Meeting the Gubernatorial Candidates

A big portion of this past weekend's gathering of Texas newspaper editors in Houston centered on appearances by the four folks running for governor.
Texas has a proud tradition of colorful characters gunning for The Mansion. Ann Richards was a hoot, while opponent Clayton Williams, a larger-than-life West Texas cowboy and oil tycoon, started his campaign as endearing and ended it as a sexist flake with a boot-filled mouth. Mark White brought us no-pass, no play. William P. Hobby was once manager and part owner of The Beaumont Enterprise. Miriam "Ma" Ferguson was accused of accepting bribes, but she did take on the Ku Klux Klan.
During the past weekend, incumbent Rick Perry, Democratic challenger Chris Bell and independents Carole Strayhorn and Kinky Friedman appeared at the annual Texas Associated Press Managing Editors convention for question-and-answer sessions.
The state's top newsroom managers, people skilled and experienced in asking questions, were there.
That's a tough crowd.
All four candidates came off as knowledgeable, articulate and often entertaining. Considering that I've met every governor dating back to Dolph Brisco, who served from 1973 to 1979, it was nice to know that my streak would remain alive no matter who wins in November.
Hard questions about immigration, border security, school finance, the state budget and abortion were hurled at the candidates.
I didn't really care what they had to say. I was more interested in their personalities and how they handled themselves.
Despite being the state's chief executive, the primary job of Texas governor, in my opinion, is to reflect the state's image and personality. A figurehead, perhaps, but one entrusted with perpetuating the Texas mystique. A dorky, pasty-faced guy with a bowtie can't do it. It needs to be someone colorful, a nice combination of smarts, wit, charm and political savvy.
Rick Perry has been an OK governor, I suppose, aside from the fact that the school-finance circus continues, and I didn't appreciate him calling Hurricane Rita a "glancing blow" for Beaumont.
The first time I met Perry, he was running for agriculture commissioner in 1990 against Jim Hightower and making a campaign stop in Midland. If I remember correctly, he was flying around the state in his own airplane. I was the only one who showed up for the campaign stop, so I got a one-on-one interview with him. I don't remember what he said, but I do remember thinking that Hightower would stomp him like a barrel full of grapes at a winery.
Boy was I wrong. Despite his ups and downs as governor, Perry is being mentioned as a possible vice presidential running mate in 2008. He was asked about it Friday at the convention but brushed it off, saying he had a job to focus on.
I thought Perry and Bell did the best job of answering questions. Bell came off as highly articulate and intelligent. Strayhorn, one of those typical colorful Texas politicians, was entertaining, but she rambled and talked in whirlpools when asked about the state's budget surplus. Friedman, famous in the 1970s for his raunchy, goofball country music, with titles such as "They Ain't Making Jews Like Jesus Anymore" and "Get Your Biscuits in the Oven and Your Buns in Bed," was hilarious at times. He didn't strike me as someone whom I'd want to orchestrate major surgery needed to fix school finance, but he wasn't as big a joke as I thought he'd be and had some interesting ideas. He could be another Jesse Venture in the making.
Nothing the four candidates said really stood out or cemented my decision on whom will get my vote. But it was nice to see that no matter what happens, we won't have a dorky bowtie guy in the governor's mansion for at least the next four years.