A response to Michael Quinn Sullivan
Michael Quinn Sullivan has a bone to pick with me. I am the subject of a blog post by Sullivan published on the Empower Texans web site yesterday under the headline, “Texas Monthly: Disclosure-Free Zone.” Sullivan objects to the fact that in an April column about higher ed reforms, I did not disclose that I have taught at UT from time to time. Here are some pertinent paragraphs:
Paul Burka, the “senior executive editor” at Texas Monthly has taken to defending the higher education status quo – skyrocketing tuition and a lack of transparency. He follows the administrative bureaucracy party line by deriding reformers, disparaging them and calling motivations into question.
Couldn’t be because he has a financial interest in the status quo, could it? Mr. Burka received $10,159 in compensation ($9,295 in salary) for teaching 13 students. (NOTE: the numbers are from UT’s own data, which the institution says may or may not be valid or accurate.)
He hasn’t disclosed in any recent writings supporting the higher-ed establishment that he is a “visiting lecturer” for the University of Texas, teaching a three credit-hour class – ironically titled “Right And Wrong In Politics.”
Mr. Sullivan has a point, though he overplays it to a ridiculous extreme, as is his custom. I should have included a parenthetical statement in that April column saying that I had taught at UT on various occasions in the past (though I was not teaching there or receiving compensation at the time that I wrote the column). But it is far-fetched to suggest that I have any permanent attachment to UT, or a financial motivation to defend the university. I am not an academic, I am a journalist. Over the past twenty years or so, I have been fortunate enough to teach courses at UT (and also at St. Edwards). During that time, I have written several editorial columns about the university. One was supportive of tuition deregulation; one was critical of a watered-down degree program I referred to as “B.A. Lite” (this one, alas, is not yet available online). I have not tried to hide the fact that I teach at UT; in 2001, for example, I wrote about volunteering to evaluate applications for admission to the Plan II honors program, as I was eligible to do as an instructor. I have also written a skeptical column about the athletic department’s efforts to find a home for the Longhorns after the breakup of the Big XII conference. In short, I choose subjects that Texas Monthly believes are important, and I try to call ‘em as I see ‘em. I leave it to readers to judge for themselves whether they believe that my reporting on UT is influenced by what Mr. Sullivan refers to as my “financial interest in the status quo,” or whether it reflects my strongly held personal belief in the importance of allowing state universities to pursue excellence free of political interference.
As for my teaching itself, in some cases, I co-taught classes at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs with former state senator Max Sherman, who was then dean of the school. I have also taught a freshman seminar in the Plan II honors program, which I call (without irony) “The Search for Right and Wrong in Politics.” It is essentially a great-books course on politics. We read selections from Thucydides on the Peloponnesian War—the Mytilenian Debate and the Melian Dialogue, which have considerable relevance to contemporary politics; we read Julius Caesar as a political play; we read All the King’s Men, one of the great American novels, which is based upon the story of Huey P. Long; and, of course, we read Machiavelli’s The Prince. In addition to the readings, I invite people from the Capitol community—members, consultants, and lobbyists—to talk to the students about what they do.
Why do I teach? It’s certainly not about the money. I’m a lowly adjunct instructor. I teach because I hope to infuse my students with the respect for politics that I myself have come to hold. I hope to transmit my beliefs that politics matters, that it is a worthy process, that it raises fundamental questions about human nature that are as relevant today as they were in the ancient world. I teach because one of the great rewards of teaching is how much you learn from your students.
Mr. Sullivan has himself become an integral part of our political process in Texas. Two months before the April column that he objects to, in compiling a feature story for Texas Monthly on the 25 most powerful people at the Capitol, I wrote the following lines about him:
No one in Texas politics can stir up a fuss quicker than this onetime newspaperman and aide to Congressman Ron Paul. Sullivan’s power is unique. As the president of Empower Texans, he uses his influential website to get conservatives across the state engaged on issues he regards of high importance. With a few keystrokes, Sullivan can rouse the right in greater numbers, and instill in them a greater alarm, than anyone—and in the process he can put enormous pressure on Republican lawmakers to hew to conservative fiscal orthodoxy.
Spot on, I would say. As we foresaw, Mr. Sullivan, Empower Texans, and a second affiliated group, Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, exerted tremendous influence during the legislative session, from opposing the use of the rainy day fund to whipping up an anti-federal government frenzy over the patently unconstitutional anti-groping bill. Indeed, even as I write, Mr. Sullivan is releasing his fiscal responsibility index, which can make careers or break them (mostly the latter). Mr. Sullivan has also strongly supported the higher education “reforms” that are being thrust upon the UT and Texas A&M, including greater transparency and accountability.
