12.03.09
Filing season begins today - Ogden will run again
The TexasTrib is reporting that Ogden Will Seek Another Term, will face Ben Bius in GOP primary.
State Sen. Steve Ogden, who said earlier this year he would leave the Legislature after his current term, will seek another two years in office after all. And he may have drawn the first primary opponent of his political career.
Ogden announced in September he would retire after this term. Rep. Dan Gattis of Georgetown and another Republican, Ben Bius of Walker County both started campaigns. But Gattis dropped his bid over the weekend, saying he had talked to Ogden and that Ogden was willing to come back. That turns out to be true, but Ogden has been silent for several days and during that time, Bius apparently decided to forge ahead.
Unless one of them changes his mind, Bius — who’s lost three previous bids for office — will face Ogden, who hasn’t lost one yet.
Ogden, a Bryan Republican who chairs the Senate Finance Committee, says the next budget is going to be a mess and that he felt he could do more about it from his spot in the Texas Senate than from any other perch. He admits he considered running for Congress against U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards, but says he wouldn’t have enough political power as a freshman Republican in Congress to have an immediate impact on the federal deficit, health care, and other problems.
This has got to be a disappointment for the GOP in Williamson County, after it looking like they would almost certainly get a representative of their own in the Texas Senate. Now this has come down to a primary battle between two candidates from the extreme Eastern part of the district with no Williamson County ties.
More on Ogden from The Eagle, Ogden announces bid for re-election.
Ogden said he would file paperwork for his race today.
“While Texas state government is in good shape relative to other states, I’m concerned the about effects of the current recession on the state’s next budget,” Ogden said. “After discussion with my family, who have been so supportive of me over the last 20 years, I have decided to seek re-election.
“The strength of our state government is directly related to the health of our state’s economy. Though government does not create an economy, it can surely affect it. I have the experience and philosophy to help steer our state through the storm without harm to our economy.”
I take exception to the fact Ogden is some kind of state budget fixer guru. We all know that he used billions in federal money last year to keep from using the rainy day fund. That’s nothing spectacular. Texas had survived tough times before Steve Ogden and would have again without him.