The Republican field: a sensible solution
Here’s what I think should happen:
(1) If Abbott isn’t going to run against Perry, he should challenge Dewhurst for lieutenant governor. It’s the best job available (other than governor), and Dewhurst is gravely wounded. Abbott would beat him like a drum. If Abbott doesn’t run, Dewhurst still has to contend with three other likely opponents in Staples, Patterson, and Combs. There goes another $20 million of the family fortune. I don’t think Dewhurst can be reelected in 2014. He’s the guy everybody wants to run against, the walking dead.
(2) Perry has not indicated his intentions, but I assume that he will run again. He has nowhere else to go. There is nothing else he is qualified to do except continue to mess up Texas. He is not going to be the Republican nominee in 2016 if Romney loses. There are too many strong contenders out there: Jeb Bush, Mitch Daniels, Chris Christie, Tim Pawlenty, Bobby Jindal, to name a few.
(3) I assume that everyone has heard the rumors by now that there is an effort behind the scenes to get George P. Bush to run against Perry in 2014. It is not too far-fetched that Rove could orchestrate a reprise of W.’s 1994 race, when he arranged tutorials for Bush from Republicans who were knowledgeable about state policy. The issue I see is whether there are enough moderate Republicans left in the party to sustain a race against an ideological conservative like Perry. My view is that star power transcends ideology. Perry ceased to be a star when he “oopsed.” Or, to put it another way, has Perry stayed too long, to the point that Republicans are ready for a new face? There will certainly be questions about whether P. is ready to run statewide at such a young age.
One thing the younger Bush would not have to worry about would be fundraising. The Bush apparatus is still there. P. has to decide whether to roll the dice at this early stage in his career or just wait until Perry finally steps off the stage. A lot of wannabes have perished waiting for him to take that step. I wouldn’t wait. Another huge advantage for P. is that he endorsed Ted Cruz. Perry, as we all know, endorsed the Dew. I can envision Cruz and P. traveling together to fire up Republican crowds, representing the future of the party. Perry would pale in comparison. I think Bush wins this race, and I doubt that Perry would even challenge him.
Tagged: 2014
Anonymous says:
Abbott would beat Perry like a drum.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
August 27th, 2012 at 3:51 pm
Anon, Perry is NOT running in 2014: he’s just toying with the press so they can get off his back and he’s likely to declare his retirement following the 2013 legislative session in June 2013.
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Anonymous says:
Also, the people who run the state (i.e., the business leaders) are behind Abbott.
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Mayo Say Tongue says:
Oh Please! George P. Bush, is a Florida boy who even puts cemetery residents to sleep when he gives a speech. He just moved here because he thought it would be easier to trade off the family name.
Third generations tend to not do very well in politics. This example is certainly no exception.
Besides, even in Texas we have Bush fatigue. No more Republicans named Bush!
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Fiftycal Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 3:33 pm
NO more Bush! No Bush relatives, friends, etc. ALL the Bushes and their spawn are RINOs! Both Bush Presidents “compromised” to attain the praise of the liberals. After they got what they wanted, the liberals spat in their faces. THAT is what “compromise” gets you. Well, the dims can “compromise” with US now.
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anon Reply:
August 27th, 2012 at 8:58 am
Wow.
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Whoa, Nellie! Reply:
August 27th, 2012 at 9:08 am
Oh my yes, a thousand dittos! No more of these cursed Bushes — I don’t care what their damn initials are. Carpetbaggers and corrupt fools, the lot, when they’re not snake-oil salesmen or spooks.
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BackUpMembers says:
Straus for Governor.
Everyone else can go home.
This state would be back on track.
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The Mustache That Dare Not Speak Its Name says:
What about Louie Gohmert? He’s a very special politician.
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Jerry Only Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 4:31 pm
i think Judge Tom Head would be a good candidate for Texas.
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Kenneth D. Franks Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 8:43 am
Louie is “Special?” It’s a joke right. He’s may be special but not in any good way I can think of. Perry has worn out his welcome, stayed too long, needs to go, and moderate Republican has become an oxymoron in Texas.
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anon Reply:
August 27th, 2012 at 8:59 am
And a fine representative of todays Texas republican.
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Nostradamus says:
Abbott would be Perry or Dewhurst or Cornyn
Straus would beat Perry or Dewhurst or Cornyn
George P would beat Perry or Dewhurst or Cornyn
Jerry Patterson would beat Perry or Dewhurst or Cornyn
Not sure about Staples and Combs. We’ll see who Cruz gets behind
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#halftrue Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 9:02 am
Combs: talk about the walking dead.
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anon Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 10:00 am
Nostra,
Perhaps you’ve missed the last two cycles of Republican primaries. Learn your history.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
August 28th, 2012 at 9:16 am
Nostra, you SUCK.