But in raising the issue of disclosure, Mr. Sullivan operates by the adage, “Do as I say, not as I do.” Empower Texans and Texans for Fiscal Responsibility operate behind the impenetrable shield of 501(c)3 and 501(c)4 nonprofit corporations. The Empower Texans Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit whose purpose is “educational.” Contributions are tax deductible. Texans for Fiscal Responsibility is a 501(c)4 nonprofit whose purpose is advocacy. These devices are completely legal and above board and they are in widespread use in contemporary American politics. They allow Mr. Sullivan to avoid the transparency he demands of the universities he criticizes. He does not have to reveal the names of the corporations and individuals who fund his work. The third leg of the stool is Empower Texans PAC, which engages in political races and is subject to state ethics laws. All we really know about Empower Texans is its organizational structure and its board of directors, the most prominent of whom are Midland oilman Tim Dunn, chairman; Mr. Sullivan, president; and Jeff Sandefer, the former UT professor who developed the reforms that have stirred up such controversy.
To repeat: What Mr. Sullivan does is perfectly legal and above-board, and the organizational structure of his groups is in widespread use by many other groups across the political spectrum. But since he has made the topics of transparency and disclosure such a battle cry, it is fair to point out that he could practice a little more transparency and disclosure himself.
Tagged: disclosure, Empower Texans, higher ed, michael quinn sullivan, paul burka, Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, texas monthly, transparency, UT
LOL says:
MQS is a tool. It’s disgusting to watch members crumble under his “authority.” He needs to move back to mama’s basement.
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Tellnitlikeitis Reply:
June 30th, 2011 at 12:09 pm
I just hope he doesn’t have any kids. God help them, if that’s the case.
He is a poor, wretched human being.
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Ubercon Reply:
July 5th, 2011 at 1:33 pm
Nice column Paul. The boy scout facade of mucus is soon to crumble. There are smart people looking for skeletons in that closet as we speak.
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Child Please says:
“I teach because I hope to infuse my students with the respect for politics that I myself have come to hold.”
Maybe you should seek out and apologize to Mr. David White, or at least do it publicly in your blog and not some tepid acknowledgement of wrongdoing buried in the comments. If you do that, maybe I could read the above excerpt from your blog without laughing so hard it hurt.
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Anonymous Reply:
June 29th, 2011 at 12:07 pm
Move on, CP. Are you kin to David White? His mother? David White makes his living from the political process. Problems in Comb’s office cannot be solved politically…as in white wash.
She needs a savy business person who has managed large groups of people, and knows how to count to ten.
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paulburka Reply:
June 30th, 2011 at 12:29 pm
More information about David White: Will Lutz of the Lone Star Report, whose opinion I respect, speaks highly of him.
Apparently some readers took my post to be a criticism of Mr. White. I can see how they could arrive at that conclusion. My intention was for readers to regard it as a criticism of Ms. Combs for hiring someone to help her with her politics rather than hiring a substantive person to improve her office’s job performance. Such as: giving away a quarter of a billion dollars over ten years for Formula One is an abomination when we have an immense budget deficit.
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Ben Quick Reply:
June 29th, 2011 at 4:40 pm
go find a home – David is a political croney and not a revenue person!!
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Mary Ryan says:
“LOL” (Lazy O’ Liberal),
Michael has a First Amendment right to communicate or not communicate, just like the Libs at UT, the TTLA, Texas Watch, etc.
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Ubercon Reply:
July 5th, 2011 at 1:35 pm
Praise the lord and pass the koolaid! Those who stand in judgment will fall hard.
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Disgruntled in Arlington says:
Uh-oh, Burka doesnt like it when someone calls him out. Wonder how Mr. White feels. What goes around comes around
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paulburka Reply:
June 29th, 2011 at 11:43 am
Quite to the contrary. I generally publish something every day. I give people the opportunity to call me out every time I post an article. If Mr. White wants to turn somersaults, it’s not going to bother me.
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Anonymous Reply:
June 30th, 2011 at 8:42 am
I like it when journalists stand up…Paul has proven to be very ethical and honest as far as I can see. It takes guts to stand up and point a finger at the like of some of these politicians, and to fight back against commenters with their heads up their partisan butts.
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Anon says:
Whose career has their index ever broken? The same way the public is confusing out of control spending in D.C. with spending in Texas, the media (i.e. you) is confusing the anti-Obama wave with the ability of a fringe group to influence elections. I will give them credit for parlaying that confusion into something, but it is a mirage.
