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press Archive for: July 2006
AG Hopeful Van Os Hits Incumbent Abbott For Partisanship, Failing To Protect Texas Consumers
posted by snarko on July 24 2006
by Vince Leibowitz :: for Political State Report
In a conference call with Texas bloggers Sunday afternoon, David Van Os, Democratic candidate for Texas Attorney General, discussed his campaign and slammed his opponent, incumbent Attorney General Greg Abbott as being anti-consumer, anti-open government, and for lying about his reasons for intervening in a case involving the process to replace former Congressman Tom DeLay currently before a federal appeals court.
Van Os discussed his priorities as Attorney General and his campaign strategy, and took questions from bloggers.
He noted that his campaign and his grassroots "WhistleStop" tour are going well and getting out his message.
"Things are just really going fantastic. People are so hungry for change. They are hungry for the political process to open back up," Van Os said.
He also commented extensively on strategies for Democrats to recapture Texas' immense rural vote.
"I believe the key to taking back Texas for Democrats is repenetrating the rural vote. If we go back out to it and talk to people in a way that shows that we are there to fight for them and that makes it obvious to them that the Democratic party is not some elitist [organization] in a Massachusetts ivory tower, they’re going to come back big," he noted.
FULL STORY >>
Van Os addresses issues during campaign stop
posted by snarko on July 22 2006
by Matt Pederson :: Huntsville Item
Texas Attorney General candidate David Van Os was in town Thursday on his 254-county tour to tell Walker County voters how he plans to take the power away from the corporations and put it back into the hands of the people.
With his "whistle-stop campaign," the San Antonio labor attorney will travel to every county courthouse in Texas, sending his message directly to the people.
Van Os made his 84th stop on the tour Thursday afternoon at the gazebo in front of the Walker County Courthouse and spoke about the struggles faced by Texans with the escalating price of gasoline.
"There are people struggling in this state who cannot make their paychecks stretch to cover the cost of gasoline to get to and from work and that's a disgrace in this great state," Van Os said. "It's a disgrace when working people have to choose between not being able to afford not to go to work and not being able to afford to go to work."
What baffles Van Os is the apparent need for an increase in gasoline prices, when the gasoline companies are still making a great deal of profit. If elected, Van Os said he will go after those very companies for the sake of the people.
"A fair warning to big oil: When I get sworn in in January of 2007, I'm coming after you on behalf of the people of this state," he said. "When one private company is bringing in $3 billion a month in net profit, not gross revenue, Exxon/Mobil made $36 billion in 2005. The mind can hardly comprehend how much money that is.
"When profits are that huge, yet the price to the consumer keeps going up at the consumer end, something's wrong. It defies common sense. I don't buy it, and somebody's got to go after it."
Van Os also sent a message to insurance companies, who he said were driving up prices to the point of being unaffordable if someone is not on a company plan.
"They've made it to where the individual citizen can't afford health insurance unless they're part of a group plan through their employer or their union," he said. "The insurance monopolists are telling Texans that they have to pay the highest premiums of anyone in the country for homeowner's insurance."
What makes Van Os really upset about the issues at hand, is that he does not see current Texas attorney general Greg Abbott doing anything about it.
"When it's like that and nobody's doing anything about it and we have antitrust laws that require competition, somebody needs to take them on, and that republican incumbent corporate mouthpiece attorney general in Austin is not doing it and is not going to do it." Van Os said. "It's time to fire him and put a people’s lawyer in the attorney general's office in Texas and it's fixing to happen this year."
Attorney general candidate visits local Democrats
posted by snarko on July 20 2006
by Lisa Carnley :: Lampasas Dispatch Record
David Van Os calls his campaign for Texas attorney general "a labor of love." And the Democratic candidate is taking his message across the state in an effort to visit all 254 counties.
He was in Lampasas last week to speak with voters here.
Van Os remarked that his favorite political hero is Harry Truman. "When he ran for president in 1948, it was an uphill struggle because the naysayers said he couldn't win." Truman took his case directly to the people via a whistlestop tour across the country, and he took the upset victory.
Van Os said he finds himself in the same boat as the former president. "The naysayers say I can't win. The heck with that. I am going all over Texas to take my case directly to the people of Texas.
