Texans for Senator John Cornyn

Democrats' Energy Plan: Tax, Sue, and Investigate

Wed, 07 May 2008 00:00:00 -0500

More than two years ago, now-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her Democratic colleagues promised what they called a "common sense" energy plan to bring down prices at the gas pump. Since that time, the average cost of a gallon of gas has soared from $2.33 to $3.62, an all-time high.

Today, 744 days later, congressional Democrats finally unveiled their grand proposal to the American people.

To most Americans, addressing rising energy prices might include at least a bow to the law of supply and demand. It might contain some true common sense ideas such as stepped-up exploration, added domestic refinery capacity, or other measures to increase U.S. energy and reduce dependence on foreign supplies.

But Democrats made clear they have other priorities. They want to tax, sue and investigate their way out of this problem.

Unfortunately, their agenda will do nothing significant to increase the supply and reduce the price of gasoline in America.

A central component of the Democrats' energy bill is to increase taxes on U.S. energy companies. This is almost bizarre. Democrats have clearly not learned the lesson from the 1980s when the windfall profits tax-a tax on oil produced in the U.S.-was first enacted.

We know now as a matter of certainty that this tax had the opposite effect than what was intended. It led to lower domestic oil production-not lower prices at the gas pump. In fact, the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service estimates the windfall profits tax decreased domestic oil production by as much as 1.2 billion barrels between 1980 and 1986. It also drained $38 billion that the domestic energy sector could have used to invest in new production and exploration, or development of alternative fuels.

At a time when our goal should be reducing America's dependence on foreign oil, imposing massive new taxes on American oil companies promises an entirely different result.

Another key component of the Democratic plan dusts off an old chestnut-again calling upon the Federal Trade Commission to investigate the possibility of price gouging in the energy market. Democrats clearly believe Americans have short memories. The FTC has conducted dozens of investigations, including in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and not once have they found significant wrongdoing in the marketplace.

The final component of the Democrats' energy plan is to sue OPEC to force them to release more oil in the market. This is clearly an exercise in futility, and I suspect my Democratic colleagues know that. The idea of threatening foreign governments, and particularly our Middle East allies, is particularly ironic coming from the same Democrats who have routinely accused the Bush Administration of damaging our relationships with other nations. It is also ironic to sue other countries in an effort to get them to produce more oil, while at the same time preventing production here at home and making us even more dependent on foreign oil.

The real common sense solution, as we transition away from dependence on fossil fuels, is to increase the supply of domestic energy. We need to get the government out of the way and allow use of plentiful resources under our control. If Congress stopped penalizing and handcuffing our domestic energy production, we could produce an additional 2.7 to 3 million barrels of oil a day within a relatively short period of time.

That is why Senate Republicans have introduced legislation, The American Energy Production Act, an important step towards driving down gas prices for all Americans. If enacted, this new legislation would allow access to 24 billion barrels of oil-enough oil to supply America for 5 years with no foreign imports. It would also provide for authorization to explore for American oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) and the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS).

Our country needs Congressional action on the energy problem that is tethered to reality. We do not need more sound bites and political pandering.

GOP senators, Hispanic business leaders push Colombia trade pact

Wed, 07 May 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Flanked by a group of Republican senators, Hispanic business leaders Wednesday announced a grass-roots effort to convince the House to pass the Colombia free trade agreement.

The Hispanic business groups plan to launch a series of public service advertisements and urge their members and related Hispanic organizations such as faith-based groups, to call, write and e-mail their members of Congress - with copies to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi - demanding a vote on the trade agreement, said Jose Nino, co-chairman of the Hispanic Alliance for Prosperity Institute.

The House voted 224 to 195 last month to put off consideration of the trade pact until Pelosi decides the time is right to bring it to the floor. Pelosi has said she wants the Bush administration to address U.S. economic issues first.

But Hispanic leaders called that a slap at the Hispanic community and at Latin America.

"We resent the idea that we're going to use a Latin American ally as some kind of bargaining chip to make a deal for something else," U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez said at a Capitol news conference with the senators and business leaders.

Sen. Mel Martinez, R-Fla., said he agreed with Gutierrez that the trade agreement's fate "is a Hispanic-American issue.

"I think you've heard from the Hispanic leaders on how they feel about it. It's a moral imperative, but beyond that it is an issue with the Hispanic community of America.

