Last week, the Williamson County Republicans demanded that Diana Maldonado, candidate for the Texas House, give back the money she recieved from Annie's List, a PAC that gets contributions from Fred Baron. Baron is the former John Edwards finance chair who admitted to paying hush money to keep the Edwards affair from going public.

The spectre of Fred Baron's now being brought into the US Senate race between Senator John Cornyn and challenger Rick Noriega. The Cornyn campaign wants Noriega to give the Baron money back, too. Here's the explanation:

Noriega unveiled his healthcare plan yesterday. The healthcare plan did not include anything about medical malpractice reform, and Cornyn's campaign says it knows why. Fred Baron. And other trial lawyers who opposed tort reform.

Baron, a Dallas based asbestos lawyer, and his wife Lisa Blue have given thousands to Noriega's cash-strapped campaign. They also held a fundraiser on June 16th at their Dallas mansion for Noriega so fellow trial lawyers could put additional dollars into Rick's campaign coffers.

Baron, trial lawyers and left-wing national bloggers are among the few who have shown any interest in Noriega's fledgling campaign. In exchange, Noriega apparently has agreed to turn a blind eye to medical malpractice liability reform.

"Baron and his trial lawyer buddies have bought and paid for" the Texas Democratic Party, according to Cornyn's spokesman, Kevin McLaughlin.

TDP Spokesman Hector Nieto responded to the charges, here's what he said, in part:

"Instead of resurrecting a non-issue like Fred Baron, why doesn't John Cornyn explain to the people of Texas why he voted six times against bipartisan legislation to expand the Children's Health Insurance Program? Every time a child goes to the emergency room because a parent couldn't afford quality healthcare, that parent can thank John Cornyn."

1 Comments

L.A. Piltz said:

I'd put my email in, but you don't say anywhere that it won't be published, which is my preference.

Why did you put Noriega's response as one little paragraph at the end of the posting? The minimal journalistic standards require that the answer to the featured Republican smear attack be given somewhere very near to the attack itself, preferably within the same paragraph.

Are you just sloppy or not just a very good writer or biased?

August 19, 2008 8:00 PM

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