Normally, local political advertisements are much to write home about. There's never enough money in the budget to go to far outside of the box or cut multiple ads. But this year, the ads being aired in central Texas reflect how far political communication on the airwaves has fallen for Republicans.
Consider the following TV commercial being aired by HD-50 GOP nominee Patrick McGuinness who is challenging incumbent Mark Strama.
Seriously. Not even kidding. It would be funny if it wasn't almost scary. In HD-47, GOP nominee Paul Workman is running the following ad. What it lacks in authoritarian imagery, it makes up for with burning hellfire and subtle accusations that Valinda Bolton is the spawn of the devil.
That's where the Republican Party in Austin is at- frothing at the mouth with hatred and anger. Every election has negative ads, but for Travis County, home of some of the most educated voters in the state, this takes the cake.
Compare this with the ads being run by Democrats Mark Strama, Donna Howard, and Valinda Bolton. These are focused, positive, hopeful, issue driven messages. And it's why I'm glad that State Representatives like these are the future of the Democratic Party of Texas.
Mark Strama- New Energy for a New Texas
Donna Howard- Vision for Health Care
Valinda Bolton- Crosswalk
Now it's not as if there are no Democratic attack or response ads- but compare the tone. Here's Donna Howard's 'negative' attack ad.
It's like being in an entirely different universe than the Republicans.
I'll be the first to say that I don't put a lot of stock in this Republican poll that shows Patrick McGuinness, the GOP challenger in HD-50, less than 2% behind incumbent Mark Strama.
In the race for House District 50 in northern Travis County, 49.7% of those polled now say they favor Republican challenger Patrick McGuinness over incumbent Democrat Mark Strama, who garnered 48.1% in a Gateway Research Group poll conducted in the first week of September. 2.2% of those polled were undecided in this race.
...
The Gateway Research Group* is part of the Austin-based Gateway Policy Group. The poll was conducted between August 28 and September 6, 2010 and sampled voters in HD 50. (Questions can be directed to Dr. Greg Hupp or Trey Newton at 512-477-3100.)
*The Gateway Policy Group is a conservative outfit co-founded by Trey Newton, formerly of Wilson Research Strategies, the Texas Center for Public Policy Research, and then Republican Carole Keeton Strayhorn.
This poll is way out of line with other (unpublished) polling that shows Strama comfortably ahead. This smells like a poll crafted and released with the sole purpose to cause more hope than really exists for the McGuiness campaign- and to gin up contributions for a candidate who had just $10,000 in the bank to Strama's $140,000 as of the last campaign finance report. And while I don't expect Strama to roll up a 30 point victory like he did in 2008, the environment isn't so bad that districts like Strama's are legitimate takeover opportunities for the Texas GOP.
Great news for one of our local State Representatives -- Rep. Mark Strama of Austin was chosen as the first ever Y Gen Out-Standing Person award. He'll receive the award at a July 13 celebration from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm at Moonshine Patio Bar & Grill, 303 Red River Street.
From the press release announcing the award:
The Y Gen Out-Standing Person award honors individuals who epitomize Y Gen Out Loud's mission to educate and encourage the next generation of Americans to take an active role in their government and politics.
“Representative Strama has spent his career encouraging young people to get involved in their government,” said Tamara Bell, founder and editor in chief of Y Gen Out Loud. “As shown in his work as both a legislator and businessman, Representative Strama has a strong commitment to helping the next generations prepare to lead our nation well into the 21st century.”
The 2010 Y Gen Out-Standing Person award celebration will include a reception and buffet along with the award presentation. Crystal Cotti, former city hall reporter with KTBC FOX 7 and Rep. Strama's wife, will be presenting him with the award, which was especially painted by an artist from the Art from the Streets program.
Congratulations, Rep. Strama! Looking forward to seeing everyone at the event on July 13!
Last weekend, a dozen students who are spending their summer working to elect Democrats as part of Mark Strama's Campaign Academy made their way to Corpus Christi for the Texas Democratic Convention.
