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press Archive for: October 2006
Abbott Try to Claim Ad Using State Tape is Legal
posted by snarko on October 31 2006
by Laylan Copelin :: AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
It looks like a scene from TV's "Cops."
Instead, the arrest video highlighted in a campaign commercial for Attorney General Greg Abbott was shot by a state employee at taxpayer expense. In fact, video of everything from Abbott's news conferences to the latest bust of suspected child predators can be found on his campaign and official state Web sites -- all shot by his $70,000-a-year state-paid videographer.
Has the state's top lawyer violated the law prohibiting the misuse of government property or personnel, as his critics suggest, or is he legally blurring the lines between public servant and politician?
In essence, candidate Abbott filed an open records request to Attorney General Abbott for the videos produced by the state. No reimbursement was required, according to the Abbott campaign, because the video copies cost less than $10.
"Every action taken by the campaign is completely consistent with Texas law," Abbott campaign staffer Daniel Hodge said in an e-mail. "Any allegations to the contrary are patently false and completely without merit."
As legal rationale, Hodge cited one line from a Texas Ethics Commission advisory opinion: "Any candidate may use publicly available government information for campaign purposes and an inherent advantage of incumbency is knowledge of what kind of government information is available to the public."
But the opinion continued, "The lawful advantages of incumbency do not, however, extend to the use of work time of government employees or other government resources to gather or otherwise prepare information for campaign purposes."
The legal fine line would be intent: Was the video shot to inform the public or further Abbott's political career?
The attorney general's office has a communications department with six employees, including videographer Neftali Gonzalez. It spends more than $500,000 a year informing the public about the office's activities.
"The state's chief law enforcement official has a duty to employ all necessary means to prevent crime," Hodge wrote. "This requires that we continually update citizens about evolving criminal trends such as "phishing" or identity theft, inform consumers about emerging schemes intended to defraud them, and warn parents about how to keep their children safe from criminals."
The state videographer films depositions, training sessions, Abbott's news conferences and more. When Abbott recently accepted an award, the state staffer was there to record it.
Bill Burns, a retired state employee who was a videographer for four attorneys general, including Abbott, said the job changed when Abbott took over four years ago. It became more about promoting Abbott, he said, as opposed to doing the legal, internal work.
"There is nothing more important to the Abbott administration than his name identification, " Burns said. "It's all about him."
Burns said news outlets ? television stations and newspapers' Web sites ? have a big appetite for free video.
Abbott's campaign Web site ? www.gregabbott. com ? demonstrates the circular relationship with the media. His office provides footage of state investigators arresting suspected child predators to television stations, which include the video in their news reports. The Abbott campaign then posts the news stories on its Web site.
It's not unusual for statewide elected officials to have media departments paid for by taxpayers. But Abbott makes greater use of his than anyone else does.
Representatives of Gov. Rick Perry, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn said Monday that they have not mingled video paid for by taxpayers with their campaign work.
"It's stealing the taxpayers' money," said David Van Os, Abbott's Democratic opponent. "Greg Abbott is so sure of his entitlement to public office, he thinks he has a special privilege to steal public equipment and resources to promote himself."
Tom "Smitty" Smith of Public Citizen, a government watchdog group, said Abbott's use of the Public Information Act is a "tortured way" to get around the law barring the use of government employees for campaign work.
He said it's inexplicable why Abbott, who has a $7 million campaign bank account, would rely on state video for his campaigns. Abbott's two opponents have almost no money, little name recognition and no television commercials. Abbott's 2006 campaign is as much about 2010, when he is expected to run for a bigger statewide office.
Last week, as his commercial aired, Abbott wrote his supporters, complaining about the high cost of campaigning and urging them to donate more.
Abbott's campaign ads raise concerns
posted by snarko on October 28 2006
Associated Press
DALLAS :: Video used by Attorney General Greg Abbott in his re-election campaign was taken with equipment paid for by taxpayers, according to a television station's investigation.
Earlier in his term, Abbott spent $66,000 on video equipment and hired a special photographer at a salary of $70,000 a year, Dallas television station WFAA reported in a story aired Friday night.
"The TV crew works with us as we go out, and on occasion to expose wrongdoing," Abbott told the station when he was asked about the expenses three years ago. "We consider it to be a critically important function of our office. We use them for a variety of purposes."
