TRAIL BLAZERS

Willie Nelson's never had trouble hitting the airwaves. But this time he's assisting a campaign with limited resources and delayed promotion.

So Kinky Friedman, who is running for agriculture commissioner in the Democratic primary, is pitching his long-time friend's radio endorsement on his own Web site. He's also begging for play on local stations.

The famed country singer, who supported Friedman for governor in 2006, says his friend will "bring jobs back to rural Texas." He also says he will "oppose toll roads and support farmers and bio fuels."

Nelson mentions the "rural" aspect of the job in almost every sentence of his 30 second plea. He also brings up his own qualifications as a supporter, saying he organized the first Farm Aid concert.

And, yes, there's guitar strumming in the background.

Eight days from the gubernatorial primary, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison left the campaign trail and returned to the Senate yesterday, for a vote on a $15 billion job-creation bill.

She voted against it, but five Republicans broke ranks and it passed 62-30 -- two more aye votes than needed to clear a procedural hurdle. The story of the day was that the new senator from Massachusetts, Scott Brown, was one of the five Republicans to support the Democratic bill -- despite efforts by Hutchison, it turns out.

The eagle eyed Dana Milbank of the Washington Post spotted her working the new guy, and reported this today:

Moments before the vote, Brown's office sent out word that he planned to side with the Democrats, and some last-minute buttonholing by Sens. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) and Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Tex.) evidently didn't change his mind.

"It's not a perfect bill, but it's certainly a bill that I felt comfortable enough to vote on, because it's the first step in creating jobs," Brown said. "And anytime you can make a small step, it's still a step."

Don't get too excited if you received a confusing email from agriculture commissioner Todd Staples.

A direct message sent by Twitter on Monday evening pointed followers to a link that read, "you look funny here."

The link redirected followers to a site that reported a "web forgery."

Staples later responded on his Twitter site: "If you received a msg from me, disregard as my account was compromised. Settings have now been changed, thanks so much for following!"

Rows and rows of people lined along Port-au-Prince's narrow streets. Nowhere to go. Nothing to do.

That's the image that will stick with Rep. Michael Burgess from his recent trip to Haiti's capital, where hundreds of thousands of people are still suffering from January's magnitude 7.0 earthquake.

"It was startling," Burgess said. "They weren't mad. They just didn't have anywhere to go."

The Lewisville Republican joined five other lawmakers on a congressional delegation last Friday to determine if Haiti's remaining infrastructure and institutions are capable of effectively administering international aid.

The United States government has given about $636 million in earthquake assistance, according a report last week by the U.S. Agency for International Aid. That number only figures to go up as time goes along, and Burgess and others wanted reassurance from the State Department and USAID that the money would reach those in the greatest need.

"That's the one reassuring message," Burgess said. "I won't say the State Department and USAID are doing everything perfectly, but they are doing the job that we want them to do in getting the aid to those who need it."

Other lawmakers on the trip were Rep. Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va.; Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Wis.; Rep. Michael Capuano, D-Mass.; and Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio.

Former Houston Mayor Bill White had some tough words at the Dallas County Democratic Party's Jefferson-Jackson Day Dinner in Union Station.

He urged the partisan crowd to get ready to defeat the "forces of darkness" after the primary season was over.

White spokesperson Katy Bacon said the Democratic candidate for governor was referring to incumbent Rick Perry, not Kay Bailey Hutchison.

Here's her statement:

"On Saturday night, Bill was NOT referring to "his GOP rivals" in discussing a post-primary scenario. Bill was referring specifically to Governor Rick Perry, who by all accounts is expected to win the Republican nomination after a difficult primary.

On many occasions Bill has openly said he agrees with Senator Hutchison on her criticisms of Governor Perry, from TexDot, to toll-roads and cronyism. He has also worked closely and effectively with many Republicans including Senator Hutchison"

Dallas attorney Ralph Janvey, who is in charge of recovering assets from the empire of alleged Ponzi schemer Allen Stanford, sued the congressional fundraising committees on Friday to recover money that could be returned to investors.