"We understand, instinctively, the need for this trade agreement to improve the lives of people in Latin America - in Colombia. We know that Colombia, by being at a disadvantage if it doesn't have a free trade agreement, will backslide economically. It will be a detriment to Colombia."

Sen. Kit Bond, R-Mo., the ranking Republican on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, said the trade agreement is "very important to our national security," because the democratically elected government of President Alvaro Uribe is threatened by the Venezuelan government of President Hugo Chavez.

"If we turn down this free trade agreement, we are saying ‘we support Hugo Chavez and not President Uribe,' " Bond said.

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said the trade agreement "just makes good economic sense here at home, particularly at a time when our economy has grown soft.

"But this is also about how America treats its friends," Cornyn said. "President Uribe has been one of our best friends. He has joined us in our fight against narco-traffickers, and it's important to the United States' national security that we have friendly, democratic governments in Latin America.

"This is not something we can neglect," Cornyn said. "We cannot use Colombia as a bargaining chip for something else here, in Washington, D.C."

Transparency vital in use of tax dollars

Fri, 25 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0500

You pay for your government, and you deserve to know how it spends your money. That philosophy is gaining traction.

State and federal governments are making transparency a priority, opting to make many records freely accessible, rather than keeping the public waiting for information requests.

From the beginning of my tenure at the comptroller's office, we prioritized transparency efforts. On day three, we published this agency's expenditures online - down to the pencils - and posted other agencies' expenditure data in short order.

Building upon those efforts, our office created Where the Money Goes, an online database for viewing state agency spending.

Expenditures in the database are searchable by vendor name, expenditure category or agency name. With that kind of easy access to the information and numbers that make public institutions tick, taxpayers can learn about their government, question decisions, root out inefficiencies and hold officials accountable for the way tax dollars are spent.

Other Texas agencies have begun to embrace the idea that we can better inform taxpayers about spending.

Together, our offices are standardizing agency spending reports and focusing an eye toward providing more detailed, consistent pictures of state expenditures in the future.

Transparency is not just a Texas issue.

U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, will soon introduce the Federal Spending and Taxpayer Accessibility Act of 2008. Recognizing the leadership role of our office and Texas state government in transparency initiatives, Cornyn modeled the bill in part on our efforts.

His legislation would expand upon usaspending.gov, the national database that allows taxpayers to search for federal contracts and grants.

Technology - and the Internet in particular - has changed the expectations for customer service and government transparency at all levels.

In a computer- and Internet-based society, we can no longer justify the money and time required to print reports. Publishing information online means no postage, no waiting for the mail, up-to-date documents and worldwide accessibility.

By demystifying state spending and providing easy access to those numbers, we ensure greater accountability to the public.

As the window on Texas state government, our office cannot have the blinds pulled down.

For more information on Texas state agency expenditures, visit window.state.tx.us.

Susan Combs is Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts.

Clemency sought for Border Patrol agents who shot smuggler

Wed, 23 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0500

WASHINGTON - Sen. John Cornyn is again calling for presidential clemency in the case of two Border Patrol agents convicted of shooting a Mexican drug smuggler.

The Texas Republican, joined by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., sent a letter to President Bush on Monday, urging him to commute the sentences of former agents Jose Compean and Ignacio Ramos, who are serving terms of 12 and 11 years.

The two were convicted last year of shooting Osvaldo Aldrete-Davila and attempting to cover up the shooting. Mr. Aldrete-Davila pleaded guilty to federal drug smuggling charges last week.

Mr. Aldrete-Davila "admitted transporting two loads of marijuana both over 740 pounds valued at approximately $1 million each," the senators wrote. "What is even more startling is that Mr. Aldrete-Davila could end up serving less prison time than Agents Ramos and Compean."

The White House referred inquiries to the Justice Department; a spokesman there said neither Mr. Compean nor Mr. Ramos has filed a clemency petition.

Mr. Ramos and Mr. Compean have appealed their conviction to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and are awaiting a ruling. Justice Department guidelines for clemency petitions say that requests are generally not accepted from people who have ongoing appeals.

Sen. Cornyn’s casting call

Wed, 23 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Texas Sen. John Cornyn (R) has gotten seriously off track, and people are starting to notice.

With his prematurely white hair, distinguished looks and gentlemanly Southern charm, if the voters in Texas hadn't picked him to be their real-life senator in 2002, Central Casting would have discovered him and put him in a major motion picture playing exactly the same role on the big screen.

