Electoral Votes 2008 by Date of Primaries and Caucuses

Electoral Congress - from General Election

U.S. Electoral College 2008 - List Of States And Votes
Total: 538; Majority Needed to Elect: 270

Electoral Votes
7 - January 3 Iowa D&R Caucuses

3 - January 5 - Wyoming R County Convention; March 8 Wyoming D Caucuses

4 - January 8 - New Hampshire D&R Primary

17 - January 15 - Michigan D&R Primary

5 - January 19 - Nevada D&R Caucuses

8 - January 19 - South Carolina R Primary; January 26 - South Carolina D Primary

4 - January 25 - Hawaii R Caucuses (1/25-2/7; February 19 Hawaii D Caucuses

27 - January 29 - Florida D&R Primary

4 - February 1 Maine R Caucuses (2/1-2/3); February 10 Maine D Caucuses

9 - February 5 Alabama D&R Primary

3 - February 5 Alaska D&R Caucuses

10 - February 5 Arizona D&R Primary

6 - February 5 Arkansas D&R Primary

55 - February 5 California D&R Primary

9 - February 5 Colorado D&R Caucuses

7 - February 5 Connecticut D&R Primary

3 - February 5 Delaware D&R Primary

15 - February 5 Georgia D&R Primary

4 - February 5 Idaho D Caucuses; May 27 Idaho D&R D-Non-binding primary; R-Primary

21 - February 5 Illinois D&R Primary

6 - February 5 Kansas D Caucuses; February 9 Kansas R Caucses

12 - February 5 Massachusetts D&R Primary

10 - February 5 Minnesota D&R Caucuses

11 - February 5 Missouri D&R Primary

3 - February 5 Montana R Caucuses; June 3 Montana D Primary

15 - February 5 New Jersey D&R Primary

5 - February 5 New Mexico D Primary; June 3 New Mexico R Primary

31 - February 5 New York D&R Primary

3 - February 5 North Dakota D&R Caucuses;

7 - February 5 Oklahoma D&R Primary

11 - February 5 Tennessee D&R Primary

5 - February 5 Utah D&R Primary

5 - February 5 West Virginia R State convention; May 13 West Virginia D Primary

9 - February 9 Louisiana D&R D-Primary; R-Caucuses

5 - February 9 Nebraska D Caucuses; May 13 Nebraska R Advisory-only primary; June 28 Nebraska R State Convention

11 - February 9 Washington D&R Caucuses

3 - February 12 District of Columbia D&R D-Caucuses; R-Primary

10 - February 12 Maryland D&R Primary

13 - February 12 Virginia D&R Primary

10 - February 19 Wisconsin D&R Primary

4 - March 4 Rhode Island D&R Primary

20 - March 4 Ohio D&R Primary

34 - March 4 Texas D&R Primary

3 - March 4 Vermont D&R Primary

6 - March 11 Mississippi D&R Primary

21 - April 22 Pennsylvania D&R Primary

11 - May 6 Indiana D&R Primary

15 - May 6 North Carolina D&R Primary

8 - May 20 Kentucky D&R Primary

7 - May 20 Oregon D&R Primary

3 - June 3 South Dakota D&R Primary

Source: United States National Archives & Records Administration
http://www.archives.gov/federal_register/ele ...

Source: All data gathered by NCSL from state election officials, state parties, selected press coverage, and http://www.thegreenpapers.com/.

Democratic U.S. Congress Candidates in Texas 2008 Primary

By Faith Chatham - DFWRCC - Jan. 28, 2008
Source: Texas Democratic Party Website
U.S. Congress
All U.S. Representatives serve two year terms and all 32 Congressional seats in Texas are up in 2008. The following candidates have qualified for a place on the March 4th Democratic Primary ballot (current Democratic Congressmen are listed in bold):



District 3 - Tom Daley ( (campaign website)) and Ron Minkow

District 4 - VaLinda Hathcox (campaign website) vand Glenn Melancon (campaign website)

District 6 - Steve Bush (campaign website) and Ludwig Otto (campaign website)

District 7 - Michael Skelly

District 8 - Kent Hargett

District 9 - Al Green (congressional website)

District 10 - Larry Joe Doherty (campaign website) and Dan Grant (campaign website)

District 12 - Tracey Smith

District 13 - Roger James Waun (campaign website)

District 15 - Rubén Hinojosa (campaign website)

District 16 - Silvestre Reyes (campaign website)

District 17 - Chet Edwards (campaign website)

District 18 - Sheila Jackson Lee (campaign website)

District 19 - Dwight Fullingim (campaign website) and Rufus Mark

District 20 - Charlie Gonzalez (campaign website)

District 22 - Nick Lampson (campaign website)

District 23 - Ciro D. Rodriguez (campaign website)

District 24 - Tom Love (campaign website)

District 25 - Lloyd Doggett (campaign website)

District 26 - Ken Leach (campaign website)


District 27 - Solomon P. Ortiz (campaign website)

District 28 - Henry Cuellar (campaign website)

District 29 - Gene Green (congressional website)

District 30 - Eddie Bernice Johnson (campaign website)

District 31 - Brian Ruiz (campaign website)

District 32 - Steve Love (campaign website) and Eric Roberson (campaign website)

What happens when I vote in the primary? How the Convention/Caucus System Works?

By Faith Chatham - DFWRCC - Jan. 28, 2008
In Texas voters must return to their polling place at 7:15 p.m. after the Primary Polls close to particpate in electing delegates to the County/Senatorial Convention. Most of these delegates go as pledged delegates, based on the number of votes each Presidential Candidate receives in that precinct. Voting in the Primary and participating in the Precinct Caucus are important. In Texas, a total of 126 delegate positions (three-quarters of the base delegation) will be distributed to presidential candidates based on the results of the primary. Forty-two delegate positions (one-quarter of the base delegation) will be distributed based on the number of people attending the party’s conventions. Delegates to the State Democratic Convention are elected at the County/Senatorial District Conventions. Delegates to the National Democratic Convention are elected at the State Convention. Texas gets a total of 228 delegates to the National Democratic Convention.

Explanation of how the process works is taken from the Rules of the Texas Democratic Party:
HOW TO BE A DELEGATE TO THE 2008 DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION

Texas will send 228 delegates and 32 alternates to the Democratic National Convention in 2008. These Texans will help choose the Democratic nominees for President and Vice President, and they will also express opinions on key national
issues. We encourage you to participate and to run for national delegate. What follows is, in general terms, an explanation of how to be a delegate to the National Convention. If you want more information, read the “Texas Democratic Party National Delegate Selection Plan for 2008” and the “Rules of the Texas Democratic Party.” Both
are available on the Texas Democratic Party website.

FILING REQUIREMENTS
To become a delegate to the National Convention you must:
1. Vote in the 2008 Democratic primary;
2. File a Statement of Candidacy with the State Chair no earlier than April 21 and no later than May 21, 2008. Filing forms will be available from the Texas Democratic Party by April 5, 2008; and
3. Be elected by the State Convention in Austin June 6-7, 2008. If you participate in all stages of the convention process and campaign among delegates to the State Convention, you will have a better chance to become a delegate.

PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY
Texas will hold a presidential primary on Tuesday, March 4, 2008. The Primary will be open to any registered Texas voter who does not vote in another party’s primary and who does not attend another party’s political convention.
A total of 126 delegate positions (three-quarters of the base delegation) will be distributed to presidential candidates based on the results of the primary. Forty-two delegate positions (one-quarter of the base delegation) will be distributed based on the number of people attending the party’s conventions. The delegates themselves will be elected at our State Convention June 6-7, 2008, in Austin.

