Naked City

Texas Republicans last week attacked Rep. Patrick Rose in a series of radio ads, claiming the Dripping Springs Democrat "failed to execute his responsibilities on legislative business" while holed up in Oklahoma with 50 other House reps.

Rose and his comrades managed to thwart, at least for now, a last-minute GOP maneuver to secure House passage of a far-reaching congressional redistricting plan. The Republicans figure Rose is vulnerable because his district, made up of Hays, Blanco, and Caldwell counties, is fairly evenly split along party lines. (The thwarted GOP redistricting map would have split not only Austin but Rose's district -- and even the town of Lockhart -- into multiple congressional districts represented by faraway incumbents.) Similarly, the GOP took on Democratic Reps. John Mabry of Waco and Chuck Hopson of Jacksonville in radio ads.

The Texas Democratic Party responded with ads praising the courage of Rose, Mabry, and Hopson. Political media veteran Dean Rindy produced the radio ads entitled "Courage," which ran in each representative's market area. Rindy said he had worked closely with the "Ardmore 51" all week on issues relating to message and strategy. The radio ads, he said, "were symbolic if nothing else." Rose's ads ran on KVET-FM 98.1, KLBJ-AM 590, and KEYI-FM 103.1.

Scott Gillmore, general manager for LBJS Broadcasting Co., said his group ran ads for both political parties; each ad schedule ended last Friday. "We tried to provide fair access to both," he said. He would not disclose the cost of the buy because they didn't run as part of a political campaign. In a ceremony Monday on the steps of the Caldwell Co. Courthouse, local officials, including the county judge, sheriff, and Lockhart mayor, all lauded Rose for his action.