An Eye on the Calendar

The state probably won't have political maps for federal and state legislators until November and possibly December, crowding the filing-fundraising-campaigning cycle into the holidays and perilously close to the March primaries.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Justice named the districts it considers legally troublesome, and the Washington DC court hearing part of the redistricting arguments set some deadlines that put the case on the calendar.

Where things stand:

• The DOJ says five state House districts are problematic when it comes to Section 5 of the federal Voting Rights Act: HD-33, an open seat in Rockwall and Collin counties; HD-35, a South Texas seat currently held by Rep. Jose Aliseda, R-Beeville; HD-41, the Hidalgo County district where Rep. Aaron Peña, R-Edinburg, is the incumbent; HD-117, a San Antonio district represented by Republican John Garza; and HD-149, the Houston district where Democratic Reps. Hubert Vo and Scott Hochberg are paired. "The United States contends that the proposed House plan will not change the ability of any citizens, on account of race, color or membership in a language minority group, to elected their preferred candidates in any of the remaining 145 districts," DOJ's attorneys wrote. They're saying the state didn't diminish voting power in those districts, and that's the test for preclearance. They said the state went backwards — retrogressed — in four of the districts and that they're still studying the last one, HD-149.

• The Justice folks have reservations about two congressional districts: CD-23, the sprawling West Texas district represented by Francisco "Quico" Canseco, R-San Antonio; and CD-27, which runs from Corpus Christi to the Houston exurbs and north to the Austin suburbs and is represented by Blake Farenthold, R-Corpus Christi.

• The DC court gave preclearance to the State Board of Education map, meaning the state can use that one. Since the House, Senate and congressional maps haven't received preclearance, the judges in the San Antonio court say those maps can't be enacted yet.

• DOJ didn't find preclearance problems with the state Senate map, but that doesn't mean it's approved. In the San Antonio cases, opponents of that plan say it should have drawn more minority opportunity districts — places where minority voters have the ability to elect the candidate of their choice — and won't be legal until it does.

The timetable for the new maps is dependent on the courts. The San Antonio court has already held some hearings but hasn't ruled, and has hearings on the Senate map starting Nov. 14. The DC court will start its preclearance hearings on Nov. 2.

Unless something changes, candidates have to file for office between Nov. 12 and Dec. 12, but that's impossible if no maps have been approved by the courts. With that in mind, some of the lawyers have asked the San Antonio judges to be ready to draw contingent maps that can be used for next year's elections if the DC court hasn't finished its work. That's happened before — it would mean running an election under a new court-drawn map and then revising it for later elections depending on how the courts rule on the maps drawn by the Legislature.

If that makes your head sore, imagine what it's like for candidates who really aren't sure where their voters are. They won't be, either, until the courts do something.

Campaign Chatter

State Rep. Will Hartnett (r), R-Dallas, listens to a question from the back mike as State Rep. Rene' Oliveira (l), D-Brownsville, waits on May 6, 2011.
State Rep. Will Hartnett (r), R-Dallas, listens to a question from the back mike as State Rep. Rene' Oliveira (l), D-Brownsville, waits on May 6, 2011.

Arlington's Chris Harris became the fourth Republican state senator to say he won't seek reelection next year. He had a challenger in state Rep. Rodney Anderson, R-Grand Prairie, and there were strong rumors that one of the wealthier business lobby groups — Texans for Lawsuit Reform — would come hunting him. Anderson, a freshman, probably had his best chance in using Harris as a foil; without the incumbent in the race, he's got a much more difficult contest in front of him. Start here: Victor Vandergriff is likely to get in. He's Harris' pick, for what it's worth, and he's got a known name: He's on the North Texas Transportation Authority, there's a car dealership with his name on it, and his dad, Tom Vandergriff, was mayor of Arlington, a U.S. Congressman, and Tarrant County Judge.

State Rep. Will Hartnett, R-Dallas, confirmed the rumors that he won't be back. He noted in his announcement that he was one of the few votes against college tuition for the children of undocumented immigrants when that bill — now haunting the governor's presidential campaign — passed in 2001.

Dr. Stuart Spitzer announced he'll run for HD-4, where freshman Rep. Lance Gooden, R-Terrell, is the incumbent. Spitzer is still gearing up; the first blog entry on his website when we looked was headlined "Why I'm prolife"; the text that followed was "I'm prolife because blah blah blah."

