Brazil’s Example – Breaking an Addiction

The U.S. dependence on imported oil and “too little too late” energy policy has left us vulnerable to future oil shocks. Even the President has said “we have an oil addiction.” We give billions of dollars away each year, much of it to countries which are not shining examples of democracy, from Venezuela to Saudi Arabia.

But Brazil is an example how to break that addiction. They don’t import any oil. How? By running cars using 100% ethanol produced from sugar cane.

So why don’t we do the same? We are taking tiny baby steps when we need giant leaps forward in alternative energy. Time is not on our side. India and China are growing rapidly and consuming what used to be surplus oil stocks. We have the capacity to grow our own fuel. American farmers have the ability to produce the feedstock – from corn to sugar cane and even the President’s straw grass.

Congress could, and should, require manufacturers to build what Brazil calls “flex cars” – cars that will run on gas, 100% ethanol or both.

So what are we waiting for? As JFK once said: “The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining.” The time generate alternative energy supplies is NOW, before the rain starts falling on our heads –and our SUV’s sit stalled on the side of the road during the next shortage.

No Intelligence on Iran - Same Song, Different Verse

Want to know why we should have someone with global experience in Congress? Read this. Our CIA doesn’t have a clue what is going on in Iran – and Congress has done nothing to put human assets on the ground or require them. We have this insane idea that taking photos with satellites tells us what we need to know. We don’t even have more than a handfull of people who understand or speak Persian in the CIA (Iran is not an Arabic country).

So what was Congress doing about it?

Some were taking trips to Scotland with lobbyists… Most believed the bad intelligence on Iraq that led to major mistakes that is still costing American soldiers lives. Doesn’t that make you feel safer? It’s about time Congress funded real human intelligence – satellites won’t cut it. Neither will another Congress rep who is clueless on these issues.

Immigration Solution is Outside Our Borders

The only real solution to immigration is to get countries like Mexico to breath life into their economies so people don't have to leave to feed their families. The pyramid economy (where only a few rich are at the top and everyone else fights for the crumbs left below) doesn't work - and we get the aftermath. It is in our best interest to solve this problem at its root, by encouraging countries to grow from the bottom up, because all the walls in the world won't keep out people desperate to feed their kids.

Fjetland, Norway

I received an email from my brother, who discovered on Google Earth that there is a town in Norway named "Fjetland." No kidding.

Elections and Fairness

Elections and Fairness

I just found out that my name has been dropped from the list of potential candidates to replace Tom DeLay on the GOP ballot. They are sending out 18,000 “ballots” to vote on a replacement and my name will not appear.

Not that I thought I had a snowflake’s chance of getting picked, but it is the principle of the thing that bothers me. Apparently some blogger wrote that I was no longer interested and apparently the County Chair (Thode) dropped me based on that – it was certainly not based on any email or letter or phone call to him from me.

This happened once before when I ran in 2002 – my name was dropped from the primary ballot when I challenged Mr. DeLay. I had to sue to get back on. I won, but by that time the election was upon us. I got 20% with no campaigning, no ads or TV. Mr. Campbell had to spend six figures this time to beat that percentage, but not by much.

The only thing I’ve said since DeLay announced his resignation was that if there was a Special Election then they could count me out. I wanted no part of a dozen candidates running in a Special Election. But the Governor has declared that there isn’t going to be a Special Election, despite the fact that the U.S. Constitution calls for it. Apparently it is to be followed only when it guarantees the result you want, and not otherwise.

So, we set yet another great example for the people of Iraq how (not) to run a democracy.

Perhaps I should just find a job with a corporation – even the lowest corporate ethics would be a major step up from what I’ve found in politics so far.

White House Gets Interested in Better Gas Mileage

I feel vindicated. Finally, the White House is suddenly interested in conservation and higher gas mileage standards. It took $3/gallon gas to wake them up. Better late than never...

The Gas "Boycott" Won't Work - Try something that will

People are sending around an email encouraging motorists to boycott buying gas for a day as a “protest.”

Get real folks – like it is really going to make a difference if you don’t fill up your SUV for a day!

If you really are concerned about gas prices then do the following:
Buy a hybrid vehicle (or a car that gets better mileage than your current one)
Ride a bus/vanpool to work
Write Congress to boost fuel mileage standards for autos by 50%

We Americans waste so much energy, yet we put little effort into conservation. We need to wake up because oil is a finite resource. The sooner we develop alternative fuels and find clever ways to use less of it, the better. We don't need a phony war on gas or an ineffective boycott.

Technology on the Run - Just Say No to "Surfing While Driving"

Technology is amazing.

I recently bought a Treo 700 – basically a pocket PC and phone combination, and I love it. Instead of dragging a laptop around and finding a place with a “hotspot” now I can pull this device out of my pocket at a café –check my calendar, check email or go online to see what is happening in the world. It works anywhere, anytime. I also switched to Verizon after too many dropped calls on my other service, which shall remain nameless.

I wish I had this device sooner. I missed some appointments before, including an important campaign radio interview because I was on the run and forgot to write down an Outlook calendar event to the book I keep in my car.

Now I just plug in the phone and it syncs automatically with Outlook so I am updated. And it works both ways. If I add an event on the phone calendar, it updates the desktop calendar when I plug it in--automatically.

Technology is our future. Now, if it would only help me locate gasoline that costs about $2 a gallon! For that, we need some technology to double our cars’ gas mileage! That may take awhile, but I believe technology can make it happen.

What we have sure beats the technology we had 20 years ago…I just have to remember not to “surf while driving”….!

Girls Deserve Better Than This

I was just reading that in India about 10 million girl fetuses were aborted in the past two decades. Sonograms are used to determine the sex of a child – if it is a girl it is often aborted. The government has tried to stop it but it is an old habit

China, with its “one child” policy has the same problem – and a girl shortage as a result.

This is a disturbing situation. These two countries constitute nearly 40% of the world’s total population and will play major roles in our lifetimes. I have been to China and India, many times. They both have changed dramatically in the past 20 years, but this is something that has NOT changed for the better.

It is time to stop killing babies that someone thinks is the “wrong” sex. The practice is as wrong as the wife burnings in India. I’d like to see our policymakers make this one of the issues in our future relations with these important countries…

Emergency Planning - Pick One, NOT a Committee

I have to agree with Gov. Perry, who said that our area needs to pick ONE person to be in charge to manage future catastrophes that may strike the region, such as another hurricane.

I can’t imagine having another Hurricane Katrina or Rita coming our way and having to get a 15-person committee to make a decision! Have you ever seen a committee of 15 decide ANYTHING in a TIMELY manner? The storm would be here and gone before that happened.

We need to pick 1 person to be in charge to manage any future disasters – anyone, that is, other than Michael Brown (former FEMA director). We don’t need someone worrying about how his shirt looks on TV when a CAT 4 hurricane is blowing through…

Texas Blackouts - Record heat means trouble

Record heat yesterday – and it is only mid-April! Over 100 degrees in parts of the State – and rolling blackouts in Texas! How strange is that? Gas prices are surging.

Since the election ended, my legal practice has really taken off. Houston is part of a boom in real estate. Our area is expected to double in size the next 20 years, so opportunity is knocking (no pun intended) all over the place. One man bought a house in the Woodlands for $200,000 and excitedly told his friends that back in Connecticut the same house would be $1 million! Yep, more Yankees will be moving south!

I say bring them on. Except now the “Yankees” are from all over the world. Most Houston real estate is being financed from foreign sources – without it the boom would be a bust. This record heat spells trouble - we could have another mean hurricane season. We lost a month or more of business last year with the Katrina/Rita scenario. It was 100 years ago today that an earthquake struck San Francisco. At least you can see a hurricane coming and get the heck out of the way (as long as 2 million people don't try it at the same time).

OK, a word about politics. I got an email a couple days ago from a Ft. Bend precinct chair regarding the replacement of Rep. DeLay when he resigns (in June?). Apparently they are getting hit from a lot of wannabe Congressmen/women who want to jump to the front of the line to be “the chosen one.” It should be an interesting fight. Too bad the people don't get to make the pick as envisioned by our founding fathers...

International Justice - Building Democracy a Nail at a Time

Some of the commentators seem to think I should "move on."

They clearly don’t know my real objective is more than about one guy (i.e., DeLay. It is all about International Justice. Don't forget I have been an international negotiator worldwide. I've seen a lot of injustice globally, not just in District 22.

Mr. DeLay just happened to be my local corrupt official that needed to be challenged long before now. He is but one part of our government system that needs replacement and improvement. The improvements need to be more than domestic. They need to be global.

For example, little (i.e., nothing) has been done about the international criminal rings that promise poor, attractive women fake jobs in Europe or the U.S. that force them to become prostitutes in foreign lands. The U.S. is part of that system. Human trafficking is a major part of illegal immigration.

It’s not about me moving on; it’s about some folks out there catching up. I didn’t see anyone else challenging DeLay at his peak, only when he was weak.

DeLay is history but the world remains a mess. Complain at me if you will but we do need a new rep who knows it instead of another clueless Congressman whose knowledge of the world comes from travel brochures. There is much yet to do to make it a better place, domestically and internationally…. The question now is replacing DeLay with a candidate with the skills needed in a world of terrorism and global economics.

I’ve been involved in these issues for decades. That is why I will continue “moving on” and raising these issues, whether I am a candidate or not. I am glad to have the Johnny-come-lately’s showing up, all anxiously wanting to be the new Congress candidate...it shows that the fear of DeLay is gone.

P.S. For the commentators who didn’t appreciate the symbolism in my recent fence story, I say simply this: we need more fence building, not bridge burning in our government. I found that each nail I drove into each plank made the fence stronger. The difference one nail at a time can make in mending a fence is amazing. I am just one of those nails fighting to strengthen our democratic fences, locally and globally.