Janvey first requested in Feb. 2009 that more than $1.8 million in campaign donations be returned to the estate. The largest beneficiaries of Stanford's largess were the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee ($950,500); the National Republican Congressional Committee ($238,500); the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee ($200,000); the Republican National Committee ($128,500); and the National Republican Senatorial Committee ($83,345). According to Janvey, who is represented in the matter by Kevin M. Sadler and Timothy S. Durst of Baker Botts, the committees have "ignored" his requests to return the funds.

Two of the Republican committees are led by Texans: the NRCC, by Rep. Pete Sessions of Dallas, and the NRSC, by Sen. John Cornyn. An NRCC official previously told The Dallas Morning News that the group has no plans to return the money. Sessions' NRCC struggled to raise money in 2009, although it reported raising $4.5 million in January. Even with improved fundraising prospects in 2010, it's hard to imagine the NRCC unilaterally disgorging the Stanford donations since its rival, the DCCC, hasn't agreed to give back the money, either.

There have been a lot of questions about what kind of favors Stanford sought in return for his generous donations. Interestingly, the attorneys argue the answer is nothing: "The Committee defendants did not furnish any consideration whatsoever for the funds they received from Stanford, Davis and the Stanford Financial Group," the complaint states. "Consequently, they have no legitimate right to retain the funds, and the Receiver is entitled to the return of all such funds."

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill White raised $2.2 million in the last 30 days and has $5.4 million in cash, says White spokeswoman Katy Bacon.

That's a formidable sum. Remember how the party's standard bearer last time, Chris Bell, had to beg $2.7 million from the late trial lawyer John O'Quinn, just to remain visible down the home stretch of the general election?

White, the former Houston mayor, will report to the Texas Ethics Commission today that he had more than 1,000 first time contributors, Bacon said.

Not to brag or anything, but we've got a whole mess of great new stuff on the race for governor that you'll want to read.

First, get a taste of life on the campaign trail with our Sunday narrative story. Christy Hoppe, Wayne Slater and Bob Garrett spent significant behind-the-scenes time with the three Republican candidates for governor last week to report the piece.

You'll want to watch the video put together by Nathan Hunsinger. And be sure to check out the fantastic photos taken by our staff photographers, too -- Tom Fox was with Kay Bailey Hutchison, Michael Ainsworth followed Rick Perry and Courtney Perry was with Debra Medina.

And as the primary draws near, you might be asking yourself: Just who are these candidates for governor, anyway? Find out with our "50 things you need to know" about the five major candidates: Perry, Hutchison, Medina, Bill White and Farouk Shami. Tom Benning painstakingly compiled these, so take advantage of his work and learn more about the next governor of Texas, whoever he or she may turn out to be.

AP photo/Obama and Gov. Tim Pawlenty, R-Minn.

Tonight, most of the nation's governors were at the White House for a black-tie Governors' Ball in the State Dining Room, where crooner Harry Connick Jr. provided the entertainment.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry was not among them, though lots of GOP bigwigs were. Minn. Gov. Tim Pawlenty got to sit next to the First Lady, and if he was measuring the drapes, he did it too discreetly for the press to notice during the 10 minutes we were in the State Dining Room for the president's toast. Florida Gov. Charlie Crist was waaaay in the back of the hall, well out of presidential hugging range, and probably glad of it.

Obama congratulated the governors on hand for the "very tough choices that many of you made" in the past year and called them exemplars of bipartisanship. "One of the things I've always said about governors that Washington could learn from," the president said, "is that it's hard to be overly ideological as governor because the fact of the matter is, the rubber hits the road with you."

With nine days left before Election Day, Perry wasn't about detour to that Sodom/Gomorra he likes to call "Washington." While most of his counterparts from around the country take part in the annual National Governors Association, Perry has made a habit of shunning the NGA, declaring it a waste of his time and taxpayer money, though he has been a leader in the partisan Republican Governors Association.

Interestingly, Gov. David Paterson -- who kicked off his own reelection tour yesterday and was campaigning just this morning -- did make it to the White House.

