Senator Hutchison Holds Tense Meeting with Perry Supporters in El Paso

Lubbock, TX, Avalanche-Journal ^ | 12-12-04 | AP

[Theodore R.]

Hutchison holds tense meeting with Perry supporters in El Paso

EL PASO (AP) — U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison reacted angrily recently after several El Paso business leaders suggested that she not challenge Gov. Rick Perry in 2006 because their large campaign contributions to state leaders have increased the city's influence in Austin.

During the private luncheon last week, Hutchison, R-Texas, was asked to instead run for re-election for the Senate. She responded by denouncing the role large contributions play in state government, some of those attending said.

The meeting was organized as a briefing by the senator on various issues, but several Perry supporters turned the conversation to the upcoming gubernatorial election.

Many of those at the meeting agreed the discussion got severely strained after some of the business leaders mentioned their large contributions to Perry, also a Republican. Hutchison has said she hasn't decided whether to run in 2006.

El Paso businessman Woody Hunt said he reminded the senator that El Paso had not fully participated in state politics in the past and has long been neglected. He and others decided to open up their checkbooks and become players.

"We need to be better connected to the state. We need to be able to have access. We need to be able to communicate," said Hunt, who's donated almost $200,000 to Perry in the past four years, campaign finance records show.

El Paso businessman Ted Houghton, said he didn't expect Hutchison to react the way she did.

"That's when the meeting fell apart, unfortunately. Our point was, we like what we have for El Paso and we like what we have for the state of Texas," he said.

The senator's spokesman, Dave Beckwith, said Hutchison reacted to Perry supporters specifically touting the accomplishments produced after significantly stepping up their political contributions.

"Senator Hutchison is appalled that people are being strong-armed, feel they have to hand over huge contributions in order to be heard in the state's political process," Beckwith said Friday.

"What she's been hearing around the state is encouragement — to provide the leadership to clean up that system."

That response from Hutchison's office brought a quick response from Perry's campaign.

"Others can deal in the Washington-style politics of personal destruction and blind ambition to do what is best for themselves, but Governor Perry will continue to be a strong, ethical and effective leader for El Paso and Texas as a whole," said Luis Saenz, Perry's campaign director.

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Information from: El Paso Times, http://www.elpasotimes.com

[BobL]

"She is nothing more than a RINO. Just because we have several RINO's in Washington doesn't make it OK. Her best job would be "Retired" so that we can send a real Republican to Washington."

You have her confused - as I've said, she's certainly not a perfect Republican, but she's no where near people like Collins, Chaffee, or Specter.

[MeekOneGOP]

Senator Hutchison Holds Tense Meeting
with Perry Supporters in El Paso

Excerpt:

EL PASO (AP) — U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison reacted angrily recently after several El Paso business leaders suggested that she not challenge Gov. Rick Perry in 2006 because their large campaign contributions to state leaders have increased the city's influence in Austin.

During the private luncheon last week, Hutchison, R-Texas, was asked to instead run for re-election for the Senate. She responded by denouncing the role large contributions play in state government, some of those attending said.

The meeting was organized as a briefing by the senator on various issues, but several Perry supporters turned the conversation to the upcoming gubernatorial election.

Many of those at the meeting agreed the discussion got severely strained after some of the business leaders mentioned their large contributions to Perry, also a Republican. Hutchison has said she hasn't decided whether to run in 2006.

Please let me know if you want ON or OFF my Texas ping list!. . .don't be shy.
No, you don't HAVE to be a Texan to get on this list!

[deport]

Well, dissing a possible gubernatorial nominee is NOT a way to keep connected. Business people need to be flexible, and keep all options open.

---

El Paso is a democrat strong hold..... KBH has bested the Republican candidates down there.... I agree you don't go around dissing someone that may become the nominee... If she does and wins then these money people most likely will be on the outside again.

2000;
KBH ---48%
GWB -- 40%
2002:
Perry -- 35%

[deport]

Are they doing away with I-10, I-35, I-45?.... where is that written?

[ForGod'sSake]

Kay, only because she won't sneak in huge tax increases, like the governor did.

You of course should be able to cite 2 or 3 examples of these "huge" tax increases, no? AND, the legislative voting records to indicate congressional positions? Since you're sort of new here, allow me to offer up an observation: Few on this forum, myself included, accept at face value allegations regarding, well, most anything. So...

FGS

[ForGod'sSake]

Maybe so, but I'll bet none of them read it - especially the page stating that they want to convert our Interstates to toll roads.

What!? Get a grip would you?

I now vote Democrat at the state level...

Is this something new for you?

FGS

[TRY ONE]

"For those not familiar with Texas, who would be a better choice of the two?"

Answer: Neither --- Don Evans is retuning from Washington and may run for Gov. He would be better than both.