Add Dr. Steve Nguyen, a Republican optometrist from Irving, to the list of people considering a run in HD-115 — the north Dallas County district where Rep. Jim Jackson, R-Carrollton, decided not to run for reelection. Nguyen would be running against Bennett Ratliff, a Coppell school board member and the son of former Lt. Gov. Bill Ratliff. Irving attorney Matt Rinaldi is also in that race.

Dr. Charles Schwertner, the Georgetown state rep now running for the Texas Senate, got an early endorsement from the Texans for Lawsuit Reform PAC. He's running in SD-5, where Sen. Steve Ogden, R-Bryan, announced plans to quit after this term. Schwertner also released a list of current former mayors, public officials and other locals who've endorsed his campaign, and fellow House members whose districts overlap the Senate district. Two more: He got an endorsement from Steve Hotze's Conservative Republicans of Texas, and another from the Texas Academy of Family Physicians PAC.

TLR jumped in early in SD-11, too, endorsing Rep. Larry Taylor's bid to succeed Mike Jackson, R-La Porte (Jackson is running for Congress).

And they jumped into a race where two incumbents are battling, saying they'll be behind Hillister Republican James White instead of Mike "Tuffy" Hamilton of Mauriceville. White is a freshman, and one of only two Black Republicans in the House.

Ryan Sitton, R-Friendswood, will run for Taylor's seat in the House. He's an engineer and CEO and founder of Pinnacle Asset Integrity Services.

Texas Railroad Commissioner Barry Smitherman, who'll stand for election for the first time next year, says he's got the support of 12 of the 19 Republicans in the Texas Senate. So far, he's in the quiet race next year; the candidates are lining up for the other, open spot on the RRC.

Josh Caesar, a McKinney Republican, says he'll run for Congress in CD-3 — the district now represented by U.S. Rep. Sam Johnson, R-Plano.

Former Chambers County Commissioner Bill Wallace, a Republican, will run for the House in HD-23, where Galveston Democrat Craig Eiland is the incumbent.

Pencil in Hector Enriquez in El Paso's HD-75, where Chente Quintanilla, D-Tornillo, is the incumbent. Quintanilla is talking openly about running for county commissioner, and Enriquez is making the rounds in preparation for a run.

Cleburne Mayor Justin Hewlett will run for Congress in CD-25, a crowded district that has an incumbent — Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin — who's going to run in the district next door. That leaves an open seat with more than a half-dozen Republicans seeking the nomination. Hewlett was on the Cleburne school board before running for mayor.

This week's list of incumbents who say they'll seek another term next year includes: Rep. Jim Pitts, R-Waxahachie; Rep. Chuck Hopson, R-Jacksonville; Sen. Royce West, D-Dallas; and Rep. Sarah Davis, R-Houston.

School Finance Suit Takes Shape

Thomas Jefferson High School in San Antonio
Thomas Jefferson High School in San Antonio

Within the education community, there have been rumors about a possible school finance lawsuit since well before the legislative session got under way. Now, with $4 billion less in public funding and a daunting new student assessment program on the horizon, those rumors have become a reality.

At least two groups — one led by the Equity Center and another by veteran school finance lawyer David Thompson — have begun gathering plaintiffs to make their case against the state.

No lawsuits have been filed yet. But as of Thursday, 129 districts have joined a coalition of schools led by the Equity Center that intends to sue the state over inequitable public school funding. The districts on the list are a mix of suburban, rural and inner-city schools of varying sizes, though they are primarily low- to middle-funded districts, the school finance lobbying and research organization's spokeswoman Lauren Cook said.

Since the 1949 Gilmer-Aiken Act, which established the first comprehensive system for Texas school funding, seven school finance lawsuits have been filed. There are three prongs to legal wrangling over Texas school finance lawsuits: equity, adequacy and meaningful discretion. They all hinge on two provisions in Texas law — that the state provide equitable, efficient and adequate funding for its public schools and that those schools have "meaningful discretion" in how they spend that money.

The Equity Center lawsuit will focus on the equity angle, attacking the target revenue system established in 2006 when lawmakers reduced the property tax rate and guaranteed that districts would get no less than the amount they received per student at that time. That temporary patchwork approach has since become permanent, resulting in a funding scheme in which neighboring school districts can have as much as a $7,000 difference in state per-student spending.

