Refuse the Juice

Million Dollar Staff - Million Dollar Service?

Shock yourself.  Rep. Reyes spends almost $1,000,000 on staff each year.  Do you think you're getting your money's worth?

http://www.legistorm.com/member/567/Rep_Silvestre_Reyes.html

Notes on the Current Condition of Our Union (El Paso)

There seems to be this feeling that much of El Paso is suffering from "Stockholm Syndrome" when it comes to their elected officials.

Not sure what "Stockholm Syndrome" means?  Here's the definition:

Stockholm syndrome is a psychological response sometimes seen in abducted hostages, in which the hostage shows signs of loyalty to the hostage-taker, regardless of the danger or risk in which they have been placed.

We keep electing the same people over and over again and even before someone officially announces for office, the captive media along with a large group of citizens immediately discount the chances of that person.  We've grown to be protective of the people who hold us hostage.... so much so even free thinkers like Sito Negron lean towards the idea that nobody can be beat unless there's a major scandal.

Since I have shown interest in running for office I have had some support, but many people are telling me "you can't do it!"  I can't?  Really?  Why wouldn't they encourage me to at least try?  Do they tell their children not to play in Saturday's baseball game because they're playing the best team in the league and might lose?  I hope not.

The El Paso Times (more on them in a minute) had an op-ed today decreeing our higher than average poverty rate.  It's no coincidence that our representation hardly ever changes and our problems seem to get worse.  For some odd reason when someone like me wants to replace a part of the problem, the media and public alike starting listing all the reason why I can't possibly achieve success in my endeavor... Well that's a nice attitude to have.  They don't like their world, but they're not even willing to consider changing the formula that created it.

People tell me all the time "you can't beat Haggerty or Reyes."  I ask them if they are happy with their representation and they all say "no."  My second question is always the same, "then why are you telling possible challengers they can't win?"  They always answer "'cause you can't!"

Well if we all had that attitude then we'd never get anything done in this world.  Fearing failure is the first step in never succeeding.  If all you're worried about is losing, then you're not thinking about winning. 

When brave men signed the Declaration of Independence and took up arms against a world super power for their freedom, the odds of their survival weren't very high.  A simple comparison of numbers easily showed the British coming over and wiping out our ragtag army and executing the entire roster of signers of the Declaration of Independence with little effort. 

Remember that - the only reason you are reading this post right now is because our founding fathers were "can do" people unlike you folks who are "defeatists" in this town.  Just think about where you'd be today if they gave up because the numbers didn't look good.

Don't tell me that effort and perseverance can't bring people to victory - it happens all the time.   I question anyone's patriotism when their goal is to encourage people not to participate in our democracy out of fear that one may not have their ideas ratified.  You can't win if you don't show up.

If you don't vote, you can't complain.  If you don't run for office, you can't complain at the top of your lungs.  I give plenty of candidates guff for their views or their missteps on the campaign trail. However, I've never told them not to run for office. 

I spent years handicapping congressional races with the absolute best in the business.  We literally had the job of setting the lines like the odds makers do on football games.  Washington would bet on the winner according to the findings of these odds makers.  We had the inside track with all the numbers neatly compiled to prove our case.  The hitch there was that no one ever called up a candidate for office in Jackson, Mississippi and told them "You can't win.  We've done all the numbers and and you're a sure loser. Quit now."  Nope, that never happened because we believe in principal made popular by sports and it's summed up by the phrase, "that's why we play the games." 

Don't know what that means?  Sports analysts use that saying on Monday to explain why the underdog won on Sunday. They spent the entire week before going through the X's and O's giving their best educated guess of who was going to win the game on Sunday, but it doesn't matter until the game is actually played.  Better on paper doesn't always translate to better on the field.

Here's some recent examples locally of people who could never win - that won.

