Big Jolly Politics

politics in Harris County and Texas

Paul Simpson's Closing Statement

by

The Challenge

The Democrats nearly swept Harris County in 2008 after years of Republican decline. Some 50{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} of Harris County precincts have no Republican chair; Democrats have half as many vacancies. The GOP started losing Harris County in judicial elections in 2006. The Democrats remain busy. In early voting, the increase in Democrat turnout this year over 2006 is twice that of Republicans, even with fewer high-competition races on the Democrat ballot. And the Democrats expect demographic changes to turn Harris County permanently blue.

Meeting the Challenge

Eight years on the path to failure is more than enough. More cowbell is not the solution. The County Party needs new leadership.

It doesn’t take rocket science to diagnose the Party’s problems, or a treatise to prescribe the cure. The Harris County Republican Party must recharge its grassroots to make it a vibrant, growing organization across Harris County; revamp Party finances to support needed programs; and rejuvenate the message with a positive conservative vision to attract more voters.

Focus on grassroots is essential. Growth requires recognizing that a political party is a coalition – not a club. That the GOP must grow in non-traditional communities has long been painfully obvious. The problem is not lack of a plan, but failure to execute. The Republican Party cannot allow gatekeepers to bottleneck growth, and needs broad sustained efforts across all communities in the County. Demographics must not give the Democrats destiny.

Revamping finances is basic. Conduct audits, practice transparency, show results, and broaden the base to end the Party’s dependence on candidates and officeholders to stay afloat.

Rejuvenating the message is key. The Republican message must be simple and engaging to win voters. The GOP must be trusted as the party not just of traditional values, but also of limited government, fiscal responsibility, and the Constitution.

Paul Simpson for County Chair

The County Chair is not a CEO. The County Chair must know the turf and work in the trenches with activists and volunteers, fighting the opposition. I’ve done that as a grassroots activist since I was a 13-year-old Teen-Age Republican in then-Democrat-infested Louisiana.

This election is not just about 2010 – it’s also about 2012 and beyond. The GOP has a natural advantage this off-year. But just because voters are mad at Democrats does not mean they’re in love with Republicans. I became active in the Tea Party movement in early 2009, seeing the sleeping giant of American conservatism had awoken and the GOP needed its energy and focus.

County Chair is not an entry-level position. I’ve laid the groundwork all my life for this (unpaid) position. By profession, I’m an engineer and a lawyer, but by lifelong avocation a volunteer conservative Republican activist. As State Chair of the Louisiana Teen-Age Republicans at 16; president of the Rice University Young Republicans; college campaign organizer for conservative congressional candidates; congressional district co-chair for Kemp for President; and precinct chair for the last twenty years, my practical grassroots experience is unmatched in this race. As district chair, legal counsel, and treasurer of the County Party in the 1990s, I know its workings at all levels. I have managed multi-million-dollar oilfield construction projects; chair a Boy Scout Troop; and been president of a school with a multi-million-dollar budget that raised over $5 million, acquired land, and built a new facility, through volunteers. Skill in mobilizing volunteers is key to this race, because volunteers are the lifeblood of a political party.

A County Chair must organize to win. With a grassroots force across Harris County, our campaign has volunteers organizing volunteers. We plan, act quickly, and jump on opportunities, as when we won the Houston Tea Party Straw Poll for County Chair. We have a broad base of supporters from all wings of the Party and all parts of the County. And last week, a coalition of Harris County mayors – close to their grassroots – announced their support for my campaign.

Leadership means motivating others to do the best job they can do, to be the best they can be. Our website includes testimonials from people from political and civic organizations attesting to my ability to do just that. With my background, I can hit the ground running as County Chair.

Andrew Jackson beat John Quincy Adams for president in 1828 saying, “Adams can write – Jackson can fight.” More than any other candidate, I’ve actually fought in the political trenches as a grassroots leader for conservative causes and candidates. I will continue that fight as County Chair. I ask for your vote and look forward to working and winning with you all in the future.

WEBSITE: SimpsonforGOPChair.com

Jared Woodfill's Closing Statement

by

Victory in 2010!

