More Texas Two Step Chaos & Weather Woes

We are back with clear blue sky again after yesterday's weather extreme. This morning did not bring the expected ice covering. Yesterday's afternoon sleet canceled about 500 flights out of D/FW, leaving some people stranded on planes for over 5 hours. Which is one of my many personal visions of a living hell.

Meanwhile reports continue to accumulate like snow regarding chaos and confusion at the second step of the Texas Two Step. One caucus goer reported his wife called party officials for help during their caucus meltdown, the person who answered did not know what to do, so the caller asked to speak to a supervisor who she heard say "just hang up on her".

On a plus note a Texas legislator is introducing a proposal to end the ridiculous Texas Two Step as practiced by the Texas Democrat party.

If you've not heard what the Texas Democrat Two Step process is, or don't get why it is absurd, let me lay it out for you. 55 percent of the delegates are chosen directly by the voters, with each vote weighted differently based on how the voter's precinct voted in the last 2 elections. Another 19 percent of the delegates are chosen at precinct caucuses with vague rules regarding how to weigh the votes. 11 percent of the delegates are chosen at the state convention and the remaining 15 percent are appointed by party bosses, a leftover from the good ol' boy network that used to run things.

Now do you get why we still don't know for sure who won the Texas primary election on the Democrat side, Obama or Hillary?

The Republican Party in Texas uses what would seem a revolutionary democratic method for picking their delegates in that 99 percent of the delegates are chosen directly by the voters. What a concept. And there is no chicanery regarding 'weighting' the votes based on past elections. Each vote is counted equally. I don't know how that remaining 1 percent of the delegates is chosen by the Republicans. I do know that John McCain is the nominee. And that he won Texas.

Global Warming, Snow & the Texas Two Step

It is only a couple weeks til the start of Spring. And yet this afternoon North Texas is predicted to get snow. Possibly up to a couple inches. When is this Global Warming thing you hear so much about scheduled to kick in?

It now looks like what I predicted days ago is about to be official, that being that though Hillary won the Texas primary vote and the most delegates from that win, Obama won the Caucus Chaos by a larger percentage and thus won more of those delegates and is expected to come out ahead with 99 delegates to Hillary's 94, gave or take a few in either direction.

Meanwhile the scandal over the largely botched second part of the Texas Two Step, that being the caucuses that Barack won, continues to grow. Angry voters are being heard, made more angry as they share horror stories and realize their experience was not unique, but was more the norm.

In one D/FW suburb, Mansfield, voting did not end til 20 minutes before 10pm. Many of the hundreds who showed up at 7pm for the caucus left in frustration as the hours clicked by. These people were left standing outside in the cold. And to add more pain to the pain, when many of them tried to escape they found their vehicles stuck in mud requiring a tow truck to unstick them.

Other precincts broke the election rules by allowing caucusers to sign in before the voting ended and letting them make their caucus choice. Other precincts did not realize that once the caucus began a voter could make his presidential choice and then leave without participating in the rest of the caucus.

At a caucus location in Denton County over 1000 showed up. People got so frustrated by the confusion that at least half of them left. One of the frustrated said, "I've never experienced anything like this. It kind of makes me want to leave the entire state."

I think that is a common sentiment here at times.

Texas Caucus Debacle

It is 7:27 pm. I am already back from the second step of the Texas Two Step. The caucus. I arrived at the caucus location at 6:45. A line of cars was backed up on to the street at the entry to the parking lot. The parking lot was full. Some voters were leaving and not staying for the caucus and those were the available parking spots. By the time I made it off the street it was parking lot gridlock.

Some were trying to turn around and bail. This resulted in an ugly stand-off between two women drivers. I could not believe there was no police presence to help with this mayhem.

So, I called 911. The dispatcher sounded sleepy. I explained the problem. Told her it was at the East Regional Library Voting/Caucus site. She said she needed a street. I said, I dunno, I think it's Bridge Street. She said she also needed a cross street. I said there is none and the cops will know where the library is.

At that point one of the election workers showed up trying to untangle the mess. I told her I was on the phone to 911 and asked where are the police, this is getting ugly?

A couple minutes later election worker traffic directors started going around asking those in cars if they were here to vote in the primary, if so, just park anywhere, and go vote. And then they decided to just tell everyone to park as best they could. I could see this could get me blocked in, so I drove to a spot where I thought that no one could block me.

By now there was a large crowd milling about outside the library. More cars continued to enter the parking lot. Some exited and began parking on a side street. By the time I escaped that side street was full of parked cars on both sides of the street for at least a half mile.

After I parked I ran into the election worker I'd told earlier that I'd called 911. She was now in full traffic director mode. I told her she was the prettiest traffic cop I'd ever seen. That seemed to please her.

I wanted to take some pics of the crowd. There was a festive atmosphere. A guy stood on a bench and preached to the crowd. He sounded very insane. I got inside the library and saw the size of the crowd. It was not even 10 after 7 and there were enough people to fill up 10 of the caucus size rooms.

And the voting had not ended. I knew this was a boondoggle that did not need any further participation from me. So, I began my escape. The traffic cop who I'd told was pretty saw me leaving, then grabbed my arm and said I had to stay, that my one vote might be the one that made the difference.

I didn't think so. What I thought was this was an absurd boondoggle and whoever is the controlling authority that validates elections needs to immediately make whatever move they need to make to invalidate these caucuses. I saw many people giving up. As I walked among the cars most had their windows down. I'd ask if they were here for the primary or the caucus. Almost everyone answered caucus. I saw two cars in which women were crying in frustration.

On the plus side I saw many people who brought their children. I think they were feeling really proud about who they were getting to vote for and wanted their kids there. I saw many acts of kindness.

And one big bad overarching case of a really bad idea going badly awry.

The Texas Two Step stepped right into this mess without thinking. This election night disaster could have been avoided. It is not like it has not been known for some time that tonight was going to be a big deal.

I'm appalled. This is two elections in a row now here where I have been sort of disenfranchised. Jimmy Carter needs to monitor the Texas elections like he does other Third World countries.

Sunny Sky Voting Weather

The view out my window has returned to a nice shade of Texas blue after yesterday's unseemly all day gray drizzle. The predicted iced version of water falling did happen right on schedule, arriving about 6pm in the form of frozen pellets that seemed to be a mutation of a snowflake and hail.

Some areas of the D/FW Metroplex must have had a lot more snow/hail than I saw, because this morning while driving in Arlington I saw several cars with about 4 inches of white stuff on them. And others with lesser amounts.

Texas Primary Election officials have now let it be known that they are very nervous about what is going to happen tonight. Their worries are the same I mentioned yesterday, as in too many people in too small of spaces with too little parking to handle those who return for part 2 of the Texas Two Step, that being the caucus. They are also afraid that the voting may go on well past 7 due to the requirement allowing anyone in line the right to vote, as long as they are in line before the 7 o'clock poll closing time.

The caucus can not begin until the last voter has voted. Where the caucusers are supposed to wait I have no idea. I may just go check out the spectacle. And then bail. Unless it seems interesting.