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Sunday, August 27, 2000

USA Today mentions Rangel
Story highlights judgeship issues

Corpus Christi attorney Jorge Rangel's photo was on the front page of USA Today on Tuesday with an article about appointments to federal judgeships.
   The story said President Clinton has done a lot to diversify the bench but that politics and paybacks play such a strong role in the appointment system that minority nominees are twice as likely to be rejected as whites.
   Rangel was nominated to the 5th Circuit appeals court July 24, 1997 but withdrew his name Oct. 22, 1998, after the Senate failed to act on the nomination.
   Senators Phil Gramm and Kay Bailey Hutchison didn't promote Rangel's nomination, and the White House seemed distracted by the Monica Lewinsky scandal at the time, USA Today reported.
   Rangel was quoted inside: "If you don't have a sponsor in the Senate to lead the interference, it's very difficult."
   Nobody in audience as Del Mar talks money
   No residents attended a public hearing Tuesday on Del Mar College's proposed $60 million budget and proposed 22.04 cents per $100 valuation tax rate.
   The proposed budget is nearly $6 million more than last year's and the tax rate will remain the same as last year's.
   "If their taxes are going to remain neutral, they probably will not come to pat us on the back," said Del Mar College Board President Ralph Diaz. "But if their taxes will go up, they may come and kick us in the behind."
   Five Del Mar regents to be chosen in November
   Five seats on the Del Mar College Board of Regents will be included on the Nov. 7 election ballot. The board includes nine trustees in a modified single member district. Five represent geographic districts of the city while four serve at-large.
   Ralph Diaz, District 1, and Olga Gonzales, District 3, will complete their six-year terms this year. At-large Regent William A. Whittle's term also expires this year. Two other regent slots - currently held by the Rev. Willie Davila, at large, and Mike A. Saenz, District 4 - will also be on the ballot.
   Candidates must be registered voters who reside in the college district, which includes Calallen, Corpus Christi, Flour Bluff, Tuloso-Midway and West Oso school districts. Candidates for single-member districts must reside in that district.
   The deadline for filing a place on the ballot is 5 p.m. Sept. 25. Those interested may confirm their district residency and candidate packets in Room 132, Heldenfels Administration Building, East Campus. Call 698-1259 for more information.
   Ortiz visits Kingsville to set base strategy
   Rep. Solomon Ortiz was in Kingsville last week to talk with military and city officials about everything from possible base closures to Spaceport to Interstate 69.
   "One of the things we want to do is keep our military bases open," Ortiz said over lunch at Harrel's Pharmacy. "It's important for our economy."
   Ortiz said there may be another round of base closures coming up next year or in 2003 and he wants to make sure Naval Air Station Kingsville isn't on the list.
   Oritz also said he has been pushing hard to bring Spaceport to Kenedy County and has been trying to bend the ear of U.S. Sen. Phil Gramm, R-Texas, who as head of the Senate banking committee is the last word on federal loan guarantees for Spaceport.
   Texas GOP launches retooled Web site
   The Republican Party of Texas has redesigned its Web site.
   The Web site, www.texasgop.org, is an expansion of the group's original Web site.
   "One of the most interesting features is, it allows people to get directly involved with their local candidates," said Ted Royer, deputy press secretary for the Republican Party of Texas.
   A person can fill out a form on the Web site, and the Web site then processes the form and forwards it to local candidates for, say, the Legislature, Royer said. People representing the candidate then would contact the person who filled out the form, he said.
   The retooled Web site was launched Monday.
   Answers about county jail problems will have to wait
   It appeared that questions were finally going to be answered about the Nueces County Jail.
   The sheriff's department had scheduled a workshop Monday that would feature seven speakers making presentations on subjects such as mental health patterns and trends in county jails, medical services, counseling services, pepper spray and a Bexar County Jail comparison.
   The workshop was in response to two lawsuits - one of which has already been settled for $1.1 million - filed by the families of inmates who have died in the jail.
   The sheriff's department and Sheriff Larry Olivarez have had little to say, and Monday's workshop was supposed to be a first step in answering questions about the jail's operation.
   Now, those answers will have to come later - the workshop was postponed Friday because of scheduling conflicts, Olivarez said. He did not know when it might be re-scheduled.


Political Pulse is compiled by staff writer Dan Parker. Contributors this week included Parker and staff writers Andrea Jares, Jason Ma, Jeremy Schwartz, Cynthia Hodnett and Mary Moreno. Parker can be reached at 886-3746 or by e-mail at parkerd@caller.com

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