Must Read Texas – December 10, 2013

Stockman-Cornyn Begins;
My Analysis on the TX-SEN Primary Race;
Burka on Late Filings and Top Primaries;
Education will be Major Issue in TX-GOV Race;
1996 Stockman Profile Re-surfaces
*****
Good morning from Austin.
A lot has happened since our last brief.

Here we go:

STOCKMAN V. CORNYN BEGINS

On Monday night U.S. Rep. Steve Stockman (R-TX), who represents Texas’ 36th congressional district and was elected to Congress in 2012 after winning a GOP primary runoff (he served one term in Congress in the 1990s), shocked nearly everyone and filed for the U.S. Senate with one minute left before the filing deadline.

The filing garnered a lot of coverage.
Here’s a sampling:
> Here is today’s AP story on the race.
> TIME Magazine’s Jay Newton-Small reports on the primary.
> DMN’s Todd Gillman reports on the latest developments.
> Chron’s Mike Tolson reports (behind paywall) on the hurdles Stockman faces.
The Hill spoke to several lawmakers who think Sen. Cornyn will win.
> Roll Call’s Kyle Trygstad and Abby Livingston report on the six hurdles that Stockman faces.
> TT’s Aman Batheja reports that a couple candidates for Stockman’s congressional seat appear to have seen it coming.

Please note: Let me first say that Texans for Senator John Cornyn, in a twist of fate, happen to be this week’s advertiser.  They have also advertised in the past for one week.  Please take that into consideration as you read my analysis, however, to paraphrase our Governor, if you think you can buy me for $500, I’m offended.

My view: Steve Stockman is not Ted Cruz.  John Cornyn is not David Dewhurst.  Stockman has 69 days before early voting begins and as of Sept. 30 he had $30k in the bank and $160k in debt.  He has to build a campaign team, raise at least $3 million ($50k/day or so), travel the state relentlessly, build a statewide organization (ballot draws begin early next week) and also sleep a few hours a night.  Texas is too big to run a statewide campaign on the fly, with no preparation, against an incumbent who has a $7 million head start.  Sen. Cornyn has or will have pro life and gun rights endorsements and already has a complete campaign team and statewide organization.  Stockman will be an irritant to Cornyn, no question.  Stockman is a strong conservative with tea party appeal and a knack for using social media to anger liberals.  We will know in the next fundraising report if Stockman can be financially credible, which I doubt.  The 2014 cycle in Texas already has competitive races for five statewide offices on the Republican side, so there’s a lot of noise, a lot of campaigns advertising and a lot of competition for oxygen. operatives, donors, activists and supporters.  This race will be interesting to watch but I suspect the outcome will never really be in doubt.

LATE FILINGS:

Texas Monthly’s Paul Burka catches you up quickly with this blog post on late filings.
Full text:

The most significant late filings in the Republican primary:
(1) Steve Stockman vs. John Cornyn (U.S. Senator)
(2) Robert Talton vs. Nathan Hecht (Chief Justice, Texas Supreme Court)
(3) Matt Beebe vs. Joe Straus (House District 121)
(4) John Ratcliffe v. Ralph Hall (U.S. House District 4)
(5) Mike Canon vs. Kel Seliger (Texas Senate District 31)

Stockman is about as far-right as far-right can get in this state. Cornyn can swamp him with money, but the tea party will be out in force against Cornyn.

Talton is a conservative trial lawyer who is famous for once having stationed a DPS officer outside his door to prevent gays from entering his office. He is a threat to Hecht (the stationing of the DPS officer outside his door notwithstanding).

Beebe vs. Straus is a rematch from 2010. Straus won easily the first time around and should prevail again.

Ratcliff is a former U.S. attorney; Hall is the longest-serving member of Congress.

Canon was recruited against Seliger by Michael Quinn Sullivan. This race is a grudge match with Sullivan taking on Seliger.

Your absolute must clicks:
> Education is emerging as a major issue in the Governor’s race.  Here’s Paul Weber’s AP story on the issue.  Here’s TT’s Morgan Smith’s story for Texas Weekly.
> A timely link to a Feb 1996 Mimi Schwartz profile of Steve Stockman. (h/t @amanbatheja)

#txlege
– James Oberwetter nominates Speaker of the House Joe Straus (R-San Antonio) for DMN’s “Texan of the Year.”
– State Sen. John Carona (R-Dallas) has had an ethics complaint filed against him and he says it has no merit.

