Politex

Protest signs from the 'Tea Party' rally

    Hundreds of Texans opposed to the Obama administration's economic crisis strategy rallied in West Fort Worth Friday afternoon, one of several rallies held in cities around the country.

    Chanting “No more pork” and “no more bailouts,” most spent hours outside Cowtown Sports Bar and Grill and waved signs and American flags at the drivers passing by on Camp Bowie West Boulevard.

    You can check out our story and video from the Fort Worth rally here.

    After the jump are shots of some of the signs the protesters carried. Click on any of the photos for a closer look.

-Aman Batheja

Activists decry stimulus spending at 'tea parties' across the country

Hundreds of people around the country joined in at Tea Party rally protests today in opposition to President Obama's stimulus spending.

The Fort Worth event starts at 3 p.m. Details on the event and background on how a CNBC anchor's on-air rant helped spark this movement are here.

FrontBurner has some details of the Dallas rally at Victory Park, which they say attracted about 250 people.

There were also tea parties in Tampa, Michigan, and at the St. Louis arch.

Joe the Plumber showed up at the rally in Washington, D.C.. The YouTube video is here. (Viewers may notice an unfortunately worded sign held high by a nearby supporter.)

We'll be providing some live updates of the Fort Worth event via our Twitter feed at www.twitter.com/txpolitics.

-Aman Batheja

Fox files for Silcox's old seat

Eric Fox had previously announced he would run for the City Council seat left open when Chuck Silcox died.

He made it official Friday. ( Read the Press Release  )

There are already three other candidates in the race: W.B. "Zim" Zimmerman, James Nuttall and Bill Lawson. Another potential candidate, Aaron Young, has appointed a treasurer but hasn't actually filed as a candidate.

-- Mike Lee

Schieffer moving toward an announcement - if he conquers laryngitis

AUSTIN - The time and place for the announcement are already set -- 11 a.m. Monday in the State Capitol - but Democrat Tom Schieffer of Fort Worth said this morning that he's worried that a sudden onset of laryngitis could delay his entry into the Texas governor's race. 

"I might not be able to talk," Schieffer said in a scratchy voice in a brief phone interview from Washington, where the former ambassador received awards from intelligence agencies.  Schieffer said he plans to meet with his family on Sunday to make a final decision.  The betting is that, laryngitis or not, the press conference will proceed as planned. 

Schieffer, a close friend of former President Bush and the younger brother of CBS newsman Bob Schieffer, has been moving toward the race since returning to the United  States from his posting in Japan.  He and has wife took a driving tour along the perimeter of Texas, covering more than 4,000 miles, to get reacquainted with the Lone Star State.

-- Dave Montgomery

State House proclaims Thursday as Tarrant County Day

Yes, it was also Shelby County Day and Panola County Day, but Tarrant County nevertheless had its day in the sun in the State Legislature as House members designated Feb. 26, 2009, in honor of the state's third most populous county. 

As Tarrant County officials watched from the gallery,  the House extolled Tarrant's many virtues, ranging from the Fort Worth Stockyards and Six Flags over Texas to the county's importance as a national and international transportation crossroads.   And, just in case you forgot, Tarrant County was created in 1849 and named for Gen. Edward H. Tarrant, a Tennessean who moved to Texas in the early 1830s.

The resolution was introduced by Rep. Diane Patrick, R-Arlington, and supported by others in the 10-member Tarrant delegation in the House.  Sens. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, and Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth, told Tarrant officials that a similar resolution would have been offered in the Senate but the upper chamber had already adjourned for the weekend.

-- Dave Montgomery

Hutchison: Protect teachers and public servants

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison today filed a bill to keep teachers and public servants from losing retirement benefits as the economy continues to get worse.

"Teachers, first responders and public service workers in Texas carefully plan for their later years," said Hutchison, who filed the measure with Rep. Kevin Brady, R-The Woodlands. "They deserve to receive benefits that are calculated accurately and represent their contributions to the Social Security system."

It's called the Public Servant Retirement Protection Act.

-- Anna M. Tinsley

Texans like Obama less than country overall, according to polls

Texans are split evenly on President Barack Obama's performance so far as leader of the free world, according to a poll from a North Carolina-based firm.

Public Policy Polling found 45 percent of Texans approve of Obama's job performance, with 46 percent disapproving, within the poll's margin of error.

Compare that to a nationwide Gallup poll taken around the same time that gave Obama a 59 percent approval rating.

PPP also released more details of its polling on the governor's race. The two possible Republican candidates are currently leading Democrat Tom Shieffer, a former ambassador under President George W. Bush.

Sheiffer trails Gov. Rick Perry 45-35 and Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison 54-30.

Dean Debnam, President of Public Policy Polling, says Democrats should be rooting for Perry to win the primary if they want a shot at taking back the Governor's Mansion.

