WHAT WOULD THE TREVINO OF THE ADS SAY ABOUT THI$$$$? MARIN, OP 10.33 AND UNITED BROWNSVILLE CHIP IN

"...The future cheats us from afar,
Nor can we be what we recall,
Nor dare we think on what we are." Lord Byron, "They Say That Hope is Happiness"

By Juan Montoya
We don't know if former City of Brownsville Mayor Eddie Treviño ever learned the lines above in one of his British Lit courses way back when in college, but he might want to take a peek at some of Byron's lines from the poem above.
We reported in a previous post on the tit-for-tat in advertising skirmishes between him and former Pct. 4 commissioner Dan Sanchez, his runoff contender for Cameron County judge in the current election to replace Pete Sepulveda at the helm of the commissioners court.
In that ad, one of the issues raised by Treviño is the fact that Sanchez reported receiving the bulk of his campaign contributions from donors outside Cameron County, in fact about four-fifths ($200,000 out of $250,000).
That, to the ad writer, "just doesn't make sense."
Well, we wondered at the time why Treviño didn't raise the issue with his pals Ed Rivera and Carlos Marin when they were seen riding around together checking the precincts during the Port of Brownsville and Texas Southmost College runoff elections.
After all, Rivera received $20,000 in cash contributions from Dallas-based Michael Hernandez III in his race against Tito Lopez. Hernandez is the moneybags behind the famous (or infamous) Op 10.33 messianic group which has vowed to eradicate poverty in 20 years, uplift the masses, and deliver them to a Nirvana on Earth. They do this out of altruistic bent, they say, but if there is a profit to be made, well, why not?
In fact, Hernandez also gave $20,000 to Rivera's running mate Raul Villanueva, who challenged Ralph Cowen for his seat on the port board. If Eddie didn't have any objections about candidates taking outside money (Dallas is even father than Hidalgo County) in those races, why should he object to Sanchez receiving it as well?
Well, the chickens have come to roost in Treviño's henhouse in the last campaign finance report both candidates (as did all the others in the runoff races) filed with the Cameron County Elections Office.
Treviño was the top fund raiser with $86,000 in contributions and expenditures of $109,568. Sanchez, the poor cousin from around los ranchitos near La Feria, only reported raising $14,120 and spending $71,909.
But it was where the money came from that is revealing, if only because of the Treviño charge that most of Sanchez's support was coming from outside Cameron County.
Well, guess who got more money from "outside" the county this time? You guessed it, Eddie.
In fact, Treviño listed 22 contributors from outside the county, some as far away as Washington, D.C., compared to only three reported by Sanchez.
And the amounts listed in the Treviño report were nothing to be sneezed at.
James R. "Bill" Fisher, of Naples Investments, Dallas, who has done extensive low-income dwelling projects in the city, was a main contributor with outlays of $2,500 and another $5,000 just for good measure. Fisher has been courting Brownsville politicians and the Brownsville Housing Authority for his projects for quite some time. Among some of his former associates were former mayor Pat Ahumada, now Treviño's nemesis. Bill wore a wire for the FBI to bust some black public officials in Dallas who were exacting too much of a tribute (kickbacks) from him for one of his low-income multi-dwelling projects.
Another $15,250 came from San Antonio $10,750 from Houston contributors, $5,000 from Beaumont, and $500 from Washington, D.C. Even someone from Johnson City loves him and slipped $750 to Eddie.
Sanchez reported $1,000 from The Woodlands, $500 from Round Rock, and $2,000 Austin. We guess the OP 10.33  group is playing both sides because Rivera contributed $1,000 to Sanchez's campaign.
Treviño's ties to the Imagine Brownsville-United Brownsville-OP 10.33 bunch is notable. He received $1,000 from Brain Godinez, an interim United Brownsville consultant-director who stayed for a bit to get the ball rolling and then sought greener pastures in McAllen.
Ambiotec part-owner Carlos Marin, the architect of Imagine Brownsville cum United Brownsville and now a job developer for OP 10.33 chipped in $1,000 and later another $2,500 about a month later for good measure. Rofa Architects, partly owned by Manuel Hinojosa (former county judge Gilbert Hinojosa's brother) chipped in $500 and Linbarger, Goggan, Blain and Sampson, the delinquent tax people, plunked down $1,500. Ruben Gallegos Jr., of International Educational Services, whose family has made a fortune providing services to unaccompanied undocumented minors, chipped in $1,000.
This is intrioguing because Ruben Gallegos Sr., his father, has been Pct. 1 commissioner Sofia Benavides' treaturer. Benavides is known to be supporting Sanchez.
Even the Realtors PAC in Austin saw fit to give Treviño $500.
Does Eddie now not find it "questionable and disturbing" that so many people from "Outside Cameron County" gave so much money to his campaign as he found it in Sanchez's case?
As Lord Byron so aptly put it: "...Nor can we be what we recall, Nor dare we think on what we are."