Thompson's group will focus on the other two prongs, arguing that because the state has not put enough money into public education, it has not given local districts enough choice in how to spend or whether to raise property taxes — in effect, instituting an unconstitutional statewide property tax. About 20 percent of Texas districts have already reached the $1.17 limit, according to an Equity Center analysis. He will also argue that the state increased standards while at the same time drastically reducing funding.

But the difference in focus won’t ultimately matter — all of the plaintiffs will eventually be joined together by the court.

The state's largest district, Houston ISD, has yet to make the decision about whether to join the coalition, a spokesman said. The school board will take up the question at its next meeting on Oct. 13.

When asked how this round of lawsuits will compare to those of the past will compare to those of the past, Thompson made an analogy to the Harry Potter movies.

“There are common characters, common themes, consistent plot thematic issues that run through all the books," he said. "But every one of them has a specific focus."

Phil Wilson's War

Traffic congestion on Interstate 35 in Austin. The freeway through central Austin is among the state's most congested road segments, according to a TxDOT study.
Traffic congestion on Interstate 35 in Austin. The freeway through central Austin is among the state's most congested road segments, according to a TxDOT study.

Phil Wilson, a former Texas secretary of state and aide to Gov. Rick Perry, on Thursday was named executive director of the Texas Department of Transportation. He had been working as a senior vice president of public affairs for Luminant. The new job comes with a big salary — and even bigger challenges.

Texas Transportation Commissioner Ted Houghton announced that Wilson’s annual salary will be $292,500 — a $100,000 increase from that of Wilson's predecessor, Amadeo Saenz.

For those who have followed the process, such a leap might not come as a surprise. A 2010 report from consulting firm Grant Thornton found that the executive director’s salary was competitive with the median of his peers' in the public sector, but roughly half that of his peers in the private sector.

In 2011, the TxDOT Restructure Council, a group assembled to review the Grant Thornton report and others to help revitalize the agency, observed that the legislative salary caps applicable to TxDOT’s most senior executive positions posed an “immediate challenge and possible handicap” for the agency in terms of attracting talent.  

In the last session, lawmakers added a rider to the appropriations bill allowing TxDOT to request approval to exceed the cap up to the level of the median private sector salary — or $381,000. TxDOT officials say they will indeed request more funds under that provision to add to Wilson’s compensation.

But Wilson also has his work cut out for him at the agency, which has found itself at odds with the Legislature.

The overstressed transportation system is a growing problem nationwide. According to a study released this week by the Texas Transportation Institute at Texas A&M University, the average U.S. commuter is delayed 34 hours each year, up from 14 in 1982. The cost of congestion is now more than $100 billion, nearly $750 for every commuter in the U.S.

Many of the worst cities for traffic are right here in Texas: Houston and Dallas are ranked fourth and fifth worst in the country, respectively.

The TxDOT Restructure Council found that in order to address the state’s situation, the culture of the organization must change. “Behavior that is resistant to change presents a major challenge for new leadership in TxDOT,” it found.

“While TxDOT is certainly a national leader in transportation infrastructure development,” Houghton said in a statement, “there are opportunities for Phil to guide the department through this period of transition, emerging a more responsive and efficient organization.”

Wilson indicated in a statement that he was up for the challenge. “I look forward to working with the agency, Commission, Legislature and local communities on the most efficient and effective ways to build infrastructure for Texas,” he said.

Inside Intelligence: The Money Side

Federal campaign fundraising deadlines are upon us, so we poked the insiders this week for their views on money and politics.

Corporate money is allowed in political campaigns to an unprecedented extent, so it seemed reasonable to ask whether it'll make any difference. The answer, at 94 percent, was a nearly unanimous "Yes."

Super PACs are new, and third party groups have been influential in the last several presidential races. The insiders, asked about the balance, overwhelming agree that third party groups and Super PACs will spend more money than the campaigns themselves.

Another twist the fundraisers have mastered is the political non-profit, an organization that allows them to accumulate money for politics without revealing the names of the donors or the amounts contributed. Most of our insiders — 88 percent — think that information should be disclosed.

Finally, we asked a self-conscious question to find out whether the public and the media are giving the right amount of attention to money in politics. Almost half answered "not enough" and only 19 percent said "too much."

We collected verbatim comments, as always, and a full set of those is attached. Here's a sampling:

Because of recent court rulings, corporate money is allowed in politics to an extent never seen before. Will that make any difference in how campaigns are run?