Now they are aired as part of political commercials and can be viewed on his political Web site, the station reported. Tom Smith, director of public interest group, Public Citizen, said such use is illegal.
"The law's been clear for a long time. And it doesn't take a rocket scientist to read the cases and to understand what the courts have said. You just can't do it," he told the station. "It is representative of how Abbott has used his position for four years, and that is to promote himself," Abbott's Democratic opponent, David Van Os, a San Antonio attorney, told the station.
But Abbott's campaign director said on Saturday night that the video used by the campaign was obtained through an open records request. "Any individual or organization may obtain records or video from the office of attorney general by filing an open records request, which is exactly how Texans for Greg Abbott obtained the video," Hodge said. "Doing so is completely appropriate. We are proud of Attorney General Abbott's record of arresting sexual predators and will continue educating Texans about his strong record protecting Texas children."
Rural voters in the United States
posted by snarko on October 27 2006
by TXsharon (and Ronnie Dugger of the Texas Observer) :: DailyKos
"And what of the United States? We Texans are, after all, a part of it."
These words were taken from a wonderfully candid article by Ronnie Dugger that recently appeared in the Texas Observer. The full article is printed with permission below. Nothing I've read so far captures the essence of David Van Os' campaign or the importance of his race to the rest of the nation like the words of Mr. Dugger who has known David for many years.
"...if the Republicans keep control of the entire Congress, the only chances left to hold this Administration accountable while still in office abide right here in Texas."
The 254 county Whistlestop tour has come to an end and I find myself yearning to continue living that adventure vicariously through the phone calls from David or Rachel with their stories about Texans and the warm receptions they experienced in the most unlikely places. This morning I awoke at 5:00am feeling like a woman drowning from all my heavy responsibilities. When I opened gmail and found nearly 500 unanswered emails I was almost hysterical but I soon discovered that those emails contained a life raft. Attached to each email was a picture taken by Rachel Van Os during the last month of the Whistlestop tour.
In these pictures, Texans look David straight in the eye and tell him what they need. David listens, looks them in the eye, tells them the truth and that gives them hope. This is how it ought to be. This man with his brave heart has worked for every vote. And, this is how it ought to be.
FULL STORY [and a good one] >>
Daily Texan Endorses David Van Os for Texas AG
posted by snarko on October 25 2006
Editorial Board :: The Daily Texan
While the attorney general has a responsibility to represent the state in lawsuits and issue advisory opinions to state agencies, we feel that the attorney general has two chief duties to voters: consumer protection and a dedication to keep government open. Our incumbent Attorney General Greg Abbott, a Republican that was first elected over former Austin Mayor Kirk Watson in 2002, has been strong on one, open government, but weak on consumer protection. He should be replaced by the more progressive Democrat David Van Os.
It's too bad Abbott isn't presiding over Mark Foley's home state of Florida, as he has spent much of his time in office working to enhance Internet child protection, including creation of the Cyber Crimes Unit. He has also fought hard for child support collection, and to keep government more open. But he has been weak on big business, giving most Texan industries a free pass since 2002.
Van Os offers change with this regard. He has spent 30 years as an attorney, often representing union interests. He is pledging to get tough in the state of Big Oil and stands to be the blue-collar attorney general to Abbott's white collar. He reckons he'd serve in a more pro-active capacity against businesses that tamper with public interests.
Realistically, this race is shaping up to mirror the 1998 race for a Texas Supreme Court seat between the two men, in which Abbot won with 60.1 percent of the vote. [campaign note: we strongly disagree with this pessimistic assessment of David?s victory prospects] Idealistically, the Democratic challenger is the best man to represent all Texans, and the Texan endorses David Van Os for attorney general.
Abbott Uses Children as Stage Props
posted by snarko on October 24 2006
PRESS RELEASE :: GREG ABBOTT SHAMEFULLY USING CHILDREN AS STAGE PROPS TO BLITZ THE AIRWAVES WITH LIES AND HYPOCRISY
"If the accused predators Abbott's arrested had the money to give him big campaign contributions, instead of being arrested they would have been honored guests at his high-dollar fundraisers." ~David Van Os
"Greg Abbott is using his millions of dollars of corporate special interest money to blitz the airwaves with a slick package of lies and hypocrisy that shamefully uses children as stage props to try to buy this election. If the predators he's arrested had the money to give him big campaign contributions, instead of being arrested they would have been honored guests at his high-dollar fundraisers.
