For those of you who have been following the controversy surrounding Speaker of the Texas House, Tom Craddick, you’ll be happy to know the drama begins before the legislative session does. On Sunday, Oct. 19th, Craddick will debate his challenger, Democrat Bill Dingus. You can tune in to KXAN Austin News for all the action!

Now that the latest campaign finance reports have been released, here’s the low down on these two guys:

Dingus: $ 126,315.00

Craddick:  $ 177,572.78

In the Williamson County race to replace Rep. Mike Krusee (R-Round Rock), Democrat Diana Maldonado is coming out ahead in the latest campaign finance reports released. Maldanado reported $227,293 in contributions between July 1 and September 25, 2008. Her Republican contender, Bryan Daniel, raised $84,874 in that same time period. The majority of Maldonado’s contributions came from small donations; $30,000 of Daniel’s money came from Republican donor Bob Perry.

At least when she talks about being more in touch with the average Joe than the other candidates, Palin can back it up with her tax returns. Certainly not struggling, Palin and her husband pulled in $166,000 in 2007 and $128,000 in 2006. But, those figures are a far cry from the other names on the ballot.

John McCain reportedly paid double that ($270,000) for household help last year. As for his income, he reported $852,000 last year; his wife (an heiress) brought in $6 million in 2006. The Obamas aren’t doing too bad either, with a combined income of $4.2 million dollars last year. Finally, Sen. Joe Biden reported $320,000 in adjusted gross income last year.

In all, I was less than enthused with tonight’s debate. I will definitely say the most memorable moment for me was when Sen. Biden almost started crying on stage after Sarah Palin insinuated he didn’t know what it was like for a mom to raise kids alone. Biden immediately reminded the public that he lost his wife and daughter in a car crash and had to raise two sons who were injured in that wreck. His voice then cracked and his eyes teared up…

We’ll hear what the pundits have to say soon enough.

It’s an hour into the debate and here’s what I’ve learned so far:

1. These two agree on energy, same sex civil rights and the problems on “Main Street” resulting from the corruption on “Wall Street”

2. Sarah Palin does not like answering the questions she is asked but loves to talk about energy

3. Both of them have brushed up on their numbers when it comes to the number of times each presidential candidate has voted for energy, military and tax policies

4. They both love Israel

oh and I’m almost forgot….

5. To learn how the economy is doing, all you need to do is ask a soccer mom

As I’ve been covering the bailout bill that failed in the House (thanks in part to several of our home grown Texas lawmakers) I’ve encountered a recurring sentiment among the politicians: surprise. None of them can believe that they are all in agreement when it comes to such an important vote. Rep. Carter’s spokesman said he couldn’t believe when he saw Rep. Doggett’s name on the same side of the nay list. Doggett’s reps said the same thing. So, if there is one good thing that has come out of all this: a newfound camaraderie… maybe crossing party lines isn’t that bad after all.

Sen. McCain is asking to delay Friday’s debate and says he plans on suspending his campaign for the time being in order to do his Senatorial duties in dealing with the country’s economic crisis. He is asking Sen. Barack Obama to do the same. Obama said no and this is the time the American people need to hear from leaders. He went on to say a president will need to be able to handle more than one thing at once.

Libertarian presidential candidate Bob Barr is suing Texas, demanding John McCain and Barack Obama be removed from the November ballot because they missed the filing deadline.

“The seriousness of this issue is self-evident,” the lawsuit states. “The hubris of the major parties has risen to such a level that they do not believe that the election laws of the State of Texas apply to them.”

The petition also alleges that the Democratic Party’s late presidential filing falsely claimed under oath that Senator Obama had been nominated hours before the nomination actually occurred.

Boy, what a ballot that would be!

Aside from the slightly distracting accent (the spelling is no accident in the headline to this blog entry), Sarah Palin did exactly what the Republican party needed her to do last night. She reinvigorated the base, gave them the youthful vigor they needed and showed herself as a tough yet still incredibly feminine woman—no easy feat. There were a few too many snarky, sarcastic comments for my taste, but she delivered what she needed to deliver. A friend of mine who is at the convention right now says the attitude there before and after Palin’s speech is like night and day. She described the first two days of the convention as funeralesque and now she says there is almost a visible excitement in the air. Let’s see if it holds for McCain’s speech tonight!

For those of you who are anxious to hear from Palin after the recent news about her and her family, then stay glued to the RNC. She is the main speaker tonight and certainly has her work cut out for her. On CNN today, Sen. Hutchison told the media and the public to give Palin a chance and called her Sen. McCain’s ’soulmate’ when it comes to being a reformer and a maverick.  I thought this was pretty gracious, considering she was passed up for the job. Perhaps Hutchison is already grooming herself for an executive position at the Capitol in good ole’ Austin?

By the way, Sen. John Cornyn is having a small fundraiser/watch party at the Tavern tonight if you want to catch the speech in a social setting. The tavern is on Lamar and 12th street and the party is expected to kick off around 7pm tonight.