CONVENTION SYSTEM
Texas Democratic Party has a three-level convention system:
Level 1. Precinct Conventions;
Level 2. County Conventions (or Senatorial District Conventions in urban areas); and
Level 3. State Convention.

Those who attend their Precinct Convention will elect delegates to the County/ Senatorial Convention; those who attend their County/Senatorial Convention will elect delegates to the State Convention. Those who attend the State Convention
will elect delegates to the National Convention.

PRECINCT CONVENTIONS
A convention will be held in your precinct at 7:15 p.m. on March 4, 2008, the same day as the Presidential Primary.
The convention is usually held at the polling place and is open to anyone who votes in the Democratic Primary that day (or during the early voting period). There will be a sign at the polling place telling exactly where the convention will be held. If you can’t find a sign, ask your election clerk where the convention will be held.
The convention begins at 7:15 p.m. when the Precinct Chair calls the convention to order. If the Precinct Chair is absent, anyone participating may start the meeting. The convention is governed by Robert’s Rules of Order and Texas Democratic Party Rules. If you are late to the convention, you can still participate; however, you can’t change what has already happened.
The first item of business is for everyone attending to sign in and indicate the presidential candidate (including undecided) he or she supports. This is not a secret ballot. The State Party will provide your Precinct Chair with forms to use.
Next, the convention elects a Chair and Secretary to run the convention.
Third, the Chair announces:
1. The number of delegates to the County/Senatorial Convention the precinct will elect;
2. The percent of people attending the Precinct Convention who support each candidate; and
3. The number of delegates the supporters of each candidate are entitled to elect.
Delegates are awarded to presidential candidates based on a candidate’s share of supporters at the convention by using the following formula:

E-Z Math Formula to Determine Threshold
Number of People at Precinct Convention
Divided By
Number Of Delegates To County/Senatorial
Convention To Which The Precinct Is Entitled
Equals
Threshold (Number of People Required for a Candidate Caucus)
(Always Round Up)

EXAMPLE:
31 people attend a Precinct Convention which is entitledto 6 delegates to the County/Senatorial Convention. Divide 6 into 31 for an answer of 5.1. Since you always round up, the threshold for this Precinct Convention would be 6.

Fourth, supporters of each candidate gather in a group and elect delegates and alternates to the County/Senatorial Convention.
Anyone who supports a candidate who did not win enough of the convention to elect one delegate may join the supporters of the candidate who is their second choice.

Voting within the group is done at one time. The group first secures enough nominations to fill all of the delegate and alternate positions. Each person casts as many votes as there are delegates to be elected. For instance, suppose you
support Jane Doe for president and she is entitled to 4 delegates and 4 alternates to the County/Senatorial Convention.

Your group must first make at least 8 nominations.

Then, one vote is taken and you cast 4 votes. You may cast your votes for one person or split them among several people. The highest vote-getters are selected in rank order until all delegate and alternate positions are filled.
The Precinct Convention may take positions on issues.

COUNTY/SENATORIAL CONVENTIONS
If you are elected a delegate or alternate at your Precinct Convention, you may attend your County Convention on Saturday, March 29, 2008. In some urban counties, Senatorial District Conventions will be held instead of a County Convention.
The County Convention is called to order by the County Chair, who calls for the report of the Credentials Committee.

The Credentials Committee is a committee of the convention that decides disputes over who has been elected a delegate or alternate. The committee is elected by the
County Executive Committee before the convention.

You will first elect a Chair and Secretary to run the convention.
Next, a poll is taken of all the delegates to determine how many delegates of the convention support each candidate.

The Chair will announce the results.

Fourth, delegates in each precinct, or sometimes a group of precincts, gather together to elect delegates and alternates to the State Convention. Within the group, the delegates and alternates are elected at one time, but you cast only one vote. The highest vote-getters are the delegates and the next highest are the alternates. For example, suppose your precinct gets to elect one delegate and one alternate to the State Convention. Only one election is held and you get to cast only one vote. Thus if 10 supporters of John Smith are present and all 10 vote for one delegate to the State Convention while 8 supporters of Jane Doe are present and all 8 vote for another delegate, then the John Smith representative will be the delegate and the Jane Doe representative will be the alternate.

The results of all the elections within the precincts are added together and given to the Nominations Committee. This committee then distributes the “at-large” delegates among each of the presidential candidates so that the county’s delegation
reflects each candidate’s fair share of the convention.

For instance, if supporters of Jane Doe made up 50% of your convention, the Nominations Committee would work to see that 50% of the delegates to the State Convention from your county would be her supporters. However, a candidate who wins less than 15% of the convention doesn’t have to be given any at-large delegates. The at-large delegation must also be used to make sure that the whole delegation is equally divided between men and women as far as mathematically practicable.

STATE CONVENTION
If you were elected a delegate at your County/Senatorial Convention, you may participate in the State Convention, held June 6-7, 2008, in Austin.
Although the State Convention will officially come to order about 6:00 p.m. on Friday, June 6, there will be issue caucuses during the day and Senate District Caucuses will meet from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. on Friday. Any Senate District Caucuses that do not finish their business will reconvene after the convention recesses for the evening.

Each delegate will officially sign-in indicating his/her presidential preference or uncommitted status when the delegate picks up his/her credentials. The sign-ins will be counted statewide and the totals will be used by the Nominations Committee on Saturday to distribute the pledged party and elected official delegates and the at-large delegates among the presidential candidates. However, any candidate who wins less than 15% of the whole State Convention will not get any at-large delegates.

The State Convention elects four types of delegates to the National Convention:
1. 126 pledged senatorial district delegates and
21 alternates;
2. 35 unpledged party and elected official delegates;
3. 25 pledged party and elected official delegates and
5 alternates; and
4. 42 at-large delegates and 6 alternates.


PLEDGED SENATORIAL DISTRICT DELEGATES
At the Senatorial District Caucus, supporters of each candidate gather to elect their share of delegates and alternates to the National Convention. These must be equally divided between men and women.

The number of delegates awarded each candidate is based on the results of the Presidential Primary in that district. However, any candidate who does not win 15% of the vote in that district will not get any senatorial district delegates.

UNPLEDGED PARTY AND ELECTED OFFICIAL DELEGATES
On Saturday morning, June 7, the Nominations Committee will meet to first nominate unpledged delegates. These are set by national party rules as:
1. Members of the Democratic National Committee from Texas;
2. The former Speaker of the United State House of Representatives and the former Chair of the Democratic National Committee; and
3. All Democratic Members of the United States House.
These delegates will be immediately ratified by the State Convention.

PLEDGED PARTY AND ELECTED OFFICIAL DELEGATES
The Nominations Committee will take a break for one hour after nominating the unpledged delegates to allow those people who are eligible to be “pledged party and elected official delegates” to file a Statement of Candidacy with the chair of the committee.

After the break, the committee will nominate “pledged party and elected official delegates.” These are awarded to each presidential candidate based on the sign-ins made the day before.

These names will be immediately reported to the convention for a vote.

PLEDGED AT-LARGE DELEGATES AND ALTERNATES
After the convention votes on the pledged party and elected official delegates, the Nominations Committee will nominate “at-large” delegates and alternates.
The “at-large” delegation is distributed among presidential candidates in the same way that the pledged party and elected official delegates are distributed.

