Subject: Politics

• Dems See Bigger Blowout Than ’06 Based on Early Voting Numbers

  November 1, 2008

• Vaught's Seat Still Up for Grabs

  November 4, 2008

• While We Wait For Our Dispatch from Bishop Arts, This Just In ...

  November 4, 2008

• Pauken Says New Leadership And Strategy Needed For GOP Progress In Dallas County

  In last week's paper version of Unfair Park, we took a look at the local GOP through the eyes of Dallas County Republican Party chair Jonathan Neerman. One of Neerman's critics, Texas Workforce Commission chair (and my former boss) Tom Pauken, says Barack Obama was an important reason why the Democrats did so well in Dallas County. However, he stresses that there are some major changes needed in the Republican leadership in order to level the playing field for Republican candidates. "Nothing a

  December 10, 2008

• Dallas Fed Head Says of "Buy American" Clause, It's "The Crack Cocaine of Economics"

  Dallas Federal Reserve president and CEO Richard FisherDallas Federal Reserve president and CEO Richard Fisher was on C-SPAN's Washington Journal this morning warning that the "Buy American" provision in the House's stimulus bill is bad, bad news. European officials said over the weekend they're terribly unhappy with what they call "protectionist measures"; said British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, "The thing we know about protectionism is in the end it protects nobody, least of all the po

  February 2, 2009

• Oh, So Now Tom Leppert's the "Education Mayor." Right.

  Alexander FloresIf Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert doesn't mention his ideas for taking over the Dallas school system at his town hall meeting Thursday at Harold Wendell Lang Sr. Middle School, you can bet somebody in the audience will bring it up. In fact, it sounds to me like people will be there at 6:30 p.m. sharp for that express purpose.The mayor apparently has been talking to state Sen. Royce West about getting a new law passed in Austin to let him become czar over the Dallas Independent School D

  February 23, 2009

• Mayor Tom Will Do "Everything" He Can To Ensure DISD's Success. OK. Like What, Then?

  Patrick MichelsTom Leppert meets and greets the kids at last night's town hall meeting. Because, after all, someone has to think about the children.You know, maybe instead of a lot of wood-chopping by yours truly, I should just put this log out there and let you whup on it yourself for a while. I'm tired, man.Last Sunday The Dallas Morning News broke the story that Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert has been in talks with state Sen. Royce West about a mayoral take-over of the Dallas public school system.

  February 27, 2009

• DFW Airport Board Member Ousted Because of Opposition to Trinity River Toll Road

  Brian HarkinMayor Pro Tem Dr. Elba Garcia admits she helped remove John Loza from the DFW Airport board based on his position on the Trinity River toll road referendum.When the Dallas City Council last week replaced former council member John Loza on the DFW Airport board with Brenda Reyes, we were reminded of the memorable 1997 battle between the two for the District 2 council seat. Reyes struggled with controversy early in her campaign, and she later spent time in the slammer after a nasty ey

  March 5, 2009

• Five Years Later, the Feds Finally Sue Irving-Based Republican Victory Committee

  The Irving-based Republican Victory Committee sure sounds like something associated with the Republican National Committee -- which is why, in June 2004, the RNC filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission. Because, see, the official arm of the Republican Party has absolutely nothing to do with the Republican Victory Committee, headed by Irving's Jody Novacek. In fact, the RNC said in '04 that the RVC was nothing but a telemarketing scam run from an Irving home and an Indian call cent

  March 11, 2009

• Says Rick Perry: I'm "Resisting Further Government Intrusion" and Saying No to $500 Mil in Unemployment Insurance

  Just arrived in Austin, only to find in my in-box, oh, 'bout a dozen Friends' links to either Governor Rick Perry's speech down in Houston or the Burnt Orange Report's compendium of reactions to said speech. As you may know by now, the governor is saying no to more than $500 million in unemployment insurance, part of the stimulus package. A source seeking anonymity tells Unfair Park that Republican State Senator Kevin Eltife was working on two bills that would have enabled Texas to receive the

  March 12, 2009

• Leppert Potentially Jeopardizes Tax-Exempt Status of Two South Dallas Churches By Telling Audience Members to Vote No on Props 1 and 2

  Sam MertenMayor Tom Leppert did not mince words Sunday: "Vote no on Proposition 1. Vote no on Proposition 2."Mayor Tom Leppert and wife Laura spent yesterday worshiping at churches in South Dallas, where services were interrupted so the mayor could give his convention center hotel sales pitch and instruct audience members how to vote May 9. "We need you to go to the polls and vote no on Proposition 1 and no on Proposition 2," Leppert said at the 10 a.m. service at Highland Hills United Methodi