Repairing fences -- and democracy

I spent the weekend replacing boards in the backyard fence, preparing for the hurricane season. Without more nails, and a few replacement boards, it was in serious danger of falling down. It took a lot of pounding, and my hands turned black, but now it is a solid fence again.

As I hammered, it occurred to me that under DeLay democracy has become as rickety as my backyard fence before the repair.

I thought about how Mr. DeLay stated in TIME and a Washington Post article that he deliberately set it up to keep any one of us who challenged him off the list of replacement names as the GOP candidate on the ballot. In other words, any of us who played by rules and ran against him is on the “blacklist.”

Is this “democracy”?

When an incumbent can punish those who played by the rules—and pick his replacement-- how is that a good example of democracy to show the Iraqis?

This is not about me – it is about the American democratic process. There are two other candidates who are also on that same blacklist. Is this fair?

Is democracy’s fence falling down? It is strong when incumbents can manipulate the process ? I guess the Iraqis only need look at District 22 to decide how to play the game? Let's hope not.

Think about it.

My Legacy - Fear of DeLay is now GONE -

My legacy is that of being the first one who broke the fear of not running against DeLay in the GOP primary, when I first ran in 2000.

In that time I have seen 3 Democrat candidates come and go -- in 2000, 2002, 2004 -- I was there each time. Mr. Lampson is the 4th Democrat that I've seen in the same political year. He is also the last Democrat to oppose DeLay, who is now gone and won't be on the ballot in November.

Running against DeLay at his peak did keep a lot of business from coming my way because people feared DeLay, who made vindictiveness a high art form.

Those who opposed him were punished – he had one lady fired from several jobs. Fear of him kept me from getting jobs that paid six figures a year, including at least one legal job. The law partner wanted to run for judge but he feared DeLay would put a candidate up against him if they hired me. He said he really wanted to hire me but he could risk hurting his law partner. I told him, "I understand."

They fear him no more.

I was deprived of a lot of income when people feared the DeLay hammer. So, I figured that if I couldn’t work at least I could continue campaigning against our own ruthless representative, who changed the boundaries twice in the process. I kept talking about issues DeLay never did – building commuter rail and international issues like terrorism and global trafficking of women as prostitutes, etc. I don’t expect whoever picks DeLay’s replacement as a candidate will pick the guy who fought against DeLay’s corrupt politics for year and predicted 9 11. I don’t expect them to reward someone who kept democratic choice alive in the GOP by running against DeLay at his peak of power instead of jumping on he was weak or fading from the scene. Naw. My prediction is that they will go with the best politician, not the person with the best qualifications such as Homeland Security expertise—despite the fact that Houston is a prime target for both man-made and natural disasters and we must compete in a global economy. Does Congress really need another representative who is great at killing cockroaches or slapping backsides, but is clueless on global threats?

Do we need another politician? I would prefer a leader and a visionary that thinks of the public well being instead of their pocketbook and photo op scrapbook. I have helped get rid of a tyrant and a bully. My focus can now move to community service and negotiating business deals, locally and globally.

I have a lot of catching up to do…the campaigns left a hole in my bank account, but the experience was enriching and rewarding. And DeLay? He'll be pulling in a $67,000/year pension.

For those of you who are paying attention, read this article in today's Washington Post, and note the vindictiveness in this line:

“Rep. Tom DeLay had considered resigning on several occasions over the past four months. But he waited until after he had vanquished his challengers in the Republican primary to deny them the chance to become his successor, associates said.”

In doing so, DeLay deliberately deprived the VOTERS, the people of District 22, from making the call on who should replace him when he knew he was leaving. How democratic of him.

By doing what he did the way he did it, DeLay has set up political chaos – already the list of candidates for a Special Election is double that of the primary, and growing.

None of the "new" candidates had the guts to challenge Mr. DeLay and his lack of ethics directly (except for possibly Mr. Stockman’s independent challenge but I didn’t hear Stockman complaining about DeLay’s ethics –he just wanted the job). So why are they necessarily examples of people with strong leadership skills that will fight corruption? If they didn’t challenge DeLay’s ethical excesses before now, what lousy ethics would they challenge in the future?

If DeLay had left it up to the people, we would be in the closing days of a run off between Mr. Campbell and myself – with a lame duck embattled Congressman on the sidelines. It probably would have gone to Mr. Campbell who had more money, but at least the people would have had a choice – and again in November when the winner faced Mr. Lampson.

DeLay has ironically sown the seeds for the fall of the GOP in District 22, and perhaps nationally. Now watch the hand of Mr. DeLay set up yet another scene of chaos that generates bad will -- as the candidates vying for his job commence cutting each other into small pieces in the next few months.

I won’t be one of those candidates. My mission ended with DeLay’s leaving office. Yes, he denied Mr. Campbell (or me) the seat. Vindictiveness has seen to that. But it comes at a high price for the voters and Republicans.

Just watch in the coming days. His actions will end up doing far more damage than good to the GOP, etc.

I cannot honestly support any candidate or party (Republican or Democrat) that fails to confront or deal with the corruption and lack of ethics and commitment to true democracy that has been exhibited by any of our elected officials, including Mr. DeLay.

Where From Here?

Thanks to "WhipDeLay" etc for your comments. Where from Here?

Good question. It appears a Special Election is coming up and I see a million candidates will be running for District 22 now that DeLay is riding off into the sunset a step ahead of the posse (OK I’m exaggerating slightly on the numbers) .

As DeLay dodges the Fed posse, another posse of candidates will be vying to replace him, each with contacts in only one portion of the district or another – or none. This district covers parts of FOUR counties. Sugar Land is about 11% and folks in Pearland and Clear Lake and Rosenberg view the world differently – and don’t necessarily like Sugar Land hogging the limelight.

So it could be a free for all. Ironically, the only people with exposure in all of the 4-county district are the three of us who just finished the primary.

However, as news of people jumping in have spread, I see this could shape up as a ZOO with a "cast of thousands" running on the GOP side -- splitting the vote -- leaving the Democrat with a plurality. I see no use putting myself through that, fans notwithstanding...

Mission Accomplished - DeLay withdraws as candidate

After months of pleading that he is innocent, Mr. DeLay announced tonight that he is NOT going to seek re-election after 22 years in office. My mission has been accomplished.

I was stunned. Why now?

Since his ex-aide, Tony Rudy, pled guilty to conspiracy on Friday, it must be related to that. Apparently, Mr. DeLay is not as innocent as claimed. Why else step down now?

Unfortunately, this move deprives the voters of District 22 of picking his replacement, unless a Special Election is called. Without a Special Election, the party picks a replacement, not the people. Standby for developments on this.

Skeletons Falling Out of the Closet

Another DeLay ex-aide pled guilty today to conspiracy. This is the federal investigation, not connected to Ronnie Earle in Austin. The skeletons are rattling in the closet.

As evidence of the slide in moral values, DeLay has GOP types like Jerry Patterson now saying how it is a shame an indicted Congressman can't carry a gun! Patterson is basically saying EVERYONE (including Congressmen) indicted on a felony (like the bank robbers, etc.) should be allowed to keep their concealed guns despite the indictment!

How pro-criminal is that? What kind of moral values is DeLay promoting here?

A Congressman who appeals his gun suspension (as DeLay has done) apparently feels he is above the law; that it should not apply to him.

Since the law has become inconvenient, apparently he wants the law changed so either, choose one (1) "everyone EXCEPT indicted Congressman shall have their concealed carry license suspended"... or, to avoid that equal protection problem:
(2) : "All indicted felons shall not have their licenses suspended to carry concealed weapons of all sizes"...

Ummm. Somehow that doesn't make sense to me. I am trying to see how any of this relates to improving our moral values....? Umm. Get indicted; carry your gun anyway.

Let's call a spade a spade: it is nuts to allow indicted felons to continue carrying a gun license (if they had one), regardless of their position in the food chain. That's not bitter; just common sense. Duh.

Moral values have been twisted into strange shapes under this person's influence. He is even corrupting the thinking of normally rational Republicans like Mr. Patterson.

NASA and the Congressman

And for something totally “funny,” read this story on NASA's dip into fantasy:

Apparently NASA’s administrator made a statement that sounded like an endorsement of Rep. DeLay. If so, it would be a violation of the Hatch Act. Never mind that. Look at the FACTS.

If Mr. DeLay has been such a good friend to NASA, why are our astronauts still riding around in 25-year-old Space Shuttles with 1970’s technology, when DeLay has been in office 22 of those years?

That’s like crowing you got the best Model T’s in town when the rest of the world drives SUV’s. With Congressional friends like that who needs enemies? Had a real "space nut" been in office that long, astronauts would be riding around in the equivalent of hybrid SUV's by this time...instead they remain grounded, waiting on more patches for the Model T...

Good News - From Bush's mileage move to the release of Kidnapped U.S. reporter Jill Carroll

Lots of GOOD news the past couple days.

The Bush administration is increasing the mileage standards for vehicles – a move that will save billions in future gas bills for American motorists.
And this great news from Iraq: Kidnapped U.S. reporter Jill Carroll has been released after nearly three months in captivity, Iraq police and the leader of the Islamic Party said Thursday. Her editor said she was in good condition.
And Houston got more rain. We really needed it. The timing is good. Over the weekend, I started hacking out weeds in the yard with a hoe-- now the grass has a chance to grow without being choked. It was a long overdue project. I found it strangely therapeutic to chop out weeds by the roots with a hoe instead of just spraying them. And you get instant results. My wife doesn’t like pesticides near the pets so I returned to my farm roots and have a couple new blisters to prove it. What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger (people are still amazed I didn’t die after running against the Majority Leader).

More good news – Israel elected Kadima, the peace party that won a majority of seats and is moving forward on Palestinian issues that need to be resolved – Olmert is following in Sharon’s footsteps to reduce the long-burning violence that has plagued that region.