 

A message from: Jared Woodfill, Chairman, Harris County Republican Party

Thank you for the opportunity to bring these closing statements.  I want to thank each of you for all you’ve done for the HCRP and the conservative movement.  It is an honor to serve as your HCRP Chairman.

Like you, I am concerned about a government that wants to expand to all areas of our lives: our banks, our corporations, our car dealerships, our hospitals, and our schools.  Enough is enough. Government in Washington is too big, too controlling, too inefficient and too wasteful.

Just turn on the TV, pick up a newspaper or get on the internet and it becomes clear that our values, principles, and culture are under attack from the radical left.

Over the past several months, America has begun to wake up to the true Democratic Party, led by Barack Obama.  We now know what Hope and Change means:

  • A $787 billion dollar stimulus package that has allowed unemployment to go over 10{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986}
  • Cap and tax legislation that would cripple our economy
  • A budget with over 9000 earmarks
  • Billions in governmental bailouts
  • Government run healthcare

The result-our country is having buyer’s remorse. Recent victories in Virginia, New Jersey, and Scott Brown’s historic win in Massachusetts, demonstrate that the conservative movement is coming out of the proverbial political wilderness.

In just over a year, President Obama and his big government liberal agenda for this country has resulted in a conservative backlash. Voters expressed what we have been hearing from Republicans, conservative independents and seen expressed in the Tea Party movement: big government is not the solution.

As conservative Republicans in Harris County, 2010 will be the year we take our country and the Republican Party back to the Reaganesque principles that brought us to the majority. We need to be an active part of the grass roots, conservative movement seen in Town Hall meetings across the country. We need to embrace the energy, strength, and passion of the Tea Party patriots.

Whether you are a conservative Republican activist, a Tea Party patriot, or a person who is just plain sick and tired of the direction our country is going-we need to be united in our mission, confident in our cause, unwavering in our beliefs, and unified in the fight to take this country back from the liberal left.

We in the Harris County Republican Party believe in limited government, a strong military, lower government spending, a secure border, a free market economy, and a culture that is pro family and pro life. We will continue to fight for these principles.

We must grow our base.  How do we do that?  First, we stick to the principles described above.  Second, we must attract new voters.  We must grow in communities that have not traditionally voted Republican.  This means reaching out to the fastest growing minority community in the country, Hispanics.  Thanks to the generosity and hard work of so many, we now have a permanent Republican headquarters on the Eastside of town (Broadway St.).  This office will provide services to the Hispanic community.  Next month this office will feature a series of seminars that assist individuals who want to start small businesses, complete tax returns and learn English.  The courses will take place at the office and be taught by successful business people, accountants and teachers.  Throughout the year the Republican Party will become more involved in the Hispanic community, partnering with Hispanic leaders and organizations in an effort to grow our party.  Additionally, we will continue our partnership with J.R. Harris Elementary School and other institutions of learning, working to provide educational opportunities for our future leaders.

Hispanic values are Republican values and Republican values are Hispanic values.  However, for too long, we have failed to communicate our winning message to the Hispanic community.  As a party, we must embrace the Hispanic community.  I am convinced that people don’t care what you have to say until they know you care.  Investing our time and energy to provide opportunity to this community will demonstrate that we do care.  We must be a part of the Hispanic community if we expect to be the majority party in the future.   We must elect conservative Hispanic leaders who will take our Republican values into the community and defeat the Democrat machine that perpetuates the lie that Republicans are only for the rich.

Neither can we give up on securing votes in the African-American community.  We must work with our friends in the Texas Federation of Black Republicans and other organizations that represent the African-American community.  We must recruit precinct chairs in areas that are predominantly African-American.  The precinct chair serves as the building block for the Republican infrastructure within the precinct.  We must establish this infrastructure in all communities.  We will continue to aggressively pursue filling these positions. We have made some progress in this area, but we have more work to do.