2013 / 2014 / 2016:
– Houston Mayor Annise Parker delivered a speech at the National Press Club in Washington, DC and said gubernatorial candidate and State Sen. Wendy Davis (D-Fort Worth) faces “long odds” for Governor.
– Republican Matt Bebee is again running in the Republican primary against Speaker of the House Joe Straus.
– Republican San Antonio City Councilman Carlton Soules is resigning (behind paywall) to run for Bexar County Judge.
– TM’s Paul Burka weighs in on Attorney General candidate and State Rep. Dan Branch’s campaign.
– Burka also notes that Wendy Davis’ campaign is ramping up.

Other stories of interest:
– A Democratic congressman says U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) ‘got an earful’ on the trip to Nelson Mandela’s funeral.

Lighter clicks:
– Johnny Cash’s long lost album to be released next spring.
– Well played, 
guy in Austin airport.
– American football, 
Olympic medal sport?
– A handful of bettors who 
placed 1000-1 Auburn bets before the season are sitting pretty.
– This 
won’t help Jameis Winston’s Heisman chances.

Your Daily Source of Inspiration:
– A must read about a first year high school football coach and how the season ended.

NEWS

AP: Texas’ Cornyn prepared for Senate challenge (12/11/13 9:54am)

AP: Education emerging as issue in Abbott-Davis race (12/11/13 9:54am)

TT: Carona Says Ethics Complaint Has No Merit (12/11/13 9:52am)

TT: Some CD-36 Candidates Saw Stockman Switch Coming (12/11/13 9:52am)

TT: More Texans Purchase Health Plans in Online Marketplace (12/11/13 9:51am)

TT: Nelson Pushes to Further Expand Women’s Health Services (12/11/13 9:51am)

TW: Texas Sees Growth in Natural Gas-Powered Vehicles (12/11/13 9:51am)

TW: Texas Governor Hopefuls Primed for Fight Over Education (12/11/13 9:50am)

TW ($): Cornyn Camp Rolling Out Strake Endorsement (12/11/13 9:49am)

DMN: Cruz walks out on Castro at Mandela memorial service (12/11/13 9:25am)

DMN: In DC, Houston mayor says Wendy Davis bid for governor faces long odds (12/11/13 9:24am)

DMN: Cornyn-Stockman Senate battle gears up (12/11/13 9:19am)

CHRON ($): Cruz-inspired Stockman faces uphill challenge in Cornyn race (12/11/13 9:15am)

CHRON ($): Armored car company ups firepower after 4 Houston robberies (12/11/13 9:14am)

CHRON: Health insurance enrollments increase in Texas, nationwide )(12/11/13 8:47am)

CHRON: House Speaker Straus draws familiar primary challenger (12/11/13 8:46am)

SAEN ($): Soules replacement to be selected in January (12/11/13 8:42am)

SAEN ($): VIA staff recommends north-south streetcar route first (12/11/13 8:42am)

SAEN ($): Tobin Center renovation is moving right along (12/11/13 8:41am)

AAS ($): City may change rules to allow Google to attach fiber to AT&T’s poles (12/11/13 8:30am)

AAS ($): Austin-area pre-school pilot shows promise in filling service gap (12/11/13 8:30am)

AAS ($): Emails show ‘culture of racism’ at Texas Windstorm Insurance Association, lawyer says (12/11/13 8:26am)

AAS ($): District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg testifies she is working to overcome alcohol problems (12/11/13 8:26am)

WASH POST (Monkey Cage): How much could Steve Stockman hurt the Republicans in 2014? (12/11/13 8:15am)

BALTIMORE SUN: Cummings: Ted Cruz ‘got an earful’ from Dems on South Africa trip (12/11/13 8:15am)

HUFF POST: John Cornyn Is As Surprised As Anyone About Steve Stockman Challenge (12/11/13 8:12am)

THE HILL: Lawmakers: Cornyn will easily defeat Stockman (12/11/13 7:57am)

ROLL CALL: 6 Texas-Sized Primary Hurdles for Steve Stockman (12/11/13 7:56am)

ROLL CALL: Stockman Files to Challenge Cornyn in Texas Senate Primary (12/11/13 7:55am)

TT / KUT: Flooding Raises Concerns Over Troubled Austin Dam (12/11/13 7:55am)

TIME MAGAZINE: Trouble in Texas: Cornyn Draws a Primary Challenger (12/10/13 2:38pm)

