Posted on 05/27/2014 6:23:42 AM PDT by jimbo123
Republican Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst has been one of the most powerful figures in Texas since 2002, but he could be ousted Tuesday by GOP voters who appear ready to steer the state even further to the right by backing tea party favorites over establishment candidates.
Despite spending $5 million of his own fortune on his campaign, Dewhurst has struggled to gain ground on state Sen. Dan Patrick. A victory by Patrick, a fiery conservative talk radio host and founder of the Legislature’s tea party caucus, would complete the overhaul of every elected statewide office next year when Gov. Rick Perry steps aside.
Republican nominations for four major offices — including attorney general and agriculture commissioner — and nearly a dozen statehouse seats will be settled after crowded primary battles in March resulted in a busy slate of runoffs.
With Texas Democrats again underdogs in November, many tea party-aligned candidates favored to win Tuesday would be poised to pursue an aggressively conservative agenda that would likely include further spending cuts, expanded gun rights and more restrictions on abortion.
“We’re supposed to be this very conservative state, and the people in Texas are, yet our Legislature doesn’t always reflect that,” said Republican Konnie Burton, a tea party leader from Fort Worth who is running for Davis’ state Senate seat.
(Excerpt) Read more at dfw.cbslocal.com ...
I’m on my way to the polls. Patrick will be my vote!
There must be a whole lot of unseen "benefits" in local Texas politics.
The lt gov in PA gets to go to all of the funerals from November through April and then goes to all the cold chicken dinners in the May thru October time frame.
The lt gov is not allowed to speak in public unless reading from a script.
All of the graft, by law, must go to the gov and not a dime to the lt gov.
Lt. Gov in Texas is very powerful. He is president of the Texas Senate and appoints all committee heads and determines which committee gets each bill. And he decides which bills get voted on.
Konnie Burton says we’re quite conservative but our legislature doesn’t reflect that sometimes. I agree. It’s the bane of many legislatures vs. citizens all over the country.
Cities become too large and are city-states unto themselves where conservative values go to die. Austin, San Antonio, Houston, The Metroplex and even here in Corpus. I see the same pathology. The reps from those places become more squish with each election. It takes a man or woman or real principle and backbone to stand up and say NO.
So here we have the opportunity to toss out a Lt. Governor who has definitely lost his spine, who sides with Democrats, and compromises his principles.
Since I couldn’t wait to vote today I did so a week ago Monday in the early voting session. I was pleasantly surprised to come out of the voting booth to find a line of cheerful voters. I had hopes that all were wanting to stick a finger in the eye of the likes of David Dewhurst.
I sure hope Dewcrist is gone
Lt Gov is more powerful than the Governor in real respects
Dewhurst is a RINO coward. Good riddance!
Dewhurst is done in Texas politics. The vote today is just a confirmation of his exit from the scene.
In TX, Lt. Gov is more powerful than the governor from a legislative perspective. That's why I want this coward gone!
The Texas Constitution names the Lieutenant Governor the Constitutional President of the Senate, but the Constitution also gives the Senate the authority to write its own rules. That's where the Lieutenant Governor derives most of his power.These rules, adopted by a majority of Senators at the beginning of each Legislative Session, set down in great detail how business is conducted in the Senate.
Senate rules give the current Lieutenant Governor a great deal of influence in shaping state policy and influencing laws that may eventually be passed by the Senate.
The rules allow the present Lieutenant Governor to decide all parliamentary questions and use his discretion in following Senate procedural rules. He can set up standing and special committees and appoint committee chairpersons and individual members.
The order in which bills are considered is also set by the Lieutenant Governor under Senate rules.
Dewhurst did this to himself, he lied and ran negative against Ted Cruz, now he's repeating that strategy with Dan Patrick.
...not that Dan didn't have skeletons, which all had been addressed during the initial primary.
I like the idea of Dan disrupting the GOP Good ole Boyz club in Austin.
Jerry Patterson's hands aren't clean in this primary and I'm sure that will be remembered.
None of the incumbents got my vote last week!
All new is better than these retreads! I just wish the hell more Texans had gotten off their butts to vote out Cornyn! Cornyn is just like Dewhurst - all hat and no cattle!
I am not sure how much more restrictive we can get on abortion, since SCOTUS some how “found” a right to privacy that involves killing someone else!
But, open carry would be high on my list! Further spending cuts and LIMITING the cities and counties from nickle-ing us to death with fees, tax rate hikes and other odds & ends!
Round em up Texas Freepers!
And Patterson bequeathed his old job to George P. Bush, the stalker who has accomplished nothing in his life except for conning the GOP-e into giving him money because he is half-Mexican.
Ditto here. Already voted.
The office of Lt. Governor is often overlooked as one of the more powerful state-wide offices. If we can get a real conservative in there, it will be a game changer.
“Lt. Gov in Texas is very powerful. He is president of the Texas Senate and appoints all committee heads and determines which committee gets each bill. And he decides which bills get voted on.”
You mean a “mini” Harry Reid?
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I don't know why but Lt. Governor gets the first plum; the actual governor gets the second plum.
Lt. Governor has more power than Governor; at least in Texas.
I don't know why.....
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jimbo123, thanks for the "edumacation"!
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"Thanks muchly", uncommonsense!
Will enjoy voting against Dewhurst today. 3 votes against in our household.
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