The last post about Mikal Watts you’ll ever have to read (from me, at least):
It’s not much of a mystery why he pulled out of the race. He was going to lose–and he was going to spend a bunch of his own money and have nothing to show for it in the end. Yes, there has been a lot of speculation that he was about to become enmeshed in a scandal involving his relationship with Corpus Christi mystery man Mauricio Celis. Harvey Kronberg wrote, “A series of bizarre events lead [sic, sorry Harvey] Corpus Christi police to take a closer look at this politically active individual who advertised as an attorney on TV but seemed to lack any license to practice in Texas.” If embarrassment about his legal practice was enough to force Watts to give up, he would have abandoned the race weeks ago, when the letter was leaked about his warning a rival attorney that he’d better settle the case because of Watts’ contributions to Court of Appeals judges.
Here’s a list of other reasons that could account for why Watts gave up:
1. Noriega raised more money in the last reporting period.
2. Watts is pro-life.
3. Watts is anti-gay marriage.
4. Democratic candidates (particularly for the Legislature) didn’t want to run on a ticket headed by a trial lawyer.
5. Some Democratic players have been trying to maneuver Watts out of the race for several weeks.
6. Watts didn’t connect well with audiences. At the UT Young Democrats, he told students how he had gotten his undergraduate degree in two and a half years and his law degree in two years. I was there. That’s not what you tell students who are struggling with their grades.
7. Even some of the trial lawyers didn’t want Watts to run.
8. Oh, yes. He wanted to spend more time with his family.
There was never a scenario in which Watts could have been elected United States Senator. The Noriega scenarios may not be likely, but they do exist.