Fade in: An honest-to-goodness, staunchly right-wing, flag pin-wearing, Southern conservative judge/attorney general comes to Washington as one of the early shock troops for his home-state governor, who was elected president in a controversial election two years before.

A strong defender of his embattled friend's unpopular war, and his go-to guy when the president wants more like-minded conservatives on the bench, the rookie senator hunkers down, embeds himself in the culture of the staid Senate, and becomes a predictable, solid, Republican vote whenever needed.

But then the script starts going seriously astray.

Soon the new senator's political enemies not only start saying nice things about him, but they even begin co-sponsoring some of his legislation. Whispers and hushed words spread like wildfire, and before long the backsliding Republican is teaming up with the poster boy of the left, Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), to regulate tobacco.

The fall from grace continues as he conspires on human rights issues with the Senate's No. 2 Democrat, Dick Durbin (Ill.), in an effort to stop investment in Darfur.

Then matters turn irreversibly worse when the prodigal Republican son hooks up with an out-of-control, Batman-impersonating liberal Vermont Democrat to do a major re-work of the Freedom of Information Act.

"Cut, Cut, Cut! This script isn't working. Let's come back after lunch."

Whether a half-baked script or not, Cornyn, although truly that same reliable, shock-troop Republican, if not breaking the mold outright, is seriously reshaping it and preventing himself from being typecast in the real-life feature titled "George Bush's Washington."

Cornyn's latest episode comes in the form of S. 2852 - The Federal Spending and Taxpayer Accessibility Act of 2008.
Specifically, S. 2852 would create an online earmark tracking system that taxpayers can use to search for earmarks in their state, or anywhere else for that matter.

The database, to be operated by the Congressional Research Service, would be free to the public, who could search it by recipient of the earmark, appropriations bill where the earmark resides, where the money is going, or the member making the request.

The coup de grâce for reporters and citizens is Cornyn's hope to have all that information on the Web during the appropriations process, so that folks can follow the money flow in real time.

Cornyn is convinced that this opening of the appropriations window would, by itself, discourage phony earmarks and create a healthier debate about the ones with merit.

Another interesting component of the bill would be to direct the IRS to provide each taxpayer with a concise, easy-to-read personal record of the amount of taxes they have paid and an estimate of the amount they can anticipate paying before they retire. The statement would mirror the future benefits statement sent out by the Social Security Administration. S. 2852 would also expand the accessible Office of Management and Budget database dealing with federal contracts and grants.

According to Cornyn, the bill is designed to provide more transparency, openness and accessibility to information about money sent to Washington, and how it is spent.

Cornyn, who was an undergraduate journalism major before studying law, developed a reputation as a reformer when he was a judge in Texas at a time when some justices accepted campaign contributions in their courtrooms.

As far as I can tell, he believes that not only does he work for the American people, but that they have a right to information about how their government works, and especially to decisions about how their money is spent.

During a floor speech on the day the bill was introduced, Cornyn said: "I fundamentally believe the more the American people and my constituents in Texas understand about the government and how it operates, the better accountability can take place, and people will once again feel they are in charge, which is absolutely the case."

I don't expect Cornyn is the most popular guy at the prestigious We-Know-Best-and-Besides-It's-None-of-Your-Business Appropriations Club, and I doubt the bill will pick up many co-sponsors, wearing Batman tights or not.

But Cornyn should be commended for at least trying to hold on to that quaint "of the people, by the people, for the people" phrase that some little-noted Republican politician uttered somewhere up the road in Pennsylvania a long time ago.

Jim Mills can be reached at jmills@thehill.com.

Trade boosts Texas prosperity, national security

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0500

From its beginning as a state, Texas has prospered through trade. Texans work hard and efficiently, and what we produce is highly valued around the globe.

In the early days of Texas statehood, cotton was king, and most of it was exported to mills abroad. Then came the Texas cowboy and cattle drive era, the beginning of our international beef industry.

Today, Texas leads all states in exports of goods, ranging from agricultural products to computer and electronic equipment, and we don't do badly in services - such as gas and oil technology. Exports are the difference between sustainability and prosperity for our agriculture sector - they've helped keep farms and ranches thriving across our state.

