From the Tribune-Herald:
Political pundits anticipate a bruising contest that will redefine the meaning of mudslinging.
And I feel compelled to get out early to compare how these powerful figures have done by Waco.
Let’s review: A federal commission recommends that the Waco Veterans Affairs Hospital be shuttered as part of a national cost-cutting effort. Hutchison steps up to the plate on behalf of Waco and convinces the then-VA secretary to reverse that recommendation and save one of this community’s economic mainstays.
Fast-forward several years. Another recommendation haunts Waco’s economic well-being: this time a staff recommendation by the Texas Department of Transportation to freeze McLennan County out of discretionary highway funding from a federal stimulus package worth $1.2 billion.
This time, the ball is in Perry’s court. His response? Absolutely nothing. A final vote by his Texas Transportation Commission last week stiffed McLennan County at a time when it has some real economic momentum for the first time in decades and when such funding could have leveraged our momentum into some real economic vitality for this community. And it would benefit everyone who travels Texas’ most strategic traffic artery.
Based on these two important moments in Waco’s development, which politician did right by us and which one took us for granted?
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