Vengeance is mine, sayeth the Speaker.

Yup, everyone feared that House speaker Tom Craddick would make the instigators of the failed coup against him pay come committee selection. It seems he’s making them sweat first: with announcements expected today, everyone was on tenterhooks to see who would hang. Instead, there’s only silence, as Tom makes everyone wait. So no committees today. Poor Patrick Rose: after all that Craddick-boosting during the speaker debate, the Dripping Springs DINO will have to wait to see what his reward will be.

Speaking of Patricks and committees: With all the hullabaloo about whether Tom would see his enemies list (i.e., those state reps who voted against him) in the House before picking committees, everyone ignored what’s been going on in the Senate. All their committee listings have been posted, and the big winner is Houston’s own Dan Patrick.

How big? Well, he has a seat on Education and its Higher Education Subcommittee, Health and Human Services, and Intergovernmental Relations. He’s also on the brand-new subcommittee on Flooding and Evacuations (which I guess to Dan means having state money to print a big sign saying “Katrina Refugees Go Home.”) And to top it all off, he’s vice-chair for International Relations and Trade.

Not bad for a freshman.

This article appears in January 19 • 2007.

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The Chronicle's first Culture Desk editor, Richard has reported on Austin's growing film production and appreciation scene for over a decade. A graduate of the universities of York, Stirling, and UT-Austin, a Rotten Tomatoes certified critic, and eight-time Best of Austin winner, he's currently at work on two books and a play.