DIGG’IN FOR VOTES “ZBRANEK STYLE HUBRIS"

Many times the last six weeks before an election, unscrupulous candidates present voters with all kinds of new information. In the case of Liberty County politics, every candidate we have talked to that has run against the well known “Zbranek family” has observed some common characteristics in their campaign methods.  The kind of "new information" the Zbranek talking heads/clowns provide the public in the closing days of a campaign is typically vicious and disturbing.  Hight and Zbranek's clown/campaign adviser is hard at work trying to salvage these two campaigns.  That last sentence brings to mind an old saying, you cant make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.

Send in the clowns...

On the ballot in Liberty County this November will be two members of the Zbranek clan and they will be expected by some to campaign like some of those who have come before them. Those family members on the Democratic side of the ballot will be Zack Zbranek, the youngest son of the late 75th District Judge Zeke Zbranek and brother of former State Representative Zeb Zbranek, and Carol Hight, the Brother-in-Law of Zeke Zbranek and Uncle to Zeb.

Dear Liberty Dispatch,

If it be possible, I, and others as the undersigned, do hereby make requests to those in the United States Justice Department who are charged with such duties to investigate and pursue the revocation of all First Amendment rights of the freedom of the press who have been used, or been a part of any disinformation, distraction, or deception that has aided and abetted governmental officials to abuse power, commit fraud or theft or murder or any other illegal act, or hindered any other member of the press or private individual(s) from revealing such.

Or as my Uncle Joe would have said: Everyone of you media bastards that are protecting the pieces of garbage that have been raping and pillaging this county don’t deserve the freedoms that have been fought for and died for by the men and women who you don’t deserve to call fellow Americans.

We salute you Ray Akins and Liberty Dispatch.

Hight Hollers for Help

Liberty Dispatch has received information that the campaign to re-elect Judge C.T. “Rusty” Hight has replaced former campaign manager Elizabeth Beausoliel with a veteran professional campaign consultant out of Houston. The replacement of Beausoliel was expected after she was caught on tape in the courthouse stolen mail scandal.

Beausoliel’s replacement might have been inevitable anyway because of all of the difficulties in the Hight campaign that were not present when she helped him to win in a previous election. Hight has instead hired a spinmeister that is ranked number four in state among Democratic consultants. His name is Dan McClung has been a powerful force in the state’s political scene, helping to elect people like Lee Brown to the mayor's office, State Senator Rodney Ellis and Governor Mark White in 1982 and Governor Ann Richards in 1990. The trial lawyers signed him on to help battle Proposition 12.

Hight has never hired one of the hotshot consultants before but revelations about his changing legal documents in an attempt to change the outcome of a custody case when he was a lawyer and a string of cases involving offenders and offenders with multiple DWI’s has cast a long shadow over Hight’s re-election.

It is not known whether McClung is working for Hight as an in kind contribution or whether Hight’s campaign is paying him. The October campaign finance campaign reports should include that information. Hight and his two nephews, Zack and Zeb Zbranek, are the county’s Democratic Party standard bearers. They come from a long history of Democratic activism reaching back to Judge Zeke Zbranek’s partisan work fifty years ago.

Though Zack Zbranek, candidate for County Court at Law Judge, is inexperienced in running for election he is clearly trying to send a message to voters that he is from the family that has run this county for the last twenty years. Zack may even have agreed to pay for some of McClung ‘s consultation. Billboards connected by poles and by family resemblance recently revealed Uncle Rusty and nephew Zack’s intention to campaign for both courts together. Zack’s signs looking almost exactly like past political signs of his more accomplished brother is another part of the effort to remind voters that electing him and Rusty will create a justice system in Liberty County dominated by the biggest name in Liberty County Democratic party circles.

The addition of Dan McClung is expected to bring a more polished to barrage Liberty County voters with both political rumors and mass messaging. Phone canvassing and multiple mailers could include negative messaging intended to drown the race in mud under the guise of last minute “revelations” about candidates that have lived here for decades.