If you attended the convention, you likely noticed them in their matching Campaign Academy shirts following closely behind Rep. Strama. On their Campaign Academy blog, the students summarized the weekend.
This past weekend, about half of the Campaign Academy ventured to the Texas Democratic Party State Convention in Corpus Christi. We were looking forward to funny hats, inspiring speeches and awkward dancing, and the convention did not disappoint!
Representative Strama introduced us to many legendary figures in Texas politics, such as Bill White, Linda Chavez-Thompson, Boyd Richie, Senfronia Thompson, Glen Maxey, and Molly Beth Malcolm, who kindly shared their experiences and words of wisdom with us.
We had the opportunity of attending various caucuses, including ones representing Mexican- Americans, LGBT interests, and the Asian-American community, which shed light on the diversity and inclusiveness of the Democratic Party ....
The convention energized us for the months ahead, during which we will be working hard to turn Texas blue! We would like to sincerely thank everyone who made it possible for us to attend this convention. We learned so much and had a great time, too!
The Campaign Academy, who I've been working with since early June, also created a video documenting the weekend.
In a year where the conventional wisdom seems to be that Democrats are suffering from an enthusiasm gap, we are proud to report that's not a problem here in Texas, where over 20 high school and college students are devoting their summer vacations to working to elect Democrats up and down the ballot.
Rep. Mark Strama has just opened the application period for his 2010 Campaign Academy. Having been both a participant and a manager of the program, I encourage you to spread the word to your high school and college friends. More info here.
In the University of Texas Student Government runoff, Scott Parks & Muneezeh Kabir did indeed come from behind and win the President/VP spots. What's impressive is that turnout only slightly under the turnout from the first election. And on top of that, Parks & Kabir went from 42% to 55% and gained about 1000 votes while their opponents lost 400. Of note, former Mark Strama Campaign Academy graduate and former UDems President Jimmy Talarico was largely managing their campaign. Just saying.
Poor Sen. John Cornyn. He's doing a terrible job at guiding his chosen GOP Senate candidates in various US Senate contests around the country. It's basically open warfare.
It's not typical that we would have to write a post about the obvious, but there have been some rumors going around today about whether North Austin representative Mark Strama was running for re-election. These rumors ranged from him taking a job in the federal government to making a late filing in the 10th Congressional District which overlaps much of his district.
Rep. Strama got in touch with is to put a rest to any rumors that he's doing anything other than filing for re-election. He pointed out, this could be coming from Republicans as desperate tool to get someone to file to run in HD-50 as if it was an "open seat" because as of yet they had been unsuccessful.
I am running for re-election, and if my intention were not to run for re-election, I assure you I would have provided the public, the press, and leaders in both parties with ample notification for purposes of candidate identification and recruitment.
-Rep. Mark Strama
Strama remarked on the phone that the only reason he would be going to DC is if President Obama called up and offered him the Vice Presidency, which remains an outstanding offer (from Mark to Barack) for the Obama/Strama ticket in 2012.
Even though the race may not officially exist yet, there is plenty going on in the race to replace Kay Bailey Hutchison in the U.S. Senate.
If you're in Austin, John Sharp is launching his campaign at Abel's on the Lake at 6pm tonight. Suggested contribution is $35.
Speaking of Sharp, Galveston County Democratic Party Chair Lloyd Criss has a BOR diary up encouraging the former Comptroller to get out of the Senate race and run for Lt. Governor. Criss, as you might imagine, is supporting Houston Mayor Bill White for the U.S. Senate.