"If you think back 10 years ago, we were on the bridge to a new millennium, and 10 years ago it looked like it would be a good and prosperous and peaceful time. But something happened along the way," Van Os said. "The big guns stopped the votes from being counted. They stole the presidency and turned the 21st century into a century of robber barons, and they are doing it to the people of Texas."
The Democratic hopeful said something is wrong when a private corporation such as Exxon-Mobil can record net profits of $3 billion per month.
"That's $36 billion a year for 2005. The human mind cannot comprehend that amount of money," he said. "When that much money is going into the coffers of big oil, but at the same time they are telling working people they have to pay higher gas prices, it takes common sense to know that something is desperately wrong."
The candidate said consolidation of oil conglomerates Chevron and Texaco and Mobil and Exxon into fewer hands is a monopoly. "There are laws against that. Our Bill of Rights declares that monopolies are contrary to the genius of our government and should never be allowed. That needs to be enforced.
"The big dogs need to follow the rule of the law."
Van Os said anti-trust regulations are strong laws that protect the people of Texas. The attorney general is the primary enforcer of anti-trust laws. "We have fought the robber barons before, and we have won.
"I've got a message for big oil companies. I'm giving you fair notice that when I get sworn in next January, I'm coming after you. I have the same message for insurance monopolists," he said.
Van Os said he is unhappy with insurance companies that don't allow competition, each charging the same high premiums.
"We have laws that have to be enforced. It's time for the people to fire him (Attorney General Greg Abbott) and hire a new attorney general who will enforce the laws."
The candidate said people everywhere are realizing things are not on track. "They have this discomfort in their guts that democracy is not working.
"Government is supposed to be self-government, and it's not working any more. It's been stolen by greed. Something is wrong, folks," he said.
Van Os said the Texas Constitution states it is the duty of the attorney general's office to inquire into the activities of private corporations and take steps to prevent them from not doing anything unauthorized by law.
"We will restore this government to the government of, by and for the people," he said. "I'm going to do it with every breath I draw.
"Despite the fact that the root of the problem likes in corruption of politicians at the top, the political process is also the root of cure and hope. I believe democracy works," Van Os said. "It has proven over and over again to work.
"We, the people of Texas, together have the power to restore government that serves and benefits 'we the people.'
Continued Van Os: "We have decided enough is enough. We will stream to the polling places and throw the rascals out and take government back into the hands of the people. I believe this is the year it will happen. People are fed up.
"But we have to make it happen. I'm doing my best, and all of you need to do your best. When we do, and it will happen this year, the government in this state will return to the people. You will have a people's lawyer in the attorney general's office, if you will help me."
Van Os pulling no punches in state race
posted by snarko on July 17 2006
by Sara Vanden Berge :: Stephenville-Empire-Tribune
His motto is "Fight 'em 'til hell freezes over, then fight 'em on the ice."
Those were the words coming from David Van Os, Democratic candidate for Texas Attorney General, who was in Stephenville Wednesday as part of his Whistlestop tour.
Standing in front of the Erath County Courthouse, Van Os gave a fiery speech to those in attendance, railing against big oil companies and what he called "insurance monopolists."
Saying he will speak to "anyone who will listen," Van Os said that if he becomes the next attorney general his first order of business will be to go after the "rich oil companies."
"The oil companies are raking in big money while telling the working-class guy that he has to pay more for his gasoline," he said.
Van Os said that last year ExxonMobil enjoyed a $36 billion net profit, while the price of gasoline reached upwards of $3 per gallon.
"Something is wrong - and the people know it," Van Os told the crowd. "They've got a nagging discomfort in their bones. They know there is a monopoly of power in this country and they don't know what to do about it."
Van Os said the people sitting in political office do nothing to protect working class people from the "fat cats" who are ripping people off, including insurance companies who are also enjoying record-setting profits.
Texans, he said, pay the highest premiums for homeowners insurance than anyone in the country. He accused Greg Abbott, Texas' current attorney general, of not doing enough to foster competition and keep rates down.
"He's just sitting on his hands," he said. "The people who are sitting in political office are there for the purpose of enriching themselves and their cronies. And that bunch in Austin who only represent the rich people are about to get fired."
