Whatever the issue, state Rep. Cindy Burkett doesn’t hesitate to dive into her carefully organized blue binder to find the detail or document that underpins the point she is making.
Burkett, a real estate agent and small-business owner, has gone to school on critical state issues since she was first elected in 2010 — and it shows.
Too bad her Democratic opponent, Milton Whitley, exhibits a stunning lack of knowledge about those same issues. Repeatedly in our candidate interview, his response was a variation of “I don’t know.”
Burkett, 56, is open to creative funding ideas for transportation, including dedicating vehicle sales tax to bridge the money gap. The Sunnyvale Republican also is passionate about continuing her legislative work to improve services for the mentally ill.
Whitley, 54, who runs an income tax service and has taught at North Mesquite High School, is a first-time candidate. Most of his answers circle back to more education funding, even if that means potentially starving other parts of the state budget. For instance, when asked about road spending, his response was, “If we’re short, we’re short.”
Too often, Whitley, a Mesquite resident, expressed contradictory stances or inconsistencies, such as whether local or state control should rule on payday loan operations and fracking regulations.
Even on issues in which we aren’t aligned with Burkett, we appreciate her common-sense approach. Voters in this far eastern Dallas County district — as well as the increasingly divisive Texas House — stand to gain with her in Austin.