• "I suspect only for single issue campaigns... I don't foresee corporations or labor unions buying ads opposing elected officials or endorsing one candidate over another candidate by name."

• "It will give corporations excessive influence to buy elections"

• "Not on the state level. In this economy most corporations are not going to open up their corporate treasuries for political campaigns. They will continue to play at the same level through their respective PACs."

• "It's not supposed to, with the prohibition against coordination, wink-wink, nudge-nudge"

• "Candidates may in some cases lose control of their campaigns and messaging."

• "It appears that business, at least some, have awaken to the fact that government agencies like the EPA and environmental groups are organized and do not have the interest of the capital markets in mind."

• "Don't forget it allows union money too. In Texas, this gives unions a big advantage because of the Texas laws that restrict coordination much more strictly than at the federal level. As players, corporate and union, become more sophisticated, we will see more take advantage of the ruling."

Will more money be spent in the presidential race by the campaigns themselves or by Super PACs and other third parties?

• "This is the danger of this badly flawed decision of the court's right-wing majority. Spending by these new 'people', as the decision calls corporations, will soon outspend the total spending of all official candidate committees of candidates for President, the U.S. House and Senate, the campaign committees of each party in each house, and the National Committees of each Party ... combined."

• "This is a truly scary prospect"

• "It might not happen this cycle, but if the current law is left intact the third parties will eventually become the main source of funds."

• "I think you'll see a shift over the next 10 years from the campaign itself running the entire campaign to campaigns paying for the candidate to do his thing and third parties ruling the airwaves and doing all the hit pieces."

• "Best jobs in the business are going to go to the accountants who will be counting money like a Vegas casino."

Should non-profit organizations that participate in political advertising be required to disclose donor names and contribution amounts?

• "They should. But the same groups who 'advocate' for open and transparent government are the first to keep their donor list secret."

• "The rules should be the same for everyone."

• "Disclosure has a legitimate function that serves a public interest; when regulation goes beyond that, the state enables a system ripe for intimidating people with unpopular views. We will never have 'open and honest' debate if people have to live in fear of expressing their views."

• "The Texas model works--let anyone contribute as much as they want, but make those taking the money have to own up to those contributions (trial lawyers, Bob Perry, etc.). The (c)(4) groups are going to come under increased scrutiny from the IRS with their non-disclosure and campaign activities."

• "The hell with limits if the sun shines in. Full transparency and let her rip! Everyone should be required to disclose."

Rate the amount of attention paid to money in politics by the public and the media:

• "It is the policy they should focus on. The money is just a medium. Both sides spend way more than they ever have in the past, but they match each other in throw weight."

• "The media can't get to large chunks of the information"

• "Not much now, and even less later as it becomes obvious that corporate and other monied interests are controlling every significant policy in the nation. The public is quickly developing calluses on the part of its collective conscience that reacts to such indignities. The collapse of strong independent news organizations is very much part of the cause."

• "Certainly the 'media' are obsessed with it."

• "The public has a right to know who is buying the politicians."

• "Until there is a scandal, it will be business as usual."

• "The media and pundits bemoan it, the public expects it, and the big wheels — they keep on turning."

Our thanks to this week's participants: Gene Acuna, Cathie Adams, Brandon Aghamalian, Clyde Alexander, George Allen, Jay Arnold, Louis Bacarisse, Charles Bailey, Reggie Bashur, Walt Baum, Dave Beckwith, Rebecca Bernhardt, Andrew Biar, Allen Blakemore, Tom Blanton, Chris Britton, Kerry Cammack, Marc Campos, Snapper Carr, Janis Carter, Tris Castaneda, Corbin Casteel, William Chapman, George Cofer, Rick Cofer, John Colyandro, Hector De Leon, Tom Duffy, Jeff Eller, Craig Enoch, Jack Erskine, Alan Erwin, Ryan Erwin, Dominic Giarratani, Bruce Gibson, Scott Gilmore, Daniel Gonzalez, Jack Gullahorn, Bill Hammond, Sandy Haverlah, Albert Hawkins, Ken Hodges, Laura Huffman, Shanna Igo, Deborah Ingersoll, Cal Jillson, Mark Jones, Richard Khouri, Tom Kleinworth, Pete Laney, Dick Lavine, Donald Lee, Luke Legate, Leslie Lemon, Homero Lucero, Matt Mackowiak, Luke Marchant, Dan McClung, Scott McCown, Robert Miller, Bee Moorhead, Steve Murdock, Craig Murphy, Keir Murray, Keats Norfleet, Pat Nugent, Sylvia Nugent, Todd Olsen, Nef Partida, Gardner Pate, Bill Pewitt, Jerry Philips, Wayne Pierce, Kraege Polan, Jay Propes, Andrea Rado, Bill Ratliff, Carl Richie, Kim Ross, Mark Sanders, Jim Sartwelle, Stan Schlueter, Bruce Scott, Steve Scurlock, Bradford Shields, Dee Simpson, Ed Small, Todd Smith, Larry Soward, Dennis Speight, Jason Stanford, Bob Strauser, Colin Strother, Sherry Sylvester, Russ Tidwell, Bruce Todd, Trey Trainor, Wendell Ware, Ken Whalen, Darren Whitehurst, Seth Winick, Peck Young, Angelo Zottarelli.