Because of the shear weight of Democratic party scandals in Liberty County, McClung may also resort to using some sort of Republicans for Rusty campaign. That strategy would be easy enough since before being beaten in the last republican primary Hight’s father-in-law was the county chairman. Hight’s father-in-law was the first incumbent county chairman to be beaten in a primary and it is commonly believed that he lost because as chairman he was helping Democrats (though bi-partisanship may be seen as a virtue to many, it is the job of a county chairman to work to elect someone from their party for every position).

However Dan McClung decides to attack Republicans and downplay the Democratic party’s stances on issues people in Texas have rejected at a two to one ratio, he may have his candidate’s full-time help. Unless McClung advises Hight to go back to work, Judge Hight will have 5 out of 7 days to work full time on his campaign. Most knowledgeable observers predict McClung will tell Hight that voters will not look favorably on a “public servant” making $125,000 being absent from duty 60% of the time at a rate of almost $600 a day.

Judge Hight should listen to this high powered image maker. The rest of us have a front row seat to see how the big boys do it - just like they did with Barack Obama.

Morefield a Christian

Mark Morefield may not really like this article being written about him, but after he has been the target of two of the most ruthless political attacks in Liberty County this election cycle, we think voters deserve to know.

The first attack started this summer. A couple of the local Democratic candidates needed some way to appeal to the local church going conservative voters who have tended to vote over the years for Republicans in state and national elections and for Democrats locally. This has never been the most reliable source of local Democrats’ votes but they have always received enough votes from this demographic group to win elections. But the last election local candidates began to see less and less of the Christian conservatives shade in the boxes on the ballot by Democratic candidates’ names.

At the beginning of the summer they decided to force church goers to reconsider voting for Republicans and to continue voting for Democrats. By using family and friends within the local Republican party, in early June we heard the first of two vicious attacks on Mark Morefield, the Republican candidate for the 75th District Court. “He is not a real Christian” were words some of those who not only claimed to be leaders of a movement to elect Republicans for every local office, but the words of people who claim to be Christians. The second barrage of this type of attack started as Morefield began to make arrangements to go be by his dying father’s side in New Mexico. He may not even know about the attacks, but we are sick and tired of them. His opponent and his opponent’s campaign team must be reacting to factual accounts on this website of how liberal and incompetent and political he is. But Rusty Hight or his campaign team rather than speak to the issues has decided to make personal attacks and a whisper campaign.

Morefield is not only one of the best attorneys in Southeast Texas; he has been the most well-known Republican among the legal crowd in this county for more than fifteen years. He knows personal attacks are not from people with convictions about conservatism, but rather they are all about getting someone’s buddy elected (Democratic buddy).

But Morefield was asked a question directly by one of his supporters after one Republican meeting: “What do you say to the rumors Democrats and one or two people in this room have started about you not being a Christian?” Morefield responded to this question very calmly eyeball to eyeball with those present by first saying he is a Christian and that he believes and depends on God and His Son Jesus Christ. Then as those nearby tuned in he told about how his faith and the way he lives his faith was greatly affected in the foxholes of Vietnam.

People that don’t know how vicious and desperate politicians can be might would think that would be the end of that rumor because for at least two reasons. First, anyone with knowledge of the bible knows that God Himself will be the one who says who has a relationship to Him on Judgment Day. Why would any of these people usurp God’s position? Second, are these people that are claiming to be Republicans and these Democrats trying to help the Hight campaign claiming to be “judging Mark Morefield by his fruit or his life”? And if they are – are they inviting a similar public analysis of some of Hight’s known indiscretions? And are they prepared to dole out the same harsh judgment to Hight and all others someone claims have consistently and purposefully sinned against the Lord?

In a subsequent conversation with Mark Morefield, we asked him several questions including how he was dealing with these personal attacks. Morefield declined to answer any questions about this; he said it is a distraction to the voters. He also declined an opportunity to explore rumors of Rusty Hight’s immorality over the years or to say anything other than the voters want to know their judges will be even handed and apply the law justly. When asked what he would do if he had some of the lawyers and political zealots that had promoted these rumors in front of the bench if he is elected, Morfield’s reply was real simple. He said he would treat them like everyone else. He said that people that appear in court deserve to be treated fairly.

