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January 2010
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« Breaking news: Debra Medina invited to participate in Belo debate |
Main| Shami delivers $150K to rival who disappears from gov race »
Gromer Jeffers Jr. reports on the news that Debra Medina will be in the Jan. 29 debate: By GROMER JEFFERS JR. Citing a new statewide poll that boosted Medina's standing, the debate's organizers said Monday that she will be taking part in the faceoff against Gov. Rick Perry and Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison on Jan. 29 at WFAA-TV (Channel 8) in Dallas. The Medina campaign said it welcomed the invitation, and spokesmen for Perry and Hutchison said they looked forward to the event -- coming just two weeks after their first debate in Denton. How Medina will affect the outcome of the GOP primary remains a big question in Republican circles, and the latest survey by Rasmussen Reports -- using a disputed methodology -- spurred predictions that no one will get a majority March 2. That means the top two vote-getters will be forced into a runoff in April. "We are thrilled to be included," said Medina campaign manager Penny Langford Freeman. "Debra has a different approach and style that endeared her to the listeners in the first debate, and she will continue to simply have a truthful conversation with the people of Texas." Medina, a former Wharton County GOP chairwoman, has sought to appeal to conservatives with an anti-tax, anti-big-government pitch, but she is far behind in raising money. If she makes headway, she has been seen as possibly damaging Perry more than Hutchison among that bloc of voters. Hutchison spokeswoman Jennifer Baker said, "We have advocated for Medina's inclusion in the debate from the beginning and are pleased that the debate sponsors refused to be pressured by Rick Perry into keeping her out." Mark Miner of the Perry campaign said the governor was not involved in setting the debate rules. "Gov. Perry looks forward to talking to people about issues facing Texans," Miner said. "We welcome Ms. Medina to the debate." The debate is sponsored by Belo TV stations in Texas and The Dallas Morning News. The Rasmussen poll surveyed 831 likely GOP primary voters on Sunday, finding Perry ahead with 43 percent, followed by Hutchison at 33 percent and Medina at 12 percent. The rest were undecided. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percent percentage points, meaning each result can vary that much in either direction. The Rasmussen findings do not meet the polling standards of The News and some other media outlets because the poll relied on automated telephone calls. After reviewing the Rasmussen results, Mike Devlin, WFAA's president and general manager, said Medina's jump from single digits in the last poll indicates she is a viable candidate who meets Belo's criteria for the televised debate. Bob Mong, editor of The News, agreed. "If her numbers have improved, she should be included," he said. Belo's criteria include at least a 15 percent standing in independent public opinion polls, the standard used by the Commission on Presidential Debates. Over the past few days, Medina supporters had flooded Belo TV stations and The News with complaints about debate rules. Earlier Monday, about 30 Medina loyalists rallied in front of the TV and newspaper offices in downtown Dallas. They carried signs and shouted, "Let Medina debate." "We just think everybody should have a fair shake," said Gary Beadel, a retired schoolteacher and protester who lives in Oak Leaf in Ellis County. CommentsE-mail entry: |
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Sweet. Thanks.
I don't live in Texas, but I considered signing the online petition to pressure Belo to include Medina in the debates; in the end I could not sign because I am not a Texan and I have no official stake in her inclusion. I am glad that I did not sign it, although, had Belo not invited Medina I would have surely regretted my decision not to sign. Had I signed I would have done the wrong thing. Belo has done the right thing, because Medina's supporters have done the right thing by sticking to their principles and demanding that their surrogate voice be heard. No medium in my neck of the woods would have succumbed to this sort of pressure, or my neck of the woods doesn't generate enough pressure. Something to ponder as I HAIL TEXAS, blazing the trail for freedom.
P.S. watch these douchebags that they don't have something up their sleeve like a truly esoteric debate. A whole bunch of unilluminating questions is what Perry is hoping for.
Debra Medina will be the next Governor of Texas!
Debra Medina will be the next Governor of Texas!
Rasmussen is the most accurate pollster. Maybe you all should change your methodology to his, since -- you know -- he has a habit of being right.
Philadelphia,
As someone who is not a Texan and who doesn't have an official stake in our politics, why don't you butt out and mind your own business?
Spend some time cleaning up that monstrosity called Pennsylvania.
The Dallas Morning News should not allow Debra Medina to debate. Medina is pretending to be an hispanic so that she can deport all the illegal aliens. Medina knows perfectly well that her maiden name is Parker. If Lou Dobbs could have used his wife's unmarried name, he would be Lou Segura. Lou Segura would still be on the air at CNN.
