| Transcript |
"I'm going to go
out knocking on
doors for them."
- Mark White
White, 38, practiced law in Houston
after graduation from Baylor law school
in 1965. He then served a three-year term
as assistant attorney general in the insurance, banking, and securities division. In
1969, he returned to private practice.
Governor Dolph Briscoe appointed him
secretary of state in 1973. He resigned
that position in October, 1977 to campaign for attorney general.
"This campaign boils down to one
question, 'Can you trust the candidate?"
White said in our interview. ''Price's word
is not worth blowing up."
Rapid-fire lists of Daniel's alleged lies
follow, some going back to the emotion-
packed finale of the 1974 Texas Constitutional Convention, over which Daniel
presided. White quotes from a 1975 Texas Monthly which reports Rep. Craig
Washington saying about Daniel, "I can't
trust him."
"I won't deny I said that, but you
have to remember the temper of the
times," said Washington. "Price and I are
very good friends now. I'm Co-chairman
of his Harris County Committee. Even if I
didn't trust Price today, and I'm suppor-
ing him in the campaign, where does that
put Mark?"
Washington also gives his viewpoint of
another "lie." White asserts that if Daniel
really were interested in the passage of a
civil rights bill or human rights commission, he would have helped Senate Bill
558 pass the House when he was speaker.
"Instead," White says, "the bill died in
the House. Price didn't do anything to
help it pass. He didn't do anything for
women when he had a chance."
"Not so," says Washington. "Price
tried to convince me to help pass S.B.
558. He tried to convince me it was better to pass something than nothing. But I
think you need something meaningful.
S.B. 558 was a toothless dragon."
White claims not to understand why
the women's groups chose to support
Daniel instead of him. He says he was
never contacted. Mimi Purnell, state
TWPC chair, has a slightly different story.
She says she called White's office "quite
frequently" to get the TWPC question -
naire returned and to speak with the candidate before the screening. She never
spoke with him. The questionnaire was
returned unanswered with a half-page
typed letter, unsigned. In that note,
White stated that he had never been for
the ERA publicly, but in private he was
for it.
Daniel, 36, is the son of Price Daniel
Sr., a former House speaker, state attorney general, U.S. senator, governor
(1957-63), now a Texas Supreme Court
judge planning to retire at the end of
1978. The younger Daniel received his
law degree from Baylor in 1966. He was
elected to the House three terms and was
elected speaker during his last term,
1973-75. He has practiced law in Liberty
and taught it at several Houston schools.
Houstonian James Baker III, unopposed on the Republican ticket, acknowledges he's the "underdog" in the race,
but he has avoided a direct attack on
either Democratic candidate. "He says it's
time for voters to elect a Republican to
the office traditionally held by the Democrats who dominate state government"
says Jim Sicconi, Baker's issues coordinator and research director. "Independence
of political power structures is his key
campaign issue."
"Also, he has vowed to oppose any
federal controls on the price of intrastate
gas in Texas and fight any attempts to allocate Texas' own state-owned royalty oil
'and gas," Sicconi says.
PRICE DANIEL, JR
FOR ATTORNEY GENERAL
ATTORNEY GENERAL
JIM BAKER
FOR ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
Political commentators are saying that a Republican attorney general is a possibility
this year - the first time in 102 years. Several factors make this possibility "realistic."
There is no incumbent. Neither Democrat has run statewide before. The Democratic
winner may be scarred by the divisiveness of the primary. John Tower, a proven vote
getter, is at the top of a strong Replubican congressional ticket — and his race against
either Christie or Krueger might draw a lot of interest. In an "off-year" (non-presidential) election, the party out of power traditionally does well. If the race is Baker against
Daniel, there will be a slight ideological gap. Jimmy Carter's popularity on November 7
might be a burden to Democrats. The Texas electorate is changing, especially in Houston, with the great influx of people of which many are not committed to one-party
politics. —J. MeC.
On women's issues particularly, Baker
"supports equal rights for women and
will work to see that the present law guaranteeing those rights is enforced. He feels
that the present law is adequate to protect those rights without the necessity of
amending the constitution of the United
States. And he points out that the
National Organization of Women (sic) has
acknowledged that the effect of an equal
rights amendment would be mainly symbolic, that there would be just a minimal
practical effect. He questions whether the
symbolic effect merits an amendment to
the Constitution," Sicconi explains.
No matter which candidate wins the
May 6 primary, there promises to be a
real contest in November between the
Democratic winner and well-financed
Baker.
Furthermore, Baker is a strong candidate with unified Republican backing. A
fourth-generation Texan and fourth-generation lawyer, he is a graduate of Princeton, with a law degree from the University of Texas. He has 18 years experience
in a large Houston law firm, seven of
those as managing partner helping to administer an office of 100 lawyers. Baker
bills himself as a non-political lawyer, but
he has impressive political experience. He
spent nine months as U.S. Commerce
Undersecretary (1975-76) before he took
over then-President Ford's 1976 delegate
hunt and, later, the entire Ford campaign.
Fred Moore Reynolds, an Independent from Pasadena, may also appear on
the November ballot. He has not officially qualified as yet but he's still gathering
signatures. A lawyer in Houston since
1963, he previously served in the army
and the counter-intelligence corps. He believes that the ERA, "if enforced, would
tear up our whole society. Once you
grant someone special rights you deprive
another group their rights. You start setting up quotas. No one should have preferential treatment by law. We have the
ERA here in Texas, but the courts have a-
voided the interpretation of it. They have
skirted around the issues. I don't believe
the courts will ever interpret it."
The attorney general's race has been
called the "real sleeper" in this year's
elections. "The job is important because,
as the state's chief lawyer, the attorney
general interprets the laws that the state
passes, enforces laws already on the
books," says Judith Guthrie. "The concerns of the attorney general have important consequences for women."
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&&
POL. AD. PAID FOR BY
THE DICK JENKINS CAMPAIGN FUND.
'2821 EASTGROVE LANE 77027.
GEORGE MOODY, TREAS.
Endorsed by Harris County Women's Political Caucus
fl*** Louis Moore
263rd District Judge
Evaluated as "Qualified" to serve as Judge
By Judicial Evaluation Committee of the Houston Bar Association — 1975
First, Second or Third Choice for Judge
By Houston Bar Association, Harris County Suburban Lawyers Association and
Houston Lawyers Association — 1972
26 years legal experience — Good reputation
Respected hard working trial and appellate lawyer
Member.- American Bar Association, Texas Bar Association, Houston Bar Association, Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences,
Association of Trial Lawyers of America and Houston Trial Lawyers Association.
Served on HBA Judiciary Committee, Bylaws Committee, Bar Candidate Committee and Lawyer Referral Service Committee —
Recent award for exceptional service in 1977.
Outstanding record for community service. Former board member Houston Association of Children with Learning Disabilities
— Greater Houston Chapter, National Society of Autistic Children — Legal advisor and Board Member of Planned Parenthood
of Houston (1971-73) recipient of the Margaret Sanger Certificate of Appreciation, Planned Parenthood Federation of
America in 1972 — Inspector of Elections for Harris County.
56 years old — married — 4 children — active in church work and Scouting.
Navy Fighter Pilot, World War II
Competent, Conscientious, Concerned, Fair, Dedicated.
Pol. Adv. paid for by Dorthy Curlee on behalf of Louis Moore, 400 Houston Bar Center Bldg., Houston, Tx. 77002,
Bertrand Moser, Campaign Treasurer.
APRIL 1978
HOUSTON BREAKTHROUGH |