The entire “at-large” delegation must be used, if necessary, to make sure that the whole Texas delegation to the National Convention is equally divided between men and women. It will also be used to meet certain affirmative action goals.

The Nominations Committee will also nominate 3 unpledged at-large delegates.

NATIONAL CONVENTION
If you are elected a delegate or alternate by the State Convention, you may participate in the National Convention in Denver August 25-28, 2008.
The state party will advise you on fund-raising and on lowcost housing and transportation if you would not otherwise be able to attend.

SENATORIAL DISTRICT DELEGATES AND ALTERNATES

District 1 - Delegates 4 -Alternates 1
District 2 - Delegates 4 - Alternates 1
District 3 - Delegates 4 - Alternates 1
District 4 - Delegates 4 - Alternates `
District 5 - Delegates 4 - Alternates 1
District 6 - Delegates 3 - Alternates 0
District 7 - Delegates 3 - Alternates 0
District 8 - Delegates 4 - Alternates 1
District 9 - Delegates 3 - Alternates 0
District 10 - Delegates 5-Alternates 1
District 11 - Delegates 4 - Alternates 1
District 12 - Delegates 4 - Alternates 1
District 13 - Delegates 7 - Alternates 1
District 14 - Delegates 8 - Alternates 1
District 15 - Delegates 4 - Alternates 1
District 16 - Delegates 4 - Alternates 1
District 17 - Delegates 5 - Alternates 1
District 18 - Delegates 4 - Alternates 1
District 19 - Delegates 4 - Alternates 1
District 20 - Delegates 4 - Alternates 1
District 21 - Delegates 4 - Alternates 1
District 22 - Delegates 3 - Alternates 0
District 23 - Delegates 6 - Alternates 1
District 24 - Delegates 3 - Alternates 0
District 25 -Delegates 6 - Alternates 1
District 26 - Delegates 4 - Alternates 1
District 27 - Delegates 3 - Alternates 0
District 28 - Delegates 3 - Alternates 0
District 29 - Delegates 3 - Alternates 0
District 30 - Delegates 3 - Alternates 0
District 31 - Delegates 2 - Alternates 0

See Texas Democratic Party Website for other information about the National Presidential Delegate Selection process.

Other information from the Texas Democratic Party Training Presentation

PRECINCT CONVENTION:

– To determine the number of Delegates to the County/SD Convention your Precinct gets to elect, the formula is:
• One (1) delegate for every 15 votes cast in the precinct for the Democratic Gubernatorial candidate in the last General Election

– TDP Rule change allows for 1 delegate for each 15 votes cast, instead of 1 per 25 votes, for 2008 computational purposes» Used to increase participation at the Precinct level
• Note: The number of delegates your precinct gets to elect will be specified in the Precinct Convention packet

– Delegates and alternates to the County Convention are elected in proportion to the percentage of attendees who signed in for each Presidential Preference

• Remember “Uncommitted” counts here!
– However, each Presidential Preference must meet a certain numerical threshold in order to have their own candidate caucus…• “EZ Math” Formula:
Number of people at the Precinct Convention
DIVIDED BY
Number of Delegates to the County/Senatorial Convention to which the Precinct is entitled
EQUALS
“Threshold” (or the number of persons –
rounded up – required to form a candidate caucus)

– If your candidate meets this initial threshold, they are eligible to be awarded delegates. Then it’s simply a matter of calculating the percentage of individuals in
support of each Presidential Preference and allocating the delegates accordingly

– If your candidate fails to acquire the number of supporters necessary to be awarded any delegates, those supporters will be given an opportunity to join
the presidential candidate caucus of their second choice

• In this case, the presidential preferences will need to be recalculated and the delegates allocated accordingly

– Caucuses elect Delegates and Alternates

• Once the delegate slots are allocated to each presidential preference, supporters of each preference will caucus by their presidential preference to select the Delegate(s) and Alternate(s) who will represent them at the County/Senatorial Convention

– Each caucus secures enough nominations to fill all of the delegate and alternate positions. Each precinct convention will elect one (1) alternate for each delegate (TDP Rules Art.IV.B.8.(a)(3)).
» E.g. If a caucus qualifies for two delegates, that caucus elects two delegates and two alternates, etc.

• Each caucus holds one election in which the highest vote-getters become the delegates and the next highest become the alternates

• Each caucus member casts as many votes as the number of delegates allotted to their caucus
– E.g., If a caucus qualifies for two delegates, each member of the caucus can cast two votes.

– Caucus members can split the votes between multiple people or cast them all for one person.

– Convention Chair announces names of the selected Delegates and Alternates

• Those elected are ratified by vote of the Precinct
Convention

- A Delegation Chair to the County Convention is elected by majority vote

– Convention members consider other business, such as Resolutions

– The Convention is adjourned

PCT CONVENTION 101
Precinct Convention “Rules of Thumb”
– Be sure to VOTE!• If you do not vote in the Democratic Primary, you cannot participate in the Precinct Convention

• Note: Voting in the March 2008 Democratic Primary is the only technical requirement to participating in the convention process at any level

– This means that you could skip the Precinct or County conventions and still be elected to go to the State and National Conventions (TDP Rules Art IV.A.13)

- Practically, however, you must attend each level of the Convention process in order to have a chance of being elected to the next level

– If you attend the Precinct Convention, you will be almost certainly be a delegate (or alternate) to County/Senatorial Convention

– You can switch Presidential preferences if you need to, so you can move on to the next level

2008 Election Calendar

2008 ELECTION CALENDAR
Source Texas Democratic Party Website
Jan. 2 Last day to file for place on the primary ballot.
Jan. 4 First day to apply for ballot by mail for Primary Election.
Jan. 11 Last day for County Executive Committees to select time and place for County and Senatorial District Conventions and to conduct drawing for ballot order.
Feb. 4 Last day to register to vote in March Primary.
Feb. 8 First day to apply for ballot by mail for runoff if did not request runoff ballot on application for primary ballot.
Feb. 19 First day of Early Voting for March 4 Primary.
Feb. 26 Last day for County Clerk to receive application for ballot by mail for primary ballot.
Feb. 29 Last day of Early Voting for March 4 Primary.
March 4 Primary Voting 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Precinct Conventions 7:15 p.m.
March 10 Last day to register to vote in runoff.
March 19 SDEC canvasses primary election results.
March 29 County and Senatorial District Conventions select delegates to State Convention.
March 31 First day of Early Voting for runoff.
April 1 Last day for County Clerk to receive application for ballot by mail for runoff.
April 4 Last day of Early Voting for runoff.
April 8 Runoff Election for Primary.
Apr. 21 First day to file Statement of Candidacy for National Delegate.
May 21 Last day to file Statement of Candidacy for National Delegate.
May 28 TDP sends list to Presidential Candidates for approval.
June 5 Presidential Candidates send TDP their approved list of Delegates. SDEC meeting in Austin.
June 6-7 State Convention, Austin Convention Center.
June 17 Presidential candidate must file a list of suggested standing committee members for the National Convention with the State Chair.
Aug. 25-28 National Convention – Denver, Colorado.
Sept. 5 First day to apply for ballot by mail for General Election.
Oct. 6 Last day to register to vote for General Election.
Oct. 20 First day of early voting for General Election.
Oct. 28 Last day for County Clerk to receive application for ballot by mail for General Election.
Oct. 31 Last day of Early Voting for General Election.
Nov. 4 General Election.
Dec. 15 Presidential Electors convene at the State Capitol

Other SC Election Coverage

By Faith Chatham - DFWRCC - Jan. 28, 2008
Going into the SC Democratic Primary Obama has 38 delegates, Clinton has 36 and Edwards has 18. It takes 2,025 for Nomination. The media's spin that the Democratic Nomination is already determined is a stretch. Thus far only 92 delegates (combined) are committed. South Carolina offers 45 Democratic National Convention delegates. The decision on who the President and Vice President will be is still to be determined.

