- Did he keep his powder dry when he needed it most?
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he May Mutiny may have left the Texas House’s leader in tatters but Speaker Tom Craddick can spend millions on repairs before the rebels get another shot at him in the next legislative session. Craddick reported in January that he sits on more than $4 million. This war chest—which more than doubled over the past three years—is five times larger than his nearest House competitor. In fact, only Attorney General Greg Abbott commands more surplus campaign cash ($5.6 million).
If Speaker Craddick is loaded, the question becomes how—or if—he will discharge this weapon. Will he open up on fellow Republicans? Will he leave the dirty work to loyal surrogates? Or will he abandon the struggle and safeguard his jackpot for some other end?
Fundraising prowess is a perquisite of the powerful House Speaker’s office. Another factor swelling Craddick’s war chest has been his tendency to hoard his campaign cash—even when he needed it most. In March of 2006, for example, Craddick contributed a relatively meager $90,000 to the Texas Opportunity PAC. It spent $360,000 to help seven Craddick lieutenants confront tough primaries; three of these loyalists did not survive to watch Craddick’s back during the mutinies that followed.1
The only other political contribution that Craddick’s campaign made in 2006 was the
$100,000 that it gave to the Craddick-aligned Stars Over Texas PAC (SOT). SOT spent heavily to protect 10 vulnerable House Republican incumbents and help six other Republicans who sought open seats in November 2006. Six of the 16 lost. Here again, Craddick could have dug much deeper into his multi-million-dollar war chest (which supplied less than 10 percent of SOT funds).
As he has done in the past, Craddick may be tempted to hold onto his campaign booty. He could enlist the lobby and his top donors to suppress his rivals. Yet the mutiny now facing Craddick is much more pervasive and threatening than what he confronted previously. So if he refuses to let his money talk this time, Craddick faces a greater risk of losing the Speaker’s gavel that he coveted for decades.
If Craddick cedes the podium, he could tap his war chest to complete his political career in style, enjoying the finest meals, wines and hotels. Finally, he could leave the House and have six years to distribute these funds to candidates, think tanks or even a charity run by his friends, family or Tom Craddick himself.
| Date | Amount |
| January 1, 2004 | $ 1,973,830 |
| January 1, 2005 | $ 2,936,108 |
| January 1, 2006 | $ 3,112,752 |
| January 1, 2007 | $ 4,181,656 |
Craddick's Contribution by Check Size 2005-2006
* Graph does not include unitemized contributions.
| Name | Employer | City | Total |
| Texas Assn. of Realtors PAC | Texas Real Estate Association | Austin | $75,000 |
| BG Distribution Partners PAC | BG Distribution Partners, Ltd. | Houston | $55,000 |
| Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson | Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson | Austin | $52,500 |
| ACC Capital Holdings - PAC | ACC Capital Holdings | Austin | $50,000 |
| AT&T PAC | AT&T | Austin | $50,000 |
| Michael Stevens | Michael Stevens Interests Inc. | Houston | $50,000 |
| TX Assn. of Mortgage Attorneys PAC | TX Assn. of Mortgage Attorneys | Houston | $50,000 |
| TX Medical Association - TEXPAC | Texas Medical Association | Austin | $48,082 |
| Robert C. McNair | Cogen Technologies/Houston Texans | Houston | $30,000 |
| Harold Simmons | Contran Corp. | Dallas | $30,000 |
| Alice L. Walton | Wal-Mart | Mineral Wells | $30,000 |
| Bank of America PAC | Bank of America Corp. | Austin | $27,500 |
| John L. Nau III | Silver Eagle Distributors L.P. | Houston | $26,072 |
| J. Robert & Sherry Brown | Desert Eagle Distributing Co. | El Paso | $25,820 |
| Home PAC of Texas | Texas Association of Builders | Lubbock | $25,500 |
| Akin Gump PAC | Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP | Austin | $25,000 |
| Barry G. Andrews | Andrews Distributing Co. | Dallas | $25,000 |
| Bennett Joe Glazer | Glazer's Wholesale Drug Co. Inc. | Dallas | $25,000 |
| Ray L. Hunt | Hunt Consolidated, Inc. | Dallas | $25,000 |
| Loeffler Tuggey, et al, LLP | Loeffler Tuggey et al, LLP | San Antonio | $25,000 |
| Ryan & Company Texas PAC | Ryan & Company Inc. | Dallas | $25,000 |
| SBC Corp. PAC | SBC | Austin | $25,000 |
| Barkley J. Stuart | Glazer's Wholesale Drug Co. Inc. | Dallas | $25,000 |
| Texans for Lawsuit Reform PAC | Texans For Lawsuit Reform | Austin | $25,000 |
| Union Pacific PAC | Union Pacific Railroad | DC | $25,000 |
| United Parcel Service PAC | United Parcel Service Inc. | Atlanta, GA | $25,000 |
| University General Hospital LP | University General Hospital LP | Houston | $25,000 |
| Name | Employer | City | Amount |
| James R. Leininger | Kinetic Concepts Inc. | San Antonio | $135,000 |
| Tom Craddick Campaign | State of Texas | Midland | $100,000 |
| Robert C. McNair | Cogen Technologies/Houston Texans | Houston | $100,000 |
| Ryan & Company Texas PAC | Ryan & Company Inc. | Dallas | $75,000 |
| Bob Perry | Perry Homes | Houston | $60,000 |
| Grande Communications PAC | Grande Communications | San Marcos | $40,000 |
| HeartPlace PAC | HeartPlace | Dallas | $25,000 |
| Union Pacific PAC | Union Pacific Railroad | Washington | $20,000 |
| Clayton Williams | Clayton Williams Energy Inc. | Midland | $20,000 |
| John L. Nau III | Silver Eagle Distributors L.P. | Houston | $17,669 |
| James R. Pitts | State of Texas | Farmersville | $15,109 |
| BG Distribution Partners PAC | BG Distribution Partners, Ltd. | Houston | $15,000 |
| Name | Employer | City | Amount |
| Future of Texas Alliance PAC | Future of Texas Alliance | Austin | $91,100 |
| Tom Craddick Campaign | State of Texas | Midland | $90,000 |
| Bob Perry | Perry Homes | Houston | $50,000 |
| Louis Beecherl | Beecherl Companies | Dallas | $25,000 |
| MAXXAM Inc. Texas PAC | MAXXAM, Inc. | Houston | $25,000 |
| T. Boone Pickens | BP Capital | Dallas | $25,000 |
| Robert Rowling | TRT Holdings, Inc. | Irving | $25,000 |
| Harold Simmons | Contran Corporation | Dallas | $25,000 |
| Michael Stevens | Michael Stevens Interests Inc. | Houston | $25,000 |
| John L. Nau III | Silver Eagle Distributors L.P. | Houston | $15,000 |
| Michael Toomey | Texas Lobby Group | Austin | $7,200 |
1None of this money went to the five incumbent Republicans targeted by James Leininger’s handpicked candidates.
Texans for Public Justice. July 9, 2007.