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Wise Guy says:
Burka one of my favorite quotes from you “I-35 is littered with bodies of those who have challged perry”. I get the opps stuff. But this is Texas. He has roots deep like an oak tree. Appointments, helping business community etc.
Abbott is a force, no question, but when has he ever pulled the trigger?
DEW is toast under any scenario. He cannot do budget compact stuff like Perry does to get the grassroots fired up.
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anon Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 10:17 am
Hopefully the Dew has learned his lesson in trying to appease the tin foil hat crowd that runs the Texas Republican Party.
He should spend his final years in office building a legacy distinct of being a well-dressed water boy for Perry. He should pick an issue and fight for it, challenge the mullahs of his own party.
Let’s see what the man is made of. Let’s see if he’ll prove himself to be a statesman worthy of the office he holds.
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paulburka Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 10:25 am
It’s too late
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Whoa, Nellie! Reply:
August 27th, 2012 at 9:09 am
Why would he change now, and whatever gives you the impression that he could or would?
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paulburka Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 10:22 am
Re wise guy above … Yes, Perry still has a lot of support in Texas. But it will evaporate in a race.
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Robert Morrow Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 12:03 pm
There is absolutely no way Rick Perry is running for governor again. His opposition could just run clips of his 2011 Humiliation Tour and that would be that.
Perry would suffer a hilariously crushing defeat if he ran again. People think he is mentally retarded and possibly gay.
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Jerry Only Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 4:35 pm
YOU think he is possibly gay. no one else buys it.
mentally retarded, well, ill buy that.
paulburka Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 9:00 pm
Robert: Drop the “Perry is gay” stuff. You cannot say it on this blog. If you insist on saying it, I will remove your posts to trash.
Dollars and Sense Reply:
August 27th, 2012 at 11:28 am
Roberto:
You talk way too much about gay guys.
You have cheesy bimbo pics on your Facebook page.
Stop overcompensating.
Twist the handle, push the door open, and come on out.
Blue Dogs Reply:
August 27th, 2012 at 3:52 pm
Burka, Perry has like what $3.3 million left in the bank. He’s flat BROKE.
He will NOT run again in 2014 or any other office in the future either.
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Reality Check says:
We are going to get a “star” politician soon…..lance Armstrong, tommy lee jones, mark Cuban, Nolan Ryan, etc someone along theses lines will run in TX likely for Governor. They will win (if they get past whatever primary they run in.)
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#halftrue Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 9:04 am
Lance Armstrong? Um… Have you tuned into the interwebs/TV/radio/telegraph in the last two days?
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Robert Morrow Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 12:00 pm
Just like with Rick Perry, I have known that Lance Armstrong was a liar, a fraud & a cheater for a very long time. He had to tell his cancer doctors he was on steroids and Lance’s inner circle at the time was sitting there.
And they told everyone else. Lance dumped the wife who was with him throughout his cancer ordeal.
I do not think much of Mr. Big Phony Liar Lance Armstrong.
(Yes, doped up or not, he is still a freak athlete.)
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Mom Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 6:29 pm
noooo! We need Nolan to only concentrate on the Texas Rangers! priorities people!
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Anonymous Reply:
August 27th, 2012 at 11:23 am
Great point mom.
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Eyeswideopen says:
You want a knowledgable, straightforward, honest, no b.s. governor, it needs to be Patterson. All the rest have similar flaws and have bowed at the feet of Perry or the Repub party at one point in time.
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paulburka Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 9:01 pm
Patterson can’t raise money. If he could raise money, he would whip the entire lot of them.
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John Johnson Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 11:19 pm
Why not, Paul? Is is because Patterson won’t kowtow to special interests?
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Patriotone says:
Perry would eviscerate George P. I say that with no joy but I feel it is fairly clear. Have you ever actually met P? I understand the desire to elevate a fresh face but not ready for prime time. Much as i hate to say it but right now, absent a scandal, Perry is Governor as long as he wants to be.
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paulburka Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 10:14 am
My pollster connection tells me that Perry has a 64% negative.
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Reminder Reply:
August 27th, 2012 at 8:31 pm
i hope it’s not the same pollster everyone used in this cycle! They were ALL wrong!
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Buck says:
Wait — I thought Sarah Palin was moving to that farm near Brenham so she could run.
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Robert Morrow says:
I am just so sick of the Bushes. And it has little to do with their “moderate” politics.
It has everything to do with the way GHW Bush has behaved for decades – a lawless man, elite criminal – and Jeb Bush’s “up to his ears” involvement in Iran-contra.
GWB had to have been involved in that stuff to some degree, too. All his companies seen to be some phony CIA operation.
George P. was involved in none of that. Fine. He is still from the wrong, entitled, very dirty family. It’s like having mafia ancestry.