On the Republican side, 1,191 delegates are needed for Nomination.
The Republicans have already held their SC Primary. Thus far the delegate count is
Romney 66, McCain 38, Huckabee 26, Thompson (out) 8, Paul 6, Giuliani 1, Hunter 1 (out).

John Edwards: $7 Million Dollars In One Day - Make It Happen

by KingOneEye - Texas Kaos - Sun Jan 13, 2008

There's been a lot of talk in these parts about how the media is shutting John Edwards out of the race. He has been excluded from polling. His campaign events have not been covered. Other candidates with less to show for themselves receive more attention. Etc.....

All of the these things are true. And all of the solutions I've seen have merit. We definitely need to put pressure on the media to cover this election fairly. But the media is probably not going to alter course and suddenly exhibit a journalistic integrity that they haven't even thought about since their freshman year of college. They need to be given a reason to change course; a reason that fits their definition of news.

So either Edwards could engage in a high speed police chase with Britney's kids on his lap and a missing white girl in the trunk, or he could raise $7 million dollars in one day.

Brought to you by...
News Corpse, The Internet's Chronicle Of Media Decay.

KingOneEye's diary:
Money is one of the key validators that establishment media recognize. It is an extension of their fixation on the primacy of wealth in this materialistic culture. It is the reason that corporations are favored by most political operators and institutions. And it is the reason that these corporate-dominated media companies are marginalizing Edwards in the first place. As more than one pundit has put it, Edwards is their worst enemy.

Edwards' campaign has been the most forthright in attacking the epidemic of corporate greed. He has brought the issue of health care into the realm of the personal by spotlighting the tragically horrendous treatment of Nataline Sarkisyan by Cigna. He is relating the challenge by Warren Buffet to Forbes 400 CEOs to prove that they pay more in taxes than their secretaries. And he has directly taken on the media corporations themselves, particularly Fox News. It is notable that he is the ONLY Democratic candidate to continue to decline to appear on Fox. Obama broke ranks last week and Clinton never really joined the effort. Neither did Biden or Dodd. Kucinich is a frequent Fox guest. Only Edwards has had the courage to make direct statements addressing the dangers of consolidated media conglomerates. From his letter to the FCC:

"High levels of media consolidation threaten free speech, they tilt the public dialogue towards corporate priorities and away from local concerns, and they make it increasingly difficult for women and people of color to own meaningful stakes in our nation’s media."

And on Fox News:

"The basis of a strong democracy begins and ends with a strong, unbiased and fair media — all qualities which are pretty hard to subscribe to Fox News and News Corp."

Given Edwards' propensity for speaking truth to power, we might have expected the counterpunch that these media corporations have wielded. But we don't have to quit fighting.

Ron Paul has managed to stir up respectable levels of exposure despite his low standings in most polls. After being excluded from a Fox News-sponsored debate in New Hampshire, he has now been invited to participate in a Fox debate in South Carolina. That reversal on the part of Fox didn't occur due to some crisis of conscience. It occurred partly because Paul's supporters were pissed and they let it be known, and partly because Paul had validated himself in terms the media can understand - fund raising. Having drawn in a record $6 million dollars in one day went a long ways toward forcing the press to pay attention.

What I want to know is this: If Paul can do it, why can't Edwards? Edwards has far more support than Paul and he ought to be able to mobilize his supporters to attempt to set a new fund raising record. I don't know if Edwards has anything like this in mind but there is no reason his supporters can't embark on this on their own.

So I propose that we do so. I would like to suggest Friday, January 18, as the day to shatter both the record and the media's tinted glass ceiling on coverage. This would give us all five days to publicize the effort. If successful, it should generate some press in time for the Sunday papers and news programs. Then on Monday, there is the debate in South Carolina, where Edwards could promote the results. This would then be followed by the primary on Saturday which, hopefully, would benefit from the newly enhanced press attention.

If we believe that the media is unfairly slanting coverage, it is up to us to do something about it. We must not let them make our decisions for us. By thrusting Edwards' visibility forward with financial support that makes the press do a double take, we are effectively slapping the collective faces of the reporters who think they know what they're talking about; of the pundits who think they know what's best; of the blowhards like Bill O'Reilly who dismissively wave off our candidates as phonies and losers.

...Go to the donation page at JohnEdwards.com and make a donation for whatever you can afford. Personally, I think Clinton and Obama supporters should do this as well in order to stick it to the media. I'm sure they will consider that a disingenuous ploy to squeeze money out of them, but it isn't. I am completely serious when I say that the press is out there to do us harm. It may be Edwards now, but it will be your candidate later. So this opportunity to spank them is worth embracing.

Read more on Texas Kaos

Edwards Attacks Obama for View of Reagan

By JULIE BOSMAN - New York Times - January 18, 2008
HENDERSON, Nev. — The legacy of Ronald Reagan was invoked in the Democratic nominating race on Thursday when John Edwards attacked Senator Barack Obama for remarks he made to a Nevada newspaper suggesting praise for Reagan

Mr. Obama made the comments in an interview with the editorial board of the newspaper, The Reno Gazette-Journal. He said Reagan had “changed the trajectory of America in a way that, you know, Richard Nixon did not and in a way that Bill Clinton did not.”
“He tapped into what people were already feeling, which was, ‘We want clarity, we want optimism, we want, you know, a return to that sense of dynamism and entrepreneurship that had been missing,’ ” Mr. Obama, of Illinois, said.

Speaking at an event on Thursday, Mr. Edwards told the crowd that Mr. Obama used Reagan “as an example of change,” a description with which Mr. Edwards strongly disagreed.

“When you think about what Ronald Reagan did to the American people, to the middle class, to the working people,” Mr. Edwards said, adding that Reagan was intolerant of unions and the labor movement, he “created a tax structure that favored the very wealthiest Americans and caused the middle class and working people to struggle every single day.”

“This president will never use Ronald Reagan as an example for change,” Mr. Edwards added, referring to himself.

The remarks were made as Mr. Edwards tried to be heard in a race that has increasingly focused on the winners of the two Democratic contests so far, Mr. Obama in Iowa and Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton in New Hampshire.

Bill Burton, a spokesman for Mr. Obama, said Mr. Edwards was mischaracterizing Mr. Obama’s remarks.

“Obviously, Obama strongly disagreed with a lot of what Ronald Reagan did,” Mr. Burton said. “He was simply acknowledging Reagan’s ability to change the political landscape.”

Mr. Edwards has been campaigning heavily in Nevada this week, but is not running television commercials as he marshals resources for later contests. The state’s caucuses will be held on Saturday.

On Friday, he will depart on a tour to include Oklahoma, Missouri, Georgia and South Carolina, among the next states to vote.

HD 46: Hire Dukes, Get A Bill Passed?

By Vince Leibowitz - Capitol Annex - Jan. 19, 2008
Recap of speech by at COPE Convention in Austin Jan 18-20, 2008

Suppose a Legislator gets a contract to work as a “consultant” for a multi-million dollar land developer. The Legislator then passes a bill that increases the overall value of the entire development by providing millions of dollars in taxpayer-funded incentives for one of the land developer’s most high-profile, anchor tenants.
Sound ethical, or even legal?

