Democratic primary coverage
Bud Kennedy's column in the FWST mocks the Democrats running for governor:
The Democratic candidates for governor will campaign tonight at a chili supper in Hurst.It gets worse from there.This seems haywire in so many ways.
First, who knew the Democrats had a candidate for governor? Much less two?
All we hear about is the latest globetrotting jaunt of Gov. Rick "Proud of Texas" Perry. Or the latest wisecracks by his independent challengers, who I think are really the same person dressing up as One Kinky Grandma.
Meanwhile, Gromer Jeffers takes the "Dirty Thirty" narrative and writes about Bob Gammage, Ben Grant, and Fred Head's respective bids for the Democratic nomination for governor, lieutenant governor, and comptroller.
Appalled by corruption, a mixed group of reform-minded Texans rises up and, against all odds, defeats the powers that be.
It's a story line from the 1970s, but some of the players are hoping for a repeat more than three decades later.
Several former Democratic state House members who were part of the anti-corruption group called the "Dirty 30" are running for statewide office. Former Texas Supreme Court Justice Bob Gammage, a candidate for governor, tops the Dirty 30 ticket. Joining him are former District Judge Ben Z. Grant, who is running for lieutenant governor, and Fred Head, who is running for comptroller.
Republicans say the group's portrayal of widespread wrongdoing is absurd, and they note that a 1970s revival shows how Democrats are bereft of strong candidates. But the Democratic crusaders have brought new attention to a group of legislators whose exploits had nearly faded from the political scene.
"They threw a speaker of the House out before, and half the House and half the Senate out before, when the Dirty 30 focused the light of day on what was going on," Mr. Gammage said. "If I can help focus attention on what's going on in Austin today, that's my mission."
...
"If everybody who ever heard of the Dirty 30 voted for Bob Gammage, Chris Bell would still be the winner of the Democratic primary," said Jason Stanford, a spokesman for Mr. Bell. "It's hard to base a campaign on a history lesson."
And Ms. Farenthold, the group's den mother, is backing Mr. Bell over Mr. Gammage. Mr. Moreno, though, supports his former colleague.
"Just as the Dirty 30 bonded long ago, we need to rally behind Bob Gammage," he said. "We were needed then, and we're needed now."
Posted by Evan @ 01/30/06 11:57 AM
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