As a party, we cannot live on past victories; however, we should never forget those principles that brought us to the majority‑limited government, lower taxes, faith based values, respect for human life.  After suffering some losses, there will be Republicans who say we need to compromise on these principles, surrender some of our values.  They will argue that we need to loosen our stance on abortion, unloosen the purse strings on government spending, invite government back into areas where it has no business being. This is the path to the permanent minority.   My friend George Strake said it best when he told me that politics is not the art of compromise, it is sticking to your principles and getting 50{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} of the people to agree with you.   Stick to your principles.  Greater days are yet to come and greater things are still to be done.    Don’t give up.  Don’t quit.  Don’t surrender.  Victory is ours if we do not grow faint in well doing.

I welcome everyone who wants to join our conservative cause at the HCRP, and, as we head toward the critical November elections, we must have innovation, planning, hard work and a commitment to our core conservative principles in order to be successful.

Continue to send a message to the liberals by voting in the Republican Party Primary. I would be honored to have your support and vote. Together, we will take this country back.

WEBSITE: JaredWoodfill.org

Ed Hubbard's Closing Statement

by

My name is Ed Hubbard.  I am asking for your vote to be the next Chair of your Harris County Republican Party.

I am running to re-focus our party on its core mission to elect strong Republicans to local office by:

  • Offering you a REVOLUTION for our principles, and for our future—not just to have the party “stick by” its principles, but to use those principles to address local issues faced by this state and county, including each of the 34 cities and 24 school districts in Harris County;
  • Building a farm-team of activists to serve as precinct chairs, and to run for every local office;
  • Unifying our party by re-involving our club members into the volunteer base of our party;
  • Growing our party permanently into every precinct and every community;
  • Bringing modern get-out-the-vote technology and tactics to the party, which will enable the party to identify, register and mobilize at least 565,000 voters to elect Republicans in Harris County by 2012;
  • Bringing sound financial management to our local party, returning those party regulars who no longer contribute to our ranks, and re-establishing our ties to the business community; and
  • Not just regaining the ground we lost in 2008, but creating the basis for a sustained political majority in this county as this county grows from 4 million to 8 million people over the next 20 years.

Leadership does matter.  That is why, since December, 2008, I have shared with you my ideas for improving the party.  I wrote a proposed strategic plan for review and comment. I discussed all of my ideas openly—in public meetings (including during 17 candidate forums during this campaign), on the radio, on TV, in personal conversations, and on the Internet (first, at www.futureofthehcrp.com, and now at www.hubbardforhcrp.com and on Facebook and Twitter).  I engaged in this open dialogue, because I believe that the only way we will seize the future is to have an open and vigorous debate now about how we get there—a debate in which we all participate.

However, I have not just talked and written about ideas over these last few months. Beginning last December, through meetings with young activists and established party leaders, I helped nurture and support young leaders who formed new organizations such as Raging Elephants, Conservador Alliance, and the local Tea Party Society, which are building relationships in our African-American and Latino communities, and providing a voice to a new conservative activism in our community.  I also worked to gain support for our strategic vision throughout our party. Our efforts have led to phenomenal results so far:

  • Raging Elephants successfully placed a billboard promoting the GOP in a traditionally African-American Community, and its leader has gained a large local, and growing national, following;
  • The leader of Conservador Alliance recently was named by the Republican National Committee and the Republican Party of Texas to serve as the statewide director of it’s a new organization:  Latino National  Republican Coalition;
  • Two activists, who helped coordinate our early meetings, went on to form and lead the local Tea Party movement;
  • At least five county GOP parties across the State of Texas have referenced my proposed strategic plan, and discussed it with me, as they have revised their own written mission statements and strategic plans;
  • Our local GOP leadership, after seven years of inaction, responded to our efforts with an aggressive communication blitz that has included emails, social-networking training, townhall meetings, and public discussions of its own plan for the future;
  • Local and national online and print media, including the Houston Chronicle and Townhall.com have covered and praised our plan to address issues relevant to metropolitan voters;
  • I worked with the Houston Tea Party Society and other organizers to identify vacant precincts and recruit new precinct chairs, which lead to the recruitment of many of the 180 new applicants;
  • A representative of the Republican National Committee has indicated interest in using elements of our plan for the HCRP for a pilot program to increase Republican presence in urban areas;
  • For the first time in almost 15 years, there is a real debate over the future of the party, and a real race for the party chair position;
  • I received the first endorsement from the C Club in a party chair race in the club’s 46 year history, which signifies the business community’s desire for our party to regain its political strength;
  • In a recent Straw Poll conducted by the Houston Tea Party Society, the voters chose change for the office of Chair over the status quo by a margin of 78{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} to 22{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986}, and gave my candidacy a close second place finish—almost 15{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} more than the incumbent; and
  • I have obtained the agreement of a core group of leaders—young and old; experienced and novice to the party; business leaders; African-American; and Latino—to serve on a new management team for the HCRP if I win this race, because they know that there is so much to do in so little time, that one person can not do it alone.