Some 23 percent of our agricultural production is sent abroad. That includes two-thirds of our cotton crop (it's still our biggest money-maker), two-thirds of our rice, one-third of our peanuts and virtually every bushel of wheat. The Texas economy is outpacing the U.S. economy, and exports are a major reason.

That's why Texans should all be concerned when Washington politics stops a sound foreign trade agreement, as it did this spring. The U.S. House Democratic leadership found a procedural loophole to stall indefinitely an accord with Colombia, at least until after the election this fall.

One special interest group applauded this reckless decision - U.S. labor unions. Other groups with a broader view condemned it as short-sighted, particularly for U.S. foreign policy. Non-partisan experts all over the country, including in Texas, joined in the criticism.

Texas jobs are not the only interest at stake. Colombia, a large and important democracy in Latin America, has been a steadfast U.S. ally in the war against drugs and narco-terrorists. The House leadership's action gives the appearance that the U.S. is a fair-weather partner, and does not honor its promises to those who help us. It indicates we are not trustworthy in trade negotiations.

The decision to kill the accord will also buttress Hugo Chavez, the authoritarian ruler of nearby Venezuela, who provides regular support to drug traffickers and terrorists targeting the U.S. These are not idle threats. Some Chavez-backed leftist guerrillas in Ecuador were recently found with 66 pounds of uranium.

Chavez is assembling an anti-U.S. coalition in Latin America and beyond. Congress's shortsightedness will doubtless bolster his credibility.

It's impossible to measure precisely the damage from this episode on the Texas economy. Currently, most Colombian goods enter the U.S. without any tariff. But U.S. exports are now subject to substantial tariffs in Colombia.

Last year, Texas manufacturers and farmers sold $2.3 billion worth of products to Colombia, despite tariffs as high as 15 percent for computers and electronic equipment, and 20 percent for machinery.

The situation is even more one-sided for some agriculture products. Texas beef producers now face an 80 percent tariff to sell in Colombia. Needless to say, they don't sell significant product.

Wiping away those tariffs would increase Texas exports to Colombia significantly, a move that would lead to additional job opportunity and economic activity in virtually every part of Texas. I will do what I can to reverse the House leadership's decision, and get an up-or-down vote on our proposed trade agreement with Colombia.

Sen. John Cornyn serves on the Armed Services, Judiciary and Budget Committees.

Sen. Cornyn visits Lubbock, pitches for Tech

Mon, 21 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0500

U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, threw out the first pitch at the Texas Tech baseball game, surveyed development in northeast Lubbock and discussed the increasing cost of college education as part of a visit to the Hub City Saturday.

Before throwing the first pitch at Tech's game with Kansas State at Dan Law Field, Cornyn said he toured the King's Dominion residential sub-division - at the intersection of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Erskine Avenue - to witness the progress of the North and East Lubbock Community Development Corporation in the neighborhood.

The King's Dominion neighborhood, which began construction in 2006, includes 55 new homes and is the first residential sub-division in northeast Lubbock since the mid 1950s, according to the Corporation's Web site, http://www.neldc.org/.

Cornyn said he helped secure a $300,000 Department of Health and Human Services grant to help fund the corporation's project, which will provide housing and increase the tax base for the city and state.

"It's a double benefit for the individuals as well as the city and its tax base," he said.

Blayne Beal, Tech sports information director, said Tech Chancellor Kent Hance invited Cornyn to visit the university as part of his trip to Lubbock as a friendly gesture for work the senator has done for the university.

After throwing his pitch, Cornyn discussed the federal government's role in reducing the cost of college education, "which is something people think about when they graduate from college with a $90,000 student loan debt."

Cornyn said it is necessary for legislators to approach funding college education in multiple ways because "it's part of a balancing act dealing with a limited resource like tax dollars.

"How much of that do you put on the student who benefits from the education, and how much of that does the state pick up to make sure that that burden is not overwhelming or discouraging them from going to school?" he asked.

Cornyn said he has worked on legislation that would extend for two years and increase up to $4,000 a year a tax deduction for taxpayers who pay college tuition.

"We estimate it will help Texans (who are) going to college save millions of dollars in taxes by providing a tax credit against their income for money paid for college tuition," he said.

Also, because of concern of competition from India and China in the STEM fields of science, technology, engineering and math, Cornyn said Congress passed the America Competes Act, which ultimately will provide up to $30 billion in authorization for funds to encourage teachers to study and teach in those concentrations.

