Posted on 06/18/2005 12:43:09 PM PDT by Diddle E. Squat
AUSTIN — With the Capitol as a backdrop and a scorching sun beating down, Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn turned the political heat up on Gov. Rick Perry today, formally announcing as a challenger to his re-election.
Strayhorn, saying she will run against Perry in next year's Republican primary, wasted no time in attacking her new opponent.
"You know that Texans cannot afford another four years of a governor who promises tax relief and delivers nothing," she said.
"Now is time to replace this do-nothing drugstore cowboy with one tough grandma," Strayhorn told a cheering crowd.
Strayhorn specifically criticized Perry for his decision today to veto the state's $35 billion education budget and call a new special session without having a plan on how to overhaul public school finance.
"A leader does not call a fifth special session — costing taxpayers another $1.5 million dollars — when he does not have a plan," she said. "A leader does not hold our children's education hostage and certainly would never even allow a discussion about schools not opening on time."
Strayhorn offered two specific suggestions on what she would do as governor. One is to pass her proposed program to pay for two years of college for every high school graduate. And the other is to legalize video lottery terminals with the revenue going to pay for a teacher pay raise.
Strayhorn has been able to brag in her statewide elections in 1996 and 2002 that she was the top vote-getter among Republican candidates in the general election.
But both times Strayhorn has been on the Republican primary ballot at the same time as the governor, Perry has received more of the primary vote. When she was running for re-election in 2002 and Perry was seeking election as governor, Perry received 80,000 more GOP primary votes than Strayhorn.
The GOP primary race was clarified on Friday when U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison announced she would seek re-election rather than join the contest to unseat Perry.
Strayhorn, 65, has a political career that has grown from local Travis County politics to statewide office.
The daughter of University of Texas law school Dean Page Keeton, she grew up in a world of politics and powerful people.
Strayhorn was the first woman president of the Austin School Board. She also was the first woman mayor of Austin, serving from 1977 to 1983.
Like Perry, Strayhorn was once a Democrat. She was the state co-chair of Democrat Walter Mondale's unsuccessful challenge to President Reagan's re-election.
Democratic Gov. Mark White appointed Strayhorn as a member of the State Board of Insurance in 1983, and while serving there she switched to the Republican Party.
In 1986, Strayhorn ran an unsuccessful challenge to incumbent U.S. Rep. J.J. "Jake" Pickle, D-Austin.
Strayhorn also lost a 1992 GOP primary for Texas Railroad Commission. Two years later she won election to the office and was re-elected in 1996.
Strayhorn won her current position as comptroller in 1998 and was re-elected in 2002. The job is that of state tax collector and revenue estimator.
Strayhorn has been married three times and has been known politically as McClellan, Rylander and Strayhorn. Her current husband, Ed, runs a company that builds tennis courts.
She has four sons, two of whom work in the Bush presidential administration. Dr. Mark McClellan is the administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Scott McClellan is President Bush's press secretary. Sons Brad and Dudley McClellan are both lawyers.
Behold, Texas' own Judas McCain.
I was hoping Kay Bailey was going to run, then we might have gotten someone a bit more effective into that Senate seat. Honestly right now, there's not a candidate for Gov that I can truly throw my support behind. I'm sure I'll support one or the other, but I'll be wishing someone competent would bother to run.
And I will happily join you in that effort!
>........ "I wish I could vote for someone named Kinky">>>>
You could satisfy that craving by buying one of his albums. If he sold more albums maybe he wouldn't need to look for a job as gov. He is too old for manual labor and he is too ugly to find a rich wife so he is trying politics. God help us!
Maybe, but Perry was once a Democrat too.
You can't hold that too much against either one of them. At the time, the winner of the Democratic primary was almost always the winner of the General election. She could just be one more southern Democrat who the party left behind when it turned hard, hard left.
Anybody know her position on gun rights? Perry just today signed a bunch of pro gun owner bills. Including one that will in effect allow all Texans, not just CHL holders, to have a loaded handgun in their car or other vehicle. You still have to be "traveling", but "traveling is now defined as "being in a privately owned vehicle", and not otherwise being ineligible and not committing a crime, other than a traffic violation. Previously it was up to the judge to define "traveling", and the "rule of thumb" about that progressed from "a journey crossing at least two county lines" to "a journey including an overnight stay" since '77 when I moved to Texas.
He instead should point (1) how in her consistent criticism of him, she is often inconsistent; and (2) how she is continually office-hopping. Plus, I think Texas GOPers are "tough grandma"ed out.
No it wasn't. It was to tell the legislature and governor how much money they had to "play" with. That includes forecasting the effect of various tax schemes.
President Bush's spokesman, Scot McClellen is her son. If the President and Senator Hutchinson weigh in on her side, she could win. Don't think both of those are likely though. I think the President will stay out of it.
OTOH, Perry has made a shambles of Governor Bush's education reforms, even before the Courts through out "Robin Hood". He's also PO'd several major constituencies that supported Bush.
I can hold being a Dem against her. She was Mayor when I was living in Austin. I think she's more of an opportunist than an ideologue. She strikes me as Zsa Zsa Huffington with a twang instead of an accent.
Who are the Libertarians fielding in this election?
I'd vote for Leslie the transvestite before either Perry or Strayhorn.
You are absolutely right that Strayhorn is an opportunist. I just think, given Governor Perry's former Dem status, that is not the best way to show her opportunism.
Strayhorn? Sounds like a breed of cow.
I really ought to give up predicting, this mess has surprised me a couple of times already. I think I am safe on this one; no way does Bush jump in the primary race. Hutchison caught me looking. She had hired the likes of Terry Sullivan and former RPOT executive director Chad Wilbanks, just the sort of hired guns one wants for a "brutal" campaign. Then we have public criticism of Perry, all pointed to a challenge. Reelection to the Senate she can get in her sleep, why the heavy hitters?
Perry must think he has some sort of ace in the hole to call the session with no hint of a compromise between Craddick and Dewhurst. A lot will depend on whether he actually accomplishes anything beyond disrupting legislators' vacation plans to no good end.
Texas has survived worse governors than Kinky Friedman.
I for one, will be writing to every Texas newspaper 'letter's to the editor' board (and to my State Rep and State Senator) calling for her to step down during her run for Governor.
Just like me. Birds of a feather and all that.
I will vote for any Republican that is not an idiot. Guess that excludes Perry.
Yeah, and we are not going to have a special session after Perry said he would not call one.
her job is to help advise with planning as well.
SHE HAS EVEN BRAGGED ABOUT HAVING THAT JOB.
OK folks. Start digging to see what is behind what I heard on the radio today. Guessing that some web places might have a list of donors...but not sure about fundraisers/underwriters.
Just heard something on the radio...and heard the same from a political friend in Austin when I called to make sure I was not hearing things.
Word floating around is that Rylander/strayhorn/etc. Has an interesting donor/pal that helps raise money for her. At a large level.
Ben Barnes. (Big time lib...who was one of the bogus sources for Dan Rather's bogus National Guard/Bush hit piece) He was also part of the Sharpstown Bank Scandal.
Is that his actual name????
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