Bill White's campaign has named Joe Hamill to be their Central Texas Regional Field Director. Hamill, an Austin native and Austin High graduate, was the Field Director for the Travis County Democratic Party's Coordinated Campaign last year. Austin area supporters for White will also be registering voters at First Thursday on South Congress tomorrow (Facebook event info)
While Whole Foods CEO John Mackey's health care editorial from the WSJ inspired a small protest outside the store's Austin headquarters it also apparently got Russell Verney, a former advisor to Ross Perot, thinking Mackey could be a solid candidate for the Senate. Unsurprisingly, a Whole Foods spokesperson tells the Statesman "there is absolutely no truth to that rumor."
Gardner Selby had a story a few days ago about Austin area legislators taking sides in the U.S. Senate race. Diana Maldonado and Valinda Bolton are hosting Sharp's event tonight while Patrick Rose, Mark Strama and Dawnna Dukes are backing White.
All this and yet, thanks to the indecisive mind of Kay Bailey Hutchison, no election date.
When Leticia Van de Putte declined to run for Governor earlier today and instead threw her support behind the potential candidacy of Texas Sen. Kirk Watson (D-Austin), political observers in Travis County paid special attention.
Sen. Watson was already known to be considering running statewide, but the apparently orchestrated plug by Van de Putte makes his entry seem much more likely today than it did yesterday.
If Watson does decide to run, the Travis County Democratic primary will immediately become very, very busy.
Three local state representatives -- Elliott Naishtat, Eddie Rodriguez and Mark Strama -- are thought to be considering running for Watson's seat if he decides to run for Governor.
Naishtat would start off with a significant cash on hand advantage over any opponent and represents a vote-rich district. The Dean of the Travis County Delegation is the go to guy in the House on human services issues.
Rodriguez could mobilize small donors and has ties to activists countywide dating back to his days as Executive Director of the Travis County Democratic Party. Rodriguez is one of only two representatives who never voted for Tom Craddick for speaker and won a tough primary in 2002 in which he was heavily outspent.
Strama is a proven fundraiser and was Chairman of Technology, Workforce and Economic Development this past session. Though his voting record is more moderate than the other two, he has turned what was once a swing district into a Democratic stronghold.
All three are well respected by local party activists and have distinct bases of voters that make all three of them capable of winning the seat.
Assuming two of them do decide to run, that leaves two open House seats that are likely to be hotly contested as well. All of a sudden, what recently appeared to be shaping up to be a rather calm local Democratic Primary with a few contested judicial races, could be on the verge of dramatically changing.
Of course, as Watson has said he won't make a decision until later this summer, we will have to wait to see whether any of this speculation actually comes true.
I want to be clear that I began writing this post before a correction and apology was made by Fox 7 reporter Jenni Lee. I am glad to see that such an apology was made and quickly but that I'm still going to publish this post as an example of why words matter. -kt
Earlier today the Austin Chronicle's "The Gay Place" blog posted an unsettling comment made by a local Austin reporter in reply to her own post on Facebook about Sunday's finale of the CBS show, The Amazing Race. This screen capture is the Chronicle's as her comment (the last one) has since been removed.
Jenny Lee: "I just really didn't want that mom who raised a pansy son team to win."
That comment has since been deleted and only as of 5pm this afternoon, two days later, replaced by this comment.
Jenny Lee: "I want to apologize for the poor wording I used to describe a contestant on the Amazing Race. I also want to apologize to those whom I have offended."
The team in question was that of Luke & Margie Adams. While there were a plethora of gay contestants on this year's Amazing Race season, the "pansy son" in question was considerably more notable not for being a "pansy" but... wait for it... being deaf. As you can tell from this clip of the show or as posted below, it certainly wasn't a lisp that made him at all pansy-like seeing as he has very limited speech capacity to begin with. Limp wrists? Nah, he's too busy using them for signing. I mean, seriously, I don't see where you you get "pansy" through his other overriding disabilities. Yes, he's gay, but that wasn't even made all that central to his role on the show.
I find terms like "pansy" outdated to begin with, but it is from a set of words that is both condescending and has roots in bullying. It's language that is not strictly used towards gay individuals but anyone who isn't male gender confirmative, effeminate, or potentially isn't as far along developmentally as they should be in grade school for example.