 

The Week in the Rearview Mirror

News that law enforcement officials are investigating a cold case that could be related to the 1986 murder of Christine Morton could be good news for Michael Morton, who’s been in prison for 25 years for the crime. Morton has maintained his innocence and has finally seen success in his appeals with the DNA testing of a bandana found near the Mortons' home. DNA found matched that of Christine Morton and an ex-convict in California. Now it seems that another case with similar details is being investigated in light of the DNA discovered. Other discrepancies are coming to light in Morton’s case, and his attorneys insist he should be released from prison immediately. A hearing is scheduled for early next week.

Inmate Lawrence Brewer may have left a lasting impact on the state prison system, and in particular death row. After he ordered, and then didn’t eat, a gigantic last meal before his execution, outraged state officials declared that they would end the practice of allowing inmates a special meal of their own choosing. Instead, they will be served the same meal as any other inmate in the prison, according to the executive director of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Brad Livingston, who issued the announcement after receiving a letter from the chairman of the Senate Criminal Justice Committee, John Whitmire, D-Houston.

Refiners seeking tax refunds for buying pollution-controlling equipment have school districts and cities located near refineries on edge. If the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality approves the refunds, those districts and local governments could find themselves owing the state millions of dollars that they have already incorporated into their current budgets. Valero initiated the request from an amendment to the Texas Constitution exempting companies from paying taxes on equipment purchased to reduce pollution, and since that action in 2007, four other companies have joined in asking for the refund. The TCEQ is researching the claim after Valero’s initial claim was turned down.

Texas, known for its reluctance to embrace federal health care reform, was the beneficiary of the law’s most recent grant. Of $103 million in grants awarded to combat heart disease, cancer, stroke and diabetes, the Texas Department of State Health Services received $10 million. Austin and Houston also received $1.5 million worth of municipal grants under the program. To date, government agencies in the state have received about $93 million in awards and grants under the law.

An $80,000 report on spillover border violence commissioned by the Legislature has drawn mixed reactions. Retired Army Maj. Gen. Robert Scales and retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey, former director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, authored the report, which contends that spillover violence is a real threat to the border areas outside of El Paso. Ideas about drug cartels establishing sanctuaries from Mexican law enforcement, though, were met with strong objections by U.S. Rep. Silvestre Reyes, D-El Paso, who criticized the report as sensational and politically motivated.

The Texas Water Development Board released its five-year water plan for the state, and the news wasn’t encouraging. Continued drought, coupled with population growth, could cause serious damage by 2060, including massive job losses. The report recommended that the Legislature plan ahead and invest in new reservoirs and water infrastructure. The estimated cost to the state for such forward-thinking measures: $53 billion.

A study commissioned by the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce has provided some concrete numbers on the Barnett Shale natural gas field. The report, compiled by Waco economist Ray Perryman, details the impact that the drilling boom in the Barnett Shale has had on the regional economy. The big numbers were an estimated $65.4 billion pumped into the North Texas region since 2001 and the addition of more than 100,000 jobs in the area, both directly and indirectly created by drilling activity. That’s estimated to be 38.5 percent of the area’s entire economic growth in the last 10 years. Tax revenues have been good for the state as well as local governments, generating $5.3 billion for localities over the decade and close to $1 billion for the state, the report said.

The drought has killed an estimated 15,000 trees just in city parks and esplanades in Houston. The city now forecasts it needs to spend $4.5 million to remove the withered trees, which are a safety hazard. That’s more than 13 times what Houston would spend on tree removal in an average year.

