Child prostitution

When her father the Giant Cockroach was forced back into the race for the 22nd Congressional District seat this week, Tom DeLay's daughter rapidly spun around in circles and then vomited:

"Tom DeLay looks forward to the correct decision being rendered by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. As a resident of Virginia, he cannot lawfully be on the ballot in November. It is unfortunate that the voters of the 22nd District of Texas are the ones who bear the brunt of Judge Sparks' ill-advised decision, but it is highly likely that it will be overturned and the voters will have a Texas 22 Republican on the ballot who will defeat Nick Lampson."

It might be enlightening now to remind ourselves of little Mrs. Ferro's recent history. She's not just a daughter bravely defending the honor *lmao* of her father.

Dani DeLay Ferro had lobbyists pour champagne on her while in the hot tub in Las Vegas in 2000. (Admittedly, they had a lot to celebrate.)

Dani DeLay Ferro has had her little snout buried in the TRMPAC trough right alongside Mommy and Daddy, right from the jump.

Dani DeLay Ferro recently had to explain away her dad's shaved beaver jokes.

It's probably past time she lost the last shreds of her tattered credibility.

And I think an entirely appropriate question to be asked of Tom DeLay, especially given his forced re-entry into a Congressional race he has withdrawn from (and will continue to litigate to do so), goes something like this:

"Is prostituting his own daughter something Jesus would have done?"

Matula, Trautman, Khan, and Cohen

Tonight's blog-call featured four of the rising Democratic stars running for the Texas Legislature in the Houston/Harris County area:

• Sherrie Matula, a retired teacher, SH-129 - .pdf link (incumbent R Davis)
• Diane Trautman, also a former educator, SH-127, (incumbent R Crabb)
• Chad Khan, a small businessman, SH-126, (incumbent R Hamric)
• Ellen Cohen, CEO of Houston Area Women's Center, SH-134, (incumbent R Wong)

Much of this call focused on public education and specifically CSHB 1, the abominable tax cut/tax increase bill passed in the last special session.

I visited with Matula over breakfast at the TDP convention last month. She has an extraordinary grasp of the issues, in particular of course the vital need for a a thriving public school system in the state. Trautman is also experienced and knowledgeable, having previously been a principal of Tomball JHS and an assistant professor at Stephen F. Austin University.

An excerpt, courtesy of Muse via email:

What is the effect of the special session on local control by both superintendents and school boards? Both in the area of taxes/budget and in the area of policy, this HB stripped more powers away from local school boards than any piece of legislation in memory. Page after page of HB 1 says “the commissioner may adopt rules to implement this section”. Added note: 99% of all school districts have standard policy written by TASB. So….what do local school boards control? Almost nothing.

More there.

Matula and Trautman's expertise as educators, and Kahn and Cohen's business acumen serves as testament to their future success as state representatives. All four would be outstanding legislators, even if they weren't compared to the clowns sitting in office at the moment. What's more, they are indicative of the kind of Texas Democrat nominated for election up and down the ballot and across the state -- people driven to offer themselves for public service because of the distress they have felt at the current climate in the state Capitol. People who come from all walks of life -- immigrant, teacher, non-profit executive -- people who aren't lawyers, weren't selected by the party machine, who aren't indebted to lobbyists or corporate PACS for their existence.

All Texans, and especially those living in these districts simply deserve people of great distinction like these four representing them in Austin.

So we WILL have Tom DeLay to kick around some more.

Judge Sparks says so.

I commented elsewhere earlier today that having a bruised and flat-broke Cockroach on the ballot after all is a best-case scenario for Nick Lampson.

Appeals and certainly a potential reversal of fortune could still occur -- and my favored outcome remains Bible Bob displacing Hot Tub Tom on the November ballot -- but today's end result is a GOP in CD-22 in chaos.

How unfortunate. *roflmao*

Making a killing

In weird news:

Mario Williams, the Houston Texans' much-debated No. 1 draft pick, has purchased a home with its own share of controversy.

The newly rich National Football League rookie bought the spacious, Mediterranean-style house from ousted Texas Southern University President Priscilla Slade for about $1.5 million, according to records filed last week.

Clcik on the names above for some backstory if you haven't been following either person's latest travails.

I once knew a couple when we lived in Midland during the Eighties who had bought a very nice home from someone who had recently been prosecuted as the neighborhood child molester. His name -- by the children whom he had invited to swim in his backyard pool -- was "Tickle Man".

Now it appears as if Williams got a $300,000 discount on his new home, and though I never got them to talk much about it, I'm sure my west Texas friends got an even better deal on theirs (not quite as expensive an abode, but the discount in terms of percentages was huuuuuge).

There's a point here...

At what point does this sort of thing traverse the boundary from predatory purchasing to just plain old creepiness? Does the line get crossed with the two situations I related? Certainly I understand that a significant enough price reduction can overcome nearly any queasiness, but still ...

If a real estate bargain is your primary --- indeed, your solitary interest, then be advised: there's a nice little high-rise condo going on the market in River Oaks very soon that you might want to look into. A recent assessment put it at $6.5 mil, down from $7.9 in 2002, by all appearances.

Its celebrity markup has recently been mitigated. Somewhat.