Tom Green County Judge Candidates Floyd and Easingwood Face Off for First Time

County Judge Steve Floyd and challenger Richard Easingwood, both running for Tom Green County Judge took center stage at the San Angelo Tea Party candidate forum held at the West Texas Training Center (WTTC) Tuesday evening.

Speaking to a packed house, neither Floyd nor Easingwood took jabs at the other. Instead, each used their allotted five-minute timeslots to introduce themselves to the people.

Judge Steve Floyd's 5-minte speech:

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Floyd spoke of the challenges that the county faces from mandates coming from Washington D.C. and Austin, the state capitol.  Floyd said that it’s hard to get too mad at Austin because he recognizes that the state government is working hard to be the buffer between the mandates handed down from the federal government that trickle through eventually to the county level.

“Approximately 65% of our budget is public safety,” Floyd said, as he recounted the recent grants from the state and federal level that the county has benefitted.

“I’m very conservative in nature, and the best chance we have of preserving quality of life comes from us,” Floyd said. I believe that I’m dedicated, and I’m qualified. And I’m committed to serving you,” he concluded.

Floyd was appointed judge by a unanimous vote for the Tom Green County Commissioners’ Court when Judge Mike Brown stepped down at the end of Nov. 2013. Prior to his selection as judge, he served as the County Commissioner for Precinct 2, and prior to that Floyd was a Justice of the Peace.

Easingwood began his speech recounting his 12 years experience as a county commissioner. “That’s 12 years of county budgets,” Easingwood said.

Here is Easingwood's presentation:

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Easingwood said that the next election is the preface to a “new book” for Tom Green County, not just a new chapter. He challenged the audience to talk to the county sheriff, Texas Department of Transportation, and various other agencies about the amount of change that is about to happen here. (Reporter’s note: Though he didn’t specify exactly the title of the “new book,” my conjecture is that he was talking about either the oil boom, or the water shortages. Easingwood has extensive experience on various water boards and commissions in the region).

Easingwood noted that he was a problem solver and a futuristic thinker ready to tackle challenges the county faces for the next era.

Speaking of his record as a commissioner, Easingwood took credit for saving the Texas Department of Corrections work camps for Tom Green County.

“Honesty, integrity. I have that. And as a county judge you need to be a statesman when you go to Austin, Texas; when you go to Washington D.C. or when you go to Mertzon, Texas to visit with another county commissioner… You need to know that you have a person on that council who will represent you in the best manner possible, to make us not only a just a good county, but a county that is looked up to by surrounding counties, because that’s what we are,” Easingwood concluded.

Easingwood served as a Tom Green County Commissioner and ran for county judge once before in 2010. He lost to then-Judge Mike Brown, earning only 36% of the vote.

Also speaking Tuesday evening were the candidates for County Treasurer. Incumbent Dianna Spieker stressed that she was “your” county treasurer and noted her careful stewardship of the county’s finances. “Tom Green County has the best credit rating it can have. And what that means to you is that should we ever need to borrow money, which we don’t, we’ll have the lowest interest rates anyone can get,” she said.  Spieker’s opponent, Lyleann McClellan Thee said that if she were elected, she would investigate a way to eliminate the county treasurer’s position and office to save money. “You won’t see an incumbent do that,” she said. Thee said that there are a number of other Texas counties, large and small, that has eliminated their treasurer’s post.

Other highlights:

Marine reservist Wade Brown, who is challenging Congressman Mike Conaway in the 11th Congressional District stressed that his primary reason for running for office was when he heard then-Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen say that the biggest national security threat to the United States was the national debt, now at $17.3 trillion, he said. Brown doesn’t believe Conaway has worked hard enough to reduce the national debt.

Shannon Thomason of Big Spring, who is challenging incumbent Drew Darby for the seat for District 72 of the Texas House of Representatives, said he would lead the charge to eliminate all property taxes and replace the lost revenue with a 10% state sales tax.

Congressman Conaway sent a letter in his absence expressing regrets. State Rep. Darby previously expressed regrets for not being able to attend at a Pachyderm meeting earlier this month.

Former San Angelo Tea Party President Terry Campbell has endorsed Easingwood over Floyd and McClellan Thee over Spieker. His editorial doing so is prominently displayed on the San Angelo Tea Party home page. Campbell's stated objection to Floyd is what he describes as backroom deals to schedule resignations to appoint rather than hold special elections to fill vacancies. Comissioners Rick Bacon, Bill Ford and Judge Steve Floyd were all appointed to their current positions following resignations of their elected predessessors. In Ford's case, his predessessor Yantis Green was indicted, convicted and is serving time in jail for using a Tom Green County Water Control and Improvement District No. 1 credit card for personal use.