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Texas Democrats: Still Chicken vs. Egg

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For all of the buzz that has surrounded Wendy Davis’ candidacy for Governor, eventually Texans are going to have start looking down at the rest of the 2014 ballot. For Democrats, this remains a particularly unsettling task. As Noah M. Horwitz of the Texpatriate blog justly points out, it’s some pretty ‘slim pickins’ thus far.

Todd J. Gillam of the Dallas Morning News voiced the situation appropriately. The root problem for Texas Democrats is that we’re caught in a “chicken vs. egg” scenario. Which comes first… the candidate or the funds to support the candidate? You can’t have one without the other. I’m sure if we had a few mega-rich folks walk up to Trey Martinez-Fischer or Ana Hernandez Luna and say “If you’ll run statewide, I’ll fund every penny”, they’d probably be in with little hesitation. But the problem for Dems right now is we keep asking these people to drink from a dry well. Less than one year ago, former State Rep Paul Sadler decided to walk the plank and run for US Senate, and he did so getting outspent by now Senator Ted Cruz 20 to 1. We see how great a decision THAT turned out to be for the rest of the country, and it all could’ve been prevented with a stronger Democratic apparatus in the state. Did we seriously think Sadler could run a statewide campaign in Texas on less than $1 million dollars?

Part of the reason that Texas is viewed as such a heavily Republican state has much less to do with the low-performing voters, and much more to do with the color of our money. No matter how we may split at the ballot box, our affluent population is deep red. This is the first great hurdle that Texas Democrats face… how to raise enough money to even get close to the Republican coffers. This is why I was pretty sure Wendy Davis would run for Governor after her big June Filibuster. She is the rare exception among Texas Dems that actually has some big-money friends, most notably Ft. Worth oil tycoon Sid Bass. Combine that with a slew of national recognition (and hopefully some national money), and you get a path to viability for Davis’ run. BTW Off the Kuff has done some great writing on this particular subject, so I suggest you check it out.

As mentioned above, the second great hurdle for Texas Democrats is some serious name ID… both inside and outside of the state. You need the outside name ID to generate press attention and money sources. You need the inside name ID so voters will have a clue who to vote for. These are burdens that the GOP side don’t have to bear, as they’ve already got a well-tested apparatus in place. At present, the people possessing this precious resource can all be counted on one hand… Davis, San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro, his twin brother Congressman Joaquin Castro and Houston Mayor Annise Parker (thanks to the whole ‘1st GLBT mayor of a major American city’ thing). They’re the only ones that CNN will bump a story for.

The final great hurdle? You have to have an army of volunteers in every corner of the state. It’s the only way to connect with the “Silent Majority” in the Texas electorate. Everyone knows that the potential voters are here, but they’re probably not registered, and they likely have no clue that there is an election happening in 13 months, and definitely don’t know why they should care about it now.

I know this all sounds like Politics 101, but to be frank, that’s where the Democratic Party in Texas is right now. While I agree with Horwitz’s sentiment and also hope for a “full-slate” of viable candidates to run in 2014, it’s important to take all of these factors into account before getting frustrated at the lack of movement. Democrats in Texas have to build from the ground up. Even if we were to “sweep” the statewide ballot, there still aren’t enough candidates running just in State House and Senate Districts to actually flip power of the state government, and the filing deadline is approaching fast.

But Wendy Davis’ campaign is a start… and a great one at that. Her election as Governor, even with Republican (possibly even TEApublican) majorities in both Houses of the Legislature could still be a big step towards expanding Medicaid, investing more in Texas schools, and protecting the rights of Texas women to make their own health decisions. So even if we’d have to put all the eggs in one 2014 basket, it’s a lot better than no basket at all.

Houston Politics

Parker’s Response to Hall: Just ONE Debate

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Six debates?? Ain’t Nobody Got Time For That!!

I kid, I kid!! But in all seriousness…

I wrote previously about Ben Hall seeking 6 mayoral debates for the 2013 election. And now we have a response. From Houston Chronicle reporter Mike Morris, here’s what the Parker campaign actually thinks of Hall’s 6 debate challenge…

‘Parker has agreed to just one debate, said campaign spokeswoman Sue Davis, to include all mayoral candidates and all media. The event would be scheduled after the Aug. 26 candidate filing deadline, Davis said.

“All year long, Mayor Parker speaks daily about city issues to civic clubs, neighborhood groups and other organizations, holds tele-town halls and online chats and is available to the media,” Davis said.’

Ah, yes… the joys of incumbency. And to a point, it’s the truth. Once you’re elected to a high profile office like Mayor of Houston, you have a great advantage to actually set the agenda of which you want to discuss. Particularly in a time when most Houstonians have a favorable view of city government and they feel good about city’s immediate future, Parker has little reason to grant Mr. Hall’s or any other candidate’s request. Heck, Governor Rick Perry managed to weasel out of debating Bill White entirely in 2010, depriving Texans of a general election gubernatorial debate for the first time since 1990.

Sure, agreeing to one debate is better than Perry, but why strive to simply best the lowest of standards? I agree somewhat with fellow blogger Horwitz at Texpatriate on this issue… there should certainly be more than one mayoral debate. However, I’m optimistic that the response is just an “initial offer” like Hall made, and the campaigns will eventually meet in the middle.

The other point that should be made here? Holding just one debate would ultimately be a bad move for Annise Parker. Of course she hasn’t shared any future political aspirations, and wants to run “through the tape” in Houston’s highest office. But Parker is smart enough to know that if she decides to run for Senator, Governor or any other state-wide position, she’ll be the one vying for attention in the challenger’s seat. The record she assembles in Houston, no matter how impressive, won’t be enough to run on for the 25 million Texans outside Houston’s city limits, especially when facing the long-arm of entrenched Republican party infrastructure. I sincerely hope the Mayor would want a healthy, reasonable number of election debates, as that is what Houstonians expect and deserve from their local government. But I also hope that she recognizes the benefit of keeping her skills in tact for any future endeavors.