If we could accomplish all of this since December, 2008, think about what we can accomplish together over the next 2 years as part of a new HCRP!

Now, you must decide:  will we continue to argue over the past, or will we be bold and turn a new page?  You must ask yourself the question I asked before I entered this race:

If not now, when?

I am proud of the varied endorsements I’ve received from people who agree that NOW is the time (see http://www.hubbardforhcrp.com/endorsements.html).

If you agree that NOW is the time to revitalize the Harris County Republican Party, I am asking you to vote for me, Ed Hubbard, for Chair of the Harris County Republican Party in the Republican Primary.

WEBSITE: HubbardforHCRP.com

Houston Tea Party Society One Year Anniversary

by

That’s right, one year ago, on February 27, 2009, between 250 and 500 people (depends upon who you ask) showed up at Discovery Green park in downtown Houston to protest the incredible spending from the previous Bush administration and the new Obama administration. Many laughed and made jokes but one year later, few are laughing and the jokes have turned to the type of smears you get when someone doesn’t understand something and cannot reasonably argue with them.

I must admit it has been a fun year for me. I’ve met, quite literally, hundreds of new friends. Some will become long-term friends, others will jump ship as they realize I’m not going to go along to get along. As has happened in the past week after I told the world about Roy Morales giving money to the puke. That was disappointing but it happens and I’m not about to change. I’ll keep on keeping on, trying to show the HCRP a better way. It is what I do.

Tomorrow, the HTPS is having an anniversary party. And, in typical fashion, they are using it as an opportunity to train people. That is one of the foremost differences between the HTPS and other groups, their agenda is to train and make a long-term impact. They have tried like heck to remain non-partisan even as Democrats shun them and mock them. And as some criticize them for being too close to Republicans. I commend them for doing their best and appreciate all of the hard work that they have done. And what they have accomplished.

There is no question that the HCRP will be different because of the influx of new precinct chairs. If the voters do their job and change leadership, the difference will be noticed immediately. If not, it will take longer but the current chair should know this – they will not stand for the smoke and mirrors of the past.

Here are a few pictures I culled out but the original pictures from a year ago are still online, still unedited and lots of them. Amazing how many people I now recognize by name when I scroll through them.

To Felicia, Josh, Natalie, Claver, Chelsea – Happy Anniversary! You guys rock. I’ll see you at Casa Grande tomorrow!

Tom and Paula Bazan with their famous pitchfork. Becky and Tim Flowers were there. Claver gave a rousing speech.

What a crew! All types of signs and people were there. Entire families came out.

What a gal! Lori was there. All Fired Up! Two friends from Lonestartimes, Sally and LC, were there!

Two friends from Lonestartimes, Sally and LC, were there!

Terry Lowry Counts the Cost

by

We will use the unfortunate foray into his den by candidate for Texas House District 129, Mary Huls. I happened to notice a Facebook entry by her shortly after her “experience” with Mr. Lowry and she seemed befuddled that he would treat her so poorly. Here is the result of her “interview”:

{mp3}mary-huls_terry-lowry_100205MH{/mp3}

Note, that link might not work, he is redoing his website and has experienced some problems. If it doesn’t, I have it saved and will stream it from here.

Not easy to listen to, is it? I asked her what she expected, given his reputation and the fact that the incumbent, Rep. John Davis, has given her over $15,000 through the years. She didn’t know about his reputation and she didn’t know about Rep. Davis’ purchases. I need to work harder.

At any rate, I’ll point out a few things. First off, in a segment lasting 10 minutes and 38 seconds, Mrs. Huls gets about a minute and a half to speak, if you don’t count the times he’s speaking over her. Fun stuff listening to his theories.