The poll didn't ask Texans about Democratic State Sen. Leticia Van de Putte or Kinky Friedman, both of whom are also pondering running in next year's Democratic primary.

PPP surveyed 1,409 likely voters from February 18th to 20th. The survey’s margin of error is +/-2.6%.

It's the third day in a row that the firm has released data of interest to political junkies in Texas. Yesterday, the firm released data showing the race for Hutchison's Senate seat could be a squeaker. On Monday, the firm said Hutchison leads Perry by 25 points among likely GOP voters.

Crosstabs and other info on today's results are here.

-Aman Batheja

Tarrant County Day starts with a welcome from the speaker

    AUSTIN - House Speaker Joe Straus  today welcomed Tarrant officials and business leaders to Austin for the start of Tarrant County Day, expressing hope that billions in federal stimulus money will help offset a $9 billion revenue shortfall and enable the 2009 Legislature to balance the state budget for the next two years.

     Scores of city and county officials, business leaders, school officials and Chamber of Commerce representatives from Tarrant County are in Austin to present a unified front on issues they want to see addressed in the Legislature.  Straus, a San Antonio Republican who became speaker on Jan. 13, received a standing ovation as he addressed the group at a breakfast in the Austin Club, a few blocks from the Capitol.

   "Let's see in June if I get the same reception," Straus said.  Rep. Charlie Geren, R-Fort Worth, introduced the House leader as "my good friend, Joe Straus, speaker of the Texas House."  Geren was a key player in Straus' election to the speakership.

  Straus, referring to Fort Worth's popular downtown restaurant, told the visitors that "the first thing I saw in my office at 7 o'clock this morning was a Reata cookbook on the shelf."  

 "We haven't accomplished a great deal yet but the velocity is going to pick up," he said in giving a brief progress report since the Legislature convened in mid-January  "We started with a $9 billion shortfull and now the outlook is more bleak."

   Straus also mentioned the $17 billion that Texas is expected from President Obama's federal stiumulus package.  "It's a lot to get our arms around," said Straus.  "I hope it helps us balance our budget."

 -- Bud Kennedy and Dave Montgomery

Tarrant officials kick of their visit with a downtown reception

AUSTIN - Hundreds gathered at a reception hosted by the City of Fort Worth at the Omni Austin Hotel on Wednesday night. After their breakfast today at the Austin Club, the Tarrant County visitors began making the rounds of the State Capitol to present a high profile and discuss issues such as transportation, education, health care and water, said Ben Loughry, chairman of the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce.

Among the visiting government officials at Wednesday's reception were Tarrant County Judge B. Glen Whitely, Fort Worth Mayor Mike Moncrief and Tarrant County District Clerk Thomas A. Wilder.  Moncrief is no stranger to the Legislature, having served 12 years in the State Senate in 1991-2003 and a term in the House in 1971-72.

"You can feel the electricity," he said.  "The session's starting to build."  Among the city's priorities, he said, are winning passage of a funding bill for roads and commuter rails in North Texas and measures that would strengthen the city's control over natural gas pipelines. 

-- Dave Montgomery

You bet your boots - continuing a State Capitol tradition

     AUSTIN - While legislators elsewhere in the State Capitol on Wednesday deliberated over highways or education costs, Room 3W9 just behind the House gallery was a bustling marketplace.  Throughout the day, representatives of El Paso's famed Lucchese boot company displayed their custom-made wares to a steady procession of staffers, lawmakers, lobbyists and the occasional tourist. 

    The annual boot-fitting is a State Capitol tradition that goes back to 1983, when then-State Sen. John Montford initiated the idea to promote one of Texas' iconic products.  Virginia Carter, a former Montford aide, has kept the annual event going with the help of her husband, former State Rep.  Bill Carter, who represented Northeast Tarrant County until leaving the House in 2001.  

    Now their friends, State Rep. Vicki Truitt, R-Keller, and her husband Jim Truitt, a former Richland Hills mayor, are joining in the cause.  During Wednesday's House session, Rep. Truitt invited those who were interested to drop by the third-floor display. 

    "It's a tradition and we're just trying to keep that tradition alive,'" said Jim Truitt, lifting up a pants leg to show off his black-cherry European goat boots emblazoned with a Texas seal.  He described himself as Virginia Carter's "apprentice'' to help organize and oversee the yearly boot-fitting. 

   Some visitors gasped when they turned over hand-crafted boots displayed on a table to see prices reaching past $2,000.  But Lucchese marketing director Fred King, who took more than 80 orders through mid-afternoon, said he was selling the boots for less-than-retail prices, some in the $200 range.  "We want to see everybody that leaves this  capitol in cowboy boots - whether it's ours or not," he said.   

-- Dave Montgomery