Inside Texas Politics: Cantor, Congress and Conventions

On this week's edition of WFAA-TV's Inside Texas Politics, I talked with host Jason Whitely and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram's Bud Kennedy about the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll. Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis' campaign, 12 points behind, wondered publicly why her Republican opponent, Greg Abbott, isn't polling above 50 percent — but no else is, either, including John Cornyn, the incumbent U.S. senator.

We also talked about the platform that emerged from last weekend's state GOP convention — with controversial elements like support for reparative therapy for gays and repealing the 1964 Voting Rights Act, the party is taking its time making it public; Gov. Rick Perry's remarks last week in San Francisco equating homosexuality with alcoholism; the shakeup in the Davis campaign with the appointment of state Rep. Chris Turner, D-Grand Prairie, as the new campaign manager; U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor's crushing loss in Virginia last week and what that may or may not portend nationwide; and what impact those hard-line planks in the state GOP platform might have on Dallas' chances for hosting the 2016 Republican National Convention. 

Also: Jason and Bud with a wide-ranging interview with U.S. Rep. Michael Burgess, R-Lewisville; what wasn't mentioned at the GOP state convention; more about Dallas as a contender for the 2016 RNC convention with Phillip Jones, CEO of the Dallas Convention and Visitors Bureau; ideology versus low voter turnout in Cantor's defeat last week; and, finally, Hillary Clinton said she won't announce her presidential intentions until 2015, and plans to travel before then ... to New Hampshire, Iowa, Florida ...