The RGA's current chairman, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, backs Perry in the primary and is also a central player in the 3-day NGA meeting, where governors are hashing out policy and sharing ideas on health care, surface transportation, education and homeland security.

While Barbour and colleagues from Caulifawnia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Minnesota vied for hearts and minds on the Sunday shows, and then put on the ritz at the White House dinner, Perry focused on a get-out-the-vote tour of Texas, with stops in Houston, Sugar Land and Shenandoah.

Saturday, while Perry stumped at seven Texas stops, the other governors met with Michelle Obama, and heard a pitch to join her in the fight against childhood obesity.
On Monday, as other governors return to the White House for meetings with the president and Cabinet members, Perry will still be campaigning in Texas, no doubt telling folks how much Washington could learn about doing things the Texas way.

Dang. If only someone from Texas ever got invited into the White House for a chance to bend the president's ear.

State Rep. Terri Hodge, who recently admitted guilt on a charge of tax evasion, attended the Dallas County Democratic Party Jefferson-Jackson Dinner.

The dinner, held Saturday night at Union Station, attracted over 350 Democrats.

Hodge smiled a lot and moved through the crowd without hesitation. She made no public comment.

The deal Hodge made with the federal government ends her political career, but some supporters are still trying to get her elected.

Dallas lawyer Eric Johnson is the only true candidate in the District 100 House race.

If Hodge does win, the matter gets tossed in the lap in the District 100 precinct chairs.

While nearly every speaker at this week's Conservative Political Action Conference has railed against President Barack Obama, Rep. Ron Paul saved his heavy fire for another Democratic president: Woodrow Wilson.

Yes, Wilson, who left the White House in 1921 and died in 1924.

The Gulf Coast congressman, famous as an anti-government icon, raked Wilson over the coals for pursuing the League of Nations, promoting fiscal irresponsibility and attacking personal freedoms. He charged that Wilson's failures are playing a strong role in many of America's current problems, and he even stoked the crowd when they starting booing Wilson's name.

In other words, it was Paul's usual rollicking combination of history, liberty and the quest for true conservatism.

"It very important to understand what conservatism means," he said. "To me, being conservative means to conserve the good parts of America and to conserve our Constitution."

Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, continues to woo strong supporters of his predecessor, Tom Craddick. Today, he named Sherman Republican Larry Phillips (right) co-chairman of a newly created House Select Committee on Transportation Funding. When Phillips joined the House seven years ago, he was a Craddick man.

One of the panel's two subcommittees will be headed by Rep. Ryan Guillen, D-Rio Grande City (below left). He's a former "Craddick D" who got to help write budgets but fell to lesser posts after being on the wrong side of the speakership battle before last year's session.

Now, you can say seats on these select panels are more baubles than plums. But roads are a pretty hot issue. And, especially in a year that nationally looks favorable to Republicans, Straus probably needs to keep courting his party.

He shoved Craddick aside with only 11 GOP pledges in his pocket, including his own. Many Craddickites give Straus fair to middling marks, or better, for his helmsmanship. But one, retiring Rep. David Swinford, R-Dumas, told me last month that Straus needs to redistribute the committee assignment wealth of those 10 original GOP backers, known as the "cardinals."

One, Brian McCall of Plano, is quitting, which frees up the powerful chairmanship of Calendars. It's the traffic cop for bills. And no fewer than 6 cardinals roosted there last session.

"This is how speakers become popular," a veteran lobbyist said today, of the nonstop stroking of members, especially those not on board last time.

On the substance of Straus' transportation move, here's a blog post with commentary by editorial writer Rodger Jones.

There have been questions about whether Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison will in fact resign her Senate seat if she doesn't defeat Gov. Rick Perry in the March 2 gubernatorial primary. Hutchison has always said she intends to leave Washington, but she's twice put off resigning, which has made things confusing for the throng of candidates lined up to replace her.

But Hutchison is still telling supporters that she intends to resign her Senate seat. At a fundraiser on Wednesday at Old Parkland, the headquarters of Crow Holdings, a few supporters said they wanted her to remain in the Senate after March. But she insisted she is ready to leave. "I've never heard her more emphatic that she's going to resign," said one person who attended the event, which was sponsored by the real estate investor Harlan Crow, a major donor to her campaign.

