Texas Four Step -- Debate Reactions
Tonight was the one and only Texas gubernatorial debate. One hour. Four candidates. On a FRIDAY night. Apparently, this is all incumbent Rick Perry would agree to. And that’s a shame because this has to be one of the most unique gubernatorial races in recent U.S. history. A four-way race that is competitive enough for each candidate to believe they have a shot. We could use as many as six debates. But we got just one.
Here’s my rundown of the debate, candidate-by-candidate.
Rick Perry – The current Republican governor came off as exceedingly blow-dried and somewhat bored. He seemed to have little sense that Texas needs improvement. Surprisingly, I did not hear him trump up his faith in his usual pandering to the Christian Right. But he did spend most of the debate pretending his half-ass governorship has been a boon to the state. I guess that’s no surprise. He’s never been a leader so much as a hanger-on who got lucky enough to advance into the top job when his predecessor (George Bush) vacated the position. I see no way I can vote for the man.
Chris Bell – The Democratic nominee was by far the least Texas seeming of the lot. Slick and effete, he is the picture of what the Texas Democrats have become—a party more in tune with the national base than with the average Texan. Nevertheless, I thought he did very well. He was a little over-eager to paint himself as the lone left-of-center candidate, but he seemed to have a superb grasp of the issues and some solid, if uninspiring, ideas on how to improve the state.
Kinky Friedman – The songwriter, poet, humorist, Independent and all-around Character (capital C) had an opportunity to really set himself apart as a plain-spoken, no-b.s. alterna-candidate. Unfortunately, he seemed ill-prepared for the debate and left me wondering if he really has the grasp of the issues necessary to lead the state. Yes, some of his solutions are the kinds of radical ideas I think we need, but he really came off as out-of-his-league. I have been planning to vote for the man but now I’m not so sure.
Carole Keeton Strayhorn – The former Republican and current state comptroller has been the less-interesting of the two Independents. But she was by far the most articulate, forceful and intriguing of the four candidates in the debate. Other than spacing on the name of Mexico’s President-elect, Strayhorn came off as the kind of smart, tough leader well-suited for Texas Governor. Her ideas are not as radical as Friedman’s, but they seem well-considered. I am now going to have to give her serious consideration.
And that’s that. The one debate is over and now us Texans have to choose based on a smattering of ads and news stories written or produced by news agencies that seem less-than-capable of handling a four-way race. My concern is that most Texans will be undecided on election day and Perry will win. Those of us who would prefer a change, really need to rally around one of the other three candidates
Here’s my rundown of the debate, candidate-by-candidate.
Rick Perry – The current Republican governor came off as exceedingly blow-dried and somewhat bored. He seemed to have little sense that Texas needs improvement. Surprisingly, I did not hear him trump up his faith in his usual pandering to the Christian Right. But he did spend most of the debate pretending his half-ass governorship has been a boon to the state. I guess that’s no surprise. He’s never been a leader so much as a hanger-on who got lucky enough to advance into the top job when his predecessor (George Bush) vacated the position. I see no way I can vote for the man.
Chris Bell – The Democratic nominee was by far the least Texas seeming of the lot. Slick and effete, he is the picture of what the Texas Democrats have become—a party more in tune with the national base than with the average Texan. Nevertheless, I thought he did very well. He was a little over-eager to paint himself as the lone left-of-center candidate, but he seemed to have a superb grasp of the issues and some solid, if uninspiring, ideas on how to improve the state.
Kinky Friedman – The songwriter, poet, humorist, Independent and all-around Character (capital C) had an opportunity to really set himself apart as a plain-spoken, no-b.s. alterna-candidate. Unfortunately, he seemed ill-prepared for the debate and left me wondering if he really has the grasp of the issues necessary to lead the state. Yes, some of his solutions are the kinds of radical ideas I think we need, but he really came off as out-of-his-league. I have been planning to vote for the man but now I’m not so sure.
Carole Keeton Strayhorn – The former Republican and current state comptroller has been the less-interesting of the two Independents. But she was by far the most articulate, forceful and intriguing of the four candidates in the debate. Other than spacing on the name of Mexico’s President-elect, Strayhorn came off as the kind of smart, tough leader well-suited for Texas Governor. Her ideas are not as radical as Friedman’s, but they seem well-considered. I am now going to have to give her serious consideration.
And that’s that. The one debate is over and now us Texans have to choose based on a smattering of ads and news stories written or produced by news agencies that seem less-than-capable of handling a four-way race. My concern is that most Texans will be undecided on election day and Perry will win. Those of us who would prefer a change, really need to rally around one of the other three candidates
posted by Alan Stewart Carl at 9:06 PM
3 Comments:
Alan, it sounds like you are related to me. I have an uncanny ability to vote for the one who won't win. I think I can count on one hand the number of times in my life I've voted for the winner, and that's through three decades of voting, at all levels.
If things are that close down there, the incumbent is probably the best bet, unless one of the others drops out.
Anon -- I tend not to disqualify a guy for a few less-than-politically correct statements. In all his Texas Monthly columns and in all his books, there's no evidence the man is a racist. Impolite, yes, but that can be a good thing. My possible vote for him is based on my belief that the state is stuck in neutral and needs more than just another politician woried about his/her career.
Walrus -- Well, I DID vote for Clinton twice, so my record isn't horrible in major elections. But, yeah, I've supported a lot of losers.
My first vote was for Nixon. We won!
Yay?
Reading this made me long for Texas. This at least is an interesting race.
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