Rasmussen has a habit of being Right, yes.
Actually, Rasmussen is a notorious outlier, month in and month out. Regardless of your politics, it's always helpful to know a little statistics as you go through this life.
I was one of your 30 sign carriers at the offices on Record St. on Monday afternoon - arlingtonteaparty.org, supporting Medina because she is the only true conservative in this race. Thanks, Belo, for inviting Mediina to debate. I think a lot of us are sick of politics-as-usual and that's how we see Perry and Hutchison. Bring it on!
I was one of your 30 sign carriers at the offices on Record St. on Monday afternoon - arlingtonteaparty.org, supporting Medina because she is the only true conservative in this race. Thanks, Belo, for inviting Medina to debate. I think a lot of us are sick of politics-as-usual and that's how we see Perry and Hutchison. Bring it on!
I have a question for all the Medina people... if she is such a fiscal conservative and wants money to spent wisely, then answer this....
A) a runoff election will cost the state and local parties millions of dollars combined, why does she want that money wasted when it can go to getting more Republicans elected particularly when it comes to house districts that will help the GOP increase their majority in advance of redistricting
b) the nullification issue is this, would require a special session that will cost the staate $30 - 50 million dollars to draft and pass a non-binding resolution that the US Supreme Court has rejected in similar cases in the past.
SO, the people that support Medina want us to needlessly spending millions of dollars that will be a waste of tax payer money...sounds like a big boondogle that makes even less sense than voting for a bailout.
In my opinion, Fiscal Conservative's problems with the cost of Medina's ideas seem to be really problems with the cost of (bloated) government as we now know it. I don't think that is a reason for a fiscal conservative to stay out of it.
In other words, if you want to change the way government operates, you have to get some control over it first. If some of its existing processes are a waste of money, and they are, you still have to use them to effect change. Fiscal Conservative's argument could be used for any government process - e.g., "let's not have a meeting about which programs to cut, because having the meeting will cost money", etc.
Fiscal Conservative:
I will attempt to answer your two questions, even though I am not an ardent Medina supporter.
A) Your logic on risking runoff elections is anti-democratic. By extending your logic, think of the money we would save if Perry was running unopposed; why we wouldn't have to pay for elections at all! The solution of course instant run off balloting, but we should not hold our collective breath waiting.
B) Nullification is long overdue as the U.S. Constitution is no longer taken seriously since FDR. What it costs to convene a special session is unimportant. Who knows how much money we might save in the long run nullifying federal mandates? And Supreme Court history is a terrible reason not to pursue our tenth amendment rights.
The same argument could be made that K B should bow out to save us the expense of a runoff election. Just think of the money we would save!
As an independent voter in texas i found Debra Medina a very refreshing addition to the political mix.She spoke with a lot of conviction in the first debate which i watched with a rapt attention.She actually won the first debate by my account.To me ,she looks more like an upset in the making in this coming election.
Fascist Soup reports:
Medina Blows Perry And Hutchison Out Of The Water
http://fascistsoup.com/2010/01/19/medina-blows-perry-and-hutchison-out-of-the-water/
As an independent voter in texas i found Debra Medina a very refreshing addition to the political mix.She spoke with a lot of conviction in the first debate which i watched with a rapt attention.She actually won the first debate by my account.To me ,she looks more like an upset in the making in this coming election.
Perhaps if we were to eliminate the 156,000 government jobs Slick Rick has added to the state payroll, and get rid of the oppressive taxation of our small businesses, and find a way to tax the citizens without holding their homes and possessions hostage, there might just be enough money to run our state government without interference from D.C. Take back our our state!
Medina is one of us... WE THE PEOPLE.. get Slick Rick out, he is in it for the money and power and the Washington insider has no place in Texas.
Tea Partiers unite for a liberty minded candidate.. let's make this happen!!!!
Many thanks to the debate's organizer's. The organizers have made their entry requirements more reasonable. By doing that, we will now have an opportunity to hear from someone well qualified to be The next Governor of Texas, yet someone who has not held a significant GOVERNMENT job. I like having a chance to vote for someone who is not largely responsible for many of the problems our next Governor is being hired to fix.
Many thanks to the debate's organizer's. The organizers have made their entry requirements more reasonable. By doing that, we will now have an opportunity to hear from someone well qualified to be The next Governor of Texas, yet someone who has not held a significant GOVERNMENT job. I like having a chance to vote for someone who is not largely responsible for many of the problems our next Governor is being hired to fix.