Well, you’ll never guess who were talking about…again. Yep, increasingly ethically challenged, Republican-funded Craddick Democrat, Dawnna Dukes.

Apparently, when she’s not accepting contributions from GOP Contributors, or defending Tom Craddick, or helping her sister get a toll-road contract the day after she votes for toll roads, or running up $89,000 in illegally reported “campaign” credit card expenses, or missing a crucial vote on the house floor because of a vacation in France, or skipping an important Medicaid Reform Hearing for a conference in La Jolla with a weekend stay-over in Vegas, (to name just a few of her shortcomings) she is using her office to help get personal contracts with multi-million dollar land developers.

I’ve been told off the record by quite a few lobbyists that at the end of meetings about legislative initiatives with their clients Dukes will pop that most uncomfortable of questions…“what’s in it for me?” This is the point in the program where the testicles of the lobbyists shrivel up, the lobbyist turns beat red, and he starts to seek solace in a close corner behind a thick drape. The Southwest Airlines “wanna getaway” ding starts ringing in his head. And he starts to imagine what it will be like to testify in front of a grand jury after Ronnie Earle finds out about the meeting in which he probably just witnessed an act of legislative bribery. Oh, c’mon – there are a dozen of you who will read this post and know exactly what I’m talking about.

Well, folks are talking…

Here’s a fact pattern that would make any 1st year law student with the intent of becoming a District Attorney froth at the mouth. And every bullet is footnoted so that you don’t have to take our word for it, you can see for yourself.

*Dukes’s company, DM Dukes & Associates, gets hired by a company named Catellus Development Group sometime during or before 2006. (1)

*Catellus is the developer who is redeveloping the old Robert Mueller Airport, in Dukes’s East Austin district.(2)

*Dukes is listed on Catellus brochures as a contact. (3)

*Dukes’s company, DM Dukes & Associates is listed on the Robert Meuller web site as a contact for Catellus. (4)

*Dukes attends neighborhood association meetings, not in her capacity as a State Representative, but in her capacity as an agent of Catellus.(5)

*One of the anchor tenants and crown jewels of the new Mueller Development is The Austin Film Society. (6)

*During the legislative session in 2007, Dukes passed HB 1634, a bill that provided a mechanism for $22 million in incentives for the film industry and the Austin Film Society.(7)

*Dukes and one of her Republican pals, Rick Perry, appeared together at a press conference and bill signing ceremony at the Austin Film Studios.(8)

*Dukes issues a press release bragging about her bill that explicitly states that her bill will benefit the Austin Film Studios. “Film Incentive legislation will not only benefit the Austin Film Studios presently located at Robert Mueller in District 46 but also the planned $2.5 billion Villa Muse studio development to be located in District 46.” (9)

*Dukes potentially violates Texas House Rules and the Texas Constitution by never disclosing her personal or business interest with Catellus Development.

*Article 3 Section 22 of the Texas Constitution requires “A member who has a personal or private interest in any measure or bill, proposed, or pending before the Legislature, shall disclose the fact to the House, of which he is a member, and shall not vote thereon.”(10)

*Rule 5 Section 42 of the Texas House Rules sets out this same requirement

We are that the mainstream media has not picked up on this story!
Here you have an elected official working for a multi-million dollar developer as a consultant, who then goes and gets $22 million taxpayer dollars for an incentive program that benefits one of the developers anchor tenants.

How is that legal, moral, ethical, or right?
And I hear this isn’t the only unseemly contract…

Endnotes, links and sources:
(1) http://www.rmma.net/retail_pdfs/Mueller_LBOpacketRR.pdf
According to the document linked below, dated February 15, 2006, Dukes is working on behalf of Catellus Development Group, the same group responsible for the Robert Meuller Development project. On Page 8 of the above link, Dawnna Dukes of DM Dukes & Associates is clearly listed as the MWBE Outreach Consultant for Catellus Development Group. Her address, phone, fax and email are given.

(2) http://www.rmma.net/retail_pdfs/Mueller_LBOpacketRR.pdf and http://www.catellus.com/whats_new/news_4.aspx

EXCERPT – “November 2007, Catellus Development Group officially broke ground on November 14, 2007, on the Seton Family of Hospitals’ new headquarters at Mueller during a ceremony held near the site of Mueller’s future town center.

(3) http://www.rmma.net/retail_pdfs/Mueller_LBOpacketRR.pdf

(4) http://www.rmma.net/construction.html

EXCERPT – “For general inquiries about Catellus’ M/WBE policy and program, please contact: D.M. Dukes and Associates, dukesdm@aol.com.”

(5) I have this from a personal source who lives in her district and attended one of those meetings.

(6) http://www.rmma.net/retail_pdfs/Mueller_LBOpacketRR.pdf

On Page 3, the Austin Film Society is clearly located within the Meuller Development. On the 8th bullet – left hand side of page 3, the Film Society is clearly mentioned.

(7) In 2007, Dawnna Dukes passed HB 1634.
http://www.legis.state.tx.us/BillLookup/History.aspx?LegSess=80R&Bill=HB1634
The bill set up a mechanism for $22 million in incentives for the film industry. The money was appropriated through the Trusteed Programs within the Office of the Governor – A.1.4. Strategy – Film and Music Marketing - $22 million increase relating to HB 1634. This is located on Article I page 52 of the conference committee report for HB 1. It is also mentioned in Rider 20 – Article I page 58 of the conference committee report on HB1.
http://www.lbb.state.tx.us/Bill_80/8_FSU/80-8_FSU_1007.pdf

(8) http://www.dawnnadukescampaign.com/photo-2.htm

(9) Dukes campaign continually brags about her legislative achievement in passing HB 1634.http://www.dawnnadukescampaign.com/Aboutme.html. EXCERPT “In 2007, Representative Dukes was the prime architect of legislation that will bring Texas into the forefront of the competitive Film Industry. HB 1634 by Dukes created the Texas Film Incentive program which provides an incentive to a project that produces at least 80% of it work and hires at least 70% of its workforce from Texas. Film Incentive legislation will not only benefit the Austin Film Studios presently located at Robert Mueller in District 46 but also the planned $2.5 billion Villa Muse studio development to be located in District 46.”

(10) Texas Constitution http://tlo2.tlc.state.tx.us/txconst/sections/cn000300-002200.html

Read more on Capitol Annex

Hundreds of area voters might have registrations canceled - County, state officials blame one another.

By Marty Toohey - AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF - Thursday, January 17, 2008
recent change in voter registration law has left hundreds and possibly thousands of Travis and Williamson county residents temporarily ineligible to cast their ballots here.

Most are voters who had moved to other parts of Texas and recently returned. No one is sure how many people that is. But Travis County officials are scrambling to reach the approximately 8,500 people known to have moved out of the county who could go to the polls in the March presidential primaries and find they cannot vote.

Williamson County officials say they have found most of the affected voters, but a few could still be surprised on Election Day.

"It's a mess," said Travis County Tax Assessor-Collector Nelda Wells Spears, whose office oversees voter registration.

The problem is that a new statewide voter registration database canceled 8,500 Travis County registrations when it came online last year.

Some of those people were almost certainly purged correctly because they now live in other parts of the state. But Travis officials say hundreds of cases have surfaced in which a registration was improperly canceled for someone living here. Hundreds more might not have been caught yet, they warn.

