Toles’ cartoon of Senate candidate Christine O’Donnell in a bubble is a comment on her pulling out of scheduled appearances on last week’s Sunday morning talk shows. O’Donnell joins a long list of GOP candidates whose handlers keep them isolated from the public and the press. This happens because the candidates are gaffe-prone, inarticulate, or just plain crazy. Sharron Angle in Nevada, Rand Paul in Kentucky and of course Sarah Palin, no longer talk to reporters because when they tried they said ridiculous stuff that lost them votes. (Such as laboratory mice with human brains, headless bodies in the Arizona desert, Jim Crow laws being optional for the states) So they provide softball questions for friendly media sources to ask them, stick to their script, and only appear before hand-picked audiences.

Ever notice how when you hear Republican congressmen comment on issues, they all say the same things? Word for word? They call this “staying on message.” What they are really doing is regurgitating the latest talking points from GOP consultant Frank Luntz. Unfortunately, this works for them. They sell their candidates like cornflakes.

You don’t see this with the Democrats. It’s like Will Rogers said, “I don’t belong to any organized political party; I’m a Democrat.”

We have the same situation here in Texas, where Governor Perry has refused to debate his opponent Bill White. Perry has even declined to do the traditional meetings with the editorial boards of major newspapers. He speaks at tea party gatherings and twitters to his fan base, but you won’t see him taking questions about how he intends to square the $21 billion shortfall in the state budget.

Texas deserves better. Bill White is determined to put a stop to the wedge- issue politics practiced by our current governor. White has a record of reaching across party lines, of governing by consensus. He needs your vote, and Texas needs the honest and competent leadership he has demonstrated.