Reply to National Review: Texas IS fighting corruption

Babe Ruth gives the Bum's Rush to a
famous gate-crasher in the 1930s.
We're doing the same to a number of
corrupt politicians.

Kevin, we appreciate you as a fellow Texan and as National Review's star roving reporter. But when you accuse Texas of having a persistent "culture of corruption," you miss a critical piece of the overall picture -- to wit, previous and existing efforts made to throw out corrupt individuals in power.

(Read the National Review article here: "Rick Perry is not guilty, but Texas is." http://www.nationalreview.com/article/431869/rick-perrys-not-guilty-verdict-exposes-texas-culture-corruption)

You said "Rick Perry accomplished a great deal as governor of Texas, but he failed to take on the culture of corruption of which he ultimately was a victim." And you rightfully called upon Greg Abbott to do better.

We submit to you that not only did Gov. Perry successfully lay the groundwork for ridding the Lone Star State and Austin of a statewide political attack machine, but the People of Texas are doing what they can to throw out the good-ol'-boy moderates who allowed this kind of thing to take place in years past.

A few points we would like for you to consider:

* Texas is making significant headway in cleaning up our messes. Again, Gov. Perry, Gov. Abbott, and the Texas Legislature were successful in removing funding for the Public "Integrity" Unit (which, as you noted, prosecuted Tom DeLay under shaky pretenses, along with many poor souls since its founding in 1982). And didn't DeLay win his appeal? Which court was it that recently cleared Gov. Perry of his remaining charge? That would be our elected Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. We're hopeful Attorney General Ken Paxton will be cleared of his politically motivated charges, next. 

* Travis County is leading the way to prevent this kind of corruption from occurring in the first place. We have a scrappy-but-optimistic Republican Party on the ground and building new alliances. The Travis GOP makes up anywhere from 38 to 42 percent of the electorate ... for now. Our ranks are growing, and we have an uncontested candidate for District Attorney in our primary who is sure to be a crowd-pleaser in November. She'll be sure to clean up the Travis County DA's office and whatever is left of the PIU and Ronnie Earle's legacy. 

* This is shaping up to be the year of a conservative resurgence in Texas. While we are looked at as solid-R turf, we can be correctly labled a "purple state" when you look at the votes taken in the Legislature. However, our crimson red-blooded voters have finally had enough!  Tuesday night will prove revealing, and our best projections show that we're looking at a high voter turnout and plenty of fresh Republican faces ready to take on the establishment under the Pink Dome.  

* The above point was preceded by the paradigm-busting 2014 election, in which we turned Texas a even deeper shade of red, as many moderates and liberal Dems were handed their walking papers. The 2016 cycle will build on that momentum.

You are also correct that the courts stopped Houston's mayor from turning the bathrooms of our largest city into social engineering laboratories. However, it was the voters who had their final say -- 61 percent of them jiggled the handle on big government when given the opportunity.

Gov. Abbott should build on efforts to remove corruption in our state government. And we believe he will, based on his track record as Attorney General and his first round of signatures at the Governor's desk. But let's not neglect those of us who put him there to begin with.

In short: We're making progress. Rather than negate our efforts, come join our happy warriors in the trenches here in Austin! We'll give you plenty of hope for the future, as well as show you a great time in America's greatest little city.