6/01/00 2:45 p.m.
W. Blows Off Texas
Texans GOPers wonder why Bush is skipping their convention...

By Ben Domenech, NRO Contributing Editor---------------btdome@wm.edu

ith more than 17,000 delegates and alternates in attendance, June 15's Texas state GOP conclave is meant to have the look and feel of a national convention — an appropriately Texas-sized send off for Governor George W. Bush. Except for one detail: W. himself won't be there.

"Some of the people out there have been working for Bush for years, are his most loyal supporters," says Texas Republican Party spokesman Robert Black. "Trudging through snow in New Hampshire, manning phone booths in Iowa, putting up signs, and they will be disappointed."

"It's like having the lead actor drop out of a play on opening night," said one Texas activist. "We were planning a 'so long, thanks for the memories' fling, and this completely shocked us. I still don't know what to make of it."

So what's going on? Bush will be campaigning out of the state, but few believe the last-minute Bush pullout is a legitimate campaign-scheduling problem. According to some, this snub is an extension of the personal intra-party feuds that took place in 1996 over the delegate-selection process, during the tenure of former state leader Tom Pauken, sometimes identified as Bush's "least favorite Republican." Since Pauken's replacement, however, Bush has been on better terms with the party leadership, according to RNC member Tim Lambert.

"The delegate-selection process this cycle will certainly include the Governor's input," Lambert adds. "He'll definitely be able to add state officials or donors to the list."

Bush may just be avoiding any potential embarrassment from a convention that will be dominated by true-believing right-wingers. For instance, there have been rumors that a resolution may be offered on the floor calling on W. to choose a pro-life running mate, although conservative Texas insiders say they know of no such effort in the works.

Another explanation for Bush's actions, at least in the minds of some Texan social conservatives, is the possibility of a pre-convention protest by the often vocal Texas Log Cabin Republicans, who claim that the Texas GOP is barring them from having a booth on the convention floor.

According to Black, the gay-rights group failed properly to request such a booth until the spaces were already booked. "The last thing Bush wants right now is to have something like that take away from his current momentum," says another Texas Republican. "He's done a good job campaigning so far, and doesn't need the sort of press that would come along with a protest like that — it'd be nice to have him here, but it might be safer to just stay away."

For whatever reason, that's just what he'll be doing.