Standby for more good news…(Forgive the spacing above - blogger does that now and then for some reason).

When "Christians" Act Like Ayatollahs - Beware the hypocrites

In a news article today, DeLay was quoted as saying, "we have been chosen to live as Christians at a time when our culture is being poisoned. ... God made us specifically for it. ... Jesus Christ himself made us just so that we could live in this nation at this time."

He should have added: “Jesus Christ himself made us just so that we could live in this nation at this time as the perfect examples of hypocrites.”

DeLay gets three ethical admonishments and then has the ethics panel Republicans axed from ALL their committees. That’s Christian?

DeLay had my highway signs stolen in 2000 when I first ran against him and he didn’t have any. In 2002, when I filed for the primary a second time, he had me kicked off the ballot. That’s Christian?

In 2006, after outspending three, mostly self-financed opponents ten to one, DeLay claims “liberal interest groups” paid us. My FEC reports show this is a big lie – no George Soros donated to me, but a lot of regular people in the district did. Is lying and cheating Christian? I don’t think so.

These deliberate deceptions are by a man being praised by this group as a “Christian.” Mr. DeLay, you are to Christians what Osama bin laden is to Muslims—an extremist who has lost sight of his religion’s true teachings of compassion, respect and values.

Your real God is money and power, both of which you are now losing. I know a lot of real Christians. You are a poor role model of how a Christian behaves.

I think Rev. Lynn hits the nail on the head:
Rev. Barry Lynn, who heads Americans United for Separation of Church and State, said the gathering [where DeLay spoke] was more about partisan politics than religion or cultural values.
"This 'war' is nothing real," Lynn said in a telephone interview with Cox News Service. "The fact is Christians in America are a cultural majority, and they are an extremely powerful group. But what you have here are second-tier preachers who are hoping to hit the big time, desperately hoping for a national spotlight ... ."
In other words we have Christian Ayatollahs like Pat Robertson, who called for the assassination of foreign leaders he doesn’t like and even demanded the bombing of our own State Department. How Christian is that? This is the crowd represented by Mr. DeLay.
Some of them emailed me before the Iraq invasion, and said how they HOPED the Iraq war would turn into Armageddon! It’s definitely turned into hell.
Moderates have won in Israel. We need the same in America and the Middle East.
We need Muslim moderates joining with Christian moderates and Jewish moderates –taking power away from the nut cases in the Left Behind Armageddon wing of the GOP headed by the likes of Ayatollah Tom DeLay.
In the nuclear age, we need to do this as quickly as possible. We need to do this before another “Armageddon” target comes along for them to get excited about.

Immigration: The Challenge

“If a man be gracious to strangers, it shows that he is a citizen ofthe world, and his heart is no island, cut off from other islands,but a continent that joins them.” Francis Bacon wrote those words. Last weekend over 500,000 people protested the proposed new law that would make millions of people felons for being in the U.S. illegally.

Nothing like it has happened regarding the other controversial subject which also has huge ramifications for our future: the Iraq war.

Different international smuggling gangs are making raids on other gangs houses in Houston—where they “stashed” people instead of cocaine. Human trafficking is more profitable than drug trafficking, and smugglers are giving up the drugs to smuggle people. Which is worse?

Women have also been the target of international traffickers. Both issues require creative solutions in Congress. Making people felons won’t solve the problem. If it is a choice between feeding the family and getting a felony, I know what most people will choose. Congress should know it as well.

Our present system encourages massive numbers of people to circumvent our border crossings, overwhelming border security despite all the walls you build. Even the Berlin Wall failed to keep people from crossing -- and it was small compared to our Mexico-U.S. border which stretches thousands of miles.

Right now, Border agents can’t tell economic refugees from potential terrorists when thousands are crossing illegally every day.

The only solution is a radical one – make it to ENCOURAGE people to go through our border checkpoint so we have a biometric fingerprint on everyone. A work permit is that lure. The only way to do that is to take a serious look at President Bush’s Guest Worker plan. Let’s face it, I don’t see any of these people taking over as CEO of Wal Mart; nor do I see regular Americans willing to cut grass and do a lot of nasty work these people do every day.

If we change our system so that is sucks people THROUGH our system instead of forcing them to go AROUND IT then that leaves only the terrorist or people smugglers crossing illegally to avoid giving up their identity.

In fact, such a change would put most of the coyote “people smugglers” out of business, leaving only the terrorists trying to duck the border. Our agents could focus on them. The bad buys will be easier to pick out. They will no longer be able to hide among the swarms of people coming across looking for a job instead of a target. It’s a win-win.

Final thought: If we REALLY want to fix this problem, we need to help generate economic growth in places like Mexico so that the jobs develop there. THAT will reduce the desire of people to cross the border for work HERE.

They are crossing our border more out of desperate need for income than choice.

Don’t believe me? Just ask the guys cutting your grass…Francis Bacon had it right.

DeLay and the Russians – The $1 Million for 1 Vote

DeLay and the Russians – The $1 Million for 1 Vote

Russians had "sources inside the American Central Command" and that intelligence was passed to Saddam through the Russian ambassador in Baghdad.

This is according to news reports released today. It reminded me of Mr. DeLay’s connection to the Russians – in 1998 he and Mr. Abramoff got the Russians to donate $1 million to a U.S. charity –after Mr. DeLay said publicity he was against IMF funding. Once the $1 million was paid, DeLay changed his position and voted for the IMF bill Russia wanted passed.

Passing it through a charity doesn’t launder the fact that money changed hands to influence a foreign policy vote by a sitting U.S. Congressman. In the old days this was called a bribe.

It was after this Russian deal, if I can keep the DeLay/Abramoff Enron-like series of deals straight, that DeLay and Abramoff went off to the Marianna Islands to party (and ignore poor labor conditions for women and children) and Scotland to play golf at one of the most exclusive clubs in the world. Yep, this is the very same Abramoff that Mr. DeLay claimed “he didn’t know” in an 8-page letter he sent out during the campaign we just wrapped up.

Now we find out the Russians have a mole in our Central Command that tipped off Saddam about the 2003 operation -- and is probably still there tipping off Mr. Putin who has been a busy boy taking away the rule of law in Russia.

So, we have Congressman taking money from a foreign government for his vote. Maybe that explains why Mr. DeLay lost his voice when it came to protecting democracy in Russia as Mr. Putin’s rivals are put in jail and newspapers are puppets of the government or closed down.

Apparently, DeLay has not desired to bite the hand that gave him a $1 million donation/bribe (pick one or both), laundered through a charity, whose use of the money is questionable and is under federal investigation.

We need to find the mole and replace any Congressman or woman who takes money from a foreign government for their vote.

As someone who was a TV terrorism advisor on 9 11, it is my opinion this situation puts the U.S. in a very dangerous situation, externally and internally.

Half of the world lives on $2 a day or less - How to Change that

It happened again. Tonight I went to hear a speech by former EPA Administrator, William D. Ruckelshaus (Remember Watergate and the “Saturday Night Massacre”?) at the Houston World Affairs council on an “Initiative for Global Development” he is part of with Bill Gates, Sr., former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Shalikashvili, etc.

I didn’t expect to meet him but found myself being introduced to him as “a local hero” who had run against Mr. DeLay. At this news, Mr. Ruckelshaus looked very interested and starting asking me questions about the district, etc. I guess he was amazed I was still alive.

He went on to give a fascinating talk on a program to get businesses involved in reducing the most extreme poverty in the world. Why? Because poverty is bad for business, it’s that simple. The more people can raise their economic standards, the more business prospers. If people have a stake in the future, they are less likely to blow themselves up or gravitate towards extremist leadership.

They are focusing on people making only $1 a day, which are $1.2 BILLION people. He noted that we have 3 billion people—one half of the world -- who are making $2 or less per day. Their website is www.igdleaders.org

We have a long way to go.

Planet Sugar Land - “I Feel Free”

Yesterday I got a reminder that it is good to get away from “Planet Sugar Land” and see life in the real world where not everyone drives an SUV and has a safety net.

We stopped near the Houston Ballet for a quick breakfast, so my wife could go to work. As we were eating, I glanced up and noticed the man sharing our table was eying my breakfast. He was nursing a bottle of water.

I asked him if he had eaten. He shook his head no. After the campaign my wallet is on the thin side, but I gave him a couple bucks anyway. He promptly got up and bought himself a huge plate of eggs for a buck and sat down to eat. He said it made his day. It was a reminder to me that there are many in this world that need a break. Later that day, a new client gave me a check so it all worked out.

I saw an article yesterday in which Mr. DeLay said, “I feel free,” now that he no longer is the majority leader and can go out and smoke a cigar between votes. That is the freedom that comes from being in a free fall after losing power.

I am feeling free, but in a different way. My mission has been accomplished – I ran against corruption and malfeasance in office. Now the legal and political system can take over, and I am content with that. My six-year mission is accomplished. People are coming out of the woodwork to run in this race this fall.

Now I can move on to what I truly love and where my experience is -- international negotiations! I just read a fascinating article by a University of St Thomas professor on the limited options open to the Bush administration on dealing with a nuclear Iran. When I get permission to publish I’ll pass on some of his proposed solutions…

Trans Atlantic Drift

Yesterday I was invited to a lunch at the Houstonian to hear Dr. Geir Lundestad, who is Executive Director of the Norwegian Nobel Committee (that issues the peace prize), talking about “Trans-Atlantic drift.” He was referring to the U.S. and Europe politically.

He said basically that without the Soviet Union as “the tie that binds” Europe and the U.S. have not been as close as in the past. When asked if he thought China or a nuclear Iran might be a motivator for closer cooperation, he said he didn’t think so. No one in Europe is worried about China. And Iran’s future as a menace isn’t the same as the Soviets who had thousands of nuclear devices.