1.  Marissa Marquez took down a 500 year incumbent.  She took out a guy who was in the Texas Legislature since Sam Houston roamed the lands of Texas.  Nobody gave her a chance in hell.  They claim now that they new it all along, but the entire delegation minus Norma Chavez threw their weight behind the dead-weight of a legislator that was Rep. Paul Moreno (notice our Stockholm Syndrome is encouraged by our other elected officials - do not change anything!).  Many will now claim that they knew she'd win all along. I will not claim that I knew it.  Nobody gave her a shot other than Chavez.  She won.  Against all odds - she won. 

2. Dee Margo takes out Rep. Pat Haggerty.  Margo had lost to Shapleigh in a little too close for comfort race for the democrat.  Haggerty, who was said to be very popular and unbeatable, was beaten handily by Margo.  I'm now being told that Haggerty's less popular and much more controversial brother Dan is unbeatable in the Northeast - really?  I guess the lessons of Pat Haggerty haven't been learned. (I happen to really like Pat Haggerty a lot and think he's one of our greatest assets.  His brother... not so much).

3. Rachel Quintana was little known, trashed often in the media and a sure loser against a well funded business backed Jimmy Suerken.  Nobody was more shocked than I when she gained title "Representative" in front of her name.  Nobody gave her a chance.  She won anyway.  No matter what you think of her - she's done something haven't and she deserves respect for that.

4. Joe Moody was the son of a Judge and a democrat in a republican district.  A district that had been red for quite some time.  He faced a well funded opponent who had just slayed a popular incumbent in a primary.  Things did not look good for Joe.  Somehow, someway he won when most didn't think he would. 

That's just four recent triumphs proving that a little determination and perseverance goes a long way in having your ideas ratified by the voters.

I may run and I may not.  The key here is that I'm not scared of my ego being hurt because I went out and asked the voters to back my ideas.  There is no shame in putting up an alternative to the poverty stricken reality we live in now.  If people want to continue living this way, I will let them.  However, there's a group of us who are going to offer them a chance to move in another direction. 

There is no shame in losing an election.  To run and to have lost makes you a better American than all of those wimps who express their complaints from the peanut gallery because they're too scared to put their money where their mouth is.  The next time someone writes "you're going to get an ass beating," they deserve one themselves for being too much of coward to encourage democracy. 

Those who discourage others from running for office are cowards and do hate freedom.  Don't be one of them.

In closing, I haven't decided whether or not I'm running, but I'm not going to be secretive about my intentions.  I have other brands in the fire that might require more attention in the long run.  Some of those brands are going to rock El Paso's world... hopefully.

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Now for the El Paso Times.  I've been in the truck a little more than usual the past few weeks, which means I get to listen to talk radio a lot more than I usually do.  Inevitably that means KHRO 1150 does get some play on my speakers.  Inevitably I get to hear some of the dumbest radio in the history of radio.

The past few weeks the hosts of the various shows have been pooping their pants over the El Paso Times' coverage of one issue or another.  They scream that the paper is terrible and bias and they're never reading it again.  They claim that nothing they write can be trusted and they are part of some conspiracy theory to control the minds of El Pasoans.

The next day they are reading from the El Paso Times... word for word... line by line...

Do they not think that their listeners notice that on Tuesday they claim the paper is useless and on Wednesday it's their sole source for news on an issue?  How can you trust the hosts when they aren't even consistent on the issue of whether or not their news is honest and correct?

One host in particular is the laughing stock of El Paso media.  They all joke how he lies and claims he has canceled his Times subscription and then two weeks later says, "when I went out to get the paper this morning..."  The guy can't even keep his lies straight!

These people lack credibility when they only champion a news source on days it reports or opines on things they agree with.  They are like children... at least mentally. 

Good thing their audience is small. 

 

 

The Scuttlebutt on the Cobos Fundraiser

Cafe Central was the site where the coconspirator County Judge of ours had his fundraiser yesterday.  It was quite the gathering from what I hear.

