In this week’s TribCast, Evan, Ross, Elise and Reeve discuss the state of the governor’s race, the donor-appointee pipeline and the legislative races to watch this fall.
campaign finance
Posted in
Congress
Tom DeLay’s Negative Numbers
During a break in Wednesday’s pretrial hearing, former U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land, and his lawyer, Dick DeGuerin, discuss a poll that shows a significant portion of potential jurors in Travis County already believe he’s guilty. They’re using the numbers to argue for a change of venue in the state’s money laundering case against DeLay.
Posted in
Higher Education
TribBlog: Billionaire Former Regent on Donor-Appointees
“The whole idea that the big donors give [Gov. Rick Perry] money and get the appointment in return? My gosh, spare me,” says billionaire former University of Texas Regent Robert Rowling. “I already had good football tickets — you know what I’m saying?”
Posted in
Demographics
TribWeek: In Case You Missed It
Galbraith on grass, federal money and efforts to prevent another dust bowl, Ergenbright on school suspensions and who gets punished; Aguilar’s interview with Alan Bersin, whose job is to keep the U.S./Mexico border secure, M. Smith on why it would be harder than you think to ditch the 14th Amendment, Adler and me on whether controversy is politically contagious, Ramshaw on the flap over funding for the state’s institutions for the disabled (it’s not about the money), my meditation on the state’s fiscal woes (including a $1.3 billion deficit in the current budget), Philpott on proposed cuts to the state’s food stamp program, Grissom on the push by Hidalgo County officials for a special election that might not be legal; Hamilton on the seven Texas universities that are making a play for Tier One status and Stiles on the mid-year cash-on-hand numbers reported by campaigns and political action committees: The best of our best from August 16 to 23, 2010.
Posted inState Government
Accounts Playable
The 2,694 political committees and campaigns that filed mid-year reports with the Texas Ethics Commission together held $167 million in their accounts, but only 274 of them had more than $100,000 on hand. Our interactive chart tells you who or what they are and how much they’ve banked.
Posted inState Government
Justice DeLayed
The Justice Department has ended a six-year criminal probe of onetime U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land, without filing charges. But as Andy Uhler of KUT News reports, that doesn’t mean the controversial former congressman is off the legal hook.
Posted in
State Government
2010: It’s a Gas, Gas, Gas
Jason Isaac, the Republican running against state Rep. Patrick Rose, D-Dripping Springs, says the incumbent is misusing his campaign accounts to cover personal transportation costs. Rose says it’s a big district and points out that Isaac’s campaign pays for gas, too.
Posted inState Government
2010: Hide and Seek
Rick Perry and Bill White traded barbs during and after short speeches in Austin this morning, each implying the other was concealing financial information that would be of interest to voters.
Posted in
State Government
Face the Donation
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill White is again attacking his Republican opponent, Gov. Rick Perry, for accepting contributions from political appointees — but the former Houston mayor is no stranger to the practice, according to a Texas Tribune analysis of campaign and city records. White has raised nearly $2 million over his years in public life from the people he appointeed to boards and commissions.
Posted in
Politics
The Weekly TribCast: Episode 41
Ben, Ross, Evan and Matt talk about President Obama’s visit to Texas and who didn’t want to be seen with him, the battle over strings attached to federal education money, Bill White’s donor-appointees and the legal and political definitions of residency.