I would vote for Rick Perry or Hillary Clinton over a Bush. Just sick of them. They have done more than their fair share of damage to America.
And George P. is known for hispandering – he will endorse you if you are Hispanic, no matter if you are wearing a beanie cap with a propeller on your head.
If it came down to Rick Perry vs. George P., I would go full bore for Rick Perry (for primary season, then take a long hot bath, then vote Libertarian).
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LandslideLyndon Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 1:30 am
Don’t forget to wash your ass señor morrow.
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Anonymous says:
If you think Perry is bad for Texas, just wait for Greg Abbott — Rick Perry with a law degree. God help Texas.
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#halftrue Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 9:06 am
Like.
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John Johnson Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 9:22 am
Agree.
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anon Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 10:10 am
Abbott has no conscience — he’s the worst kind of public servant. He could care less about what is good for the public
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paulburka Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 10:18 am
What baffles me is that none of these guys want to do good.
Anonymous Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 10:08 pm
I ASSUME EVERYONE KNOWS HOW ABBOTT MADE HIS MONEY..
John Johnson Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 11:20 pm
I hope you’re not going where I think you are.
The Mustache That Dare Not Speak Its Name Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 10:38 am
This is true.
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Fiftycal Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 3:36 pm
We try to leave the “dogooders” to the dims.
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Anonymous Reply:
August 28th, 2012 at 6:03 pm
Yeah, I’m going there: He sued the the tree company and the park and was awarded millions of dollars in damages (including non-economic) in the 1980s, before tort reform. Fast forward twenty years later: he’s one of the biggest TLR cheerleaders in the state.
And I’m also going here: Who’s bagged more immigration bills in the past 5 years by deeming them unconstitutional and not even having staff to testify at legislative committee hearings on how the AG would implement such policies?
And I’ll go here: Redistricting. How’d that turn out for Republicans?
So…I went there.
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JohnBernardBooks says:
Perry gets an appointment with the Romney Ryan administration orolly Jobs Czar. What you’ve never heard of a Job Czar then you must be a democrat
Dewhurst/Abbott duel it out for Guv
Abbott wins
Dan Patrick becomes Lt Guv
All is right with Texas
democrats and muslims terrorist unite to form the Freedom and Justice Socialist Party.
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#halftrue Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 9:09 am
Is this the same JBB who predicted the Gingrich-Perry team winning the nomination?
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anon Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 10:04 am
And what’s up with JBB linking Perry to “orally jobs” — I thought that was Morrow’s mantra?
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Robert Morrow Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 11:57 am
“Dewhurst 6-8 points” … reality 43-57%
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 12:58 pm
et al docha just wished you had what I have.
but you don’t.
JohnBernardBooks Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 1:04 pm
when anita flames out she cries “it was satire”.
When I make fun of the uninformed they miss that it is real satire.
Stop being so dense.
RBK Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 3:05 am
JBB – That’s because you’re really, really, really, really bad at doing satire.
Jerry Only Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 4:38 pm
dewhurst 6-8 points
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anon Reply:
August 27th, 2012 at 9:02 am
There wont be a Romney Ryan administration.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
August 27th, 2012 at 3:54 pm
Books, here’s my prediction.
1. Obama WINS re-election by 10-15 points over Romney.
2. Perry serves out his 3rd full term and retires on January 20, 2015.
3. Abbott and Dewhurst bloody each other in the governor’s race in 2014.
4. Combs WINS the Lieutenant Governor’s office in 2014.
5. One of the TX Supreme Court judges succeed Abbott as State AG, but former Railroad Commish Michael Williams could run for Abbott’s job.
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Beerman says:
Perry, Abbott, Dew, a Bush, Combs, Patterson?
God save us!
Oops, isn’t he the guy that told Perry to run for Pres?
Even God can not be right all the time!
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Robert Morrow says:
How would a “moderate Democrat” behave as governor?
They would be pro-choice probably, then what would their politics be?
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The Mustache That Dare Not Speak Its Name Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 1:56 pm
How would Bill White have governed had the Texas electorate been wise enough to elect him in 2010? You can draw your conclusions from there.
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paulburka Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 4:02 pm
He would have been faced with a hostile legislature in which his own party was very weak, in both houses. I think he would have spent a lot of time vetoing bills.
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The Mustache That Dare Not Speak Its Name Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 4:17 pm
Probably so. But vetoing bad bills is better than signing them or having your allies introduce them in the Legislature. The question was “how would a moderate Democrat behave as Governor?” Well, there’s a partial answer.
Blue Dogs Reply:
August 27th, 2012 at 3:55 pm
Burka, White’s chance was in 2006 and he didn’t make the jump.
White would have been a ONE-TERMER.
anita says:
A moderate democrat would quit wasting time trying to rig the electorate, would quit playing politics with women’s health, would restore a commitment to public schools, and would reign in the ‘crony capitalism’ of the Perry era.
Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it?
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 1:01 pm
There is no such thing as a moderate democrat.
the liberals have hijacked the democrat party. if there are any conservative democrats, they’re ashamed to admit it and they’re either hiding as an “independent” or a moderate republican.
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donuthin says:
Pretty much the same with the Republican Party. it has been hijacked by the lunatic right wing nuts.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 2:36 pm
Yes Romney is a right wing nut.
I god Woodrow, liberals are such pedants.
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JohnBernardBooks says:
I’m predicting Delay’s trial will be dismissed, as liberals have milked it for all they can. Plus Ronnie Earle, ex-DA is a roadkill in Texas history.
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At least says:
At least Ronnie Earle never appeared on Dancing with the Stars.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 6:53 pm
no kidding Ronnie Earke couldn’t get a woman dance patner.
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WUSRPH says:
Even some of us Democrats would vote for Jerry Patterson. He is wrong on a bunch of things (espeically his pro-Confederate bit) but he is not afraid of anyone…and he tells you what he really believes. It would be nice to have someone like that in office again…
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The Mustache That Dare Not Speak Its Name Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 6:14 pm
I like Jerry Patterson and George P. If Texas is still going to be a one-party state at the statewide level in 2014, I’d be fine with either of those two. They are decent people who actually believe in public service.
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No Geo P fan says:
I have big problems with Geo P Bush due to two op eds he published in the Dallas Morning News when his daddy was Florida governor. One was in favor of privatizing Social Security, a terrible idea when the market crashes, which will occur periodically. What do we do when the market crashes, start soup lines?
His other lame brained op ed was libelous against the husband of poor old brain-dead Terry Schiavo. As our population ages, we don’t need goofy far-right extremists making hay out of family tragedies and blocking the humane demise of people whose brains have turned to liquid. The autopsy proved the husband was trying to do the right thing for someone who had lost ALL mental capacity and had zero brain activity.
Is Geo P just Michele Bachmann in pants?? Remember Geo W Bush didn’t do such a great job, perhaps due to a very privileged upbringing which didn’t lead to much wisdom.
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ghostofann says:
Paul–
Please do not encourage another Bush to run for office. How did that work out the last time?
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paulburka Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 9:06 pm
It worked out great for Texas. Bush was a very good governor.
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Whoa, Nellie! Reply:
August 27th, 2012 at 9:19 am
I would disagree to a great extent with this. Bush fiddled and diddled and ignored real structural problems with this state, coasting on the good times and planning to use this state as a springboard and backdrop for national politics and aspirations (including working out his Freudian issues). He accomplished little that I can see, unless you count cementing one-party dominance, and this do-nothing, sweep problems-under-the-rug era has been continued by Perry, when he isn’t leading the assault on the remaining restraining bulwarks that protect our civil liberties and the public weal.
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orale! says:
Wow. You had me until P for gov. I say will run for GLO as Patterson will run for lt gov. However, P for gov does sound interesting. Oh, I do think Abbott will run for gov in 2014 and will win. Perry and The Dew need to retire as their tenure needs to be replaced w/ new blood.
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Anonymous says:
Wendy Davis will win in November with a surprisingly wide margin and the speculation will begin. Let’s hope she goes statewide in 2014 and gives the good old and new boys a real run for their (and TLR’s) money.
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John Johnson Reply:
August 25th, 2012 at 11:27 pm
Wendy, would be a great gov. Look at all the bills she has filed and the diverse groups who have honored her for her efforts …churches, educators, physicians, veterans, county government assoc., the AARP and others. She wants to lower insurance and electricity rates, insure that companies receiving enterprise fund money fulfill their promises, insure that Texas companies get priority in Texas contracting, 1/3 of which now go to out of state, or even, out of country entities, find a way to get our public education system adequately funded and functioning properly, and get more bills passed like SB1739 which prevented the legislature’s raiding money from a Veteran’s fund account to help balance the budget.
She’s the Real McCoy and can work across the isle to move things forward as she has done her entire political career (if she is not faced with doing so with Neanderthal’s like Troy Fraser). Constituents come first. This, to me, is her greatest attributes.
The more Texas gets to know her, the more they are going to love her. Mark my word.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 6:12 am
JJ all she has to do is make the democrat walk of shame over to the republican party. No dem can win in Texas.
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John Johnson Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 7:45 am
Well, she’s not going to do that, JBB. Repubs have to be in lock step with the party line. Individuality is not allowed. However, Repubs can show crazy tendencies while holding the party line, like Gohmert does, without losing favor.
If you ask Wendy, I think she would tell you that she is pro-choice and is for moving the discussion on abortion back into the private sector. I think she would tell you that she supports equal rights for homosexuals, as do most of the 42%’ers.