I think he may be right, unless our leaders decide to cooperate, not because they have to ward off Godzilla, but because it is the only way to resolve future Iraqs and survive in a changing world. Asia is on the rise and Europe and America have much to gain from cooperating, and much to lose by not.

I got a chance to meet Dr. Lundestad before the lunch. To my surprise, he said he’d been reading the election in the papers and was excited to actually meet one of the people he’d read about. Maybe it was that Norwegian name that stuck out.

Needless to say I was disappointed to find out that no peace prize was being offered for anyone who had run against Tom DeLay more than three times.

I met a Norwegian lady and we exchanged how people in cold climes are more direct than people in warm, southern climates. She said it was the same in Europe – those from the North have to get it out before you freeze to death, while those in the South can take their time (and do).

I have never been to Norway in 55 plus countries I’ve negotiated in. But I’ll wait until summer, since it is below zero there now. Trans Atlantic drift sounds like another way of saying “tour Europe this summer.” I know a church group that is back from a cruise on the Med, stopping at Rome, etc. They loved it.

Congress, Iran and Nuclear Proliferation

Iran has emerged as a real potential nuclear threat while our Congress leadership has allowed nuclear proliferation to endanger our future.

It was not Iraq, but Iran, that has posed the greatest danger to global security for the last decade. Iran has had an active nuclear development program for the 22 years DeLay has focused on navel gazing inside the beltway. Iran, unlike Iraq, has missiles with the range to carry hits on Israel and Europe. If those missiles carry a nuclear warhead, the power swings to a government ruled by religious extremists not unlike Hamas.

I was working in the Middle East area when Ayatollah Khomeini took over Iran in the late 1970’s.

Congress missed it. So did the White House. This is another reason why I ran for Congress – the incumbent has been asleep at the wheel of our national security the entire 22 years he’s been there.

No? Then where is our border security after 22 years? Where was DeLay’s preparation for 9 11?

In 1994, I did a TV program about a potential terrorist attack against the U.S. in 1994 with a Reagan administration weapons expert, Dr. Ron Hatchett. On 9 11, DeLay was just one more running for his life before an airplane flew into the Capitol Building (it picked the Pentagon instead).

DeLay has ignored Iran’s threat to Israel’s and U.S. security while chasing another red herring, such as the Dubai Port issue.

Pierce Bush is right to say Dubai is a moderate state and that all the hysteria is misplaced. Dubai is not Iran. Dubai is not Osama bin laden and the Taliban in Afghanistan. I once swam in the Gulf waters in Dubai. The reality is that Dubai is more like a global Las Vegas. Iran is more like Salem Witch Hunt on steroids, with nukes. Besides, what company would manage a port only to blow it up? (The real issue is why we allow any foreign company to run all our ports?)

This Congressman has fumbled our foreign relations at every turn, ignoring real dangers while favoring lobbyist paid golf trips to Scotland and parties in the Marianna Islands instead of fact-finding trips to Tehran.
Maybe it was because DeLay was too busy getting paid Russian government money in return for an IMF vote and playing golf to notice that Iran has been building a nuclear industry? Because of his neglect, we now face a greater danger. Iran is no place for a bug killer expert in Congress.
The administration has made so many basic mistakes in our international relations that Congress and its leaders could have caught or modified, but hasn’t. Now Americans are paying the price in a loss of security -- and will until we replace the self-absorbed incumbent with someone who can pay attention to protecting us from global threats.

No More D22 Runs for Me

For the record, I will not run again for District 22 as a candidate. However, that does not mean that I won't continue fighting corruption in our government. I will continue to irritate our corrupt leaders whenever possible.

The focus of this blog now turns to our future as a country. We are in serious trouble as a result of the runaway spending and lacking of preparation by our leadership. In the days ahead, we will address those issues - and potential Solutons...

Thanks again to the 40% of Republicans who voted in the primary for the clean candidates instead of the indicted one.

No Endorsement for Anyone Indicted for a Felony

I will NOT be endorsing Mr. DeLay in November.

I cannot endorse anyone running for office who has been indicted on a felony charge (after three Congress ethical admonishments and the sacking of the members of the ethics committee) --regardless of party.

My moral values won’t allow it. There are prisons full of people indicted on felonies who claim to be innocent. I won't be endorsing any of them for Congress either... If a guy holds up a gas station, it is a crime regardless of whether he is a Democrat or Republican.

I can understand them not voting for me, the avowed moderate, but they even rejected Mr. Campbell who had billed himself as “the ethical DeLay.”

How could they vote against an ethical alternative to DeLay? What kind of moral values are those?

There is trouble ahead for DeLay. Nearly 40% of partisan GOP voters voted against him. The Republicans who come out in November are more moderate (less partisan) and they are disgusted with the scandals, runaway spending, and corruption. It is about behavior and ethical conduct!

In a 60% GOP district that has a 40% Democrat base, a 40% drop in GOP support spells trouble for our imperial Congressman.

And that is before more evidence comes out in the federal investigation, to say nothing about the redistricting case before the Supreme Court, which eliminates DeLay’s argument that this is about politics and personal destruction.

Republicans Pick the Indicted Candidate - What Kind of Moral values?

Yesterday Republican voters picked a Congressman indicted on a felony as their candidate over THREE other candidates with more qualifications than DeLay had as a pest control expert. They chose the one with the darkest ethical and legal cloud hanging over his head.

What kind of values are these?

Mr. DeLay is under separate investigation by the federal authorities involving lobbyist abuses. He has had at least three recent ethical admonishments. DeLay promptly flew off for a lobbyist-sponsored fundraiser in DC scheduled for election night! I thought this was the party of moral values?

I heard some Republican activists say last night that they thought that an indicted Republican was better than any of the other choices. That is strange and twisted thinking.

It’s really about power, not values when folks say that DeLay is better than Tom Campbell, a lawyer who worked for Bush 41 or Mike Fjetland, an international negotiator, or Pat Baig, a former teacher who has lived overseas. However, the majority went with the poster boy for ethical abuses who flew in a lobbyist jet of RJ Reynolds, the tobacco company, to his indictment hearing in Austin.

This is about the future of this party that has lost its moral compass.

To me, moral values means not endorsing anyone indicted for a felony, be it Tom DeLay or Al Capone. People don’t get felony indictments for jaywalking. One has to be living on the edge to even be in the running for that. DeLay went after Clinton on a Misdemeanor, yet laughs off a felony. I saw people applauding that.

I thank the voters who picked ANY of the three of us. Unfortunately the bar is set very low. We have already set a higher standard of values than that represented by Mr. DeLay.

ANY of the choices left on the ballot in November (including the independent and former Rep. Stockman who may be far out there but isn’t under any felony I know of) beats electing a Republican indicted felon to represent the district we live in.

If this is the America of Abe Lincoln and George Washington, then even electing an un-indicted Democrat in November is a better choice than returning a corrupt Congressman to office, especially after he’s penalized teachers, veterans, etc….

In 2002, DeLay won with 80% after knocking me off the ballot for most of the primary. In 2006, he was down to 62%, so he is in decline.

My fight continues against corruption in our government, whether I’m a candidate or not…

Election Day! Today voters in District 22 can open a new chapter of 21st Century leadership

It’s Election Day! Today voters in District 22 can open a new chapter of 21st Century leadership by electing someone with the global skills and local focus we need in this space-age era; someone who has integrity and a positive, bridge building purpose.

It’s time to let the chips fall and close this chapter on Washington scandals and runaway spending. It’s time to move into the 21st Century with fresh leadership that can build bridges not burn them. People want common sense and honesty in government and in their representatives. That is not too much to ask.

To answer a lot of calls we’ve been getting, I will be at the old courthouse in Richmond tonight after the polls close during the traditional poll counting. This has been a tradition in every GOP primary I’ve been, the candidates all gathered in the historic old Richmond Courthouse to watch returns come in.

I ask for your vote today so we can begin that process and thank the many volunteers and friends who have helped….

Granny Turns 102 Today - Voters are looking for a Good Place to Land

“Kudos” to Channels 2, Channel 13 and Channel 39 for their public service this election – all of them have given District 22 candidates airtime and treated all equally. Channel 2’s pieces have aired. Channel 13 is doing something today.

Public service no-shows so far this year have been Channel 26 and Channel 11. NPR gets a stick for interviewing two candidates then talking only about one.
Fox National broadcast an interview with Mr. DeLay -- all by himself. I saw it while eating lunch at Larry’s Mexican restaurant in Richmond.

This is not a democratic level playing field. If that procedure controlled our courts, only one side would ever get to present its case. I am ready for an end to one-sided politics and journalism.

I give thanks and awards also to the community press, especially the many ethnic papers that are more American than those claiming to be. Most of them carried all candidates, printed our press releases and were fair. District 22 now looks like the UN and they are a vital information sources. These new Americans have a real thirst for American justice and equality.

My wife’s grandmother turned 102 today. We will do a birthday party to celebrate. Meanwhile, I will keep talking to the people of this district. They are fair and balanced.

I feel good about this. Yesterday Laura and I traveled from the west to the east side of the district, ending at an interfaith music event at the Clear Lake Baptist church. It was wonderful. The campaign also led to my discovery of bluegrass gospel. It is really upbeat and fun.

I believe integrity and honesty are needed in Washington like a spring shower. My international skills are also vital. We face great, global and local risks. You know my agenda. It’s been public for years. I treat all with justice, respect and fairness. My focus is the people of the district -- our vets, teachers, elderly, kids, etc.-- not lobbyists.

Final thoughts. The voters are like a flock of quail, looking for a place to land. When I filed December 9, no one else had filed, not even DeLay. So everyone who filed after me knew they were splitting the vote.

I’ve never been to Norway but in Norwegian I’m told that “Fjet” means good (so Fjet land is “Good land”). Norway is mostly mountain and sea. Good land is hard to find. Good representatives are also hard to find. I invite those voting quail to come settle in Fjetland.