Andrew Knox is one of the people who has been caught in the mess. The 38-year-old had moved from Austin to College Station and then came back to Austin two years ago. He updated his voter information shortly after returning. Last week, he received a letter from Travis County informing him that he was still registered in College Station and could not vote in Austin.

Knox was able to re-establish his eligibility here. But, he said, the situation "kind of hacked me off because it's so close to the election."

The presidential primaries are in March, and voters must be registered by Feb. 4.

Primary voters who find their registration has been canceled could still cast "provisional ballots," which election officials decide whether to count in the days after an election. But Travis officials say such ballots might not be admissible under state law, an opinion that varies between counties.

This is another example of the difficulty Texas has faced in establishing a statewide voter registration database after years of leaving counties responsible.

Election officials in other counties say that the new system is flawed and that Knox's situation is just one example. State officials blame their local counterparts for the problems.

"Travis County should have been keeping better records," said Scott Haywood, a spokesman for Secretary of State Phil Wilson, adding that Travis is the only county to be having many of these problems.

The severity of the problem varies by county. Bexar County Elections Administrator Jacquelyn Callanen said she expects that voters will encounter a minimum of problems. But Julie Seippel, Williamson County's voter registration coordinator, said hundreds of voters there have found their registrations canceled in the past nine months. She said the ballots of people who discovered the problem at the polls were set aside but ultimately counted.

This is just one of many problems Harris County has found with the database, said Paul Bettancourt, who oversees Harris' registration.

Officials from Dallas, Tarrant and Hays counties did not return calls for comment.

The problem stems from a federal mandate to states to create centralized registration lists, which are intended to prevent fraud by ensuring that voters cannot cast their ballots in multiple counties.

Counties had previously relied on one another to know when a voter moved, a system that Spears and Seippel said was inconsistent because voters usually did not tell election officials in their new communities where they came from.

Knox's case is an example of how this caused a breakdown when the statewide database was created.

When he moved from Austin, Knox did not tell College Station's elections department where he came from, and they did not know to notify Travis County to cancel his registration here. Knox was unknowingly registered in both places.

Then Knox moved back to Austin, assumed his registration was still valid and simply sent in a change-of-address form, voting in a local election. Travis County assumed he had simply moved across town.

More than a year later, when the state's database came online, Knox's Travis County registration was canceled.

That's because the database looks only at when someone originally registered, not when they last updated their information. Because Knox did not have to refile his entire Travis County registration, the state assumed he lived in College Station because his original paperwork there was more recent.

Spears and other county election officials said they had predicted this situation and asked the state to use different criteria, such as the last time a voter updated his or her home address.

Haywood, the secretary of state's spokesman, could not say whether the state had considered using other records but said it didn't have to.

"If Travis County had been canceling its voters (registrations) like they were supposed to," he said, "there would be no problem."

Knox, who markets telecommunications equipment, disagreed. He said talks with both the county and secretary of state's office left him thinking the state should have used better data to figure out who lives where.

"I don't think they're trying to disenfranchise anyone," he said. "I think they just need a better database person."

How to fix the problem

People who moved away from Travis County and returned recently should call the county tax office, which handles voter registration, at (512) 854-9473. Applications to register can be downloaded through the tax office at www.traviscountytax.org/goVoters.do or picked up at numerous locations, including
H-E-B stores and post offices. Applications must be filed by Feb. 4 to vote in the March presidential primary.

Read more in the Austin American Statesman

TEAM Voter Database Purges Hundreds of Area Voters

By Sonia - Texas Kaos - Jan. 17, 2008

ACTION ALERT: Tx House Committee on Transportation Public Hearing on role of MPO and Rural Planning Authorities within COGs

Texas House of Represenatives Meeting Notice - Jan. 18, 2008
TEXAS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

COMMITTEE: Transportation

SUBCOMMITTEE: Planning Authorities

TIME & DATE: 10:00 AM, Wednesday, February 06, 2008

PLACE: E2.012

CHAIR: Rep. Fred Hill

The Subcommittee will meet to consider the following:

Charge #5: Examine the role of metropolitan planning authorities in state law, as well as the creation of rural planning authorities to address the planning needs outside of metropolitan planning organizations but within council of government boundaries.

Hearing on Wendy Davis' Candidacy for Sen. Dist. 10 Scheduled for Monday, January 23rd, 11am

By Tarrant County Democratic Party - Jan. 18, 2008
Hearing on Wendy Davis' Candidacy for Sen. Dist. 10
Scheduled for Monday, January 23rd, 11am

The Firefighters' appeal to Chairman Art Brender's decision to declare Wendy Davis eligible as a candidate in the Senate District 10 Primary will be heard by the Court of Appeals on Monday, January 23rd, at 11am.

The Hearing will take place on the 9th Floor of the Tarrant County Justice Center.

Technorati Profile

Ray McMurrey to March in San Antonio MLK Day Parade - Will Speak in Support of Single-Payer Health Care Afterward

McMurrey Campaign - Wednesday, January 16, 2008

AUSTIN – On Monday, January 21, 2008, at 10:00 AM, U.S. Senate candidate Democrat Ray McMurrey will march in San Antonio’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Parade. The parade begins at the MLK Freedom Bridge.

Afterwards, McMurrey will speak to the local office of the National Nurses Organizing Committee at 7959 Fredericksburg Road, San Antonio, Texas, 78229. He will speak in support of a single-payer health insurance system managed by the government covering all Americans that allows doctors and hospitals to continue competing for profit.

McMurrey will be available for interviews throughout the day.

TAKS test date moved from election day to another date

January 16, 2008



TO THE ADMINISTRATOR ADDRESSED:


To resolve the conflict created by having Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) assessments scheduled for March 4, 2008, the same day as primary voting in Texas, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) has developed a revised testing calendar. Two changes are being made to the original schedule: first, the TAKS exit level social studies retest is being moved from Friday, March 7, to Monday, March 3; and second, the TAKS tests that were scheduled to be administered from March 4 through March 6 are now scheduled to be administered from March 5 through March 7. As a result of these changes, no test administrations will occur on the day of the primary election, Tuesday, March 4.


This new testing schedule will address the following:


Districts will not be burdened with planning the logistics of serving as testing sites and polling places on the same day and at the same location.


Moving the exit level social studies retest from Friday, March 7, to Monday, March 3, affects the fewest number of students, approximately 10,000 statewide.


Three of the four exit level retests––English language arts, mathematics, and science––will be administered one day later but in the same order as originally scheduled.


The grade 10 English language arts primary and make-up administrations are still separated by one day. The primary administration is now scheduled for March 5, and the make-up is scheduled for March 7.


The Student Success Initiative (SSI) reading administrations are now scheduled for March 5, leaving March 6, 7, and 8 for make-up opportunities.


Out-of-school examinees taking an exit level retest in March will not be negatively affected by this schedule change. Students who have already registered for one or more retests will receive a follow-up letter from Pearson with the revised test administration date(s). Out-of-school examinees who plan to register for the retest onsite and arrive at school on the originally scheduled days will be permitted to take the retest needed.


Attached to this letter are the original and revised test administration schedules for the week of March 3; in addition, TEA will update the 2007–2008 testing calendar on the Student Assessment Division website. Pearson is revising the calendar of events to reflect this schedule change and will post the new calendar as soon as possible.


