Assuming that at least some of the questions that will cue the candidates in the Republican gubernatorial debate will focus on issues, it might be useful to review results when the October 2009 UT/Texas Tribune Poll asked Texans to identify the most important problems facing the state and the country. This will give us an opportunity after the debate to see if the media interlocutors asked questions that reflected public concerns. It also invites us to speculate on how public perceptions of which problems are important sets the stage for the candidates’ attempts to define themselves and each other ...

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