This number comes from pollster Mike Baselice, based on high turnouts in Harris County. I’m surprised, because I thought there would be a lot of apathy in the absence of a presidential race. This level of participation would be good for David Dewhurst, because it would indicate that a lot of people who don’t usually vote in primaries are coming out, as opposed to a smaller turnout, which would indicate that most of the voters are frequent primary voters.

Patricia Kilday Hart reported the development in the Houston Chronicle blog about two hours ago. She writes:

Remember those rumors that the University of Texas Board of Regents were considering firing UT-Austin President Bill Powers for “insubordination” after he mildly complained that they rejected a proposed tuition increase?  Everyone — including Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa denied that Powers’ job was in jeopardy.

But now that UT’s graduation is in the past (held last Saturday) and all the students have left town, the regents have decided to hold a special meeting.  Among the items that will be discussed:

U. T. System: Discussion and appropriate action regarding
individual personnel matters relating to appointment, employment,
evaluation, compensation, assignment, and duties of
presidents (academic and health institutions), U. T. System
Administration officers (Executive Vice Chancellors and Vice
Chancellors), other officers reporting directly to the Board
(Chancellor, General Counsel to the Board, and Chief Audit
Executive), and U. T. System and institutional employees

Personnel Matters Relating to Appointment, Employment,
Evaluation, Assignment, Duties, Discipline, or Dismissal of
Officers or Employees – Section 551.074

U. T. System: Discussion and appropriate action regarding
individual personnel matters relating to appointment, employment,
evaluation, compensation, assignment, and duties of
presidents (academic and health institutions), U. T. System
Administration officers (Executive Vice Chancellors and Vice
Chancellors), other officers reporting directly to the Board
(Chancellor, General Counsel to the Board, and Chief Audit
Executive), and U. T. System and institutional employees

Hart continues, “Obviously, someone’s head is on the chopping block. Ironically, commencement speaker last weekend was former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, who said UT was “blessed” to have Powers’ as president.”

* * * *

While the first thing most people are likely to conclude is that Bill Powers is the target of the “individual personnel matters” mentioned in the notice, a reliable source tells me that this is not the case. In fact, UT spokesman Gary Susswein confirmed to me this afternoon that the only agenda item that pertains to UT-Austin is extending the agreement to use the Cotton Bowl for the UT-OU game.

Here’s what he has to say:

Texas Republicans have an important election on May the 29th.  We have a lot to be proud of.  That’s why I’m proud to endorse David Dewhurst,”
Perry says in the 30-second TV spot. “David Dewhurst repeatedly cut spending. David strongly opposes a state income tax.  David’s the one candidate best prepared to make conservative change happen in Washington.  Don’t let anyone tell you differently. Our country needs him and so does Texas.”

* * * *

I suppose the Dewhurst campaign thinks this is a plus for the light gov, but I’m doubtful that anyone is going to be influenced by what Perry has to say these days.

From the politicalwire Web site:

The Topeka Capital Journal reports that robocalls made by Sarah Palin to influence the outcome of the Republican U.S. Senate primary in Texas were actually going to voters in Kansas.

Said Palin: “Hello, Texas! I’m Sarah Palin.”

Allegations against Hamilton, posted on  the Web site “Texas Conservative Republican News” include:

* Tax liens of $601.92 and $2,657.91 against Hamilton

* A $2000 civil penalty levied against Hamilton for ethics violations

* Sexual harassment allegations against Hamilton

The latter was an incident that took place on the floor of the House. A female member from El Paso was at the microphone when Hamilton asked her suggestive questions about the size of the “mountains” in El Paso and whether they were real. TEXAS MONTHLY singled out Hamilton for a “Dishonorable Mention” award for his actions.

During his commencement address to UT graduates and their families on Saturday, Gates praised Bill Powers, saying, “You are blessed to have him as your leader. The best I can wish for all Longhorns is that people like Bill Powers and [former president] Larry Faulkner continue to lead this great university long into the future.”

Gates also made reference to another issue in higher education, the value of research, which has been questioned by critics:

“You have experienced the unparalleled learning that takes place at the University of Texas – learning enriched by the teaching and research that has made American higher education the envy of the world….” What is discovered in the lab one day is taught in the classroom during the next. This blending of teaching and research makes UT, A&M and all great universities unique incubators of human talent, discovery, and economic development and innovation.”

