Most of you know by now that the Texas progressive blogosphere has put together and launched TexBlog PAC. The inaugural fundraiser is September 24th in Austin and the sponsors are a who's who of Texas luminaries from all over the state.
With sponsors like Jim Dunnam, Pete Gallego, Lon Burnam, Eddie Rodriguez, Valinda Bolton, Mark Strama, the Texas Democratic Party, House Democratic Campaign Committee, and Texas Progress Council PAC, blogs are taking online action offline. We are ready and prepared to shake up the '08 election cycle.
What does the Republican Party think of this? In a Fort-Worth Star Telegram article out today, Hans Klinger the political director of the Texas Republican Party dismisses anyone working to take back Texas.
Hans Klingler, the political director of the Texas Republican Party, is not convinced. Texas voters have not elected a Democrat to a statewide office since 1994, and Republicans have been steadily whittling down the Democrats' advantage at the county level, the one stage in Texas that they still control, Klingler said.
Klingler also suggested that the Democratic bloggers are less of a grassroots movement and more of an echo chamber, where the handful of writers and readers talk almost exclusively to one another.
"Maybe they're a majority in the virtual world," he quipped.
When September 25th hits the number one question bloggers will get is, "so how much did you raise?" There is no way we can let the Republican Party get away with calling us an echo chamber and a virtual majority. In the last four years we have worked for candidates like Carlos Uresti, Juan Garcia, Valinda Bolton, Boris Miles, Ellen Cohen, and many many more.
House Democratic leader Jim Dunnam already knows we are an agent of change.
"I think the blogosphere is giving voice to what a lot of ordinary Texans are thinking, and that is that we need a change of leadership in Austin," said Dunnam, of Waco. "I think they are really helpful in spreading the message that it's Democrats who are going to be the agents of change in 2008."
Prove Jim Dunnam right and come by the home of Kurt and Amy Clark Meachum on September 24th. We are going to be celebrating the beginning of TexBlog PAC's journey to help win back the Texas House at 5103 Cedro Trail Austin Texas 78731 from 6 to 8 p.m. and saying thank you for your support.
We have removed the Texans for Public Justice (TPJ) report because of questions pertaining to how the report was done. TPJ has amended the report twice since our post went up. Both times, newly elected Democrats like Paula Hightower Pierson, Valinda Bolton, Ellen Cohen, and Juan Garica were proven to have done nothing wrong.
The purpose of the study is admirable, to track extravagant travel by elected officials paid for by lobbyist, the primary methodology used is too faulty for us to keep the study on our main page. Sadly, the data collected appears to have been sloppy at best.
While controversy surrounds the study, some facts are irrefutable. Rep. Mike Krusee is at fault.
Rep. Mike Krusee, R-Williamson County, a "lobby favorite." Krusee, chairman of the House Committee on Transportation, took nine lobby-funded trips in the period reviewed, 2005 and 2006 through the eve of the November elections, the report said.
For instance, J. McCartt, a lobbyist whose clients include contractor Fluor Corp. and PBS&J, an engineering firm, flew Krusee to Las Vegas to deliver the keynote address at a PBS&J toll summit after the 2005 regular legislative session.
Krusee's office issued a statement Tuesday stating that he "learns from other parts of the country and innovative industries about how to get traffic moving, how to improve safety and how to build roads in cost-effective ways."
Training from groups like EMILY's List and Annie's List is not the same as PBS&J flying Krusee to Vegas or James Leininger taking Rick Perry to the Caribbean.
It's not uncommon for Perry to take a little time off when the legislature meets. During the 3rd special, Perry decided the educational crisis was so important that he had to go to Italy.
Now, Perry is out of the state again, and a bipartisan group want Lt Governor David Dewhurst to help during the TYC crisis.
The letter requests Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst, in his role as current acting governor, place the Texas Youth Commission (TYC) under Conservatorship immediately.
Under the Texas Constitution, Lt. Gov. Dewhurst currently possesses all the powers and authority of the office of the governor because Governor Perry is out of the state visiting Dubai. As the current acting governor, with full powers, Lt. Gov. Dewhurst has the authority to place TYC under immediate Conservatorship. Conservatorship has been recommended unanimously by the full Senate and the Legislative Audit Committee.