Van Os is an attorney from San Antonio. He and his wife Rachael have four children.
This is not Van Os's first time running for office. He ran for the Texas Supreme Court in 1998 and 2004.
Gas prices, corridor top candidate’s case
posted by snarko on July 17 2006
by Jeremy Martin :: Wise County Messenger
Most candidates for attorney general promise to lower violent crime rates.
Democratic challenger David Van Os wants to lower gas prices.
Van Os, an attorney from San Antonio, spoke to a crowd of Wise County citizens Thursday morning on the steps of the courthouse in Decatur. The visit is part of Van Os' "whistlestop tour" in which he plans to visit every county seat in Texas, all 254 of them.
Van Os said he's spoken in more than 70 cities so far since he began the tour in April, and he’s on track to finish by mid-October.
By taking a "whistlestop" tour of the state instead of focusing on advertising, Van Os said he's following the tradition of his hero, Harry Truman. Van Os said he isn't getting statewide media coverage, so he's having to peddle his message from town to town.
"I've got to take my case directly to the people," he said. "I'm not going to have the money for multimillion dollar television ad campaigns."
Van Os' case for being elected attorney general is based on three main concepts: making home and health insurance more affordable, reducing gas prices, and fighting the construction of the Trans Texas Corridor.
If elected attorney general, Van Os said he could make both gas and insurance more affordable for Texans by prosecuting consolidating companies, which he calls "robber barons" for breaking anti-trust laws.
Van Os accuses current Attorney General Greg Abbott of allowing insurance and oil companies to illegally merge and set prices higher than a competitive market would allow.
"When consumers go comparison shopping, they realize they can't find a good deal," Van Os said. "The prices are all about the same.
"It used to be Shell, Chevron and Texaco were competing against each other. Now they're all the same company."
Van Os said Abbott doesn't prosecute companies for forming monopolies because he receives campaign contributions, which Van Os calls "protection money" from oil and insurance companies.
"The attorney general of Texas is supposed to be the people's lawyer," Van Os said. "Greg Abbott is the companies' lawyer."
Sharon Wilson, a member of the Wise County Democratic Party and a Van Os supporter, agreed. She said she trusts Van Os to work as an advocate for the average Texan because his campaign isn't funded by large corporations, but by local people.
"You have to dance with the one who brought you," Wilson said. "If big business brought Greg Abbott to office, then that's who he's going to dance with. ... Greg Abbott gets hundreds of thousands of dollars from insurance and oil companies. David Van Os gets $50 a month from Sharon Wilson."
As of January, Abbott had reported raising about $5.7 million, while Van Os reported raising about $33,000, about $3,500 less than he'd spent.
As for the Trans Texas Corridor, Van Os said the Texas constitution gives the attorney general the power to protect Texans from paying unreasonable highway tolls. If elected, Van Os said he will do everything he can to block the project, which he called an "exercise of incredible arrogance" and an "attempt to take away farmers' land so a private corporation can collect tolls."
Despite his lower funding and uphill challenger status, Van Os believes he can beat Abbott by connecting with people in rural areas on a personal level. Even though Democratic candidates are having trouble finding votes in Texas, he said he thinks his message appeals to people across party lines.
"The Democrat and Republican parties are being run by elitists, and the people at the grassroots level know it," Van Os said. "It's time for a change."
Van Os has a long list of complaints about his opponent, but Abbott's campaign director Daniel Hodge is brief when it comes to Van Os.
"We don't have any comment on anything he has to say," Hodge said.
Dem AG candidate Van Os makes campaign stop here
posted by snarko on July 10 2006
by Stephen Palkot :: Fort Bend Herald-Texas Coaster
Saying he is ready to "take on" big oil and big insurance in Texas, Democratic Attorney General hopeful David Van Os paid a visit to Richmond last week to promote his candidacy.
Van Os is looking to unseat incumbent Attorney General Republican Greg Abbott, who was elected to the office in 2002. Speaking before an audience of Democratic supporters at the Fort Bend County courthouse in Richmond, the self-styled "people's" lawyer criticized Abbott for not using the office to break up what he calls oil monopolies and for not enforcing what he sees as collusion in the insurance business.
