Sen. Dan Patrick’s general consultant, Allen Blakemore held a tele-conference this afternoon to discuss their victory Tuesday and the upcoming runoff. I had to laugh when Blakemore talked about Patrick winning the areas with people, eventually saying that David Dewhurst is liked by cattle and farm animals while Dan Patrick is liked by people. Ouch.
You can listen to the tele-conference below:
While we were on the call, Dr. Steve Hotze and the Conservative Republicans of Texas released a Baselice poll showing Sen. Patrick with a strong lead in the runoff.
Baselice Poll – Dan Patrick vs David Dewhurst 2014 Runoff
One of the topics addressed was campaign finance. The question was if Patrick could compete financially with Dewhurst. Blakemore said that this campaign had been a little different in that this was the first time Dewhurst had loaned his campaign money rather than just opening his checkbook. That isn’t technically true because Dewhurst has loaned his campaign money in the past, as I noted here. But I think that in the broader sense, Blakemore was correct because Dewhurst hasn’t, as of yet, poured personal money into this race.
I asked Blakemore the obvious question – after the results of the Baselice poll, do you think Dewhurst can see the writing on the wall and is thinking about bowing out. Blakemore said that those discussions are probably part of their campaign but I needed to ask Dewhurst. True enough on both accounts.
But how do I broach that question to a guy that I support and admire? Tough call. I do not see a way for David to win this race, even if he spends millions on negative advertising. Think about the personal attacks on Patrick over the last couple of weeks of the campaign, including Dewhurst’s, and how they didn’t move the polls in the direction hoped. Over 70{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} of statewide Republican primary voters rejected him after 10 years in office. I hope that David and his family are seriously thinking about the damage that a very negative campaign will do to his legacy. Sometimes, a graceful exit is the right thing to do, both for your own legacy and for the good of the Republican party.
As I said before, there is no need to be scared of Dan Patrick as Lt. Governor. Look at his work as committee chair of Public Education before you think about abandoning the party and skipping the box or voting for the Democrat.
It will be a sad day for Texas if Patrick gets elected as Lt. Gov. He is one of the few people on this planet I truly despise. He is an absolute piece of human excrement with not one redeeming quality.
Thanks, Ross, for the reminder of the high intellectual level of civil discourse we have come to expect from the irrational, unreasoning Patrick-haters, and liberals in general.
To find comradeship at your intellectual level, you can go to any liberal blog or website and slog through the slime and muck you find there in their comment sections.
Ross, I voted for Dan Patrick and will gladly vote for him in the Republican run-off election and in the general election.
The idea that disliking Goeb, er, Patrick identifies one as a “liberal” is laughable, but unsurprising coming from a supporter of perhaps the most dishonest Texas politician in recent memory.
a12, People like Dan Patrick will be the death of the Republican party as a viable participant in US politics. I have voted for Republicans 90+{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} of the time over the last 35 years. With the rise of the tea party and self-righteous scumbags like Patrick, I will either vote Libertarian, or start voting for the Democrats. I am not alone in this thinking. Many of my circle of friends, colleagues, and acquaintances feel the same. Without us, the Republican party does not elect any candidates.
I just can’t get behind your idea of Dewhurst bowing out of the race. Polling aside, there just seems little chance that supporters of Staples and Patterson would get behind the candidate who repeatedly lied about their positions. People who’d like to see the GOP win down-ballot races and expand into minority communities certainly won’t be supported Patrick either.
Mr. Smith – given that your “honesty” stops at actually using Senator Patrick’s correct name, I believe that I will discount your accusations of dishonesty.
Discount them all you want, that doesn’t make his lies about Patterson and Staples go away. I saw his sponsored Facebook ads every time I logged on, claiming that Patterson and Staples support “amnesty” (they don’t), claiming Patterson is weak on the 2nd Amendment (he isn’t), and so on. Whether I use the name given to him by his mother and father or the name he chose does not change his record of dishonesty.
If Patrick wins, look for the tide to begin turning toward the Dems in Texas.
Whatever. That so-called blue tide is supposed to have been coming since when. It hasn’t happened yet and won’t be this time either… if ever. Dream on libtards.
republicans are debating whether Patrick would be a drag on the ticket, or whether he might energize campaign workers which would compensate for any backlash from Latino, Jewish, social moderate, or other voters.
So, I take it you’re totally comfortable with all of the lies that Patterson and Staples told about Patrick? ‘Cause he’s just a really bad “piece of excrement”! What a joke.
You don’t like Dan Patrick because of his stance on some social issues. That’s fine. But to whine because Dan’s a mean person while ignoring all of the other crap is infantile. Supporters of Patterson and Staples are going to have to decide between Dewhurst and Patrick. And then they will have to decide between Patrick and whoever the Democrats run for Lt. Governor. Cast your ballot.
As for the idea that Dan Patrick is going to be the death of the Republican party in Texas. . . . you should talk a look at the actual voter turnout numbers. Texas isn’t going to be blue for a long while.
What specific lies did Staples or Patterson tell about Patrick? I’m not aware of any. But day after day Patrick’s attack machine consistently lied about their positions.
Patrick’s nomination probably won’t turn Texas blue, but his campaign will hurt the GOP among Hispanic voters, and the people staying at home because they don’t want to support him could have a big impact down the ballot.
As for the idea that Dan Patrick is going to be the death of the Republican party in Texas. . . .
