Davis Wins … Again
by Steve-OWendy Davis turned back the latest legal challenge to her eligibility to run as the Democratic candidate for the State Senate in District 10. The State Second District Court of Appeals ruled this afternoon that three Fort Worth firefighters had no standing to challenge Davis’ eligibility. The court did not rule on any of the merits of the case.
So, Davis wins again. Of course, this comes after the State Supreme Court dismissed the case without prejudice last week. And after Tarrant County Democratic Party poobah Art Brender ruled her eligible to run on Jan 2. And after the Secretary of State punted on it and said it was Brender’s call on Jan. 1. So, what is this? Round 4?
Craig Deats, the Austin attorney representing the firefighters, said after the ruling came down that he would have to go over the opinion and discuss the matter with his clients before deciding whether to file an appeal.
Chief Justice John Cayce and Justices Dixon Holman and Sue Walker — all Republicans — ruled that the three firefighters — Javier Cerda, Rickey Turner and Cullen Cox — did not have standing to bring this case. Based on the questions asked in the morning hearing, it seems that if anyone has standing to bring a case, it would appear to be Kim Brimer, the Republican who is the District 10 incumbent.
Does that mean the firefighters won’t appeal? No. Does that mean that Brimer won’t jump in and file suit? No. However, if that happened, it would sort of undermine the position that these three “Democratic” firefighters were acting on behalf of fellow District 10 Democrats. Of course, the fact that the firefighters have already endorsed Brimer and the fact that the firefighters’ union paid Brimer’s consultant Bryan Eppstein $224,000 for his assistance in their collective bargaining campaign would seem to undermine the firefighters’ credibility anyway. Now, $224,000 isn’t exactly Kay Granger kinda money, but it ain’t chump change. Those firefighters must need to pass the boot around a bunch of times to raise that kind of money.
But this whole misadventure has been so kooky, nothing would surprise me at this point.
“I am pleased with the Court’s decision and look forward to the campaign ahead,” Davis said about the decision in a press release. “Hopefully now we can move past the political maneuvering and talk about the issues that matter to the voters of this district. After years of watching politics as usual in Austin, it is about time that we move forward to address the issues that our current leadership has neglected.”
She’s right. It’s past time to move forward. But we get a real campaign or more lawsuits? Stay tuned.
Tags: Kim Brimer, wendy davis
5 Comments, Comments or Pings
SteveB
I just listened to the last couple of podcasts so I feel like I’m sitting in a bar asking you guys questions. So, what is it that you like about Wendy? Other than she’s not a Republican Christo-fascist.
Jan 23rd, 2008
Suzette
SteveB - I don’t know who you are asking, but the things I like about Wendy is:
-she spoke up and out about what she believed was the best thing for “the people” of Ft. Worth
-demonstrated a very strong leadership for the City Council
-she isn’t afraid to voice an unpopular opinion (gets lots of points for that from me)
-has principles and sticks by them (racks up the points here)
-appears to be an extremely honest person (points points)
-wasn’t raised wealthy, has worked hard all of her life (so has her family - was raised by single parent) which gives her the ability to relate to middle class America and below
-when I made a Citizen’s presentation to Council, I felt like she truly “listened” to what I was saying and cared about it
-I just have a gut feeling that she is a good, honest, hard working, caring person who will make good sound decisions about our lives and communities
-has alot of “brainpower” (”girlpower” - we need more of that in high places across Texas and beyond)
Just my opinion, yes everyone comes from a different perspectives.
Jan 24th, 2008
Steve-O
SteveB, I think that is an excellent question. For me personally, Wendy scored a lot of points when she was willing to stand up publicly and go against the Mayor on the Trinity Trees issue.
Mayor Mikey didn’t want anyone to rock the boat, but I Wendy did. She was the only one who did so publicly, and she took some shots from Mayor Mikey. The ultimate result of her work — even more than saving an acre of trees along the Trinity — was getting the City to take another look at the gas drilling ordinance. I firmly believe that if Wendy Davis hadn’t dug in her much-talked-about high heels, this wouldn’t have happened this year.
Did all this come back to bite her when the Mayor refused to recognize Joel Burns at pre-council on Jan. 8? Maybe. I think Mayor Mikey is an old school insider politician. Go along with him, things go OK for you. Rock the boat, you get the hammer. In the long run, that style didn’t work for Tom Delay, isn’t working for Tom Craddick and won’t work for Mike Moncrief.
We need transparent, open government. We need to build consensus. We need someone willing to represent the people, not the special interests. Wendy Davis has shown herself to be that kind of person.
I’m sorry if I seem so geeked up about all this. But I’m grateful for the work Wendy has done for the people of Fort Worth and I think that she could do a lot of good in Austin.
My two cents. Thanks for listening.
Jan 24th, 2008
Bernie
I haven’t agreed with Wendy on everything (i.e. tax abatements for wealthy coporations), but I can tell you that supporting her over Brimer is a no-brainer for me.
In the last legislative session I visited Austin to help the Texas Bicycle Coalition lobby for a “safe passing law.” Basically, the law defined a safe passing distance of 3 feet, meaning motorists had to allow 3 feet when passing cyclists.
Mr. Brimer slowed this bill down, and changed it in the senate to exempt “two lane roads with no shoulder” from the law (probably 1/3 of the roads cyclists ride on).
The reason Brimer did this? His personal ranch is on a two-lane-road, and cyclists there are an inconvenience to him.
Wendy rides a bicycle for recreation, so I feel pretty certain she’ll be more supportive of cyclists’ rights, and certainly more concerned for their safety.
Jan 24th, 2008
Adam S.
It bothers me that the incumbent is indirectly trying to disenfranchise his constituents by defeating his challenger outside of the “arena of ideas.” In America the people give power to the government to rule on our behalf. When our representatives forget that their power comes from the people, it’s time to vote them out of office. I see Brimer as a comfortable, arrogant, power hungry politician after this incident.
Jan 24th, 2008
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