Additionally, the Joint Select Committee on the Operation and Management of the Texas Youth Commission unanimously voted to express their complete lack of confidence in the TYC board. Placing TYC under Conservatorship will suspend the authority of the TYC board and transfer the board's functions to the conservator.
The letter was authored by State Representatives Pat Haggerty, Valinda Bolton, Delwin Jones, Jim Dunnam, Tommy Merritt, Pete Gallego, Robert Talton and Scott Hochberg.
(Ed. note: The following is part of our ongoing series focusing on how Democrats won in Texas. Our first part focused on the work the Houston GLBT PAC did on the Ellen Cohen race. Today's piece is the second in the series. - promoted by Phillip Martin)
"Annie's List is changing the face of power in Texas politics by changing the playing field for women candidates."
That one line from the Annie's List website perfectly describes the focus and triumphs of one of the more successful Democratic organizations in Texas. Five of the seven new Democrats in the Texas House at the start of the 80th Regular Session will be women, and each and every one of them were Annie's List candidates.
Following the 2002 elections, Republicans regained the Texas House, and the number of Democratic women Representatives dropped to fourteen. In just two election cycles, that number has grown back to nineteen. This election cycle, Annie's List donated over $250,000 to their five targeted candidates:
Valinda Bolton in HD 47 ($80,000, won)
Paula Hightower-Pierson in HD 93 ($55,500 won)
Harriet Miller in HD 102 ($28,500, lost)
Kristi Thibaut in HD 133 ($25,500, lost)
Ellen Cohen in HD 134 ($23,500, won)
$10,000 to Katy Hubener in a special election in HD-106 last spring.
$10,000 to Democrat Rep. Donna Howard, an Annie's List candidate they helped elect in a special election last spring
For a better understanding of the success of Annie's List, I sat down with Robert Jones, Political Director for Annie's List, and the five field workers that he helped train to run their five targeted campaigns this election cycle. Each of the five workers are in their early twenties, and though all had some experience volunteering for campaigns before, none had ever taken on the role of helping run a campaign.
"There is no field where young people can gain experience and responsibility quicker, especially with training, than in politics," said Jones. "Hiring young adults is important for a number of reasons. They can adapt quickly and are eager and excited to work. And, to be honest, since they are an in-kind contribution from our PAC, it adds a level of accountability about how our contributions are used on the race."
To continue reading this story, click on the "There's More" link below.
As of 2:40 a.m., with eight precincts yet to report, Juan Garcia was down by 250 votes in his race to unseat incumbent Rep. Gene Seaman in Corpus Christi and surrounding counties. However, reports are that the one remaining precinct is heavily Democrat, and that without about 1/3 of those ballots counted, Garcia is leading (and expected to hold). Though not official yet, Democrats might have picked up a net of five seats.
Every incumbent House Democrat won, as well. Reps. Hopson and Cook held onto their rural seats, as did Reps. McReynolds, Homer, and Farabee. Rep. Vo held off Talmadge Heflin in Houston -- a tremendous protection for Democrats. And in our two open seats, Joe Heflin held onto Speaker Laney's seat in a race many prognosticators had written off as a loss for Democrats. Heflin held on to defeat Landtroop, and Farias held Rep. Uresti's seat in San Antonio.
8 Day Finance Reports are now online and (prepare to be shocked) Bill Welch has taken rerouted money from James Leininger, Bob "Swiftboat" Perry, Texans for Lawsuit Reform, and Speaker Tom Craddick's "Stars over Texas" fund.
Bill Welch (R)
Receipts: $677,837.90
Expenditures: $222,550.33
Cash on Hand: $ 175,153.59
The bulk of Welch's money comes from the following top 3 sources which when combined with money from HillCo and another source, makes for over half a million dollars in purely special interest money. Less than $80,000 of Welch's receipts are from individual contributors.