Try it. You’ll like Fjetland.

What if DeLay Comes in No. 3 ? Possible...

Sunday, March 05, 2006

What if DeLay is No. 3 in this race?

As a told the young AP reporter I saw at Rosenberg yesterday -- I continue talking to people for hours without encountering a DeLay voter. There has been a huge voter turnout on my strong side of the district.

Before seeing the reporter I did some blocking walking in neighborhoods I’ve walked before (for years in prior elections). I found a guy home, hauling fresh compost to his yard. I introduced myself and he said he’d already voted. I asked him whom he voted for.

He said as a Republican that he had not voted for Mr. DeLay for the last few elections. I wasn’t sure he had voted for me either, but then he asked who else was running. I mentioned both names, he thought for a moment, and said: “No, I didn’t vote for them. I voted for you.”

I chock that up to name recognition. He went with the familiar name he’d seen on the ballot before.

For the third time in recent days kids, excited to meet me for some reason, approached me. It occurred while I was at a Boy Scout sale/fundraiser when a kid came running up and asking if I was “Mike Fjetland.” I said yes. He wanted to meet me as the candidate. He said his dad was scoutmaster. I enjoyed being with them all, working together, on a beautiful sunny blue spring day.

I came across some Foster High school girls and their parents and let them wash my van. They were doing it as a fundraiser for a trip to New York. The ones in the yellow shirts were going on the trip; the ones in the blue shirts had to wash and wait on a future trip. When I asked their preference, they came up with London and Paris instead of New York. I thought that was great, and pretty funny. The van really didn’t need the wash, but the kids needed the money for a trip that would expand their world. Many of the girls had never been out of the State of Texas!

I offered a $1 tip if anyone could pronounce my last name. I kept my dollar but they are smart and figured it out -- and I got a power shine you could see for miles. Thanks girls! Have fun on your trip.

It’s time to vote and make a decision.

Another update tomorrow…

Full Speed Ahead

Full Speed Ahead

I am still amazed at the number of people who tell me that they are no longer voting for Mr. DeLay. I can’t recall even talking to anyone lately who has told me they are voting for him.

Nor have they said that they were voting for any one of the newbies either. No one knows them. My five (5) years of talking to people in this district now is the critical difference.

In 2000 I did like the other two challengers in this contest – I filed at the last minute and worked for 2 months. I discovered that t is impossible to cover this district of 400,000 voters, in person, in two months. That is why it has taken 5 years to get here, building the only known base opposing DeLay.

Now it is expanding to include teachers, vets, and Americans of every ethnic group and faith that live in this district: including Vietnamese and Chinese Americans.

While the other challengers put money and their faces on billboards and TV, I am putting mine in front of people, one on one. I am building on 5 years of trust and relationships across this huge district that spans parts of different counties.

It will be a small group of voters who make this decision – usually less than 10% of the total number of potential voters. Those voters usually vote for someone they have met or know. This year I am the single challenger they have seen on the ballot before.

Be sure to let your friends know that Tuesday, March 7th is the last day to vote for positive change in District 22.

Thank You!
Mike Fjetland

POSITIVE QUOTE OF THE DAY---I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.-- Confucius (Chinese Philosopher) 551-479 B.C.

DeLay Needs SuperComputer to Find Voters

I finally grabbed a Chronicle yesterday and read the interesting article on DeLay using a sophisticated computer model to find his voters. From my experiences talking to people, he needs a Supercomputer to find his voters! Yep, they are a rapidly shrinking number requiring powerful instruments to detect.

Every meeting I go to I have people tell me that they used to vote for DeLay, but not this time. I have been hearing from one end of the district to the other.

I even heard it at the Galveston GOP Lincoln (let’s not forget him) Reagan dinner last night. I met people who have already voted for me and I had not yet met them. Cool. It gave me a chance to meet people I’ve missed like the Friendswood GOP ladies. All of it was added in 2004 after two prior boundaries so it is still new. That's why DeLay was also there last night, not DC. He actually lost Galveston County in 2004.

While DeLay needs the CIA to find his voters, I feel like a hunter in a field of quail (with no Dick Cheney around raining shrapnel on my head). All I have to do is show up and I bag votes flying around looking for a place to land. There are TONS of them. Many have seen my face before or know someone who has. They don't know the other two at all.

DeLay can use his supercomputer all he wants. Computers won’t be voting in this election.

But a lot of rightfully mad people I’ve meet will be.

Be Careful What You Pray For

I complained about not having enough media and then two interviews yesterday cost me contact with over 500 voters who will decide this election, so be careful what you pray for comes to mind.

But I had to show out of respect. The problem was that at the same time as the Chronicle Board interview there was a funeral for a prominent member of the community, who had been a long time member of our little church in Richmond.

The conflict was showing respect at two significant events, since elections and funerals aren’t flexible events.

I did make it to the end of the reception to say a word to the widow and family.

My wife and I ended the day by attending a church service on Ash Wednesday.

If I have to choose now, I choose contact with voters over any interview. I committed to one today but that may be about it. Voters, not media, will be making this decision in what has been described as the most important election of 2006.

If media wishes to see my letter to the board which was sent today, please check with the Chronicle Board. We’ll post it when time permits and lately voter contact is priority one.

Also, I hope people realize that my email backlog is piling up – I’m not ignoring you. I’m out there talking to people. I WILL response as soon as possible.

If it is an emergency item, leave a voice message on my cell phone on the contact page on the website.

I am able to check that more often. The momentum is taking off so be patient if I’m slow in responding to requests. Tonight I'll be at the Galveston event at South Shore if you want to see me. Today I'll be in Rosenberg and Richmond...etc

Liberal Media Favors the Wrong Candidate in this Race

Yesterday I felt like a hot knife in butter all day.

Only a train blocking the road kept me from Pearland last night, but it didn’t matter. Only 400 people have voted in Pearland after a week of early voting. My strength over the years is in the area of the district that is having the highest turnout. It happens to be home to our church family and thousands of our friends who have voted for me for years.

Everyone I have been meeting is SO ready for a change in Congress -- and pledged their vote.

Many remember me from past campaigns. They know I have been challenging Goliath and his arrogance and corruption long before the indictments started coming in and the new people jumped in.

For years, conservative radio would give Mr. DeLay free airtime and leave me off during a primary (it just happened again this week on the Gray show). How American is that?

Now I see the same thing from the liberal media. I was the only candidate other than Mr. Campbell who gave a talk taped by NPR. Yet I received not a sound bite. So the left and right have found some common ground –neither side believes in giving equal time. That doesn’t sound like American democracy to me. I’m happy for conservative GOP primary voters to know that the liberal media is behind Mr. Campbell! LOL.

But none of that matters to me because only one thing does – the voters. Newspapers don’t vote, people do. People vote for someone who earns their vote. You can’t buy them. DeLay spent $1,100 per vote in 2004. I spent $2 for each of mine.

Voters tell me that they just don’t know who the other candidates are. They certainly don’t care who NPR, the New York Times or Washington Post think is the favored candidate.

The voters are telling me they don’t want ANYONE with prior Washington experience elected this time.

Remember that old movie “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” ? I always like Jimmy Stewart. We could use another Mr. Smith shaking up DC, even if he has a funny Norwegian name and has never been to Norway or Washington…

Major Endorsement - From Teachers for Mike

Yesterday I got a call from a teacher group in District 22 - advising me that I officially had their endorsement in the GOP primary. What an honor.

There are over 5,000 teachers in Ft. Bend county alone, enough to win this primary outright.

Here is part of our campaign press release going out today:

“Teachers are our future. They were hurt when the incumbent cut their pensions in 2004. That hurts teachers and that hurts our children. And that hurts our future as a country.

I have been an Adjunct Professor. We are in a global economy and need a first class education system to compete in the 21st century. I will work hard for teachers as well as veterans, small business, the elderly, and our kids.

I am honored to have the endorsement of the teachers of this district.”
– Mike Fjetland

The Bottom line: Without teachers, we have NO FUTURE as a country or world leader. When you hurt them, you hurt our future prosperity.

Mr. DeLay cut their pensions the same time he allowed himself a fat pay raise. I would give the teachers their pensions back and stop Congress pay raises until the budget gets back to being sane and fiscally fit. Stop spending billions on bridges to no where.

America needs to become "Fjiscally Fjit" in Viking speak. I'm back out there, finishing what I started on this mission to get Congress away from the corrupt and working for our future.

Low Turnout – Favors the Grass Roots Guy

Reports are that the turnout is LOW – Pearland box has only had 400 voters after a week of early voting!

This is good news for me. Low turnouts favor a challenger who already has a proven grass roots base, as I have from three prior election cycles.

It is bad news for the new challengers because they don’t have a base. I talked to a friend running for office in Brazoria County today. He said that people were seeing my opponents’ signs and were asking him “Who are those people?” Does that sound like they will be getting those votes?

The media doesn’t understand that you just can’t buy votes in a primary with signs and ads—that may work in a general election but not a primary. People want to know who they are voting for. The media assume money equals votes but it is grass roots work that produces primary votes –years of time meeting people and shaking hands. I’ve seen challengers drop millions and lose out to grass roots with less money (Ref: Wareing vs. Culbertson in District 7).

P.S. A major new endorsement will be announced tomorrow (Feb. 28). Standby or check our Press Room. It comes from a group who were hammered by the incumbent. They are part of a group with over 10,000 voters in the district. That is enough to win this outright without a run off.

Year of the Dog, the Underdog and the Dark Horse

Saturday, February 25, 2006

It happened again yesterday. My wife and I were at a cemetery in Rosenberg attending a friend’s funeral. As we were preparing to leave a church member came up with his two boys and said:

“My kids are saying that you are going to win this election.”