Recent polls have shown Hutchison far behind Perry, enough that some people think Perry could win the primary without a runoff. At the Wednesday fundraiser, she was "charged up" and insisted there would be a runoff, according to one person in attendance.

Hi folks. Theodore Kim here. For those of you interested in state legislative races or Collin County politics, there's a good GOP primary battle unfolding in West Plano for the District 66 seat of House Rep. Brian McCall, who is not seeking reelection.

One of the candidates, Mabrie Jackson, has opened up on her opponents in attack mailings and on the web. Here's a link to my post and the ensuing discussion on the Plano Blog.

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Republican Debra Medina said today the decision of a man fighting the IRS to crash his airplane into a building in Austin reflects "the hopelessness many in our society feel." Medina told a radio interviewer today: "There is a sense in all of our country that we are not on the right path. That's why this race is so important."

Medina appeared on the Jack Riccardi show on KTSA to talk about her race for governor. She said she did not sympathize with the pilot of the plane. "I grieve for him. I'm very sympathetic for his family, for the families of those innocent victims in that building." Medina's campaign for governor has attracted conservative members of the anti-tax Tea Party movement, which includes people who advocate abolishing the IRS. The plane crashed into a building housing an IRS office and an IRS employee was killed. When she did not initially condemn the suicide crash, Riccardi asked that whatever the perceived abuses of government, the decision by the pilot was wrong. "Absolutely," she said. "You cannot excuse that kind of behavior."

Medina said she didn't know enough about the particular tax dispute that prompted the crash other than "it was an act of desperation."

"It was something that so many in our society feel," she said. "The important thing is we have an opportunity as public policy spokespeople to make sure the laws are fair and just."

Medina made headlines last week during the Glenn Beck radio show when she entertained the fringe idea that the U.S. government was involved in the 9/11 attacks. She subsequently issued a statement denying that she believes that.

Conservatives are feeling their oats at their annual CPAC conference, and a little while ago, Texas Railroad Commissioner Michael Williams got his turn in the spotlight. Introduced as the next senator from Texas -- no mention that the seat held by Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison isn't vacant and may not be for a while -- Williams called fears of global warming a "fantasy."

He called it ironic that the same sorts of liberals who attacked President George W. Bush (who managed his failed campaign for Midland County attorney years ago) for rushing to war based on imperfect intelligence are now advocating cap-and-trade policies based even sketchier evidence.

He spoke on Day 2 of the 3-day Conservative Political Action Conference, and he really got the crowd going with a drill, baby, drill-style riff.

"We've got to go and drill for American energy wherever we have American energy. We've got to drill for it on the west coast, the east coast, the eastern part of the Gulf of Mexico, the Rocky Mountains and oh by the way, drill in the ANWR," he thundered, bringing a couple thousand conservative activists to their feet. And, he said, "we've got to bring the nukes back. We haven't built a nuclear power plant since 1979."

No mention of President Barack Obama's proposal a day earlier to jumpstart construction of new nuclear plants.

But like a parade of other speakers (former House Majority Leader Dick Armey called Obama a "self-righteous... ideologue" yesterday), Williams made the case that conservatives are on the march again.

"The people of Massachusetts gave us a tea party more than two centuries ago, and new hope just one month ago. If Massachusetts can elect a Republican to replace Teddy Kennedy, then there is no safe haven this election year for the tax and spend Washington left," he said. "Americans ... have been awakened from a deep slumber after a yearlong nightmare of Democratic rule. We're finding our voice once again."

There's little the two agriculture commissioner primary candidates have in common beside their party, the desire to run and a brief flirtation with the governor's race.

Both campaigns are banking on these differences to attract specific crowds on March 2. Kinky Friedman's crew is looking for voters who recognize his name and appreciate the entertainer's vocal discontent with Texas leadership. Hank Gilbert's people are hoping to pull Democrats with a more nuanced grasp of agriculture issues.