"Right now, we're not growing enough people in those areas," he said, "and obviously those are critical areas in terms of our ability to innovate, particularly in technology, and compete with countries like India and China."

Uphill climb for Democrat against Texas senator

Fri, 18 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0500

AUSTIN, Texas - It's the gaping "if" season for Rick Noriega.

In March, the Houston state representative beat three foes for the Democratic nod to challenge U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, in November.

I wonder if Noriega would have benefited by not winning outright. In a primary runoff, he would have had the state's political spotlight almost to himself, though it would have drained resources.

As it was, Noriega was overshadowed by the presidential primary showdown between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.

A nonpartisan oddsmaker stops short of dismissing Noriega, a Texas Army National Guard lieutenant colonel who has stressed bringing U.S. troops home from Iraq.

Jennifer Duffy , senior editor of The Cook Political Report, says: "Given how poor the national political climate is for Republicans, it's hard to completely write off any Democrat."

Still, she says , "this is an uphill climb . It is notoriously difficult for candidates of either party to get well-known in a state with 19 media markets, 32 congressional districts and at least 7.4 million general election voters."

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, "spent $5.7 million in her barely contested race in 2006, and Cornyn spent about $10 million in 2002, and he had already been elected statewide," Duffy says. "Cornyn's (poll) numbers aren't stellar ... but he will be tough to beat."

Duffy plans to keep watching.

"What national Democrats want to see is how much money he can raise," she says. "They have no intention of pouring money into the state if Noriega can't raise a fairly sizable chunk ."

At the end of March, Noriega's campaign had $330,000 in campaign cash on hand, a sliver of Cornyn's $8.7 million.

Historical note: No Democrat has won a Texas U.S. Senate race since 1988 . Maybe it's fair to speculate that Noriega is warming up to seek statewide office in 2010.

Yet he has time to gain traction if he raises enough money and smartly defines himself while raising doubts about Cornyn.

In a sign of optimism, or naïveté, Noriega raised his post-primary fundraising goal from $5 million to $10 million. He's hired a fundraising chief who once corralled cash for Ann Richards. He's also brought aboard a Web marketing firm credited with helping Sen. James Webb of Virginia win a seat in 2006.

A look at his campaign kitty after the quarter ending June 30 should show if he's on track to give Cornyn a scare.

If only he were hunting the Senate seat being vacated by Idaho Republican Larry Craig , he of the naturally wide stance.

Democrat Larry LaRocco, a former U.S. House member, told guests at an Austin fundraiser that he can win in that state if he raises $2.5 million to $3 million.

LaRocco says he has tried 19 jobs one day at a time to learn from voters - and will continue sampling jobs upon election. "It's amazing what kind of wisdom you can find out in break rooms ," LaRocco said.

LaRocco, encouraging Austin friends to build his buzz, said: "I don't care if you write a check or not."

Noriega can't afford to say that.

La Feria official pitch hospital plan to lawmakers

Thu, 17 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0500

WASHINGTON, D.C. - La Feria City Manager Sunny Philip said he's optimistic that talks with lawmakers this week could land a proposed veterans hospital in his city.

Philip, Mayor Pro-Tem Lori Weaver and Brad Shields, president of the La Feria Industrial Development Corp., traveled here Monday to pitch their plan to build a hospital in La Feria.

City officials believe the city's location in the middle of the Rio Grande Valley is one of its selling points.

Philip said he will hold a news conference on the meetings with lawmakers next week.

Wednesday, Philip and city leaders met with U.S. Rep. Ruben Hinojosa, D-Mercedes, U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas.

"They presented a great proposal and the congressman applauds their efforts to come up with a solution to our veterans' health care needs," said Elizabeth Esfahani, Hinojosa's spokeswoman.

Cornyn said he would take the city's proposal to the Department of Veterans Affairs, his spokeswoman Jessica Ferguson said.

"Sen. Cornyn was very supportive of the proposal and pledged to help them carry their message to the VA," she said.

City leaders also met with representatives of U.S. Rep. Solomon Ortiz, D-Corpus Christi.

"It looks like a good idea," Danny Guerra, Ortiz's spokesman, said of the city's proposal. "They presented details of the proposal to work with the VA to construct a medical center down in La Feria."

La Feria leaders were also expected to meet with officials of the Department of Veterans Affairs, Guerra said.

