How We Voted

"Moreover you shall select from all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them to be rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens."
Exodus 18:21

Early this cycle, we made a specific decision to forgo endorsements or direct advocacy on behalf of specific candidates.  This was for a number of reasons.  But, at this point, we suppose we can let the cat out of the bag.

[Note: A couple of these will surprise some folks.  WE ARE NOT INTERESTED IN DISCUSSING THEM.  DO NOT send us Facebook messages.]

• U.S. Senate: Ted Cruz

• Governor: Barbara Kreueger

• Lt. Gov: Dan Patrick

• Atty. Gen: Ken Paxton

• Comptroller: Glenn Hegar

• Land Commissioner: Davey Edwards

• Ag. Commissioner: Trey Blocker

• Railroad Commission: Christi Craddick

• Court of Criminal Appeals: David Bridges, Michelle Slaughter

• 3rd Court of Appeals: Michael Toth

• CD-35: The guy with the beard.

• RPT Ballot propositions: No on 4.  Abstain on 2.  Yes on all the others.

Texas Railroad Commission a weak staging ground for higher office....

"The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you."
Philippians 4:9

As the early positioning for Election 2018 begins, it's worth examining what happened to the last two Texas Railroad Commission chairs who attempted to "move up."

In 2014, then Railroad Commission chairman Barry Smitherman ran for the open Attorney General seat; he didn't make it out of the first round:

Republican primary

[hide]Texas Attorney General Republican Primary, 2014
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Ken Paxton	44.5%	569,034
Dan Branch	33.4%	428,034
Barry Smitherman	22.1%	282,701
Total Votes		1,279,769

In 2012, then-Chairman Michael Williams attempted to run for a newly created Congressional seat [Full disclosure: At the time, we lived in the relevant district and voted for Williams.]; likewise, he failed to make the runoff:

2012 Republican Party Primary Election

Roger Williams	25.10%
Wes Riddle	14.56%
Justin Hewlett	12.03%
David "Dave" Garrison	11.99%
Michael Williams	10.49%
Dianne Costa	9.36%
Brian Matthews	3.54%
Charles Holcomb	3.28%
Chad Wilbanks	3.10%
Bill Burch	3.06%
James Dillon	2.28%
Ernie Beltz Jr.	1.16%

Also in 2012, Elizabeth Ames Jones proved unable to leverage a seat on the Railroad commission even into a Texas Senate race:

2012 Republican Party Primary Election

Jeff Wentworth	35.77%
Donna Campbell	33.68%
Elizabeth Ames Jones	30.53%

Over the past 20 years, Carole Keaton Strayhorn's 1998 Comptroller campaign is the only example of a member of the Railroad commission successfully running for another position (and we suspect Glenn Hegar will be fine).

Bottom Line: The phrase "don't quit your day job" comes to mind.

OFFICIAL ENDORSEMENT: Chisti Craddick for Texas Railroad Commission

There's a down ballot race in the Texas G.O.P. run-off about which I've been meaning to comment for some time.  With early voting scheduled next week, it's now or never.  Cahnman's Musings officially endorses Christi Craddick for Texas Railroad Commission.

In a post-TARP Republican Party, trust is at a premium.  The conservative grassroots has been let down far too many times, by far too many Republicans, to have it any other way.  Unfortunately, Warren Chisum, Christi's opponent, has proven himself someone conservatives cannot trust.

Here's the back story: Warren Chisum is a long-serving member of the Texas House of Representatives.  The current Speaker of the Texas House is Joe Straus, about whom I've written before.  Joe Straus is a typical politician who uses Obama-esque rhetoric.  For those of you unfamiliar with the Texas Constitution, the Speaker of the House has nearly dictatorial powers over that body, meaning the Texas Speaker is crucial to enacting a conservative agenda. Warren Chisum was crucial to Joe Straus' re-election as speaker in the 82nd Texas legislature.

Following the 2010 Tea Party landslide, Warren Chisum ran for Speaker against Straus.  He stayed in the race long enough to tease Conservatives, then mysteriously dropped out and endorsed Straus.  I don't trust anyone who helps Joe Straus stay in power.

I met Christi Craddick two times this year.  Both times, I came away impressed.  In our conversations, she expressed clear understanding of the difference between free enterprise and crony capitalism.  She understands that Texas' energy industry doesn't need subsidies, it merely needs the EPA to get out of the way.  I don't know much about Christi Craddick, but I know she's never helped Joe Straus get re-elected.  

For those of you who have never heard of the Texas Railroad Commission, it's the state entity that regulates energy development in Texas.  

Trust is a crucial issue in primary elections.  I don't trust Warren Chisum.  Christi Craddick has yet to let me down; in the July 31st run-off (early voting July 23-27), Cahnman's Musings officially endorses CHRISTI CRADDICK FOR TEXAS RAILROAD COMMISSION.