She’s not lock-step Repub material, JBB, and she’s not going to change her colors to do so like every other one has since John Connolly jumped ship. it was attractive to me then. It would not be if she did it. I like her just the way she is. So will others when they get to know her.
Anonymous Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 9:33 am
AARP sucks
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John Johnson Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 10:14 am
Everything about AARP sucks? How about the TLR? How about almost any organization you can think of ? The AARP’s lobbyist in Austin is one of the absolute best from a consumer standpoint.
paulburka Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 9:07 pm
Wendy Davis will be the Democratic nominee for governor in 2014, whether she wins her Senate race or not.
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Just another joe Reply:
August 27th, 2012 at 5:37 pm
And she will lose. By how much, remains to be seen. Depends if it is Obama or Romney’s mid-term.
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vietvet3 says:
I God, Woodrow!
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W Tx Anonymous says:
Which of the above-named governor wannabe’s would be willing to commit to: provide strong support and sufficient funding for an effective public school system for all students; protect citizens’ constitutional rights to privacy against intrusion by government and law enforcement acting under the guise of ‘homeland security;’ protect the rights of women, children, elderly, abused and disabled persons in Texas; use the tax and other revenues we pay for truly public purposes instead of finding clever ways of using public funds to support the private business ventures of chosen friends and supporters; and act in the best interest of all Texans?
We can’t do anything but speculate about the gubernatorial prospects in 2014. What we CAN do right NOW, is support Paul Sadler for US Senate, so we can have someone in Washington representing the best interests of all Texans as a public servant, and not just a puppet promoting the interests of the privileged few.
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Fiftycal Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 3:50 pm
Who is “Sadler” and what race, if any, is he in?
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W Tx Anonymous Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 11:34 pm
Fiftycal, in answer to your question, “Sadler” is Paul Sadler, a fine man and a Democrat who is running for US Senate in Texas. He has a widely publicized tea-party / Republican opponent. Sadler served several years in the Texas House, and while he did, he gained a reputation for being a good and effective Chair of the Public Education Committee.
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longleaf says:
W Tx Anonymous, you are in the wrong state. This is a Southern Baptist “Christianist” theocratic authoritarian “RINO” (Republic In Name Only) dictatorship.
I believe the next big move will be to change the Texas Constitution to remove the language mandating a “efficient system of public free schools.” Such language is monstrously SOCIALISTIC. ALL schools in this state should be private and parochial. Many will “vouch” for this.
I hope you are nowhere near Lubbock. Your “Agenda 21″ style post here has put you in the gunsights of Judge Tom Head and his militia brothers, Dick Head and Harry Head.
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Pharyngulator Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 9:12 am
Expect alot more of executing low-income minorities who were angrily denied state services and adequate education, but permitted to enjoy “life”, in the name of Jesus.
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jbb says:
I God Woodrow
orally Jobs Czar
JJ hlp me plz i illiterate how do wrote english
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Anonymous says:
I laughed out loud on that one. Finally, some good satire JBB.
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Robert Morrow says:
“I believe the next big move will be to change the Texas Constitution to remove the language mandating a “efficient system of public free schools.” Such language is monstrously SOCIALISTIC. ALL schools in this state should be private and parochial. Many will “vouch” for this.”
That is actually a damn good idea. Eliminating public education might be a very good idea. Not saying I am totally ready to do it, but we need to turn off the money spigot.
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Whoa, Nellie! Reply:
August 27th, 2012 at 9:23 am
Oh, brilliant idea, eliminate what every other modern nation-state or aspiring nation-state provides. Sub-saharan Africa, here we come!
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Anonymous says:
Create a plan that works and lay it out there for analyzing. Not a piecemeal plan, but an all encompassing one. Has anyone done this? All I hear is “the current plan’s not working”.
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Whoa, Nellie! Reply:
August 27th, 2012 at 9:25 am
Whenever any politician wants to warp law to serve some private, vested interest, all he (or she) has to do is launch the plan as a “reform.”
People never seem to catch wise to this, not even after decades of “tort reform” (bringing us the highest insurance rates in the nation) and a slew of other “reforms.”
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Robert Morrow says:
I saw Robert Caro today on TV gushing about Lyndon Johnson again with Fareed Zakariah of CNN.
Caro knows full well what a lying snake Lyndon Johnson is yet he often relies on LBJ’s word alone what happened. One good example is what happened in his Lincoln car limo after JFK was shot.
