Channelling Rodney King for the Runoffs

Two sides of the same coin worth calling out here:

Burnt Orange Report (in an otherwise agreeable post):

If Radnofsky loses the run-off and/or Maria Alvarado, a great woman but totally unqualified to go toe to toe experience-wise with Dewhurst, loses to Ben Z. Grant (at least a previously elected, tested, and credible candidate to average voters) Chris Bell's already challenging task to lead the ticket will become more and more difficult, hurting every campaign we care about down ballot.

Dos Centavos (in an otherwise agreeable post):

I still don't see what people see in Ben Grant. I've never seen a candidate get so many fans for simply having a 70s era photo of himself on a horse in front of the Capitol on his website. I guess different things impress different people. Not one damn issue on his website either. I'll reject the politics of yesteryear and keep supporting Maria Luisa Alvarado.

First, I've called out the cracks on Alvarado as "unqualified" as nothing short of borderline racism when offered by folks on the other side ... same rule applies here. She meets every qualification on the books. Simple as that. So knock it off. Instead of worrying that an Hispanic woman from Tarrant County might not be your preferred candidate for an upper-ticket race, try thinking about the notion of a Dem ballot with less demographic diversity than the GOP ballot.

Likewise, to Stace ... suggesting that one is choosing Grant on the basis of the fact that they like how he looks on a horse isn't too far removed from folks who presume that Alvarado's only in a runoff because folks thought her last name was of a similar origin to theirs. So, again ... knock it off.

Let's call this race what it is - one where little-to-no information has really been communicated by either side. And it's not like there's going to be any massive influx of cash to change that. It's deplorable that the contest is being narrated as it is. If there's an issue or two that really drives someone for either candidate, then great - let's hear it. Otherwise, knock off the grade school nonsense.

I'm not overly attached to either candidate - yes, Grant did at least serve as an elected official at some point in the past. But does Grant's service overwhelmingly drown out Alvarado's own background? I really don't see that case as being easy to make. Maybe if Grant were kicking around in the last decade or so and actually had some sort of working relationship with a single elected official other than his own legislators ... maybe. Vote however the heck you want, but do it intelligently. And if anyone wants to make a case for either, do it the same way.