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texas governor 
Thu Nov 05, 2009 at 01:25 AM CST
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A few hours ago in Houston, I did something that no statewide candidate in Texas history has ever done: I released a comprehensive policy statement on issues of importance to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Texans.
In front of a packed house at a meeting of the Houston GLBT Political Caucus, I outlined my plan to repeal the Texas Defense of Marriage Act and all statutory and constitutional barriers to equality for LGBT citizens, as well as ending discrimination in hiring and employment, public accommodations and real estate transactions, insurance, and more.
After The Advocate took note of this policy release, a Texas reader in their comment section said he though, with a policy like that, I don't stand "a snowball's chance in hell," of winning this election because of the reputation Texas has under Rick Perry.
But you and I know different.
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Sat Oct 21, 2006 at 04:29 PM CDT
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In the only two polls conducted after the gubernatorial candidates' debate, Bell is in second place emerging as the only challenger who has a chance of beating Perry. Both polls confirm that Kinky is nothing but a spoiler bottoming out in the polls more than 10% below Bell.
Wall Street Journal (an internet based poll using a methodology that may oversample pro-technology voters, but the poll is weighted to match the race, age, economic profile, education profile, and party affiliation splits corresponding with the splits from the latest exit polls from comparable elections in Texas):
37.5% - Rick Perry
26.2% - Chris Bell
13.2% - Richard Friedman
13.0% - Carole Strayhorn
Texans for Insurance Reform (a land-line telephone based poll using a methodology that may undersample younger, pro-technology, economically disadvantaged voters, and the poll is weighted to match the polling population to the assumption that 40% of the voters will be Republicans, 30% will be Democrats, and 30% will be independents - this poll is conducted by an independent polling firm but it is financed by Strayhorn supporters):
34.4% - Rick Perry
18.7% - Chris Bell
18.5% - Carole Strayhorn
_8.6% - Richard Friedman
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Mon Oct 09, 2006 at 09:26 AM CDT
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When Kinky appears before Democratic crowds, he falsely plays down his support for Bush.
First, there is no question that Kinky voted for Bush/Cheney in 2004 (some Kinkaholics on "Satan's internet" still dispute this fact):
"The voting record doesn't look strong, but my voting record is better than Dick Cheney's," he said, referring to reports in 2000 that Cheney skipped 14 of 16 votes in Dallas County - including the presidential primary in which he could have voted for his future running mate, George W. Bush.
According to Kerr County voting records, Friedman voted in the 2004 presidential general election but not in any other contest since 1994.
"I was for Bush in 2004," he said.
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Wed Oct 04, 2006 at 01:32 AM CDT
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(Something fun to help pass the time. - promoted by Phillip Martin)
Test your knowledge of the Texas gubernatorial candidates.
1. Who said "I think Rick Perry is an inspiring leader; he inspired me to run for Governor"?
A. James "Rick" Perry
B. Chris Bell
C. Richard "Kinky" Friedman
D. Carole Keeton Strayhorn
2. Who said "I'm not a liberal, believe me; I'm a compassionate redneck, far more conservative than I am liberal"?
A. James "Rick" Perry
B. Chris Bell
C. Richard "Kinky" Friedman
D. Carole Keeton Strayhorn
3. Who said "I'm not a supporter of using embryonic stem cell research; frankly, I think it's a very narrow, at best, area"?
A. James "Rick" Perry
B. Chris Bell
C. Richard "Kinky" Friedman
D. Carole Keeton Strayhorn
4. Who said "Stem-cell research isn't just a good idea; it's a moral calling"?
A. James "Rick" Perry
B. Chris Bell
C. Richard "Kinky" Friedman
D. Carole Keeton Strayhorn
5. Who said "After nine legislative sessions full of name-calling, our school funding is in crisis, property taxes are up and judges are having to do our governor's job"?
A. James "Rick" Perry
B. Chris Bell
C. Richard "Kinky" Friedman
D. Carole Keeton Strayhorn
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Tue Oct 03, 2006 at 08:44 AM CDT
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Of course, it is no surprise to the reality-based community that Molly Ivins would endorse the most progressive candidate who would best serve the interests of most Texans.
Yet there have been many Kinkoholics who have misrepresented that Molly supported Kinky. In fact, some blowhard Kinkynistas have said that "If you can get Molly Ivins to endorse Chris Bell, I will vote for him."
So it is finally put-up-or-shut-up day for those fact-deprived residents of Kinkistan who have been touting that Ann Richards supported Kinky (false) and that Molly Ivins supports Kinky (also false).
Here are Molly's sage thoughts on the matter:
By Molly Ivins
Chris Bell for governor! I know, I know, it’s stop the presses, Ivins favors Democrat! But the Kinky Friedman candidacy is worn thin and no fun. Besides, we actually have a good chance to get Rick Perry out of office. After six years in office, the Coiffure is at 36 percent approval. He gets another four years, I don’t think we’ll have a public school system left—he really does intend to destroy it, at far-right GOP donor Jim Leininger’s bidding, you know. We may never again get a chance to do our state such a great service. This could be the Alamo of elections.
For those, like me, who believe in music and laughter in politics, Kinky Friedman appeared to be a natural—and besides, how hard can it be?
