action Coalition, a North Texas based Political Action Committee, uncovered a number of the nitty-gritty details and have turned evidence over to the U.S. Attorney's office in Dallas.
You'll recall that Republican Linda Harper-Brown was re-elected to this Irving-based House Seat by only 19 votes in 2008. Democrat Loretta Haldenwang, a stellar candidate supported by Annie's List, is challenging Republican Harper-Brown. House District 105 is one of a handful of targeted House seats that Democrats are putting forward well-credentialed and aggressive candidates in an effort to win back the Texas House.
This just has not been a good week for Texas Republicans.
Earlier this week Republican Stefani Carter, challenging Carol Kent in HD-102, had questions about her honesty and integrity spring forward for embellishing on her resume and plagiarizing President Obama's famous 2004 DNC Convention speech.
Rick Perry's campaign failed miserably on an attempted press conference stunt at the Travis County Coordinated Campaign headquarters for Democrats in which Bill White supporters drowned out Perry's minions with chants of "Debate Bill Now!"
Republican Joe Barton cemented the cozy relationship between Big Oil and the GOP due to Barton's apology to BP CEO Tony Hayward during his congressional testimony yesterday. Republican Barton was later forced by Republican leadership to apologize to the American people or lose his leadership position, but only after clearly demonstrating that the GOP will defend BP and not AP (American people).
And now Republican Linda Harper-Brown brings forward serious questions about her integrity and whether or not, ethically speaking, she should be driving a car paid for by a highway contractor who has millions of dollars in business deals with the State of Texas. With the additional caveat that Republican Harper-Brown sits on the powerful and influential House Transportation Committee.
What a really, really bad week for Texas Republicans.
Update:TDP Chairman Boyd Richie has called on Republican Speaker Joe Strauss to remove Harper-Brown from the Transportation Committee:
"It appears Linda Harper-Brown has profited by securing luxury vehicles in return for doing legislative favors for an industry with business before her committee," said Richie. "Speaker Straus should remove her from the Transportation Committee until a time when these charges have been addressed."
"If this information proves true, Linda Harper-Brown ran a legal and ethical red light, and she could no longer properly represent hardworking Texans who pay for their own cars and trucks with an honest day's work," Richie concluded.
Irving resident Loretta Haldenwang has filed for the Democratic primary in State House District 105, running on an agenda that positions Texas for an economic comeback.
Topping her priorities are incentives to attract more math and science teachers to the classroom, tackling local transportation issues, and freeing up more money for middle class families by taking on rising utility rates, the highest homeowner's insurance rates in the country, and the skyrocketing cost of college education.
Haldenwang, a partner in a Dallas venture capital firm and former outreach director of the Greater Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, will be challenging incumbent Republican Linda Harper Brown, who escaped defeat in 2008 by a mere 18 votes.
Loretta's focus on economic issues and her commitment to bringing regular people into the process has won her the support of Dallas County elected officials such as District Attorney Craig Watkins, statewide organizations including Annie's List, and many local leaders including Hon. Pauline Medrano and House District 105 precinct chairs including Joe Ramirez, Mary Richarte and Shirley Layton.
Since beginning her campaign, Loretta has held four town halls across Irving, and her volunteer block walk program has met with voters at over 1,100 doors. During these encounters, Irving voters have said that they're ready for change, and for representation that will put the needs of Texas families back on the agenda in Austin.
"Since last August I've been conducting a listening tour across our community. Irving families are fed up with Austin politicians that put special interests ahead of middle class families," Loretta noted.
Prior to her career in business, Haldenwang served as a District Director for Democratic State Representative Joaquin Castro, a position that gave her an in-depth knowledge of the legislative process.
"I saw first-hand what happens when the lobbyists run the show. We can make a difference if we bring the voices of North Texas families to the table," Haldenwang said.
House District 105 is a critical race for Democrats seeking a majority in the Texas House in 2011. Linda Harper Brown's right wing voting record has put her at odds of the needs and desires of her constituents, creating an opportunity for a strong, progressive candidate to change this district from red to blue.
