Quid Pro Who

08/26/02 Another Election Stolen by Mail-In Ballots and Subterfuge.

Mike Martinez won the election for District 8 with the voters who actually went to the polls in early voting and on election day. He lost the election because Joe Thug May got 212 mail-in votes. Why don't we just save ourselves a lot of money and stop having elections?

Not once have I ever claimed to be a good loser, except when Pete Vaca lost to John Loza. I was not the least disappointed in that loss as things turned out, but I still saw some bad stuff from the Loza campaign that really concerned me.

Stuff like stolen yard signs -- petty, but mean spirited and unnecessary. Stuff like personal attacks on Vaca at debates by Loza's campaign manager. First hand experience of how the "mail-in ballot harvesting" works. That was the campaign where Joe May showed the Dallas Observer Pete Vaca's Application for a mail-in ballot, Model citizen. It was bad enough that May would show a third party Vaca's ballot application, but May was not supposed to have it at all. The application was given to one of Joe Thug's harvest operatives who swore to Vaca he was not working for May or Loza.

Vaca lost that election, and that was no loss to the city. But that election was when I really began to understand how the mail-in ballot harvesting scam works, and how insidious it is.

I'll get back to that issue, but I want to talk a minute about some people who endorsed May over the more qualified Mike Martinez. You would expect Loza and all of his appointees and campaign people to support Joe May because Loza has never won an election without the mail-in ballots that May delivered by hook or crook. There were some big surprises, however.

Dr. Lois Parrott -- This was very un-cool of her to let her name be used in May's campaign because there's a deal brewing among some on the DISD School Board. Look for 1 or all 3 of the following things to happen in the next few weeks.

1. Parrott joins African-Americans and Joe May to elect Ron Price as President of School Board. Remember Price is the Trustee who spends our tax money traveling to every convention he can, particularly those near D.C. DISD Data

Parrott is expected to support this extravagant big spender for Board President, which will likely undo all the good that Supt. Moses has done to date.

2. In exchange for her backing Price, the May/A-A alliance will vote to have the DISD pay all of Parrott's legal fees for her suit against the DISD, as well as have the DISD drop its claim for reimbursement from Parrott of its legal expenses.

3. With the support of his A-A allies and Dr. Parrot, Joe May will lead the charge to reopen DISD redistricting.

I could be wrong, but the truth will out in the next couple of months. If none of the above 3 possibilities (Price becomes DISD Pres, Parrott gets her legal bills paid by DISD or Joe Thug gets to redraw the district lines) come to pass, we can assume Parrott was being a good Democrat and doesn't want another Gay man on the School Board.

Councilman Mark Housewright - Until this DISD campaign, we thought Housewright was an ally of Mayor Laura Miller, but she endorsed Mike Martinez. Housewright's support for May has a lot of Gays who live in Kessler Park and Stevens Park a mite upset.

Below is part of an e-mail that went out from "Radio Free Oak Cliff":

COUNCILMAN HOUSEWRIGHT ENDORSED JOE MAY

Given that bias against gays factored into the DISD Board election, it is no surprise that Dallas city councilman Mark Housewright endorsed Joe May, contributing to May's slim-margin victory this weekend. . . . Councilman Housewright is surrounded by several individuals -- including at least one ethically-challenged planning commissioner and a former councilman -- who have made private comments expressing concern about how gays and lesbians have "taken over" Oak Cliff neighborhoods.

These "leaders" befriend gays and lesbians when they need financial or active constituent support, but would prefer that gay and lesbian citizens not be in high profile positions in the neighborhoods or community. . . . genteel bias against gays that has existed in Oak Cliff for decades.

Other established Anglo residents in "old" Oak Cliff . . . have already gone on record saying, "There is no way we will let (openly gay councilman) Ed Oakley be elected over Housewright next spring."