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Edie I. Mean says:
Another point Burka: MQS is not a Conservative, he is a Libertarian. When Conservatives start realizing that, his influence will and should diminish.
And remember, his PAC last year endorsed the primary opponents of Reps. Solomons, Todd Smith, Hopson and Merritt. Of those four, only Merritt lost.
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Everybody Loves Ramen Reply:
June 29th, 2011 at 1:00 pm
And Truitt’s opponent too, I thought.
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BigJoe Reply:
June 29th, 2011 at 1:40 pm
He also endorsed in a Mayor’s race in Frisco, Texas. His well-funded candidate didn’t even pull 40%!
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Everybody Loves Ramen Reply:
June 29th, 2011 at 7:22 pm
On the Texans for Influencing Races scorecard, Mucus gets an “F”…
Robert Morrow Reply:
June 29th, 2011 at 3:59 pm
Here is a quote from Michael Quinn Sullivan as we were at the 2007 Texas Straw poll, as we surveyed the negative reaction they were giving Ron Paul:
“God, I hate Republicans.”
Then the next thing I know MQS is flacking for Rick Perry 24/7 saying what great economic conservative this corporate cronyist statist is.
My takeaway: libertarians don’t pay the bills. Corporate cronyist monopolist statists do! Toll roaders pay the bills!
2007 Texas GOP Straw poll results:
16.17% Ron Paul (217 votes)
41.1% Duncan Hunter (534 votes)
20.5% Fred Thompson (266 votes)
6.4% Mike Huckabee (83 votes)
6% Rudy Giuliani (78 votes)
4.7% Mitt Romney (61 votes)
.46% Sam Brownback (6 votes)
.62% John McCain (8 votes)
.46% Tom Tancredo (6 votes)
2.2% Ray McKinney (28 votes)
.23% Hugh Cort (3 votes)
.77% John Cox (10 votes)
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Ron Frazier Reply:
June 29th, 2011 at 10:24 pm
Tommy didn’t lose because of Sullivan.
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Anonymous says:
Get over the White thing! It was not an error on Burka’s part to note that White has no financial background or skills specific to the Comptroller’s office. She hired a spin doctor with connections, period. There was no attack, personal or otherwise.
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glenn hunter says:
1,500 words responding to a point made to a “ridiculous extreme”?
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paulburka Reply:
June 29th, 2011 at 11:50 am
It’s not the number of words that matter.
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paulburka says:
As I said in response to a previous comment. I do not know Mr. White. I know Mr. White’s previous boss. If I were Susan Combs, I would not hire someone who had worked for Wayne Christian. Mr. Christian is not respected in the Texas House of Representatives.
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Jeff Reply:
June 30th, 2011 at 4:58 pm
She would have been a LOT better off hiring someone from Debbie Riddle’s office.
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GW says:
Mr. Burka,
As a long-time subscriber and reader of yours since I moved to DC back in 2001 (I have since moved back home to Houston), keep on doing what you are doing. As a Republican voter, I was appalled at Gov. Perry’s attempt at his “reforms” and his repeated denials at using his influence when appointing his regents and interfering with his alma mater and mine (Texas).
My only hope is that should Perry run for President, all of his shenanigans and probable corruption will come to light. It has been going on long enough.
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Gianni says:
Go Paul,
Sounds like a bully behaviorist in politics using fear and intimidations from the far side of right. I hope Mr Sullivan will find the issues around fresh water and conservation with the extraordinate zeal for his causes.
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John Johnson says:
MQS is an egotistical blowhard who is nothing more than a paid shill for the Midland oil guy.
It is sad that so many people listen to his drivel.
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Aggie for Kay says:
MQS, who apparently can’t even spell “Capitol Hill” correctly in his own bio, has gone way to easy on you, Paul…it should also be noted that you are in the Governor’s pockets, as I hear he turns to his TM subscription to get advice from the Texanist on how to handle unruly coyotes and facts getting in the way of politics, and picks up style tips from the 50 page “super lawyer” ads.
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Aggie for Kay says:
I would go on further to suggest that you are also in the pockets of all Texas politicians as they as a group probably have the second highest TM subscription rate behind Texas dentists.
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Sabine Dweller says:
Sullivan is only the most recent compensated protagonist to come forward since the rise of ugly politics in this great state. And his handler in Midland is not exactly an original either. Remember “I’m mad. too, Eddie Chiles”? These guys drift in and out of power rather quickly; happens in both parties when political and economic circumstances present a tail to which they can cling for a moment.
