Harris County Republican Party Run-Off Analysis & Endorsements

I am writing today as the newly elected Harris County Republican Precinct Chair 0682. I want to thank everyone who supported and voted for me in the March 2, 2010 Election. We now have much work to do to ensure that “true conservative” values are on the ballot for November. The first way we can do this is by voting in the upcoming Run-off Election being held on April 13, 2010. Early Voting begins on April 5, 2010 and ends on April 9, 2010. It is very important to go out to vote in this Run-off Election.

I also want to call to your attention to a publication called The Link Letter. The Link Letter is a publication who endorses candidates in the Primary Elections, however there is one thing you as a voter need to understand about The Link Letter, it is a paid for endorsement publication, and is edited by Terry Lowry the host of the "What's Up Radio Program". What this means is that The Link Letter sells campaign advertising in exchange for an endorsement, you can also read more about this issue at Big Jolly Politics where you will find great analysis and detail regarding this situation. There are other publications in Harris County that do the same such as Conservative Republicans of Harris County by Dr. Steven F. Hotze, but the most noted is The Link Letter. So beware that when you use these publications in the voting booth you are supporting this type behavior.

It is my opinion that the best way to ensure you are voting for the best candidate is to do your own research and rely on your Precinct Chair to give their opinion as to who the best candidates are. Your Precinct Chair in most cases will have already performed the research about each candidate and should be able to provide you with answers about candidates. I myself have promised to educate the voters of Precinct 0682 and I am certainly living up to that promise. I have performed the research and will be provided my analysis and endorsements in this blog posting as well as I have sent out letters to voice my opinion. The remainder of this blog posting will focus on the analysis and endorsements of each candidate for the Run-off Election on April 13, 2010.

Analysis & Endorsements:

Justice Supreme Court Place 3 - This race is simply a race of experience versus non-experience. If you look at the pure qualifications of the two candidates that will sit on the highest court in Texas you will find that one stands-out above the other. Rick Green is currently a motivational speaker and former Texas State Representative, he does not have any Judicial or Courtroom Experience, he claims to be an author but I am not able to find any publications with his name associated, he is being endorsed by only one former Supreme Court Justice, his Judicial Philosophy is unknown, and the biggest question mark for me is that he has multiple ethics complaints. I am not even sure if Rick Green is practicing law at this time, as search on the State Bar of Texas website produced one Ricky Green, but it says this Rick Green graduate with a law degree from SMU, but candidate Rick Green graducated from UT law school according to his website. In a nutshell Rick Green is not qualified to run for Supreme Court of Texas. Judge Debra Lehrmann on the other hand is extremely qualified, she is currently a District Judge with 22 years of Juidical experience and is a former prosecutor and courtroom attorney, she is an award winning author of legal books and treatises. Judge Lehrmann is endorsed by 5 former Supreme Court Justices including former Chief Justice Tom Philips, she has also proven herself as a conservative judge who is a strict constructionist and never legislates from the bench. She has no ethical complaints and has an exceptional appellate record. You can clearly see the clear choice here is Judge Debra Lehrmann.

District Judge 180th District Court - Again this race is simply experience vs. non-experience. Danny Dexter is relying on pay for play endorsements to ensure he gets elected. He has contributed to The Link Letter, and other publications for an endorsement in their publication. You can easily see this behavior by researching the Texas Ethics Commission website to view the Campaign Finance Reports to see the contributions and then you will see the endorsements within the publications. Mr. Dexter has not had a case in 6 years. Mr. Dexter talks about his record at the DA's office but when you really analyze the data he is mis-representing his successes. Do you really want someone who has not practiced in 6 years the next judge of this court?? Big question mark for me. On the other hand Marc Brown has been at the DA's office for 22 years and was hired by Johnny Holmes. Marc has received many awards and assigned to many very important and high profile cases over the last 22 years. He currently has been appointed by DA Pat Lykos to oversee Prosecutors in the Grand Jury Division. As you can see the clear choice is Marc Brown.

Family District Judge 308th - In this race the experience level is roughly the same, and both candidates are qualified to perform the job, however for me I am endorsing the candidate who has ran the cleanest race and who has not had to go out and pay for endorsements to win this race. My opinion is that if you have to pay to get and endorsement then what are you hiding that you need these endorsements to get elected. The two candidates who are running in this race are Alice J. O'Neill and James Lombardino. As I said my endorsement is going to the person who has run the cleanest race, and that would be Judge Alice J. O'Neill. If a candidate for judge runs a clean race they would point out clear facts about their opponent, however there have been some false accusations thrown out about Judge O'Neill, therefore if a candidate for judge is not stating facts will they really sit on the bench and judge a case based on facts. This is a huge question for me, in any situation facts are the key to the truth. Therefore, I respect Judge O'Neill for sticking to the facts and making the facts known in this race. Vote Judge Alice J. O'Neill in this race.