Senator’s Ralph Yarborough’s Suspicion of Lyndon Johnson
“There is the well-publicized story of Agent Rufus Youngblood, who reportedly threw himself on top of Vice President Johnson after the shooting began in Dealey Plaza…. Johnson, in a statement to the Warren Commission, mentioned the incident:
I was startled by a sharp report or explosion, but I had no time to speculate as to its origin because Agent Youngblood turned in a flash, immediately after the first explosion, hitting me on the shoulder, and shouted to all of us in the back seat to get down. I was pushed down by Agent Youngblood. Almost in the same moment in which he hit or pushed me, he vaulted over the back seat and sat on me. I was bent over under the weight of Agent Youngblood’s body, toward Mrs. Johnson and Senator Yarborough….
However, former Texas senator Ralph Yarborough, who was sitting beside Johnson that day, told this author: ‘It just didn’t happen…. It was a small car, Johnson was a big man, tall. His knees were up against his chin as it was. There was no room for that to happen.’ Yarborough recalled that both Johnson and Youngblood ducked down as the shooting began and that Youngblood never left the front seat. Yarborough said Youngblood held a small walkie-talkie over the back of the car’s seat and that he and Johnson both put their ears to the device. He added: ‘They had it turned down real low. I couldn’t hear what they were listening to.’”
–Jim Marrs, Crossfire: The Plot that Killed Kennedy
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Robert Morrow says:
LBJ hated Ralph Yarborough, but in the wake of his murder of JFK, Johnson had to appease the liberals. He did this by 1) pushing civil rights most prominently. Another way was convening with Walter Heller to create a 2) “War on Poverty.”
Still another way to appease the liberals who justifiably suspected Johnson in the JFK assassination was 3)refusing to support a conservative Democrat primary challenge to the hated Sen. Ralph Yarborough. LBJ covered his liberal flank post JFK assassination out of a desire for self preservation, not out of the “goodness” of his heart.
Ralph Yarborough’s Suspicion of the Warren Commission Investigators:
“A couple of fellows [from the Warren Commission] came to see me. They walked in like they were a couple of deputy sheriffs and I was a bank robber. I didn’t like their attitude. As a senator I felt insulted. They went off and wrote up something and brought it back for me to sign. But I refused. I threw it in a drawer and let it lay there for weeks. And they had on there the last sentence which stated: ‘This is all I know about the assassination.’ They wanted me to sign this thing, then say this is all I know. Of course, I would never have signed it. Finally, after some weeks, they began to bug me. ‘You’re holding this up, you’re holding this up’ they said, demanding that I sign the report. So I typed one up myself and put basically what I told you about how the cars all stopped. I put in there, ‘I don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings but for the protection of future presidents, they should be trained to take off when a shot is fired.’ I sent that over. That’s dated July 10, 1964, after the assassination. To my surprise, when the volumes were finally printed and came out, I was surprised at how many people down at the White House didn’t file their affidavits until after the date, after mine the 10th of July, waiting to see what I was going to say before they filed theirs. I began to lose confidence then in their investigation and that’s further eroded with time.”
–Jim Marrs, Crossfire: The Plot that Killed Kennedy
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Anonymous Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 2:01 pm
Take it somewhere else, Mr. Morrow.
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paulburka Reply:
August 26th, 2012 at 9:10 pm
Robert, you’re at it again when you say the liberals justifiably suspected LBJ in the Kennedy assassination. I’m not going to let these accusations be published.
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Anonymous Reply:
August 28th, 2012 at 3:20 pm
Paul,
Is there any way you can delete Morrow’s material? I still see it here. It’s a real drag on the conversation and detracts from the coherent exchange of meaningful thoughts.
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Blue says:
The unnamed and obvious candidate for statewide office is Dan Patrick.
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texun says:
Ah, Dan Patrick! My candidate to be Commodore of the Texas Navy. He talks enough to keep those sails full of air.
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Robert says:
It’s funny enough to have a lib giving advice to the Texas GOP but this statement is funnier: “There is nothing else he is qualified to do except continue to mess up Texas.”
I realize that Dems and many Austin-insiders of both parties think this way but it simply ignores the big-picture reality of Texas performance relative to other states.
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Anonymous says:
JJ-
Don’t get your hopes up about Wendy. She is a true believer in big government. And if she is so responsive to constituents, why does she defy them on Voter ID? Every conctituent group in her district (including Democrats and independents) supports Voter ID but Wendy spits in their face. Menawhile her opponent Republican Mark Shelton supports Voter ID. In addition, Dr. Shelton has successfully passed legislation to restore control back to our local school districts, balanced the state budget without raising taxes, and protected our state’s border against illegal drug and human trafficking. He has also authored legislation for stricter sex offender registration requirements, children and women’s healthcare, homeowner rights and protection of pro-life/pro-family values.