"That one company is making staggering amounts of profit and you're still being told you have to pay higher and higher and higher prices," he said of Exxon-Mobil.
Van Os said the merger of oil companies like Exxon and Mobil and Chevron and Texaco have contributed to high gas prices and the reduction of jobs in the Gulf Coast area. However, the issue can be tackled from the Attorney General's Office, he said.
"The Attorney General of Texas is a constitutional officer, and he has the tools by virtue of the Texas Constitution and the laws of the state of Texas to literally do something about it," he said.
He said Texas law stating "monopolies are contrary to the genius of free government and shall never be allowed." Antitrust laws, he said, can be used to break up the oil companies.
Abbott, said Van Os, has acted as a "corporate mouthpiece," hosting fundraising dinners at $5,000 a plate and accepting money from a "who's-who" of Texas corporations.
In 2002, Abbott defeated Democratic candidate Kirk Watson, the former mayor of Austin, with 56.72 percent of the vote. Currently, Republicans hold all statewide offices in Texas.
Van Os urged the audience of Democrats to not engage in defeatism. He said he can win the office in November, and that Democrats need to believe they can win in Texas.
"They can outspend us a million to one and it doesn't matter," he said.
FULL STORY >>
AG candidate to speak in Hempstead
posted by snarko on July 10 2006
Montgomery County Courier
HEMPSTEAD - David Van Os, 2006 Democratic candidate for Texas Attorney General, will speak about his candidacy at 9 a.m. today, at the Waller County Courthouse.
He is on a 254-county whistle-stop tour of Texas, and it is his desire to take his message to small town, rural Texas where he believes the roots of populism still survive. In the tradition of Jim Hogg, the people of Texas will finally have representation in the courts when I am elected, and corporations will be held accountable for breaking the law, he said.
Van Os was born and raised in Kilgore, attended the University of Texas on scholarship and received his law degree from UT in 1976. He has been named as a Texas "Super Lawyer" by Texas Monthly Magazine in 2003, 2004, and 2005.
He owns a law firm in San Antonio where he champions constitutional law, labor, and civil rights.
Van Os Vows to Take On Corruption
posted by snarko on July 10 2006
by Roycelyn Bastian :: The Cleveland Advocate
excerpt from Candidates speak on steps
Standing on the county courthouse steps, David Van Os, Democratic candidate for Texas Attorney General and Gary Binderim, Democratic candidate for Congressional District 2, spoke to the citizens of Liberty County on why they are running and what they will accomplish once they are voted into office.
"I have a message for the oil and insurance companies and the political power grabbers. They better spend every penny they have to defeat me in my quest to run for Texas Attorney General, because once I am sworn into office in January, I am coming after them," said Van Os.
Van Os decided to make it his personal mission to try and change the way things are being done on the state and federal level.
"I decided to run for attorney general because I am fed up with how my state and country are being run. I felt that I was personally responsible to do everything in my power to make it happen," he said.
This is not Van Os's first time running for office. He ran for the Texas Supreme Court in 1998 and 2004.
"Between now and November, I will be speaking on my platform at the county courthouses in all of 254 counties in the state. So far, I have spoke at over 60 counties since March," he said.
Van Os is originally from Kilgore, but now lives in San Antonio. He is married to his wife Rachael, and together they have four children.
"Once I am elected, I am going to take legal action
against the oil companies over the high gas prices; insurance companies over high insurance premiums and other monopolist practices."
For more information on Van Os, visit www.vanosfortexasag.com.
FULL STORY >
Electronic voting lawsuit may be decided soon
posted by snarko on July 7 2006
Judge may rule next week on motion to force paper backups
by Steven Kreytak :: Austin-American Statesman
...The Civil Rights Project, on behalf of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People of Austin and its president, Nelson Linder; Texas attorney general candidate David Van Os; and Sonia Santana, a Travis County resident and voter, sued Travis County Clerk Dana DeBeauvoir and Texas Secretary of State Roger Williams last month.
They argue that voters have no way of knowing whether the vote they cast is recorded or stored correctly by the county's voting system and that electronic systems are prone to fraud and mistakes.
A paper ballot would provide the ultimate backup against potential problems, which the group says would create the fairest election possible.