Harris County Republican Party Chairman - This race is simply a race for Leadership. The current Party Chairman Jared Woodfill has not provided the kind of Leadership we need in the Harris County Republican Party. Over the last 8 years Mr. Woodfill has allowed our Republican base dwindle which has resulted in huge losses to Democrats in the last 8 years. He has all but admitted this by appointed a new team to lead an effort in 2010 to put a plan together to stop the bleeding in the November elections. Over the last few months we have seen Mr. Woodfill react to situations that he would not have normally reacted to in the past, but it is an election year and he is in a tough run-off with Ed Hubbard. Ed Hubbard on the other hand has a true plan and leadership to take the party to the next level. Mr. Hubbard's plan can be found on his website click here and is ready for implementation. Mr. Hubbard doesn't need a special team to help candidates get elected in November, he understands that the team was there the whole time, and that is the Precinct Chairs. Mr. Hubbard understands the value of the Precinct Chairs and how important they are in getting candidates elected to office. As a result of this understanding of Leadership and he is the only candidate with a true plan for the future, I support and endorse Ed Hubbard for Harris County Republican Party Chair.

I hope this analysis adds value to your choice when you get out to vote. Just remember we want the best and "true conservatives" to win in November. Feel free to email me at ead1125@sbcglobal.net or call me at 832-969-3047.

Eric Dumatrait, Newly Elected Precinct Chair 0682

Eric Dumatrait's Endorsement List

A few weeks ago I endorsed many of the Judicial Race Candidates, however at that time I had not made my mind up on all the Harris County Races. Now that Early Voting has started, it is time to release a full list of endorsements. As Roy Stinnett posted on his Facebook page it is important that you pay attention to the grassroots endorsements more than the paid endorsements. Grassroots is where candidates will win.

Governor - Debra Medina
Railroad Commissioner - Victor Carrillo
Justice Supreme Court Place 3 - Jeff Brown
Justice Supreme Court Place 9 - Eva Guzman
Justice 1st Court of Appeals, Place 4 - Evelyn Keyes
Justice 1st Court of Appeals, Place 8 - Michael C. Massengale
Justice 14th Court of Appeals, Place 2 - Leslie Brock Yates
District Judge 180th District Court - Emily Munoz
District Judge 280th District Court - Lynn Bradshaw-Hull
District Judge 308th District Court - Rick Ramos
District Judge 309th District Court - Sheri Y. Dean
District Judge 310th District Court - Lisa Millard
District Judge 311th District Court - Donna Detamore
District Judge 313th District Court - Fred Wilson
County Criminal Court No. 1 - Paula Goodhart
County Criminal Court No. 3 - Cary Hart
County Criminal Court No. 4 - John Clinton
County Criminal Court No. 13 - Rachel Ann Palmer
County Probate Court No. 1 - Loyd Wright
District Clerk - Paul Dwight
County Clerk - Kevin Mauzy
County Tax Assessor-Collector - Leo Vasquez
County Commissioner Pct. 2 - Jack Morman
Harris County Republican Party Chairman - Ed Hubbard
Republican Precinct Chair 682 - Eric A. Dumatrait
Vote Yes on all the Propositions

Again, these are not paid endorsements, but true grassroots endorsements and these selections are "true conservatives".

District Court Judicial Candidate Analysis & Endorsements

As I have stated in my previous postings about electing true conservatives who are qualified, it is important that we do not forget that we have a Judicial Ballot in Harris County in the upcoming March 2, 2010.


So you ask why is it important that we pay attention to the Judicial or down ballot as it is referred to? The simple answer is that the decisions a Judge makes on a daily basis affects our lives more than any other decisions in our government. Therefore, it is extremely important that we pay just as much attention if not more to these races as we do the Governor's race. We have many different choices on the Republican Ballot in several races, but we need to be careful that we do not elect a candidate who is not qualified and who is not a true conservative. The remainder of this blog posting will discuss each race and reveal my endorsement for each race. You can also find responses to some of these candidates at Big Jolly Politics.

I am going to start off with the Family District Court races, the family court system is one that I am affected by and currently fighting a battle in a different county. I understand what it is like to have a judge who does not hear the facts in the case, and stays with the status quo. Can you guess what party this judge belongs??

Family District Court 308 - This race is jam packed with four candidates and two candidates stand out for me at this time, Rick Ramos and James Lombardino. I think both of these guys are great candidates for this Family Court, however the one thing that sticks out for me is that Rick has worked as a law clerk in this same court, and has a great plan on running the courtroom and docket to make cases heard more efficient. This truly will cut taxpayers money, being proactive is the key. As a result of his passion for this court and families along with the proactive manner he is approaching his duties, my endorsement for this race will be Rick Ramos.

