Texas bloggers are musing over the Nov. 6 election. They're also dusting off their crystal balls to peer into the future, their maps of Fort Worth to look at state House District 97, and for some, their campaign shoes to stump for Democrat Rick Noriega for U.S. Senate. And at the end, there's an index of miscellany.
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Looking back
McBlogger questions the sobriety of voters who okayed constitutional amendments he didn't support, as well as the intelligence of sitting Texas Senators, whom he also doesn't support. Here's Professors-R-Squared's predictions for Nov. 6. And here's how they did. Meanwhile, BurkaBlog tells readers how he planned to vote.
Greg's Opinion gives predictions for and offers analysis of Houston-area election results, while Off the Kuff reviews his prognosticating here. Meanwhile, Grits for Breakfast summarizes results of ballot items related to prisons and jails.
In the wake of 16 more amendments to the state constitution, The Texas Cloverleaf is calling for a 2009 Texas Constitutional convention. The results are in: for a reader-response poll about the Texas Youth Commission given by Grits.
A former speechwriter for the Terminator, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, is producing copy for Lance Armstrong, notes Postcards from the Trail, the Austin American-Statesman's blog, who also reports that Armstrong calls Cathy Bonner "the mother of Proposition 15," and says state Sen. Jan Nelson, R-Lewisville, can be the grandmother. Prop 15 supporters celebrated at the Driskill Hotel in Austin. Coverage from Postcards here and from KVUE's Political Junkie here.
Armstrong and Rep. Patrick Rose, D-Dripping Springs, ran a New York City marathon, reports Postcards. Meanwhile, Blue has a Prop. 15-themed interview with former Comptroller John Sharp and Rep. Ellen Cohen, D-Houston, here.
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Looking ahead
Annex reflects on the 2002 redistricting and predicts that the Republican era of Texas is almost over. Via Blue, Chris Bell calls the GOP strategy from 1990-on, "the great overreaching." And Rio Grande Valley Politics writes a letter to Texas GOP Chair Tina Benkiser that begins, "Girl, you're making it harder and harder for me to like you."
Are recent events in Ohio a harbinger of things to come for Texas? Burnt Orange Report sure hopes so. In the meantime, Capitol Annex predicts Houston Mayor Bill White, riding high on a recent reelection, could prove to be another Tony Sanchez if he runs for governor in 2010.
U.S. Senator Kay BaileyHutchison "doesn't want to be vice president," reports Postcards. And Texas Blue is thrilled that presidential candidate and U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Lake Jackson, is making a splash, because it's a sign of the splintering of the GOP. (Texas Observer Blog is talkin' 'bout Paul in this post.)
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Looking up
Burnt Orange says any HD-97 candidate receiving support from House Speaker Tom Craddick is doomed. According to this item from Postcards, Republican Mark Shelton must not have gotten the memo. "Is Mark Shelton a Dirty, Rotten, Lying, Cheater?" queries Burnt Orange.
Burnt Orange comments on the HD-97 results here. BurkaBlog has analysis here. Here's some more from Political Junkie.
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Looking to Washington
Former Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry writes in to Burnt Orange in support of Noriega. Meanwhile, Annex is on Cloud Nine following former Democratic Presidential candidate Gen. Wesley Clark's endorsement of Noriega. Half Empty thinks Clark's endorsement is worth even more than the endorsement by Kerry.
Burnt Orange takes issue with Texas GOP spokesman Hans Klingler's reckoning of how much Texas blogs have raised for Noriega. Meanwhile, McBlogger calls him a "tard," and also indicts Texas Politics blogger and Houston Chronicle reporter R.G. Ratcliffe for swallowing the GOP's spin "hook, line and sinker." Postcards has a summary of the action here.
Noriega left a San Antonio fundraiser to comfort a supporter who was taken to another house after suffering what might have been a heart attack, reports Annex. And Blue has an audio interview with Nurse Noriega here.
Texas Observer talks to Noriega's newly-knighted online coordinator (and Burnt Orange publisher) Karl-Thomas Musselman. And Noreiga staffer Rick Cofer is Austin's least-eligible bachelor, lobbies Burnt Orange.
Former Independent senatorial candidate Ray McMurrey, a Corpus Christi teacher, is challenging Noriega in the Democratic Primary, reports Texas Politics.
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Looking Around
Rep. Aaron Peña, D-Edinburg, cuts the ribbon for a new museum exhibit, as related in his A Capitol Blog. "Talk radio king" Chris Baker got the axe from Clear Channel Houston, reports BlogHOUSTON, who also says that the Houston Chronicle's circulation remained steady over the past six months.
Burnt Orange Report opposes Ron Wilson's possible appointment as Department of Public Safety commissioner because of his ties with Houston rapper Lil Flip, the "Freestyle King," and Texas Politics blogger Peggy Fikac nearly ran over Wayne Slater of the Dallas Morning News and wife Dianne.
The Texas Association of Business isn't the biggest fan of El Paso legislators, says Vaqueros & Wonkeros, the El Paso Times's blog, while BurkaBlog and conservative site Redstate.com have a little tiff. The first link goes to Burka, and this one goes to Redstate's post.
Political Junkie has a three-parter on the state government's systematic purging of e-mails, here, here and here.
Republican incumbent Mike Jackson, R-La Porte, is in trouble in state Senate District 11, according to numbers from Democratic challenger Joe Jaworski, says Burnt Orange. Jaworski chides Governor Rick Perry for the state's slow response to Hurricane Rita in a letter relayed by Capitol Annex.
Rep. Byron Cook, R-Corsicana, has drawn a pro-Craddick opponent, Bobby Vickery, in the Republican primary for HD-8, says Annex. And State Supreme Court candidate Susan Criss is urging fellow Democratic candidate Linda Yañez to pursue a different seat on the court.
Lobbyists Andrea and Dean McWilliams are the Texas co-chairs for former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee's presidential bid, says Postcards. Meanwhile, Right of Texas is pinging cyberspace for a challenger to U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco.
And Grits wins Headline of the Week award for a post chock-full of links titled, "Why nobody likes Judge Keller and she should quit and go home."
This edition of Out There was compiled and written by Patrick Brendel, who hails from Victoria and finds Austin's climate pleasantly arid. We cherry-pick the state's political blogs each week, looking for news, info, gossip, and new jokes. The opinions here belong (mostly) to the bloggers, and we're including their links so you can hunt them down if you wish. Our blogroll — the list of Texas blogs we watch — is on our links page, and if you know of a Texas political blog that ought to be on it, just shoot us a note. Please send comments, suggestions, gripes or retorts to Texas Weekly editor Ross Ramsey.