Courtesy of khou.com:
Kinky Friedman hopes young votes will bring a win
08:45 AM CDT on Wednesday, October 4, 2006
By Greg Hurst / 11 News
It's a Tuesday night happy hour – usually not usually the best time to go asking for votes.
KHOU-TV
Kinky Friedman sees thousands of potential votes at college campuses such as the University of Houston's.
But Miller time is prime time for the Kinky caravan.
Independent gubernatorial candidate Kinky Friedman left the guitar at home, but he knows how to play to an audience.
And he's still writing his own music.
“We'll be here all night,” Friedman said. “I'll sign anything but bad legislation.”
It makes you wonder if the audience is here for the message, the moment or the memorabilia.
As for Friedman, he's worked this stage before -- as cool as cold beer on tap.
But afterward, he’s all about the issues.
"I don't mind being called a flip-flopper or racist, but I do mind being called a politician,” Friedman said.
Statements like that are kryptonite, for most candidates, but Kinky seems to embrace controversy.
“I'm not afraid to offend people. That's good!” he said.
When asked if he would ask for forgiveness, he said, “No, no. I'll take their request for an apology under review.
“It is b.s.,” Friedman said. “Everyone who knows me knows I'm not a racist. That's ridiculous.”
He said he didn’t know how many of people of color he had on his staff.
"I don't hire people anyway,” Friedman said. “That's a bogus question; I'm not going to answer that kind of question. It's a racist question.”
He's an independent candidate. At his Harris County campaign headquarters he's trying to rally the troops.
"Folks, we've been waiting 153 years for the feds to help us, and they're not coming,” Friedman said. “We have our own army. I want 10,000 Texas National Guard troops on the border, and I want ‘em now."
And he wants identification cards for immigrants working in Texas, with big fines for violators.
But beyond the issues, Friedman takes independence to a whole new level.
“We need people who are pirates; they have integrity, dignity and humanity,” Friedman said. “But they also steal, maim and murder. No, those are politicians. I think you got that flip-flopped around here. "
So the pirate picked up a first mate and went looking for treasure on college campuses.
Former Gov. Jesse Ventura was the first rebel to enlist young unregistered voters -- winning in Minnesota.
Friedman is hoping to ride that same rogue wave in Texas while talking about spending and the state budget.
“Suppose I'm right, and we have $12 billion in a budget surplus,” Friedman said. “And I think I am right.
“There's no reason we can't pay our teachers,” he said. “We play Mickey Mouse games with our teacher's Social Security; we don't help the cops, the firefighters, the nurses, the librarians, the veterans.”
On campuses like the University of Houston’s, Friedman sees 35,000 potential voters. At the University of Texas, more than 50,000, and he sees 45,000 at Texas A&M. With dozens of these visits planned for college campuses across the state, they're hoping that turns into hundreds of thousands of votes on election night.
James Lancaster is president of Coogs for Kinky.
“Change! It's going away from the paper or plastic, the Crips or the Bloods,” Lancaster said. “It's changing Texas."
“It was refreshing,” voter Christopher Shell said. “I don't agree with everything he has to say, but I think he's going to do the right thing for Texas."
So, at 61 years old it's back to school for Kinky Friedman. He’s not taking history and he’s not teaching it, but he's hoping to record a new chapter.
If he pulls off what some have thought was impossible, he would be the state's first independent governor since Sam Houston almost 150 years ago, and arguably its most controversial.
I dunno. I am still on the fence about Kinky. He still comes off as a bit eccentric but on the other hand, it is exactly this kind of Texas eccentricity that makes him different.
He ain't a typical candidate that's for sure.
