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Cannon Misfires on Traffic Offenses
Council Candidate Drew Five
Arrest Warrants in Five Years
by Rebecca LaFlure
© The Austin Bulldog 2012
Less than a week after entrepreneur Tina Cannon officially launched her campaign for City Council, The Austin Bulldog found that Cannon was issued five arrest warrants over the past five years for unpaid traffic tickets and failure to show proof of vehicle insurance.
Also, a company she co-founded was sued for trademark infringement last year. The lawsuit has since been dropped, and Cannon has paid all fines related to the traffic tickets.
Cannon is running against incumbent Bill Spelman, a public affairs professor at the University of Texas, and Dominic Chavez, an Army veteran and senior director for external relations at the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, for the Place 5 spot.
“I am not a perfect human being and not a perfect driver, but I try hard at both,” Cannon said. I have “no excuses on missing the initial payment and proof-of-coverage deadlines, all of which I have taken care of a good while ago.”
Background Investigation: Mike Martinez
Here’s What the Public Records Say About
the Council Member Running for Re-election
by Rebecca LaFlure
© The Austin Bulldog 2012
Posted Saturday, February 25, 2012 2:36pm
When Mike Martinez announced he would seek a third term on the Austin City Council, The Austin Bulldog went to work researching Martinez’s personal and political background.
As with prior investigations of Mayor Lee Leffingwell and Mayor Pro Tem Sheryl Cole, we used an organized plan to find, copy, and publish every public record we could find in an effort to educate citizens about their elected officials in the months leading to the May 2012 election.
We also read and compiled past news articles from The Austin Bulldog and other publications, and fact-checked statements elected officials made about their backgrounds.
Our research into Martinez painted a picture of an outspoken politician financially backed by well-connected donors who has gained a loyal following over the past six years and a vocal group of critics.
Tina Cannon Challenges Bill Spelman
Austin Entrepreneur Seeks to Bring a
Small Business Owner’s Voice to City Hall
by Rebecca LaFlure
© The Austin Bulldog 2012
Posted 5:56pm Monday, February 20, 2012
Tina Cannon emphasized her slogan, “fostering entrepreneurship in Austin,” last Friday, when she officially launched her campaign against incumbent Bill Spelman for the Place 5 Austin City Council seat.
Despite chilly winds and rainfall, about 30 supporters huddled under a covered patio outside Pour House Pub in North Austin as Cannon discussed her desire to bring a small business owner’s perspective to City Hall.
“I want us to put Austin back on the map as a leader in innovation and economic development and growth, and bring back transparency in city government that has been so absent at our City Hall,” said Cannon, noting that her friends and family have encouraged her to run for office over the years. “I’m really trying to lean on my background in business and entrepreneurship … and be a completely new voice.”
Here’s How the Mayor and Council Spent
Hard Fought, Heartfelt Charter Decision
Charter Revision Committee Votes 8-7
to Back 10-1 Plan for Council Elections
by Ken Martin
© The Austin Bulldog 2012
Former State Senator Gonzalo Barrientos knew things might get dicey at the final scheduled meeting of the 2012 Charter Revision Committee he chairs.
He brought in retired Travis County District Judge Bob Perkins, who sat on the 331st District Court bench for nearly three decades, to referee as parliamentarian, if need be.
It was a guaranteed evening of high drama given the scheduled final vote to decide what form of electoral system the committee would recommend to the Austin City Council. That vote culminated five months of public meetings in which the committee members listened to hundreds of citizens and heard the advice of several attorneys well versed in election law and compliance with the federal Voting Rights Act.
After voting 12-2 to recommend that a measure be put on the ballot to have an Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission draw council district lines should voters should approve some form of geographic representation—something voters nixed six times before between 1973 and 2002—the committee was at last ready to deal with what form of geographic representation to recommend.
During a sometimes heated and often passionate discussion that lasted nearly an hour, the deeply split committee was unable to reach a compromise.
The final vote was to recommend the 10-1 plan—in which 10 council members would be elected from geographic districts and only the mayor elected by all voters—passed 8-7.
The vote on a previous motion to recommend a 10-2-1 plan, where the mayor and two council members would be elected at large, failed 7-8.
There were calls for compromise that would unite the group and strengthen its recommendation for what the City Council should put on the ballot in November but in the end that was fruitless.
Committee members budged not one inch from the positions they had announced in previous public meetings.
Intense debate, no surrender
Investigative Reports
For more than a decade the Bulldog has published hard-hitting, in-depth investigative reports that have shaped civic discourse and public policy, resulted in criminal prosecutions, and enlightened voters about candidates' records. Here are a few samples of our work:
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The Austin Bulldog is the premiere investigative journalism outfit in Central Texas. Established in 2009, the Bulldog has become a trusted independent voice for government accountability, known for its incisive, in-depth coverage of local elections and local governments.
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Areas of Coverage
Austin City Manager: Dallas discard vs Austin retread
Are tax subsidies for luxury development legal?
Lame duck council set to vote on 20-year sweetheart tax deal for developer
Environmentalists assail plan for lakeside high rises
Urbanists vie to replace council member Kathie Tovo
First-ever opportunity to elect appraisal board members
District 10 Council candidates jump in early
Announcing the Government Accountability Project
Central Health launches search for new CEO
First-ever opportunity to elect appraisal board members
Announcing the Government Accountability Project
Project Connect
Lawmakers weigh axing Project Connect’s ‘blank check’ loophole
Project Connect scope drastically scaled back
Austin Transit Partnership gears up for key decisions on light rail design
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