The Student Assessment Division will work with district testing coordinators on a case-by-case basis if there are problems with testing on either Monday, March 3, or Friday, March 7. Districts should submit a request in writing using the Request for Alternate Dates, Modified Scheduling, and Off-site Testing form located on the TEA website at:



http://www.tea.state.tx.us/student.assessment/atoz/Guidelines_and_Procedures_for_Changes_to_Test_Schedule.pdf


I apologize for any inconvenience this change may cause; however, I hope that this schedule change will allow your students to demonstrate their best performance on TAKS. I believe it will also demonstrate to your students and community the importance of voting.


Sincerely,




Robert Scott

Commissioner of Education


Attachment


cc: District testing coordinators

ESC directors

ESC testing coordinators

Bonehead educators fuel election chaos

By Faith Chatham - DFWRCC - Jan. 14, 2008
The Texas Education Agency receives my "Bonehead of the Year Award" for scheduling TAKS testing on primary election day without sending clarification to school districts that state law requires that public buildings (including schools) must accommodate elections on election day.

Across Texas County Election officials and County Chairs of both political parties are scrambling to sign election contracts while many school districts are refusing to accommodate the elections. Some counties are suing school districts to get access to the buildings. Some school districts are accommodating the elections. Others are standing firm refusing to accommodate the elections. Citizens are confused. Most news coverage is sketchy and incomplete or inaccurate.

Here is what I've learned about how educators who are charged with teaching our school children civics and government blew this one out of the water!

Some school districts wanted to delay the start of the school year for the Spring Semester. The State Board of Education is responsible for administering a "student assessment instrument and is charged in Texas Education Code Chapter 39.027 (a)(2) with adopting a schedule for administrating the end-of-course assessment.

State law was change so that the Texas public schools' spring semester could start later than last year. A change was made in the Texas Education Code 39.023(c-3) so that this year the first end-of-course assessment tests must be administered at least 2 weeks later than that they were last year.
The language in the Education Code was changed to read:

(c-3)In adopting a schedule for the administration of assessment instruments under this section, the State Board of Education shall require:
(1)assessment instruments administered under Subsection (a) to be administered on a schedule so that the first assessment instrument is administered at least two weeks later than the date on which the first assessment instrument was administered
under Subsection (a) during the 2006-2007 school year;

Texas Education Code 39.023.c-3 does not require that the TEA set the TAKS test on March 4th (election day). It merely requires that the date must be at least 2 weeks later than last year. I have phoned TEA Legal inquiring if they reviewed Texas Election Code 43.031 requiring that public buildings accommodate elections and sent information to the school districts clarifying that TAKS testing cannot hinder the accommodation of elections on election day when they scheduled TAKS testing March 4, 2008? I have not received a response yet from them.

Texas law does not require TAKS testing on March 4th (election day). TEA chose to schedule it on March 4th (one of many dates after the time stipulated by state law that the first end-of-course assessment test must be scheduled.

I think this is a very boneheaded decision by State Bureaucrats. Those who scheduled TAKS testing on election day and those who approved that schedule have thrown the election process into unnecessary chaos. Election administrators, parties, candidates are struggling to determine where the elections will be held. Some counties are suing the school districts to require them to accommodate the elections according to Texas Election Code 43.031. Others moved the elections to other sites, often at an inconvenience to the voters. (When election sites change, a percentage of voters fail to learn the new sites in time to vote - depressing electoral turnout.) Some communities simply do not have suitable alternate sites available in the precincts to hold the elections.

I sent this message to the Texas Education Agency:

You have flunked the test in citizenship and applied civics! Entrusted by the citizens of this state to teach our children about CIVICS, GOVERNMENT, PARTICIPATION in the DEMOCRATIC PROCESS, you either failed to check or chose to ignore that March 4, 2008 is a primary election day. State law requires that public buildings be made available for elections yet you chose to schedule (or approve scheduling) TAKS testing on election day. Your irresponsible, short-sighted, ignorant actions diminishes the ability of election officials and candidates to clearly communicate where the polling places will be in time for ALL CITIZENS to participate. If you allow school districts to refuse to allow the elections to be scheduled in school buildings, you are violating the law and betraying the trust of the citizens. Testing is important. Education is important. Showing our children by EXAMPLE is also important. The message you have sent is loud and clear: Elections don't really matter that much to the Texas Board of Education. Elections are an inconvenience that do not merit careful examination of dates on the calendar which ANY ELECTED OFFICIAL, POLITICAL APPOINTEE, CIVICS TEACHER, REGISTERED VOTER reserves for participating in elections.
The boneheads in your agency who scheduled TAKS testing on Election Day should be informed that it was a MISTAKE. Correct your mistake. Send a strong message to teachers, educators, pupils and your fellow citizens that your agency values our Democratic process enough to relinquish accommodate the elections on school premises March 4th. Make it a policy that all election days will be scheduled on your calendar before you begin filling in dates which are not SET BY LAW.

If you want to write them the email link to their website form is: http://www.tea.state.tx.us/tea/contact.html

I recommend that you also phone them. It is easier to ignore contact forms. When their switchboard also lights up the e-mail responses have greater impact.

The Texas Education Agency is located in the William Travis Building
1701 N. Congress Avenue
Austin, Texas, 78701

Those who oversee (and vote to fund) the TEA include:
Gov. Rick Perry - Tara Balleau (512) 799-9240 is the governor's point person on education.
In the Lt. Governor's office Andre Sheridan (512) 463-0108 is the Education Point Person.

Members of the Texas Senate Committee on Education include:

Chair of the Senate Education Committee: Senator Florence Shapiro (512) 463-0108 (972) 403-3404 - email form

Senator Royce West - (512) 463-0123 or (214) 467-0123
Senator West's education point person is Lajuana Barton lajuana_d.barton@senate.state.tx.us

Senator Kyle Janek - (512) 463-0117 (800) 445-2635
Senator Janek's point person on education is Casey Haney email: casey.haney@senate.state.tx.us


Senator Judith Zaffirini (512) 463-0121 (956) 722-2293
Her education point person is Warren von Eschenbach email: warren.voneschenbach@senate.state.tx.us

Senator Steve Ogden (512) 463-0105 His education point person is Patty Guerra
email: patty.guerra@senate.state.tx.us


Senator Leticia Van de Putte (512) 463-0126 (210) 733-6604
Her point person on education is Ida Garcia email: ida.garcis@senate.state.tx.us

Senator Tommy Williams (281) 364-9426 His point person on education is his chief of staff Janet Stieben email: janet.stieben@senate.state.tx.us

Senator Dan Patrick (713) 464-0282

I suspect that there may be attempts at TEA (if there is enough outcry)to blame some low level staffer. However, this date was set months ago. It went all the way up the supply chain and officials all the way up signed off on it. The responsiblity for ensuring that directives from the TEA complies with State Law (including State Election Code) rests with the top. The legal team should have reviewed this, conferred with the Attorney General and SOS and issued a directive to all school districts clarifying that if TAKS testing occurs on an election day, the school districts still have to accommodate the elections. The buck rests at the top. They are responsible for triggering law suits between county election officials and school districts throughout Texas, impacting every voter in Texas and sending a very bad message to our school children that elections really aren't that high a priority with this state's "Educators."

I think it is time to EDUCATE the educators.
REFERENCE: Texas Election Code 43.031
Education Code 39.023(c-3)

Fort Worth firefighters ask state Supreme Court to declare Davis ineligible

Fort Worth firefighters ask state Supreme Court to declare Davis ineligible
Fort Worth Star-Telegram - Fri, Jan. 11, 2008
Three Fort Worth firefighters backed by the Fort Worth Firefighters Association have gone to the Texas Supreme Court in their effort to have Wendy Davis declared ineligible to run for the state Senate.