He was introduced by none other than Congressman Reyes' brother Chewy Reyes (it's okay to laugh).  Looks like when it comes to suspected criminals, the Reyes family turns a blind eye.  Well, that's not true.  Congressman Reyes worked day and night trying to get Cobos a Schedule C appointment in the Obama administration shortly after the election.  Somehow the president's HR office found the federal indictments falling down all around Cobos just too much to overlook. 

side note:  Once again a local politico isn't trying to help YOU get a job in Washington or paying for YOUR out of town room and board for college.  Our politicos either serve themselves or other suspected criminals (and yes I meant that sentence to read exactly how it reads).  They couldn't care less what happens to you given they've done nothing to help us out of the poverty we've been in for a century.

Back to the fundraiser.

Commissioner Dan Haggerty, who said he knew all about the corruption all along and did nothing about it, showed up to support his friend Cobos.  We are happy to report he was not beaten and robbed by tattooed Mexicans last night.

Haggerty who is confident that he will beat all comers this time around doesn't seem to get how this works.  His brother was popular - he is not.  If I do decide to run against him, he's going to have to pretend like he gives a shit for at least ten minutes during the campaign.  Running around with coconspirators isn't something out of the normal for this guy, though.  We have him working with former Commissioner Teran to kill votes to recommended vendors and hand them to those who had paid Teran to get the projects instead.  We know, because we were asked to make certain contributions for certain work.  We didn't pay - we didn't get to play.  Haggerty is an accessory to the crime in my opinion because he made sure he wasn't in the room or voting how Teran asked him to.  Who knows, the FBI might agree with me after they get all the facts.

Cobos told the crowd that he didn't know yet if he was going to run for reelection.  He said he'd have to talk it over with his wife. 

That may seem weird to you.  I understand why.  Why would a guy have a fundraiser if he isn't going to run for office?  Good question, I'm glad you asked.

You see, Cobos has been paying his legal defense out of his campaign funds.  He needs a lot of lawyering right now and it doesn't come cheap.  He may have one shred of reality left in his tiny brain and know that he can't win  if he runs again and he's just collecting cash for a legal fund.  Then again, this is Cobos you're talking about - he probably thinks he's a shoe-in.

I guess he has to sell influence until he can sell it no more.  He's nailed and he knows it.  He's going to need the money to keep form going to jail for 40 years.  The storm is coming and he can't get the roof patched quick enough - I do not pity him.

Tuesday Around the Horn

I'm sorry that I have been absent for the past few days... Work gets in the way of fun sometimes.

Here's what's up -

Norma Chavez is so damaged that she has resorted to describing any bad press she has received as an organized conspiracy orchestrated by a hodge podge of newspaper executives and private citizens named David "K" Karlsruher.

I hate to break it to the fight fan, but we're just no that interested - (look out for some kind of resolution for our local boxing hero coming right out of Norma's office.  Don't be surprised if Shapleigh hasn't given the young boxer an award as well - both will take credit for his boxing ability and success.)

She's still under the impression that the only wrong doing going on is the fact that we keep reporting her wrong doing.  She won't stop doing unethical things; she wants us to stop reporting them.  All this yearning for transparency really screws up her ongoing scams.

The good news is that she is slated to lose at least one, if not both, of her powerful committee assignments.  The probable speaker doesn't need to have a woman who takes cash from lobbyists under the table sitting in a committee that moves their legislation.  That never looks very good for the person in charge.

The bad news is that Norma has intimidated away any competition for her seat and will coast to a victory.  That's good news for me - I'll have something to write about when Cobos is gone!

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Council is taking up the trucks in the left lane issue again.  They're poised to take another anti-business stand through faulty logic and plain moronic advice.

You think it's hard enough to get on the freeway now with on guy going 85 mph and the next going 42 mph?  Try it when you have trucks back to back for 13 miles in one lane.

All this is going to discourage truckers from going through, around or anywhere near El Paso if they can help it.  Don't count on the bypass being built in your lifetime either.  The economy has all but played "Taps" for the funding we needed for that project. 

I'd like to see a city that doesn't have a commercial bypass (i.e. loop) that has implemented this effectively.  You won't find it.  Nobody has studied El Paso's truck traffic because we're the only city in the nation with our unique geographical location coupled with our obvious geological obstacles.  You can't use other city's data because they're oranges and we're apples!

