Former senior executive editor Paul Burka joined the staff of Texas Monthly in 1974, one year after the magazine’s founding. He led TM’s political coverage for nearly forty years and spearheaded its storied roundup of the Best and Worst Legislators each biennium. A lifelong Texan, he was born in Galveston, graduated from Rice University with a BA in history, and received a JD from the University of Texas School of Law.
Burka spent five years as an attorney with the Texas Legislature, where he served as counsel to the Senate Natural Resources Committee. He won the American Bar Association’s Silver Gavel Award in 1981. He also received a National Magazine Award in 1985, for his two-part profile of Clinton Manges. After retiring from Texas Monthly in 2015, he taught at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin. He died in 2022.
Sure. The House can pass a bill that draws new Republican districts and does away with old Democratic districts. What lawmakers can’t do, though, is do away with minority districts. Those are protected under the Voting Rights Act. If the mapmakers do away with minority districts, they are flirting with retrogression.
By Paul Burka
It will be a huge injustice if anyone other than Robert Griffin III wins the Heisman trophy. The other finalists are Stanford’s Andrew Luck, Alabama’s Trent Richardson, Wisconsin’s Montee Ball, and LSU’s Tyrann Mathieu. There is one huge difference between all of these worthy players and Griffin. Luck, Richardson,
By Paul Burka
Politico’s Ben Smith noted yesterday that Rick Perry’s Facebook page appeals to Cain voters to switch their allegiance to Perry in the wake of Cain’s suspension of his presidential campaign. There is a photo of Cain and Perry, with the phrase “Both Washington Outsiders” between them.
By Paul Burka
This is quite remarkable. The San Antonio court that drew the redistricting maps for Congress, the state House, and state Senate issued a supplemental order that amounts to a defendant’s brief on its own behalf. With no prompting from a higher court, the district court launched into an explanation of
By Paul Burka
The Amarillo state senator published an op-ed piece in the Midland Reporter-Telegram on Sunday called “Who Will Watch the Watchers,” in which he criticizes Sullivan for what he calls “fraudulent misrepresentation of voting records” by him and his “misnamed special interest group,” Texans for Fiscal Responsibility.Sullivan had
By Paul Burka
What a huge loss for the Legislature. Hochberg knew more about school finance than any other member, and yet he never used his immense store of knowledge to get the better of anyone, or to gain a partisan advantage for Democrats. He was a completely square shooter, and it is
By Paul Burka
Earlier today, a message appeared in the comment thread for “Abbott vs. the DOJ” under the heading, “Senator John Carona says,” offering blunt words of advice to Attorney General Abbott about his handling of the redistricting case(s). I called Sen. Carona’s Capitol office to ascertain if the author of the
By Paul Burka
Let me see if I understand this. First, Abbott wants to avoid submitting the Texas redistricting maps for preclearance at the Department of Justice. He tells everybody that he has figured out how to bypass the DOJ by going to the D.C. Circuit and moving for summary judgment from Republican-friendly
By Paul Burka
Perry’s recent comments in New Hampshire about federal bureaucrats–that he would send them to “some really god-awful place” if he failed to implement his policies–may not seem like a big deal, but it does indicate something important: how far he has strayed off-message. Remember, this is a candidate whose
By Paul Burka
As you can see, the task ahead for Perry is enormous. He is at 7% in Iowa and Florida, 4% in South Carolina, 2% in New Hampshire. Here are the main early-voting states ( in voting order): IOWA Gingrich 28 Paul 13 Romney 12 Bachmann 10 Perry 7 Santorum 3
By Paul Burka
Solomons is something of a tragic figure, because he had considerable ability but, in nine terms, he never figured out how to put it to use. He was one of the eleven insurgents who led the successful revolt against Tom Craddick in the winter of 2008-09, and one of the
By Paul Burka
The last couple of days has been very active for races in Nueces County. Instead of running against Connie Scott, with whom he is paired, Raoul Torres decided to move to Kleberg County and run against former Democratic representative Abel Herrero in District 34. But the local Republican establishment isn’t
By Paul Burka
I came across this intriguing scenario, without an author’s byline, on a web site called nextbigfuture.com. The writing isn’t very good but the premise is most interesting: NBC/WSJ polled multiple hypothetical matchups between the candidates in the 2012 presidential general election. The head-to-head matchup between President Barack Obama and Mitt
By Paul Burka
Joe Arpaio, who likes to describe himself as “America’s toughest sheriff,” will endorse Rick Perry for president and will campaign with Perry. But Perry’s statements on the controversial Arizona immigration law may not find favor with Arpaio. Perry has been quoted by local TV stations in Houston (Channel 26) and
By Paul Burka
This is a significant development. It means that Justice Scalia did not deny the State’s request for a stay (nor did he grant it). He has asked the plaintiffs to respond by 4 p.m. on Thursday. It will take five justices, Scalia included, to grant a stay. I spoke earlier with