The firefighters say Davis, who resigned from the Fort Worth City Council in August, was not eligible to run for another office until Jan. 8, when her successor, Joel Burns, was sworn in at a City Council meeting. The filing deadline was Jan. 2.

Davis is the only Democrat to seek the nomination to run against state Sen. Kim Brimer, R-Fort Worth. The firefighters association has endorsed Brimer. Brimer's campaign adviser, Bryan Eppstein, worked for the firefighters on their successful drive to win collective-bargaining rights from the city in November.

It is not known how quickly the Supreme Court will act.

Rep. Lon Burnham endorses "non Craddick Dems"

By Faith Chatham - Jan. 13, 2008

State Representative Lon Burnam sounded a call to support "anti-Craddick" Dems in a campaign fundraiser piece headed "I am ready to show Craddick the Door: Re-Elect Democrat Lon Burnham" and paid for by his campaign committee. He endorsed three other anti-Craddick dems in that piece. The text of the message is:

The Struggle to end the tyranny of Speaker Craddick begins,

On Thursday January 10, I issued a press release declaring my support for three good Democrats, and stating in no uncertain terms the beginning of the critical process of removing Speaker of the House Tom Craddick. The press release follows:

Burnam endorses three Democratic challengers to incumbent Craddick D’s

Calls Craddick “the single biggest obstacle to responsible public policy in Texas”

(Austin, Texas) Today, State Representative Lon Burnam (D-Fort Worth) took the bold step of endorsing three Democratic primary challengers to three incumbent Craddick Democrats.

“I am proud to publicly endorse Brian Thompson (HD 46 – Austin), Armando Walle (HD 140 – Houston), and Sandra Rodriguez (HD 36 – Hidalgo County),” said State Rep. Lon Burnam, “all of whom have shown remarkable courage by challenging Craddick Democrats. Each of these candidates is extremely viable. I hope to welcome each of them into the State Legislature next year and take three more votes away from the Republican Speaker.”

In 2003, Rep. Burnam was the only Representative to vote against Republican Speaker Tom Craddick. At the time, Burnam suggested Craddick was ethically challenged. Many of the Craddick D’s share Craddick’s ethical lapses.

“Since 2003, the single biggest obstacle to responsible public policy in the state of Texas has been Tom ‘absolute power’ Craddick,” said Burnam. “Unfortunately, some of my colleagues continue to support the Republican Speaker and enable his failed Republican ideology of starving public education, harming the environment, denying children health care, and making a mockery of our ethics laws.”
>Burnam said that Democratic voters have a clear choice on March 4. Democrats can vote for the status quo and help re-elect Craddick Democrats, or they can vote for change and send a clear message that Tom Craddick and his right-wing cronies are taking our state in the wrong direction.

<“I represent the Democratic wing of the Democratic Party, not the Craddick wing of the Democratic Party, and so do the three Democrats I am endorsing today,” said Burnam. “If we want to move Texas forward, we need change, and change starts by voting for Brian Thompson (HD 46 – Austin), Armando Walle (HD 140 – Houston), and Sandra Rodriguez (HD 36 – Hidalgo County) on March 4.”

In addition to endorsing these three Democratic challengers today, Rep. Burnam has also committed to help each of them raise the funds they will need to be successful on March 4. Next week, Rep. Burnam will unveil details about a political action committee called “Too Close to Craddick” that he is supporting.

Join me in the effort to end the corrupt, arrogant, and autocratic rule of Speaker Tom Craddick. Your contribution will help ensure success!

You can support my efforts by making a donation online now

Or if you prefer you can send your donation to

Rep. Lon Burnam
P.O. Box 1894
Fort Worth, TX. 76101

Though we often find it too late, it is never too early fight tyranny.

Texas March 4, 2008 Primary Filings - Texas Secretary of State

By Faith Chatham - DFWRCC - Jan. 9, 2008

The completed list of candidates who have filed with the Texas Secretary of State to run in either the Democratic or Republican March 4th Primary is on the SOS website.

Wendy Davis eligible to run for Texas Senate District 10

COMPLETE TEXT OF TARRANT COUNTY DEMOCRATIC PARTY CHAIRMAN ART BRENDER'S DECISION ON CHALLENGE TO WENDY DAVIS' CANDIDACY FOR TEXAS STATE SENATE DISTRICT 10

This letter serves as my response to the above referenced challenge to Wendy Davis' candidacy for Texas Senate District 10.

At about 2:30 p.m., on December 31, 2007, I received your challenge, pursuant to the Texas Election Code, to the candidacy of Wendy Davis for the office of Texas State Senate District 10. Art. III, § 19, TEX.
CONST., prohibits a person holding a lucrative public office from being eligible for election to the Texas Legislature "during the term for which he is elected or appointed." This long standing provision of the Texas Constitution has been subject to a great deal of litigation here, in Tarrant County for over five decades, beginning with the landmark decision, in Willis v. Potts, 377 S.W.2d 622 (Tex. 1967). In Willis, then Fort Worth City Council Member, Doyle Willis, sought nomination for this same Senate seat. The Supreme Court strictly construed this constitutional provision, thus, preventing Doyle Willis from becoming a candidate for the Senate seat in 1964.

However, in 1992, the Texas Supreme Court decided the case of Wentworth v. Myer, 839 S.W.2d 766 (Tex. 1992) (which your challenge has very ably briefed). In that case, Jeff Wentworth's term of office as a member of the Board of Regents of Texas State University System came under similar challenge. The Texas Supreme Court reversed the decision of the Republican State Chairman denying Wentworth a position on the ballot, holding that any constitutional or statutory provision which restricts the right to hold public office "must be strictly construed against ineligibility." The Court then held that since Wentworth had resigned his position on the Board of Regents some four years before he sought to be nominated to the State Senate, and because he had not continued to exercise any right, privilege or obligation of that office in the intervening four years, his resignation effectively ended his term of office and he was thus not subject to the restriction of art. III, § 19, TEX. CONST.

The Wentworth case, which consists of eight separate opinions by the nine Justices who decided the case, specifically withheld ruling on "when an officeholder must resign to avoid art. III, § 19." Thus, Wentworth avoided any determination on the application of the Texas holdover provision, contained in art. XVI, § 1, TEX. CONST. which is the subject of your challenge. Following Wentworth, Texas Attorney General Dan Morales, in Letter Opinion No. 95-069, specifically addressed this issue, pointing out that the issue presented in your challenge was not decided by the Wentworth court.

Your research has not presented any subsequent case discussing the issue. Neither I nor the attorney for the Secretary of State have found any other applicable authority.

Consequently, and pursuant to Wentworth, I must construe your challenge strictly against ineligibility. I have been provided evidence from the public record indicating that Wendy Davis resigned her position from the Fort Worth City Council on August 9, 2007. Accordingly, I am denying your challenge to the candidacy of Wendy Davis in the 2008 Democratic Primary for the position of State Senator for Texas State Senate District 10.

Thank you for your interest and support in the Democratic Party.


--ART BRENDER,
TARRANT COUNTY DEMOCRATIC CHAIR

Coming Soon

This space is reserved for news about candidates and campaigns in the 2008 Democratic Primary. We will especially cover news of campaign events in and around Tarrant and Dallas Counties.