FULL STORY >>
Van Os Walks the Talk in Comal County
posted by snarko on July 7 2006
Van Os wants to be 'peoples' lawyer'
by Ron Maloney :: The Herald-Zeitung
The man who would boot Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott out of office next November was in New Braunfels on Wednesday morning, talking big and taking names.
Democrat David Van Os spoke on the steps of the Comal County Courthouse as part of his whistle-stop tour of Texas' 254 county seats.
His message, heartily received by the county's Democrats, was a populist one: It's time to take back the top office in Texas law enforcement and give it to a "peoples' lawyer" who will do the people's work and not the bidding of big business or special interest groups.
Born in Kilgore, Van Os has always lived, studied and worked in Texas and is intensely proud of that. He has three decades of experience as a labor lawyer, and has been listed in Woodward/White Inc.'s "Best Lawyers in America" each year since 1986, is a lifetime member of the NAACP and has the "A" rating of the National Rifle Association and the Texas Rifle Association.
Van Os promises to fight big business, special interests, power grabbers and other fat cats "until Hell freezes over, and then I'll fight 'em on the ice."
His stump speech sounds like the kind of scolding movie lawman Dirty Harry might hand out right before he blows away a bad guy -- a combination of consternation over someone messing up coupled with the promise he's going to be coming to set them straight.
"Yesterday was the 230th anniversary of the founding of our nation, of the issuance of the Declaration of Independence, where for the first time in the history of the world a country was created on the proposition of all men are created equal and that government exists with the consent of the governed," Van Os said.
The founders, he said, risked their lives for the fulfillment of that mission.
"I don't think they were flapping their gums, and I don't think you believe it either," Van Os said. "They meant it to endure -- purely and simply, they meant it."
Something has happened that threatens the future of the world's longest-running democracy, Van Os said.
"Things are off track today," Van Os said. "Something's wrong. They don’t know what to do about it."
ExxonMobil, he said, is taking net profits of $3 billion a month -- $36 billion in one year.
"Do you realize how much money that is?" Van Os asked the crowd. "No, you can't imagine that. No one could. But one billion seconds ago, George Washington was president of this great land."
If one goes back 36 billion seconds, he or she would arrive at 7,500 BC, he said.
"When one company is making it, that's a staggering profit," Van Os said. "And when they say it takes $2.80 to put a gallon of gas in your vehicle, something's wrong."
Texans, Van Os said, pay the highest insurance premiums of homeowners in any other state. If you shop around to find the best rates you can, Van Os said, you'll find all are charging pretty much the same.
Last year, Van Os said, the insurance companies enjoyed a year of record profits.
"What happened in 2005? We had the worst hurricane season ever, and more insurance claims than ever," Van Os said. "What happened? Things are off track."
The sense people have of ownership of their government is slipping away, Van Os said.
"Therein lies not only our problem, but our hope," Van Os said. "People have the ability, acting collectively through the power of the ballot box to fix it."
State Attorney General candidate visits Brenham
posted by snarko on July 6 2006
by Bud Chambers :: Brenham Banner-Press
Texas Attorney General candidate David Van Os was greeted by almost two dozen Democratic Party faithful upon his arrival at the Washington County Courthouse's north entrance steps about 4:15 p.m. Wednesday.
Noting he might have to double-check his county count ("This is No. 4 today!"), Van Os calculated this Brenham stop likely makes Washington County No. 80 in his determination to take his quest to unseat AG Gregg Abbott, a Republican, to all 254 Texas counties by election day.
"I want to make sure every Texan knows that every county and every voter counts," Van Os said.
Then Van Os quickly pointed out, "I've been a Texan all my life -- and a fighting Texas lawyer (most of my adult life)," then pledging that when he becomes Texas' attorney general early next year, "I'll still be a fighting Texas lawyer -- fighting for (the rights of) the average people of Texas."
Beyond his "fighting Texas lawyer" headline, Van Os asks Texas voters in his campaign literature's lead thought, "Would you like to have a people's lawyer -- (one) who will fight for you?"
Van Os says he strongly believes that - effectively with the assistance from Republican politicians now in office - many oil companies, insurance companies and banks/financial institutions have become "robber-barons" whose thievery it is the sworn duty of the Texas attorney general to stop.
