Posted on 05/24/2010 6:30:17 AM PDT by Willie Green
One of Houston Mayor Annise Parker's most visible goals since taking office in January has been to shake up the agency that oversees buses, rail and other forms of transit in and around the city.
Parker's criticisms of the Metropolitan Transit Authority (known as Metro to those who speak Houston) have been music to the ears of Republican Gov. Rick Perry, who is trying to hold off a November challenge from Parker's predecessor, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill White.
Through press statements and Web videos and under the predictable mantra of "Metrogate," Perry's team has packaged Parker's criticisms with a series of unflattering stories about the agency in the Houston media in an effort to question White's managerial acumen.
White's campaign boasts often that Houstonians re-elected him mayor by huge margins in 2005 and 2007. But widespread criticism of Metro over the past couple of years amplified by Parker could present a chink in his political armor.
White, who after six years as mayor was term-limited out of the job in January, acknowledges that the agency did not communicate well with the public in the past few years.
But he said it also took important steps to expand park-and-ride programs and "one of the most well-utilized light rail lines in the country."
He was also quick to point out that Metro's board, and not the mayor, oversees the agency. The mayor names five of Metro's nine board members.
Many of the allegations against White that have seeped into the governor's race are either inflated, unproven or both.
(Excerpt) Read more at statesman.com ...
I’d rather have Gov. Goodhair for 4 more years than jugears White.
How stupid! You had to get up early to come up with that one!
“Governor Goodhair doesn’t like Metro because it interferes with the private highway tolls he wants to cram down our throats.”
But we should be happy about the enormous taxes forced down our throats for wasteful mass transit spending from Metro?
I don’t support additional toll roads, but Metro is like every other mass transit authority - a cess pit of corruption and waste. No more toll roads and shut Metro down.
Freepmail me or ping me from the original thread to get on/off the 2010 Texas Governor's Race ping list.
Railroad pimp pimping for far left wing democrat White.
No, Railroad pimp pimping for railroads.
Unlike Perry, I've been a conservative all my live.
Perry is a flip-flopping RINO who started out as a 'Rat.
Once a 'Rat, always a 'Rat.
This from the AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN - the commie rag-sheet centered in the ‘blue dot’ called Austin - home to the old hippies of yesteryear....
I assume (?) Metro includes the Wham-Bam Tram?
This from the AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN - the commie rag-sheet centered in the blue dot called Austin - home to the old hippies of yesteryear...
So where do you think Perry will move the state capitol when he secedes from the Union, Ciudad Juárez or Nuevo Laredo?
Didn’t White want to bring Ciudad Juárez and Nuevo Laredo to Houston?
He had no real challengers. NONE in 2005.
Goodhair is one tough comapigner but he may find this attempt coming back to bite in the butt. Anyone familiar with Houston roads knows that there have been major upgrades in the last 6-8 years. Now Metro may not have improved but that isn’t the Mayor’s fault entirely.
I assume (?) Metro includes the Wham-Bam Tram?
Don’t get in the path of the Wham-Bam or you’ll have a few scratches or dents. Sometimes even the buses and the Bam don’t even get along.
A train needs to go where the people are, Sugarland, Katy, The Woodlands, Clearlake etc! We attended a meeting about the train years ago and the idea was voiced, by a city transit official, that high rise buildings would spring up as if my magic along the route and then “Houston would be just like New York City”. No offense NYC but I don't want to be like ya’ll!
I'm voting for Gov. Goodhair Perry and it has NOTHING to do with his hair!
Yah, I’ve heard some amazin’ stories, esp. fr/Xena.
I vote for keeping it in Austin - after all, the libs now in Austin will all flee east and north when the time comes.
Willie, if you’re a Texan you know well and good the papers are all ‘rat cheerleaders, and loooooove big goobermint projects like Metro. This is just of a piece with the propaganda pumped out by the Houston Carbuncle, otherwise known as Bill White’s downtown campaign office.
Metro is a money losing fiasco and has only gotten worse since its inception.
White, being a ‘rat, pimped for Metro and loaded the board with big goobermint types who are planning to piss away more of our money.
There have also been finagles of where the Metro tax money is being spent. White was certainly not alone in that.
AND White could not help but be better than Lee period P period Brown, the most incompetent clown to ever work here.
Mr. I Love Tollways would do better to not remind people of his efforts over the past few years to toll every mile of road they can get away with.
Whereas Houston is the home of Sheila “Don’t you know who I am” Jackson-Lee.
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