Detecting weakness, Cornyn foes are lining up

2007-07-09

Source: Houston Chronicle

Fresh off his wife's election to the Houston City Council, state Rep. Rick Noriega is poised to launch a race for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate to challenge Republican incumbent Sen. John Cornyn.

Early in his term, Cornyn gained as one of the leading voices in the Senate for President Bush's policies. But Texas Democrats now see Cornyn, 55, as vulnerable because his personal popularity has sunk along with that of Bush.

Noriega, 49, began looking at a challenge during this year's legislative session, but put off any overt action until his wife, Melissa, won her City Council runoff last month.

That gave San Antonio trial lawyer Mikal Watts, 39, an opportunity to plunge in first, forming an exploratory committee last month. Watts also pledged to give his campaign $3.8 million to win the Democratic nomination and another $6.1 million for the general election.

But with Melissa Noriega's race over, a dozen of the state's most influential left-leaning blogs began an Internet "Draft Rick Noriega" movement. Noriega called it "flattering."

He plans to create his own exploratory committee for the Senate race this week, and said he wants to run because he believes the United States has "lost the moral high ground globally" and is on the wrong track in fighting terrorism, providing health care and education and handling immigration.

Noriega has neither statewide name identification nor personal wealth to match Watts' potential campaign. But that hasn't dissuaded him.

"Mikal's a friend of mine. I appreciate that he's given financial support to candidates and the party, but Texans don't judge candidates by the size of their wallet," he said.

Noriega said Cornyn has tried to retain political power by taking extreme positions to satisfy the Republican base.

"He's been pretty much a rubber stamp for the administration unless it comes to working in a collaborative way on an issue like immigration," in which Cornyn broke with Bush, Noriega said.

Watts said he's not surprised Noriega is looking at the race because of Cornyn's record as "the chief apologist for the Bush administration."

Cornyn seems inclined to wait for Democrats to pick their nominee before responding to criticism from them.

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