The Abbott Advisories, Part 1

Tick, tick, tick. Friday was the last day that Attorney General Greg Abbott could take advisories from state reps on whether they have the power to get rid of Speaker Tom Craddick.

Pity poor Greg: the last thing he probably wanted was for Rep. Jim Keffer, R-Eastland, to drag him into this fight by asking for a legal opinion, but he did. Now every Republican seems to be weighing in.

First off, there's what we'll just quickly call the Berman letter (you'll understand when you read the list of signatories), very obviously a "Get Out of Jail" card for Abbott on this no-win situation. It's basically 15 Republicans riding to his rescue by saying that this really is a House matter and there's no good grounds in the constitution for dragging him into it. Although, at the same time, they also ask that he give an opinion on whether there's a mechanism to get rid of the speaker. So no confusion there.

If you're keeping track, this one was signed by: Leo Berman, R-Tyler; Betty Brown, R-Athens; Fred Brown, R-Bryan; Bill Callegari, R-Houston; Frank J. Corte Jr, R-San Antonio; John Davis, R-Clear Lake; Rob Eissler, R-The Woodlands; Dan Flynn, R-Canton; Linda Harper-Brown, R-Irving; Charlie Howard, R-Sugar Land; Carl Issett, R-Lubbock; Jim Jackson, R-Carrolton; Jim Murphy, R-Houston; Beverley Woolley, R-Houston; and Bill Zedler, R-Arlington.