Besides, if every other city jumped off a bridge would we be obliged to follow?

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The health care crisis has turned into a crisis for the democrats.  Fat taxes, barriers to doctors and a huge question on how much it will cost has hurt democrats more than they can account for right now.

The assault on personal liberties is almost too much to take for this guy in front of this keyboard.

I think I may have to step up to the plate.  There are things more important than the odds in life - even if they are stacked against you, you must try - you must never give up.  The men and women before us didn't  give up, neither should we.

Tempura Booted from LRC Chairmanship!

I reported last week that Mayor Pro Tempura Acosta had put herself as chair of the Environmental Services Legislative Research Committee.  I also mentioned that she had run that department into the ground and had some friends go to jail for the way they did business with her department (I now hear the Scary Larry was involved with the imprisoned scapegoats).

I guess I got people to thinking and Rep. Byrd ended up chairing the committee. 

I guess it could have been the fact that the little wee little lady from Segundo (she doesn't live in her district) tricked the mayor into giving Scary Larry his third conquistador award this decade.  Probably not, though. 

We'll see how this progresses.  With Rep. Robinson truly playing the role of Maverick and Ms. Tempura not getting her way, the voting blocks are not solid winners yet.

I like Rep. Robinson.  I respect him, but he sure isn't as good looking as Melina.... I sure do miss her!

This and That and a little Here and There

Newspaper Tree is on top of the Larry Medina Conquistador award story.  You can read it HERE.  Apparently the award is given to the biggest ethically challenged asshole in the city - Scary Larry has won it three times!  For the same thing!

I get the feeling Mayor Cook feels a little used on this one.  His Mayor Pro Tempura Acosta pulled a fast one on him.  The award has garnered lots of press for the Weirdo from Segundo.   

The only thing more pathetic than this award now is Scary Larry's idea that he might be elected to office. 

wow.

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We're short 800 million apartments, or something like that, for the troops who will one day move here.  They were supposed to be here last year, but apparently they're coming some time in the future.  We don't know exactly when, but they're coming.

Too bad city council is considering a plan to make developers douse themselves in gasoline and set themselves on fire on a bed of dry hay if they want to build new subdivisions or housing. 

Nothing says sky-rocketing real estate prices like too many people and not enough housing!

Why council doesn't want to widen it's tax base so it can fund a bus system that serves -6 percent of the population, is beyond me. 

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The media just figured out that Ft. Bliss isn't messing around when it comes to amenities on base.  Somebody announced they were building a mall the size of the Pentagon on base and they aren't going to let non-military folks shop at it.  That pisses these locals off!

GIMME! GIMME! GIMME! Is all we seem to know these days.  You should have heard Special Ed bound radio show host Barbara Perez squawk about it.  God knows she needs to spend her money earned by unethically lobbying for Big League Rip Off after she got her ass handed to her by the most unpopular guy in the city. 

You people wanted it.  You wanted  more troops and a bigger base, so suck it up and shut up. 

And while you're at it - tell a soldier "thank you" and buy him or her a beer next time you are out.

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Regina Arditti's latest campaign filling is quite the financial moron.  I'm not the best with money - you can ask my wife, but I'm not as dumb as Arditti.

She took out a $150,000 home equity loan to run for office!  She claims she only spent $75,000 on the campaign and banked the rest, but it's still insane. 

But... Don't you have to tell the bank what you are going to do with the money?  It is secured debt and works a lot different than credit cards.

Then comes the question about her taking it as a tax deduction even though she spent it on campaign expenses and not on other accepted tax deductible efforts like home improvement.  She could be committing tax fraud.

She's a democrat and nobody will notice anything...  We're backwards and we'll always be if we don't makes some changes.

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Her buddy Judge Barraza should be coming up for trial this fall from what I hear.  That's a miracle considering that other politicos haven't gone to trial in nearly two years for much lesser crimes.  Can anyone explain this to me?