For those who don't know, Perry has a Klintoon problem --- he can't keep it in his pants. I'm shocked this is not more public.

KBH is a good lady but but a good leader. She is also pro-choice.

[BobL]

I have to admit that I may be exaggerating a bit, but I'm not sure. What he has done through his lackey a who runs transportation here is tell him that every new highway must be assessed for tolling, and every highway that gets upgraded must be assessed for tolling. Additionally, he did try to make State Highway 249, an existing freeway, into a toll road. He only backed down from that when 2000 people showed up at a couple of meetings.

Finally the Trans Texas Corridor Plan, mentioned earlier by another person, clearly states that Texas wants permission to begin tolling sections of federally funded highways. While that technically doesn't say all freeways, it does leaves open the possibility of all freeways. Here's how it's worded in the first link below, Page 16, first bullet: "Establish a schedule for buying portions of federally funded highways for the purpose of tolling by regional mobility authorities."


Now take a look at his scheme:

http://www.dot.state.tx.us/ttc/ttc_report_full.pdf
http://www.dot.state.tx.us/ttc/ttc_home.htm

If people think that this 50 to 100 Billion dollar plan can pay for itself with its own toll booths, they're dreaming. People are not going to spend 20 cents per mile to drive across Texas when existing freeways can take them with no charge - so put 2 and 2 together and you see why he cannot allow existing freeways to compete - he must toll them.

That's how he's shafting us big-time here. I have no doubt that he will get a real cushy job at one of the huge construction firms once he retires.

We must retire him first.

[FreePaul]

But KBH is no MacArthur!

Right, thanks. I didn't intend to make any comparison by my remark.

[BobL]

"Are they doing away with I-10, I-35, I-45?.... where is that written?"

See my link below - it is simply impossible to have his scheme compete with freeways. So, yes, the freeways that we all depend on will still exist, but they will be very, very, expensive to drive on.

[MeekOneGOP]

I now vote Democrat at the state level .....

Huh? Good grief! .....

[BobL]

"I now vote Democrat at the state level...

Is this something new for you?"

Brand new. I've been voting for over 20 years, and I NEVER voted Democrat at any level. I voted Democrat for governor, for the first time in 2002 because of this plan - and I was proven right, BIG TIME, when 2000 people showed up to protest the conversion of SH 249 into a Toll Road (that happened earlier this year).

[BobL]

"I now vote Democrat at the state level .....
Huh? Good grief! ....."

One this plan is trashed, I'll vote Republican again, for sure. I'll even vote for Perry in the Primary if he first scraps this plan. I like having Kay in the Senate and don't want to take any chances at losing this seat.

I just have a huge problem with this toll road conversion. The immediate fallout from this plan is that all of us in Texas will have to drive around with transponders on our cars tracking where we go and entering it into a database. I don't like that. I can list a dozen other reasons why this plan is sick, if people want to hear them (but I'll only do it one at time, you know, to keep the link up).

[Happy2BMe]

I think Arkansas is going to be in a similar situation in the '02 gubner election.

Asa Hutchinon is rumored to be eyeing the governor's seat in Little Rock (now occupied by Governor Mike Huckabee - a respected Republican who took over an incrdibly rocky job from Jim Guy Tucker who was impeached).

[ForGod'sSake]

...and I was proven right, BIG TIME, when 2000 people showed up to protest the conversion of SH 249 into a Toll Road...

Proves nothing, but what the hey, you apparently expect everyone here to take your word for what you post. You don't actually write like a conservative and I'd wager you don't think like a conservative either. Just a hunch you understand.

BTW, you're still looking for the links to cite Perry's "huge" tax increases?

FGS

[deport]

How does this Governor of Texas which has a very weak governor position get all this authority to single handedly do all this? It takes the agreement of the people of the state which passed the Constitutional amendment to create the authority to begin looking at this system, the passage by the Legislature to develop, fund, etc the projects, and finally the concurrence of the Feds on systems that they have funded...... About all the governor is doing is promoting the concept and signing the legislation when it gets to his desk......

So now we are going to have two systems running east-west [I-10 and the TTC], both as toll roads, two running north south [I-35 and I-45 plus their new TTC components] and then the new I-69 corridor from Shreveport to Laredo? I hope I could live long enough to see that day.... lol

[Diddle E. Squat]

Governor Perry, here in Texas, has embarked on a demented scheme to convert all of our freeways into toll roads

That is a complete flat out lie.

The truth is that most new freeway-standard(grade-separated divided highways) will be tollways, toll express lanes will be added to some existing freeways when they are expanded while the existing lanes remain free, but a couple of short segments in Austin that were planned as freeways will have their freeway lanes instead built as tolls while the frontage roads will remain free. Thus anyone will still be able to travel on the mainlanes for free the entire length of I-10, I-20, I-30, I-40, I-44, I-27, I-35, I-37, I-45, I-410, I-610, I-635, I-820, etc.