Amazing. That was twice in two days kids have said that. My wife’s statement about the “Weekly Reader” poll – where kids have been right about who will be the next President for decades – rang in my mind. Perhaps they have the advantage of being able to judge things without personal interest interfering with their judgment !

All I need to win is for my voters from either the 2002 or 2004 election to get just 2 of their friends to vote for me -- and I win this outright without a run off with a 22 year incumbent.

This is the Chinese year of the Dog. It could also be the year of the dark horse and the underdog. That certainly describes me.

Who's Winning?

I was visiting some seniors yesterday. A couple came up to me and said:

"We are not voting for Mr. DeLay this year. Instead, we are voting for you because the other guy (meaning Mr. Campbell) has too much political time in Washington already. We want you because you haven't been tainted by it already."

Amazing. I have met a lot of people like that –people who used to vote for the incumbent but have said they won’t do it this time.

Then this happened:

When I drove home to get Laura before the last candidate forum, several kids I didn’t know were in front of our driveway, doing whatever kids do. As I pulled up I rolled down the window and said: “Who’s winning?” meaning which one of them had won whatever game they were up to.

A girl of about 9 or 10 was sitting on the curb and immediate shot back: “You are.”

I liked that kid. It reminded Laura of the “Weekly Reader” poll, where kids pick the next President and are usually right.

We’ll see if they are right this time. I know this. If every person who voted for me in the last three elections get only 2 friends to vote for me, I win this one without even a runoff. I ask they get at least 5!

NPR Forum - DeLay No Show - Slap at GOP Ladies

The NPR Forum

We had a GOP ladies candidate forum at a beautiful setting in the Southern National Bank of Sugar Land last night, which was covered by NPR for its national radio network (to be broadcast Monday, Feb 27 on its morning edition), using tape from the event.

Mr. DeLay did not show and did not bother sending a representative -- a dinner in Dallas outside his district was so important that it required him and his entire staff, instead of at least sending his very capable stand-in Chris Holman to the ladies forum in the district. DeLay had the moderator read a letter to the candidates and ladies groups from him!

What a total disregard and slap at the ladies, in my opinion. As Congressman, I would have appeared personally to the ladies in the district and sent my rep to Senator Kay’s dinner in Dallas. DeLay missed a great group.

Only Mr. Campbell and I came. The format allowed, for the first time, each candidate to ask the other candidates one question. Is that why DeLay wouldn’t come? We both agreed that DeLay is finished. I’ve been saying it a lot longer because the problems have been evident for years. The Scotland trip, Abramoff, etc all occurred since 2000!

I have been reaching out to the people of the since 2000 to make this long overdue change. The budget is a mess, security was zilch before 9 11, lobby money still fuels his campaign and buys our representatives vote -- things remain the same! 22 years is too long in any office. I thank the ladies who held the forum, and NPR for covering the most important election in 2006 (as someone has called it).

Despite that, no Houston TV and radio media were present last night -- just NPR, doing the public a tremendous service. Tune in Monday for information you aren't getting locally. The local TV/radio media are missing the news event of the century in the making. My wife said she saw the looks on people’s faces last night –they are finally realizing DeLay’s days are over. The other candidates for other offices waiting to speak could hear it in the room. Ask them.The only issue now is to which candidate to turn.

DeLay himself must have realized it Friday night when his presentation fell flat in front of a group representing thousands of voters.

I ask you to get out and vote for the one candidate who has been out there challenging corruption at its peak, instead of waiting until DeLay was weak…Mike Fjetland. No late tackle hits here. I’ve been part of the process to take down this corruption for a long time.

Do you vote for the ones who waited to join the fray late? -- or the one who has been battling it with determination and commitment and with district people for the last 3 elections in which I was kicked off the ballot, had highway signs stolen and was shut out from the media by Mr. DeLay?

Yes, I am the underdog here, but I'm also the only one who has worked like a dog for the district for years, challenging the incumbent when he blocked transit upgrades and veterans benefits and teachers pensions. Who has been the most reliable in fighting for you and clean, honest government? Why are they just getting into it now, when it has been evident for a long time? I challenged wrong when it was at its peak, not waiting for when he was weak.

Who do you want in office now? Ask yourself --then go vote and get your friends to do the same. Thank you!

Meeting Miss Texas USA

Campaigning does have its advantages, aside from long hours. Last night I got to meet "Miss Texas USA" Lauren Lanning at a Masonic Lodge, which even included dinner. I didn't expect either. I can tell you that Texas will definitely win the “Miss USA” crown this year. Her mom was with her. I thought they were sisters. We witnessed a Mason get a 50-year award. He came with his wife of 69 years. It was great.Early voting starts today. I ask for your vote. I’ve spent many years in this district talking to people, getting ready for this time. I’ve fought for teachers and vets, commuter rail, small business and justice and fairness.

The other challengers have never run before and have no proven voter base. I have a base of 5,000 plus from prior elections, which guarantees me a run off spot at the least in the primary.

Last night it expanded by at least one to include Miss Texas USA, who lives in the Friendswood part of the district. She and her mom certainly get my vote.

Please tell your friends to vote today for a 21st Century rep with integrity, a local focus and the global skills we need in DC.

2 Forums - 2 DeLay’s - No Torture

February 18, 2006

Yesterday we had two candidate forums. A clear sign of trouble for the incumbent is that he personally appeared at both. The second forum was his very first step inside the Arab Community center in Stafford in the 5 plus years of its existence.

The noon forum was the “Spirit of Freedom” which is Mrs. DeLay’s ladies group. I was not worried about the votes since a TV station wanted to shoot tape of my presentation so I wrote my talk for the TV audience. The only two candidates in person there was Mr. DeLay and yours truly. He knew it was his crowd; I knew the next forum would be bigger -- and would be my crowd...

DeLay said he believed in the primary process but he didn’t tell them he had me bumped from the primary ballot in 2002 when I turned in signatures instead of paying an expensive filing fee. I didn’t mention it to the ladies – it’s water under the bridge. Let’s move on to the future.

The second forum was last night at the Arab Community Center. It was great. My wife Laura and I had a wonderful time. We saw a lot of old friends and made new ones. It’s too bad the TV cameras weren’t there because I felt a real surge of energy in the room as I talked about American values like justice, fairness and equality.

I talked about one Arab American man who applied for citizenship after 11 years of marriage – and the INS took his passport, checkbook and photo of him with Mayor Bill White! What? A terrorist is going to have his photo taken with the Mayor? Another candidate said that his 15-year-old son is on the no-fly list. We read about two year olds are having the same problem with airport security and no one has shoes. Homeland Security under the incumbent is not making sense.

I learned that it was Mr. DeLay’s first time at ACC. I’d been there every time as a candidate since 2000, as well as Jewish Temples, Indian temples, Chinese, Vietnamese Hispanic and African American churches, etc and some churches that I am not sure what they were. The community center has always been full of normal Americans with family values who believe in the American way and our Constitution - even more so than some of our politicians!

One question was raised about torture. I said that America must improve its global image. We are a nation based on courts and laws, not flying people to countries to be tortured. Even Mr. DeLay deserves a day in court rather than being dragged to a foreign country and tortured (don’t even think it). If our court system is good enough for him, indicted on a felony, then it is good enough for everyone else in the world.

The Arm Wrestling Challenge

A couple members of the media I talked to yesterday caught the humor in the idea of adding an old fashioned Olympic challenge to this election. One laughed and asked: "Are you in training?"

Sure. But come to think of it, DeLay would go into an arm wrestling tie breaker with an advantage - he has lots of practice strong arming lobbyists!

But pocketing plump lobby checks doesn't generate a lot of muscle tone, so my five years of grass roots "working out" and "training" in the district should be enough to pin him in the deciding match. :0).

Mr. DeLay needs to be pinned down to the truth when he tells his own constituents two different stories on whether he is "best friends" or a stranger to a man he took several international trips with to exclusive resorts in Scotland and the Marianna Islands. His own words prove he plays loose with the truth as well as the people's money. His cuts in teachers' pensions and vet's benefits while allowing “bridges to nowhere” are acts he pinned all by himself.

Hurting teachers hurts our children and our country's future. I would not send vets to war in Iraq than vote 'no' to $50 million in improving artificial limbs for the injured coming back. What about the other challengers in this contest?

One question. WHERE were they the last 5 years when all DeLay’s lobby trips, money laundering, etc was taking place? I was out here fighting corrupt politics and working for the regular people in the district instead of making the big bucks for Fortune 500 companies. I was working to earn votes, not buy them.

What is their real agenda? Mine has been public for 5 years. All are claiming to be more right than the others--all splitting up that vote. I am the only declared moderate with a proven base.

Voters have the power and growing desire to strong arm some change on March 7 - if not then they will allow corruption and deceit to masquerade as honesty and integrity in Washington. So if we can’t have a mature TV debate to educate voters, perhaps the American way is that we have a TV arm-wrestling match instead!

Maybe We Should Just Have an Old Fashioned Olympic Duel

With the sniping going on in Congressional candidate press releases and candidate forums (not me of course), and since the winter games are going on, I propose that consider settling this contest in Olympic style – with a twist.

I propose 3 events.

My three would be (1) Golf, (2) Flying mock air combat from that fighter place in Galveston –which uses lasers not bullets, and (3) arm wrestling.

The winner of 2 of 3 against DeLay wins. It would shake out like this.

I’ll lose the golf match because I have been in 55 plus countries and have never played golf in any of them, so DeLay will win that one, especially if it was held in Scotland. Ummm.

As a pilot and former Captain in the Civil Air Patrol on homeland security patrols, I will blitz DeLay in the air to air combat with the Galveston flight. He’ll be in flames (like our Homeland security status) before he can toss his cookies in a loop.