"In all the talk about protecting children, you don't hear a word about the biggest job of the Attorney General, which is to protect our children from growing up into a brave new world where they stand to live their whole lives as indentured servants to the banks, the finance companies, and their own government, thanks to the corporate and governmental war on the middle class. Greg Abbott is a general in that war, leading the charge on behalf of the corporate and political elite to deprive our children of their birthright, the opportunity to live as free and independent citizens in a Constitutional democracy that protects their rights and liberties, and that doesn't take their property away from them for private corporations to make money off of.
"Texans are entitled to an Attorney General who will be the people's champion, who will fight back for the people against the corporate robber barons and political power grabbers who are stealing our democracy and shredding our rights and liberties. We the people CAN fight back. I'm pledged under oath to do what Abbott's million-dollar advertising ignores - I'll give our children a real people's lawyer who will defend their rights and liberties to the very last breath. I'll fight the powerful corporate and political special interests. I'll fight 'em till hell freezes over, and then I'll fight 'em on the ice."
The 'Chronicle' Endorsements
posted by snarko on October 19 2006
by the Editorial Board :: Austin Chronicle
Attorney General: David Van Os
The race for attorney general's office hasn't garnered one-umpteenth the attention of the tragi-comic governor's draw, despite the Texas-sized personality fighting for the public interest. With an omnipresent Stetson and bolo tie, Van Os is a striking figure, even before he opens his mouth. A specialist in constitutional and labor law, Van Os has targeted Texas oil barons and insurance and pharmaceutical giants, in his populist, anti-corporate, whistlestop campaign. The implicit contrast is that incumbent Greg Abbott has let such corporate wrongdoers run roughshod over the state ? as indeed he has. Despite several splashy "cyber crime" initiatives (remember getting tough on MySpace?), Abbott has done little to make Texans safer, especially from the pollutant-spewing, scofflaw conglomerations drawing Van Os' ire. Abbott has also been a complicit servant to Tom Delay and Gov. Perry in the disastrous redistricting saga, never hesitant to defend another gerrymandered map on behalf of his bosses. Partisanship and hoary headline-hogging have defined Abbott's tenure, and we'd be happy to see him go; we're even happier his challenger is as strongly spined as David Van Os.
FULL STORY >>
Candidate proposes limits on eminent domain
posted by snarko on October 17 2006
by Aman Batheja, Staff Writer :: Star-Telegram
FORT WORTH - David Van Os, Democratic candidate for state attorney general, proposed a state constitutional amendment Monday that would allow the use of eminent domain to seize property only in cases that involve public safety and security.
The San Antonio lawyer made the announcement to about 50 supporters at a rally in front of the Tarrant County Courthouse.
It was the 250th county courthouse Van Os has visited this year as part of his "whistle-stop tour" of all 254 county courthouses in Texas that ends Friday in Austin.
Van Os said his proposed amendment is a direct response to the Trans-Texas Corridor, a planned network of toll roads, freeways and rail lines that would be built in part on land seized via eminent domain. The amendment would prohibit the use of eminent domain to acquire private property for economic reasons.
"That's not democracy. That's dictatorship," Van Os said.
The proposed amendment also calls for banning the creation of a toll road in any county where voters haven't approved the creation of such a system.
Democratic candidates statewide have used their opposition to the Trans-Texas Corridor to rally voters.
Van Os, shouting over the roar of passing cars on Weatherford Street in downtown Fort Worth, touted plans to investigate allegations of price-gouging by oil, electric and insurance companies.
"Come Jan. 1, when I get sworn in, I'm coming after you," Van Os said, referring to oil companies.
$9 Million Question: Are You For the People? Or Against Pedophiles?
posted by snarko on October 16 2006
REPORT from Texans for Public Justice
Texas voters definitely have a choice in this November's attorney general race?although few of them may be aware of it. Nonetheless they can expect to hear soon from the incumbent Republican. Attorney General Greg Abbott has raised almost $9 million since his 2002 election. Although he still retained $7 million in his war chest at the end of June, Abbott pledged to spend heavily to ensure that voters know about his accomplishments. At the top of his list, he says, is busting Internet pedophiles.