Jason Embry of the Austin American-Statesman released his top five endangered lawmakers list this past Sunday. I really have no quibble with the order of Embry's list and I understand that it is early and so people may go up the list and people may go down the list. Heck, you might find a few new ones on there as well at some point. I do believe he was accurate in at least placing second on the list House District 105 in North Texas.
Rep. Linda Harper-Brown, R-Irving. (2) Harper-Brown barely hung onto her seat last year against a Democrat who had no money and no support from the state party. Now Democrats are paying attention. Democrat Loretta Haldenwang is off and running, having posted a strong fundraising report for the first half of the year. She also has the backing of Annie's List, which has been extremely successful in winning House races in recent years. On the other hand, Republicans need this seat to keep their majority, and even though Harper-Brown is not in Speaker Joe Straus' inner circle, he'll have plenty of money to spend and could spend heavily to help her. The same could be said for Bohac. Obama won Harper-Brown's district, 52-47.
Harper-Brown is most certainly endangered, but nothing has been won yet. Business analyst and former state house district director, Loretta Haldenwang, is considered by most the Democrat to beat in the March 2010 primary. Haldewang, formerly an external affairs director with the Dallas Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, continues to boast impressive financial numbers, Party insider muscle with Annie's List, and campaign infrastructure--particularly with regard to field, that she'll need to weather a tough primary and potential general election battle.
Haldenwang has in no way sewn up victory and she'll be the first to tell you that as she did at our September Mid-Cities Democrats meeting. This race is going to be a trench battle every single day. Obama may have won this district with 52% of the vote in 2008, and Democrats narrowly lost this seat overall---by just 19 votes, but that does not equate to easy victory. Turnout will be lower in 2010 versus 2008. Voter communication will be critical, which means a robust field operation is mandatory. Most importantly, however, will be money. Those three factors will determine whether HD-105 is the barometer by which Democrats can expect a 2010 House takeover, or the race was one of those "the one that got away" stories
Their just isn't a whole lot of room for offense left in North Texas. A "defense wins championships" mentality is one that Democrats in Dallas and Tarrant counties are adopting in the hopes we can retain what we've picked up the last two election cycles, which would be our best contribution that we can make toward our ultimate goal of winning back the Texas House in 2010. However, when you look at the remaining House District seats left that are currently held by Republicans in this region, House District 105, based mostly in Irving, offers the most obvious potential for Democrats to go on offense heading into 2010.
In 2008 Democrat Bob Romano fell 19 votes shy of defeating Republican Linda Harper-Brown, in a race that, because of the razor thin margin of votes, went through a recount and lawsuit. The eight term Republican went on to be declared the winner of this majority-minority seat. Democrats smell blood in the water on this one and have at least one strong, credible candidate in Loretta Haldenwang fielded. Republicans apparently smell the same blood too, because rumors have floated that Harper-Brown may have to fend off a primary challenge from a far-right extremist Irving City Council member in order to make it to the 2010 general election.
Although Haldenwang is not the lone Democrat in this race, she clearly offers our Party the best shot at winning this seat. She has served as a district director and legislative aide to Representative Joaquin Castro of San Antonio and is currently the External Affairs Director for the Greater Dallas Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. On her June 30th financial report Haldenwang reported having raised a little over $61,000 with $52,000 cash on hand. Her largest contributor, and biggest source of support thus far, comes from Annie's List. The presumptive Republican, Harper-Brown, raised barely $2,000 with cash on hand of almost $90,000---the bulk of which is made up of loans.
In a gubernatorial election year, any legislative campaign is going to have to rely heavily on voter identification, communication, and turnout. You'll win it in the field talking about the issues of the day. Local or statewide issues register more with voters in off election cycles, but you have to have the money to communicate and to execute a solid field strategy. Loretta Haldenwang appears to be on the right path toward meeting those expectations.
