Victoria County judge leaves Democratic Party

[TexasTowelie]

Labels such as Republican or Democrat may not have much importance on the local level, but to the county's highest ranking elected official, it's a personal matter.

Victoria County Judge Don Pozzi, who has been elected to three terms as a Democrat, announced at the Republican Women's Meeting that he is now a member of the Grand Old Party.

Area party leaders and friends echoed support for Pozzi on Tuesday evening, and federal and state officials passed along messages of encouragement.

"While party affiliation does not have as great an impact at the local level on public policy, it is, nonetheless, the manner in which we elect our local county leaders," Pozzi said in a prepared statement.

More at http://www.victoriaadvocate.com/news/2013/mar/19/mc_gop_pozzi_032013_204738/ .

[font color=green]It's time to make it a personal matter and get a new judge in Victoria county![/font]

[Gman]

1. Many white Democratic officeholders in South Texas have had to switch parties to get reelected

Generally the switcher is going to draw a primary opponent that's Hispanic. The facts of life in South Texas are that Whites generally can't win in the Democratic Primary in South Texas if they are running against an Hispanic. I emphasize "generally" as there are exceptions. But many a fine Democrat who also happens to be white or even Black has lost in the primary because they were not Hispanic or more specifically, Mexican-American. It most apt to occur in judicial races as they are at large races in predominantly Hispanic areas. It's a phenomenon that's been happening now for many, many years. I suspect that's the case here and he's doing it for political survival.

[TexasTowelie]

2. Somehow the sheriff in the county where I was raised is still hanging on though.

Sheriff Larry Busby (D) has been running (or is that ruining?) Live Oak county for 32 years. I think that he finally solved one murder case a few years ago--he makes Roscoe P. Coltrane look competent!

[Gman]

3. I'm not sure of the make up of Georgetown

but there are a lot of anglo farmers in the county. But of course it's all a good 'ol boy system down there.

I got a speeding ticket on 37 that was total BS and had to pay it in Georgewest. Use a good radar detector in Live Oak County.

[TexasTowelie]

4. Georgetown is definitely a Republican county.

It has become more progressive over time, but I believe the Republicans had a stronghold there since the 80's. I can assure you that you don't want to encounter any legal problems in Williamson county. They have a mandatory overnight jail stay policy for drinking and drug offenses.

You are also correct about the speeding ticket issue on I-37. The entire county is a speed trap in my opinion. You are almost guaranteed to see DPS on the 10 mile stretch of US 281 between George West and Three Rivers. If you go north and enter Three Rivers, the speed limit is 70 (maybe 75 now) and you go over the levee where it drops to 35 within about a quarter mile. For people unacquainted with the area it is an almost certain speeding ticket by the city cop lurking there and a radar detector may not help.

[WolverineDG]

5. My dad used to bitch about Live Oak County

because it took them FOR.E.VER. to widen the stretch of 281 between Alice & George West from 2-lanes to divided 4 lanes. Every time we went to or from San Antonio from the Valley, we got stuck behind some idiot going 20 miles an hour with his right blinker on......hell, Hidalgo & Brooks County got it together to widen 281 to 4 lanes all the way to Fal a decade before that 40 mile stretch of hell was widened. And of course, 281 now bypasses Fal & Alice, making the trip to SA a little bit shorter.

[TexasTowelie]

6. Then your dad was one of many who had to take a number.

That stretch of highway was designed for a speed limit of 45 mph! There were so many rolling hills that it was impossible to have the sight distance to pass slower traffic in the area. The state never provided any funding for the expansion of the highway and it was merely a paved over cattle path. The only reasons that I ever was on that highway were for trips for band, UIL competitions and football. My college band also used that highway coming home from a tour in the Valley and everyone on the bus griped about it.

I knew the TXDOT engineer stationed in George West back in the 70's who later became the mayor of George West in the 80's where he served for over 20 years. A pavilion in the city park was named in his honor. He was the engineer that designed the US 281/I 37 interchange north of Three Rivers. He was a friendly intelligent man, but his south Texas drawl was slower than that stretch of highway you mentioned.

His son is a friend, fellow SU alumni and now the assistant engineer for TXDOT stationed in Corpus Christi. He was involved in the construction upgrade of that stretch of US 281 and is now working on the I-69 project that includes many of the highways in the area (US 59, 77, 281 and I-37). If US 281 ever bypasses George West and Three Rivers, then it will have to run to the west of both towns since the flood plain area on the Nueces River would require a significant amount of bridge work.