Another thing is the way he berates her for not hiring a consultant, you know, someone like him or someone that would point her to him. He tells her that she just doesn’t have a clue. Listen for yourself, it’s only a few seconds:

{mp3}lowry_huls_no-clue{/mp3}

What a guy, no?

The third thing is his mis-use of the Bible. I’ve noticed that one of his favorite things to say when he is berating people is “My Bible says to count the costs.”, by which he means if you don’t have enough money to pay him, or someone like him, you shouldn’t bother trying. What a complete corruption of a beautiful passage of Scripture.

Warning: Non-Christians, you can tune out here. Anyone else that feels like it, you can too.

Listen to this:

{mp3}lowry_huls_cost2{/mp3}

It is important when quoting the Bible that you use proper context. Extremely important; we’ve all seen or heard what happens when you don’t. In this case, Mr. Lowry is taking a small snippet from a passage in Luke that, in the proper context, discusses the cost of following Christ. It has nothing to do with building a house, or a watchtower, and certainly not entering a political race. Here is the passage, Luke 14:24-33:

Now large crowds were accompanying Jesus, and turning to them he said, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother, and wife and children, and brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry his own cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, wanting to build a tower, doesn’t sit down first and compute the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish the tower, all who see it will begin to make fun of him. They will say, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish!’ Or what king, going out to confront another king in battle, will not sit down first and determine whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? If he cannot succeed, he will send a representative while the other is still a long way off and ask for terms of peace. In the same way therefore not one of you can be my disciple if he does not renounce all his own possessions.

To a Christian, that is a completely understandable passage because we understand the cost of following Christ. And we’ve all seen people that say they will follow Him until they see how hard it is and return to the old way of condemning people that are “different” and outside of the cultural norm.

It is seriously wrong for Mr. Lowry to use Christ’s words in such a bullying way. He makes the same errors when condemning homosexuals, alcoholics, smokers, bad drivers, illegal immigrants, etc., basically anyone he doesn’t like. Take a little snippet and bang people upside the head with it, pretending to be some sort of Biblical guru. That is why it is critical for a Christian to read your Bible – without that knowledge, you are easily led astray.

That is why I treat him differently than the other “slate” sellers in town.

Here we have a candidate that isn’t rich and must rely on her own hard work. In addition, she has to work to support her family, meaning she is up every morning at 4 am and hopes to be in bed by midnight, never stopping during the day. Attack her policies all you want but attacking her simply because she didn’t pay you…is wrong.

Terry Lowry Watch – The Endorsements and The Choices

by

 

I’ll go in alphabetical order as listed in this post.

District Judge, 280th Family Court

At first glance, former judge Lynn Bradshaw-Hull is the obvious choice with no viable alternative. And I predict that she will win easily (which makes her expenditure with Lowry even more inexplicable). She is experienced and lost because of the shortcomings of the HCRP in the last election when Democrats flocked to the polls in Harris County to vote for Barack Obama.

A second glance will show you that her opponent, Angelina Gooden, is indeed a viable alternative. She has years of experience in family law and has a passion for domestic abuse cases, which this court will handle. I urge you to read the comments here before you make up your mind.

County Criminal Court 4

Interesting race. John Clinton doesn’t have a lot of experience but he’s a great guy and I’ve enjoyed our conversations. Too bad he chose to give money to Lowry. Janice Law is the most experienced but she seems a bit, um, eccentric, plus she too gave money to Lowry, just not as much. Read her report on trying to get endorsed by Steven Hotze – it’s hilarious and oh so true. Jackie Gifford is sort of quiet, not real outgoing, but has plenty of experience in law. I’ll vote for her, you’ll need to check around.

District Clerk

This one is a mud-fest. Chris Daniel is a good kid and will be around for a long time in politics because it is his passion. He doesn’t have a lot of experience but works hard and multi-tasks well. Let’s face it, I like the guy, even though I’ve tried not to because of some of his HCRP relationships, i.e., tied to the Woodfill-Pressler machine. But there is a good choice in this one, so I’ll be voting for Paul Dwight.

