Rick Perry has been demanding for months that his opponent for the governor's seat, Bill White, release his tax returns for the last few years. He has finally done that, and I begin to see why he delayed doing it for so long. To put it bluntly, Bill White is by far the richer of the two. Normally in an election the Republican is the richer of the two candidates, but that is certainly not the case in the governor's race this year. Here are the figures for the years of 2005 through 2008 (the last year figures are available for both men):
2005 INCOMES
Rick Perry..........$196,588
Bill White..........$4,727,896
2006 INCOMES
Rick Perry..........$223,974
Bill White..........$1,919,699
2007 INCOMES
Rick Perry..........$1,138,995
Bill White..........$2,355,446
2008 INCOMES
Rick Perry..........<$280,928> Because of huge loss in his blind trust
Bill White..........$1,405,066
I had assumed these two men were fairly financially equal, but it looks like I was wrong. Even more discouraging, a large part of Bill White's income comes from the energy industry. So it doesn't look like either candidate can be counted on to bring the energy industry into compliance with federal laws and/or give consumers a break. Perry because he's a Republican and that would be a violation of party values, and White because it would hurt his own financial well-being.
There you have it fellow Texans. One of these candidates has been bought by the energy industry and the other is a part of it. The upshot of this is that both are corporate conservatives, and neither will govern Texas for the best interests of ordinary Texans.
It might make some people feel good if White (pictured) is elected because they can say a Democrat is in the governor's mansion. But is this election simply for bragging rights? Evidently so, because both men would govern for the good of the corporations.
This is why I'll be voting for the Green Party this November. They may not have much of a chance, but at least I won't be ashamed of my vote.
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