In Texas, we have a distorted view of what a "swing seat" is for Democratic targeting. Given our multiple rounds of redistricting, true marginal seats in the traditional sense are hard to find. Texas Democrats either hail from incredibly safe districts, districts that are safe due to demographic trends but not ideology, or Republican districts where great Democrats make an exception (Chet Edwards).
That said, it's encouraging to see not one, but two Republican Congressional seats listed among the top 10 potential "dark horse" breakout races that are causing buzz in the Beltway. And not only that, but they are at the top of the list.
McCaul was technically a lower-tier Democratic target in 2008, but that was really only because his opponent, former TV judge Larry Joe Doherty (D), was raising money like gangbusters. Doherty really didn't have the right profile, and he wound up losing by a pedestrian 11 points - the exact margin of the presidential tally in the district. Now, Democrats have another big-money candidate, with businessman Jack McDonald raising $300,000 in the first quarter. We'll see if he has the right profile, but the fact that he is vice chairman of the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce suggests he might. The party has already put McCaul near the top of its target list.
4. Rep. Pete Sessions (R-Texas)
Democrats tried to mount a late charge in 2006 against National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) Chairman Tom Reynolds (R-N.Y.), and they could do it again in 2010 against current NRCC Chairman Pete Sessions. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) only took this suburban Dallas district 53-46 in the 2008 presidential race, and the heavily Hispanic areas have grown at a faster pace than the white areas. Sessions's district is actually probably more fertile ground than McCaul's, but Democrats might not have as good a candidate. Attorney Grier Raggio (D) has an exploratory committee, but it's not clear who else might emerge.
In TX-10, Democrat Jack McDonald expressed earlier today that there is good reason to be paying attention to the 10th yet again, having raised over $634,000 to date with over half a million on hand, even while in exploratory mode and having yet to roll out campaign staff or field. While there isn't a equivalent Democratic response in TX-32 up in Dallas as of yet, the more competitive nature of the district and county coordinated campaign there provides a bit more breathing room for a top notch candidate to get settled.
(An interesting take on Cap and Trade. - promoted by Matt Glazer)
The Cap and Trade Bill (HR 2454) is aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 17 percent by 2020 and create 'green' jobs, by putting a limit on the amount of pollution large industrial industries can output, and then if they go above that, they have to buy pollution permits. If some companies do not need all that they are allocated, they can sell their permits to companies that do.
Texas U.S. Representatives Joe Barton and Pete Sessions continue their lying campaign about the "Cap and Trade" legislation by claiming that President Obama's proposal to curb greenhouse gas emissions would cost households as much as $3,100 per year. Their 'Party of No' says it is a "massive national energy tax." However Texans and Americans need to know the $3,100 figure they keep lying about is a complete misrepresentation of both President Obama's proposal and the studies from which the number is derived.
An EPA analysis (Environmental Protection Agency) of the draft version found that the 'cap & trade' policy has a relatively modest impact on U.S. consumers assuming the bulk of revenues from the plan are returned to American households. "The EPA estimates the average cost per household to only be between $98 and $140 per year.
Republican Party of Texas Executive Director Eric Opiela has his head buried so far in the sand that I don't know whether to criticize him or celebrate his ignorance -- after all, the more that Texas Republicans want to follow the lead of Rick Perry, Kay Bailey Hutchison, John Cornyn, and Pete Sessions, the better the chances that Texas Democrats will continue to win elections across the state.
We expected and prepared for anything at yesterday’s Senate hearing on Voter ID legislation. Let me tell you — the liberal Democrats in Austin did not disappoint on that front. Hundreds of concerned Texans showed up as early as 7 a.m. on Tuesday morning expecting to provide oral or written testimony on this important issue. Unfortunately, the response from Democrat senators was not very welcoming.
That’s right! Rather than taking time to listen to personal testimony on incidents of voter fraud in past elections, these Democrats chose delay with their childish rants ALL DAY AND ALL NIGHT LONG!
Does it matter that Senate Republicans refused to split the testimony across different days? Nope.
Does it matter that Senate Republicans decided to make this the single most important issue of the session? Nope.
[Republican Senator Tommy Williams] even admitted as much. In today's debate, he said at the 1:20:50 mark of the Senate video:
Senator West: Is this more important than dealing with tuition deregulation?
Senator Williams: Senator West, I believe that it is.
In addition to that, Eric Opiela has picked up on the latest failed piece of Republican conventional wisdom -- that Obama is somehow failing, and the whole country will come flocking back to the Taliban-inspired obstructionism of the Republican Party in the 2010 elections. As he said in the comments on Burka Blog:
For those of you who think some blue revolution is brewing, take note, the RPT still picked up a net 41 seats this year and flipped seven courthouses despite the Obama-centric gains of Democrats nationwide. Guess what, he ain’t on the ballot in 2010 (though with the results thus far of his presidency, I almost wish he was…).