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I have a big project I'm working on - may not work, but then again may be the best thing we've seen in a while as far as media goes.

Aaron Medina - Primo de Larry Medina and Actual Hero

In the El Paso Times' comment section there appears a comment and I have put it bellow for your extreme enjoyment.  The guy's name is Aaron Medina and he claims to be Larry's cousin.  He also put his email address as proof.

Get a beer and read this - it's too good! 

(copy and pasted from the EP Times - errors aren't mine for once)

Aaron Medina wrote:

"Haha this is ironic. This guy or also known as my cousin gets this award, primarily for his anti-smoking efforts. Yet, he is the biggest smoker there is. He smokes at his home and sometimes in public. I can attest to this cause I am his cousin. Remember "buddy boy" when you would go with your handy man Mr. Phil Loera to buy supplies at Home Depot and would even ask him for some smokes. You are pathetic and a transero. You will always be a transero eventhough you have claimed in the Times before you are not. Why do you claim something you are not huh? Obviously you are that is why you are trying to make people believe you are not. I know the real Larry Medina, the none brownnoser. I know the **** hole who degrates his employees and especially his female employees and regards them as...well those of you know Lorenzo know what kind of ladies man he is. No suprise he has been married multiple times and divorces as many times. Maybe he should have gotten an award for best theatrical performance at a 7-eleven...hell the guy deserves an Oscar for that not a Conquistador award. Thank God I do not work for this transero anymore and contributor to hiring of illegal aliens. The man sure deserves awards but for:
- hiring illegal aliens to do his dirty work.
- for beating up his wifes.
- for insulting and cussing at his girlfriend in public places.
- for watering his backyard on non-watering days.
- for insulting and cussing at his employees in public and in front of customers.
- for driving around in his Yukon with expired registration stickers and emission stickers.
- for hanging out with individuals who are currently on the scope of the FBI investigation...hope he is one of them.
- for taking "county business" trips when he was a lame duck Commissioner when in reality they were personal trips.
- for surviving a plane crash and still making peoples lives miserable.
- for neglecting his one and only son.
- for not paying his taxes and telling people in the Times that it is not of their business if he pays taxes or not.
- for having employees without insurance licenses as required by the Texas Department of Insurance.
- for doing additions and renovations for his buildings and rented homes without city licenses/permits and having his mojaditos work in the weekend so he doesnt get caught.
- I could go on and on....

But yes whenever you people see the buddy boy, or Larry or Lorenzo or however you wish to address as. Be on the lookout, he might be smoking outside the Home Depot or Lowes when buying supplies to renovate his buildings or rented homes. Or when he goes to Teddy's Lounge or to the strip club..this mostly happens when he gets in fights with his girlfriend. This is how he might be dressed: wearing a baseball cap, wearing a Pan American tshirt or polo, black jogging pants, shorts and tennis shoes.

Oh and Larry if none of this isn't true you know where I live you can pay me a visit or you can tell your tio when you see him.

amedi115@epcc.edu"

About Norma and the Lobbyist's Retraction

Newspaper Tree is the first print source to go ahead and report that the lobbyist quoted in the EP Times' story last week has basically retracted her statement to Brandi Grissom.  You can find the post HERE on NPT's blog.

The lobbyist, Claudia Russell, broke the number one rule of lobbying - YOU NEVER TALK ABOUT LOBBYING TO OUTSIDERS!  More on this in a minute.

What I read from the letter is that this woman told Brandi Grissom what she told her and is now backing away because she just ruined her career as a lobbyist.  Don't jump Grissom for doing the story - she has three sources for the story and that's two more than most reporters get for a story like this. 

Lobbyist never go on record saying they paid for a party - IT NEVER HAPPENS! The fact that Russell was willing to say what she said to a reporter was enough to have the story put on the front page.  Any legislator receiving an unreported gift of any kind is a news story.  It's even a bigger story when Austin watchdogs agree that her party was a little over the top compared to their normal birthday parties they do for each legislator.  The ice sculpture was too much to go unreported. 

