WHINING ALL THE WAY TO THE POLLS: OLIVEIRA WANTS TO MAKE IT 30 YEARS AND, AFTER THAT, CONGRESS

By Juan Montoya

Call it the Solomon Ortiz Syndrome.
It's a condition that afflicts politicians who have held a position for more than a quarter of a century and then – after miserably failing to deliver during this legislative session – ask the voters to give them just two more years to finally get it right.
Solomon used to call himself the "Dean of Hispanic congressmen" in the U.S. House of Representatives until his defeat by Republican Blake Farenthold. He ahd gone to the voters well once too many times and not only him, but also his progeny (his son) went down in defeat last year.
Every two years we get the same from Eddie Lucio Sr. (and now Eddie III). They reason that they are the last best hope that our area has to be delivered from imminent perdition and destruction and will sacrifice their personal lives to grant us our wish that they lead us to the promised land.
And now Rene, after 28 years (that's more than a quarter of a century), says that there is so much work for him to do for us in Austin, that he will deny his own wishes and sacrifice for us just one more time.
And, he threatens, if we vote for him this time, he might consider heeding the the groundswell of encouragement that he run for the new District 34 Congressional district.
"I have been approached by people from across Texas to run for Congress, and I am confident that voters would give me the opportunity to serve them in Washington, D.C," he says immodestly and writes that he has "left open the future possibilities for a run for U.S. Congress." Now, ain't that white of him?
The campaign for next year's election went full swing this week, with media dutifully printing his reelection announcement. The next missive was a Letter to the Editor that appeared Monday where he bemoans the fact that those nasty Republicans in the state house have it in for those hard-working mean and women who earn their living as school teachers.
He knows the polls well. Teachers, when cornered fiscally, will run to the polls in droves and vote for whoever promises to protect their vested interests. Otherwise, they rarely venture outside the political safety of their classrooms to vote.
It is interesting to note that there are paradoxical messages in the Oliveira appeal.
On the one hand, he reminds us that he has held positions in the mighty halls of the Texas House. For example, he was the "three-time chairman of the tax-writing House Committee on Ways and Means, served multiple times on the House Committee on Public Education, is a member of the "powerful" House Committee on State Affairs, and was named Legislator of the Year by no less than the Texas Municipal League, the Texas Association of Counties, the County Judges and Commissioners Association of Texas, and was awarded several recognitions as "champion" of small business and children.
He also claims that he was the Creator of the bill that brought the University of Texas to Brownsville. (We know how that has worked out, don't we?)
Wow.
Then, on the other hand, in his letter to the editor of the local daily, he admits that even after 28 years in Austin, he was powerless to stop legislation that "eliminates teacher seniority," couldn't stop the nasty Republicans from slashing $4 billion in per-pupil aid to school districts, to cut an additional $1.5 billion in grants for full-day early childhood education, dropout prevention, and teacher incentives.
These cuts, he moans, amounts to $500 per child in Texas.
The "champion" was also powerless to stop his colleagues passing legislation that will result (he says) in retiring and resigning teachers not being replaced, paraprofessional positions being frozen, as were counselor, nurse, and library positions, alternative certification applicants not being hired, overtime eliminated, substitute teacher budgets cut, reductions in student transportation services, and reduction in nutrition services, among others.
This might result (he hints darkly) in "local school tax increases...and reduced opportunities for students and teachers.
But, if it gets to that, he vows, we "once again must fight to guarantee every Texan child access to an equal level of education..."
Now, the question that comes to mind immediately is this: "If after 28 years, seats on the most "powerful" committees in the Texas House, numerous awards and recognition as a champion and paladin of our teachers, students and taxpayers, Rene whines that he couldn't stop the legislation that will destroy Western Culture as we know it, what makes him think that going back to Austin "just one more time" is going to fix those problems?
After 28 years, if you couldn't prevent all these dire things from being foisted on your constituents during this session, why should we think that if we send you back and give you two more years you will finally get it right before you honor us and run for Congress?