  March 30, 2009

• In Memo to Council, Angela Hunt Asks Colleagues to Stop Talking Out of Their Asses

  Natilee DeeAngela Hunt has delivered a sound thwacking to fellow city council member Ron Natinsky and Assistant City Manager A.C. Gonzalez over some loose-lipped claims Natinsky and Gonzalez have been making about our upcoming referendum on a city-owned hotel downtown.She says Natinsky and Gonzalez, in their eagerness to get people to vote no on Proposition 1 in the May 9 election, are saying things that will really screw up the city legally later on. She points out that the city is already seri

  April 14, 2009

• Why do Mexican's love bad-boy cops so much?

  April 2, 2009

• Buzz Reviews the News of 2008: Yes. It Was All Bad.

  Sex clubs in the 'burbs, teacher layoffs in the district, black holes in the commissioners court—Buzz makes perfect sense of 2008

  January 1, 2009

• Go Home, GOP|Money For Nothing|Corrections

  December 18, 2008

• Leppert to Public: Shush!

  December 11, 2008

• With Dallas Republicans in Pain, One Local Leader Believes He Has the Cure

  How County Chair Jonathan Neerman Plans to Ease the Dallas GOP's Woes

  December 4, 2008

• World Matters

  December 4, 2008

• Are Gay Mexicans Homophobic or Do You Just Like Being Treated Badly?

  October 30, 2008

• How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Early Vote

  October 30, 2008

• The Convention Center Hotel Vote is Not Just About a Building. It’s About a Mayor.

  April 30, 2009

• Mayor's New Pro-Hotel Pal Can't Defend Leppert's Promises During Trinity Campaign and Advocacy of Inland Port Delay

  Sam MertenEd Oakley ran a below-the-belt ad attacking Tom Leppert in his attempt to beat him in the mayoral runoff. Now he's joined a group formed to defend Leppert against the negative attacks from the anti-hotel group. Got it?As mentioned in this week's cover story, one of the reasons former council member Ed Oakley says he lost to Tom Leppert in the '07 mayoral runoff was his decision to run a negative campaign in the final weeks. Oakley's negativity climaxed with taking a cheap shot at Lepp

  May 5, 2009

• Hotel? No Hotel? Hard to Say, as Early Voting's Split Darned Near Right Down the Middle.

  One of the city of Dallas's official renderings of the convention center hotelMerten and Pulle are out; Schutze is about. They'll offer their reports from hotel shindigs pro and con -- and, just maybe, some council member throwdowns -- later in the night, as Dallas County Elections begins kicking out returns from the day's vote. But till then, the early-voting results are in, and, as of 7 p.m., the Vote Yes faction is out in front by hair's breadth, with 19,048 votes -- or 50.51 percent of the v

  May 9, 2009

• Outrage peers behind the closet door at Washington's not-so-secret gays

  June 11, 2009

• DOJ to Dallas ISD: Pay Up. And Say Adios to $150 Million in Federal Funding Requests.

  This just in from the U.S. Department of Justice's press department: The government and the Dallas Independent School District have settled their dispute involving the misuse of funds provided to the district for the so-called E-Rate program, created in 1996 to give "affordable access to telecommunications services for all eligible schools and libraries, particularly those in rural and economically disadvantaged areas." And for the punishment listed below, you can thank, in part, one Ruben Bohuc

  June 26, 2009

• In Dealey Plaza Saturday, Dallas Participates in the Global Day of Action for Iran

  Photos by Megan Feldman​On Saturday afternoon, around 100 people gathered at Dealey Plaza to protest the Iranian government and show support for pro-democracy demonstrators in that country, where the regime has been retaliating against widespread protests since the June 12 election. Saturday's demonstration, one of several locally in recent weeks, was part of a worldwide Global Day of Action called by Amnesty International and other groups, and the local rally drew Iranians from around the

  July 26, 2009

• Rasansky Says Supporting Leppert Was His Biggest Regret, Explains Support of Trinity River Toll Road And Much, Much More

  Sam MertenAfter serving eight years as a city plan commissioner and another eight as a council member representing some of North Dallas's more upscale neighborhoods, 72-year-old Mitchell Rasansky is no longer roaming City Hall when he's most needed. Replaced last month by Ann Margolin because of term limits, Rasansky now must sit on the sidelines as the council struggles to balance a $190 million budget deficit. "He was a rare bird on city council in that he really understands a budget," says D