Soon there will be another website, a new scorecard and Twitter account. The name on it won’t be Sullivan but he or she will be a form of Michael Sullivan, with a new rich guy to fund the screaching and threatening.
And it still won’t be about making Texas better; that will be left to the good people of the state, Republicans and Democrats and Independents, who have always been there to make things right, keeping this incredible state moving forward and welcoming those who wish to join us.
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Robert Morrow Reply:
June 29th, 2011 at 4:04 pm
So what? Start your own web site, scorecard, Twitter account. You are welcome to.
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Everybody Loves Ramen says:
Mucus, people. Mucus.
Also, when he unreasonably criticizes those his master doesn’t like, remember that it is possibly due to a genetic factor perhaps well beyond his control.
Mr. Quinn Sullivan likes to associate himself with alleged distant ancestor, Benjamin Rush, signer of the Declaration of Independence who is best remembered today for running around telling everybody what a terrible General George Washington was and constantly advocating for his dismissal.
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Everybody Loves Ramen says:
And don’t forget, Deb Medina already called Mucus out for being a phoney a while back.
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Anonymous says:
I cannot take seriously anyone who ever worked for Ron Paul.
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Admonkey says:
Everybody’s called MQS out for being a phony– including Medina– it’s just that most R’s do it behind closed doors and out of earshot of the Teapers who don’t know any better or understand who’s backing whom.
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Robert says:
Sullivan’s point was right on and you demonstrate such with your response.
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Anonymous Reply:
June 30th, 2011 at 8:44 am
Look who is counting…it is really hard to ignore the facts that White is not a financial guy but a political hack. Point made. Fact shown. So now the wingers get whacky about it?
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Briscoe Democrat says:
Doesn’t Sullivan work for Governor Perry ?
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Robert Morrow Reply:
June 29th, 2011 at 4:05 pm
He acts like it.
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Everybody Loves Ramen Reply:
June 29th, 2011 at 6:19 pm
Or, vice-versa.
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Tnix says:
Paul,
I guess Mr. Sullivan is a fierce proponent of “less government”–unless it is an area where he feels the great unwashed have escaped his purview. Keep up the defense of education; to many in Texas have left the battlefield.
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Red says:
I’ve actually been a student in one of Mr. Burka’s “Right and Wrong in Politics” classes…and it was quite enjoyable. Hardly a vehicle for him to “deride reformers” … unless a debate on whether or not Huey Long was a true reformer counts.
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Anonymous says:
I think all you state employees should get back to work!
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Gen. Sam Houston says:
Sullivan has no idea what constitutes a conflict of interest…his so-called ethics complaint is so patently phony that it made me laugh out loud when I read it.
It takes a potent amount of chutzpah to 1) make a six-figure living representing special interests even while 2) refusing to publicly disclose your donors, even as you 3) accuse a journalistic critic of ethical transgressions for essentially giving his time to help educate the next generation.
Paul, it is difficult to ignore a small bug flying around you, but that’s what you should do in this case. In the meantime, Sullivan can get back to bullying and intimidating any independent thought out of our state legislators.
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Jay Burden says:
I have also taken Burka’s Plan II TC. One of my favorite classes at UT.
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Texun says:
But let’s give Sullivan credit: he’s made a good living as a mouth piece for a handful of right-wing reactionary types. And when Governor Perry speaks, Sullivan barely moves his lips.
I’m giving serious thought to going into competition with my new creation: RBTPMTBALMSB, or Reactionary Because They Pay Me to Be A Loud Mouth Slime Bag. The group will accept Pay Pal contributions over $10,000, and they will be tax-deductible because it will really be a non-profit research operation, like so many others in town. Big donors will receive a guide to pronouncing the acronym. Really, really big donors will receive a DVD showing Dan Patrick being groped by a cross-eyed security guard at Hobby Field. Supply limited.
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South Texan says:
Texun: I applaud your wit and perspective, but am dismayed by your reference to “a cross-eyed security guard.” Strabismus is a physical disability, and persons who live with that condition would appreciate our using respectful language.
I’m sure you weren’t being malicious, but all of us who care are committed to raising consciousness about using respectful language, including terminology such as “intellectual disability” instead of the R-word–and NEVER using the R-word jokingly.
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eyeswideopen says:
Wow! This blog has a regular following from both sides of the political spectrum, yet no one seems to be defending Sullivan here. Could it be that he and his boss are not as stout and influential as you think they are, Paul?