Oh wait - and her staff was on the phone collecting the money which is something you don't want the public knowing.  Using your elected position to get cash for anything other than campaign expenses is technically illegal.  If anyone could match up a vote for one of the attendees of the party who paid the $150 or more, you could have a good case for corruption.  Yet, we don't know who paid.  Chavez won't tell us.

anywho...

After the story comes out Russell all of sudden claims she was confused.  I'm sure the nightmarish phone call she received from Chavez was a big part of her decision to retract her statement.

We don't know if this woman actually gave money to Chavez for the party or not.  Most lobbyists give it out of their own personal accounts and then get reimbursed for the expenditures through an expense account later.  It works the same way as a sales rep taking a client to dinner. 

We will probably never know if she actually did give money for the party and is now lying, or didn't and was actually confused.  Only one person can help us with that and it's Norma Chavez.

The problem for Russell here is that she broke the unwritten rule for lobbyists that reads: "Never tell anybody what you do for a legislator." 

You see, to be a trusted lobbyist you have to be a person who will take an elected official to a strip club where you pay for him to get sex in the back room and you don't tell anybody about it.  A successful lobbyist is one that can be trusted to never tell anyone about what goes on in that world.

When Ms. Russell told a reporter, of all people, that she gave $150 under the table to a legislator for a party, she became persona non grata in Austin.  No elected official can trust her now.  She knows her career is about done.  The retraction is damage control, but it's not enough.  She's now trying to lie her way out of it to save her career and it just isn't going to happen.  Nobody will meet with this woman for fear she will talk to the press afterwards.

I hate to paint a nasty picture of what goes on in Austin and many other state capitals, but it's the truth. 

The issue is all but dead, I guess.  Anytime the EP Times does a cartoon about an issue, it usually signals the death of that issue.

Call Yourself "Hero?" You must be Larry Medina

I'm watching the city council meeting where Larry Medina was given the "Conquistador Award" today.  That award is apparently given to the guy whose most likely to have the absolutely most disorganized, self aggrandizing and moronic speech after receiving the award.

He just called himself a hero.  He's an asshole. 

The guy barely speaks English. 

He calls himself a business guy (PSB issue), but he's happy he cost bar owners thousands after his smoking ban.  Guess what?  Hasn't changed a thing!  He did take rights away from business owners, though.

The guy called himself a hero!!!  What an idiot.

Why doesn't he talk about his role in the FBI investigation?  Why doesn't he explain his threats to business owners who sought contract with the city?   Why doesn't he talk about his fishing trip to Mexico with architects who were asking him to give him city business?

Give it up Larry - if you're a hero... then we don't need anymore "heroes" in El Paso.

The Maverick from the Northeast and Other Notes

Our newest city council person isn't anyone's teammate given his votes so far.  Rep. Robinson throws the voting block into some disarray by his autonomy on the issues.

So what gives? Where's he going to be?  How are we to know? 

This is the most exciting thing to happen since Lozano was on council!

Now we have a reason to watch the more controversial votes.

I now pronounce you Mr. Robinson - "The Maverick."

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I'm not sure whether or not Norma Chavez has been put under the care of a doctor or shipped off to Canada by her few remaining supporters, but she managed not to have a meltdown today to my knowledge.

I received a great call from a guy who is a wealth of information on her district and he told me that people have slipped from her grip like they have never before.  He says they are most upset when they figure out that they paid for her college.  Anyone running for that seat needs to drive that point home, he says.

We'll see if anybody gets out there.

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I working on a piece about our local inclination to identify what we think is a problem and immediately try to solve that problem with government.  I think we have some great examples of why this isn't the best way to proceed. 

We will dive into that very soon.

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Sorry I have been a little quiet - the wife is out of town and I'm reminded of how much she does when she's around.  And get this - we each do our own laundry and dishes.  That's the easy stuff! 

If you're married, go grab your wife and tell her "thank you" and don't forget to tell her why!