Rick Perry and the Trans-Texas Corridor

Politico ^ | Oct 4, 2011 | Kendra Marr

[bullypulpit]

The governor’s 2012 rivals have latched onto his executive order mandating the HPV vaccine and his advocacy for in-state tuition for illegal immigrants, while little has been said about his unrealized 1,200-foot-wide toll road project that would have swallowed more than 500,000 acres of Texas farmland and wildlife habitats. But as the focus of debates increasingly turn toward President Barack Obama’s jobs agenda — a plan calling for a heavy dose of infrastructure investment — that may change.

“Pay to play, cronyism — all those charges can be found right here in the Trans-Texas Corridor,” said Terri Hall, founder and director of Texans United for Reform and Freedom, a group that fought the project. “We had a Texas-sized uprising.”

[bullypulpit]

This is a pretty sane article. And the original headline is correct. If a stupid rock can make news against Perry, the carpet bombing will continue with this. Next.

I have more info and facts on this issue here, on the Rick Perry Report. the FAQ on Rick Perry and the Trans-Texas Corridor.

[Ron H.]

“Pay to play, cronyism — all those charges can be found right here in the Trans-Texas Corridor,”

And the hits just keep on coming. This is a story worthy of deep investigation. This guy Perry, is there anything he wouldn't do for money while serving as Governor!?

[TexasCajun]

The Romney supports are out in full force and hitting Perry where it hurts Conservatives most.

Perry better wise up, this is hardball!

NAFTA, The Vaccine, In-State tuition for illegals are not enough to make me vote Romney. EVER!

[Sherman Logan]

I’m afraid I’ve never understood the concern about the width of the right of way.

IF all the services it was intended to carry are needed, it only makes sense to put them all in a single right of way.

The total disruption to the environment this would create would be much less than if the various services each had its own separate ROW starting and ending at the same points.

[Free Vulcan]

No kidding. If these people are so worried about RINO’s why aren’t they targeting Romney?

[shield]

Most Conservative State Representative in Texas Endorses Rick Perry for President - Explains Trans-Texas Corridor

snip......

Much has been criticized of Governor Perry's initial support for the Trans-Texas Corridor (TTC). As President of the Conservative Coalition of the Texas Legislature, I was deeply involved in that entire process. My rural district was directly in the path of the TTC and the project was largely viewed by my constituents as an abuse of the governmental power of eminent domain.

Truth is, the TTC started as a expansion on the I-35 corridor. The plan was added to legislation by the Texas Department of Transportation (TXDOT) as a new "branch" of highway that ran from south Texas to the north right through my district. TXDOT presented facts that upon the completion of the Panama Canal expansion many of the trading freighters, which currently only serve the West Coast, would be able to bring their cargo to Texas ports. It was anticipated that this would place a tremendous burden on the current highway system as it heads north. However, the flawed TXDOT presentation of the plan and threats to private land ownership were not handled well. Citizens throughout Texas were insulted by the methods of potential property seizure, foreign control of Texas properties and other abuses. It was wrong, and when presented with the will of Texas citizens, Governor Perry put a stop to it.

While driving my daughter back to begin a new semester at Baylor University, I received a call from the Governor's office requesting that I invite a group of my fellow Texas Conservative Coalition legislators to his office to meet with him and TXDOT leadership. The following week several of us met with Governor Perry and the TXDOT Commissioner and Executive Director to share the frustration and opposition of our constituents across the state to the TTC. After a lengthy meeting, Governor Perry did something that has made me respect him as I have no other leader which I have observed or served alongside. He sat back in his chair, gave our arguments thought and said, "Tell your constituents you talked to the Governor, and the Trans-Texas Corridor is no more." To this day, the handful of legislators in attendance at that meeting have respected Rick Perry--a man who was confident, honest, and exhibited absolute integrity to his citizens. He often does not receive the proper recognition and credit he deserves for his decisive response to the will of Texas citizens against the TTC. When presented with their objections and opposition, he brought a halt to the ill-conceived TTC. This is in stark contrast to our current President who sees the destructive results of his policies and has no intention of admitting fault or changing course, but instead blames everyone else for his errors in judgment.

