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11/07/9 And, why
are the Democrats abandoning Judge Foster?
A few weeks ago, I was prepared to support
County Judge Jim Foster's re-election. I certainly wasn't going to support
some suburban RHINO put up by Congressman Session or Jonathan Neerman.
This lifelong Republican would rather have a Democrat who has proved he believes
in honest government than an unknown politician with no track record.
DallasArena.com readers know I've been a big fan of former Councilman Mitch Rasansky, although his support for the Trinity Project really shook
my support. It was obvious he was trying to be a team player, and he didn't wear
it well. When the councilman resumed his true role as the taxpayers'
watchdog on the council, we were all better served.
When Mitch Rasansky formally announces his bid for the Republican nomination
as Dallas County Judge over the Commissioners Court, I will wholeheartedly
support him. With the huge budget the commissioners oversee and the
multi-levels of county government, we need someone with his financial expertise.
It's really a much better fit for him to chair a panel of 5 than to be a member
of a council panel of 15.
That said, I cannot begin to state my respect and admiration for County Judge
Jim Foster. Like many people in Dallas County, I had no idea who the man
was before he was elected. It was a shocker when he defeated incumbent
Margaret Kelleher. He seemed more shocked than anyone else. His
first few months on the commissioners' court were not impressive. Many expected him to be dominated by Commissioner JW Price, as did JWP himself.
Slowly, but surely, Judge Foster started to demonstrate some independence.
When he refused to go along with the shakedown of Richard Allen over the Inland
Port, Judge Foster became a heroic figure in a town sorely lacking in courageous
politicians. At the time, Belo's Dallas
Managed News was blasting Allen for
his daring to challenge the status quo of Southern Sector kickbacks. Jim
Schutze has covered the story for almost two years at DallasObserver.com.
Reading his columns will help you appreciate how easy it would have been for
Judge Foster to go along with Commissioner Price. For some reason, it has
been very easy for Republican Commissioner Mike Cantrell to partner up with JWP.
Rather than rally around County Judge Foster, most Democrats are writing him off
and lining up with challengers for the Democrat nomination. They must not
know all that he has done. He has been very active in helping NW Dallas
close down rogue bars and topless clubs that employed underage girls as dancers by yanking their liquor licenses.
When countless citizens started complaining about losing their cars after
arbitrary towing by deputies under Constables Jaime Cortes and Derick Evans,
Judge Foster refused to ignore the problem. Our Bail Bondsman DA had no
problem ignoring the obvious. Ironically, most victims of the Constables'
towing scam are minorities. The victims can't find their vehicles after
they are towed by rogue companies designated by the two Constables. When
the vehicles are located, they have been held so long that it is cost
prohibitive to reclaim them.
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There are
lots of issues before the Commissioners, and Judge Foster would made it
a lot easier on himself by pulling the Monkey No See/No Hear/No Speak
act. He did not. For the life of me, I cannot understand
what has happened to Commissioner Cantrell siding with JWP and the Bail
Bondsman DA. |
Speaking of the DA, there may
be a simple solution for his thwarting any investigation of Cortes and Evans.
Remember, Watkins wrecked several County cars early in his term. Many
think there was more to all that than we were hearing. Who's going to
charge the county's first Black DA with anything more than reckless driving?
How many cars have you wrecked in the last few years?
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What's the DA hiding as he moves heaven
and earth to block an investigation of Constables Evans and Cortes? |
Does our Bail Bondsman DA have
a hand in what's going on with the towing scam? Not saying he does, but
why is he so hell bent on stopping a real investigation? If there is no
wrongdoing on the part of either Constable, a real investigation will only
vindicate them.
Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins filed court papers late Thursday asking a judge to halt the county's civil investigation into the employment practices of two constables.
Watkins argued in his request for a restraining order and injunction that county commissioners and their special investigator are exceeding their authority by conducting a criminal investigation of the offices of constables Derick Evans and Jaime Cortes, of Precincts 1 and 5.
