Texas hasn’t elected a Democrat to statewide office since 1994. The state’s swing voters aren’t exactly enthralled with Republicans, but given the choices, they clearly prefer the GOP.
Though the Republican will be favored, Democrats will presumably run somebody in the campaign to replace Kay Bailey Hutchison in 2012. A new UT/Texas Tribune poll finds that voters aren’t yet in love with any potential successor.
So why not give the Democratic nomination to somebody capable of electrifying the race and energizing the Texas’ dispirited Democratic base? And why shouldn’t that be Tommy Lee Jones? There’d be no need for him to introduce himself to the state, he’d have no trouble raising money and he’d bring a ton of charisma to a party that lacks it. Independents and Republicans — voters any Democrat will need to attract to win – already like him, giving him an additional advantage no other Texas Democrat has. (Jones is a Democrat, by the way. He placed the name of his college roommate, Al Gore, in nomination at the 2000 Democratic Convention and has given money to the DNC and John Kerry.)
Look at what happened in California. When he first announced he was running for governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger — a Republican in a Democratic state — had done nothing to suggest that he was qualified to hold any political office. All he had was fame. And fame, it turned out, was an acceptable substitute for the gravitas one might otherwise view as necessary to run the nation’s largest state and the world’s eighth largest economy. Independents, Republicans and many Democrats voted for him because they liked his dumb movies.
As far as we know, Jones has none of Arnold’s baggage. He’s from here (and talks like it), is more serious and smarter than Schwarzenegger, speaks Spanish fluently, and lives full-time on a ranch near San Antonio. Jones may actually be better positioned to take Hutchison’s Senate seat than Arnold was to win the governorship.
Just to be clear: As far as I know, Jones has never expressed even the slightest interest in running for anything. Could he be persuaded? Who knows? He seems to be kind of a surly guy. But maybe Texas Democrats need somebody a little reluctant and menacing. Bill White, Chris Bell, Barbara Radnofsky and Rick Noriega were all extremely likable and eager to serve, and just look at how their races turned out.
And if you’re looking for a unique take on immigration issues, Jones has it:
Draft him. What have we got to lose?
