GOP consultant in Arizona pulls strings to get Green Party on Texas ballot

[ccharles000]

AUSTIN – The liberal Green Party's uphill battle to get on the Texas ballot this fall has been fueled by a surprising benefactor: an out-of-state Republican consultant with a history of helping conservative causes and GOP candidates.

If the state validates the petitions the consultant arranged for the party – for free – a Green Party slate could drain support from Democrat Bill White in his bid to oust Republican Gov. Rick Perry.

What's unknown is who paid for the previously undisclosed arrangement, pieced together by The Dallas Morning News. Green Party officials said they don't know who funded the effort. The Perry campaign denied any involvement. And Arizona Republican operative Tim Mooney, who set up the petition drive, refused to say.

Green Party officials said an outside group gathered the 92,000 signatures and gave them as "a gift" to the party, which delivered them to the secretary of state, who oversees Texas elections. If the secretary of state determines that enough of them are valid, the party will be able to field a slate of candidates for statewide offices for the first time since 2002.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/politics/state/stories/060610dntexballot.243bca8.html

[geek tragedy]

1. Getting Republicans Elected Every November nt

[depakid]

7. Same shallow, shortsighted view that causes Democrats to lose

both elections and policy fights.

[geek tragedy]

10. Heh. Truth hurts, doesn't it? Nader in 2012! nt

[tanyev]

2. Aha! I thought it was strange when I heard about two people outside my library

getting petitions for the Green party. I told a friend, "Must be the only members of the Green party in the entire county." Not that I wouldn't welcome a larger presence from them, but this county is already soooo Republican, it just seemed odd.

[NWHarkness]

3. Why shouldn't the GOP help its ally? nt

[Robbins]

4. Texas

Are they getting worried about Bill White's chances In a 2 man race against Perry they need the green Party to help Perry.

[NavyMom]

6. Yes they are, gov good hair won by less than 40% last time. They

know it MUST be more than one candidate against good hair or he will lose but wanted to ensure they votes could be siphoned from Bill White not slick rick. But they just might have underestimated Bill White once again, he has gone against some of the reddest of the red gop in the state and came out on top, so he may file to find the person that paid for this "gift". Slick rick knows Bill White has a lot of republican support from the big cities here in Texas so he is trying ALL he can to make sure he does not go head to head with Bill White and fight like heck against a debate with him on TV, tricky ricky is being hit hard on a lot of areas and he knows it.

[styersc]

5. Why would the Green Party not be on the ballot?

diversity brother

[Ikonoklast]

8. See post #1.

It has nothing to do with diversity, and everything to do with electing Republicans.

[depakid]

9. Because the partisan Republicrats hate Greens

just as they hold out contempt for other progressive voices.