Meanwhile voters should not expect to hear from Democratic challenger David Van Os--unless they mosey down to their local court house on the appointed day. A longtime labor lawyer, Van Os is running a populist campaign--and has the bank account to prove it. Unable to buy much advertising, Van Os is well on his way to fulfilling his pledge to hold political rallies at each of Texas' 254 county courthouses. Here Van Os rails more often against the kinds of rapacious corporate interests that have stocked his opponent's war chest than the perverts who populate the World Wide Web. Libertarian Jon Roland, who has not reported raising or spending any money, says his priority will be to squash the corruption of public offices.
Apart from message and the sheer size of their war chests, a key difference between the two major-party candidates is in the size of the contribution checks that they received. Checks of $5,000 or more accounted for 75 percent of all the money that Abbott raised and just 19 percent of Van Os' total funding. In contrast, checks for less than $1,000 accounted for 57 percent of Van Os' money and 5 percent of the incumbent's cash.
Researchers identified the interests behind more than $8 million of Abbott's campaign money, finding that business interests accounted for more than 99 percent of his total. Abbott, an ex-Texas Supreme Court justice and former corporate lawyer, received the most money ($1.4 million) from the Lawyers and Lobbyists sector (led by Vinson & Elkins). He also received more than $1 million from the Miscellaneous Business sector (led by Houston beer magnate John Nau). Abbott's top overall donor was, of course, Houston home-builder Bob Perry, who gave the attorney general a remarkable $470,265. The next-largest donors were Kenny Troutt, who made a fortune from his Excel phone company, and energy and water investor T. Boone Pickens.
Researchers identified the interests behind just $36,290 of Van Os' campaign money. This was because he relied much more on harder-to-identify small donors... Labor unions are Van Os' top source of support. Two of his top donors are unions that previously employed this candidate: the Communications Workers of America and the AFL-CIO. While Abbott received a negligible share of his money from unions, the absolute amount that he received from labor ($15,900) almost rivals what Van Os obtained from this sector ($18,800).
FULL REPORT >>
Van Os Aims to Restore Office, Fight for People
posted by snarko on October 16 2006
by Roy Maynard, Staff Writer :: Tyler Morning Telegraph
Texas attorney general candidate David Van Os says he felt compelled to run.
"I'm running because I have to," the Democrat said. "I am running in order to change the political culture of greed and chasing money, chasing self-promotion and chasing power that has taken over the top of our political system in state and federal government."
Van Os, a former Kilgore resident who now lives in San Antonio, spoke to the Tyler Paper's editorial board recently. He faces incumbent Attorney General Greg Abbott in the Nov. 7 general election. Libertarian Jon Roland is also on the ballot.
"I am running to restore the office of attorney general in Texas to what it is supposed to be," Van Os said. "It was intended by the framers of the Texas Constitution to be the representative of the people, to protect and fight for the people."
That's not how the office is run today, Van Os contends.
"The AG's office today is occupied by a very ambitious politician who uses the office as a launching pad for endless press releases to congratulate himself," Van Os said. "He's nothing but a slick public relations hound."
Instead, the attorney general should be defending the people of Texas, he said.
"It's a disgrace the way the middle-class Texan is getting battered by predatory utility rates, predatory practices by the big dogs of the insurance agencies, predatory oil companies at the gas pumps, and the attorney general hasn't lifted a finger to protect the people," Van Os said. "We see him trotting around looking for easy ways to get publicity for himself. I am determined to change that culture."
It begins with big campaign contributions, Van Os said.
"Money is dominating our political culture," he said. "It is a horribly corrupting influence. Everybody that I meet and talk to knows that government - at the top of our political process - is run by money and for money. It should be by and for the people."
That's why he's taken a non-traditional route in his own campaign, he said.
"Instead of spending my time parked on the telephone calling people with bank accounts, I am going to the people all over Texas," Van Os said. "If government is going to belong to the people, the political process has to include all the people. I set myself the mission of going to every one of the 254 courthouses in Texas."
That whistle-stop tour will end Oct. 20 at the Travis County Courthouse in Austin.
"It has been a tremendous learning experience," Van Os said. "I have learned a lot about how rural Texans feel so left out and ignored and unrepresented. And I've learned a lot about just what an incredibly beautiful and great state this is, and how its inhabitants are such a good people."
He makes an exception for many politicians.
"Texas is not being represented by individuals in the political system who are like the average person," Van Os said. "The people who have climbed to the top of the political ladder are greedy self-promoters."
They're enabled by people with big money, he added.