Dr. Shelton is a leader against federal government intrusions and is one of Texas most outspoken critics against Obamacare. Dr. Shelton is one of the four physicians currently serving in the Texas Legislature, each of whom brings firsthand experience to the challenges facing our health care system, as well as a unique perspective on the profoundly detrimental effect Obamacare will have on the citizens of Texas. That is why Dr. Shelton supports Gov. Perry’s decision not to expand the state Medicaid program or implement a federally controlled health insurance exchange in Texas. Dr. Shelton knows that the best solution to ensure the long-term viability of our state’s ailing Medicaid program is to seek a federal block grant which would allocate funding to the state directly, thereby providing Texas with the freedom to design its own Medicaid system without burdensome federal regulations and one-size-fits-all mandates. Such a grant would provide us with the independence and flexibility to devise the best and most cost-effective solutions to the specific health care needs of Texas, while preserving the critical doctor-patient relationship and ensuring continued access to care.
Wendy would do the opposite and embrace ObamaCare threatening to reduce quality of care and placing further barriers between doctors and patients, and do irreparable harm to the people of Texas.
A February 2012 Rice University Study (conducted by Mark Jones, Chairman of Rice’s Political Science Department) of 684 nonpartisan State Senate roll call votes in the last legislative session showed that Wendy is one of the most liberal of all legislators. The study noted that Davis was one of the top two most “liberal” members of the Texas Senate and was “at the liberal edge of the Senate ideological spectrum” and was out-of-step with the viewpoints of her own constituents making her “an unabashed Texas liberal.”
District 10 made a mistake with Wendy which will be corrected in 2012.
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John Johnson Reply:
August 27th, 2012 at 7:30 pm
Those are all beautiful talking points, Anny…taken right from some sheet someone placed in front of you. A little fudging here, a little fudging there and you can make Dr. Shelton look absolutely wonderful. He is a good guy. No doubt about that. If he wasn’t running against Wendy, I might even vote for him.
He doesn’t have Wendy’s political experience; he does not have her independence; he does not have the broadbased support that Wendy has garnered from all corners of the poltical spectrum.
Wendy from her first day on the job as a city council member in Fort Worth, showed that she was there to serve ALL people in her district…and she did. As the Fort Worth rep to the North Texas Council of Governments, she was a leader, along with Sen. John Corona-R Dallas in formulating ideas in a bi-partisan manner that made me take notice. When she ran for Brimer’s senate seat, my wife and I made an appointment and sat down with Wendy. She won us over and was the first Democrat we ever cast a vote for that was running for a major slot. She has not disappointed.
I look at Dr. Shelton’s sponsored legislation and I congradulate him. I look at Wendy’s sponsored legislation and I give her a standing ovation.
I look on Dr. Shelton’s website for awards, endorsements and accolades and I see none. I look at Wendy’s and her site is loaded up with them…and from all sorts of diversified groups. That is Wendy’s strength…she is there for us, not for her party, or the TLR, of the trial lawyers, or oil and gas, or the Future Energy Holdings, or the Blue Cross Blue Shields. She is there for commonbred Texans who have had a belly full of having their concerns addressed last.
Go to a Senate Committee hearing and see who the chairman calls first to speak. It is always Big Business’s representatives. The consumer advocates, like Tim Morstad and Smitty Smith, get to sit around all day, and speak dead last when most of the committee members are no longer present. Wendy would not run a committee in this manner. As a rep of the people, the people would get the mic first so the Big’s would be there to listen to their questions and complaints.
As for voter I.D., I think that Wendy would tell you that she is all for it …if you find a way to pay for it and make it easy to sign up. She also feels that there are much more pressing issues to be addressed. This one is way down her list.
And finally, the Rice study on who is conservative and who’s not. What a crock. Any vote against the Big’s is considered a liberal vote. I’m no liberal, but I would be classified as one if I pushed for accountablitiy in the Enerprise Fund free money giveaway, like Wendy did. Heck, what’s different about giving free bucks away in Texas and the recipient not living up to promises and how Solyndra performed after Obama’s massive dollar giveaway to them?
You guys are going to have to come up with something better than this spiel to displace her. Seen how many people and business have written checks to her campaign? They aren’t all Democrats.
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#halftrue Reply:
August 28th, 2012 at 2:01 pm
“He has also authored legislation for stricter sex offender registration requirements…”
Interesting. Why did he vote against the rape kit bill then?
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John Johnson Reply:
August 28th, 2012 at 3:37 pm
Yep…this is the type of “fudging” I was referring to. It also ties into the lack of “independence” that Dr. Shelton has.
Good bill or not, his Repub party dictates to him what he can and can’t vote for or against. Forget about whether or not it is good for his constituents; forget about morality; forget about personal likes and dislikes…it is all about the party line and keeping the other side from passing bills with their name on it.
This thinking is bad for Texas; and terrible for Texans. Welcome to the new Republican party.