  July 27, 2009

• Mitchell Rasansky Speaks Up About Mayor Tom and the Trinity a Little Too Late

  July 30, 2009

• Once Again, the Mayor Had the City Attorney Rewrite Rules for Council, Public Speakers

  Natalie Dee​I see Rudy's already posted his item about tomorrow's vote on Dallas City Council rules changes, which showed up earlier this week on the addendum for tomorrow's meeting. (It's Item No. 2.) But what he doesn't get into is why the council will vote on reducing and, in some cases, eliminating public speakers' open-mike time -- or why the council will vote to take away some of its own power, no kidding.Among the rules being voted upon tomorrow is one that says a single council member

  August 11, 2009

• Much, Much More About That Controversial Agenda Item the Dallas City Council Now Won't Even Talk About Tomorrow

  Some call 'em "orbs"; others, "balls."​Late this afternoon, Chris Heinbaugh, Mayor Tom Leppert's chief of staff, called to discuss those proposed changes to council meetings, which would put stricter limits on public speakers at City Hall and put a deadline on when council members can remove consent agenda items for individual consideration. Heinbaugh insisted that the mayor had no part in writing the proposed amendments to the City Council Rules of Procedure: He said City Secretary Deborah Wa

  August 11, 2009

• Angela Hunt: "We Need to Be Making our City Hall More Transparent ... Not Less."

  Zazzle​Angela Hunt's been on a bit of a tear today, having posted to her Web site three items: one concerning the proposed rules changes for council meetings; one about the city's turning over the keys to the Dallas Zoo to the Dallas Zoological Society; and one concerning the city budget. Since the latter's more or less a teaser for her upcoming town hall meetings, let's instead take a closer look at the other two.We wrote quite a bit about the rules changes last week -- just as they were bein

  August 17, 2009

• Former State Republican Party Chairman Tom Pauken Considering Run for Kay Bailey Hutchison's Senate Seat

  Hal SamplesTexas Workforce Commission chairman Tom PaukenTexas Workforce Commission chairman and Dallas resident Tom Pauken has informed the offices of Governor Rick Perry and Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst of his interest in running for U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison's seat. "I'm taking a look at it, but I'm a long way from making a decision to get in the race," he tells Unfair Park. Pauken says he'll make his final decision if Hutchison resigns from the senate to focus on her gubern

  August 19, 2009

• And If City Council Members Stay for the Whole Meeting, They Get a Gold Star

  ​Two weeks ago, at the last minute Mayor Tom Leppert -- or was it City Secretary Deborah Watkins ... or Mayor Pro Tem Dwaine Caraway? -- added to the Dallas City Council's agenda several controversial rules changes that were tabled the night before they were to be discussed. One of those proposed amendments to the City Council Rules of Procedure resurfaces this morning as Addendum Iten No. 4 -- the rather uncontroversial item that requires city council members show up for at least half of a co

  August 26, 2009

• Up the Sleazy River At the Dallas City Hall Corruption Trial

  August 27, 2009

• Up the Sleazy River At the Dallas City Hall Corruption Trial

  August 27, 2009

• As City Council Considers New Lobbying Rules, We Learn Carol Reed Banked $65,000 From Mayor's Back to School Fair

  Brandon ThibodeauxIn case you missed it, Reed was profiled in December 2007 by former Observer-er Matt Pulle.In this week's paper version of Unfair Park, Schutze uses two of Mayor Tom Leppert's top political consultants -- Carol Reed and Mari Woodlief -- to explain why the mayor is hardly the "Angel of Ethics" despite the new lobbying rules presented (per some council members' requests, behind closed doors) to the city council this afternoon. The proposed rules require lobbyists earning more tha

  September 2, 2009

• Lesson learned from federal corruption trial: How to gain access to the portals of power at City Hall

  September 3, 2009

• The Mayor's Retainers | Up the Sleazy River | Buzz

  September 17, 2009

• Several Council Members Say That, You Know, a Teensy-Tiny Tax Hike Ain't a Bad Idea

  ​Speaking of the council and the budget and fees versus taxes ...As we mentioned yesterday, Tennell Atkins's budget amendment called for a 1-cent property tax increase -- which I didn't think would get terribly far, given council members, the mayor and the city manager's oft-repeated vows not to raise taxes despite the $190 million shortfall. But after Atkins made his presentation -- which, summed up, was, "It'll cost you $8 a year on a $100,000 house ... and I paid $9 to go to the movies" --

  September 16, 2009

• Angela Hunt Tells Council and City Manager of City's Permit Process: "I Hate to See the City Have a Hand in Shuttering Any Businesses."

