Recession Creates an Opening for Democrat in Texas

[ClarkUSA]

Source: The New York Times

HOUSTON — A few months ago, Texas political consultants thought that a Democrat had about as much chance of winning statewide office as a donkey would have of winning the Kentucky Derby. Those odds seemed to grow longer as the anti-tax, anti-government movement known as the Tea Party gathered more followers.

Yet recent polls suggest Texas has a horse race for the governor’s office after all. The Democratic candidate, former Mayor Bill White of Houston, has pulled within striking distance of the incumbent Republican, Rick Perry, trailing by no more than 6 percentage points in four polls.

The tightening contest comes as Texas feels the effects of the national economic crisis, weakening one of Mr. Perry’s chief arguments for re-election: that his fiscally conservative policies have buffered the state from the worst of the recession.

Now, a budget gap has opened in the next two-year spending plan that has been estimated by the state’s Legislative Budget Board at $18 billion. The state already has a bare-bones spending plan, and closing the new gap would mean raising taxes, which Mr. Perry has vowed to oppose, or cutting spending about 10 percent.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/17/us/politics/17texas.html?_r=1&hp

[texastoast]

1. Canvassing for Bill tomorrow

And proud to do it.

[ClarkUSA]

2. Good for you. If I lived in Texas, I'd join you.

I'd be proud to do it, too. :hi:

[lavenderdiva]

3. Interestingly, Houston recently had a fire that destroyed nearly all its voting machines

and in today's Houston Chronicle, they are investigating it as arson. Link here: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7204772.html

Putting my tin-foil hat on here, but it does seem awfully 'interesting' that Bill White is from Houston, and has a lot of pumped up voters in his corner (me being one of them) here. To have tried to 'remove' the voting machines from this area, right before this election is shall we say, an intriguing coincidence?

Me thinks Rick Perry may be a bit nervous.....

[southernyankeebelle]

4. I was wondering if it were in democrat areas.

[truthisfreedom]

6. Democratic.

[AnneD]

5. Although the fire was an accident....

it did raise a few eyebrows here.

The coastal region loves Bill for his handling of what really matters. We could not have made it through Ike without his effective leadership. He really won over the most hard core GOP when a frustrated Bill let a few swear word out when talking about loaded FEMA trucks idling at the Astrodome staging instead for delivering the food, water and ice to neighborhood sites. Of course, being a gentleman, he apologized for using such language, but most folks think he was right to give FEMA an earful.

He communicated with everyone. We were told the plan and each day we got updates as to the progress. He also was the first to offer a real helping hand to the NOLA folks hit hard by Katrina. His example served as a model for all of Houston and for those numb nuts in D.C. He will be remembered for his good action far more than that other politician from Texas.

He may not have the hair that gov Goodhair has, but he has more brains and heart than our current jerk of a gov.

We loves us some Bill White around here.

[truthisfreedom]

7. It's nice that the nytimes still uses "Democratic" as the adjective.

Gives me some hope.

[ClarkUSA]

8. Yes, it is.

I distrust anyone on the internet and any news source that doesn't.

[sofa king]

9. That could throw a wrench in Texas gerrymandering, right?

[ClarkUSA]

11. Yessiree. From your lips to the Democratic base voter's ears!

:thumbsup:

[nyy1998]

10. Go Bill White!!!

[txlibdem]

12. Vote for Bill White... Our new Texas Governor

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