So it would boil down to the arm wrestling. I can feel the surge of energy I would have at that moment, grabbing him by the arm while thinking about his cutting funding for missing limbs of our Iraq vets and teacher pensions guarantees -- while approving the bridge to nowhere.

I’ll pin him on those without even thinking about the confusing prescription rug plan he devised that cheats grandma if she tries to change it.

But it won’t happen. Mr. DeLay is afraid of a TV Debate, not to mention arm wrestling and air duels (but not golf).

Someone has said, rightly I think, that this is the most important election this year.

Should not people know where everyone stands? What is better than like in a democracy than an unscripted TV Debate for the most important election of the year…..?

Nothing but the Truth...?

So which DeLay statement is true –that Abramoff is a “close friend” of DeLay’s or that DeLay “didn’t know Abramoff” as he now claims.

Mr. DeLay has said both, meaning one of them is false. He started with: "Jack Abramoff is a close friend of mine" on national TV. Did you see it?

Then after Abramoff pleads guilty, DeLay sends out an 8-page letter to his constituents, saying he "didn't know Abramoff."

EIGHT pages? A lot of trees had to die to make his case. Ummm.

So, which statement is true Tom?

How can anyone believe DeLay’s answer to any question when one of these statements is obviously a bold lie (what else?) since the statements were both made by him and are contradictory?

In his own words, DeLay has proved that truth is optional in his office.

Chronicle Claims "GOP Voters Like DeLay" But the Math says it's under 50%

Saturday, February 11, 2006

The Chronicle Sunday article on this election claims: “GOP voters still Like DeLay” http://chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/3653114.html but do the math.

The Chron poll showed nearly 50% of the voters were UNDECIDED. It also gave the three challengers about 10%. If half are undecided and another 10% already want someone else, that puts DeLay at 40%! That is below 51% needed for an outright win. That is not strong support --it is called a run off! Consider that he got 80% in 2002. So anything below that is a loss for him.

It means that as the undecided voters split their votes, DeLay will end up with even less than 40% on March 7. My advisors estimate his actual base is about 35%, mostly in Sugar Land, the venue observed by the Chronicle. If DeLay does somehow win March 7 or the run off, the seat will go to Democrat Nick Lampson -- who is already outpolling DeLay in a 60% GOP district!

The Chronicle article takes a shot at me, saying “the most he’s ever received in prior elections is 20%.” That’s good!

Fact – That 20% equals 5,000 more votes than the two new challengers have ever received against DeLay –in a district that changed boundaries three times and could change again since the US Supreme Court is hearing it on March 1! The other two challengers start with zero base since they have no prior history in this district. I have spent five (5) years and several pair of shoes in face time. That personal loyalty by people who always vote -- but don’t show up in the Chron's random poll of a few people. So I go into this election with at least 5,000 voters I can count (the second largest to DeLay's) versus zero for the other challengers. They are trying to buy the votes that I have been earning. They do have the bigger budgets, but mine comes from local people, not national or personal special interests. Bottom Line: This race is still wide open.

That also means that I’m probably the closest to DeLay for the No. 2 run off spot with my base from the last three elections. It would not take much to surpass DeLay when 40% are still undecided! The other challengers may try to buy votes this time, but I have worked to earn my votes. I thank everyone who has voted for me since 2000.

The Chronicle says they “see no groundswell” for me. They should have been with me last week in a church when I was talking to a couple people, and was suddenly surrounded by people -- all talking at once -- excited to see this Congress candidate. It happened in several places. It didn’t happen at the Sugar Land chamber but that is a small part of the district that covers four counties. Some of those people would vote for DeLay no matter what.

The Chronicle also flogged me for “talking too long to a constituent.” I can live with that. I am there to listen to them regardless of how long it takes. I try to talk to everyone.

The real question is who is best to take his place? I still say we need a global Congress rep with experience and integrity to deal with an increasingly dangerous, global world.

Churches go Green on Global Warming

WASHINGTON (Feb. 9) - A group of 85 evangelical Christian leaders on Wednesday backed legislation opposed by the White House to cut carbon dioxide emissions, kicking off a campaign to mobilize religious conservatives to combat global warming.

I join them in their mission. Without cutting emissions we jeopardize our entire global environment. Did those who think we can ignore melting ice caps which planet they plan to move to when this one is a wreck? Right. This isn’t like moving to the other side of the tracks if your neighborhood goes bad. If the planet overheats, we all lose. So I agree with these church leaders in their quest.

On the campaign trail, we had a candidate forum in Needville last night – No DeLay, although he appeared in Sugar Land on Monday. I guess Needville doesn't rank with him, but it does with me. We discovered the best seafood restaurant next to the KC Hall. When we went inside, we found several other candidates gobbling away. LOL.

During the forum a couple of the Congress candidates snarled at Mr. DeLay’s rep and vice versa – I was having too much fun to snarl at anyone. The questions were excellent – on the runaway budget and prescription drugs. Since I now qualify for senior coffee at Krogers, I told them these were issues that interested me greatly…:0)

An editor contacted me today, asking me about DeLay’s 8 page letter claiming he and Jack Abramoff “weren’t friends” despite two international trips to exotic resorts and Jack pulling out the credit card to pick up Congressman’s expenses.

All I can say about that is this. If you believe that strangers do that kind of thing, I’ve got a bridge in Brooklyn I’d like to sell you…!

What Power? First Ellington, Now Transport Setback for Houston area under DeLay

News just reported that Houston Metro won't get its $324 million this year for rail expansion to new lines, like Ft Bend and Clear Lake.

This is on top of losing Ellington Field, a blow to our homeland security.

This happened under DeLay’s watch. He’s been a Congressman on the public payroll for 22 years and we can’t get a measly $300 million for helping our overcrowded roads by expanding our commuter rail transportation?

Unfortunately, he’s been working to kill rail for years. I heard him tell a Rose Rich chamber group that the Dallas rail system was a total failure. Never mind that it was a total lie. Now he is ignoring to death as we commuters sit stuck in traffic for hours.

Ellington Field was shut down despite DeLay being its Congressman. It’s F-16’s are leaving. As a terrorism expert who was on TV on 9 11, I believe we are a prime target.

That is not power. That is pitiful. We could do better with Mary Poppins in his seat, not to mention any of the challengers. It wouldn’t take much to do better.

Consider this. DeLay claimed “surprised” by 9 11 – 8 years after the first World Trade Center bombing when the Defendants declared in their trial that “they would try again.”

I guess he was too focused on lobbyists in DC to see it coming.

Those same lobbyists didn't want commuter rail. That is why you and I are stuck in traffic today and for years to come....Welcome to the land of traffic Delays and bridges to nowhere....Calling Mary Poppins! TOMORROW: The churches go green (on Global Warming) and I'm with them...

DeLay shows for Candidate Forum - Need for a Real Debate

Since 2000, I have seen Mr. DeLay appear at a candidate forum a total of three times - once when I filed in 2000, once at the Clear Lake debate in 2004 -- and last Tuesday in Ft Bend at a chamber forum. It means he smells trouble in the Bayou City. Polls say that if the election were held today, he’d lose to the Democrat.

The trouble with a candidate forum is that everyone says how wonderful we each are in 2 minutes and there is little the public gets about where we are on the issues and our vision for the future. All I recall DeLay saying in his 2 minutes was how much he hated Democrats. That is a thin platformto stand on. I didn’t hear his vision for dealing with border security, runway spending, $18 billion in pork barrel earmarks, etc.
This election needs to be about our candidates’ vision for the future. Only a real debate between us before March 7 will give the public that knowledge. All the public is getting now is signs, mailings and emails saying how wonderful we each are. That is ok but not really useful to the public.

For example, if I had been in Congress the last six years, we would have already finished the Ft Bend commuter rail extension from Rosenberg to the southern terminus of Houston’s rail line. That would take 50,000 cars off the road as people went to the Medical Center and downtown. On weekends Houstonians could enjoy “day trips” at the antique shops and restaurants in historic downtown Rosenberg and Richmond. It would boost the economy and give Houston another part of history to enjoy. I’ve fought for this improvement since running for this seat in 2000.

In those six years I did not see the other two challengers out there fighting for it. They were making the big bucks certainly, and they can use them in this race, while I was out there taking a pay cut by running for office to fight for better transportation and other services for the district at a time when DeLay was diverting hundreds of millions of our federal dollars to other cities. And it took these new candidates to 2006 to get riled up about these things?

I’ve been fighting for the vets all these years as well. One vet told me how he heard Mr DeLay claim he'd close every VA hospital in the country if it were up to him. I disagree with that view. I would have voted for the vets instead of voting down $50 million for prosthesis research for our veterans returning from Iraq with missing arms and legs, as DeLay did recently. I would have voted for the vets and against the bridge to nowhere. He did the opposite.

On the teacher front, I was with them in 2004 when they got hammered on their pensions by Mr. DeLay. I would reverse what he did to teachers. By cutting their pensions he cost us to lose years of talent and our best and brightest, who were forced to retire early. I was out there with the teachers in 2004 as a candidate, fighting for them. Where were my competitors?

The public needs to know this. One lady said to me yesterday: “This is one of the most important elections of our time.” She’s right.

So why not serve the public by having a debate to talk about all these things that will impact all of us? What do YOU think?

Iran's Nuke Quest Nuke - What a Congress Rep Needs to Know

Iran is on course to build a nuclear weapon. The key question for the U.S. is how to handle this dangerous situation.

I was supposed to be in Iran in 1978 on a project for a Fortune 500 company. It was a naval base being built on the Persian Gulf. I avoided being a refugee and potential hostage when I turned down that assignment and took a job with another Houston company as an international attorney. I ended doing oil deals in places like Cairo, Egypt and negotiating pollution control technology in Beijing, China instead of being put on a barge and fleeing one step ahead of the 1978 Iranian revolutionaries. The new Iranian President is one of them.