  In response to DMN'er Sherry Jacobson's story about the city's frustrating permit process and its effect on neighborhood farmers markets, council member Angela Hunt has requested the investigation of the permitting processes in other cities so the city council can consider changes as soon as possible. Ed Lowe, owner of the Celebration restaurant on West Lovers Lane, recently saw a farewell sale at the Saturday-morning market in the restaurant's parking lot because the city cited it for lackin

  October 3, 2009

• Steer Clear of the Crescent on Monday

  Former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk at the U.S.-Africa Business Summit in D.C. earlier this month​That is, unless you have business with former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk, who, in his position as U.S. Trade Representative, will be holed up at the hotel Monday talking North American Free Trade Agreement. But, as Kirk cautioned in April, don't count on anyone "reopening" NAFTA any time soon. So, then, what's on the agenda? Let's ask the press release:United States Trade Representative Ron Kirk will host two

  October 16, 2009

• Tooth Marks: The Brawl at City Hall Over Real Ethics Reform Is Only Just Beginning

  Patrick MichelsDallas City Attorney Tom Perkins​Angela Hunt is putting the bite on the mayor today on the issue of ethics reform.The council is being briefed on possible new ethics rules growing out of the City Hall corruption case. Council member Hunt and four other members signed a letter a couple weeks ago asking City Attorney Tom Perkins to give them a briefing on what other cities do, so this is that.Perkins gave them a lot of technical stuff first. Now it's going around the horseshoe for

  October 19, 2009

• Arlington PD Says It Doesn't Want to Be in the Business of Enforcing Immigration Laws

  CopShop.com​While Irving makes the occasional headline with its use of the Criminal Alien Program -- which involves turning over to federal immigration officials people detained for any reason, even traffic violations --  top cops in Arlington have taken a stand against that approach. Instead, they insist that helping to enforce federal immigration laws diverts resources from fighting serious crime and dissuades people from coming forward to help victims or identify criminals."It's often

  October 22, 2009

• Leppert Calls for Another Ethics Reform Briefing, Doesn't Want This "Petering Out"

  ​Chris Heinbaugh, Mayor Tom Leppert's chief of staff, tells Unfair Park this morning that the mayor still hopes to get those ethics reforms passed at Wednesday's regular city council meeting. (Good luck with all that.) We should have a better idea of what they actually look like later this evening, when the meeting addendum is posted. But there's still one more briefing to go: The City Secretary's Office posted late yesterday this notice for a special called city council meeting, during which

  October 23, 2009

• The Waters Are Murky as Dallas City Council Seeks Clarity Before Ethics Reform Vote

  Sam MertenCouncil member Carolyn Davis talks to zoning lawyer Kirk Williams as Willie Cothrum (right) listens.If nothing else, the city council's hastily planned ethics reform briefing early this morning showed that this group is capable of a spirited debate. For the most part, Mayor Tom Leppert has been able to keep everyone, with the exception of Angela Hunt and former council member Mitchell Rasansky, on the same page, sharing their toys with no complaints. But today, Dave Neumann, a Leppert

  October 26, 2009

• The Mayor’s Proposal for City Council Ethics Reform Misses its Target: the City Council

  October 29, 2009

• No Justice: We've Bailed Out the Banks. When Do We Go After the Crooks Behind Our Financial Collapse?

  October 29, 2009

• If You Think Ethics Reform at City Hall Was All Mayor Tom's Idea, Pass That Pipe, Willya?

  Patrick Michels​In an editorial today The Dallas Morning News gives all the credit for better ethics at City Hall to Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert because, "In the end, Tom Leppert didn't blink." They must have sent a greenhorn over to cover the city council's straw vote on ethics reform last week. An experienced reporter would have known that Mr. Leppert never blinks --- a trait that usually gives people the willies. In this case The News's editorial page is on a mission. It wants people to know t

  November 2, 2009

• Governor Perry Likes the Stimulus Package Now? What Happened to the Tea Party?

  Danny FulgencioPerry fields questions from reporters today in Grand Hall at Union Station.The land of opportunity exists in America, and it's right here in Texas. At least, that's what Governor Rick Perry told nearly 200 folks gathered this afternoon at Union Station for the Texas Economic Development Summit. Less government results in fewer hurdles for businesses, Perry said. "Bottom line: The word's out on Texas, and the word's good." After wrapping up his eight-minute speech by saying Texa

  November 4, 2009