House District 129

John Davis is a decent representative for 129, I know because it is my district. He is a long-time supporter of Mr. Lowry, having given him over $15,000 through the years. I knew that and voted for him anyway in previous elections. This year, I have a choice, one that I’ve previously noted – I’ll be voting for Mary Huls. I’ll also be showing you in a separate post what Mr. Lowry does to people he doesn’t like.

District Judge, 313th Family Court

Glenn Devlin ties for being the highest dollar enabler of Mr. Lowry. Fortunately, his opponent, Fred Wilson is quite capable and gets my vote.

District Judge, 180th

Danny Dexter is by most accounts not qualified for the job. But look around and you’ll see quite a few endorsements for him. That’s normal in politics when you throw around enough money. Two good choices here, Emily Munoz and Marc Brown.

County Criminal Court 3

This one is easy. Natalie Fleming might be able to throw around 5 grand to get Mr. Lowry’s attention but Cary Hart rocks! Easily the best candidate of the four vying for this one, I will vote for her enthusiastically and hope you do too!

Supreme Court, Place 3

Whoa, boy, I bet Jim Mosely isn’t feeling too good about this one. He threw 10 grand at Lowry and bought himself a full page ad. Then Lowry goes and gives Rick Green TWO full pages for only $2,500 – isn’t there a law against that? Fortunately, Jeff Brown is a great alternative to either of those two and that is who I’m voting for.

Supreme Court, Place 9

This one will buy me some grief. Someone will probably un-friend me from Facebook, as happened when I pointed out that Roy Morales gave the puke 5 grand. No matter, it is my axe to grind and grind it I will. Eva Guzman has a full page ad but nothing on her campaign finance reports to say how much she paid Mr. Lowry. She’ll either be correcting that or she had one of her consultants pay him. Heck, Allen Blakemore is making a killing off her, over $30k on one report. Bottom line is, I don’t like people that try to buy elections, even candidates as stellar as Eva Guzman. Rose Vela gets my vote.

House District 127

Dan Huberty is too pretty anyway. Not my district but Dr. Susan Curling is a great conservative alternative.

Justice O’Peace, Precint 5, Place 2

Hard one. If I hadn’t met Virginia Pittman several times over the course of the past year, I’d probably be inclined to overlook George Huntoon’s flirtation with the devil. But I have, and Virginia is exactly the type of person we should have in those positions. Experienced with the court, experienced in life, not a self-promoter, a genuine good person – she’s the right choice.

Harris County Republican Party Chair

Please. If you have read more than a week’s worth of stuff here, you know darned well that Jared Woodfill needs to be removed as Chair. That he has given credibility and thousands upon thousands of dollars to Mr. Lowry is but one reason I’ll vote for someone else. There are two VERY QUALIFIED choices: Ed Hubbard or Paul Simpson. Do your research and vote for the future of the HCRP.

1st Court of Appeals, Place 4

Sigh. I’ll vote for Evelyn Keyes even though she gave to Mr. Lowry. I just don’t think Don Self is as qualified. Bummer.

District Judge, 308th Family Court

Another tough one. James Lombardino is a great guy and I want to vote for him but… he tied with Glenn Devlin for giving the most money to Mr. Lowry. Rick Ramos and Alice O’Neil are both acceptable alternatives, I’m not so sure about Sumpter Frazier. Not sure who I will vote for but, unfortunately, it will not be Mr. Lombardino. I hate saying that – get to know him, he’s a great guy.

1st Court of Appeals, Place 8

This is race in which I’ll hold my nose and vote for the more qualified person, Michael Massengale.

14th Court of Appeals, Place 5

Even though Judge Leslie Brock Yates gave money to Mr. Lowry, her opponent gave more and received, just like that, the endorsement. Although, money doesn’t matter to him, you know? As there isn’t a third choice, and given that Judge Yates is the most qualified anyway, I’ll vote for her without even holding my nose, hoping that she learned a lesson from this.

House of Representatives, CD-10

Unfortunately, Rep. Michael McCaul’s opponent, Joe Petronis, is too inexperienced and I cannot recommend him. Mr. Petronis is young and aggressive, so we will see him again.

