Editorial roundup

You've probably heard by now that some of the missing Democratic State House members have turned up in Ardmore, Oklahoma, where they partied down on Denny's pot roast and continued to thumb their noses at Speaker Craddick and Governor Perry. Here's a roundup of what the major Texas newspapers have had to say about this.

The Houston Chronicle understands where the missing Dems are coming from. They compare redistricting rush to school finance reform reluctance and throw Speaker Tom Craddick's words right back at him:

Craddick himself spoke a rationale recently in explaining why he counseled delay in dealing with another controversial issue -- school finance -- rather than set to work immediately on a Senate plan for reform.

"We're not going to do anything with a gun to our heads," said Craddick, "especially on something so crucial to the future of Texas."

The issue differs, but the same logic applies. Surrendering the Texas House to an external political agenda set the stage for this showdown.

The Austin-American Statesman blames lack of leadership and finds a lot of it to spread around:

It's sad that it came to this, but the speaker has been tested and found wanting on a number of issues. The one that sent the quorum-busters toward the exits was the grossly partisan congressional redistricting bill and how Craddick let it advance in the hasty, backroom way that it did.

[...]

Craddick's disappointing performance might not matter so much if there were strong leadership out of the governor's office. But Gov. Rick Perry does not lead, he waits -- on events, on bills, on hope that, somehow, the problems will go away or the money will show up. That's why Dewhurst's emergence as a real state leader in the Senate has won so much notice.

The Dallas Morning News also blames Craddick:

House Speaker Tom Craddick can halt the work stoppage in Austin. All he has to do is play by the rules on redistricting.

[...]

Mr. Craddick should resist pressure from Congress to contaminate a generations-old census-based exercise by converting it into an ill-considered purely partisan power grab. He should commit to leave Texas' political boundaries alone, and protesting Democrats should promptly return to the hive.

The San Antonio Express News blames Tom Craddick. Call me crazy, but I think I see a theme developing here.

Under the leadership of soft-spoken but rigidly partisan Speaker Tom Craddick, R-Midland, the House has pushed through a variety of measures that have more to do with the enthusiasms of ideologues than with the good of the state.

A totally inadequate state budget is the most egregious sin. Coming in a close second is a blatantly partisan congressional redistricting scheme.

The Waco Tribune not only blames Tom Craddick, they note that Craddick himself once participated in a quorum-busting walkout:

Craddick has no one to blame but himself. He helped write history when he was one of 30 members of the Texas House who disappeared during the 1971 legislative session.

Craddick and his "Dirty Thirty" colleagues were protesting the heavy-handed actions of then House Speaker Gus Mutscher and his cronies who were involved in the Sharpstown bribery-conspiracy scandal.

Mutscher, who called the "Dirty Thirty" irresponsible, eventually was ousted from power and found guilty of accepting a bribe.

At his Jan. 14 swearing-in ceremony as speaker, Craddick went out of his way to promise that the historic bipartisan tradition in the House would continue "all the way through the session."

Craddick not only failed to remember history, his brazen attempt to punish Democrats by forcing through a new congressional redistricting map also failed to keep his promise to uphold the House's bipartisan tradition.

It's not all favorable to the Democrats. The El Paso Times has harsh words for them:

The Democratic move is a classic sour-grapes reaction against the House's Republican leadership. It was a venting of frustration that was ill-advised, counter-productive and will end up hurting the constituents who put them in office -- though constituent interests obviously weren't uppermost in these Democrats' minds Monday.

Finally, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram blames both sides, and has a Top Ten Democrats' Hiding Places list:

10. A best practices class at the LBJ School of Government

9. Looking for a Tom DeLay voodoo doll.

8. Doing "legislative research" on casino gambling in Bossier City.

7. House shopping in the Houston neighborhood slated to get a Democratic-safe congressional district.

6. Scouting for Trans Texas Corridor locations.

5. Auditioning for next Survivor installment -- in Midland.

4. Lobbying Tom Daschle for federal "No Democrat Left Behind" legislation.

3. Seeking enemy combatant status with the Justice Department.

2. In Austin's bat caves where, like the Lege, it is often hot, noisy and full of manure.

1. Colonial Country Club's 19th hole, considering that Fort Worth is House Speaker Tom Craddick's kryptonite.

They'll be here all night, folks. Tip your waiters and waitresses generously.

UPDATE: Aziz compares this to the Kobayashi Maru from Star Trek. Excellent!

Posted by Charles Kuffner on May 13, 2003 to Killer D's | TrackBack