"Nobody with common sense believes that people who write those kinds of checks are doing it out of civic interest," he said. "They are buying protection, and protection is what they're getting. The AG's office is giving a pass to a certain kind of speeder. The robber barons are not getting ticketed, but it's worse than that. They're not being clocked."
By winning the race without the help or influence of special interests with big checks, Van Os said, he will send a message to others.
"That in and of itself will have a big impact on the political process," Van Os contends. "A lot of people will look at this and say maybe we don't need those consultants, maybe the old way of meeting the people in person all over the state is really the way to do it."
Death Penalty for Sex Offenders?
posted by snarko on October 16 2006
excerpt from Candidates talk tough on sex crimes
by Diane Jennings :: The Dallas Morning News
His opponent, Democrat and lawyer David Van Os, said he has no sympathy for sex offenders who prey on children, but he does not support the death penalty for such crimes. "I don't think it would be constitutional."
Experts say it will be years before a case like that is decided ? only one person is on death row in Louisiana for such a crime, and his case is still on appeal. But some observers say the death penalty could hurt prosecutions.
"A lot of these crimes involve family members," said Mr. Dieter of the Death Penalty Information Center. "That makes it even more difficult for the young child or family member to come forward, if the person is going to get the death penalty."
FULL STORY >>
Van Os Proposes Constitutional Amendment to Protect Against Eminent Domain, Tolling
posted by snarko on October 16 2006
PRESS RELEASE :: Van Os Completing 254-County Tour; Proposes
Constitutional Protection from Eminent Domain and Tolling
OCTOBER 16: In the last week of his 254-county whistlestop tour, Attorney General candidate David Van Os suggests Constitutional Amendments to protect Texans from continuing abuses of eminent domain and toll roads.
Unveiling what he terms "Citizens' Protection Amendments," Van Os proposes that the power of eminent domain be limited to reasons of public security and safety. He also proposes that toll roads should require voter referendums.
Van Os stated, "If government can take private property from the individual on a whim, then we're living in dictatorship, not democracy. Texans are seeing a continuing and growing abuse of eminent domain. This has to stop."
Van Os continued, "These amendments will restore the checks and balances between government and the individual. I call upon the governor and the legislature to tackle this issue as soon as possible."
At 4:00 p.m. on each day, Van Os will meet the public and the press at the Tarrant County Courthouse on October 16 (#250), Dallas County Courthouse on October 17 (#251), Harris County Courthouse on October 18 (#252), Bexar County Courthouse on October 19 (#253), and Travis County Courthouse on October 20 (#254).
Proposed Amendments to the Bill of Rights of the Texas Constitution
"Citizens' Protection Amendments"
1. No private property may be taken without the owner's consent unless the taking is necessitated by the public security or safety and there is no other reasonable recourse. In no case may economic considerations be considered reasons of public security or safety. This amendment is self-executing and is applicable to any pending uncompleted taking.
2. In no case may any private person or enterprise purchase, lease, or utilize for the pursuit of profit or gain any property that has been taken for public purposes without the owner's consent. This section does not prohibit the payment of public money as fair compensation for employment, construction or maintenance, or ancillary services to employees, construction or maintenance contractors, or vendors of ancillary services. This amendment is self-executing and is applicable to any pending usage that has not begun remunerative operations.
3. In no case may a toll or fee be demanded or collected for travel on any transportation facility constructed through any use of public authority or money unless the voters of the county in which the facility is located shall have approved the tolling by referendum. This amendment is self-executing and is applicable to any pending uncompleted project.
Texas Attorney General Interviews (Face Off)
posted by snarko on October 13 2006
by News 8 Austin Staff
Incumbent Republican Greg Abbott faces Democratic challenger David Van Os.
Q: School finance, because the Office of Attorney General's constitutional role has had to defend the state's funding of public schools, even though the legislature itself knew it had to do more. Should the Attorney General's office proactively help formulate public school funding policies that will hold up in the courts or just sit back and defend lawmakers' legislation after the fact?
Abbott: The people of the state of Texas elect to the state legislature the people that they want to represent their policy choices. It's our job to defend those policy choices. However, as it concerns any law that's passed, it's not uncommon for the legislature to consult with me and the Attorney General's Office to ensure that the laws that are passed comply with the constitution and laws.
Van Os: The Attorney General should be proactive. What must be understood is that the Attorney General of Texas is the public's lawyer, and he's supposed to figure out what's the right thing to do and do it. A responsible Attorney General would have said to the plaintiffs in that litigation 'Let's roll up our sleeves together and figure out a solution together, to settle this case and present it to the legislature and ask them to ratify it.'