By Paul Burka
AUSTIN—Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott will file an emergency stay application with the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday to halt the implementation of legally flawed redistricting maps drawn by a federal panel in San Antonio. At issue is whether the interim maps imposed by a three-judge redistricting panel violate the
By Paul Burka
Like my former colleague, Patricia Kilday Hart, I always found Aaron Pena to be one of the Legislature’s most interesting members. Pena had no use for the Valley Democratic establishment. Hart chronicled his alienation from the power brokers in a profile for TEXAS MONTHLY earlier this year. He was known
By Paul Burka
This creates new opportunities for Latinos. Joaquin Castro could run in Gonzalez’s central San Antonio district instead of the weird IH 35 district that connects southeast Travis County to southeast Bexar County, the shape of which arguably violates the requirement that districts must be compact and contiguous. [The Texas Tribune
By Paul Burka
From CNN: Representatives for leading social conservative groups in Iowa held a secret meeting Monday as part of an effort with one main goal: find and support a Republican presidential candidate who can stop Mitt Romney in Iowa. The idea: avoid splintering the conservative vote in the state by
By Paul Burka
I don’t have a lot to say about this debate. Perry is showing some improvement. He is more comfortable than he used to be, though that isn’t saying a lot. His demeanor could use some work. Perry comes across as outspoken rather than deliberative, menacing rather than relaxed. Substantively, he
By Paul Burka
Readers may or may not be aware that Republican consultant Bryan Eppstein has said that Senate District 10, the Fort Worth district that is represented by Wendy Davis, has a +6 to +7 point Republican advantage, based on the new map drawn by three-judge panel in San Antonio. His conclusions
By Paul Burka
Here is the the letter Ken Legler sent his GOP colleagues: It is time to take a stand against appointed judges who do not care what the elected legislation and the people of Texas want. The recent ruling maps from the judges in San Antonio does not only affect a
By Paul Burka
From CNN: Rick Perry’s national campaign manager met with a small group of supporters in New Hampshire last Monday, as the Texas governor struggled to recover from campaign stumbles and faced reports his fund-raising operation had significantly slowed. Campaign Manager Rob Johnson spent several days in New Hampshire last
By Paul Burka
That’s the gist of an e-mail I received from a Republican friend who analyzed the revised House maps. My correspondent believes that the Court sought to eliminate most Republican districts in South Texas, and when the dust clears, only one Republican rep will remain. Start with Aaron Pena. My correspondent
By Paul Burka
Republican sources tell me that there is disgruntlement toward the attorney general among Republican House members. Their gripe is: The attorney general’s office had a “lackadaisical” attitude toward the case; or, alternatively, “Abbott didn’t have his A team on this.” Abbott’s ballyhooed strategy was an attempt to win the case
By Paul Burka
The district court left most of the map unchanged. But it did make two significant decisions–one active, the other passive–in the Metroplex, and it did so for no apparent reason. The first major decision involved Craig Estes’s district. It changed Estes’s district from a rural district anchored in Wichita County
By Paul Burka
The R/D split can be rounded off to 90-60, a solid R majority but enough meat on the bone for the Democrats to mount real opposition. More important, the trend line is in the Democrats’ favor–inexorably so. This year — 2011 — is the last time that Republicans will dominate
By Paul Burka
This story appeared in today’s edition. A federal court in San Antonio will release an interim Texas Congressional map in the next couple of weeks, and it’s anybody’s guess what the plan will look like. “Based on what happened 10 years ago when a similar process occurred, who the
By Paul Burka
From the Houston Chronicle: Former Georgia state Sen. John Douglas blamed his decision to abandon Perry to the candidate’s “difficult” staff and his plummeting public support. Douglas announced his switch on Facebook, both on his personal page and the Rockdale County Republican Party’s page: After very careful consideration and
By Paul Burka
I will leave to others an analysis of winners and losers in redistricting. The only point I want to make is something the Republicans refuse to accept: You can’t ignore demographics. Republicans drew a map that maximized Republican seats and ignored Hispanic population gains. No one should be surprised that
By Paul Burka
Combs’ statement is a welcome but long-overdue acknowledgement that all is not well with the race that may never take place. It appears on the Comptroller’s web site. It’s no secret that I’ve supported Texas hosting a Formula 1 race since 2008. A well-organized event of this magnitude can be
By Paul Burka
The Quorum Report carries the news that Randy Rives of Odessa will challenge Kel Seliger. Rives is the prototype of a perennial candidate. He has run for state representative (finishing 3rd in the 2008 Republican primary behind Tryon Lewis and Buddy West) and he has run for the State Board