Their distinct strategies were apparent last night at Friedman's concert at the Granada in Dallas. The musician spent more than an hour before the concert signing his latest book and speaking with fans. The only indication he was running for office came in the form of "Kinky 2010" stickers that appeared on the table just before he disappeared backstage. Friedman finally mentioned the race an hour into his performance, although he had spent the day with Dallas media outlets and at local coffee shops campaigning.

Most fans circling the table before and after the show still knew he was running -- just not who else was. They championed his anti-establishment stance, his position on sustainable fuels and his promise to find experts for aspects of the agriculture world he doesn't understand.

Those are the kind of people campaign adviser Jason Stanford envisions will show up for the primary vote.

"He has name ID a presidential candidate would envy," said Stanford. "You feel like you know him while the other Democrat you've never heard of, Kinky Friedman and what's his name again?"

Friedman knows that's his chance for the primary. "If it's going to be a small group of insiders we're going to lose," he said.

Gilbert, who claims to be an outsider himself, needs that Democratic base to come out on March 2. He's worked to grab almost all mainline Democratic endorsements. And he's spent much of his time at small town meet-and-greets where he can talk about his East Texas ranching background and "push the issues" of water conservation, food safety and eminent domain.

Gilbert's campaign is fighting the Kinkster's name recognition by channeling that group of devout voters.

"What you have at the polls in the Democratic primary are the people who drive by every day to make sure they didn't miss an election," said Mike Lavigne, Gilbert's campaign adviser.

"And you can see who is supporting us," he said, "Look at the endorsements. It's everybody."

Over the past two days voters in Texas House District 100 have received automated telephone calls urging them to vote for disgraced state Rep. Terri Hodge.

Hodge recently entered a guilty plea on a federal tax evasion charge. She has ended her campaign, apologized to district residents and acknowledged that her political career is over.

But her name is still on March 2 primary ballots. Early voting for the election started Tuesday.

The calls, featuring a woman identifying herself as former Dallas council member Diane Ragsdale, asks voters to pick Hodge anyway. If Hodge beats Dallas lawyer Eric Johnson on March 2, the district's precinct chairs will pick the Democratic nominee for the November general election.

Johnson has released a list that shows he's supported by the vast majority of precinct chairs. But a Hodge win could change the dynamic of the race and land the process inside the back rooms of Oak Cliff, where political deals are cut.

According to persons who have received the call, a voice claiming to be Ragsdale said Terri Hodge's name was still on the ballot and voting for her would be a way to thank the lawmaker for her 14 years of service. The caller also stated that voting for Hodge would give the district more options for the primary.

Dallas political consultant Lorlee Bartos, who lives in the district and received the call, said it represented a "new low."

"It didn't sound like Diane," Bartos said. "You're urging people to vote for an admitted felon."

Ragsdale could not be reached for comment.

Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins and several Democrats voted Thursday in North Oak Cliff.

Watkins, who is unopposed for the March primary, was joined by County Judge candidate Clay Jenkins, District Clerk Gary Fitzsimmons, County Clerk John Warren, District 4 County Commission candidate Elba Garcia and Judge Martin Hoffman. Watkins said he hoped the crew of candidates would help move Dallas County forward.

The above photo was taken by Claire Jordan and shows Watkins and company walking into the Oak Cliff Sub-Courthouse.

County Judge Jim Foster was also at the polling location Thursday.

As with other areas across the county, poll workers and campaign volunteers greeted voters as they ventured into the courthouse. The workers, for the most part, stayed the legal distance from the polling place.

Early voting for the March 2 primary began Tuesday.

U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin, said that one of his first thoughts about the apparently intentional plane crash earlier today in Austin was being "concerned that this is where fanaticism can lead."

"Like the larger-scale tragedy in Oklahoma City, this was a cowardly act of domestic terrorism," he said through his office. "Stack's [the pilot] apparent website message reflects the steadily increasing flow of 'the government is out to get me' paranoia. That so many have already contributed to a Facebook page as 'fans' of this terrorist attack on public servants is a truly appalling expression of extremism, which Americans will overwhelmingly reject."