Four Days Down, 136 to Go

Lt. Gov. Dewhurst (l) and Speaker Straus: Who will wield the gavel more skillfully?

With the first week of the 81st Legislature gone, and legislators gaveled out for a few days, the analysis of the new legislative landscape had begun.

In the House, the MLK/inauguration break is probably good so that reporters and staffers can get used to saying "Speaker Joe Straus" (see our interview with the new House leader here.) Seriously, it's taking some getting used to, which speaks to the one-time invulnerability of former speaker Rep. Tom Craddick, R-Midland, and his conservative forces.

Senate is out until the 26th: probably a good thing, because it will allow a little time for tempers to cool down. The Texas Senate has always prided itself on being, for lack of a better term, the big kids' table. So when Lt. Gov David Dewhurst (in what may be the most confusing opening volley to an election campaign, if rumors of his senate or gubernatorial runs in 2010 are true), and Sens. Tommy Williams, R-The Woodlands, and Dan Patrick, R-Houston, decided to derail that Wednesday in the whole 2/3rds debate debacle, it didn't go unnoticed that the upper chamber was acting like, well, the House normally does.

Sunset Commission Chair Rep. Carl Isett, R-Lubbock, had a quick joke about this at the expense of the Senate members of his commissioners.

"As a House member who's used to working long hours on the floor," he told Sen. Craig Estes, R-Wichita Falls, "we empathize with you, and late in session, when y'all have long since vacated and we're still on the floor, I shall think fondly of this day." (Of course, since Isett and the other House members were waiting eight hours for Senate to finish up, he'd had time to craft a zinger.)

Who else noticed? Senators

Sen. Mario Gallegos, D-Houston, cast memories back to the chaos of the Craddick speakership when he said, "This body looked like the Texas House did two years ago. At least they cleaned their act up." Similarly, Sen. Judy Zaffirini, D-Laredo, noted that after 23 years under the dome, she never expected to have to say that the upper chamber should learn from the House.