By Paul Burka
Posted November 4, on rickperry.org: AUSTIN – Texas Gov. Rick Perry today announced key members of his Idaho campaign leadership team. The state team will be co-chaired by Idaho State Treasurer Ron G. Crane and Ralph D. Perez. Perez will serve as the Perry state network coordinator, leading campaign
By Paul Burka
It’s hard to figure out what the Perry campaign is trying to do these days. The message varies from day to day. Today it was government reform, a sweeping plan to make Congress resemble the Texas Legislature and federal judges resemble Texas state judges, who must face the voters every
By Paul Burka
GOP Presidential race Gingrich 28 Cain 25 Romney 18 Perry 6 Bachman/Paul 5 Huntsman 3 * * * * Tweets by PPP about Perry: * 67% of voters nationally now view Rick Perry unfavorably- pretty amazing figure * Perry favorability is 34/48 with California GOP voters…getting towards being under water
By Paul Burka
Perry had a reasonably good performance at the CBS/National Journal debate, but he has a propensity to exaggerate his record and his accomplishments. Not that every other politician in the history of the world hasn’t done the same. One question moderator Scott Pelley directed to Perry involved his recent gaffe
By Paul Burka
The appalling Michael Quinn Sullivan seems to be determined to try once more to undermine Speaker Straus. After all, he was so successful in 2010. With all of his vitriol, unprecedented in speaker’s races, he managed to rouse 15 of 150 House members to vote against Straus. The Quorum Report
By Paul Burka
From today’s Statesman (11/11/11): The Texas state comptroller’s office declined to say whether the involvement of Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone in a bribery trial in Germany would affect the state’s annual $25 million support of an F1 race scheduled to take place just outside of Austin from 2012
By Paul Burka
This tells us two things. (1) The Perry campaign is desperate. (2) They still have a lot of money. But it’s interesting to see what they are doing with it. A lot has been written about the Perry “brainiacs” who studied what works best in a political campaign. The most
By Paul Burka
The lesson here is straight from Wall Street: Sometimes the bulls get rich. Sometimes the bears get rich. But the hogs always get slaughtered. The Republicans were the hogs. They sought to push through maps that did not make a good faith effort to reflect Hispanic population gains, and they paid
By Paul Burka
I never thought I would feel sorry for Rick Perry, but I couldn’t help myself. His performance at the debate tonight was humiliating beyond belief. For those who weren’t watching, Perry launched into a discussion of the three agencies that he wanted to cut; he named two, and then a
By Paul Burka
I don’t see how Herman Cain wriggles out of the latest charges of sexual impropriety. Are his supporters going to continue to think that he is a serial victim of attention-seekers and the media? The number of incidents is piling up. At some point, the old saw about smoke and
By Paul Burka
Craig represented the Lubbock area for many years. When the SBOE was redistricted last year, he ended up with a gigantic district that covered about a fourth of Texas. That may have led to his decision not to seek reelection. [In a previous version of this story, I wrote that
By Paul Burka
That’s what she said on CNN yesterday. It’s true, not that it matters any more. Hutchison had two great chances to beat Perry, in 2002 and again in 2006–both times when Perry was weak. But she hesitated in 02 and let herself get snookered in 06 by believing Perry’s “promise”
By Paul Burka
These are the latest available polls in key states for the Republican primary: U.S. Republican Primary (Rasmussen) 11/2 Cain 26% Romney 23% Gingrich 15% Perry 8% Iowa Caucus (Insider Advantage) 11/6 Cain 30% Romney 15% Gingrich 12% Paul 9% Bachmann 8% Perry 6% Santorum 2% Huntsman 2% Iowa Caucus (Des
By Paul Burka
The Statesman story ran on Friday. Here are the first two paragraphs: The Texas Medical Board voted Friday to delay until next year final approval of new stem cell therapy rules that could restrict or even block procedures such as the one Gov. Rick Perry recently underwent on his aching
By Paul Burka
[I am indebted to the Quorum Report for providing a link to Ms. Schlafly’s column, portions of which I have excerpted below. The founder of the Eagle Forum writes:] Does Rick Perry want to undermine traditional marriage? This question leaps out from his new 20 percent flat tax plan, which
By Paul Burka
It always seems to happen: Whenever Rick Perry needs a break, he gets one. As the weekend begins, his terrible perfomrance in a New Hampshire speech has gone viral. The video is shown on Leno, on The Daily Show, everywhere. Perry is a national laughingstock. And then comes the news
By Paul Burka
Since I have been a Cruz skeptic throughout this race, I am going to post the Cruz spin, per John Drogin, and let it stand without a rebuttal. This is the release that Drogin sent out today: November 2, 2011 By John Drogin Today, we have more poll results, and
By Paul Burka
This is an internet video. It can be seen on the Quorum Report “Daily Buzz.” Perry is at the far left of the screen against a gold background, and Jerry Brown is at the far right. Perry has a goofy look that was probably borrowed from his New Hampshire speech.
By Paul Burka