TT / KUT: In New Education Law, a Change in Attendance Requirements (12/9/13 10:21pm)

VIDEO: U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) on Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom” (12/9/13 3:02pm)

DMN: GOP primary challengers pushing further to the right (12/9/13 2:27pm)

DAILY CALLER: Cruz SLAMS the ‘lawless implementation of Obamacare’ (12/9/13 2:27pm)

WASH TIMES: Ted Cruz sees legal landmines ahead for Obamacare (12/9/13 2:25pm)

THE HILL: Obama and Cruz on short list for Time’s ‘Person of the Year’ (12/9/13 2:25pm)

EDITORIALS

BURKA BLOG: Late Filings (12/11/13 9:48am)

BURKA BLOG: Notes on the 2014 Primary (12/11/13 9:47am)

BURKA BLOG: The Dan Branch Effect (12/11/13 9:47am)

BURKA BLOG: Wendy Davis Emerges (12/11/13 9:46am)

DMN: Keep the waters pure, Mr. Cameron (12/11/13 9:27am)

DMN: Accounting for DISD land fees (12/11/13 9:26am)

FWST ($): The task is to create a new American Airlines (12/11/13 9:18am)

FWST ($): Cook Children’s to begin construction on new tower (12/11/13 9:17am)

FWST ($): Stockman takes on ‘liberal’ Cornyn (12/11/13 9:17am)

CHRON: Jury duty, our duty (12/11/13 9:06am)

CHRON: Morality v. money (12/11/13 9:05am)

CHRON: Power to Mexico (12/11/13 9:05am)

SAEN: Obamacare isn’t just a website (12/11/13 8:36am)

SAEN: Assault rifle acquisitions merit debate (12/11/13 8:36am)

SAEN: Community colleges take positive step (12/11/13 8:35am)

SAEN: The court’s undue ‘due deference’ (12/11/13 8:35am)

AAS ($): Helping our neighbors in need helps us all (12/11/13 8:25am)

AAS ($): Kellers appear victims of injustice (12/11/13 8:25am)

COLUMNS

HASHIMOTO: Wealthy teen learns that even the deadliest actions don’t have to have consequences (12/11/13 9:45am)

AMBASSADOR ANDERSON: The Irish dimension of U.S. immigration reform (12/11/13 9:36am)

GOODMAN: A conservative alternative to Obamacare (12/11/13 9:28am)

OBERWETTER: Joe Straus is my Texan of the Year (12/11/13 9:27am)

MAYOR PRICE ($): Protecting parks and cities’ health (12/11/13 9:18am)

KENNEDY ($): Muslim-bashers’ latest target: Texas Wesleyan (12/11/13 9:16am)

LUTHULI-ALLEN ($): City of Houston rightly stood against S. Africa apartheid (12/11/13 9:15am)

CHANCELLOR KHATOR & RAMM: A call for collaboration (12/11/13 9:13am)

REDDY: Tough-on-crime Texans support prison reforms (12/11/13 9:12am)

FALKENBERG ($): Justice denied for 13 year old rape victim (12/11/3 8:48am)

WEIR ($): Young might choose the AHA penalty (12/11/13 8:43am)

G. GARCIA ($): For Adkisson, race could be his last, best shot (12/11/13 8:41am)

ALEMU ($): Rep. Carter should do more on immigration (12/11/13 8:26am)

HERMAN ($): The Rosemary Lehmberg saga continues (12/11/13 8:22am)

RAMSEY: A Candidate Experienced Enough to Drop Out (12/9/13 10:22pm)

BLOGS (from the left)

SALON: Texas’ insane Tea Party caper: Nutjob challenges extreme conservative! (12/11/13 8:14am)

OFF THE KUFF: The oldest established permanent floating ethics probe in the state (12/11/13 8am)

BOR: Greg Abbott’s Policy Advisor Supports Abolishing Direct Funding For Public Schools (12/11/13 8am)

OFF THE KUFF: More primary thoughts (12/11/13 7:58am)

RAW STORY: Ted Cruz and John Cornyn support Bible-quoting high school cheerleaders (12/11/13 7:57am)

TFN: Santa’s Lawyer (12/11/13 5:59am)

BLOGS (from the right)

RED HOT CONSERVATIVE: Taxpayers Paying For Common Core Training (12/11/13 8:09am)

Author: Must Read Texas

Matt Mackowiak (@MattMackowiak) & Jason Stanford http://www.MustReadTexas.com @MustReadTexas