I don’t think any seasoned observers expect a sea change in political patterns overnight, but a shift of 20,000 votes in Harris County might sink a couple of dozen judicial candidates running countywide, and similar shifts in other counties which are finely balanced could also be a concern.
This is a potential which could cut either way. Disenchanted Patrick and/or Cruz supporters could also have the same response as you are implying that Dewhurst supporters may have, especially after a bitter runoff as in 2012. I hope both sides are more responsible and intelligent than that. It is hoped that common sense would prevail in either case, where the common enemy will be the Democrat nominee. Proverb: The enemy of my enemy is my friend.
Todd Staples hit this issue hard during his campaign, but with a different angle. He hammered on Dewhurst’s unfortunate lapse in leadership during the abortion debate which created Wendy Davis Superstar. The big dollars she will bring in from liberals all over the nation will increase the Democratic turnout which could sink many down-ballot Republicans, particularly in Harris County.
I believe Staples correctly identified the greater threat. That basic threat is unchangeable at this point, but can still be overcome by maximizing Republican voter turnout in November. Dissident supporters of Dewhurst or Patrick dropping out will only assure the down-ballot washout.
A. J.
Count me as one who’s not a big Dan Patrick fan. Sure he “misrepresented” the positions of the other candidates but he’s not the first politician to ever do that. My biggest problem with DP is his continued use of the “invasion” rhetoric that I find offensive (and I’m whiter than white on rice on a paper plate in a snowstorm!). It’s possible to talk about border security in non-offensive ways that help grow the GOP – or at the least don’t diminish all the outreach that the grassroots have done, especially in Harris County. Not the “death of the GOP in Texas” but certainly not helpful – especially with him running against a far-left liberal Hispanic woman who will use every opportunity to demagogue the TX GOP.
Patterson says he will vote Libertarian if Dan Patrick is the nominee:
http://www.texastribune.org/2014/03/11/patterson-staples-whether-dewhurst-will-drop-out/
Fine Republican that he is. . . .. . . .
Patterson IS a “fine Republican” and a good leader. Being a “fine Republican” doesn’t mean supporting someone of low character just because they have an “R” next to their name, especially if you think that person is bad for the long-term success of the party and the state.
You know what Dave, against my better judgement I’m going to respond to your last post.
The primary race for Lt. Governor was a tough race (yeah, I know it’s not over yet, and it’s probably gonna get worse). All 4 candidates and their supporters made claims about their opponents that, at best shaded the truth, and at worst were outright lies.
All 4 candidates.
It’s regrettable, it would be nice it it didn’t happen this way, but it does. It’s been this way for the last 200 years, and it’s probably not going to change anytime soon. Jerry Patterson is a tough guy (he says so in his commercials!) he’s been in politics for a long time. Frankly, he should have a thicker skin.
If he wants to support Dewhurst in the runoff, fine, go for it. But in the general election he has an obligation to support fellow Republicans. Mr. Patterson ran in the Republican primary, for the Republican nomination. He has expected and accepted support from the Republican party in the past. If he wants to change his affiliation to the Libertarian party now because he thinks Dan Patrick is a big meanie nogoodnick boogerhead, then fine, but he shouldn’t expect any Republican support in the future. Ever.
Maybe Patrick is bad for the long term future of the party, but right now, it’s apparent that the Republican party of Texas likes him – a whale of a lot more than they like Mr. Patterson.
By the way, please note that I’m NOT saying that Patterson should be out campaigning for Patrick this fall, but he damn sure shouldn’t be campaigning against him.
I’m unaware of any outright lies that Staples or Patterson stated about Patrick. If you have specfic examples, I’d be interested in seeing them. On the other hand, I specifically saw on a nearly daily basis examples of outright lies by the Patrick campaign — ads paid for by his official political campaign.
Patterson’s (and my) problems are not based on Patrick being a “meanie”, but rather what his character and his impact on the long-term success of Texas in general and the Republican Party.
Patrick is — purposely, I believe — a divisive figure. If he gets the nominations, I believe you’ll see him ultimately win the LtG post, but it will be the closest race among all of the major ones: many Republicans will be disgusted by his divisive rhetoric, his delusional grandiosity, and his overall arrogance. Some won’t vote in the race at all — while voting the rest of the Republican ticket — and some will probably vote Libertarian. Couple that with the next 4 years of his leading the Senate (assuming that his experience as a Senator is a guide), and he will provide a great campaign point for Democrats moving forward. If you believe that this is all true, then you have to weigh the long-term impacts, and being a “good Republican” means thinking long term.
My hope is that both Patrick and Dewhurst eschew the scorched-earth tactics in the runoff in which both have been known to engage, and that the winner takes a positive message into the fall as well. There are plenty of things going well in Texas, and now is not the time to move backwards.
Patterson should not hold his breath until he is blue in the face and then take his ball and go home. If he truly wants the best for the Party, then he needs to buck up and sup[port the will of the Republican VOTERS and support the winning candidate; otherwise, he should just announce a switching of party affiliation and move on. His statements of voting out of the Party because he did not win or if someone he does not like wins are juvenile
I find the idea that David Dewhurst should drop out of the race for Lt. Governor “for the good of the party” laughable. About as laughable as asking Dan Patrick to drop out because the campaign against him will turn negative.
Surprise, surprise! That’s what happens in a four man state primary race. It narrowed to a two man run-off.
May the best (or worst) man win.