Q: Is the Attorney General's office doing enough to enforce the State's environmental laws, and if so, why, and if not, why not?
Van Os: The Attorney General of Texas is supposed to be the first line of defense on behalf of the people in dealing with these kinds of problems. The current Attorney General is not taking care of these problems. I will take care of these problems as Attorney General because I will use the inherent authority of the Attorney General under the Texas Constitution to sue the industrial polluters, to seek injunctions in the courts.
Abbott: With regard to air pollution, I achieved a record of penalty under the Texas Clean Air Act, a record setting $9 million penalty. Also, we secured almost $1 billion improvement requirement by one of the state's largest refineries with regard to water pollution. We brought an action against a company that was putting mercury into our water. Bottom line, we've been very aggressive with both air pollution, water pollution, making sure our environment is taken care of for future generations.
Q: Open records and open government and open government training for new office holders. Do you feel enough is being done to keep state and local government in the sunlight?
Abbott: We worked with the legislature ensuring mandatory open government training for all public employees, which means more than 35,000 officials across the state of Texas. It's me and my office that enforced that law that required that mandatory training and that actually provided that training or approved it as it's provided locally. Also though, I'm the first Attorney General who has obtained criminal convictions under the Public Information Act, a criminal indictment under the Open Meetings Act and have a prosecutor in place aggressively ensuring that the open records laws are kept open for the general public.
Van Os: The Open Records Law has got to be enforced to the maximum. The statute even says that it is supposed to be enforced with a liberal interpretation, giving the benefit of the doubt to disclosure of records. As Attorney General, I will do that.
Q: The Attorney General's office established an Internet Crime Task Force, of course, to nab child pornographers, and it has seen success in getting these predators in the act. But, what more could or should be done to keep the Internet free of all kinds of crime, or can anything be done at all?
Van Os: In regulating the Internet, we have to be very careful about protecting freedom of speech, because it is a bedrock to our constitutional democracy. Child pornography is not protected by freedom of speech. So, it is an area where the Attorney General should move aggressively. Solicitation of murder for hire is not protected by freedom of speech. You see, we have the laws in place to take care of real crime and we should enforce those laws vigorously. Most of that enforcement is actually under the Texas Constitution in the province of local district attorneys rather than the Attorney General.
Abbott: I created a new unit called the Cyber Crimes Unit three years ago to go after these child predators who are lurking the Internet looking for their next victim. That and our Fugitive Unit combined have now arrested more than 500 child predators across the state of Texas. What we are going to do, though, is do more than go after the predators. We want to prevent those crimes from ever occurring in the first place. So, we are proactively working with parents to help educate parents about what they can do to help protect their children who use the Internet.
SEE VIDEO OF INTERVIEWS >>
Point Austin: Why Vote?
posted by snarko on October 11 2006
by Michael King :: Austin Chronicle
Here are 10 good reasons to mark your calendar for Nov. 7
Ready or not, the general election -- Tuesday, Nov. 7 -- is only a month away, and most of the ink spilled thus far has been on the governor's race. For example, does a 20-year-old comedy routine disqualify Kinky Friedman from smoking cigars at the mansion? (Since Dubya Bush once lived there, I suppose it's unfair to ask whether Friedman's utter lack of interest in the actual details of any public-policy questions has any bearing ...)
4) Attorney General: Incumbent Greg Abbott has more money than sense, and Dem challenger David Van Os ... well, labor attorney Van Os is using the bully pulpit of a courthouse-to-courthouse campaign to try to revive a Democratic populist tradition of anti-corporate, pro-worker sentiment last represented at the Capitol by Jim Hightower (see p.25). Van Os can be a walking cliché ? he apparently thinks the epithet "silk-stocking!" retains 21st-century resonance ? but he's got more lively ebullience than anybody else on the ballot (including Kinky).
FULL STORY >>
Attorney general candidates tout different tactics
posted by snarko on October 11 2006
Abbott cites internet crimes; Van Os running against 'Big Business'
by Laylan Copelin, Staff Writer :: American Statesman
ODESSA - Democrat David Van Os is taking his campaign for attorney general to all 254 Texas courthouses, trying to invoke memories of President Truman's come-from-behind whistlestop tour in 1948.