[NeverForgetBataan]

“This guy Perry, is there anything he wouldn’t do for money while serving as Governor!?”
___________________________________________________________________________________________

Prolly not. If you live in Texas for many years, you develop a pretty good radar for what looks like “good ole boy deals”.

Trans-Texas is one of them. A lot of Texas counties are run like little fiefdoms with the county commissioner seats, city council seats, Justice of the Peace, County Judge, etc... all held by “leading families” and that might be long time residents of the county and decedents of some who came as early settlers. Great, except for this....

They develop an “entitlement” attitude to these positions because daddy was an elected official and so was grandpa
and so forth... Swirling around these elected “hooterville elites” are usually a pack of “annointed ones’s”, like contractors and etc..who get work from the town and county budget monies. They view those budgets like a gravy train that they have special access to.

It’s pretty smarmy and I’ve seen it up close. In my urban county, that looks NOTHING like it did 35 years ago, because of tremendous growth, these “hooterville elites” lost power at the county level and they want it back desperately to re-start that gravy train. The current county commissioners cut it off. It’s now a struggle for power between “the old guard” and the “new players” that reflect a population that is newer and more suburban.

Back to Perry’s Trans-Texas boondoggle... This project reflected this same attitude of “old time elite power”
creating a huge state-level “gravy-train” project to benefit a particular group of “connected players”, despite it’s massive stupidity.

Just my opinion.

[TigersEye]

After a lengthy meeting, Governor Perry did something that has made me respect him as I have no other leader which I have observed or served alongside. He sat back in his chair, gave our arguments thought and said, "Tell your constituents you talked to the Governor, and the Trans-Texas Corridor is no more."

I take it from that that the TTC is dead and no longer under consideration. Is that correct?

[I cannot think of a name]

” Truth is, the TTC started as a expansion on the I-35 corridor.”

No, the truth is, Texas has been talking about something running North and South to relieve the parking lot called IH35 since I was in high school! At one time it was called the Texas Express or something like that, and ran to the West of San Antonio. Then it morphed into something running East of San Antonio. The problem has always been the same. IH 35 runs through that pest hole called Austin, and they will never allow it to be sufficiently expanded in size, hence the need to build something else.

As I have said in previous posts, this has been talked about for at least four decades. And the old country and western song sums it up best, “Everybody wants to get to Heaven, but nobody wants to die.” There is no nice half mile wide strip of land running right through the middle of the state. If you want that parking lot called IH35 to go away, somebody’s land is going to have to be taken.

The people who “won” the fight over the corridor didn’t “win” anything. We still have the same congested mess on IH35.

[shield]

Legislators file bills to end talk of TTC State Representative Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham, and State Senator Glenn Hegar, R-Katy, have jointly filed legislation that would bring a formal and final close to the Trans-Texas Corridor (TTC), removing all remaining references to it from state law.

•Trans-Texas Corridor Repealed: Senator Hegar passed legislation to ensure any and all remnants of the TTC are once and forever eliminated.

[TigersEye]

That sounds good. Thank you for the informative response.

[FryingPan101]

“Prolly not. If you live in Texas for many years, you develop a pretty good radar for what looks like “good ole boy deals”.”

You sound like a bitter hater. I don’t understand where this angst about Perry originates. “Good ole boys” are “good ole boys” in every state in the union. Perry is a better governor than most. He loves his state. He loves his country. Yes, he has cowboy swagger but so what? Your criticism of politics in Texas sounds like Obama’s criticism of America. I hate it. Texas is a great place to live. I don’t give credit or blame to any particular person, but we’re doing something right. Perry has the right stuff to lead the United States back to having a good, strong, working federal government. I think he can do it. I’m sick to death of race-baiting and accusations of cronyism directed at the few. Have you run for office? Has anyone in your family run for office? Could it be that members of certain families are inclined to enter politics just as there are whole families of athletes....or clergy...or police officers....or generations of military members.... or entertainers? We knock down every good person who steps up to the political plate because they’re not perfect. This is not personal toward you, Bataan. I find your opinion to be the prominent one especially where I live. There are more of you than there are of me. Just my opinion.