As has been pointed out, the bold legislators who have stood up to his threats have done fairly well in subsequent elections. It seems to be the weaklings that cave in to his bullying. They need to take lessons from Mr. Geren.
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South Texan says:
eyeswideopen: Michael Quinn Sullivan has 3,000+ Facebook friends. The limit is 5,000. He attracts readers by including interesting and timely tidbits about military history, sharp photos, etc. Wonder how many followers he has via empowertexans.com? It’s well done too.
He seems to have more influence with rookie legislators than with seasoned veterans and with state representatives than with senators.
My experience is that beyond the Capitol network, whether on-campus or off, most people respond to references to him by asking, “Michael who?”
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Hilarious says:
Is there no chance of blocking Robert Morrow from posting here? I mean, seriously.
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Robert Morrow Reply:
June 30th, 2011 at 1:37 am
Why? How about blocking YOU? What do you add – Mr. Too chicken to post your name?
Am I disturbing your idolatry or some cult you belong to? Can’t handle freedom of speech? Want to live in Cuba, Iran, Syria, North Korea.
Yeah, you work for a STATIST don’t you, probably a Republican one …
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Terry's Texas Rangers says:
Leave Mr. Morrow alone. Agree or disagree with him, he is the only ideologically consistent commentor on this website.
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Anonymous says:
How about one of you sissy legislators posting here, letting us know why you are so afriad of Sullivan? You can do it anonymously. You know that the majority of your constituents don’t think like the Midland money bag and his mouthpiece do, yet you cave into their threats.
Do you feel any remorse? Hasn’t your self esteem suffered?
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Vernon says:
Anonymous at 8:45 am – I doubt any legislator will respond, although I wish they would.
But it’s no great secret as to why they cower to Sullivan: he’s loud and he can influence a primary.
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Everybody Loves Ramen Reply:
June 30th, 2011 at 8:52 pm
Like the rooster influences the rising sun…
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JohnBernardBooks says:
To Democrats free speech means “the right to publicly burn the American flag” while denying MQS the right to voice an opinion.
Appropriate quote for 4th of July weekend as democrats want to extend the debt ceiling:
“To preserve our independence, we must not let our rulers load us with perpetual debt. We must make our election between economy and liberty, or profusion and servitude.”
— Thomas Jefferson
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Everybody Loves Ramen says:
Who is denying MQS the right to voice and opinion? I think the general consensus is that his opinions are simply poorly thought out or worse.
I believe Jefferson was a proponent of George Washington’s leadership. He wouldn’t have liked Mucus’ great-great-grampa and he probably wouldn’t care much for Mucus.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
July 1st, 2011 at 4:18 pm
what does Jefferson being a proponent of Washington’s leadership have to do with the democrats and perpetual debt?
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Anon. Reply:
July 1st, 2011 at 5:07 pm
Merely an elliptical slur on Mr. Sullivan’s familial capacity for sound judgement, I’d guess(see post well above that one or read any MQS missive sent around July 4 on any given year bragging about his illustrious ancestry.)
Speaking about Democrats and perpetual debt, how long did it take to pay off the Louisiana Purchase? Perhaps Jefferson is not the founder you are looking for.
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JohnBernardBooks says:
Jefferson wrote the declaration of Independence and wisely purchased the La purchase, from the French who were/are in perpetual debt for $219 million(2010 dollars or 3 cents/acre) and it was paid off by 1835.
President Jefferson’s La. purchase upset the Northeast liberals threatening their status as rich elitists forming the beginning of the undertones for the Civil War. Shortly thereafter punative tariffs were levied on the South bringing about the era of Nullification. President Jackson declared Nullification unconstitutional and threatened to use the military to enforce the Tariff of Abominations almost plunging us into civil war.
“But JBB the civil war was only about slavery,” all the democrats chime in unison.
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Garner's Bucket Reply:
July 4th, 2011 at 3:38 pm
I see, so Unconstitutional, or at least Extra-Constitutional actions are ok as long as everything ends up favorably? I’m learning so much!
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
July 5th, 2011 at 7:51 am
Yes, we all are as Sen Shumer and President Obama tell us the 14th admendent allows President Obama to raise the debt ceiling w/o involving Congress.
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Anonymous says:
As a dyed-in-the-wool liberal, I can only say that 75% of the reason MQS enrages my people is that we don’t have anyone or anything comparable on our side. The left is burdened by an earnest desire to explain itself, not set the world on fire. MQS is all attack, all the time. There’s a lesson to be learned there – shrill and notably fact-free though that lesson may be.
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