Stick to the facts instead of slandering.

[BobL]

"You of course should be able to cite 2 or 3 examples..."

Since you asked, here is an article from the Houston Chronicle on this subject last summer - there were more later. Please accept my apologies for the long post.

This is an archive link to it - to show it really existed:

http://www.chron.com/content/archive/ysearch.mpl?query=roadblock&head=249&byl=Lucas+Wall&field4=&sect=&day=any&date=n&bmon=1&bday=1&byr=2004&emon=1&eday=1&eyr=2004&databases=2004%3B2003%3B2002%3B2001%3B2000%3B1999%3B1998%3B1997%3B1996%3B1995%3B1994%3B1993%3B1992%3B1991%3B1990%3B1989%3B1988%3B1987%3B1986%3B1985%3B&hview=2

This is the actual text (again, sorry for the long post)

- - - - - - -

July 30, 2004, 12:07AM

Texas 249 toll plan runs into roadblock
Residents say the extra fees will burden budgets
By LUCAS WALL
Copyright 2004 Houston Chronicle

The Texas Department of Transportation's plan to convert part of a Northwest Harris County freeway into a toll road crashed head-on into a wall of opposition Thursday evening at a public meeting in Tomball.

NEXT HEARING
•August 5
•Cypress Creek High School.
A series of speakers at Tomball Intermediate School blasted the plan, drawing numerous rounds of applause and shouts of support from many of the 380 or so people in the audience.

Speakers complained that Texas 249 between Beltway 8 and north of Spring Cypress Road has already been paid for and drivers shouldn't be asked to pay for it again in order to expand the road northwest to Tomball and Pinehurst.

Ed Holtgraver, a Tomball business owner, said turning Texas 249 into a tollway "is discriminatory to this area" and will hurt the economy in the city of 9,000 that is 30 miles northwest of downtown Houston. "Making it a toll road would greatly restrict and slow growth of the area," he said. "It would cause considerably higher costs for myself, my employees and my suppliers."

Most speakers did not object to expanding the freeway into Montgomery County, but said the cost of tolls would be a burden on their family budgets.

"We do need the road," said Robert Walker. "We don't need the toll."

Several speakers criticized local legislators for approving the law last year that allowed converting a free road into a toll road, and said they will work to vote them out of office.

Delvin Dennis, TxDOT's deputy district engineer, tried to convince the crowd of the need for tolling.

"Under current funding schemes, approximately one-third of the needed Texas highway projects can be constructed," Dennis said. "The cost just to maintain and preserve our system has exceeded all the revenues we collect with the state gas tax.

"Our bottom line is there are not enough dollars to meet our current transportation needs."

If the Texas Transportation Commission approves the proposals next year, it will mark the first time an existing free state highway has been converted into a tollway. The commission, at the Legislature's direction, is pushing for more tollways across Texas because revenue from the state's gasoline and motor-vehicle-registration taxes can't keep up with the road needs of a rapidly growing population.

TxDOT does not operate any tollways, though it has bought a formerly private road along the Mexican border that it plans to begin charging tolls on later this year. State planning for toll roads has exploded in the past year, with proposals in the works for a major toll network in Austin and toll lanes on certain freeways in San Antonio.

Harris County has had tollways since the late 1980s, when the county formed an authority to build and operate the Hardy Toll Road and Sam Houston Tollway. The county's third pay road, the Westpark Tollway, opened May 1. And an extension of the soon-to-open Fort Bend Parkway toll road into Harris County is under construction and expected to carry traffic by year's end.

All of those tollways were built new, however. The idea of converting an existing road into a tollway drew controversy before Thursday's meeting.

Kenneth and Tammy Mansfield of Tomball wrote TxDOT last week to object to the Texas 249 proposal, a letter they shared with the Chronicle. Both commute using the Sam Houston Tollway and between them pay $125 a month in tolls.

"If adopted, the new toll proposals could potentially double our toll expenses to $250 per month, not including tolls for non-work-related driving," the Mansfields wrote.

Janelle Gbur, spokeswoman for TxDOT's Houston District, said no funding is currently available to extend the 249 freeway beyond Spring Cypress. If the department waits for tax funds to pay for the project, construction on 249 won't begin until 2010 at the earliest, she said. By charging tolls, work could begin a few years earlier.

The long-term vision is to route Texas 249 as a freeway from Houston to Navasota, where it would connect with Texas 6, which runs into College Station.

TxDOT will hold another round of public meetings once its proposal is more developed. Gbur said the toll range being looked at for the existing eight-mile freeway stretch is between 80 cents and $1.20.

traffic@chron.com
713-362-6832

[MeekOneGOP]

bump!!

[deport]

Stick to the facts instead of slandering.

---

It doesn't help his cause don'tcha see......