Chet Edwards

Paul Burka:

White and Sharp may have miscalculated by jumping into a Senate race that may never come to pass.

Evan Smith:

The serious point here is one I and others have made before: You are not a real party,  you are not a competitive party, unless you field actual, plausible candidates for high office. And from this vantage point, it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen.

Eileen Smith:

Since the fan-f—ing-tastic Blagojevich morning jog clip has been hastily removed from YouTube, I had little choice but to post this video of Evan and I talking about the Senate race, Bill White, John Sharp, and another crappy year for the D’s in 2010.

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As expected, many of Texas’ Congressional Republicans who have spoken out so strongly and voted against bailing out the auto industry have permanently and irreparably damaged their reputation with an important group of their constituents–and sources of funding for their campaigns: Texas auto dealers.

The Dallas Morning News has more:

But it might not relieve the tensions in a strained relationship between new-car dealers – many of whom are active politically – and the Republican Party.

Many area dealers say they were deeply disappointed that Republicans they had supported essentially put politics over the economy in opposing loans to GM and Chrysler.

Only three members of the area congressional delegation supported the loans – Democrats Eddie Bernice Johnson and Chet Edwards and Republican Joe Barton.

Texas' Congressional Democrats sent a letter last week to President-elect Barack Obama, his transition team and the Department of Defense, pushing for recently defeated state Rep. Juan Garcia (D-Corpus Christi) to become secretary of the Navy.

PolitickerTX.com reported Garcia as a candidate for the position three weeks ago, but little has been heard since. However, recent rumblings of discontent from Hispanic leaders over the lack of Latino representation in the Cabinet might boost Garcia's chances.

"We believe that he has the proven record of accomplishment as an Officer in the United States Navy, a corporate attorney, White House Fellow, and member of the Texas House of Representatives and respectfully challenge anyone to find a more qualified individual for this key position," the Democrats wrote in the letter.

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus is pushing state Rep. Rick Noriega (D-Houston) for secretary of veterans affairs, the Houston Chronicle reports.

With only one Latino selected for President-elect Barack Obama's Cabinet so far, Hispanic leaders have become frustrated in recent weeks at the lack of Hispanic representation in the Obama administration.

To that end, U.S. Rep. Charlie Gonzalez (D-San Antonio) and U.S. Rep. Joe Baca (D-Calif.) sent a letter Tuesday to Obama's transition team, recommending Noriega and 13 other Hispanic politicians for various posts within the Cabinet.

Baca told Bloomberg News that Caucus members would "definitely be disappointed" if only one Latino was chosen for the cabinet. Bloomberg reports that Baca "warned that Obama's legislative agenda could be jeopardized if the president-elect doesn't nominate additional Hispanics."

Names are finally beginning to leak in the competition for the Texas' four U.S. Attorney positions. Texas Lawyer reports a list of contenders is being discussed among the state's legal community for those vying to become the highest-ranking federal law enforcement official in each district.

Paul Coggins, a U.S. Attorney for the Northern District under President Bill Clinton and the recently hired defense counsel for Mark Cuban in the SEC's insider trading case filed against Cuban, told the publication that the list for the Northern District is "the strongest field of candidates I've seen since I've been practicing here. Every one of those folks I've heard of have had substantial experience as assistant U.S. attorneys and have all been stars there."

In addition to the list, sources tell Texas Lawyer that U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards (D-Waco) could be influential to the administration of President-elect Barack Obama in the selection process. Obama has long been a friend and fan of Edwards, surprisingly including him on the list of finalists for the Democratic vice presidential nomination.

U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards (D-Waco), a finalist for the Democratic vice presidential nomination, made headlines earlier this week by publicly taking himself out of consideration for President-elect Barack Obama's secretary of veterans' affairs position.

He may have created waves again by his lack of a full denial when asked about the potential of a U.S. Senate run in 2010, should Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) vacate her seat to run for Texas governor, as expected.

"That's highly unlikely," Edwards told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Wednesday. "I love my present job representing my district and leading the fight for veterans.

"But my mother taught me to never say never."

The population of Texas may be growing, but the state's influence in Washington could be receding. A Texan has occupied the White House for 12 of the last 20 years, and the Texas Congressional delegation has often wielded considerable power.

With Democrats set to control the executive and legislative branches, and fewer Texans wielding power, the Lone Star state's "political and cultural influence are already on the wane," Politico reports. 

According to the San Antonio Express-News, recently defeated state Rep. Juan Garcia (D-Corpus Christi) is under consideration by President-elect Barack Obama's transition team as a possible candidate for secretary of the Navy.

Garcia ran Obama's presidential campaign in Texas and was a friend of Obama's from Harvard Law School.

In addition to his role as District 32 representative, and his connections to Obama, Garcia is a former Navy pilot and attorney. He also was a White House Fellow in 1999 and served as special assistant to the Secretary of Education.

Chet Edwards

When U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards (D-Waco) opted on Sunday to remove himself from consideration for the secretary of Veterans Affairs position in an Obama administration, he claimed he could do more to help veterans by remaining in the House.

It seems other Texas Democrats pushed for loyalty to the state and party, as well.

Edwards, who was a finalist for the party's vice presidential nomination in August, is considered among the more influential Texas Democrats in Washington. According to the Houston Chronicle, Texas Democratic House members lobbied Edwards to remain in his post for "fear Edwards' Republican-leaning House district (17) would be captured by the GOP if Edwards resigned to join the Cabinet."

U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards has taken himself out of consideration for secretary of Veteran's Affairs.  The Waco Democrat had been mentioned for the cabinet position in President-elect Obama's administration, and as of last week, Edwards was open to the possibility of serving.

He now says he can work more effectively on veterans' issues by serving in Congress. Edwards serves on the House Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Subcommittee. He's long been an advocate for military veterans and represented Fort Hood before it was removed from his district following 2003 redistricting.