Iran is an example of what happens when a radical religious agenda takes over from a secular government. The fanatics have sidelined the moderates in Iran. We’ve had enough extremists in our own government. All they do is get us into trouble.

The key is to help Iran reach a more tolerant, moderate government. You can’t do that with a war. Iraq should be a lesson in how our assumptions don't match reality in these situations.

Iran's facilities are underground. Iran already has missiles that can hit Israel and radioactive material that could be used as a dirty bomb in a warhead. The payback from a military strike would be deadly to our allies. It will take global diplomacy and strong pressure to resolve the Iran situation. The U.S. should call a summit and involve NATO, Russia and China. I spent the day of 9 11 on TV as a terrorism expert. We don’t need any more of them.

On the campaign front, I had some incredible experiences over the weekend. I went into one place yesterday and was talking to a couple people. Before I knew it, a dozen people had surrounded me –all of them taking excitedly about the election. The desire for change was so thick you could almost cut it with a knife.

I leaned against the wall, and listened.

Voters need to be thinking about which replacement representative is best equipped to deal with the looming local and global issues facing us – from teachers and vets getting better treatment to dealing with Iran’s fanatic government on a quest for nuclear weapons.

The skills we need in Congress for these global situations are not acquired by playing golf at expensive resorts in Scotland…If a representative doesn’t have those skills now, he or she won’t have the time to get them on the job to avoid making some big mistakes in dealing with these complex global issues that affect our security. That knowledge could have avoided a lot of mistakes made with Iraq.

Showing Respect - In Defense of All Religions

How would Christians react if someone portrayed Jesus as Mohammad was in a recent cartoon in Europe? That's right, they would be rightfully outraged. It is time that people realize that we need to treat ALL religions with respect. That is what America is supposed to be about and that is what our representatives are supposed to do - treat them equally and with respect. If a terrorist hijacks a religion, it is not the religions fault, it is the terrorists fault. Last week I went to a Mosque in Ft. Bend and I heard a message of peace, and of the importance of being honest and good. It could have been the sermon in my church. I have heard many like this in Houston Mosques since 2000. I have attended Jewish temples, Indian temples, and many others in this diverse district. All deserve respect. The cartoon was really religious racism, and that is wrong.

The Election of HAMAS and its Impact on America

HAMAS and Homeland Security

A Congress rep should be thinking how global events affect our future, because they do.

So the election of HAMAS deserves comment. If it increases terrorism, then it directly impacts our Homeland Security (and future terrorism acts here or abroad). Our mission is to find a way to diminish that threat. There is a way to do that.

I recommend everyone read Fareed Zakaria’s column in Newsweek’s Feb. 6 edition –he describes how dictators in the Middle East have destroyed opposition groups, how that lead to the rise of HAMAS and what we need to do to “fix it.”

“Fixing it” means promoting secular, progressive groups in the Middle East that provide an alternative to hard-line religious radicalism that fueled HAMAS. Unlike Arafat and his Fatah, HAMAS actually built hospitals and provided services that the corrupt Fatah officials never tried to do. But they will have to accept Israel’s right to exist. Our government can play a role in the process of moderating Middle East politics.

President Bush, as Mr. Zakaria points out, has said that democracy promotion is a “growth industry.” We can help by funding those groups to help bring electoral diversity and more moderation to the Middle East.

I have talked about this issue with both Muslim friends and Jewish friends. Everyone has much at stake because it impacts all of us regardless of religion or where we live.

We must be proactive to avoid future 9 11’s (not to mention budget crisis) instead of ignoring the obvious signs as our Congress did the 1990’s.

Coretta Scott King -- message for the world

Remembering Coretta Scott King

We have lost another visionary leader. Many people do not know that Coretta Scott King was the strength and encourage behind Martin Luther King’s message of social change by non-violence. She often filled in at speeches when he could not be there.

As a child she had to walk five miles to school -- while white kids passed by riding in buses. How could an American society treat people so differently? We must not let it happen again. The world will miss her drive for justice and activism for equal rights for all people. That is what this country is about.

On TV this morning I saw Sen. Frist announce that a Museum of African American history will be built in the Washington mall. I endorse this long overdue project.

We really need to apply MLK’s message on a global scale – social change without violence and terrorism.

Compare Al Qaida’s bombings and kidnappings to what MLK achieved with only the sound of his voice, when he declared people judge others “by the content of their character, not the color of their skin.” Our own peace corps and Habitat for Humanity have built far more goodwill worldwide than any weapon we have produced or used.

In my travels in over 50 countries I have learned that no one has a monopoly on good or bad. I have seen mostly good, and some bad, in all places.

That is the message we should remember on his sad day with the loss of Coretta Scott King.

Remembering Challenger

Remembering Challenger

It was 20 years ago that Challenger blew up in 1986. I still remember it as vividly as I recall what I was doing when President Kennedy was shot and on the day of 9 11. I sat in front of the TV nearly all day, watching it, hoping all of them somehow escaped in the crew module, knowing it wasn't likely.

At the Bay Area GOP candidate forum a few nights ago I heard the incumbent’s representative say how DeLay had “saved” NASA by adding $1.1 billion to its budget recently. What he didn’t say was that it was DeLay who has continually cut NASA’s budget over the years, usually right after beating me in a primary. Is that commitment?

Do you want to trust him again?

Funding for NASA in the budget is NOT going up – for the next 5 years it will be flat. Any Congress rep can manage to do that. Twenty five years ago I went to China on pollution control technology negotiations and was nearly run down by millions of bicycles. Now, even China has put people in space and preparing its own space missions. India, Japan and others are not far behind. Meanwhile, our astronauts wait years for a mission. What a sad waste of valuable, high tech talent. They should be flying not waiting.

We can do better to honor our fallen space heroes. Our Congress has done little to give our space program a replacement Shuttle before the old ones failed. Our astronaut's have not been getting the funds needed to be a space pioneer as the world’ largest superpower. Barbara Morgan, our backup "teacher in space" has had to wait 20 years since Challenger's loss.

At the present rate, others will pass our achievements unless Congress energizes NASA and encourages private space entrepreneurs. These losses could have been avoided with a little vision in Congress, etc.

In memory of the astronauts lost on Challenger and Columbia, I think we can do much better. As a pilot and space enthusiast for decades, I will make it a key focus if elected to represent District 22.

How? I’d cut all of the $13 billion in pork projects such as the “bridge to nowhere” and transfer at least half of it to NASA and other programs we need.

NASA is too important to be left struggling with minimal budgets in the 21st Century. It is a key asset in District 22 and deserves far better than it has fared the last 20 years under the incumbent.

Bulgaria MP's and a Buzz of District Voters

Yesterday the whole day was a whirl of handshaking and meeting the voters of District 22. The Bay Area Transportation Group was buzzing with smiling faces for breakfast. What a great, passionate group of proactive and concerned citizens!
In the afternoon I met with a delegation of newly elected Parliament members from Bulgaria - who are here to see how U.S. democracy works. I introduced them to historic Richmond with its old world charm. While Bulgaria has been free of communist rule for quite some time, these delegates were from the Parliament just formed in May 2005. They have at least a dozen parties to our two primary parties. All but one of the new Bulgarian Congress are women - there was only one man in the group today. All of them seemed very intelligent and dedicated. We discussed the need for economic development in Bulgaria and discussed the potential for tourism, high tech, and the need for health care workers for their aging population. Naturally, they were curious about elected officials, indictments, and what to expect from recent scandals. However, question closest to their hearts was about the international kidnapping > negotiations I was involved in the Middle East. It turns out Bulgaria has 6 people being held in Libya. I offered what comfort and insight I could and promised to help in any way possible. Their democracy seems vibrant, young at heart, and refreshingly idealistic. Sometimes it is hard to keep hope alive in a democracy. The Bulgarian delegates’ enthusiasm was contagious. I shall carry it with me for some time. I was proud to represent Texas and District 22 in such a positive light. You can be sure we made a good impression and bolstered our international relations with this coalition partner. The IIE does such a fantastic job of arranging these visits. This is truly growing democracy around the world.

Sharon and the Future of the Middle East

The news about Israel's Prime Minister Sharon having a major stroke could not come at a more delicate time.

Sharon has been the guiding figure in a major transformation in Israeli-Palestinian relations. Without him, the future of the Middle East peace process is uncertain at best. Now, even Palestinians worry about the future without Mr. Sharon, as broadcast on Houston TV last night.

We hope that his legacy will carry through the peace process if he is unable to return to work. I have spent time in the Middle East since I was a young negotiator in the late 1970's. I was in Cairo, Egypt, in 1979 when the first visit by an American President established the first peace treaty between Israel and an Arab country (Egypt). In fact, my room was used for the Presidential delegation (I went to private home). I was privileged to give up my residence for such a historic event.

Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of Sharon, the Middle East, and the world. All of whom deserve peace and stability.

Face Time

I am always surprised when I am the only candidate to show up at a GOP event. I guess everyone else is too busy to meet with local leadership. For me, keeping in touch with the people is best done face to face.

Last night I went to the Harris County GOP party for the close of nominations and the Galveston County GOP party. I saw none of the other three candidates.

Someone said that the incumbent had sent a “representative” to Galveston, apparently not willing to go himself. Personally, I Galveston even more last night when I saw their BBQ table – all Harris County served was fancy cheese and crackers.

People I met are concerned about cronyism and the image of the party

Today I was the only GOP Congress candidate who bothered to turn up at the City of Houston swearing in ceremony for Houston’s first woman-majority council that is about equally split between GOP and Democrats.

But I did bump into Democrat Rep. Al Green --as I was going up the line shaking hands with the new council, I noticed that he was coming down the line from the other end. We met in the middle. Then we both kept going. It was good for a laugh.

We need a return to the bipartisan working relationship to resolve community problems and issues that Judge Eckels and Mayor White demonstrated as true leaders during Katrina…