This is a correction of an earlier post concerning the counties with the highest percentage of registered voters who have cast ballots. The corrected numbers:

Montgomery 3.01%

Galveston 2.68%

Williamson 2.33%

Fort Bend 2.23%

I am somewhat surprised by the result. I don’t think Montgomery has a lot of hot races. Eissler has a tough reelection battle on his hands, but that is about all.

The high turnout in Galveston is explained by a congressional race with ten Republican candidates, including state representative Randy Weber, and a state Senate race involving Larry Taylor. Weber and the winner of the likely runoff will face former Democratic congressman Nick Lampson.

The Williamson county turnout is driven by a high profile district attorney’s race between incumbent John Bradley and county attorney Jana Duty. Bradley refused to allow DNA testing of a evidence that would have exonerated Michael Morton.

Fort Bend County has a nasty sheriff’s race that is driving turnout, as well as a battle for Charlie Howard’s seat that has some high profile contenders and will probably be resolved in a runoff.

There is a lot of action in Tarrant. It’s not a primary race, but Mark Shelton vs. Wendy Davis will be a titanic general election battle, and Kelly Hancock vs. Todd Smith is a critical Republican primary race. There is also a congressional race with twelve candidates in a district that extends from Tarrant County into Travis County. But Tarrant did not have a sufficient turnout rate to place in the top four counties.

Gates’ resume includes his current job, Chancellor of William & Mary, as well as Secretary of Defense in the George W. Bush administration and Director of Central Intelligence.

It will be interesting to see if Gates alludes to the current controversy at UT. Perry wanted Phil Gramm to be president of A&M when Gates got the job, thanks to the votes of holdover regents appointed by Governor Bush. Knowing Gates (I did a cover story on him just before he left A&M to be SecDef), I wouldn’t be surprised if he had something to say on the subject. If he does, it won’t be favorable to Perry.

The first obvious point to make is that somebody failed to vet White. The question that should be asked of every candidate for office is, “Have you ever done something that could cause you a problem if it becomes public?” In the White campaign, who did the vetting? Some consultant’s head ought to roll.

The second obvious point to make is that the fleas are going to land on somebody. As of now, the number one candidate is Rick Perry, who endorsed White. Perry made a big show of going around the state and bestowing endorsements. That’s all well and good if you know what you’re doing, but if something goes wrong, the fleas start to circle. Perry is going to be asked if he stands by his endorsement, or if he is going to walk it back. The fleas are going to land on TLR too. As I wrote in a post yesterday, TLR is playing a dangerous game. They are “all in” against veteran legislators, and if something were to go wrong, they’re going to be in big trouble. Well, something has gone very wrong, and they’re about to be in big trouble.

A couple of months ago I wrote a post about how unusual it was for statewide officials to endorse in legislative races. Some readers took me to task, saying that it happened with some frequency. I’m not going to debate that point. My sense is that it is rare for state officials to endorse as far down the ballot as state legislative races, but even if I am wrong about that, I think that for a high ranking state official to involve himself or herself in endorsing candidates in obscure local races is foolish. At least Combs had a reason to endorse, being desperate to pander to the far right. As for Perry, he was looking for a way to remain relevant. Endorsements are not risk-free. They can come back to bite you if the candidate you endorse loses or self-destructs. Perry spent his political capital on something that didn’t matter at all. If several of his chosen candidates lose, it is going to embarrass him, and if James White self-destructs, the governor’s influence is going to take a hit.

Here is the lead from the Journal’s story:

The national debate over the cost of a college degree is roiling the University of Texas’s flagship campus, where the school’s president has been at odds with board members and with Gov. Rick Perry over the wisdom of raising tuition.

The dispute has reached such a point that the chancellor of the state’s multi-campus university system, Francisco G. Cigarroa, stated this week that he hasn’t tried to fire William Powers Jr., president of the Austin campus.

The Journal article incorporated a chart (above) listing tuition and fees for twelve major public universities. The most expensive was Berkeley at $14,461; the least expensive was North Carolina at $7,009. Seven schools ranked higher than UT’s $9,722.

UT Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa was quoted in the story as saying, “The trend of consistently raising tuition to counter reductions from other funding sources is not sustainable for students and parents.” This can be read as an implicit criticism by Cigarroa of the state’s leadership and the Legislature for their lack of support of higher education; in fact, it can hardly be read in any other way.