In this case, it's more like Van Os is touring a yellow-brick road, attacking the wicked witches of Big Oil, Big Insurance and Big Business. Instead of red slippers, Van Os arrives in his wife's red Chrysler Pacifica. He plays to tiny audiences (at least in GOP-heavy West Texas) and small-town TV reporters.
Attorney General Greg Abbott, a Republican, flies overhead to airport news conferences to tout his record as a cyber crime-fighter against sexual predators. Meanwhile, Libertarian Jon Roland of Austin promises to convene meetings in each county to solicit complaints about possible misconduct by public officials.
All of this for the job of directing the Texas government's law firm, which spends most of its time and money representing state agencies in court, collecting delinquent child support and investigating Medicaid fraud and consumer complaints. The Office of Attorney General has more than 4,000 full-time positions and a two-year budget of $933.2 million.
Besides the power of incumbency, Abbott reported Tuesday that he has $7.7 million in the bank. Van Os, who is spending his donations ($64,171 since this summer) as fast as he gets them, said he has about $5,000 cash. He is paying a personal price as well: His San Antonio law practice has run red ink for two years while he campaigns, he says.
Van Os says the Texas Democratic Party is not supporting its statewide candidates. He complains that party leaders' "defeatism" is drying up donations as the party focuses on winning legislative races.
Nevertheless, on the ground in West Texas, Van Os gives an animated speech to about 15 people. He practically spits as he declares his opposition to oil giants' record profits; home insurance rates, which are the highest in the U.S.; rising health care costs; and the Trans-Texas Corridor, a planned system of toll roads operated by "European corporations."
And Van Os vows to sue or investigate every one of them.
"The middle class is under attack from robber barons and sold-out politicians who serve them," Van Os says.
For his part, Abbott contends that he and officials in other states have looked at oil companies and found only market forces at work in setting prices. He cites lawsuits against Allstate Insurance for not paying the living expenses of Hurricane Rita evacuees and to stop scams targeting elderly and Hispanic consumers.
More strikingly, consumer groups seem ambivalent about Abbott's record.
Luke Metzger, formerly with Texas Public Interest Research Group, said Abbott is no Eliot Spitzer, the Democratic New York attorney general who has prosecuted major corporations.
"He's not taking on the special interests of the world," Metzger said. "From that perspective, he hasn't been a champion, but he hasn't tried to turn back the clock on consumer protec- tions."
The Abbott-Van Os face-off is a rematch of sorts.
In 1998, Van Os campaigned against Abbott, a George W. Bush appointee to the Texas Supreme Court, charging that Abbott dispensed "payola justice" bought by corporate donors.
Abbott has corporate donors on his side again. A study of Abbott's largest donors, by Texans for Public Justice through June, showed six-figure donations from home builders, telecommunications investors, beer distributors and other business interests.
Van Os accuses Abbott's donors of "buying protection" to keep the state from meddling.
Top donors to Van Os are labor organizations.
In his swing through the state's largest oil-producing region, Van Os cited his East Texas oil roots ? his father was an oilman ? but didn't back off on attacking oil companies' profits.
"I hope the drilling doubles," he said. "We need the production."
However, he said the companies' profits are obscene, and the decline of gasoline prices immediately before an election is suspicious.
"What a coincidence!" Van Os mocks, suggesting a price-gouging probe might be in order. "An attorney general shouldn't take that at face value."
Abbott said his office, working with attorneys general in other states and federal officials, investigated gasoline prices, particularly during the 2005 hurricane season.
In November 2005, the equivalent of subpoenas were issued to several oil companies, according to his office.
"Everyone has investigated these issues for years," Abbott said. "We found no illegal antitrust action."
Rivals undeterred by Attorney General Abbott's edge
posted by snarko on October 2 2006
by Polly Ross Hughes :: Houston Chronicle Austin Bureau
[excerpt] AUSTIN - Republican incumbent Attorney General Greg Abbott might have the money, the office and odds on his side, but Democratic challenger David Van Os is nothing if not optimistic.
When Abbott's taking his message to the masses with television ads in the weeks leading to the Nov. 7 election, Van Os will be arriving at the last of the 254 county courthouses, giving stump speeches and hoping for a populist revolt.
After all, Van Os had just $3,200 in campaign funds left at last report. Abbott's war chest was overflowing with more than $7 million.
