Texas Dems

I came across this column in the Dallas Morning News:

Stranger Than Fiction Paperback romance is no campaign issue 12:00 AM CDT on Saturday, July 15, 2006

She stroked his skin, fascinated by the texture of the whiskers on his face. He felt totally masculine, irresistible. Her thumb gently touched his mouth, absorbing the softness of his lips. Her fingers tingled as heat raced up her arm.

Overwritten romance novel? Absolutely. Important campaign issue? Democrat Fred Head thinks so. For some reason, Mr. Head, who is running for Texas comptroller, is steamed that his Republican rival once wrote a somewhat racy, definitely cheesy, book titled A Perfect Match. Fred Head, who has a novel-worthy name himself, is trying to make Susan Combs' foray into fiction a central issue in his campaign. At the Texas Democratic convention, Mr. Head not-so-subtly suggested that Ms. Combs might have some sort of secret alter ego still churning out supermarket checkout-line paperbacks. The former Athens legislator hasn't raised any money for his campaign, but Mr. Head has taken the time to compile excerpts from Ms. Combs' 1990 novel, which he calls "a trashy, pornographic romance novel that glorifies premarital sex and seeks to arouse sexual interest." This isn't the first time that Ms. Combs, a Vassar-educated political veteran and current agriculture commissioner, has faced questions about fictional heroine Emily Brown and the gray-eyed spy named Ross Harding. Officials from her campaign, as they have in the past, are wisely dismissing questions about the book as irrelevant. To be fair, the book certainly isn't appropriate for all audiences, with its descriptions of lips sucking, chests rising and bodies bucking. But the novel is old news, and it has no bearing on which candidate should be comptroller. Texas' floundering Democratic Party is in need of a compelling message that will build credibility with voters. Rehashing romance novels won't do it. Mr. Head said he just wants Texans to be aware of his opponent's book. Mission accomplished, Mr. Head. Now, let's talk about the real issues.

Cheesy, yes. But did it sell? :) It seems that no matter where you go, Democrats are pretty much the same. Since they have nothing legitimate to say about the office they are running for, they dig up something totally irrelevant. Unfortunately for the voters, some people actually buy into their negative non issues. Have Mark, Jean, J.B. or Paul written any cheesy "novels"? :/