Among first- and second-generation Mexican-Americans, . . . a publicly-demonstrated bias against gays is considered to be a positive attribute. The faith-strong African American community of Oak Cliff has also been reluctant to stand up to this socially-acceptable prejudice.

Therefore, Housewright's endorsement of a homophobe (and racist) like now-DISD Board Member Joe May should come as no surprise. This endorsement and May's victory will ensure Housewright support among key Hispanic and Anglo residents in Oak Cliff.

You can be assured that this divisive issue will bubble up -- and probably not just under the surface -- in the upcoming District 3 Clash of Incumbents. ###

RADIO FREE OAK CLIFF radiofreeoakcliff@hotmail.com August 25, 2002

The DISD District 8 race did not impact Housewright's current or new District 3 because it does not go anywhere near Oak Cliff. Backing Joe Thug was a dumb move on Housewright's part, and it is going to cost him a large block of former supporters.

Ken Molberg - In the Vaca campaign against Loza, all the Swiss Avenue folks (including Molberg) were with Vaca. Their fight with Loza was over the proposed Albertson's in the middle of a residential area. Joe May was the Devil Incarnate to the East Dallas Upper Echelon during the Loza/Vaca race. So, why would Molberg support May for the DISD School Board when he knows what a scum bag May is?

Considering how much Dallas County Democrats are dependent on the energy and financial support of the Gay community, it seems counter-productive to alienate the Gay community for the likes of Joe Thug.

Neil Emmons -- Here's a piece of trash walking. This petty, little worm was appointed to the Plan Commission by Veletta Lill at the urging of Lord Lori Palmer and Cay Kolb (two aging control freaks who are losing their strangle hold on Oak Lawn). Emmons was once the President of the Oak Lawn Committee, but lost his base when he and Kolb played fast and loose with OLC By-Laws and when he supported May's successful efforts to kept Oak Lawn split into two districts. Emmons now hates the OLC. Emmons is a White Gay man who endorsed Joe May who said "the only Hispanic Whites will vote for is a Gay Hispanic". Emmons proved May wrong on that score. Emmons is a White Gay man who endorsed Joe May, even if he couldn't vote for him because Emmons lives in DISD District 5.

So, a really qualified candidate with a Masters in Education and who taught school for 3 years was beaten with mail-in ballots by Joe Thug, who disrespects Hispanics and elderly people so much he thinks he has to tell them how to vote and hand deliver their ballot rather than letting the voter mail it IN THE STAMPED, SELF-ADDRESSED ENVELOPE PROVIDED BY THE COUNTY ELECTIONS DEPARTMENT. Why does Joe Thug have to retrieve any voter's ballot when they are furnished a stamped, self-addressed envelope to return it to the Elections Department? Doesn't it speak volumes about the contempt he has for Hispanic voters and senior voters? Joe May thinks they are too stupid to put their ballot back in the stamped, self-addressed envelope they got with their ballot.

Well, Joe Thug may have gone too far this time. He has finally made Allen Gwinn mad. That's a good thing for those of us who believe in clean and honest elections. It's a really bad thing for old Joe Thug. Allen Gwinn is re-activating his $10,000 reward for anyone who comes forward with information of vote fraud in this District 8 runoff, vote fraud in mail-in ballots. That's where the fraud happens these days -- not at the polls.

We either stop mail-in ballot harvesting, or we ought to stop having elections. Mail-in ballot harvesting pretty much cancels out any reason for an honest person to run for office.

Call your State Representative and tell him or her you want them to support legislation that will prevent mail-in ballot harvesting. Here's all we need from Austin:

A law requiring Counties to have available at least two deputies whose only responsibility is to assist the blind, the elderly and otherwise disabled voters with their mail-in ballots. Those two deputies would be the only third party with the right to "assist" anyone with their mail-in ballot. Anyone else touching the mail-in ballot except the voter would be committing a crime.

It was a pleasure volunteering for Mike Martinez. He is such a positive person. Dallas really needs him in public office. Instead, we have Joe Thug on the DISD School Board.