P.S. If the Texas Dem’s had any stroke, they would be doing the same thing…even so, Wendy would maintain her independence. I’m sure of it.
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Distinguished Gentleman says:
Paul says:
“Perry has not indicated his intentions, but I assume that he will run again. He has nowhere else to go. There is nothing else he is qualified to do except continue to mess up Texas.”
To me, that is a perfect reason to support TERM LIMITS on elected officials.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
August 28th, 2012 at 12:09 pm
Distinguished, I’m sticking to my guns that Perry will NOT run again in 2014 or any other political office ever again.
On the term limits question, I still prefer 12 years with a 4-year sitting out period: Louisiana, North Carolina, Alabama, Oregon and other states have this rule.
Hell, Iowa elected Terry Branstad (R)as their governor FIVE times in 1982, 1986, 1990, 1994 and 2010.
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OneOfMany says:
George P. is not going to run for governor. He might run for Land Commissioner or another statewide office, but you can forget about him running for Gov. He would get creamed and he knows it.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
August 28th, 2012 at 12:11 pm
OneofMany, George P. is likely to run for Land Commissioner because it’s a safe seat and he could stay there for like 12 years (Patterson’s been there for 3 terms now).
Abbott is all but certain to be Texas’ 48th governor on January 20, 2015 after Perry retires and rides off into the sunset.
I can see the Perrys having a conversation inside the Governor’s Mansion right now:
Rick: “I’m thinking about running again in 2014, but I’m scared to see some polling numbers coming out.”
Anita: “Dear, it’s time for you to RETIRE.”
Rick: “Okay, I’ll retire and let Greg Abbott know.”
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Reminder says:
Speaking of conspiracies– Didn’t George P. Bush work for Ronnie Earle when he was witch- hunting the Republican victories in 2002-2003???
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Robert Morrow says:
There were perhaps millions of people nationwide who suspected Lyndon Johnson as responsible for the JFK assassination, right off the bat. Especially after Oswald was murdered on 11/24/63. TOswald’s murder really lit the conspiracy fires. lBJ was very aware of these “rumors” and the Warren Commission was created to allay these suspicions.
Here is a memo put in the files on the first day the Warren Commission met:
“TO: Files
From: Melvin A. Eisenberg
Subject: First Staff Conference (January 20, 1964)
On January 20, 1964, the Chief Justice met with the staff. After brief introductions, the Chief Justice the chief Justice discussed the circumstances under which he had accepted the chairmanship of the Commission.
When the position had first been offered to him, he had declined it, on the position that Supreme Court justices should not take this kind of role. His associate justices concurred in this decision. At this point, however, President Johnson called him. The President stated that rumors of the most exaggerated kind were circulating in this country and overseas. Some rumors went so far as attributing the assassination to a faction within the Government wishing to see the Presidency assumed by President Johnson. Others, if not quenched, could conceivably lead the country into a war which could cost 40 million lives. No one could refuse to do something which might help to prevent such a possibility. The President convinced him that this was an occasion on which actual conditions had to override general principles.”
Yep, I have no doubt LBJ was very worried about: “Some rumors went so far as attributing the assassination to a faction within the Government wishing to see the Presidency assumed by President Johnson.” In fact, I believe that is perfectly consistent with the evidence that we know to day that points to both LBJ and military intelligence in the JFK assassination.
Thus Lyndon Johnson’s strategy was tell his appointed Warren Commission to 1) Clear the Russians and Cubans so we don’t have nuclear war and 2) Clear me LBJ (so I don’t hang from the tallest tree in Washington, DC or Dallas, TX).
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Anonymous Reply:
August 28th, 2012 at 7:09 am
Go away, Robert. Start your own blog for people addicted to believing anything and everything they read or are told by druggies and drunks that can’t be substantiated.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
August 28th, 2012 at 12:12 pm
Anon, I’m sticking to my guns that Perry will NOT run again in 2014 because he’s managed to PISS off just about everyone inside the state, even fellow GOPers are mad at him.
January 20, 2015 can’t come soon enough because that’s the clock ticking down on his political career.
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Robert Morrow Reply:
August 28th, 2012 at 2:02 pm
Burka says Perry’s negatives are 65%. If that is true, in way way does Rick Perry run again.
He is through. He would get creamed in a GOP primary by almost anyone. All they would have to do is run clips of the 2011 Humiliation Tour.
eastTxR says:
P might run for land commish, but any aggressive state rep or state senator that could raise even a little money could easily get to the right of him. Heard Troy Fraser might be interested
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Tucker says:
Troy Fraser? You heard wrong.
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John Johnson says:
Troy, the chauvinist, Fraser…the Peter Principle personified?
Rick Perry’s waterboy? His stinky real estate deal facilitator? Yeah…he’s exactly what we need.
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