On. Nov. 7, voters will choose between incumbent Abbott, who has made his primary focus protecting children from sexual predators lurking online and on the streets, and challenger Van Os, a self-described "people's lawyer." Jon Roland, an Austin computer programmer, is also running as a Libertarian.
Abbott previously served as a district judge in Harris County and a Texas Supreme Court justice, but he declines to answer questions about whether his millions in campaign funds suggest higher ambitions than attorney general.
"It's important for anyone running for office at any level to not take anyone's vote for granted," he said. "I am going to be using the campaign funds I've raised to buy TV commercials to help get out the message."
Van Os readily admits he can't afford such mass exposure, but he's counting on his power-to-the-people philosophy to carry him into office. "I truly believe I'm going to win," he said last week, predicting a populist uprising as yet undetected by pundits and pollsters.
The candidate's so-called "whistle-stop tour" largely lacks a train, but Van Os and his wife, Rachel, have been trekking across Texas in her red Chrysler Pacifica. Van Os' goal is to speak on the steps of all 254 Texas county courthouses. Last week, he still had 40 to go.
"I'm running because I have to," he said. "I feel a personal responsibility to give the people of Texas a people's lawyer like you're supposed to have in the attorney general's office."
If he lacks a television presence, he has splashed his likeness on a billboard, decked out with string tie, Stetson and vest. "Notice to Big Oil: I'm Coming after You," it says.
Abbott's campaign manager, Daniel Hodge, said the attorney general sent civil investigative demands, similar to subpoenas, to 12 large oil companies or refiners in November 2005, requiring them to produce information about soaring gasoline prices. He said the attorney general's monitoring of gasoline pricing is ongoing, part of a multistate effort.
Van Os, however, accuses Abbott of going easy on energy companies and said his first act will be to issue his own investigative subpoenas to chief executive officers of giant oil companies.
"Price manipulation is easy," he said. "It would be easy for the price to be jacked up artificially from the transfer of product from the refinery to the distributor."
He also attacks the state's metropolitan daily newspapers. He accuses them of not recognizing the populist revolt he said he sees from ordinary people whose pocketbooks are taking a beating.
"Corporate greed is running roughshod over the people, from big oil corporations, from the insurance monopolies, from the pharmaceutical industry, from private utility barons, from water profiteers," he said.
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Attorney general hopeful visiting all 254 counties
posted by snarko on October 2 2006
by Richard Porter :: Plainview Daily Herald
Democratic candidate for state attorney general David Van Os made a stop in Plainview on Wednesday afternoon.
The visit at the Hale County Courthouse was part of a tour of all 254 county seats in Texas. Van Os is making the visits not only to meet with voters, but also to file affidavits at the courthouses that outline his intentions should he defeat incumbent Greg Abbott.
Van Os refers to the affidavits as his "Written Oath" to be the "People's Lawyer."
The statement reads, in part, "I am placing my written oaths in the public records in every county because I believe my fellow Texans have a right to know that I mean what I say."
Van Os said that his campaign is an attempt to take the state government back from moneyed interests and return it to the people of Texas.
In particular, he is opposed to the political process that has led to work on the Trans-Texas Corridor.
Van Os said the efforts undertaken by current state leaders to use eminent domain as a tool for securing property for the TTC not only are a slap in the face of traditional rights of private landowners, but also are unconstitutional because they take private land for the purpose of enriching others - specifically, European corporations which he says will profit from the tolls they extract from usage of the corridor.
Other targets for Van Os are oil companies which he said have reaped exorbitant profits at the expense of consumers. He makes similar claims against monopolies and the insurance industry.
Van Os referred to the current state government as an elite club.
"The price of inclusion is campaign contributions," he said.
He went on to say that voters have allowed politicians to wield too much influence through high-priced media ad campaigns - particularly through television advertising.
He said that is symptomatic of the problems the state faces across the board.
"We're living in a time of greed gone crazy," he said of the interests he is campaigning against.
By contrast, Van Os praised the spirit of the average Texan.
"The average Texan does not have a greedy heart," he said, adding, "My message to you is we can fight back.
"Somebody's got to stand up and fight for the people and for the middle class that is under attack. I'm tired of the way rural Texas keeps getting ignored," he continued.
Plainview represented Van Os' 221st stop on his tour, and following his speech he filed his affidavit with the county clerk?s office.
In wrapping up his visit here, Van Os assured those in attendance of one thing: "I'm going to fulfill my constitutional duty to be the people's lawyer."
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