Here is one for Teddy Schleifer. Where are the Latina and Latino candidates!
Commentary was having lunch with a well versed politico earlier this week and he asked me why more Latinas and Latinos are not running for City offices this cycle. The question kind of caught me unprepared. We had been discussing the number of African American candidates running – two Mayoral candidates, two or three for City Controller, two strong African American women in one At-Large race, and an African American HCC Trustee in another At-Large race. Where are the Latino and Latina candidates he asked?
I don’t know. It is kind of a troubling question. I kind of stumbled through a response.
I certainly don’t want to compare the local politics of the Latino community with the local politics of the African American but I guess I have to.
Does the African American leadership do a better job of candidate recruitment and training? Do African American elected officials do a better job of grooming potential candidates? What about the roles played by professional and civic organizations?
I am kind of going to go out on a limb and say it is a matter of priorities. We put our efforts into electing folks to the positions we currently hold rather than taking the next step up. It also could be a question of focus, setting goals, and being on the same page. Of course this may change if the Harris County Sheriff runs for Mayor. Or will it?
There are certainly other opportunities out there for Latino political gains. It will just take a little planning, meeting, and talking to each other.
Everyone knows that Jose Altuve led MLB with a .341 batting average this past season. What was the team batting average for the ‘Stros this past season?
I have to admit this was a funny tweet yesterday:
Bill King retweeted
Chris Berhost @CNote713 9h9 hours ago
@BillKingForHou You need rock climbing skills to get out of the potholes on Eldridge between Memorial and Westheimer.
And how about this tweet yesterday from Miya Shay:
Miya Shays @miyashay t • e r1h 11 hours ago
Will former Mayor @BillWhiteTX endorse a #HouMayor candidate? Maybe he told @GeneforTexas tonight? #KnowAutism
I guess folks can speculate on who Mayor White will endorse or not endorse. Any guesses? How much does it matter?
The Chron E-Board kind of slapped the current Mayor today when they wrote about the proposed contract with the police officers. Here is the slap:
Meanwhile, all Houstonians should be wondering whether we’re getting the best bang for our buck. The FBI’s recently released Uniform Crime Report, which relies on data from 2013, lists the Houston region as the only large city in Texas with a high crime rate. Our murder rate was 5.9 per 100,000, above the 4.5 national average. Overall violent crime was more than 50 percent above the national average. Property crime was more than 20 percent above the national average.
These statistics are from the same year that 20,000 crimes with solid leads went univestigated by HPD. Officers deserve fair pay, but Houstonians deserve a balanced budget and a police department that does its job.
Here is the entire E-Board take: http://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/editorials/article/Police-contract-6078444.php.
Ouch!
Speaking of, Commentary watched NBC’s “The Slap” last night. Well they set it up by portraying the kid that gets slapped by an adult the most annoying and spoiled kid around. They portray the adult that slaps the kid as a complete arsehole. So when the kid gets slapped, predictably, many on the twitterverse tweeted it was well deserved. Folks fell into NBC’s trap if you know what I mean – if you are going to slap someone else’s kid in the name of discipline, this one is OK. “The Slap” is a mini-series with only seven episodes remaining so I guess I will continue to watch.
Speaking of NBC, Commentary will spend this Sunday evening checking out the “SNL 40” special. Will you?
The ‘Stros as a team batted .242 last season or 99 points behind Altuve’s .341 and that’s all I have from The Yard today!
Happy Valentine’s Day and let me know how many of the fifty shades you get through this weekend!
Camposcommunications' Blog 