"The issue is, they have our support in trying to convey to the VA that this is something we need," Guerra said.

"A lot of (veterans) travel five hours to San Antonio to get health care," he said. "There's a substantial population of veterans here that need more health care. The congressman has been very, very supportive to get more facilities for veterans in South Texas."

Hutchison said she met with La Feria leaders "to discuss the health care needs of veterans in South Texas."

"I will continue working to improve and expand access to health care for South Texas veterans," Hutchison said in the statement.

In Brownsville, Cameron County Judge Carlos Cascos said he learned about La Feria's proposal Wednesday.

"I wish them the best," Cascos said. "If the VA determines that La Feria has a good proposal, that's great for La Feria and great for Cameron County and great for veterans."

Lawmakers will determine whether a veterans hospital will be built at a site such as La Feria, said Diana Struski, spokeswoman for the Department of Veterans Affairs in Washington, D.C.

Mushrooms may like the dark; democracy doesn't need it

Thu, 17 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Tom Blanton wasn't nuts when he told a room full of open-government fans to act squirrely.

Scientists have found, he informed us last Friday, that "squirrels have no idea where they've dug that hole and put that nut." They survive the winter by planting enough nuts that "wherever they go, they're likely to uncover a couple of buried items," he explained. "But if not enough squirrels plant not enough nuts, they're all going to starve."

Then he drove the point home: "As news gatherers, as news publishers and as citizens, we're going to starve -- our democracy, our accountable government, our information flows ... -- unless we get out there and plant some FOIA requests, write some stories and get the story out." Blanton and the research organization he heads, the National Security Archive, have made it their mission to plant Freedom of Information Act requests all across the federal government to shed light on what agencies are doing in our name. FOIA is the 1966 federal law that requires agencies to give people records they ask for (with certain exceptions), supposedly in timely fashion and without regard to why the information is being sought.

Through FOIA, the archive has uncovered fascinating nuggets of history as well as documentary treasure troves of insight into how government operates.

Right now, the archive's Web page, www.nsarchive.org, links to:

Declassified histories compiled by the Air Force that show CIA involvement in combat air attacks during the Vietnam War.

Stories about the archive's ongoing lawsuit seeking to force the Bush White House to preserve and restore thousands of missing e-mails.

An analysis of open records practices in Mexico.

The CIA's "family jewels" -- a 693-page file detailing years of domestic spying and other improper practices by the CIA.

And there's "Nixon meets Elvis." It turned out, archive staffers discovered, that the document that people most wanted to see at the National Archives -- home of our nation's founding documents and other precious papers -- was a photo of President Nixon hosting Elvis Presley at the White House on Dec. 21, 1970.

National Security Archive staff filed a FOIA request for all related documents and received a file that included Elvis' letter on American Airlines stationery seeking a meeting with Nixon; talking points recommending that the president ask the singer to create a TV special about getting high on life, not drugs; and a photo of Nixon inspecting Elvis' cufflinks. (You can see these on the group's site.)

During its history, the privately funded group has filed more than 35,000 open records requests and collected 8 million to10 million documents, Blanton told an audience at the First Amendment Awards banquet sponsored by the Society of Professional Journalists' Fort Worth chapter last Friday.

Release of the "family jewels" last year came about after the archive had asked a range of federal agencies for their 10 oldest pending FOIA requests. Though the law sets specific deadlines for turning over information requested by the public, they often aren't met -- sometimes for years. A request for the "family jewels" had sat unfilled for 15 years, Blanton said.

Because of a 2005 executive order signed by President Bush and because of FOIA changes pushed into law last year by Sens. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and John Cornyn, R-Texas, many agencies are reducing their backlogs of old open-records requests. But the two senators are continuing to try to strengthen FOIA.

The law never has been really popular with those who must comply with it, Blanton said. President Lyndon Johnson signed it grudgingly.

In 1974, President Ford vetoed a bill designed to put teeth into it, on the advice of two key aides and a Justice Department lawyer: Dick Cheney (now vice president), Donald Rumsfeld (later defense secretary) and Antonin Scalia (now a Supreme Court justice).

Congress overrode Ford -- to the enduring public benefit.

There's no doubt that the U.S. government is among the world's most open. But it helps that nosy reporters ask questions and that courageous government employees are willing to blow the whistle when they see questionable practices and wrongdoing.