Watkins said in the petition that only his office can investigate criminal matters and that investigator Danny Defenbaugh is hindering an investigation his office is conducting. ...
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So, why wasn't the Bail
Bondsman DA investigating? If he's been investigating, why no results to
report? This is not a new issue. Watkins had plenty of time to get
some answers on this towing scam. If there's nothing wrong, reviewing the
Constables' records would be their best defense. The Problem for Messrs.
Watkins, Cortes and Evans -- there's something wrong.
... Foster questioned Watkins' motives in seeking to halt the county probe.
"I just see a lot of conflicts of interest here," Foster said. "With all these roadblocks, it sounds to me like someone is trying to cover something up." ...
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See why I love Judge Foster?
This is just basic common sense, a very rare commodity in elected officials.
Commissioners Maurine Dickey and Ken Mayfield have been strong behind Judge
Foster.
... "Once again the district attorney doesn't know what he's talking about," Mayfield said. "There's something he doesn't want uncovered."
Mayfield said that whenever Defenbaugh has found evidence of crimes he has turned it over to the proper authorities, including the DA.
"It may be that the DA doesn't want that. The question is, why?" Mayfield said.
In a status report Defenbaugh wrote to Foster that is attached to Watkins' petition, Defenbaugh wrote that he is trying not to interfere in any investigation the district attorney may be conducting. He said in the report that of the 52 people he's interviewed, only two have had contact with the district attorney and only one of them gave a statement.
Defenbaugh also wrote in the report that he turned over to law enforcement three allegations of crimes committed by the constables or their employees.
He also wrote that he is periodically giving information from his investigation to the DA's public integrity unit.
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If the DA's investigators are
too busy to investigate or bother interviewing people, you would think he would
be happy to have the Commissioners pay for the investigation out of their
budget. How many Commissioners' meetings did Watkins interrupt trying to
get more $$ in his budget, so he could continue defending convicted criminals
rather than prosecuting the bad guys? Watkins not only is wasting his
budget $$ on this frivolous attempt to block the investigation, but costing
Dallas County taxpayers even more. Not that the interests of law-abiding
taxpayers matter to Craig Watkins.
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What's the DA hiding as he moves heaven
and earth to block an investigation of Constables Evans and Cortes? |
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| Back to the upcoming Democrat
and Republican primaries. I don't understand why the Dallas County gay
community has turned its back on their first elected County Judge. Why
haven't they come to his defense when he is only trying to help citizens who
have lost their cars and trucks to what looks like an obvious illegal
confiscation? Most of the car-towing scam victims are low to moderate
income residents who can't afford to hire a lawyer to defend their property
rights. You know Judge Foster is doing something right when State Senator
Royce is gunning for him. |
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11/9 Casie Pierce:
Because they are trying to win popularity contests. It's why I
don't care about gay activism in Dallas, and also why I am not a
Democrat. There are a couple handfuls like me in this city and we
don't live in Perry Heights and drive BMW's. We live south of I-30
and don't get invited to Black Tie (or care if we did get an invite).
The "popular" gays are posers who snap into action to win popularity
contest (aka elections). It's disgusting to watch.
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It is very unlikely that Judge Foster will be re-nominated by Dallas County
Democrats, which speaks volumes about the lack of clout the gay community really
has in the party -- despite their large contribution in terms of $$ and time.
If Judge Foster does get the Democrat nomination, I will still support Mitch
Rasansky because I know he will win both the primary fight and the November
election. Mitch Rasansky is a straight shooter who will be even tougher on
our Bail Bondsman DA.
Democrats need to do some housecleaning, but Judge Foster is not the
officeholder they need to return to the private sector. Most of us
underestimated this good man and his commitment to honest government and
protecting the little guy. Don't you wish we had that kind of man holding
the DA's office?
In conclusion,
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What's the DA hiding as he moves heaven
and earth to block an investigation of Constables Evans and Cortes? |
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