Buzz

Serendipitous politics
Buzz believes that it's better to be lucky than smart, but being a little of both is best of all. So we envy Karl Rove, the chief political consultant to Gov. George W. Bush.

"People are calling me up and asking if I'm a genius," says Rove, who, along with Bush, benefited from some fortuitous timing last week with the debut of Bush's gubernatorial campaign ads on television. The ads, all about the importance of character, came the same day President Clinton admitted he had something similar to sex with Monica Lewinsky.

As Clinton advised television viewers about his "improper relationship" with the White House intern, George W., the son of the man you could have re-elected president if you knew then what you know now, began broadcasting a spot discussing his "vision," which has a lot to do with hedonistic behavior.

"For too long we've encouraged a culture that says, 'If it feels good, do it, and blame somebody else if you've got a problem,'" the governor tells viewers in the ad.

Would that include, say, seeking oral gratification from a girl half your age, lying about it to the nation, and blaming a special prosecutor for any subsequent embarrassment?

"We've got to change our culture to one based upon responsibility--one that clearly says Texans are responsible for their actions, for their families, and for their decisions in life," says Bush, who coincidentally is considered a contender for the GOP presidential nomination.

Of course, Buzz notes that Bush restricted his vision to Texans. Apparently a whole other set of rules applies across the Red River.

Rove insists that the timing was purely accidental. Bush had filmed the spots last spring and wanted to air them now to coincide with the beginning of the school year. But, Rove admits with a smile, it sure did make him look smart.

All right, already
What is it about Dallas that attracts President Clinton's purported former bed mates?

First came Gennifer Flowers. Now there's Dolly Kyle Browning, a rare combination of lawyer, songwriter, and author, who sued the president last week, alleging he conspired to block publication of her first novel, Purposes of the Heart, a supposedly semi-autobiographical tale of a young woman who has an affair with a Southern governor.

Browning, who says she has known Clinton since childhood, is a member of that ever growing troupe of women who claim to have had an affair with Clinton.

Buzz tried to talk with Browning about her lawsuit, but she was busy fielding calls from the media. She was kind enough to send us a copy of her suit, though, which we dutifully noted was signed by a lawyer from Judicial Watch Inc., a right-wing conservative group that presently has more than a dozen suits outstanding against the Clinton administration.

Uh, never mind, Dolly.

Sybil for City Council
That loud thud that was heard last week at Kessler Park United Methodist Church during Councilwoman Laura Miller's town hall meeting was the sound of Buzz's jaw hitting the floor.

The meeting was intended to be a public forum on the proposed city budget, but Miller began the evening by introducing two guys in suits, one a developer, the other his lawyer. The men informed the crowd that JPI developers were going to build a luxury apartment complex nearby.

The JPI suit said the crowd didn't have to worry because the company is a Christian company. "And," Miller said of JPI, "it's backed by a very reputable guy named Ray Hunt."

Thud. Ouch.
Laura Miller praising Ray Hunt? This was the same man she had lambasted when she was a Dallas Observer columnist, essentially calling him a leech who sucked up corporate welfare. Buzz was worried. Where did Laura go? Then the suits left the building, and Miller came back. Behind the suits' backs, she told the crowd that Ray Hunt was still a money-grubber trying to get handouts from the city.

So Miller is learning that fine political art of speaking out of both sides of her mouth. But she still needs practice--an accomplished council member can do it simultaneously, not just in sequence.

Just the facts
Rumors, dirt, gossip, calumny--Buzz has heard no shortage of it in the nasty race for a DISD trustee seat between Richard Evans and Se-Gwen Tyler.

Unfortunately, libel laws being what they are and all, we're restricted to reporting only verifiable facts--no, seriously--which is something of a problem in this race. Facts are hard to come by.

For instance, we'd like to tell you more about Tyler's and Evans' campaign contributors, but neither candidate had filed their latest contribution reports, which were due at DISD on Monday.

In fact, Evans has yet to file his last two required reports, according to DISD.

Richard, if you need some help filling them out, we know several high school grads we could recommend.

Pop a cork
Poor Grapevine. It was bad enough that the story about how a city official there rigged the annual People's Choice wine tasting contest landed on the cover of the Observer. Now the whole country knows about Grapevine's dirty little secret, thanks to the Wall Street Journal. In a front-page story that appeared in the Journal on August 21, the whole nation got to read all about the shame that has befallen Grapevine.