"The good news is that when you shine a light on things, they get fixed," Blanton said.

Mushrooms might thrive in the dark, but democracy doesn't do so well.

Linda P. Campbell is a Star-Telegram editorial writer. 817-390-7867

Cornyn funds far outweigh those of Noriega

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0500

AUSTIN - Republican incumbent U.S. Sen. John Cornyn enters the general election campaign with $26 in the bank for every one held by Democratic challenger Rick Noriega, according to reports released Tuesday.

Cornyn reported having in the bank almost $8.7 million at the end of March; Noriega had $329,293.

In a state the size of Texas, a general election television advertising campaign that reaches most voters costs about $1.2 million a week.

Under that calculation, Cornyn could run television ads for seven weeks with the cash he has now; Noriega, about four days.

Noriega noted that his fundraising picked up dramatically after he defeated three opponents in the March 4 Democratic primary. He had raised $111,000 between Jan. 1 and mid-February, and then he raised $367,209 before the end of March.

"In the primary, we were running an insurgent grass-roots and Net-roots focused campaign, and we accomplished our goal of securing the nomination," Noriega said in a news release.

"Since our primary victory, we have seen increasing support for our general election bid and have put into place the fundraising team needed to win in November."

Campaign manager Mark Bell acknowledged that "this race will be expensive," but added, "We're going to make sure we have the resources to get his message out."

Fundraising in the current quarter, which ends June 30, could be critical to Noriega's efforts to convince national Democrats that a fight in Texas is worth paying for.

However, Cornyn keeps showing he has the ability to raise money.

Cornyn reported raising $2.2 million in the quarter ending March 31. In the current election cycle, Cornyn has raised $13.8 million.

"We're grateful to the thousands of Texans who are coming forward and showing support for Senator Cornyn and his positive message for Texas," said campaign manager Rob Jesmer.

Since Noriega entered the race last summer, he has raised about $1.3 million.

Renewable energy bill crucial to future

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Important tax incentives designed to nurture the growth of renewable energy got a major boost last week in the U.S. Senate.

Senators voted 88-to-8 to attach a bill extending the clean energy tax incentives for another year to an unrelated housing bill, Reuters reported.

Sens. Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn of Texas are cosponsors of the bipartisan energy legislation, which now moves to the House.

The bill doesn't address many looming long-term issues, but the incentives are slated to expire this year. And a significant amount of investment could be suspended if the extension is not passed soon.

"If both houses of Congress don't pass a bill, and the president doesn't sign it into law within the next one to two months, we will start to see as much as $20 billion of anticipated investment in 2008 delayed or cancelled," Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., one of the bill's authors, said in prepared statement. Cantwell and Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., introduced the bill on April 3.

The measure extends tax credits for investments in renewable clean energy sources such as wind, biomass, hydropower and a 30 percent tax credit for businesses that install solar and fuel cell technology.

Additionally, Cantwell noted, the measure gives one-year tax breaks to homeowners who make their homes more energy efficient. The Union of Concerned Scientists emphasized that a coalition of 100 business, trade and advocacy groups support the extension.

Encouraging renewable energy generation is crucial because of environmental concerns surrounding traditional generation methods such as coal and nuclear plants.

The renewable energy field also is creating domestic jobs. Ensign said in a prepared statement that the tax credits could help create 120,000 jobs.

Similar legislation has been approved by the House but has been bogged down because that measure would pay for the incentives by taking away tax credits from big oil companies, Reuters reported.

The Senate measure doesn't address a method for recouping the cost, and the White House is opposed to the unrelated housing bill.

While energy legislation has major hurdles to clear, last week's action pushes the process forward.

Expanding renewable energy generation is an important goal, and lawmakers should agree on a way to accomplish this goal without a lengthy delay.

Texans For Senator John Cornyn Raises $2.2 Million

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Austin, TX - Today, Texans for Senator John Cornyn announced raising $1.6 million since the March 4^th primary and $2.2 million in the first quarter of 2008. Senator Cornyn's campaign has $8.7 million cash on hand for his re-election to the United States Senate.

"We're grateful to the thousands of Texans who are coming forward and showing support for Sen. Cornyn and his positive message for Texas," Campaign Manager Rob Jesmer said. "Such fundraising shows Texans strongly appreciate Sen. Cornyn's leadership and are responding to his hopeful, optimistic vision for the future of Texas and America."