Let's take a look at those results:
As you can tell from the graph, Republicans and Democrats had almost the same low level of favorability two months ago. However, following the sensible policies of Congressional Democrats and the obstructionist practices of the GOP -- led by Texas Senator John Cornyn in the U.S. Senate and Congressman Pete Sessions in the U.S. House -- Democrats in Congress have seen their favorability increase, while Republicans in Congress have seen their favorability decrease.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), chaired by Congressman Chris Van Hollen, announced the DCCC is launching the third phase of the Putting Families First campaign on Tuesday targeting Republicans who opposed President Obama's economic recovery bill, the largest component of which is middle class tax cuts to 95 percent of Americans.
The campaign has named Pete Sessions (TX-32) as one of the 12 targets in the campaign.
The DCCC is also launching a new webpage, www.recoveryforamerica.org, designed to educate people about the benefits of the economic recovery bill and how it will impact their district. The site includes an interactive map that illustrates the job creation and tax cuts by state, information about targeted Republicans; and a petition where people can voice their outrage about Republican opposition. People can also get the economic recovery information on their mobile device by texting the word "recovery" and a state abbreviation to 30644 (For example: "recovery TX").
"These are serious times; hard working families are worried about keeping their jobs, health care and homes. Americans want action on middle class tax cuts and economic recovery, not House Republicans' 'just say no' approach," said DCCC Chairman Chris Van Hollen. "House Republicans can't have it both ways - they can't claim to be in favor of tax cuts and then vote against the largest tax cut in American history. Americans will hold House Republicans accountable for 'just saying no' to the largest tax cut in American history and saving and creating three to four million jobs. We will hold accountable those Republicans who continue to vote in lockstep against President Obama's economic recovery plan for the American people."
According to the DCCC Americans are overwhelmingly rejecting House Republicans' "just say no" approach to the economy and middle class tax cuts according to a new AP-GfK poll.
Typical behavior among politicians is to return or donate to charity campaign cash that becomes tainted by a donor's scandal, but not our boy John Cornyn, Texas' junior senator.
Tuesday, federal regulators charged R. Allen Stanford and three of his firms with "massive" fraud that centered around high-interest-rate certificates of deposit, and raided some of the companies' offices.
Talking Points Memo pointed out that Cornyn and Stanford were close enough to find very expensive facts together in the Caribbean. We are still awaiting the report from Cornyn or the NRSC office.
Since he can't give back the tainted trip, it would at least make sense for Cornyn to give back the tainted money, right?
Sen. John Cornyn took almost $20,000 from Stanford and is also keeping the money. A spokesperson told News 8 Cornyn believes in the "presumption of innocence".
Again, I point to the astute Austin Chronicle.
Of course, Cornyn is the same senator who recently sent a letter to President Obama decrying the decision to close Guantanamo and urging that terrorism suspects not be brought to America for trial. Hmmm ... perhaps Cornyn's valiant idealism only applies to a certain class of the accused?
Of course, Cornyn's not alone in taking money. Pete Sessions is staring at $41,000 and he really wants to keep it too.
A spokesperson said Sessions is keeping the money.
"Pete is looking down in his palms and he sees $41,000 and he says, 'Can I put this in my pocket, or do I have to give it back?' And to anyone - including Pete Sessions - $41,000 is enough money that he wants to just think about it," Jillson said.
This should sum up both House and Senate Republicans. Sessions was selected to chair the Republican Congressional Campaign Committee and Cornyn was selected to chair the National Republican Senate Committee. The leaders of the Republican Party are opting to take tainted money. The DeLay legacy lives on.
We must never forget what our grandmothers and mothers taught us about birds of a feather and how they will always flock together. This phrase has proved itself true time and time again. And now we see that our Texas Republican politicians are flocking with a seriously criminal bird.
We have all no doubt heard about the Texas billionaire Madoff clone- "Sir" R. Allen Stanford who has stolen or squandered billions from his investors.
A Texas billionaire and two associates are in regulators' cross hairs, alongside Houston-based companies and an affiliated offshore bank, accused of perpetuating a multibillion-dollar fraud that could sting investors worldwide.
"We are alleging a fraud of shocking magnitude that has spread its tentacles throughout the world," said Rose Romero, regional director of the Securities and Exchange Commission's Fort Worth office, which filed civil charges Tuesday against R. Allen Stanford, the bank, two Houston companies and two company executives, James Davis and Laura Pendergest-Holt.
Governor Rick Perry wants to refuse 269,000 jobs that would come to Texas under The America Recovery Reinvestment Act! (Source)
Over the last four months, Texas lost over 221,000 jobs (Source). President Obama and Democrats in Congress have proposed a stimulus package that will bring more than 269,000 jobs to Texas -- and over $27 billion in desparately needed funds.