$235,600 - Texans for Lawsuit Reform
$185,000 - Speaker Craddick's Starts over Texas Leadership PAC
$20,000 - Bob "Swiftboat" Perry
Now who's giving to TLR and Stars Over Texas? You guessed it, none other than James "I Own Nathan Macias" Leininger. Between Sept 29th and Oct 28th, Leininger gave...
$365,000 to Texans for Lawsuit Reform
$135,000 to Craddick's Stars Over Texas PAC
Who owns Bill Welch? Not the people of HD-47, that's for sure.
Filmed in the district, this is a great ad. I have to say that I also found it cool that it was shot at Akins High School who's principal is Mary Alice Dieke, my former principal from back home in Fredericksburg.
Bolton, 47, a professional in the field of assistance for victims of child abuse, sexual assault and domestic violence, wants to improve the public school system. Bolton wants Texas teachers to get another pay raise, and she would push for a cap on college tuitions. She has the endorsement of the Texas State Teacher Association.
Bolton, who has lived in Oak Hill for two years, is smart, plain-spoken and sincere. It is the sincerity of her Republican opponent, Bill Welch, on the issue of campaign contributions, that we question...
At an Oct. 11 voters forum, however, Welch could not recall the name of his top campaign donors. We are concerned that Welch, who told voters he would not be beholden to special interests, forgot the $35,000 given to him by Bob Perry, the power broker who finances much of the state's Republican leadership.
We picked Bolton in the Democratic primary, endorsed her again in the run-off, and we're sticking with her now for the same reasons, plus one more: Her grasp of the critical issues facing the Legislature is top-notch. Bolton's a natural for this line of work. She understands, for example, that when it comes to public education, "real reform" – a favorite buzzword of the pro-voucher crowd – requires real dollars and realistic goals.
Opponent Bill Welch supports state-funded vouchers for private schools, a risky stance for even a Republican to take in a swing district like southwest Travis Co. Has Welch talked to outgoing Rep. Terry Keel about this? Keel, a Republican, could be wildly unpredictable on the House floor, but you could count on him to break ranks to help kill a voucher bill. And like a bad penny, as already threatened by Gov. Perry, the voucher bill will find its way back to the floor next session. Our hope is that Bolton will be there to vote with her district.
Planned Parenthood Action Fund
The HD 47 race is a top priority for the PPAFT. "It’s time for the tenor at the Texas Capitol to change," said Heather Paffe, PPAFT Political Director. "We need elected officials who will do more than feign an interest in finding common ground, we need elected officials who will actually do it."
Texas has the highest teen birth rate and percentage of uninsured women in the nation, yet women’s access to health care has been dealt some devastating blows by the Texas Legislature in the last few years. Valinda understands the need to reverse this trend.
The Austin-American Statesman ran a good profile on the HD-47 race between Democrat Valinda Bolton and Republican Bill Welch. Here's a snippet:
Democratic candidate Valinda Bolton wants to take the seat for her party, along the lines of Democrat Donna Howard's victory over Republican Ben Bentzin in a special election earlier this year. And Republican candidate Bill Welch wants to keep the seat for the Republicans, although he says the race is "not about political parties."
Also in the mix is Libertarian candidate Yvonne Schick.
But almost everyone — even the cautiously optimistic candidates — thinks the district could go either Democratic or Republican. In 2004, District 47 voters supported George W. Bush for president but favored several Democrats in local races.
"This is not a slam-dunk Republican district," said Welch, who ran for the seat in 1992 and narrowly lost in a runoff to Susan Combs. "This is a district where you have to work."
Bush only carried 53% in the district. What's most telling about the district, though, is that two different Democratic women beat out Republican men in down ballot races, and a third -- Diane Henson -- came within a little more than 500 votes of victory. These numbers would suggest that a Democratic woman has an excellent chance to win HD 47, so long as she can carry those 3,000-4,000 swing voters in the district.
Bolton now stands poised to capture the district.
For more on Valinda Bolton and HD-47, you may follow these links:
Get to Know House District 47. An Interview With Valinda Bolton. 40/40 Op-ed by Valinda Bolton: The Race in HD47 is about Electability, Experience and Effective Leadership.