Political People and their Moves

More than two and a half years after President Obama took office, the U.S. Senate confirmed four U.S. attorneys for Texas. Robert Pitman of Austin will be the chief federal prosecutor for the Western District, which also includes San Antonio, El Paso, Del Rio and Midland. Kenneth Magidson got the Southern District, including Houston, Laredo, Corpus Christi and Laredo. Sarah Saldana got the Northern District, with Fort Worth and Dallas. And Malcolm Bales, who's been the interim in the Eastern District, now gets to drop "interim" from his title. Pitman is the state's first gay U.S. Attorney; Saldana is the first Latina. The four were appointed in June.

Former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson has been named the senior fellow for Latin America at Rice University's James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy.

Zachry Holdings hired A.J. Rodriguez, San Antonio's former deputy city manager, to run public policy and government relations there. He's been the head of the city's Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the city's first economic development corporation.

David Prior, the executive vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University of Texas for the last four years, is stepping down when a successor has been found. He was at Texas A&M before coming to the UT System in 2007.

Matthew Miller, who was the chief spokesman for the U.S. Department of Justice, is joining Austin-based Vianovo as a partner in the consulting firm's Washington office. Before DOJ, he worked in both the House and the Senate, and on John Kerry's presidential campaign in 2004.

Gov. Rick Perry's latest appointments include:

Ann McClure of El Paso chief justice, and appointed Christopher Antcliff of El Paso as a justice of the Eighth Court of Appeals. McClure is a current justice of the Eighth Court of Appeals. Antcliff is former judge of the 448th and 168th Judicial District courts in El Paso County.

Cynthia Tauss Delgado of League City to the Texas Lottery Commission. Delgado is president of Cyndel Industries.

William F. Scott of Nederland to the Texas State University System Board of Regents. Scott is chairman and CEO of Trans-Global Solutions.

Susan Burton of Addison and Larry Patton of El Paso to the Finance Commission of Texas. Burton is a consultant and owner of Susan Burton Consulting. Patton is president and CEO of Bank of the West.

Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steven C. McCraw made Gary Albus the Regional Commander for DPS Region 6. Albus had most recently served as Texas Highway Patrol Major in Lubbock since 2010. And he named Carey Matthews as the Regional Commander for DPS Region 4. Matthews began his career with DPS in 1988.

Quotes of the Week

I think Americans just don’t know sometimes which Mitt Romney they’re dealing with. Is it the Mitt Romney that was on the side of — against the — Second Amendment before he was for the Second Amendment? Was it before he was before the social programs from the standpoint of he was for standing up for Roe v. Wade before he was against Roe v. Wade? He was for Race to the Top — he’s for Obamacare and now he’s against it — I mean we’ll wait until tomorrow and see which Mitt Romney we’re really talking to tonight.

Rick Perry botching a line in his third national debate

We have a debater-in-chief right now.

Anita Perry to a group of Iowa Republicans after the debate

If we're not going to give fellow Americans who live in Louisiana or Oklahoma or New Mexico the ability to come into Texas and have in-state tuition and save, then is it fair to give that break to people who are not citizens here? So, I would not have signed that law.

Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst to WFAA-TV on the in-state tuition bill that Rick Perry signed in 2001

I was probably a bit over-passionate by using that word, and it was inappropriate.

Gov. Rick Perry on describing the opponents of in-state tuition for illegal immigrants as "heartless" during the last GOP debate, quoted in Newsmax

If he can’t get the job done in Texas with a supermajority, with something that he says is a priority, how is he going to get that done in D.C.? You have control of everything in Texas, and you still can’t it done. He doesn’t want to get it done.

Katrina Pearson, the North Texas Tea Party advisory board member, to Politico on Gov. Rick Perry's inability to enact a ban on sanctuary cities

There is enough chatter and phone calls and static — whatever you call it in the spy business — that everyone is just sitting around.

Ray Washburne, a Dallas businessman and now-uncommitted former supporter of Tim Pawlenty, to The New York Times on uncertainty in the Republican presidential field

Really, really I'm having a hard time deciding. I really want to be a county commissioner, and then you come down here and you like the idea of being in Austin. So I guess I just need to go home and stay home.

State Rep. Inocente "Chente" Quintanilla, D-El Paso, to the El Paso Times on his undecided future in poltics

I don’t like to talk to media. They don’t do anything. They are meaningless.

David Lane, former head of the Texas Restoration Project, in the Texas Independent