I'm not a big fan of reality/contest TV, but I believe that Luke's story should be empowering. As a deaf son, and as a gay deaf son, it is a whole other challenge in itself, in terms of dating and being accepted as a minority community within another minority community. I had friends with similar situations in college and it's a challenge, one that isn't aided by petty bullying language.
As members of the media, charged with communicating information and experiences to the public, I expect more. We, as journalists, above all others should understand the impact and power our words have. I try to hold myself to that standard, and if I mess up, I expect people to call me out on it as well.
But I don't want a statement or apology from Jenny Lee.
Words are strong, this we've established, but to correct these comments, I'd rather see the following action which would say so much more. Instead, Fox 7 should ask Jenny Lee to do a report on HB 1323 by Strama, the anti-bullying and harassment bill currently before the Calendars Committee with 17 joint or co-authors.
Ed. note: The following 2,500+ word piece, and the interviews tomorrow, were completed on volunteer time. If you want to see more work like this and support the efforts of those on BOR who are committed to bringing the best coverage of state and local politics, we would ask you to contribute to TexBlog PAC as a gesture of appreciation. We may just be kid bloggers, but we are committed to the community, and we believe journalism should be reflective of community values and community interest. Thank you for being part of our community, and enjoy the reading.
On Thursday, March 5th, the Austin City Council will vote on a proposed contract with the California-based group Gemini Solar Development Company that could potentially launch the solar energy industry in Central Texas. The official language on the Austin City Council's March 5, 2009 agenda reads as follows:
Authorize award, negotiation, and execution of a contract with GEMINI SOLAR DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, LLC, San Francisco, CA, to purchase up to 30 megawatts of solar-generated power over a 25-year term at an estimated annual amount of $10,000,000, for an estimated total contract amount of $250,000,000.
Proponents of the measure point to the 30 megawatts of solar power the plant will bring to the city over the next twenty-five years, and argue that Austin can't wait to begin buildings its roots in the solar energy field. The proposal, championed by environmental groups and the Austin semiconductor community alike, has generated interest in communities as far as San Antonio, who envision developing a partnership with Austin to help, as a San Antonio Express-News article puts it, "chase the sun" in order to establish an economic corridor for the region that creates jobs and protects the environment.
However, some concerns persist about the project. The price tag -- though the most competitive among fifteen proposals made to the Austin City Council -- still appears to bring too little bang for the buck. At a time of economic uncertainty, there is worry that Austin is paying too much for too little, and that more time and a better negotiation process could lead to a proposal for a plant that would generate more energy at a lesser cost.
The proposed solar power plant has made its way into the Austin mayoral race. Austin's Mayor Pro Tempore, Brewster McCracken, has arisen as a strong and unflinching voice in support of the project. McCracken highlighted the proposed Gemini project during a trip two weeks ago to meet with San Antonio City Councilmembers (Source); he also hosted a "convergence event" focused on the possiblity of building a renewable energy corridor between the two cities. Lee Leffingwell, a fierce advocate of sound environmental policies in Austin, has focused less of his campaign attention on the project, spending more time on announcing endorsements. That being said, Leffingwell has stated that he supports the project, and that his concerns are more about implementation and making it cost efficient for the city than anything else. (Source)
Though the political implications of the vote are relevant to Austin's mayoral race, today's post will not delve into the political positions of McCracken or Leffingwell. Instead, I will post interviews with each Councilmember tomorrow, each of which extensively -- and almost exclusively -- discusses their views on the Gemini project and the future of Austin's renewable energy economy.
Today's post will focus exclusively on the pros and cons of the proposed project. Specifically, I will examine the following questions:
What is the history of the Gemini project?
Is 30 megawatts of solar energy capacity a big deal, or is Austin getting too little bang for its buck?
Is a long-term investment in a solar energy industry worth signing an imperfect yet promising deal with Gemini?