But Rick Perry, Kay Bailey Hutchison, and Texas Republicans want to refuse Texas jobs because of politics -- choosing to "act like the Taliban" instead. (Source)
Governor Perry has said that Texas does not need any bailout -- or the 269,000 jobs and more than $27 billion in needed funds that comes with it. Senator John Cornyn refused to show up to vote -- meeting with millionaires in Manhattan instead of helping bring jobs to Texas. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison took a vacation from Washington to come to Texas for politics -- trying to run for a new job when she can't even do her old one right.
CALL GOVERNOR PERRY NOW -- (512) 463-2000
Tell him that Texas needs help, too!
Tell him that we don't have billion dollar business friends like he does!
Tell him that we want our tax dollars returned to Texas NOW!
What kind of economy are they trying to protect? Let's talk about that -- and how Texas is on the brink.
Of all 50 states, Texas is ranked 8th in terms of the percent of mortgage loans that are subprime. (Source)
Without getting into too big of a discussion of what cause our current economic catastrophe, it is safe to say that subprime mortgage loans are among the biggest reasons we are where we are today. Governor Perry may want to pretend that all is well, but the fact is, it's not:
One in five subprime loans end up in foreclosure, according to new research by the Center for Responsible Lending -- more than eight times the rate for mortgages in the prime market...Rigorous research shows subprime loans are costly, applied unfairly, and -- given the risk of foreclosure -- dangerous.
Of all 50 states, Texas is ranked 45th in terms of the net worth of households. (Source)
The net worth of the mean household is $35,942. The statistic measures all:
"Interest-earning assets, stocks and mutual fund shares, real estate (own home, rental property, vacation homes, and land holdings), own business or profession, mortgages held by sellers, and motor vehicles. Liabilities covered include debts secured by any asset, credit card or store bills, banks loans, and other unsecured debts."
Governor Perry and Texas Republicans would be quick to point out, I'm sure, that the same study shows that Texas ranks 4th in the affordability of homes. (Source) Cheaper homes allow for those with less net worth to be able to fulfill the dream of home ownership. That being said, if there is a high number of subprime mortgage loans being taken out to pay for those cheap homes, then we're really just sweeping the problem under the rug and hiding from the real work.
You also have to ask yourself if having a cheap home means anything if:
Of all 50 states, Texas ranks 44th in home ownership rates. (Source)
65.9 percent of Texans own a home. That means that one in three Texans -- despite the affordability of the Texas housing market and the proliferation of subprime mortgage loans -- still cannot afford to own a home. Of course, considering that 21.5 percent of the people in Texas live in poverty (Source), perhaps this shouldn't come as too large of a surprise.
Of all 50 states, Texas is the most expensive place to insure a home -- with Texans paying an average premium of $1,372 annually. (Source)
Above all else, this issue will be the test of the Republicans in control of Texas. What will Perry, Dewhurst, and Straus do to address homeowner insurance rates during this time of a crippling economy? Stories of Galveston homeowners who always paid their bills and yet are not being fully insured after the damages of Hurricane Ike are a dime a dozen.
Click2Houston -- Watch a video about Texas families struggling to receive their insurance payments.
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Texas Homeowners are living in a struggling economy. They were struggling long before Hurricane Ike. But like so much work that needs to be done in Texas, the Republican-led Legislature ignored the problem until it became a catastrophe.
And the way that Governor Rick Perry, Senators Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn, and Texas Republicans in Congress are approaching the national discussion of the economy -- with pure political obstruction -- no one in Texas should expect much change any time soon.
Joe Scarborough, on MSNBC yesterday, talking about the bailout plan that Governor Rick Perry is so opposed to, and that Senators Hutchison and Cornyn would be opposed to if they ever bothered to show up and do the jobs they were elected to do. (h/t to TPM):
Weve been very critical of the process, as have a lot of editorial writers. It seems sloppy. It seems like the White House has been off their game. It seems like all the political skills that they learned throughout the campaign were lost.
And then we see a poll like the Gallup poll that came out yesterday that makes me think that perhaps we've overanalyzed it; we don't know what we're talking about. Look at this Gallup poll that show right now -- 67% of Americans approve of Barack Obama's handling of the stimulus package.
And now look at the Republican numbers -- it looks like Pete Sessions and his Taliban brothers in the House as well as the Senate are getting pummeled. 31% approve of Republicans handling, and 58% disapprove. This looks like Barack Obama is still on top of his game.
Yes, the obstructionist Republicans are "getting pummeled" for putting politics ahead of people's jobs.
It seems that some of these naughty, nasty boys charged their palling-around-with-call-girl activities on their corporate credit cards.
Uh oh. Are these guys still in charge of their businesses? Are they the ones who received the bailout money?
The scandal may have happened pre-TARP, but this kind of behavior should make us wonder about what kinds of scumbags and whackos we have bailed out.
According to Raw Story and ABC News today these boys used a $2,000 per hour call girl service where the "firm's" Madam disguised the charges as business related, e.g. "computer consulting, "roofing construction," etc.