Morefield has never been a politician, but he has been a good father and a good lawyer. If you talk to Mark Morefield for long you will find out he is a real history buff and someone who speaks about this country and the Constitution with a great deal of respect. Demonizing Mark would be a tough job for anyone, but Hight and company are taking their stab at it. They are throwing everything but the kitchen sink at him. They have even hired a professional to take aim at him. It kind of makes you wonder what his supporters think a Christian actually is.

Dear Liberty Dispatch,

I know you have promised you will show one more case that is typical of the way Judge Hight’s so-called “judgment” is infecting our community. Would you please consider exposing how easy he is on repeated or grossly habitual DWI offenders? I have children and even grandchildren that ride on the streets of this community and I have heard Judge Hight’s court is usually a joke on DWI offenders. I know you may already have everything ready to report on another case, but reporting on his liberal handling on DWI cases would go beyond politics, it would be a community service. He and his friend Phil both seem to have a special warm place in their heart for these people who eventually will kill innocent people by their selfish behavior.

BUY MY VOTE? WITH MY MONEY?

Most Americans agree that the record spending we are witnessing in Washington is inexcusable. Most Southerners would agree to add insult to injury President Obama, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Majority leader of the Senate Harry Reid and their fellow Democrats are using (or abusing) the government’s power and assets to help their own career. But do Liberty County voters recognize many of our elected Democratic officeholders have been no different here?

If you live in the Hardin area and you see Lee Groce’s crew blacktopping a private driveway or part of a private road, who do you think is paying for the material and the man hours to do that? Where did he get the record amount s of money he has had the last few years? If you listen to him or the other longtime veteran of commissioners’ court, Melvin Hunt, they will say that the appraisal district raised the values of taxpayers’ homes and their property and the result was the taxpayer had a higher bill to pay at tax time. And then this dynamic duo of Democratic Party deception will probably brag that it could have been a lot worse but they refused to raise the effective rate. What heroes they are for that... right?

These commissioners have been taking our money and blaming someone else and then spending part of that money to buy votes for their re-election. Just like Obama, Reid, and Pelosi. They think we are all dumb hayseeds so they continue to use their office to buy enough votes so that there will always be a majority of voters to re-elect them. But Liberty County knows good and well that these same commissioners could lower the effective rate and counter the higher appraisals so that taxes do not go up. But instead of doing that their 2011 budget indicates they will increase their spending in meteoric/Obama style!

Wouldn’t almost all of us be better off if we sent less of our paycheck down to the tax office and spent our money the way we wanted to rather than depending on politicians? Most of us pay for improving our own property and don’t want to chip in on improving the property of friends and beneficiaries of the people that tell us how wonderful these politicians are. Most of us don’t need to have worked hard for some officeholder so we can get special treatment with developing our land or a legal problem. Most of us look at Washington DC these days and we reject this use of our government.

True to the other part of the Obama formula of how to use government assets to rule and reign over a conservative electorate, our community is also the victim of huge amounts of wasted spending and wasted man hours as District Attorney Mike Little ignores very serious criminal activity and uses the power of his office to perpetuate his and other people’s political and business interests. Unfortunately, most of our hard working community has no way of knowing this is happening. Without a front row seat and personal observation this article and all that have accused this District Attorney could be seen as mere political rhetoric. But it is not.

We are alleging widespread selective prosecution and much much worse. We encourage Christians to pray that God helps the truth come to light about Mike Little and his crew’s behavior and its connection to Judge Rusty Hight’s court so that even their friends and families will know what has been going on in the shadows of our local government. We expect the coming days to be filled with our tax dollars being used to flex the strong arm of a rogue prosecutor’s office. We expect that to include a continued public relations effort to demonize opposition and to make that office appear to be legitimate and like they are typical crime fighters in a typical local justice system.

It all may seem to those who have never been suspicious about some of our local officials like a way out there conspiracy theory. But to those who have experienced some of the fallout of these people or those that have observed the degree and the extent Obama has done the same thing in the last two years, it is a reality that needs to come to light so we can clean up what should be a government that is for the people, not one that uses the people’s assets to present a deceptive picture of justice and responsibility while actually doing something very different.