[Reagan Man]

Another hit piece on Perry. From politico no less. LOL

Still find it strange that Perry was elected three times in state wide races for Governor and has served 11 years as chief executive, but there have been no formal charges of corruption and no serious illegalities to speak of.

What we have in Texas is a conservative Governor who has worked to keep his state competitive for creating jobs and more jobs, keeping taxes low and restrains on spending. A state that has seen serious tort reform and reduction in regulations.

Yet, the feeding frenzy continues and Romney moves closer to the nomination.

[SeaHawkFan]

The problem is that land adjacent to the road would be very valuable and the state would sell it off, thereby depriving the owners of the income they could get by selling it themselves. 1200 feet wide is far more than needed for the project.

FYI, there are long stretches of interstate highways between Houston and Dallas that are only two lanes in each direction. Same thing between Houston and San Antonio; and they are three of the largest eight cities in the country.

This entire project was irony capitalism at its worst.

[bullypulpit]

Thanks Shield. That is a great testimony. I added the pertinent parts to Rick Perry Report F.A.Q. on the Trans-Texas Corridor and gave Tx Gop Vote the shoutout and google juice.

[Ratman83]

1,200 foot ROW is huge, the biggest I have ever designed was about 450 foot maximium at one point in the roadway with a standard width of 300 feet. This include an area for utilities. I cannot see the need for such a right of way.

[TLI]

Called this one two weeks ago.

Looks like they are not waiting on the nomination since little bammy's current course would allow dang near anyone off the street to beat bammy in the general election. Since they don't like Gov. Perry they seem to be pulling the trigger early.

From my previous post...

************

More Texans disapprove of Rick Perry than approve, poll finds

09/20/2011 3:36:50 PM PDT · 53 of 108
TLI to rstrahan

If you ask Tea Party people if they like Perry, the answer is No, due to the TTC and Illegal Immigration. You ask the Dems, they don’t like Perry, period.

Valid points.

But there is the issue of the internal methods and nobody, for or against, can know what that was unless they worked the poll themselves. So I stay off of them, mostly.

Looked at your posts, you appear to be a Perry supporter but not in desperate need of rabies shots. I suspect you know the BIG hickey for Ricky is yet to come and that is TTC. Most folks have no clue what a monstrosity that really was.

My read is it is being saved for the possibility of him being nominated and leaked through back channel sources, not the DNC.

.

[shield]

The bias BS hates facts and truth. So if anyone will even look at the facts they’d do an about face on Governor Perry. I have proven the false bias bs against Perry on many issues. But these beings aren’t interested in the facts and truth. These people are being led off the cliff by the left and they are too stupid to recognize this. The millions of dollars spent to lead these beings off the cliff by the left is working according to plan.

[CynicalBear]

>> I take it from that that the TTC is dead and no longer under consideration. Is that correct?<<

Those who think so agree with Media Matters or even get the info from them but Perry says differently.

Quess who is trying to get you to believe that the TTC (Trans Texas Corridor) is a myth? You may have guessed it but its:
http://mediamattersaction.org/reports/fearandloathing/online_version That’s right! Media Matters. Now why would they not want you to know that there is anything such as the TTC? Hmmmm!

I wonder if the TTC is just a myth what is Perry was talking about when he was describing the TTC in this video. He and the President of Mexico tell how it will come from Mexico to Canada like Vicente Fox explains in this same video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXdhph3pwXk

Perry even vetoed a bill that would have protected the rights of land and homeowners. By vetoing that bill he left open the possibility of confiscating the land to use for the TTC.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1852635/posts

[TigersEye]

I didn’t see that anyone anywhere said that the TTC was a myth.