Hall inches closer to running

Posted on December 14, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

He’s still qualifying it, but Ben Hall sounds like a candidate for Mayor.

Ben Hall

Former city attorney Ben Hall says this time, he’s really ready to run for mayor.

“I intend to be on the ballot, if the Lord gives me good health in 2013,” Hall said.

The longtime trial lawyer has flirted with politics before, almost jumping into the mayor’s race four years ago, when Parker was running for her first term. This time, he says he’s in it to win, and he’s sounding confident.

“We have a strong coalition between moderate conservatives, liberal Democrats, African Americans and Hispanic voters,” Hall said.

Less equivocal than before, but still with an out clause, just in case. Nothing is truly official until the filing deadline, of course, but we’ll know soon enough if Hall really does mean it this time.

But Hall may have company. James Noteware, the city’s former housing director, has confirmed to Eyewitness News that he is seriously considering running for mayor. Mayor Parker hired Noteware in 2010, but he quit earlier this year.

I know even less about Noteware than I do about Hall. To be honest, I don’t know anything about him. Here’s a story about Noteware’s resignation, and a story about HUD rejecting the city’s fair housing effort, which the writer of that piece says is highly unusual. A blog called Harris County Conservative Politics mentioned Noteware as a possible candidate a couple of weeks ago, while also uncritically passing along the rumors of Mayor Parker being appointed to some unnamed position within the Obama administration, which was mentioned in this story and emphatically denied by the Mayor. I first heard that rumor last week, and all I can say is that it makes no sense. Anyway, that’s what I now know about James Noteware after a cursory Google search. As with Hall and the possible Latino candidate Campos alludes to, anyone can say they’re running. Actually running is a whole ‘nother thing.

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10 Responses to Hall inches closer to running

  1. John says:
    December 14, 2012 at 9:13 am

    Noteware sounds like a great candidate. Borrows money from one bank to use as equity and then walk away

    http://blog.chron.com/houstonpolitics/2010/05/parkers-housing-director-sued-for-debts/

    All the while living in a $1.5mm home in Tanglewood. he sounds like a great person, I am sure it would be fun to hear him lecture everyone about personal responsibility

  2. Temple Houston says:
    December 14, 2012 at 11:58 am

    So, Noteware sounds like an outstanding “bidness-orientated” candidate. The Republicans should love him. With respect to Ben Hall, I don’t know of any “liberal Democrats, ” i.e., white liberals, who would support him over Parker.

  3. Mainstream says:
    December 14, 2012 at 3:20 pm

    Republicans certainly will not back Hall. A few self-proclaimed “leaders” might, but the rank and file GOP voter is not going to support him, any more than they voted for Gene Locke.

  4. Paul Kubosh says:
    December 14, 2012 at 8:54 pm

    Mainstream, how can you be so sure? If he hires the same old guebers as he did before then he is toast. I was amazed that the Republicans went with Parker over Locke the first time. You have two democrats to chose from and you chose the one that is the most economically liberal? I just don’t get it? Republicans have been confusing me for sometime. What part of their vote do you think was based on race?

  5. Paul Kubosh says:
    December 14, 2012 at 8:55 pm

    correction

    “….old guebers that Gene locke hired the he is toast.”

  6. Paul Kubosh says:
    December 14, 2012 at 8:56 pm

    correction

    “….old guebers that Gene locke hired then he is toast.”

  7. joshua bullard says:
    December 16, 2012 at 10:27 am

    ive said it before,i shall again-ben hall never files to be a candidate-i refuse to be suckered in to a smoke and mirror move-i am keeping my eyes on the sharks that will actually get in the pool,,,

    ben hall never makes a move

    joshua ben bullard

  8. Fernando says:
    December 17, 2012 at 6:10 pm

    Before he runs for office, maybe he should consider his old-school, arm twisting, back door, under the table history. If he does run for Mayor, a must read 6 page expose’ can be found at http://www.houstonpress.com/1994-12-22/news/boss-hall/.

  9. Paul Kubosh says:
    December 18, 2012 at 9:29 am

    Fernando, that was 18 years ago. Anyway wouldn’t you think that he is better than parker. We have been deficit spending since 2004. Its going to be real hard for her to overcome that.

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