Family District Court 309 - This race is also jam packed with four candidates, however this race was very easy for me to make an endorsement. It basically comes down to how much experience and conservative principles the candidates have. Sheri Y. Dean has devoted much of her life to family law, and is a life long conservative. Sheri is the right person for the job.

Family District Court 310 - There is one clear choice in this race, she has also devoted much of her life to family law, and is one of the best sitting judges in the family court system. Based on HBA 2009 Judicial ratings Judge Lisa Millard rated an overall 83% rating as acceptable and outstanding. Judge Millard is the clear choice and I endorse her for this race.

Family District Court 311 - This race is another jam packed race with five candidates, however the two individuals that stick out for me are Donna Detamore and Anthony Magdaleno. However, Mrs. Detamore in my opinion has a few qualifications more than the other candidates, and she is one of two candidates who is board certified. I endorse Donna Detamore.

Juvenile District Court 313 - In this race the research I have found is that Fred Wilson seems to be very qualified and is committed to changing the lives of young people that will eventually make in impact in society. His proactive approach is something we need in all judges. I endorse Fred Wilson.

Now I will move on to the Criminal and Civil District Court races.

Criminal District Court 180 - This race has three candidates running, however only one stands out to me as the best qualified with strong conservative values. Emily Munoz has dedicated her career to criminal justice in various areas. If you read her qualifications on Big Jolly Politics and visit her website you will find she is the only candidate in the race with an all around background and qualifications along with being the only candidate who is board certified.

Civil District Court 280 - I think this was the easiest race to pick. The clear endorsement goes to Lynn Bradshaw-Hull. Mrs. Bradshaw-Hull is a former Judge, and was victim to the straight ticket ballot last year during the Obama run. Mrs. Bradshaw-Hull is clearly the most qualified and is the only true conservative in her race. In Mrs. Bradshaw-Hull's own words from her website "I have presided fairly in the disposition of more than 60,000 cases, including over 500 jury trials" I think that alone makes her very qualified for this position.

As you can see much research has been completed to offer a fair opinion in these races, however no matter who wins in these races we will need to rally around our Republican Canididate to defeat the Democrats in November, 2010.

I hope that this information is valuable and helpful when you decide to vote.

Thanks

Eric A. Dumatrait

Campaign Theme/Vision for Precinct 682

As many of you are aware I am running for Republican Precinct Chair 682. In my previous post I have expressed to you that communication is a key tool for a Precinct Chair to be successful. This is so true, therefore while on vacation to Orlando, FL I realized even more that the voter needs to be represented properly at the grassroots level. As Ed Hubbard expressed in his last blog post the Precinct Chair is the root of the grass and without the root the grass cannot grow. At Disney the workers and behind the scene people are the same grassroots level I am referring to. The behind the scene people make the characters and shows come to life. Therefore, at the precinct level the voter is the root or behind the scene person, and we need the voter to make the Precinct Chair come to life, and the County Party needs the Precinct Chair to make the party come to life, and the State Party needs the County Party to make it come to life, and so on. As a result I have come up with a theme/vision for Precinct 682.

If I am elected I will be The VOICE of the voter, and The VOICE will express all ideas, issues, etc to the County Party and State Party. The VOICE will inform the voter of issues, ideas, etc., from the Party. So you might be wondering why is VOICE in all caps, well it is because The VOICE stands for something, and its meaning is as follows:

• Voter - I will be the Voice of the Voter thru various resources, as the voter is the root of our grassroots movement. As the Voice I will also work to re-connect the voter with the party.


• Oppose - I oppose any kind of tax, and spending that affects our pocket book. As Reagan said "Individual liberty depends upon keeping government under control." Taxes and Government spending threatens our liberty.


• Inform - I pledge that for Precinct 682 to be the best precinct in Harris County the voters need to be informed, and I will put in place the proper systems to inform the voter of Precinct 682.


• Communicate - The best way to inform the voter is by communicating to them the happening of the party and connecting them to the party and Republican candidates. Communication will come in many different forms, and will also help in recruiting volunteers for our grassroots movement.


• Educate - We need to do a better job of educating our voters as to who the "true conservatives" are, and elect the "true conservatives" versus people paying lip service to the voter. We also need to educate the voter on issues and happenings within the party, and raise awareness as to how they can become involved.

As you can see my theme/vision for Precinct 682 is strongly focused on the root of the precinct and party, The Voter. The voter are the people who need to be engaged. If we engage the voter to become active, then we will bring the Republican Party to life again.

Please join me in re-connecting the voter to bring the party back to life so we can protect our liberty from an un-controlled government. Please elect me as Republican Precinct Chair 682.

Eric A. Dumatrait