District Judge, 310th Family Court

Never met Lisa Millard. I found her name by accident on a Google search, boasting about being endorsed by Terry Lowry’s Link Letter, before it was published. So, I put on Facebook that I guaranteed there would be an entry showing she paid Mr. Lowry. Sure enough, 5 grand. Too bad no one wanted to bet me. Unfortunately, I haven’t met her opponent either! I’ll be skipping the box.

House of Representatives, CD-29

I’ve already noted my disappointment with Roy Morales for trying to buy an election. Turns out that, with the possible exception of one person that isn’t listed on the voter registration rolls, none of his contributions came from within CD-29. I guess that is what he meant by “some downtown businessmen called me”. Oh well, I don’t live in the district. Two of the remaining four would be viable alternatives for me, Eric Story and Frank Mazzapica.

House District 149

Jack O’Connor made a rookie mistake, following the advice of a political consultant and doing business with Mr. Lowry. It remains to be seen if that consultant made a wise choice or not. I’d vote for Dianne Williams if I lived in this district.

County Criminal Court 13

There is such a vast difference in qualifications here that I don’t even know why anyone needs to talk about it. Rachel Palmer is building a career as a party insider, has great connections, raises tons of money, likes to sit between Carolyn Farb and Dodie Osteen, has thrown money around to anyone willing to catch it and is proof that the old party apparatus still exists. Were it not for the money and connections, no one would seriously consider her in this race. Yes, it is that lopsided. Don Smyth gets my very, very enthusiastic vote and best wishes. Will voters see through the fog? Who knows.

District Judge, 311th Family Court

Very weird things going on here. Denise Pratt gives Lowry 10 grand, pays her sister to show up and campaign, and basically is a shadow candidate. Lots of good alternatives here, all four of the others are very well qualified.

County Clerk

Easy one. Stan Stanart is a heckuva nice guy, Gail is nice, they are good party insiders but – Kevin Mauzy is by far the most qualified candidate to replace the retiring Beverly Kaufman. Super nice guy, a little shy, with years of experience, he’s the best choice, regardless of Stanart giving Lowry money. If you want a real treat, take a look at his campaign finance reports – page after page after page of small, $10, 20 and 30 dollar donations. A man of the people, if not the party apparatus.

County Tax-Assessor and Collector

I don’t know exactly how much Don Sumners paid Terry Lowry because his report still isn’t up on the Harrisvotes website but this is a classic example of old school vs new school in Harris County Republican politics. On the one hand you have a guy, Don Sumners, that has been around forever and whose main issue is that he wants to go around yelling ala Paul Bettencourt while you, Mr. Citizen, stand in line at the tax office. On the other, you have a guy that worked his way through two Ivy League schools with an MBA from Yale, was very successful in private industry, is on the State Board of Criminal Justice, has been able to quickly adapt to public life, stared down Bill White in a council meeting and yet, Mr. Lowry chooses good old boy Don Sumners. Good lord. It makes you wonder, doesn’t it?

County Probate 1

LOL, first you have an old retired Democrat try to buy the seat by giving Jared Woodfill and the HCRP a ton of money, then, after the deadline, he “withdraws”, leaving Loyd Wright. Not much choice here. I’ll either vote for the old guy that I like, Charles Coussons, or I will skip the box.

 

And there you have it. I’ll probably do a couple of more things about Terry Lowry, especially the way he distorts the Bible. It makes me nauseated when he does that. So, if that bugs you, you might want to tune out. Or, like I said earlier, you could do as one friend did and “un-friend” me on Facebook. Doesn’t matter, I’m going to keep on keeping on because it is the right thing to do.

 

UPDATE! Yikes, can’t believe I missed the 309th, I certainly had it on my radar screen. Going too fast, I suppose.

 

District Judge, 309th Family Court

Sheri Y. Dean is a great person. Really, truly, a great person. But…she is a long-time Lowry enabler, and as such, i can’t vote for her if, as above, there is a viable alternative.

Fortunately for me, there is. Or are. There are two that I think deserve your consideration. One, Meca Walker, made a great impression on my wife. The other, Daniel Lemkuil, made a great impression on me. Split household! Either of the two are fine candidates (not that Sheri isn’t, but, you know).