It turns out, a little harder than Kinky is willing to make an effort to go. In an excruciating interview with the Dallas Morning News, Friedman not only got about half his facts wrong (this is why we accuse Bush of misleading people), but also demonstrated that he does not understand school finance or taxes, nor does he have any intention of trying to do so.
...
One of the great mysteries of this race is why Carole Keeton Strayhorn has imploded almost as fast as Friedman. The only reason Friedman is still in the race is because of free media: Reporters were all so bored by the thought of another snoozer Republican victory, they fought to keep Friedman’s candidacy alive long past the point when it was clear that the Kinkster was in it entirely for ego and publicity. I still like the idea—maybe next time, we should get a funny, smart musician who cares enough to study up a little. Marcia Ball, anyone? Joe Ely?
...
Bell is looking like a better bet because: (A) He has the Democratic base vote going for him, and (B) Perry is just so lame. As we start down the stretch, Bell is picking up on the outside, Perry is still at 35 percent after a year, Strayhorn is fading and Kinky stopped to poop on the track.
...
There was a bit of flap recently when Liz Smith claimed the late Ann Richards would have been in favor of Kinky for governor. Maybe Liz knew Ann better than I did. But I’d bet not. Listening to her memorial service, I was reminded how hard we fought and how tough it was. I thought of the slippage since she left office—blacks and browns left out again. All we have to do to win this is get Democrats to vote. Let’s make it a vote for Annie.
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Wed Sep 27, 2006 at 05:06 PM CDT
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To punish criminals we should "throw them in prison and throw away the key and make them listen to a Negro talking to himself," and then he explained that "Negro ... is a charming word."
"You folks know the Friedman family motto now: The Jews own the world, the Catholics run it, Protestants work it, and the Niggers and Mexicans enjoy it, basically, that's what they've done."
"I was run over by a bookmobile coming to the show this evening. They took me to the Ben Talb hospital now- when I came to the doctor told me, 'Kinky, we've had to give you a transfusion with the blood of a person of the Negro persuasion.' I said, 'well that's moderately unpleasant.' He said, 'well yes Kinky there's a good side to this, too. There's some good fringe benefits. Your welfare check will start coming in next month and your penis just grew 12 inches so these are some things you should think about...'"
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Thu Sep 21, 2006 at 01:07 PM CDT
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After months of treating Kinky Friedman as nothing more than a sideshow freak in the three-ring circus that the Texas governor's race has become, the media have finally begun to explore the inherent flaws in Kinky's campaign.
True to its nature, the first of many flaws which the media have fixated upon is the more sensational misjudgments (and less policy-oriented errors) represented by the strain of racial tension undercutting Kinky's campaign efforts.
From Kinky's last political campaign as a Republican candidate to his current political campaign, Kinky has established a pattern of using racially charged phrases about his on-again-off-again distaste for the "tar baby" of politics, his thoughts on "nigger eggs," his views on punishment by mumbling "Negroes" in prison, his talk of "fried chicken in the ghetto," and his plans for the black "thugs and crackheads" in Houston.
Some call this pattern of comments racist, but others call this simply a foolish way for Kinky to guarantee that he won't win a single minority vote. In either case, it is not without good cause that Kinky has less than half of the minority support that Chris Bell enjoys and less than two-thirds of the minority support for Perry.
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Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 11:16 PM CDT
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On Wednesday, September 13, 2006, the Dallas Morning News published an Associated Press interview with Kinky Friedman. Kinky tried to downplay the racist nature of his recent unfortunate comments saying that the black hurricane refugees in Houston from New Orleans were "thugs and crackheads":
Friedman last week said he would provide $100 million to Houston, or any other city facing similar crime problems, so Houston could hire 1,200 new police officers to deal with crime and weed out the "crackheads and thugs" among the thousands of Katrina evacuees from New Orleans who relocated to Houston.
Roundly criticized as a thinly veiled attack on blacks from Louisiana, Friedman said Wednesday his proposal "was not in any way racist."
"How can you possibly regret that, telling the truth?" he asked. "I am not a racist, I am a realist. ... I never said what color their skin was. .... I'm smarter than that."
Yet on September 9, 2006, Guillermo X. Garcia with the San Antonio Express-News Staff reported on a question-and-answer session with Kinky and directly quoted him:
In answer to a question, Friedman said the comments do not indicate that he holds racist views. Rather, he said they demonstrate his ability to take on a subject the other candidates won't touch.
"Racism was here before I came around," he said. "I am just trying to bring up these issues within the (expletive) society."
Later, he said: "As it happens, the crackheads and thugs who remain in Houston after Katrina happen to be black; that's fact."
This latest lie follows Kinky's previous lies about his past claims that he vote for Ann Richards and Al Gore and against the Constitutional Amendment rejecting equal marriage rights.
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Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 11:47 AM CDT
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I. Why Kinky’s campaign cannot be trusted
Kinky’s campaign has a history of telling different audiences whatever they want to hear. That’s called pandering, and it is generally not widely respected in adult discussions of politics.
Kinky originally thought that he could run his campaign without addressing many substantive issues. How do I know this? Because Kinky said so:
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