For instance, Van Os said during a 15-minute talk, "Average people are told they don't qualify for a car loan (or other purchase) because of their credit score" yet aren't clued in as to "who's keeping score."
Van Os' emphasized, "Competition is virtually non-existent among the oil companies" - making it virtually impossible for low-income people to afford to drive even 10-miles round-trip to work.
And, on that point, another Democratic candidate present for the rally, Ted Ankrum of Cypress - opposing incumbent Rep. Michael McCaul for the 10th U.S. Congressional District seat - said he was a part of President Jimmy Carter's administration that once brought gas prices down.
Ankrum said an energy plan under Carter brought "a 17 percent drop in the amount of imported foreign oil" and this reduction in demand on world markets "helped reduce oil prices from $40 to $15 barrel" for a period.
"David (new Texas AG Van Os) will get 'em sooner in Texas, and I'll get 'em later in Congress (where changes may take a little longer)," Ankrum suggested in supporting his fellow Democratic candidate.
Van Os said he had covered quite a large number of Texas counties in recent weeks, primarily by completion of "a whistlestop tour of coastal counties from Galveston to Beaumont, and that followed by a tour from the Lufkin to Conroe areas."
After planning to further visit with supporters here for several hours, Van Os - who was traveling by car with his wife and children, and arrived from a La Grange visit - said he had plans to spend the overnight in Hempstead "and cover at least four more counties tomorrow."
Next week's schedule, he said, will take him "to 20 more counties" - totaling well beyond 100 of the state's 254 counties at that point.
Admittedly a low-budget candidate - running a campaign about a $1 budget for each $10,000 available to Abbott - the optimistic Van Os said, "But I'm taking my campaign right to the people of Texas - and his 10,000-to-1 (dollar) advantage may not be enough."
Van Os Inspirational Visit to Hardin
posted by snarko on July 6 2006
excerpt from Parade, good food part of Juneteenth celebration
by Cheryl Bean :: Hardin County News
Democratic candidate for Texas Attorney General David Van Os and his family trekked to Hardin County recently.
Van Os, who is an attorney from San Antonio, spoke of his desire if elected to put a stop the excessive salaries upper management receives at oil companies.
Van Os and his family plan to travel to all 254 counties in Texas. Their commitment to the campaign is an inspiration and one that is note worthy. My hat is off to them!
FULL STORY >>
Abbott Accepts Money Directly Affecting Ruling
posted by snarko on July 5 2006
Proposal: A $1 million recusal rule
by Rick Casey :: Houston Chronicle
ONE thing you have to like about Texas politicians is their resistance to embarrassment.
Take the case of Attorney General Greg Abbott.
Last Dec. 15 he received $100,000 in campaign contributions from Houston homebuilder Bob Perry and his wife.
The next day, he received a letter from Rep. David Swinford of Dumas, chairman of the House Committee on State Affairs.
Swinford wanted Abbott to issue a formal opinion on whether Grandma, a.k.a. state Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn, had the authority to conduct a review of the performance of the newly created and controversial Texas Residential Construction Commission.
Perry is one of Houston's top homebuilders and one of the state's champion political contributors, together with his wife giving millions per election cycle to state officials.
FULL STORY >>
Democratic AG candidate to visit county Wednesday
posted by snarko on July 3 2006
Brenham Banner-Press
David Van Os, Democratic candidate for Texas Attorney General will be making a visit Wednesday to Washington County, part of his campaign to make stops in all 254 Texas counties.
Van Os will at the Washington County courthouse at 4 p.m. He has just completed a whistlestop tour of the coastal counties from Galveston to Beaumont followed by the tour from Lufkin to Conroe.
"I was born in Texas, grew up in Texas, obtained my education in Texas, and have never lived anywhere but Texas," he said. "This is my state and I am proud of its legacy of strength and boldness.
"Texans respect individuals who mean what they say and say what they mean. I'm a fighting Texas lawyer and will be a fighting Texas Attorney General."
Van Os said that if he is elected, he would "make Texas an unsafe place for price-gougers, corporate predators, and hustlers who use public power for private gain."
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