Although Democrats will be playing a lot of defense in 2010 here in North Texas , House District 105 clearly allows us to play just enough offense that could very well tilt the balance of power in the state house to favor Democrats.
In 2010, voters in Irving will have the opportunity to bring needed change to their community and the state of Texas by electing Loretta Haldenwang to the Texas House of Representatives from District 105. Loretta will be a progressive representative from Irving who will focus on issues that really matter to Texas families, including economic development and improving access to quality education. She will also be the critical 75th vote for new leadership in the Texas House.
Today, Loretta reported receiving more than $61,000 in contributions and in-kind donations since beginning her campaign in late April -- a strong start to what will be a hard fought campaign.
Since starting her campaign, Loretta has been meeting with local activists and leaders in Irving, and has been endorsed by Annie's List, one of the most successful candidate-supporting organizations in the state. She'll be holding a series of meet and greet events this summer and early Fall, which will offer opportunities for volunteers to help with early voter contact and canvassing efforts.
I'm particularly excited about this race, as I'll be leaving Austin for Irving at the end of the month to run the campaign.
If you live in the Irving or west Dallas County area and would like to get involved in what promises to be an extremely exciting campaign, or if you would like to learn more about Loretta Haldenwang, visit her website at www.VoteLoretta.com.
Below please find a copy of the press release Kim Limberg issued last week in her announced bid for Texas House District 105 in Dallas County:
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Members of the Press Greetings!
I write to announce my Candidacy for State Representative for District 105 in Irving, Texas. District 105 is a key player in this election cycle. After years of serving in the Democratic Party I'm excited about finally running.
Why am I running? I want to go to the front lines where the laws are made, so I can defend our Democratic ideals.
I will work to improve and protect our environment, our public education and our transportation infrastructure. These are the keys to good health, a thriving democracy and our freedom of movement. I will work to maintain the separation between what is public and what is private. And above all I will defend our basic rights.
Job creation in the three sectors mentioned are the right direction to take. More jobs in education, public infrastructure, and sustainable living (from energy to recycling and producing ever more efficient products).
I will work to be in sync with the Obama Administration to maximize our ability to tap any resources, incentives or stimulus packages that are offered.
These are just a few of the many important issues we are facing. For more details, please check out the Issues page as I continue to build my website.
What qualifies me? Besides the passion, my years of public service has given me the opportunity to listen and respond to the needs of many from elected officials to the general public. As a professional engineer with over 21 years of service with the Texas Department of Transportation, I have the technical expertise to understand and find solutions to our transportation issues. As a parent, I am determined to give our children the best public education I can. As a wife and mother of three, I am committed to fighting for the health of our families by working toward a better environment and encouraging a sustainable lifestyle. My passion to act on these issues in a direct way, together with my real life experiences as an mother, an engineer, and an environmentalist make me a good fit for Irving.
I am a life long resident of Dallas County, who has enjoyed serving the Irving community since moving here 13 years ago. For more about me click on the Green Ribbon and check out the About Kim webpage.
To practice good environmental stewardship, I am running a Green campaign by minimizing paper use and maximizing web, email and phone use. The Green Ribbon will symbolize this effort. I challenge all other candidates to do the same.
I would be honored to have your endorsement. Please solidify your decision to support my campaign, by endorsing me for State Representative for District 105.
With your help I can get to the front lines and represent you.
Thank You, and have a great day!
Kim Limberg
Kim Limberg Campaign
Contact Info:
Address
Kim Limberg Campaign
1910 Cartwright St
Irving, Texas 75062
Phone
(214)493-9079
Email
kimlimberg@kimlimberg.com
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NOTE: Kim is running against a 24-year old from San Antonio who just recently moved to the Irving area. Kim is the only Majority-Minority candidate so far whose announced in this Majority-Minority District. A 46-year old wife and mother of 3, Kim is a Civil Engineer and long-time community activist in the Irving area (resident of Irving for 13 years, lifelong resident of Dallas County).
