The Midday Brief: Sept. 27, 2010

Your afternoon reading:

• "I wrote a couple of weeks ago that the polls showed that [Bill] White is hanging in the race. This one is no different. White is within single digits. But there is another component to this race besides numbers, and that component is time. The summer is over, and White hasn’t made a move. September is all but gone. Early voting begins three weeks from today. Time is moving, the numbers are not. With each day that passes, a [Rick] Perry victory–albeit by an unimpressive margin–seems inevitable." — Newspapers’ poll: Perry +7, BurkaBlog

• "Ron Kirk, the former Dallas mayor who serves as the Obama cabinet's point man on trade, is putting on his political hat tomorrow, headlining a campaign rally in North Carolina as part of a Democratic effort to boost enthusiasm ahead of the November elections." — Ron Kirk, mayor-turned trade rep, turns to politics ahead of midterms, Trail Blazers

• "Small business owners had plenty of advice for the winner of the Texas gubernatorial race, though many at a recent San Antonio forum sponsored by the Office of the Governor had not decided yet which candidate they’re backing." — San Antonio small business owners still weighing Perry, White for governor, The Texas Independent

New in The Texas Tribune:

• "Decorum broke down on Monday before a hearing began in Galveston County Court concerning a case involving plaintiffs' attorney Steve Mostyn, the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association and state Rep. Larry Taylor, R-Friendswood." — Steve Mostyn Confronts Joe Nixon in Galveston Courtroom

• "It's still poisonous in Texas politics to be painted with the trial lawyer brush, according to a poll done for Texans Against Lawsuit Abuse, a tort reform group." — Poll: Texas Voters Just Don't Like Trial Lawyers

• "In the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs broke several regulations when it contracted with a firm to distribute more than $200 million in disaster recovery funds, according to a federal audit." — Housing Department Broke Disaster Recovery Rules