Although the November 7th election is more than a week away, the prescient minds at Unfair Park are able to divine some of the day-after press coverage. Excerpts after the jump.
DA hopeful Craig Watkins says campaign will intensify now that stretch run is over. After Toby Shook's surprisingly easy victory last night, Democratic candidate Craig Watkins vows to beef up his campaign in the days ahead. He offered his vow after several Democrats criticized what they viewed as a lackluster effort to defeat the well-funded Shook. "Now that the election is over, I can concentrate on running a strong, serious campaign," Watkins said. "We're making progress. You can't win an election overnight. I just need people to be patient."
A victorious Perry approves 58 additional coal-fired power plants. After defeating former Democratic Congressman Chris Bell, along with independent candidates Kinky Friedman and Carole Keeton Strayhorn, a jubilant Governor Rick Perry gave the green light to TXU's plans to build nearly 60 additional coal-fired power plants, making Texas' greenhouse gas emissions greater than Europe, Asia and New Jersey combined. After adding that he's willing to approve more plants if necessary, TXU CEO C. John Wilder gave the governor a hearty embrace. "We don't need 58 additional plants; heck, we're not even sure we need 11," Wilder said. "We just threw that number out there. That was awesome."
A triumphant Sally Montgomery announces plans "to run for the U.S. Supreme Court." County Judge Sally Montgomery, who was recently described by the Texas Observer as the worst civil judge in the entire state, announced plans to run for the U.S. Supreme Court following her easy defeat of Republican challenger John Stillwell. Although Supreme Court judges are handpicked by presidents and approved by Congress, Montgomery said that she has always been a trailblazer and doesn't plan to stop now. "Even my own advisors have told me I can't run for the Supreme Courts of America," Montgomery said. "People constantly underestimate me, and I don't know why."
Judge Karen Greene promises to jail fewer innocent people. Buoyed by the surprise endorsement of The Dallas Morning News, state District Judge Karen Greene vowed to imprison only a handful of innocent people for the next four years. In 2001, DNA evidence exonerated Entre Karage of the murder of his girlfriend seven years earlier. Greene, who convicted Karage after a one-day trial that produced no evidence tying him to the crime, later proclaimed that "the system worked." Said Greene after her victory: "I will continue to uphold the ideals of my profession and that of the criminal justice system by making sure that when I convict innocent people I will re-examine the case years later if I feel like I missed something the first time around." --Matt Pulle