Texans for Senator John Cornyn received 7,121 individual contributions in the first quarter, 87% of which came from Texans. That brings the total number of individual donations to more than 19,000 for the 2008 election cycle.

Cornyn says he has $9M in bank for re-election campaign

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0500

AUSTIN - Freshman Republican U.S. Sen. John Cornyn has nearly $9 million in the bank, a big edge as he tries to fend off Democrat Rick Noriega this fall.

Mr. Cornyn's latest campaign finance report, released today, shows he has raised $1.6 million since Feb. 14, the cutoff for federal candidates before the March 4 primary. His cumulative total for the first three months of the year was $2.15 million.

Mr. Noriega raised nearly $479,000 for the quarter, his campaign announced. The five-term state representative from Houston emphasized that since Feb. 14 he took in more than $367,000 - three times the $111,340 he received between Jan. 1 and Feb. 14.

"Triples fundraising after primary victory," a Noriega news release headline said.

A Cornyn headline, though, stressed the GOP incumbent's most crucial advantage.

"Successful first quarter brings cash on hand to $8.7 million for November election," it said.

Mr. Cornyn had 7,121 individual contributors in the first three months of the year. Eighty seven percent were from Texas, said Rob Jesmer, manager of his re-election campaign.

"Such fundraising shows Texans strongly appreciate Sen. Cornyn's leadership and are responding to his hopeful, optimistic vision for the future of Texas and America," Mr. Jesmer said.

The Noriega camp, which said it had just under $330,000 in cash as of March 31, said it knows mounting a competitive statewide race in Texas will take big sums.

"This race will be expensive," said campaign manager Mark Bell, a onetime aide to former Texas House Speaker Pete Laney. "Rick has a unique perspective on the issues facing Texans today. We're going to make sure we have the resources to get his message out."

Mr. Noriega said he's had promising results at online fundraising. He noted he's hired a Texas money raiser, Jennifer Treat, and an Internet fundraising firm, Blackrock Associates, that helped Democratic U.S. Sen. Jim Webb of Virginia beat a favored Republican in 2006.

"Since our primary victory, we have seen increasing support for our general election bid and have put in to place the fundraising team needed win in November," Mr. Noriega said.

For this election cycle, though, Mr. Cornyn has now raised about $13.5 million while Mr. Noriega has yet to break the $1.5 million mark.

Public asked to shape open-government bill

Sun, 13 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0500

WASHINGTON - There is nothing unusual about an open-government group advocating new legislation that would shine a light on the secretive ways of Congress and the executive branch.

But rather than hire an army of lobbyists to push the proposal, as is the custom in Washington, the Sunlight Foundation is taking its measure directly to the public.

The foundation has posted its Transparency in Government Act of 2008 on the Web at publicmarkup.org and has invited the public to tweak, add to or criticize any aspect of the proposed bill. The goal, said Ellen Miller, executive director of the foundation, is to change the backroom, secretive way that legislation is typically passed in Washington.

"This is front-porch politics," Miller said.

The bill seeks to require Congress and the executive branch to be more transparent by making information, including sensitive financial data, available online so that people living in Austin or anywhere else have as much access to the way government works as people witnessing it in Washington.

The notion of bypassing lobbyists is turning heads on Capitol Hill and among lobbyists.

"Any time that we can hear directly from the American people and not paid lobbyists, it is a good thing," said U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, who has sponsored several open-government initiatives.

The idea of letting the public shape legislation levels the playing field between affluent groups that can afford lobbyists and the public, Cornyn said.

The idea was not as well received by Paul Miller, past president of the American League of Lobbyists. Miller says lobbyists are unfairly portrayed as backroom-deal makers.

There is more transparency in legislation than ever before, Miller said. But he disagrees with putting bills up for all to rewrite.

"I don't think the way you advocate is to put everything online and say, 'All right American people, weigh in on that,' because then what's next?" Miller asked. "Are we going to let the American people decide our defense policy, our trade policy, our immigration policy?"

Other lobbyists say the idea has the potential to engage the public.

Thomas Susman, who has lobbied on a wide range of issues, called the Sunlight Foundation's approach novel. But passing legislation requires a lot more, he said. Timing of legislation, committee assignments and communicating with lawmakers are crucial.

"Lobbyists are not going to become obsolete because the process is just too complicated, convoluted and difficult," Susman said.