Democrats accuse Carole Strayhorn of being a Rick-Perry-in-a-skirt conservative. Republicans despise her for being too liberal. It seems to me that if both parties hate her, she may be a good candidate for those of us who want a better Texas, but couldn’t care less about the fortunes of either party.
I think the real reason Strayhorn has earned the ire of the two major parties is the fact that she has, over the course of her career, strayed from both. Quitting both parties is troublesome for partisans when the so-called quitter is one of the most popular politicians in Texas.
I suppose her lack of loyalty to the major parties makes her something of a traitor in their eyes when in actuality having quit both parties is merely a sign that she’s come to her senses.
Strayhorn and fellow independent hopeful Kinky Friedman both need to gather nearly 50,000 signatures to get on the November ballot, and I’ve been going back and forth on whose petition to sign. Here’s the situation:
- Rick Perry (R) must be defeated.
- Chris Bell (D) will lose.
- Friedman will shoot himself in the foot, probably after draining Bell’s support.
- Strayhorn can beat Perry.
In addition to her potential as a candidate, Strayhorn is genuinely interested in doing right by Texas schools and Texas taxpayers. I finally signed Strayhorn’s petition. I still have a lot to learn about Bell, so I don’t know if she’ll get my vote in November, but I’m convinced she deserves a spot on the ballot.
Perhaps in the coming weeks I’ll explore each candidate’s positions in more depth.
James Brush is a teacher and writer who lives in Austin, TX. He tries to get outside as much as possible.
Well, you know White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan is Strayhorn’s son…
That’s enough reason for me not to trust her, and definitely enough of a reason to think that she will likely tow the party line. She’s no independent, and she’s just way too opportunistic.
Yeah, I know McClellan is her son, but there are plenty of parents whose kids are boobs. Can’t always blame the parents.
My main concern is getting rid of Perry and I think she helps there whether she contributes to a Bell win or actually wins herself. If she does win we’ll be better off with her than with Perry who has proven his incompetence and lack of support for Texas schools.
As to opportunism I don’t know about that. Hard to believe someone could get far in politics without being an opportunist.
Anyway, I’m not necessarily supporting her for governor, just supporting getting her name on the ballot. We’ll see how this all plays out.
Thanks for visiting, Harold.
I agree Perry has to go. If Strayhorn can split enough Republican vote to allow Bell to win, or win outright, I do think we’ll have a better Texas as a result. She would have a tough battle to get funding for her campaign, but she is a strong-willed woman whose chances I like to at least make this race interesting. We’ll just have to keep watching it for the next 7 months.
A better Texas is the key. It’s hard to go any lower from here unless, of course, Perry wins. Yikes. I think that Carole will have no problem finding money, though. She’ll appeal to a lot of moderates and realists.